If you're considering the SLI option (my guess is you are otherwise you wouldn't have gone with the Deluxe motherboard), I'd bump the PSU up to the Corsair 850W for sure. My system regularly reaches the 750W mark while gaming (measured with an appliance load tester). The 570s are spec'd to run only 20W less than the 580s so even though the 1155 processor uses less power, you're system would be cutting it close to max capacity with a 750W psu. If you'll be doing any sort of OC'ing with 2 video cards, forget it. You'll need more power. The difference in price is $13:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139015

Also, consider the 8GB RAM kit for only $20 more:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231428

Other than that... Great build to start with and expand on later.
 
I'm not a huge fan of them, but the H50 or H70 could save you some space around the processor and RAM. The performance is by no means astounding, but the space savings and decreased stress on the motherboard are pluses.

If you decided to go with one, on the HAF 922, you'd have to go with the 2x120 fan option at the top of the case as one of the 120s would be occupied by the H50/70 rad and fans. You'd use one of the top fan spots so you could maintain the front to back airflow with a standard fan off the back. You'd still be able to have two standard exhaust fans (one off the back, one off the top), but the third exhaust fan position would be dedicated to the CPU.
 
The 922 case is good for swapping coolers in and out due to the cutout behind the CPU.

You could start with the cooler you mentioned or you could use a corsair H50 or H70. The advantage of using an H50 or H70 cooler on your CPU would be to save space around the CPU/RAM area of the motherboard. This type of cooler would also put less stress on your motherboard and the low profile and round shape will allow better airflow throughout your case. They'll definitely perform better than stock, but they aren't anything super. The other benefits I've mentioned are things to consider though. Are you familiar with these coolers at all?

Anyhow, the Noctua cooler, the H50, or the H70 will do a decent job for you to start. And like I said, the cutout behind the CPU portion of the motherboard on that case makes it really easy to swap out your CPU cooler so you can try different options when you start getting into OC'ing your system.
 

Ten98

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Jan 23, 2008
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The best CPU air-cooler is the Thermaltake Frio every time, and it's $12 cheaper than the Noctua. I'd be happy to recommend the Frio to anyone.

The Corsair H70 is a good, basic water cooling solution but perhaps overkill for someone not planning on overclocking - good man, overclocking is for chumps ;)

Also, get a better case. The Antec 900 is $9 more expensive, but is way ahead of the HAF 922 in terms of features, build quality and cooling.

Your build is great, however I think you've overspent in some areas that you really don't need to.

First, you have chosen a "Deluxe" motherboard, which is intended to allow you to run two graphics cards in SLI or Crossfire. It also has excellent Overclocking capacity

If you never intend to run two graphics cards, and have little interest in Overclocking, then you should go for a "Standard" motherboard, which would knock more than $100 off your build price. The GIGABYTE GA-P67A is an excellent quality, feature-rich board for $135, and is what I would recommend to anyone building a Sandy Bridge system.

Again, if you never intend to run two graphics cards, a 750W PSU is more than you will ever need. You have selected a "Gold Certified" PSU, which is intended for professional server machines, overkill for a gaming rig.

Personally, I would go for the more modest 750TX not the 750AX, it's $50 cheaper ($60 after rebate) and you will see literally no difference over the lifetime of the PC.

4GB ram is plenty for now, RAM is the easiest thing in the world to upgrade so you're better off waiting to see if you really need 8GB. Current benchmarks show virtually no real-world difference in games between 4GB and 8GB, the main reason you would want 8GB right now is for very large Photoshop images or Video editing.

I would select the Corsiar XMS3 4GB Ram kit rather than the G-Skill. The Corsair is cheaper, better quality, and doesn't have those stupid knobbly heatsinks as a marketing gimmick, this will knock $35 off the price.

The money you save by selecting more sensible components will allow you to include the big missing part from your build, the SSD.

I would not even consider building a new PC in 2011 without including some kind of SSD to run the OS from. You won't be getting anything like the maximum performance from your high end CPU and RAM if all they are doing is sitting around waiting for data from a mechanical hard drive.

Intel are pretty clear about why they entered the SSD market. Their objective was to create a drive fast enough for their CPUs to deliver a quality Windows experience. If it's good enough for Intel it should be good enough for you.

Intel's competition in the SSD marketplace forced OCZ to raise their game and deliver the truly epic Vertex series.The Vertex 2 120gb is $200, and is currently a very good option for your OS. However, the Vertex 3 comes out soon which will destroy every other SSD on the market. This will push down the cost of the Vertex 2 quite a bit.

Personally I would wait until the Vertex 3 comes out an use that as your system drive, or if you can't afford the 3, wait for the prices on the 2 to drop and buy that.
 

martinohansen

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Mar 27, 2011
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Yeah the SSD idea for the OS drive is a good idea and one I emplore, so if you can do it, do it. Get more than 40GB, though. I quickly learned, between Window 7 and virtual memory, you'll run out of 40GB pretty quickly. Plus, with SSDs, the bigger the drive, the better the performance. I put my apps on another drive and my data on yet another.

The 922 is a good case for many reasons, backplate cutout, drive bay flexibility, fan options, etc... It seems to offer a lot of modern case features most companies should consider using when building their cases.

The reason I mentioned the H50 and H70 is not so much for their performance (because they really aren't "all that" and from my own personal experience they cannot stand up to high levels of overclocking), but for the space savings on the motherboard, and to allow increased airflow through the case. You can get an H50 for USD$50 these days.

Are you going for looks with the CPU cooler? Is that why you're only considering the large air coolers?

Also, the XFX is a decent power supply as well. I prefer corsair when it comes to power. They also offer 7 years of warranty on the AX850.