High End Gaming/Modelling PC. Tell me what you think!

[doubletapthat]

So I revised this build after originally selecting a bulldozer CPU but I was slightly put off so changed to Intel.

I'd like some advice and criticism if necessary on the build. I start my job as an Engineer in a few weeks and will need CAD capability. I'm aiming for a high end gaming PC that will run all the latest and up and coming games at highest settings. It'd also be helpful if you could tell me where I could save money if necessary without sacrificing quality.

I chose the PSU because it had good reviews and also enough molex connections to accommodate the Antec 1200's six case fans. If there is any way of stringing the fans along one cable or using one outlet for multiple fans I would be grateful to know about it - obviously i'd still like the fans to run at full speed. I considered also upgrading and getting the dark rock advanced pro although i'm not sure if the size will affect my PC in any way more than the advanced? I would appreciate input on that.

System Usage: Gaming, 3D Modelling CAD systems, Photoshop

Overclocking: Wasn't planning to, but if you think its worth it let me know and I may consider buying the 3770K instead.

SPEC:

Note: All prices are from Scan.co.uk

Case: Antec 1200 - ~£130.00
CPU: Intel i7 3770 - £257.24
CPU Cooler: Be Quiet! Dark Rock Advanced BK014 - £39.90
RAM: Corsair 8GB XMS3 1333MHz DDR3 (2x4GB) - £39.36
Graphics Card: MSI Overclocked Radeon HD 7950 3GB - £293.75
Mobo: Asus P8Z77-V PRO - £153.32
PSU: OCZ ZT Modular PSU 750W - £80.10
HDD: Seagate 1TB Barracuda Green - £59.98
OS: Win 7 Home Premium 64Bit OEM - £71.64
Monitor: Asus 24" VS247H Slim Bezel LED Full HD Monitor - £150.29
Mouse: Cyborg RAT3 Gaming Mouse - £33.47
Keyboard: Cyborg V.7 Gaming Keyboard - £49.81

Total Price: £1365.10

 

[geekapproved]

Looks decent. I would go with DDR3-1600.

Is the SEagate Green 5400rpm? You want a 7200rpm drive.

 

[doubletapthat]

Looks decent. I would go with DDR3-1600.

Is the SEagate Green 5400rpm? You want a 7200rpm drive.

thanks i'll check out some 1600 RAM.

Yes it is - I shall change that too, thanks a bunch.

Do you think it would be worth downgrading to the i5 3570K and OC'ing it rather than paying the extra for an i7 3770K? I'm not sure how much of a difference the i7 would make over the i5?

 

[geraldfryjr]

If it were me I would stick with the sandy bridge if you are going to overclock either the 2600k or the 2700k.

Have you read Toms article on overclocking that CPU?

You haven't mentioned any cooling options,Water cooling is the way to go and I will never turn back.
I have a Corsair H100 and it is the bomb,Antec's 920 from what I have read performs nearly the same if you don't have the room for a dual fan radiator.

jer

 

[doubletapthat]

If it were me I would stick with the sandy bridge if you are going to overclock either the 2600k or the 2700k.

Have you read Toms article on overclocking that CPU?

You haven't mentioned any cooling options,Water cooling is the way to go and I will never turn back.
I have a Corsair H100 and it is the bomb,Antec's 920 from what I have read performs nearly the same if you don't have the room for a dual fan radiator.

jer

okay, may look into sandy bridge instead then.

I haven't yet but I will look into it - I've never OC'ed before so it'd all be new to me.

I was going to go with air cooling options but i'd also consider a closed loop liquid CPU cooler. thanks for the reccomendations.

 

[geraldfryjr]

I have a FX6100 and the temps started to go through the roof as I aproached 4.7 to 4.8 Ghz with the stock cooler I thought that I was gonna lose the chip.
When I got the H100 I was able to hit 5.1Ghz and my temps hovered around 61c to 63c and It was almost stable as I was pushing the voltages quite high at 1.62v.
So,now I have backed down abit at 4.88 to 4.95 at 1.35v and my temp rarely go above 45c to 50c and normally stay around 37c to 42c under a full load.
And when the load stops the temps fall almost instantly to ambient of 25c.
I backed it down from 4.95Ghz to 4.88Ghz do to the graphic driver locking up as it sits there idiling after a few days.
I don't know what is causing this but it seemed to help,But I am going to start tweaking it again and see if I can get the speed back up.
I wanted to get a 2700k but I got this package for a killer price from TD.
Then I added the cooler ,6870 and a ssd.

jer

 

[geekapproved]

Stay with Ivy, don't go Sandy. Your buying an locked processor, so obviously your not overclocking right? Even so, it will still overclock some.

Ivy overclocks fine, just a little hotter, however a Ivy at 4.2 is as fast as a Sandy at 4.5, and more efficient too. Only if your going for a 5ghz overclock would I recommend Sandy.

As far as i5/i7, not sure if modeling or CAD uses hyperthreading, I would imagine it does, but you would need to research that. Gaming does NOT use hyperthreading.

 

[geekapproved]

If it were me I would stick with the sandy bridge if you are going to overclock either the 2600k or the 2700k.

Have you read Toms article on overclocking that CPU?

He's buying a locked processor.

Have you read his post?

 

[geraldfryjr]

No ,Sorry I missed that, My bad ,I don't have all of the Ivy numbers memorized yet all I know is that intel done a stupid thing with there heat spreader.
I wanted to get an Ivy and it was at the time when they had just been realesed and I was not very impressed with the reports.
My main point to get across was to go with a water cooling system ,especially if he does chose to go with the Ivy.
I am not trying to sell one processor over the other.
There are many many more people than myself that is qualified to give that advice.

Cheers !!

jer

 

[azeem40]

At 4.2 GHz, he really does not need water cooling.

 

[geraldfryjr]

Stay with Ivy, don't go Sandy. Your buying an locked processor, so obviously your not overclocking right? Even so, it will still overclock some.

Ivy overclocks fine, just a little hotter, however a Ivy at 4.2 is as fast as a Sandy at 4.5, and more efficient too. Only if your going for a 5ghz overclock would I recommend Sandy.

As far as i5/i7, not sure if modeling or CAD uses hyperthreading, I would imagine it does, but you would need to research that. Gaming does NOT use hyperthreading.

"Only if your going for a 5ghz overclock would I recommend Sandy."

This was kinda my point !!


Jer

 

[doubletapthat]

Just to clarify guys, I have the locked i7 in there at the moment but on further investigation it seems like buying an unlocked i5 3570K and overclocking it seems like a better idea. I've never done it before though so is it really that hard?

Also, looked a bit into corsair liquid coolers like the H80 (H100 won't fit in the antec 1200 from what i've read). Would it be that much more effective than the dark rock advanced if i plan to overclock to just above 4GHz? Also, the corsair videos recommend setting it up as intake on the BACK of the case. This seems crazy as it would massively disrupt the airflow so would I see that much temp diff if i set it up as exhaust instead?

thanks guys.

 

[geekapproved]

"Only if your going for a 5ghz overclock would I recommend Sandy."

This was kinda my point !!


Jer

That would be valid point if he was overclocking, but he is buying a non K cpu, so that would be impossible, therefore your point is irrelevant.

I understand that your trying to get your 25 post belt today, but really, please stay on topic.

 

[geraldfryjr]

I don't think it will make alot of difference but maybe a degree or two I have mine mount on top of the case and it blows out.
I am using a NZXT Tempest 410 but I have the rear fan pointed in as well to feed cool are into the intake of the cooler that is top mounted.
Unless you have a lot of hard drives and have good airflow say from the front fans pushing into the case you should have much heat build up in side the case.
Depending on what graphics card system you are using this is where most of the heat will be from but As long as you have enough cool air coming in you should be okay.
You can always experiment by flipping the fans around should you find any heat build up in the case.
Remember heat rises even in a case with a good flow pattern.
If the cooler is directly underneath the power supply then it would be a good idea to have it push out of the case.
This way you won't have any recirculating air that will just keep getting warmer.
As far as all of the reports I have read the Antec920 performs better than the H80.
This maybe due to it having two fans as well but it performs on par with the H100 that is why I mention it as I had researched this very deeply before I made my choice.
I lucked out and it happened to be on sale when I got it!

On my ole' Opty 185 that is air cooled has a chimney for the CPU and it was recirculating hot air bad so I baffled it with some duct tape and lost like 4 to 6 degrees and I also had the rear fan blowing into the case to push the hot air away from the heatsink ,so I had to build a cold air duct out of a styrofoam meat tray in order to keep it from sucking in the hot air coming from out of the power supply and this made another 3 to 5 degree difference.
It is amazing what such a little change can do!
It was worse when I had the rear case fan blowing out.

If you have provisions for side fans this will help a lot and is where you will need to try different configurations in order to find out what is optimum.
Remember you will only determine what works best once you have to covers on it and watch what your temps are doing.

jer

 

[mace200200]

Definatly get 1600mhz ram or better! The 1333Mhz you have now will probably bottle neck that gpu quite a bit.

 

[geekapproved]

Definatly get 1600mhz ram or better! The 1333Mhz you have now will probably bottle neck that gpu quite a bit.

LOL

Where do these people come from?

 

[geraldfryjr]

No it is not hard to overclock but it can get tedious at times.
Read up on a few guides and step it up slowly and you will get the feel of where it's sweet spots are.
Test each step as you go.
Sometimes you will find it locking up and you will have to start over as one step can make you do this even though it booted.
Just take it slow and watch your temps.
Most of my experience has been with the old P4's and my Opty185 and FX-6100 and I have never burned out a chip yet although I have come close many times.
The AMD's are pretty hearty for sure.
They my not be as powerful clock for clock as an Intel but they do overclock like a bandit!

Good luck to you !!!

jer

 

[geraldfryjr]

LOL

Where do these people come from?

Ya, That is funny !!!!

 

[geekapproved]

He must of had too much beer and cheese.

 

[geraldfryjr]

Lmao !!!

 

[geraldfryjr]

That would be valid point if he was overclocking, but he is buying a non K cpu, so that would be impossible, therefore your point is irrelevant.

I understand that your trying to get your 25 post belt today, but really, please stay on topic.

I am not trying to get any kind of quota,
Sorry if I have gone off of any topics.
Just trying to give my best advice is all.


Cheers !!

Jer

 

[doubletapthat]

I don't think it will make alot of difference but maybe a degree or two I have mine mount on top of the case and it blows out.
I am using a NZXT Tempest 410 but I have the rear fan pointed in as well to feed cool are into the intake of the cooler that is top mounted.
Unless you have a lot of hard drives and have good airflow say from the front fans pushing into the case you should have much heat build up in side the case.
Depending on what graphics card system you are using this is where most of the heat will be from but As long as you have enough cool air coming in you should be okay.
You can always experiment by flipping the fans around should you find any heat build up in the case.
Remember heat rises even in a case with a good flow pattern.
If the cooler is directly underneath the power supply then it would be a good idea to have it push out of the case.
This way you won't have any recirculating air that will just keep getting warmer.
As far as all of the reports I have read the Antec920 performs better than the H80.
This maybe due to it having two fans as well but it performs on par with the H100 that is why I mention it as I had researched this very deeply before I made my choice.
I lucked out and it happened to be on sale when I got it!

On my ole' Opty 185 that is air cooled has a chimney for the CPU and it was recirculating hot air bad so I baffled it with some duct tape and lost like 4 to 6 degrees and I also had the rear fan blowing into the case to push the hot air away from the heatsink ,so I had to build a cold air duct out of a styrofoam meat tray in order to keep it from sucking in the hot air coming from out of the power supply and this made another 3 to 5 degree difference.
It is amazing what such a little change can do!
It was worse when I had the rear case fan blowing out.

If you have provisions for side fans this will help a lot and is where you will need to try different configurations in order to find out what is optimum.
Remember you will only determine what works best once you have to covers on it and watch what your temps are doing.

jer

thanks a lot for the detailed response it is much appreciated.
I guess i shall have a play around with different configurations and monitor temps carefully - especially if i start to oc.