Help with gaming/litecoin mining rig!

[ccs5t]

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($209.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LK ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($104.99 @ Microcenter)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($47.98 @ Amazon)
Storage: Sandisk Extreme 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($94.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card ($425.91 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 922 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($93.98 @ Newegg) Suggest a 750?
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224BB DVD/CD Writer ($17.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Monitor: Asus VS239H-P 23.0" Monitor ($169.99 @ Newegg)






So Far Im going with this set up. I think I need at least a 750w psu if I plan on getting 2 7970s in the future. Appreciate any tips or advice!

 

[Deleted member 217926]

Looks pretty good to me. I might change the SSD to a Samsung 840 or 840 Pro but that's about it.

You will need a good 750w PSU for 2 x 7970s. Not sure what your budget is but this is a great deal right now. Seasonic M12 750w for $85.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151107&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

The Rosewill Capstone for $110 moves you up to 80 Plus Gold.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182073&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

For $89 you can get a great 80 Plus Silver PC Power and Cooling Silencer MK II.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703027&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

Or if you want the best the Seasonic X 750 is $139.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151087&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

 

[ccs5t]

Looks pretty good to me. I might change the SSD to a Samsung 840 or 840 Pro but that's about it.

You will need a good 750w PSU for 2 x 7970s. Not sure what your budget is but this is a great deal right now. Seasonic M12 750w for $85.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151107&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

The Rosewill Capstone for $110 moves you up to 80 Plus Gold.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182073&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

For $89 you can get a great 80 Plus Silver PC Power and Cooling Silencer MK II.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703027&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

Or if you want the best the Seasonic X 750 is $139.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151087&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

THanks very much for the reply. Now im having trouble deciding which of those PSUs to choose lol. Dont know how much of a difference it makes?

Also why would you recommend the samsung ssd over the one i have selected? THANKS AGAIN!

 

[Deleted member 217926]

Samsung has the best reputation for reliability and they are the fastest ( 840 Pro ) drives on the market. The 250GB vanilla 840 can be found in the $160 price range on sale. In fact NCIX has it for $162.

http://us.ncix.com/products/?usaffiliateid=1000031504&sku=77211&vpn=MZ%2D7TD250BW&manufacture=Samsung%20Memory%20%26%20Storage&promoid=1371

I always recommend getting the largest SSD you can afford. If $160 will not fit in your budget the 120GB model is around $100. The 840 is slightly sower than the 840 pro but you will never tell a difference between the 2 even side by side.

I would go with the best PSU you can afford. If your budget allows for a Seasonic X then go for it. They are the best power supplies on the market. You can stay with 80 Plus Gold for a little less with the still very good Capstone and for $89 the PC Power and Cooling gets you 80 Plus Silver. Seasonic and PC Power and Cooling have 7 year warranties and the Rosewill has a 5 year.

If I was building an always on, high end multi GPU bitcoin mining rig I would go with the most stable highest quality power supply you can buy with the Seasonic X.

 

[Gammyduck]

Hello, may I advise you not to build a pc for gaming AND mining.
If you wish to mine, I advise that you dedicate a PC to that task, or rather an ASIC.
A PC made for both would return very little financially when you take electricity into account.

If you wish to purchase a PC for mining now, I recommend banking cheaper ATI graphics cards such as the 5830, and using cheaper parts such as CPU and ram.

 

[ccs5t]

Hello, may I advise you not to build a pc for gaming AND mining.
If you wish to mine, I advise that you dedicate a PC to that task, or rather an ASIC.
A PC made for both would return very little financially when you take electricity into account.

If you wish to purchase a PC for mining now, I recommend banking cheaper ATI graphics cards such as the 5830, and using cheaper parts such as CPU and ram.

Thanks for the reply the mining bit is mostly for research. I will most likely sell this computer off after a couple of months. I also get free electricity here.

 

[ccs5t]

Would this board be a better option if I plan on running 2 cards? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128552

 

[Deleted member 217926]

Would this board be a better option if I plan on running 2 cards? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128552

The Sniper is more for 3 and 4 graphics cards. It's overkill for a 2 card setup. Great board though.

 

[ccs5t]

Ok cool so I imagine my asus z77 board will be able to fit 2 sapphire 7970s?

 

[Deleted member 217926]

Yep. No problem there.

 

[cody206]

ASIC Miner blades are available at 0.39 BTC as we speak, which produce 10,700 MH/sec using about 80 watts. You would need about 15 Radeon 7970's to produce 10,500 MH/sec,which would consume between 3,500 and 4,00 watts with a cost of about $4,500 for the cards. Expect to spend another $2,000 in components to run this many cards.

Either of these setups would yield about $7/day at the current exchange rate of $830 USD.

You will lose money on GPU mining, no matter how high bitcoin goes. You will lose money with an ASICMiner blade at the current value, but could turn a profit on those if the value of bitcoin skyrockets to $10,000.

Don't believe me? Just punch your investment cost & electricity costs into some mining profitability calculators and play around with different bitcoin values. If you are a believer and expect bitcoin to become the standard currency, I won't try to talk you out of mining. Just do it with ASIC- it's seriously the only way.

With that said, ASIC will not work for Litecoin. Litecoin can only be mined with GPU's, though you will still not likely break even (unless the value follows bitcoin). If you're going to purchase two 7970's, you will get about 1400 MH/sec litecoin mining, which will produce about 1.0 LTC/day at current difficulty- although there will be a 7% increase in difficulty less than 2 days from now, and that trend will continue. In 1-2 weeks, you will likely be down to 0.75 LTC/day and down to 0.5 LTC easily within a month.

Current Difficulty 1486.12414801
Estimated Next Difficulty 1600 in 1d 9hr 7m 39s

The value of litecoin sits at around $11/LTC presently, but the value has followed bitcoin over the last 6-8 months and holds some potential.

If you want to mine with GPU's and hold bitcoin, you would actually show a higher profit by mining litecoin and exchanging for bitcoin directly.

Sorry if this post comes across negative. I'm a believer in the underlying ideas of crypto currencies and am only trying to give you the most profitable advice possible.

The best investment? Buy coins directly. You cannot argue with the math.

 

[Deleted member 217926]

That might have been useful back in April when this was posted