sroberti

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Hello,

I am a first time builder looking for some advice on the build that I have planned. So here it goes:

CPU: Intel i5 3570K
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-D3H
GPU: Asus GTX670-DC2-2GD5
Case: Zalman Z11 Plus
Harddisk: Seagate Barracuda 7200 rpm 2TB
CPU fan: Scythe Mugen 3 PC Games Hardware Edition
RAM: Corsair Vengeance CML8GX3M2A1600C9 Low profile 8GB
Fan controller: Scythe Kaze Master Pro 5.25
Optical drive: LG GH24NS90
PSU: Seasonic M12II 620W
SSD: Samsung 830 series 256GB
Card reader: Akasa AK-ICR-14 USB 3.0

Any tips or recommendations you have for me?
Also I have a question, because it seems the GPU will take up two slots in the motherboard, but then they will run at PCI-E 8x instead of 16x. Will this be a problem; do I need to look for another video card?

Regards,
S. Roberti
 

ckholt83

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That build looks pretty good to me. As for your video card question, 'dual slot' just means that the card is so wide that it covers two expansion slots' worth of space. It still just plugs into a single PCI-E slot and will run at 16x.
 

sroberti

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I have no experience yet in overclocking, but with the quality computer I am trying to build I think it would be worthwhile to involve myself in in by reading about it and trying it. However, I will always be very careful with my computer so I wouldn't overclock too hard anyway.
 

sroberti

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I have another question about the case fans, because it seems some of them are powered by a molex connector, but will those work with the fan controller?
 
The GA-Z77X-D3H has a PCI-E 3.0 16x slot that will run at 16x, it's the 2 PCI-E 16x that will run at 8x & 4x respectively. The card is double wide so it uses 2 slots. If you put a 2nd VGA card in it will be in one of the 2.0 16x slots and run at 8x.
 

sroberti

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I thought about overclocking but I think I will not do it, because I don't want to shorten the lifetimes of the components and void their warranties and risk other damage to them.

In a review I read somewhere that 4 pin fans can be connected to the fan controller due to the special design of the plug, or something like that.
 

bennetinc

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I think it looks fine. My GTX 670 runs great. I get atleast 55 FPS on everything at Ultra. That's a solid build and will make you happy.
 

sroberti

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I have one more question, namely is there any thermal paste supplied with the cooler? I have seen paste included with some coolers but I am not sure about this one.