New Gaming Build w/ i7

[hitman217]

First time at the forums. So, I've been researching components for my gaming rig and I was wondering if all these stuff work. And, if you guys have any suggesstions such as changing some of the components.

Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - 54.95

MSI N275GTX TwinFrozr OC GeForce GTX 275 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 Ready SLI Supported Video Card - 259.99

CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 - 99.99

GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - 194.99

Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor - 244.05

OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory with Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - 154.99

Total is 1008.96 and my budget is 1200.00. but I'm hoping to spend 1100.00 - US dollars
Thanks, oh and my purchase date may be in 2-3 weeks.

 

[Why_Me]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129042 $54.95
Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=10009795 $74.99 ($49.99 after MIR) Free Shipping
OCZ OCZ550FTY 550W Active Power Supply Retail

http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=MB-EX58U3R Combo Price: $450.87 Free Shipping
GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD3R Core i7/ Intel X58/ DDR3/ CrossFireX/ A&GbE/ ATX Motherboard
Intel Core i7 Processor i7-920 2.66GHz 8MB LGA1366 CPU, Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233029 $39.99
XIGMATEK Dark Knight-S1283V 120mm Long Life Bearing CPU Cooler - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835154003 $4.99
Tuniq TX-2 Cooling Thermal Compound - Retail

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=10010332 $239.59 ($219.59 after MIR) Free Shipping
EVGA 896-P3-1170-AR GeForce GTX 275 896MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 (2.0v) Video Card Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.199037 Combo Discount: -$7.00 Combo Price: $167.98 $20.00 Mail-In Rebate
OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3G1600LV6GK - Retail
Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151171 $24.99
SAMSUNG Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 22X DVD Burner - OEM

Total: $1,058.35 | $993.35 w/mail in rebates

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/dd353205.aspx?ITPID=mscomsc <--- Save yourself some money on an o/s until March 2010 and dl the 64 bit version of Windows 7

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341022 <--- more pics, specs, and customer reviews of the psu used in this build

http://www.frostytech.com/top5heatsinks.cfm <--- Frosty Tech's review and rating of that Xigmatek h/s used in this build

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/gigabyte-nvidia-sli-motherboard,7463.html <--- Gigabyte: Enable SLI On X58 Boards

 

[geofelt]

Looks good,

I like the GTX275, but I would get one with a conventional cooler.
The MSI cooler will do a good job of extracting heat from the vga chips, but it lets that heat recirculate inside the case. That makes both the vga card and cpu hotter.
I won't buy such a card. I want a cooler that ejects the hot vga air straight out the back of the case .
Look to EVGA and XFX for good support.

If you will do any overclocking(and 3.3 is easy), then get a oem cpu cooler up front. Xigmatek is popular.

 

[blackhawk1928]

Just wondering what games are you playing and what resolution are you going to be playing at?

 

[hitman217]

mostly rts games, aiming to play empire total war on high settings, world in conflict.
my resolution is 1900*1080 or on a 1650.

 

[hitman217]

Oh, yeah, and one must, i mostly want to buy items from newegg, I'm not really familiar with other sites since this is my first time buying pc parts online for my fisrt build.

 

[Why_Me]

Oh, yeah, and one must, i mostly want to buy items from newegg, I'm not really familiar with other sites since this is my first time buying pc parts online for my fisrt build.

A few tips if your on a budget. Don't buy combo deals if it screws you on the free shipping...cheaper sometimes to buy individually ....check your cart to see. Google shopping, then afterwards google for reviews of the hardware retailer that has a good deal for a particular item that will bring your cost down. Don't limit all your shopping to newegg if your on a budget. Those two other sites I linked (ewiz and zipzoomfly) are both respectable sites. Those deals I posted just got you a free heat sink, thermal compound, and and then some...it's all in the shopping.

 

[hitman217]

if, you say so. and I have some questions since I'm new to computer building. What is the heatsink, and how do you overclock an i7 920?

-Sorry

 

[Why_Me]

if, you say so. and I have some questions since I'm new to computer building. What is the heatsink, and how do you overclock an i7 920?

-Sorry

The cpu heat sink and thermal compound help keep your cpu temps down so your $280 cpu doesn't fry. When you over clock you add more heat to the cpu, sans the reason for a decent cpu heat sink and thermal compound. Heat = bad. It also doesn't hurt to add another 120mm case fan or two to your build (masscool for $5 at newegg) if you plan on over clocking.

Here's a few links in regards to that board you have in your build and over clocking....

http://www.firingsquad.com/hardware/gigabyte_ga_ex58-ud3r_review/

http://techreport.com/discussions.x/16199

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/252297-29-windwithme-core-review-part-gigabyte-ex58-ud3r-entry-version

 

[hitman217]

how does the evga gtx 275 do against other gtx 275's like BFG?

 

[Why_Me]

how does the evga gtx 275 do against other gtx 275's like BFG?

I would say in this order (for Nvidea cards)... EVGA, BFG, XFX....

 

[geofelt]

how does the evga gtx 275 do against other gtx 275's like BFG?

All GTX275 are pretty much the same, but with different decorations on them.
There are several categories if differences:
1) Some of the cards are factory overclocked, and are priced higher.
2) Some cards may have different cooling solutions.
3) Some cards will come with a free game, or other bundle.
4) Some, like EVGA and XFX will offer a lifetime warranty
5) Some will have a step-up trade in program allowing you full retail if you trade your card in for something more expensive within 90 days or so.
6) Some have active forums and good customer support.

 

[blackhawk1928]

Personally, "IF YOU DONT PLAN ON USING SLI" then I would add another 20 dollars to your build and smack a GTX280 1GB in there. It has very similar clock, memory, and shader speeds as the GTX275 but has an extra 100MB+ of Ram which can help it handle AA on higher resolutions like yours which is 1080p. But only do this if you wont SLI, because by the time you will want to put in another card, the 280 will be hard to find as its getting kind of old now.

 

[Why_Me]

Personally, "IF YOU DONT PLAN ON USING SLI" then I would add another 20 dollars to your build and smack a GTX280 1GB in there. It has very similar clock, memory, and shader speeds as the GTX275 but has an extra 100MB+ of Ram which can help it handle AA on higher resolutions like yours which is 1080p. But only do this if you wont SLI, because by the time you will want to put in another card, the 280 will be hard to find as its getting kind of old now.

http://www.firingsquad.com/hardware/evga_geforce_gtx_285_ssc_performance_review/page7.asp <---gtx 285 > gtx 280

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2009/01/16/nvidia-zotac-geforce-gtx-285-1gb/8

The 285 uses less power, produces less heat. But like you mentioned, 275 would be the best bet if he goes SLI.

 

[hitman217]

is SLI worth the extra money later, and which to get, gtx 280 or 285, EVGA?

 

[Why_Me]

is SLI worth the extra money later, and which to get, gtx 280 or 285, EVGA?

If I were you I would get one gtx 275 for now, and later on as money allows add another for SLI. In order to go SLI and remain within your budget you would want to make three changes to your build (case, psu, and mobo). A larger case than the Antec 300. The case that fits your budget (and it's a great one btw) is the CM 690. Then you would want to up your psu to a 750w...either the Corsair for PC Power & Cooling...whatever one is on sale atm. And for mobo, the UD3P is a small board for two large vid cards, so you would want to step up to the UD4P.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137 $79.99
COOLER MASTER RC-690-KKN1-GP Black SECC/ ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703009 $109.99 ($89.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
PC Power & Cooling S75QB 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply compatible with core i7 - Retail

http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=MB-EX58U4P Combo Price: $492.99 Free Shipping
GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD4P Core i7/ Intel X58/ DDR3/ CorssFireX & 3-Way SLI/ A&GbE/ ATX Motherboard
Intel Core i7 Processor i7-920 2.66GHz 8MB LGA1366 CPU, Retail

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-gtx-sli,2298.html <--- gtx 275's in SLI > gtx 295

 

[blackhawk1928]

Well since you want to SLI in the future, either a 275 or 285 as they are new releases and will still be easy to find down the road. But for 1080p I recommend a 275, its significantly cheaper and should max everything on 1080p, even crysis it should be maxing out or almost maxing out. SLI I think its worth it, it used to be pretty unstable but now, the new drivers and software are getting really good and down the road, they will be even better, so yeah I personally think you should.

 

[geofelt]

My take on sli/crossfire:

SLI/crossfire has been a poor upgrade path in the past. It should be used only by
those who will not currently be satisfied by the fastest available single vga card
which is currently the GTX295. The 4890, or GTX275
offer very good performance for the money now.
To get SLI. you have to spend more up front for a SLI capable mobo,a
more powerful SLI capable PSU, and better case cooling. Upgrading a single card later with a
second equal card does not get you 2x increase, it is more like 1.3x to 1.8x depending on the game.
At that time, you will still be paying top dollar for a second card that is closer to
being obsolete.
It would be better to sell the old card and use the proceeds
towards a better new generation single card.

 

[blackhawk1928]

^well...the guy has a good point.

 

[Helloworld_98]

get a 275, then put the money you save towards a DX11 card in October/November if you're ok with ATi.

 

[hitman217]

So, this is what i have so far

antec 300 case

intel i7-920

ocz gold 6gb

western digital caviar black

samsung DVD, CD- player

GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD3R

OCZ 550 watt

And, I'm pretty sure i don't want to SLI. I'll stick with one card step ups. Seeing that I'm on a budget, SLI-ing may be too expensive.
So gtx 275, or gtx 280

I found a 280 at newegg for 259.99
275 is around 239.99

 

[hitman217]

actually, the gtx 280 for 259.99, went down to 210.00 w/o rebate

 

[blackhawk1928]

Since you are not doing SLI...spend the extra 20 for the GTX280....its slightly more powerful, i think its worth it personally.

 

[hitman217]

antec 300 case

intel i7-920

ocz gold 6gb

western digital caviar black

samsung DVD, CD- player

GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD3R

OCZ 550 watt

gtx 280

so, do you all think that build will do ok.

I'm purchasing in 1 week or 2

and thank you guys so much. I would have purchased some pretty bad parts without you.

 

[blackhawk1928]

Uhmm...I would get a bigger power supply...your nehalem takes up a lot of power. See...if your system is idle then it will do fine on a 550, but under load it will not...you need to get a PSU to be able to fit the maximum wattage of every component in your system (maximum is how much under load). Nehalem has a maximum of 130watt, gtx280 is 236watt, and your motherboard is like 205watts(205 on load and idle at 120 average) which already puts you at 571watts and this is not including hard drive, ram, optical drive fans...etc. So I would get something more beefy like a 600-650watt to be overhead just incase, its always safe

-Other then that everything looks really good...and i really like the motherboard!