1st build, buying soon, one last question!

jaZ7

Honorable
Jul 23, 2012
7
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10,510
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/d2qB

CPU: - $230 - Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: - 0$ (I have) - corsair hydro
Motherboard: - $115 - ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard
Memory: - $56 - G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Hard Drive: - $105 - Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (RAID 1)
Hard Drive: - $105 - Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (RAID 1)
Hard Drive: - $125 - Crucial M4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (OS + games)
Video Card: - $400 - GIGABYTE GV-N670OC-2GD GeForce GTX 670 2GB (revised from EVGA 02G-P4-2670-KR GeForce GTX 670 2GB)
Case: - $45 - Antec Eleven Hundred ATX Full Tower Case
Power Supply: - $90 - PC Power & Cooling 750W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply
Optical Drive: - $19 - Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer
Monitor - 0$ (I have) - HP 2159m 1920x1080p
OS - $100 - Windows 64 bit
Total: ~$1350
Total sans SSD + 1 HDD: ~$1120 (http://pcpartpicker.com/p/d2rX)
-totals calculated w/ partspicker, above prices are estimates

EDIT last question; Cut the SDD and 1 HDD? 2HDDs, keep SSD?
In the interests of cutting costs I am considering killing some combo of HDDs/SSDs while I wait for prices to recover/drop due to the tsunami incident, the effects of which still seem to have inflated HDD prices. Further, waiting a year or two to add a same model HDD to my RAID 1 setup will improve reliability. What do you guys think? Will HDD/SSD prices go down? Go up? Is it worth it? If we predict no more than ~30$ savings or something similar, it doesn't seem necessary to me, because I'm going to eventually purchase the 2HDD 1SSD combo.

..

The above are what I believe to be quality products that I have invested a great deal of time researching; thus, I am confident they will serve my purposes for present and future exactly. However, I have run into a few simple hitches that betray my inexperience.

HDD-MOBO SATA port problem Answer; You can plug a SATA3 drive into a SATA2 port.
The extreme4 does not support SATA3 (6Gb/s) RAID without forcing the OS onto the RAID drives, but I want the SSD to be SATA3 and the OS. Are SATA3 HDDs backwards compatible with SATA2 (3Gb/s) ports? If so, should I use a SATA2 or SATA3 cable? If not, I'll have to unhappily purchase a shiftier SATA2 version of the caviar black HDD.

MOBO Cables? Answer; going with 2 HDDs and 1 SSD I need 2 more SATA cables, without 1 HDD/SSD I need no extra.
An article here indicates that the extreme4 will probably come with an SLI bridge and 2 sata cables, leaving me out 1 sata cable - which I can find - but what the heck connects the optical drive? Is the optical drive even connected? :??:

Memory Answer; looks good
I know nothing about memory companies/qualities/timings. I picked this memory because it was praised on some article here. I do not know if it will suit gaming, OC and engineering based applications. Thumbs up or thumbs down on the G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory?

Reducing Electricity Use/Heat Output/Extending Hardware Life; Undervolting and Underclocking Answer so far; undervolting; good underclocking; neutral
I expect I'll use this machine for less intense applications than the high wattage/performance CPU/GPU/PSU would imply. I have considered underclocking/undervolting the CPU/GPU/RAM (seeing as they're hot stuff right now) even when gaming to cut electrical costs/extend hardware lifetime, do you fellows find this advisable?

Downgrade the PSU? Answer; 750w for future overclocking and duo SLI.
600W is enough for this system at present based on an estimated Newegg PSU recommendation. I intend to use two GTX 670 cards in SLI in the far future - 2, 3, or even 4 years from now, depending on its performance and future demands. 750W will be required when I upgrade. Do you guys think it would be noticeably more cost-effective to go with a 600W PSU for now, and then later upgrade to 750W when I go for the SLI upgrade?
 

Shockattackr

Honorable
Jul 19, 2012
471
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10,810
OK to answer all your Questions

HDDMOBO one, you can Sata 2 cables but wont have the blazing speed of Sata3
Sata cables, your mobo will come with 2 Sata3 cables and you are left to fend for urself, you need another 2 cables to connect everything
Memory Thumbs up
the cpu only uses liek 95w or less, but why make your pc under preform
PSU - Keep it or goo with a 700,
 

jaZ7

Honorable
Jul 23, 2012
7
0
10,510

Thank you!
Mechanical drives can't physically spin fast enough to saturate a SATA2 port from what I read, so it's no performance dip for me. Optical drives connect via sata, good, good.
I would go with a 650W - that will run my specs w/ GTX 670 SLI, but I'm going to upgrade and overclock everything one day to death; going to want some power on hand for that :sol:

I feel very comfortable about this build. Only question now is whether or not to invest in a more efficient 750w PSU...
 
Get a 750W if you want to keep the possibility of dual SLI/Crossfire open. Get it from Corsair, Seasonic, XFX or Silverstone, make sure its 80+ Bronze or better and preferably modular. Make sure to read some reviews on it as well. You will be better off just getting a good 750W now. If a 600W costs $150 and a 750W is $200, getting a 600W now and upgrading later is $150 more expensive in the long run.

You can plug SATA3 devices into SATA2 ports, you just wont have the bandwidth SATA 3 provides.

You can undervolt your system to no loss of performance I know that. Underclocking will degrade performance though. This is actually a pretty good tutorial on how to undervolt. Just remember to stress the components you undervolt to make sure their stable.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97Bd66dfkXs&feature=plcp

Memory is good.

Get the Gigabyte or ASUS GTX670, the EVGA uses a reference cooler, which doesnt work as well and is loud.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125423

You can get the equivalent Seagate HDD for a bit less. They apparently perform a bit better as well.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148840
 

jaZ7

Honorable
Jul 23, 2012
7
0
10,510

I agree with you on the PSU, and mine is presently silver rated with 88% or greater efficiency guaranteed.

Yes, underclocking will degrade performance, but I will not need the performance of these components most of the time. As my demands increase, so will the clock speeds.

Thank you for the gigabyte suggestion, my rig is revised.

As for the HDD, I have been very careful about choosing an HDD. Seagate has a horrible reputation and terrible quality from what I can gather from research. The model you suggest they hardly trust themselves, giving it a 1 year warranty. The WD model above has a 5 year, so even if it's crap I am assured that it can be replaced. Additionally, my eventual RAID 1 setup will benefit from 5 year warranty drives and will have little problems with any HDD failures, so that they can be replaced as quickly as possible with little cost to myself.
 

jaZ7

Honorable
Jul 23, 2012
7
0
10,510
okay, can anyone help me decide the final question of whether or not to keep 2 HDDs +1 SSD, or just 1 SSD or just 1 HDD? I don't want to buy when the HDD market is crap; will waiting save me a bit of money?
 

Shockattackr

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Jul 19, 2012
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10,810
I dont see HDD prices dipping lower anytime soon, due to the Flooding of the Philipines in march of this year, so the production of Hard drives are slowly climbing back up. you can go 1 ssd and a hard drive, but make sure you have a back up image for your SSD.