~$1500 for gaming/workstation build

[beiers]

I am a Comp Sci and Computer Engineering student. I am trying to build a gaming/workstation computer that will be awesome for:
Adobe CS5 and other 2D graphics apps
3D modelling (Maya, ZBrush, etc)
Simulations (physics & and engineering apps)
Basically I want a primo rig for game dev and programming

Approximate Purchase Date: by Oct 11 at the latest

Budget Range: ~$1100 for the remaining parts

Parts Not Required: These are the parts that I already have due to a friend flubbing a build

OCZ Vertex 2 OCZSSD2-2VTXE120G 2.5" 120GB SATA II MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

CORSAIR Hydro H70 CWCH70 120mm High Performance CPU Cooler

Western Digital Caviar Black WD2002FAEX 2TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

I also don't need a monitor, keyboard, or mouse.

I plan on running at least two monitors with this rig, but I'm saving up for hi res.

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: ncix.com

Country of Origin: Canada

Overclocking: Yes

SLI or Crossfire: Yes

Additional Comments: I don't really care about bling or a sexy looking rig. Noise is definitely a consideration.

So far this is what I'm thinking:

Case:
For the case, good cooling and front USB 3.0 were the major features I was after, after that comes noise and not being a gigantic tank. Clearly this case is a tank but it seems like a pretty safe bet.
Coolermaster Haf X EATX Tower Case Black 6X5.25 5X3.5INT No PS Front USB3.0

CPU:
For the CPU, I know the i7 2500k is just as good for gaming but I have read that the 2600k is better for the workstation stuff I plan on doing.
Intel Core i7 2600K Quad Core Unlocked Hyperthreading Processor LGA1155 3.4GHZ Sandy Bridge 8MB

MOBO:
As for the MOBO, I was originally set on a ASUS P8P67 Deluxe so that I could overclock, sli/xfire, and have front USB 3.0 but I found this thing on a good sale so I figured I would see what you guys thought.
Gigabyte G1.Guerrilla ATX LGA1366 X58 DDR3 3PCI-E16 1PCI USB3.0 Bigfoot Killer 2100 SLI Motherboard

GPU:
I have been thinking about going with a couple GTX 560 ti's in sli so Ive been trying to decide between:

ASUS GeForce GTX 560 Ti DirectCU II Fermi 830MHZ 1GB 4.0GHZ GDDR5 2XDVI Mini HDMI PCI-E Video Card

and

Gigabyte GeForce GTX 560 Ti Fermi 900MHZ 1GB 4.0GHZ GDDR5 2XDVI Mini HDMI DIRECTX11 PCI-E Video Card

PSU:
I'm totally lost as to what I'll need. I have a Corsair 750W PSU kicking around somewhere from 5 or so years ago.

RAM:
Totally lost on this too. I want to overclock but I'm not sure what speed to get or how much.


Any help would be greatly appreciated, the above-mentioned stuff is just what I have gathered from reading other forum posts. Feel free to inform me if it looks like I'm about to make some stupid purchases, unfortunately my education kind of leaves me at a loss when it comes to technology newer than 20 years old


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[inzone]

You are right and that case is a tank but it is a great tank and I have the same one. It comes with 1- 230mm ,2- 200mm and 1- 140mm fans. The fans are huge as well but they are surpriseingly quiet and with a good fan controller you can cut down on any unwanted noise.
Antec High Current Gamer Series HCG-900 900W ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V v2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Certified 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply $129.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371050

G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL7Q-16GBXH $114.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231442

EVGA SuperClocked 01G-P3-1563-AR GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card $249.99 and a $20 rebate

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130610

So I would stick with the case , the MB and the cpu. I know you are in Canada but I just listed these so you could see what I was picking for components and then you can see if you can get them for a comparable price where you do your shopping. I chose Evga because of thier warrenty and customer support service is top notch. The Ram is 16gb which you will need for what you wnat the pc for and the PSU is big enough to accomodate any and all of your components . I know you had picked the GTX 560ti as your video card but you may want to consider a pair of GTX 570's for the kind of work that you want the computer for , it seems pretty intense and I don't know the requirements for your work (Adobe CS5 and other 2D graphics apps
3D modelling (Maya, ZBrush, etc)
Simulations (physics & and engineering apps) ) so you don't want to be lacking in the video card department.

 

[tpk1108]

I would also go with the EVGA GTX560Ti mentioned above. But to select between your choices, I would side with the ASUS card (just a personal preference of reliability).

However, the mobo and cpu are a mismatch. The CPU(i7-2600k) is a LGA1155 socket while the Gigabyte G1 Guerrilla is a LGA1366 Socket.

The P8P67Deluxe is a fine choice for the CPU mentioned. But since the Z68 is a newer chipset and the corresponding mobo (P8Z68 Deluxe/P8Z68 V-Pro) is just a few dollars more, I would suggest going with the latest offering.

 

[beiers]

@inzone
Thanks for the advice, I think I will go for a better gfx card and take your recommendation on the PSU. I have a question about the RAM however:
The RAM you have listed is 1333. If I plan on OC'ing should I get faster RAM? 1600, 1800, etc?

 

[beiers]

@tpk1108

However, the mobo and cpu are a mismatch. The CPU(i7-2600k) is a LGA1155 socket while the Gigabyte G1 Guerrilla is a LGA1366 Socket.

Thanks for pointing that out. You saved me a couple hundred bucks.

The P8P67Deluxe is a fine choice for the CPU mentioned. But since the Z68 is a newer chipset and the corresponding mobo (P8Z68 Deluxe/P8Z68 V-Pro) is just a few dollars more, I would suggest going with the latest offering.

I've read that the only difference with the z68 boards is onboard graphics. Is there a reason to go with the z68 other than that?

 

[tpk1108]

@tpk1108

However, the mobo and cpu are a mismatch. The CPU(i7-2600k) is a LGA1155 socket while the Gigabyte G1 Guerrilla is a LGA1366 Socket.

Thanks for pointing that out. You saved me a couple hundred bucks.

The P8P67Deluxe is a fine choice for the CPU mentioned. But since the Z68 is a newer chipset and the corresponding mobo (P8Z68 Deluxe/P8Z68 V-Pro) is just a few dollars more, I would suggest going with the latest offering.

I've read that the only difference with the z68 boards is onboard graphics. Is there a reason to go with the z68 other than that?

Well, the difference with z68 is the quicksync and SSD caching. In simple terms, it uses a ssd as a drive cache for the regular hard disks, thereby improving the speeds at which they are accessed. Other than this, the only reason to suggest the z68 over P67 is that they are nearly the same price and the obvious reason that this is a newer chipset. More features for marginal increase in price = Great (IMO).

 

[mattyg_nz]

I know you had picked the GTX 560ti as your video card but you may want to consider a pair of GTX 570's for the kind of work that you want the computer for , it seems pretty intense and I don't know the requirements for your work (Adobe CS5 and other 2D graphics apps
3D modelling (Maya, ZBrush, etc)
Simulations (physics & and engineering apps) ) so you don't want to be lacking in the video card department.

Hmmmm.... Common perception is that workstation grade software uses Xfire/SLI. WRONG.
Multi-GPU setups (excluding Tesla) uses Alternate Frame Rendering which can only be used when rendering to achieve a framerate.

Adobe, Maya, 3DS Max, Solidworks, other AutoDesk CADs DO NOT use multiple GPUs to render.

Also note that most mental ray renderers are CPU based (3DS Max and Maya). The preview window however is GPU rendered and that is where a more powerful card comes in handy.

At uni they had Core2 Duos with high end Quadros. The render viewport was great, the 24 hours per mentalray frame render, not so great.