New Gaming computer

[asmodian]

I decided after looking around not to pay somebody to build my computer this time, and am going to give it a go myself. I pretty much just went to alienware/cyberpower/origin and looked at what they offered and picked form there list of what I think I wanted. Just running a "sanity" check by you all to see if I have it all, or if this will even work.


Case: AZZA solano Full tower case
PSU: Cooler master silent pro Gold Series 800W
Mobo: Asus Sabertooth X58 LGA 1366
CPU: Intell i-960 bloomfield 3.2 Ghz
Cooling: Thermalright Venomous X-rt 120mm cpu cooler (Not sure I want to try liquid cooling, this seemed to be a good option that is not liquid)
Video: EVA Superclocked Geforce GTX 560 ti 1GB GDDR5
Memory: Corsair Dominator 12GB (6x2GB) DDR3 1866 Mhz
HD: WS 640GB 7.2k rpm
WiFi: Zonenet Zew1642S PCI fixed Antenna
Extras:
CD rom
Windows 7 Home full
Nzxt Sentry-2 Touchscreen fan controler (how hard is this for a do it yourselfer to set up?)

This all seems to come in at around 1,800$ I was informed that doing SLI would not be possible since I use 2 monitors, and they said SLI only supports using 1. The big bugdget items for this seem to be the 340$ in memory and 260$ in Video card. is this money well spent?

Thanks

 

[WR2]

Hello asmodian;

SLI Multi-monitor support
How soon do you want to build your system?
Is this for gaming? You can spend less and get a better performing system.

That $340 for RAM seems excessive. For $270 you could get 6GB RAM and a great SSD.
CORSAIR XMS3 6GB (3 x 2GB) DDR3 1600 CL8 $95
Corsair Performance 3 64GB SATA III SSD $175

 

[WR2]

An example of a Sandy Bridge Core i7-2600K & GTX 570 option:

Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) & CPU cooler combo $370
Thermaltake Frio CPU cooler
MSI P67A-GD65 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard & RAM combo $310
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) CL7
Corsair Performance 3 64GB SATA III SSD $175
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s HDD $65
Liteon 24x DVD Burner $20
EVGA SuperClocked GTX 570 (Fermi) 1280MB 320-bit GDDR5 Video Card $360 $30 rebate
XFX XXX Black Edition 850W 80+ SILVER Modular Power Supply $150 $30 rebate
AZZA Solano 1000 Full Tower Computer Case $120 $20 rebate
NZXT Sentry-2 5.25" Touch Screen fan controller $25
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit $100

$1695 before rebates ($80), tax & shipping

CPU performance comparison: Intel Core i7 965 Extreme - 3.2GHz vs Intel Core i7 2600K - 3.4GHz
i7-965 3.2Ghz used since the i7-960 3.2Ghz wasn't in the benchmark list.

 

[WR2]

TP-LINK TL-WN781ND 802.11b/g/n PCI Express Wireless Adapter $20 84% 4&5 'Egg' rating by NewEgg customers
I changed out the Zonet ZEW1642S wireless card $25 72% 4&5 'Egg' rating by NewEgg customers - choose either one you like best.

~$1715 w/ TP-LINK card

 

[asmodian]

used the full version of windows so that it is supported, spent almost 100$ more so both builds are about the same in cost. I am not sure of the MSI motherboard, I know ASUS motherboards are they comparable? or is 1 better than the other?

I really want to maximize this for video especially in World of Warcraft I want to play on ultra settings. Especially the graphics. I have used Dominator RAM in the past and been very happy with it, is it really that different than the rest of Corsair's memory? I don't mind spending 1,800 originally I had 3k budgeted but after reading the forums and doing research it seems the general consensus is spending more than 2,000$ on a gaming machine is kind of wasting money. So 2,000$ seems like a sweet spot to be at.

the other large difference between these 2 builds is the one I propose uses 12GB of memory, that is tri-channeled. If i understand what you linked here, you build one with 16GB of Dual channeled memory, is there a significant difference between the 2?

And you are using a SSD device at 64GB I suppose you are just installing the OS on this partition and then using the 1TB for games etc?

Is RAID 0 an option I should use over this.

How about the fact I don't have a 3 inch floppy? Do you need these anymore? I hate having to mess with them for bios and etc. . Or would I need it if I do RAID, load a raid driver or something?

I guess my big concern is the Memory comparison, is 16GB of dual channel 1600, better than 12GB of Tri channel 1866, specifically for video gaming.

Ack I just noticed you also have a 100$ extra Video card, is this card really that much better than the one I have selected. And I have no rush on this computer.

Thanks

 

[anthony1832]

I actually have some newbie questions on WR2's build.

1.) the Corsair Performance 3 64GB SATA III SSD $175, is that hard drive just for the OS?
2.) Can that MSI board do dual video cards? I usually look for LSI or Crossfire in the details and I don't see it.

I know these are really newb like questions, but im about to build my first computer and am not 100% familiar with everything yet.

 

[WR2]

Since you're not in a hurry you can wait for the Asus/GigaByte/Asrock MBs to get back in stock. Nothing wrong with the MSI board - its just the one that happens to be in stock ATM. The performance differences between boards is usually minor - the feature set/options is sometimes different.

I really want to maximize this for video especially in World of Warcraft

To maximize graphics performance its more important to maximize the graphics card than the system RAM. GTX 570 is a more powerful graphics card. And 8GB of RAM is more than necessary. Is a GTX 560 Ti adequate? Probably. Same for the GTX 460. And Core i5-2500K too for that matter.
World Of Warcraft: Cataclysm--Tom's Performance Guide

Twin channel or Tri channel, 1600 or 1833... the better CPU and graphics card makes a LOT more difference.
Taking the 12GB tri channel RAM option would net you a lower performance than the 8GB dual channel because of the better CPU/GPU.

 

[WR2]

These days a 4GB or 8GB USB thumb drive is far more handy than a 1.44MB floppy drive.
Neither the X58 Sabertooth or the P67 motherboards even have a PATA/IDE MB connector for a floppy.

A 64GB SSD boot drive would hold your OS (16-20GB) and about 25GB for a full WoW+BC+Wotlk+Cataclysm install with enough room for 4 or 5 of your most frequently used programs (depending of course on the size of the program). There are plenty of guides on how to optimize WoW for SSD. I have my OS slice down to ~12GB.
Another options would be going with one of the Sand Force 1200 SSD in a 90GB ($180) or 120GB ($210) option.

If you want to save some $$ and give up a bit of performance you could RAID0 a couple of 500GB HDD for about $100 vs $240 for the SSD/1TB HDD combo.

 

[WR2]

@ anthony1832;
1. See above
2. See the MSI P67A-GD65 (B3) webpage CFX/SLI supported.

 

[anthony1832]

Wow, so helpful!! Thanks so much. I'm about to order the computer you posted, the build is very similar to what I had in mind. A couple last questions though.

Since I am new to building computers, and overclocking, I have no intention on overclocking the computer until the warranties expire, because I don't want to void them. Will this computer run fine without me tweaking anything? Is there anything special I need to know when putting this thing together that is out of the ordinary?

Thanks again!

 

[WR2]

Will this computer run fine without me tweaking anything?
Is there anything special I need to know when putting this thing together that is out of the ordinary?

Yes it will.
And no there isn't anything special about doing this type of build.

 

[WR2]

Here is a Step-by-Step Guide to Building a PC

Look over the forum's "System won't boot" checklist to see some of the common build errors and how to avoid them.

-> The usual advice; read the manual / install guide; look at the parts, read the manual again and if everything makes sense and looks right - then go ahead with the install.

While you're waiting you can download the online version of the motherboard manual and start getting familiar with it. Same for the other parts you want to order if they have install guides or manuals available.

 

[WR2]

@ anthony1832;
Do you want to open your own topic and invite others to give you a 2nd or 3rd opinion?

 

[anthony1832]

Yes, I am going to do that. I didnt want to create another, new gaming PC post, but i guess i will.


Also, I think I am downgrading the processor to the i5-2500k to save a little money.

 

[WR2]

That was one of the recommendations I would have made.
If you have a specific budget goal in mind we can help you meet that.