Please review this build - $2500 budget

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chedderslam1976

chedderslam1976

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This build is for my soon to be brother in law. Please let me know what you guys think. Also, the cpu fan from the TH $2k build is out of stock can someone recommend another fan?

I just stuck in a 6870 for now; will probably go with one of the new cards being released tomorrow depending on how they benchmark. He actually wanted to sli two 460's to get "100 fps with everything maxed out"; I might have sold him on eyefinity, so I am recommending ATI.

$194.99 - GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

$279.99 - Crucial RealSSD C300 CTFDDAC128MAG-1G1CCA 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

$69.99 - SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

$135.98 - COOLER MASTER HAF 932 RC-932-KKN1-GP Black Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case

$294.99 - Intel Core i7-950 Bloomfield 3.06GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor BX80601950

$169.99 - CORSAIR HX Series CMPSU-850HX 850W ATX12V 2.3 / EPS12V 2.91 80 PLUS SILVER Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply

$89.99 - G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ

$139.99 - Microsoft Windows 7 Professional 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders - OEM

$129.99 - Logitech G35 USB 2.0 Connector Surround Sound Headset

$259.99 - XFX HD-687A-ZNBC Radeon HD 6870 Black Edition 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card with Eyefinity

$134.99 - Logitech MX 5500 Revolution Black Bluetooth Cordless Desktop Standard keyboard & Mouse Kit

$499.00 - Dell Ultrasharp 24" Monitor

$15.99 - ARCTIC COOLING Arctic Cooling MX-4 AC-MX4 All-Around Thermal Compound

$62.00 - Prolimatech Megahalems Rev.B CPU Cooler

$19.99 - ASUS Black 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 24X DVD Burner - Bulk - OEM

$2497.86







 
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chedderslam1976

chedderslam1976

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I was trying to build a decent base system with top end components, within budget. He can add another card later if needed. But really, I will probably go with recommending the new ATI cards coming out tomorrow.
 
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coldsleep

coldsleep

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A couple of thoughts:

The 128 GB C300 isn't the best value at the 120-128 GB range. You would be better off going with a SandForce 1200 drive, like this Agility 2 120 GB for $215. The read speeds are just about as fast, and writes are significantly faster than the C300.

Unless he really wants this before Christmas, I would recommend waiting until Sandy Bridge comes out in early January. With about a month to go, I don't see a good reason to buy now, unless it's absolutely required. Whether or not the price remains the same for i7s.

I would make sure to take a look at nVidia cards as well, especially if you know what games he plans on playing, to look up specific benchmarks. GTX 460s & 470s are competitive with the 6870s. Obviously no one knows for sure about GTX 580 vs. the new 69xx series, but it's something else to consider.

Why Win 7 Professional? Does he need to join a domain or need XP mode for something?

If you step down 1 inch to the Dell U2311H, it's still 1920x1080, but it's almost $200 less. (Even cheaper if you don't buy directly from Dell, in some places.)
 
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chedderslam1976

chedderslam1976

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I thought the C300 was the best choice if you had sata 6?
 
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coldsleep

coldsleep

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At 256 GB, the C300 is the best choice. At 128 GB, the C300 isn't the best. (I have one myself, and it's a fine drive, but the SF-1200 drives have similar/better performance for less.) Here's an Anandtech article about the C300's value compared to other drives.

Forgot to complete a thought in my original post. Whether or not the price remains the same for i7s, Sandy Bridge is supposed to offer similar/better performance than current i7s, so it should be worthwhile to at least see if you can go with the new tech there, rather than getting in on the end of the 1366 lifespan.
 
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coldsleep

coldsleep

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reaper2794

reaper2794

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1-anh

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I can almost agree completely with reaper2794, however if he wants a good pair of headphones for gaming/music don't even bother getting a gaming headset. They won't sound as good as a good pair of headphones. Also for the monitor, obviously the dell will cost more its an H-IPS panel monitor with better colour accuracy and better viewing angles than TN panel monitors which the one he suggested is. It is also more desired for gaming and general work with a 16:10 aspect resolution compared to a 16:9. Also who said logitech mice are bad? I've used both logitech and razer, and although both are good brands. I much prefer my 5 year old logitech G5 mouse that is still working.
 
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reaper2794

reaper2794

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Well if he really wants to pay that much extra for that monitor, that's up to him, but I think that beautiful Samsung would do just fine too I mean it's a 24" LED, and I dunno if the aspect res is such a big deal to him. If it is that's up to him.

Razer's headphones are amazing, and their flagship products are even better. You won't be disappointed. If he's gonna game, he's gonna want a headset not just headphones.

Logitech isn't "bad", I just wouldn't prefer them over Razer.
 
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chedderslam1976

chedderslam1976

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Hmm, I really looked around and tried to find a decent headset before settling on the G35. I have about $5k in my car stereo, and close to that at home. The g35's sound really good.

Same for the 5500 kb/mouse. I looked around and I chose those. I am just recommending them as I use them myself and really like them.

I do appreciate the additional input. I will look at Razer.
 
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reaper2794

reaper2794

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I'm a person who needs performance, looks AND affordability all in one, and Razer does a great job at that. Their products look exceptionally beautiful, the quality is great (gold plated USB connectors, braided cables, hard cases, non-slip finish, etc etc) and the prices are great. You can get the products for a much cheaper price on Amazon too. I have their Deathadder, Lycosa and m100|pro. I'm going to be getting the Carcharias soon. If I had a bigger budget I'd have even more of their products but that's in the future.

Check em out, they do a real good job, even the name of the brand itself is good, and even things like that really make me feel better about owning the product.

The Megalodon has 7.1 virtualized surround sound along with 2.1 surround sound on it btw :p
 
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