Final compatibility checks

[jtaskew91]

Hi there, I'm new here.

I'm new to computer builds, so I've been doing a lot of research lately on which parts I should buy. I have boiled it down to these components. If there are any compatibility issues or if I have chosen a low quality part could someone let me know asap! I'm planning on putting the order in this Sunday. Thx A lot!

Case: COOLER MASTER Elite 430 Mid-tower (chassis comes with two stock intake fans, should I buy more??)

Motherboard: ASUS P6X58D-E

CPU: Intel Core i7-950 Bloomfield (will stock cooler be sufficient? I am NOT going to overclock for a while)

RAM: CORSAIR XMS3 6GB (3 x 2GB) (is this compatible with MB?, Will I have to mess around in the BIOS??)

GPU: XFX HD-697A-CNFC Radeon HD 6970 (will this massive card fit in the elite 430 case??)

PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W

HDD: SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB

CD/DVD: ASUS DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS Black SATA 24X DVD Burner

Thx again!

 

[boiler1990]

Are you planning to game with this computer? If so, you're better off getting an i5-2500K and a P67 motherboard. You'll have to get dual channel RAM, but the i5 games better than any other CPU on the market.

The HD 6970 will work well with any system, so I would keep that.

 

[jtaskew91]

Yes, I am planning on tearing up some high end games. What makes the i5-2500k better than the i7-950? I am not planning on building a new pc for a while, so I want a board than can be easily upgraded and a cpu that will be good for overclocking? I thought triple channel was better for boards?

Oh, and what p67 motherboard would you recommend? My budget is around 200-250 dollars for a motherboard.

Thx for the help, Ive got almost no idea what I'm doing haha

 

[boiler1990]

The new architecture of the CPUs improves their performance drastically. The i5-2500K is also a superb OCer (unlocked multiplier).

The triple channel is "better" but you won't notice any performance differences. The triple channel memory is sort of a marketing hype.

I'd recommend one of Asus' P8P67 models, though there have been some reported issues with a few of them. Other solid brands are Gigabyte, ASRock, and MSI.

 

[boiler1990]

Here's a good comparison of the CPUs:
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4083/the-sandy-bridge-review-intel-core-i7-2600k-i5-2500k-core-i3-2100-tested/20

 

[jtaskew91]

Thanks a lot, your advice is going to increase my perforance and save me some $$$.

So does everything else look OK to you? Can you reccomend any cheap, reliable hdd? I dont need a lot of memory because i have a 2TB external hardrive.

 

[boiler1990]

Everything else looks fine; if you want to see a major increase in overall snappiness of your computer, I would invest in a SSD as well. Unfortunately, the new 3rd gen SSDs (OCZ Vertex 3, Intel 510) are a bit expensive, but you still won't go wrong with an "older" OCZ Vertex 2 or Intel X25. I have a Western Digital SiliconEdge Blue that is either a late first generation or early second generation, and I still boot in under 30 seconds.
I'd recommend getting a minimum of 64GB, so you can put the OS and either a game or two, or something like Microsoft Office on it.

I would stick with the Samsung F3 500GB or 1TB drives. WD has started making all of their drives SATA III compatible, but the platters aren't dense enough to make a speed difference; either way, WD hard drives have gone way up in price for no real reason. I have 2 Hitachi Deskstars (500GB and 1TB), and they're running just fine. I just don't recommend Seagate because they seem to have the highest failure rate (more than could be caused by shipping damage).

 

[JackNaylorPE]

Yes, I am planning on tearing up some high end games. What makes the i5-2500k better than the i7-950? I am not planning on building a new pc for a while, so I want a board than can be easily upgraded and a cpu that will be good for overclocking? I thought triple channel was better for boards?

Oh, and what p67 motherboard would you recommend? My budget is around 200-250 dollars for a motherboard.

Thx for the help, Ive got almost no idea what I'm doing haha

At that range, I'd go $9 more and get the Asus WS Revolution for full x16 x16 PCIiE Bandwidth:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/p67-gaming-3-way-sli-three-card-crossfire,2910-17.html
http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/3795/asus_p8p67_ws_revolution_intel_p67_express_motherboard/index13.html

The i5-2500k and the i7-2600k are the two real CPU choices.....the 2500k gets the best back for the buck category. Although, at stock speeds, the 2500k is only 0.1 GHz below the 2600k, on average, I see a 0.3 Ghz difference when OC'd. This quote is from an Asus Tech involved in testing the 2500k/2600k:

Expectations regarding K series overclocking in general and on ASUS P67 motherboardsPrior to the recommendations on overclocking the K series, I am outlining our results to set expectations.
The results below are based on the range of the CPU turbo multiplier when overclocking.
Results are representative of 100 D2 CPUs that were binned and tested for stability under load; these results will most likely represent retail CPUs.
1. Approximately 50% of CPUs can go up to 4.4~4.5 GHz
2. Approximately 40% of CPUs can go up to 4.6~4.7 GHz
3. Approximately 10% of CPUs can go up to 4.8~5 GHz (50+ multipliers are about 2% of this group)

GFX Cards - Guru3D uses the following games in their test suite, COD-MW, Bad Company 2, Dirt 2, Far Cry 2, Metro 2033, Dawn of Discovery, Crysis Warhead. Total fps (summing fps in each game) for the various options in parenthesis (single card / SL or CF) are tabulated below along with their cost in dollars per frame single card - CF or SLI:

6850 (371/634) $0.42 - $0.49
6950 (479/751) $0.51 - $0.65
6950 Frozr OC (484/759) $0.59 - $0.75
560 Ti (455/792) $0.53 - $0.61
6970 (526/825) $0.64 - $0.81
560 Ti - 900 Mhz (495/862) $0.48 - $0.56
570 (524/873) $0.64 - $0.77
580 (616/953) $0.81 - $1.05
6990 (762/903) $0.95 - $1.61
590 (881/982) $0.79 - $1.43

To my mind, best bang for the buck at 1920 x 1200 is a pair of 900MHz 560's which go for about $240 each.

Here's a build you might like,

Case - $70 - Antec 300 Illusion http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129066
PSU - $95 - XFX 750 W Core Edition PSU http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207009
MoBo - $395 - ASUS P8P67 Pro http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.622007
CPU - incl above - Intel Core i5-2500K
Cooler - $40 - Scythe SCMG 2100 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185142
TIM - $5 - Shin Etsu http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835150080
RAM - $84 - (2 x 4GB) Corsair CAS 9 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145324
GFX - $240 - Gigabyte GTX 560 Ti 900 Mhz http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125363
GFX - Later - Same
HD - $65 - Spinpoint F3 1TB 7200 rpm http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185
SSD - Later - OCZ Vertex 3 2.5" 120GB http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227706
DVD Writer - $22 - Asus 24X DRW-24B3L w/ LS http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204
OS - $100 - Win 7-64 Home Pre http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116754

Total $1116, + $300 for the SSD

 

[jtaskew91]

Best answer selected by jtaskew91.