Feedback on Part selection

[AcidElement]

After about a month of trying to find the best parts suited for me this is what I have come up with.

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($319.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte G1.Sniper 3 EATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($260.01 @ Newegg)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Microcenter)
Storage: Corsair Neutron Series GTX 240GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($224.99 @ Best Buy)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 680 2GB Video Card ($458.49 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Enermax 1200W 80 PLUS Platinum Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($291.72 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
OS Drive: Mushkin Enhanced Atlas Series mSATA 120GB SATAIII MLC SSD ($109.99)
Case: Thermaltake Level 10 GT Battle Edition ($299.99 @ Thermaltake)
Total: $2170.15

This system will be watercooled with a setup like Rez > pump > 120 rad > GPU'(s) > 240 rad > CPU > 120 rad > rez to ensure highest cooling capacity my case can offer. Also a possibility of going SLI. Will have an overclock on CPU at about 4.5GHz with an occasional boost to 4.8GHz if needed. This will be upgraded as time goes on, such as the SLI or 16GB of RAM. Will be using stock fans on front and side intake with CM Sickleflow 120mm fans on the radiators (top and rear exhuast; bottom intake).

Please give feedback, criticism is highly welcome.

 

[CaptainTom]

After about a month of trying to find the best parts suited for me this is what I have come up with.

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($319.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte G1.Sniper 3 EATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($260.01 @ Newegg)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Microcenter)
Storage: Corsair Neutron Series GTX 240GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($224.99 @ Best Buy)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 680 2GB Video Card ($458.49 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Enermax 1200W 80 PLUS Platinum Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($291.72 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
OS Drive: Mushkin Enhanced Atlas Series mSATA 120GB SATAIII MLC SSD ($109.99)
Case: Thermaltake Level 10 GT Battle Edition ($299.99 @ Thermaltake)
Total: $2170.15

This system will be watercooled with a setup like Rez > pump > 120 rad > GPU'(s) > 240 rad > CPU > 120 rad > rez to ensure highest cooling capacity my case can offer. Also a possibility of going SLI. Will have an overclock on CPU at about 4.5GHz with an occasional boost to 4.8GHz if needed. This will be upgraded as time goes on, such as the SLI or 16GB of RAM. Will be using stock fans on front and side intake with CM Sickleflow 120mm fans on the radiators (top and rear exhuast; bottom intake).

Please give feedback, criticism is highly welcome.

I assume this is for gaming. If so:

-Get an i5-3570k since it will game the same if not better than an i7.
-Get a 7970 GHz instead of that 680. It is cheaper and quite a bit stronger.
-Your PSU is insane overkill. Get one that is 750w and at least half as expensive.
-Get 1600MHz RAM for half the price of your ram (With no performance drop)
-I'm pretty sure that case is $100 less on newegg.


Now you can either take this $400-$500 and get another 7970 GHz to double your performance, or pocket the money!

 

[AcidElement]

I assume this is for gaming. If so:

-Get an i5-3570k since it will game the same if not better than an i7.
-Get a 7970 GHz instead of that 680. It is cheaper and quite a bit stronger.
-Your PSU is insane overkill. Get one that is 750w and at least half as expensive.
-Get 1600MHz RAM for half the price of your ram (With no performance drop)
-I'm pretty sure that case is $100 less on newegg.


Now you can either take this $400-$500 and get another 7970 GHz to double your performance, or pocket the money!

I will be using this build for both Gaming and Video editing so the faster ram and processor is needed.
I disapprove of your jump to AMD because I am an Intel and nVidia fanboy.
The case is the Battle Edition version, olive in color and green default fans. Not available on newegg and only on the Thermaltake website
I understand the PSU is a little overkill. I was thinking about going to Enermax's 1000W one but then again after seeing the results from so many PSU calculators from everything I will be putting into the machine such as overclocking and such, the 1250W is worth it.

 

[CaptainTom]

I will be using this build for both Gaming and Video editing so the faster ram and processor is needed.
I disapprove of your jump to AMD because I am an Intel and nVidia fanboy.
The case is the Battle Edition version, olive in color and green default fans. Not available on newegg and only on the Thermaltake website
I understand the PSU is a little overkill. I was thinking about going to Enermax's 1000W one but then again after seeing the results from so many PSU calculators from everything I will be putting into the machine such as overclocking and such, the 1250W is worth it.

Just so you know once the 7970 GHz is ~10% stronger at stock 680's and 7970 GHz are both overclocked, the 7970 GHz tends to lead by as much as 20-30% (And it is cheaper). If you have to be a fanboy at least get a 670 since they are not crazy overpriced.

Though honestly, if you are gonna be like that, I just recommend you wait for the 780. nVidia desroyed AMD in performance last gen (Besides the 6990). However this year things have completely changed in AMD's favor. nVidia will make big strides next year to make up for this.

If you are video editing I am pretty sure an FX-8350 would be great price/performance wise. However you are a fanboy for some reason so I don't expect you to take this advice since Intel is actually overall a bit stronger (Though 50% higher in price). Still, food for thought.

 

[AcidElement]

Just so you know once the 7970 GHz is ~10% stronger at stock 680's and 7970 GHz are both overclocked, the 7970 GHz tends to lead by as much as 20-30% (And it is cheaper). If you have to be a fanboy at least get a 670 since they are not crazy overpriced.

Though honestly, if you are gonna be like that, I just recommend you wait for the 780. nVidia desroyed AMD in performance last gen (Besides the 6990). However this year things have completely changed in AMD's favor. nVidia will make big strides next year to make up for this.

If you are video editing I am pretty sure an FX-8350 would be great price/performance wise. However you are a fanboy for some reason so I don't expect you to take this advice since Intel is actually overall a bit stronger (Though 50% higher in price). Still, food for thought.

But I said no to AMD :< Especially that processor

But when it comes to waiting for the 780, I will be saving up over the next year for this build and if anything were to change like that then I would jump on it and get it. Especially if Haswell were to come out during this time.

But to disprove your claims about AMD and nVidia, check out www.videocardbenchmark.net. The 680 beats the 7970 and the 580 beats the 6990. Price to performance, the 580 beats the 6990 by a long shot, but the 7970 only beats the 680 by .80 points. Not enough in my book.

 

[CaptainTom]

But I said no to AMD :< Especially that processor

But when it comes to waiting for the 780, I will be saving up over the next year for this build and if anything were to change like that then I would jump on it and get it. Especially if Haswell were to come out during this time.

But to disprove your claims about AMD and nVidia, check out www.videocardbenchmark.net. The 680 beats the 7970 and the 580 beats the 6990. Price to performance, the 580 beats the 6990 by a long shot, but the 7970 only beats the 680 by .80 points. Not enough in my book.

Look I just recommended a 670 to someone. After reading the reviews of the card I recommended, I noticed one reviewer posted his score and settings in ugine heaven benchmark. I was curious so I ran my 7970 under the same settings. He got 93 FPS, I got 130. That is ~40% more buddy. The 680 is 4-8% stronger than the 670. So my card is still roughly 10-20% stronger than a fully overclocked 680.

Here is Tomshardware's Extreme index:

http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/2012-vga-gpgpu/19-Tom-s-Hardware-Index-C-Extreme,2977.html

The standard AMD 7970 GHz gets a score of 133.21, and the 680 gets a score of 124.11. The 7970 GHz is scored ~8% lower overall. Then take into account that 680's can only usually bench 15-18% higher overclocked while the 7970 GHz can overclock 20%+ more (I have seen 35% from some websites, and my 7970 overclocks 25% more), and you get a 10-20% performance deficit.

In closing there is a reason the 7970 GHz is one tier above the 680 in the heirarchy chart. It. IS. STRONGER. I can reproduce Tomshardware's bench results time and time again. That is why most people trust them. I only say this because I know you can cherry pick some other pre 12.11 benchmark and BS at me.

If you love the 680, tell me why. But don't claim you are getting the strongest card. Fact: you are not.

 

[AcidElement]

Look I just recommended a 670 to someone. After reading the reviews of the card I recommended, I noticed one reviewer posted his score and settings in ugine heaven benchmark. I was curious so I ran my 7970 under the same settings. He got 93 FPS, I got 130. That is ~40% more buddy. The 680 is 4-8% stronger than the 670. So my card is still roughly 10-20% stronger than a fully overclocked 680.

Here is Tomshardware's Extreme index:

http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/2012-vga-gpgpu/19-Tom-s-Hardware-Index-C-Extreme,2977.html

The standard AMD 7970 GHz gets a score of 133.21, and the 680 gets a score of 124.11. The 7970 GHz is scored ~8% lower overall. Then take into account that 680's can only usually bench 15-18% higher overclocked while the 7970 GHz can overclock 20%+ more (I have seen 35% from some websites, and my 7970 overclocks 25% more), and you get a 10-20% performance deficit.

In closing there is a reason the 7970 GHz is one tier above the 680 in the heirarchy chart. It. IS. STRONGER. I can reproduce Tomshardware's bench results time and time again. That is why most people trust them. I only say this because I know you can cherry pick some other pre 12.11 benchmark and BS at me.

If you love the 680, tell me why. But don't claim you are getting the strongest card. Fact: you are not.

I love the 680 because it is made by the superior company. End of story. 😗

 

[echondo]

Look I just recommended a 670 to someone. After reading the reviews of the card I recommended, I noticed one reviewer posted his score and settings in ugine heaven benchmark. I was curious so I ran my 7970 under the same settings. He got 93 FPS, I got 130. That is ~40% more buddy. The 680 is 4-8% stronger than the 670. So my card is still roughly 10-20% stronger than a fully overclocked 680.

Here is Tomshardware's Extreme index:

http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/2012-vga-gpgpu/19-Tom-s-Hardware-Index-C-Extreme,2977.html

The standard AMD 7970 GHz gets a score of 133.21, and the 680 gets a score of 124.11. The 7970 GHz is scored ~8% lower overall. Then take into account that 680's can only usually bench 15-18% higher overclocked while the 7970 GHz can overclock 20%+ more (I have seen 35% from some websites, and my 7970 overclocks 25% more), and you get a 10-20% performance deficit.

In closing there is a reason the 7970 GHz is one tier above the 680 in the heirarchy chart. It. IS. STRONGER. I can reproduce Tomshardware's bench results time and time again. That is why most people trust them. I only say this because I know you can cherry pick some other pre 12.11 benchmark and BS at me.

If you love the 680, tell me why. But don't claim you are getting the strongest card. Fact: you are not.

I recommend that you leave Acid alone on this one and let him follow his fanboyism, he even stated it. If he doesn't want to go AMD then he doesn't have to, let him think what he wants and let it go.


OT: Acid, since you are doing video editing, I recommend Intel's i7-3930k Enthusiast line. It has better performance than the i7-3770k and of course it's beefier. The GTX 680 is fine right now, but since you didn't state any budget whatsoever, I would recommend you switch to the GTX 690 and why only get 8GB of RAM? Just go the full 16GB now and be happy, when I run Sony Vegas I have come close to using 8GB myself(thank God I have 16GB). Also, the Enermax PSU is a POS, go for a Corsair, Seasonic or XFX PSU instead, 1050w should do nicely, if you want more, go for it.

 

[AcidElement]

I recommend that you leave Acid alone on this one and let him follow his fanboyism, he even stated it. If he doesn't want to go AMD then he doesn't have to, let him think what he wants and let it go.


OT: Acid, since you are doing video editing, I recommend Intel's i7-3930k Enthusiast line. It has better performance than the i7-3770k and of course it's beefier. The GTX 680 is fine right now, but since you didn't state any budget whatsoever, I would recommend you switch to the GTX 690 and why only get 8GB of RAM? Just go the full 16GB now and be happy, when I run Sony Vegas I have come close to using 8GB myself(thank God I have 16GB). Also, the Enermax PSU is a POS, go for a Corsair, Seasonic or XFX PSU instead, 1050w should do nicely, if you want more, go for it.

I was thinking about going for LGA2011, and currently I am still thinking about it haha. But about the 690, I do kinda have a budget for this build. I don't want to buy a $1000 card, way too much money. The 3930k is a bit up there but performance wise it is worth it. I will most likely go ahead and get the 16GB right off the bat so don't worry, and the reason I went with the Enermax PSU was because of it's size. I wanted a corsair psu but it's too long and I wouldn't be able to fit a rad on the bottom 120mm area. I'll see if Seasonic or XFX has some shorter PSU's that are reliable and are not too long.

Thanks for the input ^_^

Update: I want the convenience of having an mSATA port on my motherboard and it turns out no LGA2011 board has one so I won't be making the switch. I did however change my PSU to the Seasonic X series 1250W Gold. Saving me about $70 and still having reliability. Also all reviews on Newegg were 5 eggs haha.

 

[echondo]

I was thinking about going for LGA2011, and currently I am still thinking about it haha. But about the 690, I do kinda have a budget for this build. I don't want to buy a $1000 card, way too much money. The 3930k is a bit up there but performance wise it is worth it. I will most likely go ahead and get the 16GB right off the bat so don't worry, and the reason I went with the Enermax PSU was because of it's size. I wanted a corsair psu but it's too long and I wouldn't be able to fit a rad on the bottom 120mm area. I'll see if Seasonic or XFX has some shorter PSU's that are reliable and are not too long.

Thanks for the input ^_^

I understand the length of the Corsair PSUs, but I just wanted to give some more reliable advice about PSUs. The brands you should buy are Seasonic, XFX, Corsair, and Antec. Some will argue that PC Power & Cooling and OCZ are good brands as well, but Antec makes their PSUs in house and Corsair and XFX are just re-branded Seasonic PSUs which have high quality Japanese capacitors. Good luck with the choice here, I would get a nice Corsair or Seasonic PSU myself.

Since you do have some sort of a budget, then I would recommend switching from the 680 to the 670 and just overclock the 670, you'll save ~$100 on this decision which you can put towards something else in your build.

Now, you are doing a watercooling setup as well, for the way you want it to work looks alright to me, but I do not believe that the Level 10 GT case will be able to hold that much watercooling components. I would recommend you switch to a bigger case or limit the amount of pumps/rezs in your system(which will mean you will have to run the GPUs on air since there won't be anough cool water running through the system with the lack of rezs/pumps.

Recommended Case;
-Corsair 800D


Just to my knowledge, for that many components you want in the case, the Thermaltake might not have enough room, if you think it does, then by all means go for it, you might just have a hard time finding where to put everything without making a mess...

 

[AcidElement]

I understand the length of the Corsair PSUs, but I just wanted to give some more reliable advice about PSUs. The brands you should buy are Seasonic, XFX, Corsair, and Antec. Some will argue that PC Power & Cooling and OCZ are good brands as well, but Antec makes their PSUs in house and Corsair and XFX are just re-branded Seasonic PSUs which have high quality Japanese capacitors. Good luck with the choice here, I would get a nice Corsair or Seasonic PSU myself.

Since you do have some sort of a budget, then I would recommend switching from the 680 to the 670 and just overclock the 670, you'll save ~$100 on this decision which you can put towards something else in your build.

Now, you are doing a watercooling setup as well, for the way you want it to work looks alright to me, but I do not believe that the Level 10 GT case will be able to hold that much watercooling components. I would recommend you switch to a bigger case or limit the amount of pumps/rezs in your system(which will mean you will have to run the GPUs on air since there won't be anough cool water running through the system with the lack of rezs/pumps.

Recommended Case;
-Corsair 800D


Just to my knowledge, for that many components you want in the case, the Thermaltake might not have enough room, if you think it does, then by all means go for it, you might just have a hard time finding where to put everything without making a mess...

I guess my update was just too late haha. But I did switch the PSU to a Seasonic X 1250W Gold. Amazing reviews on Newegg and $70 cheaper. I will also think about switching to the 670 like you said, it is literally the 2nd best GPU right now based on PassMark. And don't worry about the watercooling. I took about a week thinking about how i'm going to set it up and I do believe it will work.

The Level 10 GT is Liquid cooled ready, and I have seen videos and pictures of people having the 240mm rad on the top and a 120mm rad on the rear and having everything fit perfectly. But I just want to add another 120mm rad on the bottom.

Right there is a spot for a 120mm fan or a 120mm radiator. My rez will be somewhere behind the 5.25" slots, have a port going down to a Swiftech MCP655 that will be mounted on it's side (intake pointing up, outlet pointing left). Then a 90 degree turn towards the lower 120mm rad, then 45 degree fittings connecting the 120mm rad to the lowermost GPU. If I have SLI, a compression fitting (SLI fitting) will connect the two GPU's. Then going from there it will enter the 240mm rad, then the CPU block via a 90 degree fitting. Then a 90 degree fitting to the back 120mm rad, then a sorta straight shot to the rez.

 

[echondo]

I guess my update was just too late haha. But I did switch the PSU to a Seasonic X 1250W Gold. Amazing reviews on Newegg and $70 cheaper. I will also think about switching to the 670 like you said, it is literally the 2nd best GPU right now based on PassMark. And don't worry about the watercooling. I took about a week thinking about how i'm going to set it up and I do believe it will work.

The Level 10 GT is Liquid cooled ready, and I have seen videos and pictures of people having the 240mm rad on the top and a 120mm rad on the rear and having everything fit perfectly. But I just want to add another 120mm rad on the bottom.

Right there is a spot for a 120mm fan or a 120mm radiator. My rez will be somewhere behind the 5.25" slots, have a port going down to a Swiftech MCP655 that will be mounted on it's side (intake pointing up, outlet pointing left). Then a 90 degree turn towards the lower 120mm rad, then 45 degree fittings connecting the 120mm rad to the lowermost GPU. If I have SLI, a compression fitting (SLI fitting) will connect the two GPU's. Then going from there it will enter the 240mm rad, then the CPU block via a 90 degree fitting. Then a 90 degree fitting to the back 120mm rad, then a sorta straight shot to the rez.

Nice, yeah I can see that working, might be a bit too crammed for my taste, but nice that you already have it planned out. If you have any further questions by all means ask, again I don't know much about water cooling myself but I can help with the hardware side of things. Good luck with the layout, your build looks fine to me as is, if you want to drop to the 670 and possibly do a SLI configuration, then you can get the SLI fitting done then and there and won't have to fiddle with adding a second card down the road.

 

[rishiswaz]

If you are spending this much I strongly suggest getting an Exos 2 and leave that on the outside to keep more room free inside the case. Koolance makes it and it is high quality radiator+res+pump

 

[AcidElement]

If you are spending this much I strongly suggest getting an Exos 2 and leave that on the outside to keep more room free inside the case. Koolance makes it and it is high quality radiator+res+pump

A appreciate the feedback but personally I don't like that product. I don't think it would look well with my case and I want everything inside, nothing bulging on the outside.

 

[rishiswaz]

Well just throwing it out there that if you are getting a pump Koolance is probably the best brand to go to, rads and a res are good just about anywhere but do not skimp the pump.

 

[AcidElement]

Well just throwing it out there that if you are getting a pump Koolance is probably the best brand to go to, rads and a res are good just about anywhere but do not skimp the pump.

Yeah the pump i'm going to get is a Swiftech MCP655 which has amazing reviews.

 

[rishiswaz]

Oh and word of the wise if you are going with compression fittings every couple of months just re-check the fittings and tighten them because they will loosen over time as the pipe shrinks and expands because of the heat

 

[AcidElement]

Oh and word of the wise if you are going with compression fittings every couple of months just re-check the fittings and tighten them because they will loosen over time as the pipe shrinks and expands because of the heat

I know ^_^ I have done my research haha

 

[rishiswaz]

Yeah a buddy of mine didn't do regular maintanince and his GTX 590 died along with his 990X