First time building a computer

[nico1451]

well this is my first time building a computer so i want to know if my build is ok before buying all.

motherboard : ASUS P8Z68-V LX
cpu : intel i7 2600k
ram : HyperX blu 8GB DDR3-1600 1.65v
hdd : Western Digital Caviar Black 500GB
vga : EVGA gtx 570 superclocked 1280mb
power supply : Thermaltake TR2 RX 750W Modular
case : Cooler Master HAF912 Mid Tower ATX

i am a beginner so i dont know very well if everything is compatible , my main purpose is gaming in a 27" monitor on 1920x1080 resolution with everything maxed out and having decent fps . is the gtx 570 ok or should i buy a gtx 580 ? also i heard something about 1.65v RAM and sandy bridge processors but i didnt fully understand it..

 

[jeremyp1979]

1.65v is probably on the high side for the ram, maybe try this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233180.

Also for gaming, you don't need anything higher than a 2500k.

With that resolution, the 570 should be able to play everything on high/ultra, but if you can afford a 580, why not ?

 

[nico1451]

so if i want to run battlefield 3 on ultra it will be better to buy a 2500k and a gtx 580 ? is the power supply ok ?

 

[jeremyp1979]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371049 would be a better power supply, made by Delta. As for being able to play better, yes, but only by about ~10%. If it's worth 150 dollars(which is the difference between EVGA reference 570 and reference 580) then go for it. It really depends on whether or not you want to spend the money for the performance increase.

 

[nico1451]

i changed the power supply and the ram for the ones you told me . about the 2500k vs the 2600k , will i notice any difference if im using other apps like web browsing or photoshop ? also , is the EVGA version of the 580 the best ?
im building this to last at least for the next 3 years so i dont mind spending a little more money..

 

[jeremyp1979]

No you won't notice a difference in everyday computing going from the 2600 to the 2500. You would notice a difference(Though not a big one) zipping/unzipping files, encoding video, and other things of that nature.

EVGA is the reference maker for nVidia cards. They basically don't make much more than the exact models that nVidia releases. One of the great things about EVGA is their step up program, which is as good as gold right now. The 6 series GPU are rumored to be coming out next month, and the Step-Up program lets you trade in your card for the newest if it comes out within 90 days of your purchase with just paying the difference in the price of the cards, there are also model restrictions for this. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130587 is the 580 model that can be used for step up, and also has a lifetime warranty.

Edited to fix a broken link

 

[nico1451]

i dont think i'll be able to do the step up program since i dont live in the USA , so is it still the best option ?

 

[jeremyp1979]

EVGA Step-Up is currently only available to residents of the United States (not including outlying territories), Canada and EU Countries.

I'd personally still go with EVGA, dont know how many other companies give a lifetime warranty on vid cards, though i think XFX does on some.

 

[JackNaylorPE]

Two of these will give ya 40% more fps than the single 580 and cheaper to boot.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&N=100006654&isNodeId=1&Description=900Mhz+560+Ti&x=0&y=0

Personally, I use the Asus models because of the 7 phase VRM and great coolers.....I have spent too much of my time on the phone and at the UPS store sending returns to and trying to get EVGA to honor their warranty.

Your MoBo does not support SLI/CF ...

P8P67 Pro http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131771
P8Z68 Pro http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131790

As it says here if someone is trying to tell you that 1.65v is no good for Sandybridge, "If someone tries to tell you that you must have 1.5v modules, then they are either trying to sell them to you, or they have been reading misinformation, or both! "

http://www.clunk.org.uk/forums/overclocking/39184-p67-sandy-bridge-overclocking-guide-beginners.html

Id go with an 850 watter if you using anything up to twin 570's. XFX Core Edition gets a 9.5 jonnyguru rating for $90 and the HX850 gets a 10.0 @ $160

 

[jeremyp1979]

For specifics on the ram voltage look here http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/298609-30-voltage-sandy-bridge

As for using SLI, 2 gtx 560 ti's would be faster than a single 580, but why keep yourself from having the option of adding a second card down the road to upgrade your performance?

 

[dish_moose]

Sure 1.65 will work - but like OC the CPU, 1.65 is above the design spec. Will they work - likely. Why not get 1.5v RAM - they work perfectly well, use less power, generate less heat and are what SBs are designed to use.
-Bruce

 

[jeremyp1979]

Also, the general rule of thumb is 1card>2. A gtx 580 will handle anything you card to throw at it with everything turned up, unless you get into 2-3 monitor setups.

 

[nico1451]

JackNaylorPE :
Two of these will give ya 40% more fps than the single 580 and cheaper to boot.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] Ti&x=0&y=0

Personally, I use the Asus models because of the 7 phase VRM and great coolers.....I have spent too much of my time on the phone and at the UPS store sending returns to and trying to get EVGA to honor their warranty.

Your MoBo does not support SLI/CF ...

P8P67 Pro http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131771
P8Z68 Pro http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131790

As it says here if someone is trying to tell you that 1.65v is no good for Sandybridge, "If someone tries to tell you that you must have 1.5v modules, then they are either trying to sell them to you, or they have been reading misinformation, or both! "

http://www.clunk.org.uk/forums/ove [...] nners.html

Id go with an 850 watter if you using anything up to twin 570's. XFX Core Edition gets a 9.5 jonnyguru rating for $90 and the HX850 gets a 10.0 @ $160

i think i'll go with the gtx 580 so when the price lowers i have a chance of buying another one in the future. i think i'll have to change the motherboard and the psu again.

ill take a look at the guide ,im sure itll help me a lot

jeremyp1979 :
For specifics on the ram voltage look here http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/ [...] ndy-bridge

As for using SLI, 2 gtx 560 ti's would be faster than a single 580, but why keep yourself from having the option of adding a second card down the road to upgrade your performance?

that's exactly what i thought..

dish_moose :
Sure 1.65 will work - but like OC the CPU, 1.65 is above the design spec. Will they work - likely. Why not get 1.5v RAM - they work perfectly well, use less power, generate less heat and are what SBs are designed to use.
-Bruce

i have changed the ram for the corsair vengeance , which are 1.5v

jeremyp1979:
Also, the general rule of thumb is 1card>2. A gtx 580 will handle anything you card to throw at it with everything turned up, unless you get into 2-3 monitor setups.

im only playing in one monitor , but with all maxed out ,so it should be fine shouldnt it ?

thank you all very much you are being of great help

 

[jeremyp1979]

With a single monitor, a gtx 580 will be able to handle anything you want to throw at it.

 

[nico1451]

well , now that i have changed all the things you told me my build is like this


motherboard : ASUS P8Z68-V PRO
cpu : intel i7 2500k
ram : Vengeance Series 8GB DDR3-1600 1.5v
hdd : Western Digital Caviar Black 500GB
vga : EVGA gtx 580
power supply : XFX Core Edition PRO850W
case : Cooler Master HAF912 Mid Tower ATX

= US$1255

 

[jeremyp1979]

Looks like a great build. System should be a beast when ya get it done.Don't forget to add a dvd drive and windows if ya need it.

 

[nico1451]

One last question and i wont bother you anymore.. Will the psu be enough when i change to two gtx 580 in SLI?

 

[jeremyp1979]

http://extreme.outervision.com/PSUEngine says 600w for 2 gtx 580's, without any overclocking, so the xfx 850 should be plenty. You can visit the link and put your info in if ya want, i left out dvd and case fans and things of that nature, but they shouldnt make a huge difference.

Edit: Checked it with the Newegg PSU calculator and the Asus PSU calculator, they both said about 890. Looking at PSU's now.

 

[nico1451]

Ok dont worry ill look for myself later . I think thats all for now thank you very much too all of you , you have been of great help!

 

[jeremyp1979]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703022 This power supply should work great. It's a rebranded seasonic model, so it's top of the line. Gtx 580 should use about 360w under full load, x2 would be 720, which would leave 200w to run a 95 watt processor, hard drives, and case fans, which should be plenty, and there wont be many times you'll have 2 gtx 580's under full load. Now if you want to give yourself more breathing room, the power supplies start getting really expensive when they go over the 1k mark. Something like the http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151110 would be ideal, but its over 200 bucks.
So... the 910 should push them both, but wont give you as much head room, the 1050 would be better, and is also 80+ gold certified and modular, but at a price of 220 bucks.

 

[Petrofsky]

One last question and i wont bother you anymore.. Will the psu be enough when i change to two gtx 580 in SLI?

Nvidia has a chart showing which power supplies they recommend for each SLI configuration. For two 580s, 900W seems to be minimum. I would believe them.

 

[nico1451]

well , i think ill go with the antec gamer 750W for now , and when i decide to do SLI i'll sell the psu and buy another one

 

[jeremyp1979]

Good choice

 

[nico1451]

Thank you for your help