Approximate Purchase Date: The sooner the better.
Budget Range: $2,000 - $2,200
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, Work (Computer Programmer), Internet Surfing, Movies?, Photoshop?
Parts Not Required: OS, keyboard, speakers, and possibly monitor
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg.com
Country of Origin: USA
Parts Preferences: Intel, ASUS, Corsair, G.Skill
Overclocking: Yes
SLI or Crossfire: Yes/Future?
Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080
Additional Comments:
- My current computer is 2.5 years old and is a Core 2 Duo E8500 with HD4870, so I am looking to build a new one.
- I want a sandy bridge processor that I can overclock to ~5.0Ghz without custom water cooling.
- I would prefer to spend a little extra money on quality parts.
- It does not have to be completely silent, but I don't want it to be really noisy either.
- I have looked into the upcoming Z68 and don't feel that I would use its two main features (SSD Caching & Quick Sync)
Planned Build:
CASE: COOLER MASTER HAF X RC-942-KKN1 Black Steel/ Plastic ATX Full Tower Computer Case
PSU: CORSAIR HX Series CMPSU-850HX 850W ATX12V 2.3 / EPS12V 2.91 80 PLUS SILVER Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
CPU: Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I72600K
MOBO: ASUS MAXIMUS IV EXTREME (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Extended ATX Intel Motherboard
COOLER: CORSAIR Hydro H70 CWCH70 120mm High Performance CPU Cooler
RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws X + Turbulence II Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2133 (PC3 17000) Desktop Memory Model F3-17000CL9D-8GBXLD
GPU: ASUS EAH6950/2DI2S/2GD5 Radeon HD 6950 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card
BOOT DRIVE: Crucial RealSSD C300 CTFDDAC128MAG-1G1 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
DATA DRIVE: 2x Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive (RAID1)
OPTICAL: LG UH10LS20 Blu-ray Disc Combo Internal SATA 10x SuperMulti Blue LightScribe
MOUSE: Logitech G500 10 Buttons Dual-mode Scroll Wheel USB Wired Laser Gaming Mouse
Total Cost: $2,183.70
Other Notes:
- I plan to overclock the processor to ~5.0Ghz.
- I plan to unlock the HD6950 to be a HD6970 and then overclock it a bit.
- I believe the setup above will handle all current and 2011 games at max settings with only a single GPU. Therefore, I plan to purchase a second GPU for crossfire when it is needed in the future.
- I had planned to put the two 1TB drives in RAID0, but after reading about many issues doing that with those drives and thinking about it, I decided to do RAID1 for redundancy.
- I thought about getting a new 120Hz monitor, but plan to just use the monitor I have (Acer P244w 24" LCD)
What I am looking for advice on:
- Feedback on the build above.
- Should I purchase the second GPU now and set up crossfire?
- [strike]Should I purchase the 120Hz monitor now (thinking of this 24" ASUS or should I just get another decently priced monitor so I can have two? (I am not sure how a 60hz and 120hz monitors would play together, so if I got the 120hz one, I was thinking I would just use the single monitor.)[/strike]
- Anything else you want to comment on.
Thank you for any and all feedback! It is much appreciated!
Budget Range: $2,000 - $2,200
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, Work (Computer Programmer), Internet Surfing, Movies?, Photoshop?
Parts Not Required: OS, keyboard, speakers, and possibly monitor
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Newegg.com
Country of Origin: USA
Parts Preferences: Intel, ASUS, Corsair, G.Skill
Overclocking: Yes
SLI or Crossfire: Yes/Future?
Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080
Additional Comments:
- My current computer is 2.5 years old and is a Core 2 Duo E8500 with HD4870, so I am looking to build a new one.
- I want a sandy bridge processor that I can overclock to ~5.0Ghz without custom water cooling.
- I would prefer to spend a little extra money on quality parts.
- It does not have to be completely silent, but I don't want it to be really noisy either.
- I have looked into the upcoming Z68 and don't feel that I would use its two main features (SSD Caching & Quick Sync)
Planned Build:
CASE: COOLER MASTER HAF X RC-942-KKN1 Black Steel/ Plastic ATX Full Tower Computer Case
PSU: CORSAIR HX Series CMPSU-850HX 850W ATX12V 2.3 / EPS12V 2.91 80 PLUS SILVER Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
CPU: Intel Core i7-2600K Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I72600K
MOBO: ASUS MAXIMUS IV EXTREME (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Extended ATX Intel Motherboard
COOLER: CORSAIR Hydro H70 CWCH70 120mm High Performance CPU Cooler
RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws X + Turbulence II Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2133 (PC3 17000) Desktop Memory Model F3-17000CL9D-8GBXLD
GPU: ASUS EAH6950/2DI2S/2GD5 Radeon HD 6950 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card
BOOT DRIVE: Crucial RealSSD C300 CTFDDAC128MAG-1G1 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
DATA DRIVE: 2x Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive (RAID1)
OPTICAL: LG UH10LS20 Blu-ray Disc Combo Internal SATA 10x SuperMulti Blue LightScribe
MOUSE: Logitech G500 10 Buttons Dual-mode Scroll Wheel USB Wired Laser Gaming Mouse
Total Cost: $2,183.70
Other Notes:
- I plan to overclock the processor to ~5.0Ghz.
- I plan to unlock the HD6950 to be a HD6970 and then overclock it a bit.
- I believe the setup above will handle all current and 2011 games at max settings with only a single GPU. Therefore, I plan to purchase a second GPU for crossfire when it is needed in the future.
- I had planned to put the two 1TB drives in RAID0, but after reading about many issues doing that with those drives and thinking about it, I decided to do RAID1 for redundancy.
- I thought about getting a new 120Hz monitor, but plan to just use the monitor I have (Acer P244w 24" LCD)
What I am looking for advice on:
- Feedback on the build above.
- Should I purchase the second GPU now and set up crossfire?
- [strike]Should I purchase the 120Hz monitor now (thinking of this 24" ASUS or should I just get another decently priced monitor so I can have two? (I am not sure how a 60hz and 120hz monitors would play together, so if I got the 120hz one, I was thinking I would just use the single monitor.)[/strike]
- Anything else you want to comment on.
Thank you for any and all feedback! It is much appreciated!