New build -- Estimated 2,000 USD max

[Deakon]

Heyoo

Well, I had planned on building a new system back in February/March, but due to some stuff coming up I had to put it off... And now I have a well-paying job, so I'm itching to spend the new cash!


Approximate Purchase Date: It'll be 6 weeks before I have the money.

Budget Range: 2,000 USD max, estimated. I'm not really sure of my exact budget.. 1,500-2,000 max definitely, though.

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, streaming while gaming, recording gameplay while streaming while gaming, editing music and video (possibly while gaming), general stuff.

Are you buying a monitor: No.

Parts to Upgrade: Everything except for monitors.

Do you need to buy OS: Yes.

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: No -real- preference. I've just always ordered off of Newegg because it's reliable, well-known, and has nice rebates and such.

Location: Northeastern Tennessee... Don't think there'll be any store deals

Parts Preferences: Again, no -real- preference. I'm looking for quality. Only preference I have is Intel CPU (I'm running an AMD right now; want to experience Intel).

Overclocking: Yes

SLI or Crossfire: Yes.

Your Monitor Resolution: 5760 x 1080 (3x 23" 1920x1080 already purchased)

Additional Comments: Ahh yes. I get to ramble now!

First, the GPU. I've always had Radeon cards. My first build used a 4850, and then I upgraded it to a 6870. I don't care which card I use based on the company -- I just want the quality. Using this article I've come up with getting 2x 7950's for the build. However, like I just said, that isn't solid. If the equivalent/similarly priced nvidia is better, I'll grab those. I just dunno which to go with (2x 7950 or 2x 580s).

Cooling-- I've always wanted to try out water cooling, and I feel like this build will be the one to do it in. I've read some "water cooling for beginners" stuff, but don't know what exactly to get or who to get it from. I also need a new case. I saw this video about the Fractal Design Define R4 that looked sweet, but I dunno what exactly to look for in a case for water cooling. Recommendations and reviews very welcome.

CPU-- I was looking at the Intel i7-2600k for my last build.. I dunno if that's still the best option, however, after the release of ivy bridge.

Drives-- I'm wanting to get an SSD (thinking about this one). Also want a new harddrive (I'm afraid this one is about to go through the stages of death). Not sure how large I need, though. Terabytes are pretty cheap now, so I'll probably grab a 2tb. Any recommendations?

Mobo-- I've never really known what to look for in a mobo. I just know not to skimp on them. Was looking at this one for my last build, but I'm thinking I could probably (and should) get a better mobo.

Miscellaneous-- I've never had a discrete sound card, so I was looking at this one. But that was for a lower budget. I'm gonna be doing music editing/production for bands and videos. Anyone have any opinions on sound cards?

Also, as far as RAM... I'm thinking 8gb should be enough, but I don't know if video editing would benefit from 16gb enough to warrant buying that much? I know RAM is cheap, but I'd like to not buy stuff just to say I have it. I also don't know the best speed to get for this build.

Peripherals-- My peripherals aren't really showing signs of wear, but with such a badass new system, why not get new badass peripherals? I'm currently running a Logitech G11 keyboard (waste of my money.. Never could get the macros to work in-game lol), and a Logitech MX Revolution mouse, with TurtleBeach PX 21's (another waste of money.. Less than a year of pampering them <never laid them on the ground, also laid them down gently> and they're shorting just like my first pair). I know there's a lot of Razer love/fanboy-ism, but I hear a lot of bad about their products, which seem overpriced. That doesn't mean I won't consider them, though.

I prefer wired keyboard + mouse. Never had wireless headset, so I don't know much about them. I'd prefer not to pay for stuff I won't use, like 12 extra buttons on my mouse like a Razer Naga (a couple are fine). I love my Revolution's second mouse wheel (acts as 3 different keystrokes), but I definitely do not need 12 extra keys.

I've been quite interested in a mechanical keyboard, as well, but do not really know which to look at.

Headset I'm not too sure on either. I'm sort of an audiophile (sound quality is important to me), so I don't know if I want to get a pair of non-gaming headphones and a separate microphone, or just get a really good gaming headset.

Finally, if the case I go for has a window, I prefer green lights (sick of blue for now ) and will be using green (or a color that goes with green) tubing for the watercooling... Any recommendations on where to pick up some lights (since no cases are stock with green ) and what brands (if any) to opt for?

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: I built this computer 4.5-5 years ago. It's starting to die and I'm wanting to really work on my hobbies/passions (music, professional gaming <go ahead and laugh >) which are being hindered by a failing system.


Sorry for rambling on so much. I just like being as clear as possible. If I've forgotten anything, please let me know and I'll add it in asap. Thanks for reading!

 

[cmcghee358]

Question. Is water cooling in the budget? And do you intend to do a part by part water cooling build? Will the graphics cards be in the water cooling loop?

 

[dingo07]

Not to be a thorn in your side, but if you take the time to read the tens if not hundreds of posts around here, you'll have all your answers because there's at least 30 people doing the same thing you are and asking the same questions...

 

[Deakon]

Question. Is water cooling in the budget? And do you intend to do a part by part water cooling build? Will the graphics cards be in the water cooling loop?

I'm honestly not sure if I should include the cooling in the budget. From looking at it prior, it seems like it adds a good bit of cost. That said, I'm allowing myself a couple hundred of wiggle room due to the cooling and other things.

As for the gpu's, I intend(ed) for them to be in the loop. However, I'm not 100% sure how I would do sli/xfire cards in a loop.

Not to be a thorn in your side, but if you take the time to read the tens if not hundreds of posts around here, you'll have all your answers because there's at least 30 people doing the same thing you are and asking the same questions...

No thorn at all. I understand where you're coming from. In fact, I did read quite a few similarly budgeted threads. However, they're almost all for gaming only. While I emphasize gaming, the video and music editing will be quite a large part of my load as well.

 

[dingo07]

...No thorn at all. I understand where you're coming from. In fact, I did read quite a few similarly budgeted threads. However, they're almost all for gaming only. While I emphasize gaming, the video and music editing will be quite a large part of my load as well.

The difference in performance of components doesn't vary that much, unless you are serious and want dead performance because time = money. All you need to have for the video/music stuff is a min of 16GB ram, for all intents and purposes you could build the same gaming rigs others are buildinig.

 

[Deakon]

Alright. I guess I'll just revisit some threads, and post up in water cooling forums maybe.

 

[g-unit1111]

First, the GPU. I've always had Radeon cards. My first build used a 4850, and then I upgraded it to a 6870. I don't care which card I use based on the company -- I just want the quality. Using this article I've come up with getting 2x 7950's for the build. However, like I just said, that isn't solid. If the equivalent/similarly priced nvidia is better, I'll grab those. I just dunno which to go with (2x 7950 or 2x 580s).

Why would you get 2 x 580 when you could get 2 x 670 or 680 and use 1/2 the power?

Cooling-- I've always wanted to try out water cooling, and I feel like this build will be the one to do it in. I've read some "water cooling for beginners" stuff, but don't know what exactly to get or who to get it from. I also need a new case. I saw this video about the Fractal Design Define R4 that looked sweet, but I dunno what exactly to look for in a case for water cooling. Recommendations and reviews very welcome.

This article will give you some good ideas: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/switch-810-cosmos-ii-strike-x-hurrican-2000,3151.html

Drives-- I'm wanting to get an SSD (thinking about this one). Also want a new harddrive (I'm afraid this one is about to go through the stages of death). Not sure how large I need, though. Terabytes are pretty cheap now, so I'll probably grab a 2tb. Any recommendations?

HD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152245
SSD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820249014

Finally, if the case I go for has a window, I prefer green lights (sick of blue for now ) and will be using green (or a color that goes with green) tubing for the watercooling... Any recommendations on where to pick up some lights (since no cases are stock with green ) and what brands (if any) to opt for?

I personally wouldn't spend the money on that kind of stuff - there's other things you can do that will benefit your system besides the lighting.

 

[Deakon]

First, the GPU. I've always had Radeon cards. My first build used a 4850, and then I upgraded it to a 6870. I don't care which card I use based on the company -- I just want the quality. Using this article I've come up with getting 2x 7950's for the build. However, like I just said, that isn't solid. If the equivalent/similarly priced nvidia is better, I'll grab those. I just dunno which to go with (2x 7950 or 2x 580s).

Why would you get 2 x 580 when you could get 2 x 670 or 680 and use 1/2 the power?

Well, that's why I made this thread... Get some different view points on things. I was just using the hierarchy chart to compare equal/similar cards of both Nvidia and Radeon. Though, after reading some more articles today I think I'm gonna run 2x 7950's.


Thanks for the other links as well. The case is gonna be a hard choice for me. haha

 

[Guest]

i7 is overkill. i5 if you don't need the hyperthreading.

 

[cmcghee358]

He needs hyperthreading. Did you not see all the multitasking and highly threaded apps he will be running?

 

[Deakon]

He needs hyperthreading. Did you not see all the multitasking and highly threaded apps he will be running?

Thanks for replying for me. I've been distracted from the thread by looking at hdd's, mobos, and cases.

Speaking of which, I don't even know what to look for in a mobo. I looked through the motherboard forums, and I've gathered that I should be getting a Z77. But That's about all I've gotten. Anyone willing to let me know what I should be looking for in the mobo? I'll link what I've put together so far at the end of this reply for compatibility comparisons.

For cases, I've pretty much decided on the Fractal Design Define XL, unless someone knows some bad juju on this case that I should know.


The build so far


All that's left to do is figure out how much wattage I need on my PSU and figure up what all I need to put my cooling system together. Looks like I'll be right at budget cap! Thanks for the responses guys!

 

[g-unit1111]

Thanks for replying for me. I've been distracted from the thread by looking at hdd's, mobos, and cases.

Speaking of which, I don't even know what to look for in a mobo. I looked through the motherboard forums, and I've gathered that I should be getting a Z77. But That's about all I've gotten. Anyone willing to let me know what I should be looking for in the mobo? I'll link what I've put together so far at the end of this reply for compatibility comparisons.

For cases, I've pretty much decided on the Fractal Design Define XL, unless someone knows some bad juju on this case that I should know.


The build so far


All that's left to do is figure out how much wattage I need on my PSU and figure up what all I need to put my cooling system together. Looks like I'll be right at budget cap! Thanks for the responses guys!

That Fractal Design case is pretty sweet. I would go for it. The only thing is it doesn't have top vents for a liquid radiator, you might want to check this out instead: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146089

For that system, I'd recommend this for your motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128545

You can drop the sound card, that's not needed. However, both of your 7950's have to be the exact same model due to VRAM frequencies and drivers.

 

[cmcghee358]

However, both of your 7950's have to be the exact same model due to VRAM frequencies and drivers.

Uh what?

 

[azeem40]

To CF/SLI, they have to have the same number of cores and same vRAM.

 

[cmcghee358]

That is an nVidia limitation. Since when is it an AMD limitation?

 

[Deakon]

That Fractal Design case is pretty sweet. I would go for it. The only thing is it doesn't have top vents for a liquid radiator, you might want to check this out instead: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146089

For that system, I'd recommend this for your motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128545

You can drop the sound card, that's not needed. However, both of your 7950's have to be the exact same model due to VRAM frequencies and drivers.

I originally saw two videos for the Fractal Design Define R4... the XL is the only full tower case they have, and is quite sexy itself.

Is the front fan area not a good spot for the radiator? I was considering doing what they did in their demo of the R4 and taking those fans out then mounting the radiator there. The airflow was a concern to me, but it has perforations for ventilation all down the side... So, I don't know.

Can you explain why that mobo? I see the z77, but what other features are what make it the mobo to get?

And, I know the sound card isn't necessary.. but I've never had a discrete sound card and want to see the difference in quality having one gives (hopefully a good, noticeable difference haha).

 

[g-unit1111]

Can you explain why that mobo? I see the z77, but what other features are what make it the mobo to get?

That motherboard is an upgrade from the one I have - it has a few nice extras like dual LAN, rapid start, GPU virtualization, 3-D BIOS, support for 32GB RAM, mSATA, lots of other cool stuff.

And, I know the sound card isn't necessary.. but I've never had a discrete sound card and want to see the difference in quality having one gives (hopefully a good, noticeable difference haha).

Unless you're like a hardcore audiophile you won't notice it.

That is an nVidia limitation. Since when is it an AMD limitation?

That's pretty much a universal limitation - I know for a fact it's an NVIDIA limitation because if it's not the exact same cores then it goes into PhysX mode instead of true SLI mode.

 

[cmcghee358]

That's pretty much a universal limitation - I know for a fact it's an NVIDIA limitation because if it's not the exact same cores then it goes into PhysX mode instead of true SLI mode.

Feel free to look at my sig.

I'm running a 5870 @ 850/1200

I'm also running both GPUs of my 5970 @ 725/1000

By looking at AMD's specifications for each:

5870 specs

5970 specs

You can clearly see a vast difference in Stream Processing Units, Texture Units, Z/Stencil ROP Units, and Color ROP Units. Even dividing the 5970s in half to account for dual GPUs.

I run my Trifire setup just fine. You can also find on this: Crossfire compatibility chart How obvious it is that different cards, with different specifications can function quite naturally in a Crossfire set up.

 

[Deakon]

Can you explain why that mobo? I see the z77, but what other features are what make it the mobo to get?

That motherboard is an upgrade from the one I have - it has a few nice extras like dual LAN, rapid start, GPU virtualization, 3-D BIOS, support for 32GB RAM, mSATA, lots of other cool stuff.

Ahh I see. So just a bunch of flair. Thanks for the recommendation, and explanation. I don't really need a bunch of whirlygigs for my mobo, so I think I'm gonna look at a couple others, but it seems most mobos just have a bunch of "cool factor" features. Seems sort of like a personal taste choice. But then again, I could be compleeetely wrong.

And, I know the sound card isn't necessary.. but I've never had a discrete sound card and want to see the difference in quality having one gives (hopefully a good, noticeable difference haha).

Unless you're like a hardcore audiophile you won't notice it.

I dunno if I'd call myself a hardcore audiophile, but I can tell differences in quality. And bad/lower quality annoys me greatly. :[ I'm also just generally interested in discrete sound cards.


Another question for everyone... MSATA ssd, or 6Gb/s ssd?

 

[cmcghee358]

I don't see any reason to get MSATA SSD on a desktop.

Stick to a SATA III SSD. I would avoid OCZ. They're stuff seems to have reliability issues.

 

[Deakon]

I don't see any reason to get MSATA SSD on a desktop.

I've had a couple people suggest getting it for a more solitary os/"important file" cache. *shrug* It sounded a little weird to me, so I thought I'd ask here to get more opinions.

I would avoid OCZ. They're stuff seems to have reliability issues.

I can actually sort of vouch for that statement. Have an OCZ psu. It died after 1-2 months of running my brand new build. It was a 900w, but they sent me back a 950w, which was cool I guess. haha

I'm also running some of their RAM.. I can't comment on its quality because I'm not an IT guy (my computer feels like it's headed to its deathbed soon and my uneducated guess is the cpu or ram are dying...). But I will say that it's 1333 MHz and never would run above 800 (I tried changing it in my bios a couple times and each time it prevented my computer from POSTing so I gave up).




New questions, again..

Back when I built my first system, DDR2 was the thing to get and 5 or 6 CAS was the prime. Looking at 8-16 GB DDR3 1600-2133 MHz RAM on Newegg is showing that the best CAS I can get is 7-8-8-24, with most being CAS 9 and a few being CAS 8.

What should I be looking at? I was going to compare prices of similar 8 and 16 GB kits, but now I've got to relearn about CAS timings I guess.


And lastly, for now, if I choose to put off building a WC loop right now, what heatsink(s) should I be looking at?

Thanks again guys.

 

[dingo07]

From what I understand, mSata was designed to give HDD's a boost, so-to-speak. With the advent of full SATA SSD's however, that doesn't provide any speed increase anymore.

You should try and get the highest number CAS you can (with that I mean the fastest, not the number literally). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAS_latency

Top 5 heatsinks - http://www.frostytech.com/top5heatsinks.cfm

 

[cmcghee358]

Dingo is mostly right. But with the advent of Sandy Bridge and Ivy Bridge, they actually see better performance with MHz rather than latency. So if you must choose between latency and speed, take speed.

But personally I'd stay at or above DDR3-1600 with a minimum of CAS 8. Utilize the formula in Dingo07's wiki link to calculate the actual speed of the RAM.

 

[Deakon]

From what I understand, mSata was designed to give HDD's a boost, so-to-speak. With the advent of full SATA SSD's however, that doesn't provide any speed increase anymore.

You should try and get the highest number CAS you can (with that I mean the fastest, not the number literally). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAS_latency

Top 5 heatsinks - http://www.frostytech.com/top5heatsinks.cfm

Thanks for the links!

Dingo is mostly right. But with the advent of Sandy Bridge and Ivy Bridge, they actually see better performance with MHz rather than latency. So if you must choose between latency and speed, take speed.

But personally I'd stay at or above DDR3-1600 with a minimum of CAS 8. Utilize the formula in Dingo07's wiki link to calculate the actual speed of the RAM.

This may be daft of me, but what formula?
And, what did sandy and ivy bridge do to shift emphasis onto the clock speed, rather than the CAS latency?

 

[cmcghee358]

I'm not sure architecturally what they did to shift it, as I'm not that smart. But benchmarks show a marked improvement in performance when clock speed is prioritized over latency.

Yeah his link doesn't have the formula, I'll dig it up real quick