First build

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Vralen

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Jul 27, 2011
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Hi guys. so i'm planning on building my first system and just figured i should ask for advice for whether or not there are better parts for around the same price or if there are things that i should just generally avoid. my budget is somewhere around 2,000.00(Canadian) i can go up a little if need be... ^^

ok so let's get started 😀

Case: Cooler master HAF X
- i just decided on this case because it got so many great reviews and i would like a full tower...

CPU : Intel core I7 2600k

Cooling: Corsair Hydro H80 CPU cooler
link: http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/PID-MX33764%28ME%29.aspx

Motherboard: Asus P8Z68 - V PRO
link: http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/PID-MX33406%28ME%29.aspx

Memory: GSKILL Ripjaws Series 8 GB PC3 - 1066 Dual channel DDR 3
- they were on sale so i already own them.

SSD: OCZ Agility 3 series SATA lll 120 GB
- i suppose i would be using this for my operating system and apps?
link: http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/PID-MX33366%28ME%29.aspx?curtab=2

HDD: WD 1 TB caviar black 7200rpm SATA lll w/ 64MB cach
- i suppose i would just be using this for my games and etc?
link : http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/PID-MX27676%28ME%29.aspx

GPU: MSI N570 GTX
link: http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/PID-MX31426%28ME%29.aspx

Power Supply: Corsair Gaming Series GS 800W power supply

quick question: the cooling that i chose, is it just for the processor or does it cool the whole system? confuses me alot.

thank you for your time.
 
Solution
boiler1990
If the system usage is just gaming, and "work" doesn't consist of rendering, intense photo/video editing, then go with the i5-2500K as others have stated.

I've heard several 2500K users say that they were able to reach 4GHz without upping the voltage, which means not as much heat to dissipate. 4.5 GHz was difficult to reach on some of the i7-900 CPUs, which is why the 212+ would be just fine for your needs, and it could probably support over 4GHz if you can get it stable.

A 570/6970 will be great @ 1920x1080 on your HDTV, as a matter of fact.
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Grab the i5-2500k instead unless you're doing intense work like 3D rendering, design, etc.

Don't get the H80. You should get the Cooler Master Hyper 212+
http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/PID-MX25192%28ME%29.aspx
If you want even cooler heatsink.. then Noctua NH-D14 is the best choice.
http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/PID-MX34315%28ME%29.aspx
Personally I would go for the Hyper 212+ because it's 1/3 the price of Noctua and will perform within 10ish degree of it.

You should've got at least 1600MHz for RAM because the i5-2500k will make good use out of them. Don't worry about it though.. it's all good.

I would opt for the Samsung Spinpoint F3 because it will give you more performance for its value but I can't find it on the website.

The H80 is cpu cooling and you'll get more value out of the Cooler Master Hyper 212+ or Noctua NH-D14.
 
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^+1. The WD Black is a fast drive, but it is also probably the loudest drive I've owned in the last 6-8 years. That may not matter to you. I've only owned the 500GB Spinpoints, and they're quiet.
If you can't easily get the Hyper 212+, the Xigmatek Gaia is almost identical.
 
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I second getting the i5 2500k. Hyperthreading is not worth the money.

You may keep the watercooling option. The silence is welcome. Regarding your question, the watercooling cools only the CPU, you need separate fans to cool the system, they mount on the case. Check the case for fans sizes etc..


 
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The H80 just isn't quite worth it IMHO. That said, I've taken to building watercooled systems. However, a decent loop can be had for ~$130 USD (similar in CAD) with the XSPC Rasa kits, and would cool better than the H80.

The Hyper 212+ can support 4.5+ GHz on some of the older CPUs, which proves it is more than capable of cooling even an OCed 2500K. A number of 2500K/2600K users are getting to 4GHz without even upping the voltage at all.
 
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so i will be planning on overclocking to about 4 GHz and was under the impression that liquid cooling would be more beneficial when doing this, however the noctua(it may be a bit to big after looking at pictures and reviews) or cooler master 212+ can do just as well of a job? if so that's great! :) ah btw the ram is 1600MHz

and just so that i can give boiler1990 a response....i would be using it for very long periods of gaming and eventually work. i'm more or less planning on just using my 40" sony bravia something something.....it has a refresh rate of 120mhz and 1080p. if need be i can always buy a new monitor in a few months after, it's just about due anyways because my current monitor is pretty old.
 
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If the system usage is just gaming, and "work" doesn't consist of rendering, intense photo/video editing, then go with the i5-2500K as others have stated.

I've heard several 2500K users say that they were able to reach 4GHz without upping the voltage, which means not as much heat to dissipate. 4.5 GHz was difficult to reach on some of the i7-900 CPUs, which is why the 212+ would be just fine for your needs, and it could probably support over 4GHz if you can get it stable.

A 570/6970 will be great @ 1920x1080 on your HDTV, as a matter of fact.
 
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Solution


Don't underestimate the i5-2500k potential. I seen people push it to/pass 4 easily with stock heatsink. H80 isn't worth the price, just go for the hyper 212+ you won't regret that.
 
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just a shot out in the dark but the asus motherboard comes with the ability to automatically overclock...a good or bad idea to just use that seeing as how i have no OC experience.(after looking it up online it apparently isn't as good as manual but is still alright, however it wouldn't be able to overclock the msi GPU unless i did it manually sooo....) and aside from the processor and cooling being changed along with getting a different HDD(i don't particularly enjoy listening to a loud computer) everything else looks alright then?

and again thank you for your time guys i really appreciate it.
 
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The auto-OCs are becoming more popular (on boards by Gigabyte, ASRock, EVGA, Asus, etc.), though the manual process is getting easier.

Just check the manufacturer websites (not the retail websites; they don't have all the info) to see what features they come with.

Other than that, your build looks good!

 
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The 320 is also a good SSD. The controllers are similar in terms of reliability and speed - it really comes down to cost.

A push-pull set up most likely will block RAM Slot 1 (it does on most P67/Z68 boards), so the sticks will need to go in 2 & 4 in that case (they run just as fast, just a different channel).

I had two of the stock Cooler Master fans on mine and it did a great job, and wasn't loud enough to hear over my Raven's case fans. Topped out at ~55C with my old i7-930, which is significantly hotter than my i5-2500K now.

 
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actually just going to throw this out there, but i've read the article on this site about the motherboard i chose and it said that it did not truly support having to GPU's? just thinking that i may eventually jump to buy another video card and run it in SLI.
 
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I don't see why it wouldn't support multiple GPUs - it has 2 PCI Express x16 slots running at x8/x8, which means it is certified for SLI and Crossfire.
 
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there are so many diffrent models for the 570 made by company's XD. any advice? i like the concept that msi has with their products but have also heard bad things, and sense i'm more or less planning to use the auto OC option with the asus board if i had a a 570 that was an asus model it would also be included in the auto OC'ing...but i just dunno lol, any advice?
 
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MSI makes pretty solid GPUs. EVGA is usually my go-to choice for NVidia GPUs, but they're pretty expensive compared to the rest of the market, and don't usually go on sale.

The Auto OCs usually only apply to the CPU. The GPU can easily be overclocked/controlled using something like MSI Afterburner, EVGA Precision, etc.

I'm using Sapphire TRIXX (might not work with NVidia cards) with my 6950 because MSI Afterburner (my old fallback) wouldn't recognize my GPU, so it only gave me an extra 100MHz on the core and memory shader speeds 🙁
 
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bah apparently the memory i got is not on the list of supported memory for the mother board.

G.Skill RipjawsX (2x4) F3 - 12800CL9D - 8GBXL

or they do...idk it they are not under the supported list on the asus pdf file but they do say it supports the motherboard on the G.skill site...wth?
 
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there were complaints of having memory issues on new egg which lead me to go to the asus site and read the memory support pdf they have for the mobo and i could not find it XD
 
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There aren't usually that many products on the approved/tested list because there are so many products. As long as the RAM meets the motherboard requirements, it should work (if not - issue with the board and/or RAM).

Also, don't believe everything you see on newegg - people other than techies that hang out on forums like this shop there too 😉
 
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so, i've been looking at the dimensions of the 570 and the dimensions of the HAF X and am slightly confused haha. will the 570 fit inside of the HAF X and if so...will there be enough room for the side fan?
 
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