An Approval before I check out

[autiophile420]

Ok, I had planned on an AMD FX 8150 build due to budget but with labor day deals I can get an i7 build for about $60 more, I have had to research an Intel build rather quickly since its kind of a last minute decision so here is what I am planning to do, is there anything on here that isn't going to work? Is it a good value? Will it perform well for DAW software and gaming?

I want ot get the intel i7-3770 (289.00 after promo code)
ASUS P8Z77-V LE (130.00 after rebate and promo code)
OCZ vertex 3 120gb ssd (74.99 after rebate)
XFX radeon 6950 2gb (169.00 after rebate +2 free games)
Ultra LSP750 750Watt PSU Lifetime Warranty (54.99 after rebate and promo codes)
G.SKILL Ripjaws Z Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2133 (PC3 17000)

I have a Visiontek 6950 2gb that I will crossfire with the XFX. I also have a Seagate 750GB hd I'll use as well. I alos plan to use my Thermaltake Matrix Case.

I can get everything for $875.98 incl tax and shipping (and I'll get another 60.00 Amex Gift card and 2 free games)
I also have an old Xion 630 watt psu would that be strong enough to run everything?

Thanks for any advice

 

[jmsellars1]

I think a decent 650W unit would be my minimum for that setup. Stick with the 750W in my opinion. All looks great and will suit you fine but if it was me, I'd switch out the PSU for a Seasonic and the RAM for 1600Mhz. OCZ's Sandforce drives seem to be hideously unreliable as well, I'd swap that Vertex 3 for something like a Crucial M4 or Samsung 830. Intel 330 is OK too.

 

[autiophile420]

why go with 1600 ram? what about Adata SP900 SSD drives?

 

[mocchan]

why go with 1600 ram? what about Adata SP900 SSD drives?

Anything higher than 1600Mhz isn't worth the price considering the small performance increase.

I also agree with jmsellars1 about the PSU, get a decent 650w unit from a reliable brand such as Corsair, Seasonic, Antec, XFX, PC Power & Cooling.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147163 Also for an SSD, this is what I would personally purchase at the moment. Very reasonable price considering the storage space, and it is VERY reliable.

 

[autiophile420]

In order for me to be able to afford the nicer PSU I would have to drop the ssd, Would it be worth it? And getting the 1600 ram is only 8 bucks less than the 2133 b/c of sales and promo codes is the speed not worth the few bucks? Thanks you guys I have never built my own pc before and ther is so much to learn so quickly, haha.

 

[mocchan]

In order for me to be able to afford the nicer PSU I would have to drop the ssd, Would it be worth it? And getting the 1600 ram is only 8 bucks less than the 2133 b/c of sales and promo codes is the speed not worth the few bucks? Thanks you guys I have never built my own pc before and ther is so much to learn so quickly, haha.

Drop the HD6950, get the HD7850, it's $30 more expensive, but the performance would be worthwhile. Also, swap out your PSU for a Corsair CX500V2, it should be a little cheaper than the unit you have listed.

Swap out your motherboard for the ASRock Extreme4 Z77, it's around $114 at the moment, so you should be able to save a few bucks there.

Actually, just to make things easier, here's a parts list.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($289.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 830 Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($96.49 @ B&H)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($212.55 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair 500W ATX12V Power Supply ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $794.00
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-09-02 18:48 EDT-0400)

Not sure what your budget is, or what parts you already have, but here's a reasonable list of parts that would make a nice upgrade

The Radeon HD7850 performs better/on par with the Radeon HD6970, so you know your money is well spent.

 

[autiophile420]

but can the 7870 crossfire with the 6950 I already have? And wouldn't it just work like another 6950 at that point? And you think 500W is enough to crossfire with.

 

[mocchan]

but can the 7870 crossfire with the 6950 I already have? And wouldn't it just work like another 6950 at that point? And you think 500W is enough to crossfire with.

I must have missed something in your first post, so you're looking to get another 6950 to Crossfire with? In that case, no, an HD7870/7850 will not Crossfire with an HD6950.

To be honest, if you're looking to Crossfire 6950's, you may want to consider at least a 850w PSU.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139022 - Something like this would suffice.

Also taking into consideration the budget, you may want to get an i5 3570k and just OC it to get more performance. It may be the better route to take due to limited budget.

 

[autiophile420]

How much of a difference will I see in this setup between the i7 vs i5? Because I have an hdd to get me buy until I could afford an ssd later on. But the processor isn't as cheap to replace later.

 

[mocchan]

From a gaming perspective, you will see little to no impact on performance between an i7 and an i5. Though, from a DAW perspective, you may see a little bit of a performance h it due to the lack of Hyperthreading on the i5.

Here's a CPU bench to show you how they perform. http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/287?vs=288

I understand that bench shows an i7 2600k vs an i5 2500k, but given Ivy Bridge is only 5% faster than Sandy, it's a VERY good representation of the 3770k and 3570k.

 

[autiophile420]

So I read up on the DAW I'll be using and it sounds like the i7 is only going to shorten my file conversions by about 5%. So if its not to big a difference in games then I'm going to do the 3570. I am not savvy enough to overclock so I dont see the need to spend the $30 on the 3570k. So how about this PC Power & Cooling PPCMK2S750 Silencer Mk II instead of the Ultra? http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=927377&pagenumber=1&RSort=1&csid=ITD&recordsPerPage=5&body=REVIEWS#CustomerReviewsBlock
Is the ASRock mobo reliable? My old Motherboard is an Asus and its been ticking for almost 6 yrs so it seems worth the 30 dollars more.

Also, Mocchan, I really appreciate your advice/time, thank you.

 

[mocchan]

So I read up on the DAW I'll be using and it sounds like the i7 is only going to shorten my file conversions by about 5%. So if its not to big a difference in games then I'm going to do the 3570. I am not savvy enough to overclock so I dont see the need to spend the $30 on the 3570k. So how about this PC Power & Cooling PPCMK2S750 Silencer Mk II instead of the Ultra? http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=927377&pagenumber=1&RSort=1&csid=ITD&recordsPerPage=5&body=REVIEWS#CustomerReviewsBlock
Is the ASRock mobo reliable? My old Motherboard is an Asus and its been ticking for almost 6 yrs so it seems worth the 30 dollars more.

Also, Mocchan, I really appreciate your advice/time, thank you.

The PC Power & Cooling unit you listed is VERY good! Great choice

Also, if you would prefer the ASUS due to the price difference, then go for it! They certainly do have their niches that make them worth the extra cost.

You're very welcome, btw

 

[autiophile420]

Hopefully I have only these last few questions. Do I need a Crossfire bridge to make the 6950's work on the ASUS P8Z77-V LE motherboard? If so the normal size or the large size? besides thermal compound and windows, do I need any special parts/software to build my pc?

 

[mocchan]

Hopefully I have only these last few questions. Do I need a Crossfire bridge to make the 6950's work on the ASUS P8Z77-V LE motherboard? If so the normal size or the large size? besides thermal compound and windows, do I need any special parts/software to build my pc?

My apologies, I didn't notice you were taking about the LE version of the ASUS board, if that's the case, and if I'm not too late (hopefully), I would choose the ASRock Extreme4 Z77, it's the better of the two boards for your use.

If I'm not mistaken, your GPU should come with a Crossfire bridge, if not your motherboard (maybe Mobo was SLI).

However putting those to the side, no, you don't need with any special equipment to build your rig. All you need is a screwdriver and something to quench your thirst Your components should come with everything you need.