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System Builder Marathon, December 2010: $2000 PC

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With all of your feedback from last quarter's System Builder Marathon under our belts, this time around, we attempt to fit a no-sacrifice, luxury and performance build into our moderately-high $2000 budget. Will this new build succeed on all fronts?

System Builder Marathon, December 2010: The Articles

Here are links to each of the four articles in this month’s System Builder Marathon (we’ll update them as each story is published). And remember, these systems are all being given away at the end of the marathon.

To enter the giveaway, please check out this Google form, and be sure to read the complete rules before entering!

Day 1: The $2,000 Performance PC
Day 2: The $1,000 Enthusiast PC
Day 3: The $500 Gaming PC
Day 4: Performance And Value, Dissected

Introduction

Wouldn’t it be great if someone could invent a sports car that combined all the luxury of a Bentley with all the performance of a Bugatti? And wouldn’t it be great if that sports car was priced only as high as a fully-loaded Buick? This combination of performance, luxury, and price actually is possible, but only in the world of PCs.

This month’s $2000 build packs a full range of killer performance components (even a pair of top-end SSD drives), without sacrificing luxury features. SilverStone’s gorgeous unibody case promises to improve cooling and reduce noise at the same time, while a Blu-ray burner adds compatibility with the latest optical media. Could this be our most perfect build yet?

$2000 Performance PC Component Prices
MotherboardGigabyte X58A-UD3R LGA-1366
Intel X58 Express, ICH10R		 $210
ProcessorIntel Core i7-950 3.06 GHz Quad-Core $295
MemoryMushkin 998586 6 GB, DDR3-1333 Triple-Channel Kit $80
Graphics2 x EVGA 012-P3-1470-AR, 1.25 GB GeForce GTX 470 $520
System Drive2 x A-Data S599 64 GB, SATA 3Gb/s SSD $220
Storage DriveSamsung F3 HD103SJ 1 TB, 7200 RPM HDD $70
OpticalLite-On iHBS112 Blu-ray Drive: 12x BD-R, 16x DVD±R $120
CaseSilverStone Fortress FT02B $250
PowerSilverStone ST85F-P 850 W Modular $150
Heat SinkProlimatech Megahalems Rev.B $62
CPU FanDelta AFC1212D-PWM 3400 RPM, 120 mm $23
 Total Cost $2,000


Someone probably noticed by now that we did not pick the fastest parts of each type. But overclocking just might be the secret to getting all that luxury performance into a mid-budget build. All that’s left for us to do is build it, tune it up, and test it!

Next
Summary
  1. Luxurious Performance?
  2. Storage
  3. Motherboard And Graphics
  4. CPU And Memory
  5. CPU Cooling and Case
  6. Power And Optical Drive
  7. Hardware Installation
  8. Overclocking
  9. Test Settings
  10. Benchmark Results: 3DMark And PCMark
  11. Bechmark Results: SiSoftware Sandra
  12. Benchmark Results: Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
  13. Benchmark Results: Crysis
  14. Benchmark Results: DiRT 2
  15. Benchmark Results: S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call Of Pripyat
  16. Benchmark Results: Audio And Video Encoding
  17. Benchmark Results: Productivity
  18. Energy, Efficiency, And Heat
  19. Value Conclusion
About the author
Thomas Soderstrom

Thomas Soderstrom is a Senior Staff Editor at Tom's Hardware US. He tests and reviews cases, cooling, memory and motherboards.

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131 comments
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  • amk09
    The link to enter the giveaway doesn't work!

    I would love to be first to enter :)
  • micr0be
    i think im gona get a revo 2 drive ssd to upgrade my current build.... all thanks to santa !!
  • Tamz_msc
    Its good to know that choosing the wrong memory can affect performance in such a way.
  • fstrthnu
    I'm pretty surprised we didn't see Geforce GTX 570s in this build, I guess they got released too late to make it here.
  • fstrthnu
    >> First time in recent memory
    "Cough Cough" Lame Pun
  • jerreece
    Wow that Mushkin memory really jacked up this benchmark.
  • kkiddu
    Most perfect build ever ? Just read the configs yet, and I think that's a possibility.

    Now don't skin me if the config proves to be a flop in the coming pages. Just read the first page and couldn't resist a comment.
  • hemburger
    Why not replace the two ssd's with a single intel 120gb... same price and now on 35nm
  • kkiddu
    I think this one can be trimmed to a very good $1500 build as well. Change the CPU to i5 760, remove one of the cards, one of the SSDs, and you'll need lower capacity PSU for that, let's slash $30-$50 there, you get a very good PC for $1500.
  • kkiddu
    And oh, cheapen the case as well. There's no free lunch. You gotta sacrifice some silence to gains some frame rates.
  • duk3
    Get rid of MW2 in benchmarks for Battlefield Bad Company 2 and add in Starcraft 2 in my opinion. Nice computer, that's too bad about the memory.
  • gti88
    Having $2000, I would take i5 760 + 2 x gtx580
  • barmaley
    I agree with the people above who mentioned i5 760 and GTX 570. I was thinking the same thing when I saw the config. IMO, $2000 would give you far better performance in games, especially with high resolution and quality:

    GIGABYTE GA-P55A-UD3 LGA 1156 - $125
    Intel i5 760 - $205
    Scythe Mugen 2 - 47
    Cooler Master HAF 932 - $140
    GTX 570 2x SLI $700
    Samsung F3 1TB - $70
    Crucial 128GB C300 - $275
    CORSAIR XMS 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1600 - $125
    Antec TruePower Quattro TPQ-1000 1000W - $170
    Lite-On iHBS112 Blu-ray Drive: 12x BD-R, 16x DVD±R - $120
    Total: $1977

    All prices without rebates included. The $23 left over can be used to pay for the shipping where applicable. Also, an SSD can be replaced for a cheaper one to save a little money, if that's your thing.
  • styrkes
    But isn't this worse than the previous $2000 PC?
  • Tamz_msc
    @barmaley
    Everything is fine except the motherboard and here's why:
    http://www.hardware-revolution.com/p55-motherboards-crossfire-sli-performance-problem/
  • nyrychvantel
    why is single intel 120GB better than 2x 64GB RAID 0? I thought the later twice the speed than a single SSD?
  • gti88
    $2000 config with TWO gtx 580:
    ASUS Maximus III Formula LGA 1156 - $179
    Core i5-760 - $205
    Noctua NH-U12P - $75
    Kingston DDR3 4gb - $56
    ENERMAX REVOLUTION85+ 920W - $200
    SAMSUNG Spinpoint F4 2Tb - $100
    COOLER MASTER CM690 II Advanced Black Steel - $80
    GTX580 x2 (SLI) - $1100

    Total price: $2005
  • barmaley
    This build with 2 GTX 580 is nice. The only thing is that a lot people would have a problem paying $2000 and not getting blue ray and SSD. Not that it affects gaming in a big way as much as a good graphics card does, but it still counts.
  • nevertell
    gti88$2000 config with TWO gtx 580:ASUS Maximus III Formula LGA 1156 - $179Core i5-760 - $205Noctua NH-U12P - $75Kingston DDR3 4gb - $56ENERMAX REVOLUTION85+ 920W - $200SAMSUNG Spinpoint F4 2Tb - $100COOLER MASTER CM690 II Advanced Black Steel - $80GTX580 x2 (SLI) - $1100Total price: $2005

    Good for gaming and nothing else.
  • SpadeM
    Probably one of the most balanced (and i mean that in a good way) build i've seen in a while. (though i do miss the exotic 4x4850 from Don a while back, and i do hope u bring that back some day)
    Tamz_mscIts good to know that choosing the wrong memory can affect performance in such a way.

    And yes +1 for that and for Thomas, i'm looking forward to a follow-up article on that specific issue.
  • edwinjr
    Why there is no 3D Mark 11 benchmark?
    The basic is free, isn't it
  • Crashman
    fstrthnuI'm pretty surprised we didn't see Geforce GTX 570s in this build, I guess they got released too late to make it here.
    Actually, even the Radeon 6850 and 6870 was released too late for this one...it was ordered in October. We've got to do something about the time table!
    hemburgerWhy not replace the two ssd's with a single intel 120gb... same price and now on 35nm
    Two against one, these Sandforce based drives are far faster in "RAID 0" even if the R in RAID is misused
    kkidduI think this one can be trimmed to a very good $1500 build as well. Change the CPU to i5 760, remove one of the cards, one of the SSDs, and you'll need lower capacity PSU for that, let's slash $30-$50 there, you get a very good PC for $1500.
    Drive performance will be part of the benchmark going forward and represents "Program Launch Time". All of the programs wouldn't have fit on half the capacity.
    Tamz_msc@barmaleyEverything is fine except the motherboard and here's why:http://www.hardware-revolution.com [...] e-problem/
    One of Tom's Hardware's articles even mentions why the P55-UD3R is a superior gaming platform compared to the P55A-UD3R. Kill two birds with one stone on the X58!
    gti88$2000 config with TWO gtx 580:ASUS Maximus III Formula LGA 1156 - $179Core i5-760 - $205Noctua NH-U12P - $75Kingston DDR3 4gb - $56ENERMAX REVOLUTION85+ 920W - $200SAMSUNG Spinpoint F4 2Tb - $100COOLER MASTER CM690 II Advanced Black Steel - $80GTX580 x2 (SLI) - $1100Total price: $2005
    That looks like a great gaming configuration, sans ODD but then again I guess you could get all your games through STEAM...how would you load Windows?
    edwinjrWhy there is no 3D Mark 11 benchmark?The basic is free, isn't it
    Sorry that this "new" article is five weeks old...
  • jestersage
    Beautiful! I love this build. Too bad I don't live in the US.
  • cangelini
    amk09The link to enter the giveaway doesn't work! I would love to be first to enter


    Sorry about that--the contest page isn't quite ready. It'll be going live in the morning and the story will be updated with the link (and the next several days of SBM pieces will include it, too). Thanks!!
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