Ultimate Gaming Rig!

[PlusOne]

Hey guys!

First post, so sorry if I break the rules. I'm looking for a new gaming rig to follow the following guidelines:

Approximate Purchase Date: Probably in a year, but for the sake of my personal education let's say within 4 weeks.

Budget Range: I'm not super solid on a budget, but to avoid going broke: $5000

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, overclocking, engineering-based applications (Altium and the like), possibly photoshop

Parts Not Required: Mouse and keyboard, speakers (mine are a decent 5.1)

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg, Amazon, and any reputable site.

Country: USA

Parts Preferences: Intel CPU, Nvidia GPU (not as strict)

Overclocking: CPU, GPU, and RAM (I wanna push it to the max! )

SLI or Crossfire: Yes (probably 2 way, best card)

Monitor Resolution: A fine balance between high resolution and good response time

Additional Comments: I'm really trying to build a computer that will run games EXTREMELY well, allow me to tinker with any and all overclocking settings (I am a noob right now, but I will be safe and tinker slowly). I would like to liquid cool my CPU and GPU (and RAM, why not), but I haven't been able to find any great benchmarks on what to buy in this regard (any help would be extremely appreciated). I want a full tower case that will work with all of the above, and a boss mobo to keep the system upgradable for years to come. I know it is a very large budget for a novice, but I've always dreamed of having a really top of the line rig!

Help make my dream come true!

 

[PlusOne]

I apologize for putting this in homebuilt. Can I get this moved to new build? Thanks!

 

[nekulturny]

Your post is fine where it is. How close are you to a MicroCenter? They have great deals on Intel CPUs but they're in-store only specials.

A couple other notes.. As far as upgrading for years to come, Currently Intel is using the LGA1155 socket, next year they will be moving to the LGA1150, will not be compatible with 1155.. So,, the CPU you're buying today will be the final CPU for that motherboard, not to scare you off, this is quite typical. Intel uses a socket for a couple years and dumps it. Also, do you need Windows7 as well?

 

[PlusOne]

I am probably 50 miles from one, but I would be willing to make the drive if the deals are significant.

 

[nekulturny]

Alrite.. Gimme a few minutes, and I'll post back.

 

[nekulturny]

Changed my mind on the MicroCenter thing when I double checked your budget. The price difference for the CPU is decent, but MicroCenter is a miserable website to work with at least for me doing build recommendations. If you want you can check it out:

CPU- i7-2700K $309
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115095

Mobo- Asus Sabertooth Z77- $230
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131821&Tpk=sabertooth%20z77

Video Card- EVGA GTX 670- $420 (add a 2nd if you want, but this thing is a beast on its own)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130787

RAM- Corsair Vengeance 16GB- $120
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233246

Hard Drive- Seagate 3TB- $170
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148844

SSD- Primary boot- Crucial M4 256GB $215
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148443

Case- NZXT Phantom $120 (I have the black one with green trim- theres a few different ones to pick, watch out the 410s are mid towers, you want the full size tower if you want one of these)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&N=-1&isNodeId=1&Description=phantom&x=0&y=0

Power- Corsair TX850- $114 after mail in rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139022

Blue Ray Burner- $70
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106369&cm_sp=Cat_CD_%26%2347%3b_DVD_Burners_%26%2338%3b_Media-_-Featured-_-27-106-369

CPU watercooler- Corsair H100- $115
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835181017

Windows7- $140 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116992


Pretty powerful system if I do say so myself.

 

[mjmjpfaff]

Intel i7 3930k- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116492 590$

Asus P9X79 WS- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131798 380$

G.SKILL Ripjaws Z Series 16GB 1866mhz- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231539 150$

Asus DirectCU II GTX 670- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121637 x3=1,260$

Noctua NH-D14 SE2011- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608024 85$

SeaSonic Platinum-1000 1000W- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151105 260$

OCZ Vertex 4 256gb SSD- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147164 240$

Seagate Barracuda 3TB 7200 RPM 64MB- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148844 170$

LG Black 14X Blu-Ray Burner- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136249 125$

COOLER MASTER COSMOS II- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119252 300$

Dell UltraSharp U2412M- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824260047 x3=960$

Total=4520$

Water cooling is becoming more and more unneeded but still pretty dangerous so because of that I strongly recommend against water cooling.

 

[nekulturny]

True.. Although if one were to use an Ivy Bridge, I'd watercool, I generally stay with Sandy for Intel builders that are into overclocking because of how hot Ivy Bridge gets. Yes I recommended a Z77 mobo, but only because its a Sabertooth board. There are no Sabertooth Z68s (the only advantage Z77 has is PCI 3.0- benches have shown that 3.0 offers no advantage over 2.0)


As far as air cooling, if you decide to heed Iron man's advice, let me know and I'll recommend an air cooler.

 

[nekulturny]

BTW, there is a more extreme option you could consider for liquid cooling, btw I personally do not advise it, as these computers are a mess to work on, and furthermore it will void all of your warranties, but it is a solution nevertheless. Watercooling is dangerous due to the fact that it uses distilled water and there is risk with pipes bursting, and condensation.

No this is not a gimmick, it really does work:

http://www.pugetsystems.com/aquarium-computer.php

 

[PlusOne]

Thanks for the responses guys!

If I go OC'ing my GPU, will I need a better cooler on it if I go for air cooling, or will the stock air cooler be enough? I'm very unfamiliar with the subtle variations between everybody's take on the 670.

 

[nekulturny]

I *think* the stock cooler on the video card will be enough to push it as far as it will go before it becomes unstable. Honestly though, as powerful as GTX 670s are, I wouldn't really bother.

 

[mjmjpfaff]

BTW, there is a more extreme option you could consider for liquid cooling, btw I personally do not advise it, as these computers are a mess to work on, and furthermore it will void all of your warranties, but it is a solution nevertheless. Watercooling is dangerous due to the fact that it uses distilled water and there is risk with pipes bursting, and condensation.

No this is not a gimmick, it really does work:

http://www.pugetsystems.com/aquarium-computer.php

It does work but not very well. It is very messy and extremely hard to maintain

Thanks for the responses guys!

If I go OC'ing my GPU, will I need a better cooler on it if I go for air cooling, or will the stock air cooler be enough? I'm very unfamiliar with the subtle variations between everybody's take on the 670.

The GTX 670 that I posted has a great aftermarket cooler which allows for very high OC's. Here is a review of it. Techpowerup gave it a perfect score- http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/GeForce_GTX_670_Direct_Cu_II/

 

[nekulturny]

It does work but not very well. It is very messy and extremely hard to maintain

Hey, you got no argument from me on it. But it is a solution lol.