Hello. I have been looking over the site and it has been most helpful as I have been researching my first build, so I signed up to get some more specific feedback on where I am at with my selections.
Approximate Purchase Date: Over the course of the next few weeks (Built by mid August).
Budget Range: $1500-$2500 Total
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Revit Architecture, 3ds Max (iRay/Mental Ray Rendering), Photoshop/Illustrator, Gaming, Movies, Internet
Parts Not Required: Looking for everything.
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg, Tigerdirect
Country of Origin: US
Parts Preferences: Intel CPU, Nvidia Graphics, Full Tower Case (For Future Expansion)
Overclocking: Yes (Once Learned)
SLI or Crossfire: Maybe, don't know too much about it.
Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080 I suppose
Additional Comments: Wanting parts to look as though they belong together (I.E. No random jumble of randomly colored parts or whatever), Cooling is important (may undergo long rendering times)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Currently Selected Parts: (Need advice on my selections, possible cost reductions, additions, changes, etc.)
CPU:
Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070
Motherboard:
ASUS P8Z68-V PRO LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131730
Case:
COOLER MASTER HAF X Blue Edition RC-942-KKN3 Black Steel / Plastic ATX Full Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119239
Power Supply:
PC Power and Cooling Silencer 910W High Performance 80PLUS Silver SLI CrossFire ready Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703022
Memory: (Maybe go for 12 - 16gb kit, not sure if necessary)
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL8D-8GBXM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231445
Hard Drive: (main storage drive)
HITACHI Deskstar 7K3000 HDS723015BLA642 (0F12114) 1.5TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145520
SSD: (fit operating system and programs, possibly need bigger?)
Crucial RealSSD C300 CTFDDAC064MAG-1G1 2.5" 64GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148357
Hard Disc Drive:
SONY Black 12X BD-R 2X BD-RE 8X DVD+R 5X DVD-RAM 8X BD-ROM 8MB Cache SATA Blu-ray Burner BWU-500S
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827118049
Graphics Card: (Need 3gb for Large iRay rendering, and lots of cooling)
ZOTAC AMP2! ZT-50104-10P GeForce GTX 580 (Fermi) 3072MB 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500201
Wireless Adapter:
ASUS PCE-N13 Wireless Adapter IEEE 802.11b/g/n PCI Express Up to 300Mbps Wireless Data Rates 64-bit/128-bit WEP, TKIP, and AES WI-Fi alliance WPA, WPA2
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833320048
CPU Cooler: (Possibly add in either a push or push pull fan system) - Clearance over Ram?
Prolimatech Megahalems Rev.B CPU Cooler
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835242001
Monitor:
Asus VE228H 21.5" Full HD HDMI LED BackLight LCD Monitor w/Speakers ASCR 10,000,000:1
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236100
Keyboard/Mouse Combo:
Logitech MK520 USB RF Wireless Ergonomic Desktop
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823126192
Windows 7: (64 bit, Home Premium or Ultimate)
This is where I am a bit fuzzy. I am wondering if there is any real need to go past Home premium. The only advantage that strikes me is no 16gb memory cap on ram (which I may not surpass anyway). Other features seem to be aimed more to businesses with data protection which may not be necessary. Also I am concerned about OEM vs Retail as I may want to upgrade and don't want to have to go through calling for reactivation (if possible) or forced to purchase a new license. A full version may be the route I take, depending on what anyone has to say about it since it is quite a bit more expensive.
Here are all the parts I have selected all of which could be changed depending on what more experienced people suggest. The current total is around $2,130.00 not including MIR's, Tax, Shipping, or the operating system which I will need to purchase. This number is making be a little uneasy, as it is near the top of my budget and would like to drop that lower if possible. I will be purchasing all the parts through the next few weeks to get ready for school and want it built by mid August. I will be going online everyday to check prices and any possible discounts as I want to try and knock down that number.
Sorry for the huge amount of information and I hope you have made it this far. I thank you all for your time and any help you can provide. I look forward to listening to everyone's advice, and making the best decisions for my first custom PC!
Thank you!
Approximate Purchase Date: Over the course of the next few weeks (Built by mid August).
Budget Range: $1500-$2500 Total
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Revit Architecture, 3ds Max (iRay/Mental Ray Rendering), Photoshop/Illustrator, Gaming, Movies, Internet
Parts Not Required: Looking for everything.
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg, Tigerdirect
Country of Origin: US
Parts Preferences: Intel CPU, Nvidia Graphics, Full Tower Case (For Future Expansion)
Overclocking: Yes (Once Learned)
SLI or Crossfire: Maybe, don't know too much about it.
Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080 I suppose
Additional Comments: Wanting parts to look as though they belong together (I.E. No random jumble of randomly colored parts or whatever), Cooling is important (may undergo long rendering times)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Currently Selected Parts: (Need advice on my selections, possible cost reductions, additions, changes, etc.)
CPU:
Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070
Motherboard:
ASUS P8Z68-V PRO LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131730
Case:
COOLER MASTER HAF X Blue Edition RC-942-KKN3 Black Steel / Plastic ATX Full Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119239
Power Supply:
PC Power and Cooling Silencer 910W High Performance 80PLUS Silver SLI CrossFire ready Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703022
Memory: (Maybe go for 12 - 16gb kit, not sure if necessary)
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL8D-8GBXM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231445
Hard Drive: (main storage drive)
HITACHI Deskstar 7K3000 HDS723015BLA642 (0F12114) 1.5TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145520
SSD: (fit operating system and programs, possibly need bigger?)
Crucial RealSSD C300 CTFDDAC064MAG-1G1 2.5" 64GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148357
Hard Disc Drive:
SONY Black 12X BD-R 2X BD-RE 8X DVD+R 5X DVD-RAM 8X BD-ROM 8MB Cache SATA Blu-ray Burner BWU-500S
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827118049
Graphics Card: (Need 3gb for Large iRay rendering, and lots of cooling)
ZOTAC AMP2! ZT-50104-10P GeForce GTX 580 (Fermi) 3072MB 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500201
Wireless Adapter:
ASUS PCE-N13 Wireless Adapter IEEE 802.11b/g/n PCI Express Up to 300Mbps Wireless Data Rates 64-bit/128-bit WEP, TKIP, and AES WI-Fi alliance WPA, WPA2
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833320048
CPU Cooler: (Possibly add in either a push or push pull fan system) - Clearance over Ram?
Prolimatech Megahalems Rev.B CPU Cooler
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835242001
Monitor:
Asus VE228H 21.5" Full HD HDMI LED BackLight LCD Monitor w/Speakers ASCR 10,000,000:1
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236100
Keyboard/Mouse Combo:
Logitech MK520 USB RF Wireless Ergonomic Desktop
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823126192
Windows 7: (64 bit, Home Premium or Ultimate)
This is where I am a bit fuzzy. I am wondering if there is any real need to go past Home premium. The only advantage that strikes me is no 16gb memory cap on ram (which I may not surpass anyway). Other features seem to be aimed more to businesses with data protection which may not be necessary. Also I am concerned about OEM vs Retail as I may want to upgrade and don't want to have to go through calling for reactivation (if possible) or forced to purchase a new license. A full version may be the route I take, depending on what anyone has to say about it since it is quite a bit more expensive.
Here are all the parts I have selected all of which could be changed depending on what more experienced people suggest. The current total is around $2,130.00 not including MIR's, Tax, Shipping, or the operating system which I will need to purchase. This number is making be a little uneasy, as it is near the top of my budget and would like to drop that lower if possible. I will be purchasing all the parts through the next few weeks to get ready for school and want it built by mid August. I will be going online everyday to check prices and any possible discounts as I want to try and knock down that number.
Sorry for the huge amount of information and I hope you have made it this far. I thank you all for your time and any help you can provide. I look forward to listening to everyone's advice, and making the best decisions for my first custom PC!
Thank you!