What do you think of this build for gaming? Any suggestions?

[witches_jelly]

Hello a little while ago I started a thread asking for advice on building a new computer for gaming with a budget of $1,500. Well I think I'm almost done and would like some opinions on what I've put together. As is it comes out to about $142 over my planned budget(after tax and shipping), which I can live with. Any suggestions or concerns on how this can be improved upon without increasing the cost I'd love to hear.

I had a few questions. I plan on later on down the road going sli with the GTX 570, would a 750W psu be enough for 2 of the cards I selected? Also wanted some info on running an SSD for OS and games. My original plan was to use the Z68's SRT / SSD caching with a 64GB SSD but after being told that I'd get much better overall performance not using it for caching I went with a larger SSD. Now when I use this for my OS and programs what is the best way to make use of the 1 TB HDD? Just popping it in and dragging files into it like I do with my external? Or can it be set up with the SSD in a way that I won't have to worry about where my excess files are stored?

CPU: Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge

CPU cooler: Noctua NH-D14 Guessing this is likely over kill, open to suggestions.

MOBO: Asus P8Z68-V Pro

GPU: Gigabyte Super Overclock Series GV-N570SO-13I GeForce GTX 570

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1600

PSU: Corsair AX750

Case: Corsair 600T (white) (already purchased from Frys electronics for less then online )

HDD: Western Digital Black Caviar 1TB - Already owned

Soundcard: Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion - Already owned, carrying it over so I can continue to play my record player through my computer.

SSD: Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2CCA 128GB SATA III

DVD drive: Lite-On 24X DVD w/ lightscribe

 

[chillin15]

I like all of it. The D14 is one of the top ranked coolers. You can go with the hyper 212+ but D14 is another level above the D14. The thermalright Silver arrow is another great cooler which gives the d14 a run for its money.

 

[witches_jelly]

I like all of it. The D14 is one of the top ranked coolers. You can go with the hyper 212+ but D14 is another level above the D14. The thermalright Silver arrow is another great cooler which gives the d14 a run for its money.

Looking on Thermalrights website it doesn't list the 1155 as a supported socket type.

 

[chillin15]

it's supported

http://www.amazon.com/THERMALRIGHT-SILVER-ARROW-DUAL14CM-HEATSINK/dp/B003XRAKLQ

"Support Multiple-Platforms. Can be used on Socket 1366/1156/775 Platform, and AM2/AM3 Socket"

1156 uses the same cpu cooler socket as the 1155

 

[witches_jelly]

Oh ok I didn't know that. I'd assumed 1156 meant 1156 only, wasn't aware there was any sort of overlap. I'll give that cooler a more in depth look. I haven't decided if I want to spend that much on a cooler yet. It would definitely be nice to have a good one though. I live in an area that can get blistering hot during the summer and is still very warm most of the year (85 degree winter anyone?). My current PC has always run hot and seeing as I plan on learning to overclock with this new one I'd imagine a good cooler is a must.

 

[chillin15]

You can't go wrong with your initial choice of the d14.

Another great cooler is the thermaltake frio:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835106150

It doesn't cool as well as the d14 or the SA but it's still better than the most commonly used hyper 212+

 

[witches_jelly]

You can't go wrong with your initial choice of the d14.

Another great cooler is the thermaltake frio:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835106150

It doesn't cool as well as the d14 or the SA but it's still better than the most commonly used hyper 212+

Thanks for the info. I'm gonna have a look at some other options as well. As appealing as the Noctua is from a cooling stand point its pretty bad aesthetically I think. Especially since it would fill like half of my case's window. It would be a shame to hide the rest of the internal bits. Maybe I'll have a look at some of their smaller coolers as well.




Unrelated to coolers any body have any insight in regards to my question about SSD's?

 

[witches_jelly]

bump

 

[chillin15]

The u12 is a smaller cooler that also performs really well.

For your ssd question:

Yes - the best setup is to get a 120gb ssd (m4 crucial being the most reliable and cost effective option) and a 1tb HDD (Samsung spinpoint f3) as a storage drive. Keep the hdd unplugged during your boot and OS install and after you configure your ssd and install your OS, connect your hdd and windows 7 should auto detect the drive.

After it's setup, make sure your download directory is set to the HDD and not the ssd. make sure TRIM is enabled, etc.