High Gaming Build advice

[Fe1ix]

Approximate Purchase Date: 1 Week

Budget Range: £2000/$3150

System Usage: Gaming / Music Production

Location: South London, UK

Overclocking: Yes - later

SLI or Crossfire: Yes - later

Build:

Case: Fractal Design Define R4 – Pearl Black
PSU: Corsair HX1050
Cooling: Fractal Design Silent Series R2 140mm x2 (+ 2 Included)
Mobo: Asus Maximus V Formula
CPU: Intel i7 3770k @ 3.5GHz (Overclock to 4.2ish when needed)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium
Graphics: X1 Asus Geforce GTX 680 DC2T (May SLi later)
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2x8GB @ 1866MHz) (CMZ16GX3M2A1866C9)
HDD: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB
SSD: Samsung SSD 840 Pro 250GB
ODD: Samsung 24x SATA DVD Writer


Hi all i am seeking advice on a few issues i have with this build, any advice or help would be most appreciated before i commit to buy...

1.I know the Maximus V Formula is an E-ATX, the case i have chosen does not support E-ATX; although it is not a full size E-ATX and mounts like a regular ATX. I know this is going to be quite a tight fit, i don't mind this but will it effect the performance or temps?

I know this issue has been covered in the following thread but wanted to check that my preposed build would work with this,
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/355635-10-fractal-define-asus-maximus-formula

2. The case comes with 2x Fractal SS R2 fans so i decided to stick to that model across the whole case; i THINK 1 extra will suffice but will buy an extra just in case. Is this enough cooling along side the NH-D14 and 2 built in fans on my GPU? What do you think are the best locations for my fans in terms of intake,exhaust etc? Can you think of a better setup or different cooling products that would benefit me?

3. Will i have enough clearance with the NH-D14 and the type of Vengeance RAM i've picked? Is it worth getting the low profile model?(can't seem to find an equivalent spec low profile model).

Will my GPU also have clearance? as from the pictures iv'e seen the Asus GTX 680 CUII Top model is rather big.

Any suggestions are welcome;

Thanks!


**Edit** Apologies for bad grammar, thread title should be High End Gaming Build advice and i can't seem to edit the title, new here...

 

[alvine]

1. no you're fine
2. you have picked the best air cooler so you will have no problem with temps...just make sure to have a nice cable management so you can improve the airflow inside the case
3. can't tell as i dont own that heatsink

make sure to pickup 64 bit windows

 

[g-unit1111]

1.I know the Maximus V Formula is an E-ATX, the case i have chosen does not support E-ATX; although it is not a full size E-ATX and mounts like a regular ATX. I know this is going to be quite a tight fit, i don't mind this but will it effect the performance or temps?

You don't need to spend that much money on a motherboard anyways - you could get one that's 1/2 as much and it will still perform the same functions.

2. The case comes with 2x Fractal SS R2 fans so i decided to stick to that model across the whole case; i THINK 1 extra will suffice but will buy an extra just in case. Is this enough cooling along side the NH-D14 and 2 built in fans on my GPU? What do you think are the best locations for my fans in terms of intake,exhaust etc? Can you think of a better setup or different cooling products that would benefit me?

This guide will tell you everything you need to know: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/cooling-airflow-heatsink,3053.html

3. Will i have enough clearance with the NH-D14 and the type of Vengeance RAM i've picked? Is it worth getting the low profile model?(can't seem to find an equivalent spec low profile model).

Yes - definitely worth getting the low profile if you plan to use a D14.

make sure to pickup 64 bit windows

64-bit Windows if you're using more than 4GB RAM, 32 bit if you're using less than 4GB RAM. Pro if you're using over 16GB.

Here is what I would suggest on your budget. You don't really need a 1050W power supply. Get a really high quality 750W one - the one I'm suggesting is the NZXT Hale90 which is made by Super Flower - an OEM that's just as good if not better than Seasonic. This is one build where going X79 would actually be beneficial depending on what applications you use:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-3930K 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor (£443.99 @ Aria PC)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 SE2011 CPU Cooler (£59.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Motherboard: ASRock X79 Extreme6/GB ATX LGA2011 Motherboard (£222.48 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LP 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£135.59 @ Dabs)
Storage: Samsung Spinpoint F4 2TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive (£60.96 @ Dabs)
Storage: OCZ Vector Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£106.94 @ Scan.co.uk)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) (£299.99 @ Amazon UK)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) (£299.99 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Titanium Grey) ATX Mid Tower Case (£95.05 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: NZXT HALE 90 750W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£124.99 @ Overclockers.co.uk)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer (£12.98 @ Scan.co.uk)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) (£98.39 @ Aria PC)
Total: £1961.34
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-02-07 17:58 GMT+0000)

 

[Fe1ix]

1. no you're fine
2. you have picked the best air cooler so you will have no problem with temps...just make sure to have a nice cable management so you can improve the airflow inside the case
3. can't tell as i dont own that heatsink

make sure to pickup 64 bit windows

Thanks for your speedy alvine; i've checked the measurements of the ram against Noctua's info and the ram is too tall unless it sits away from the cooler - i don't know.

I think i will go for the 1600MHz low profile vengeance despite wanting the 1866MHz..

Thanks again