Noob building a gaming PC - how is this setup?

[nico335]

im not too familiar with brands or parts but have friends that will help me build and overclock. how are these parts? anything i should reconsider? monitor, keyboard, etc are already taken care of. thanks in advanced.

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

EVGA E759 CLASSIFIED LIMITED EDITION 3-Way SLI (x16) + PhysX w/ECP & NF200 1366 Intel X58 EATX Intel Motherboard

EVGA 017-P3-1294-AR GeForce GTX 295 1792MB 896 Bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card

Antec 1200

ABS Tagan BZ Series BZ1100 1100W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Patent Piperock


(2) CORSAIR DOMINATOR 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TR3X6G1600C8D

XIGMATEK Dark Knight-S1283V 120mm Long Life Bearing CPU Cooler

Western Digital Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drives - OEM

 

[Why_Me]

im not too familiar with brands or parts but have friends that will help me build and overclock. how are these parts? anything i should reconsider? monitor, keyboard, etc are already taken care of. thanks in advanced.

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

EVGA E759 CLASSIFIED LIMITED EDITION 3-Way SLI (x16) + PhysX w/ECP & NF200 1366 Intel X58 EATX Intel Motherboard

EVGA 017-P3-1294-AR GeForce GTX 295 1792MB 896 Bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card

Antec 1200

ABS Tagan BZ Series BZ1100 1100W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Patent Piperock


(2) CORSAIR DOMINATOR 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TR3X6G1600C8D

XIGMATEK Dark Knight-S1283V 120mm Long Life Bearing CPU Cooler

Western Digital Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drives - OEM

We can't decide if that's a decent build or not without knowing your budget, screen resolution, and what country your in (budget/parts/retailer)

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/261222-31-build-advice

 

[nico335]

We can't decide if that's a decent build or not without knowing your budget, screen resolution, and what country your in (budget/parts/retailer)

sorry bout that. budget is around $2k. going to be running a 26' samsung monitor, 1920 x 1080. i do a lot of gaming therefore the selection. live in the US - california to be exact. will be ordering most, if not, all parts from newegg. ordering sometime this week.

 

[Why_Me]

D0 Stepping i7 w/dual gtx 285's in SLI

You have a nice build there. You might want to take a look at this one. It not only saves you a few dollars, but it doesn't lack any performance and / or quality components. The sweet spot for over clocking the i7 and getting the most fps is 3.6GHz according the article done on this site. This build will easily get you there and then some.

The gtx 285 produces a lot less heat, and has better drivers atm than the 295. Also these 285's in SLI rock.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197 $129.99
COOLER MASTER HAF 922 RC-922M-KKN1-GP Black Steel + Plastic and Mesh Bezel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
New Arrival

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139009 $134.49 ($114.49 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
CORSAIR CMPSU-850TX 850W ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Active PFC Power Supply - Retail

http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=MB-EX58U4P $219.99 | -$20 w/promo code = $199.99 | $184.99. after rebate Free Ground Shipping
GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD4P Core i7/ Intel X58/ DDR3/ CorssFireX & 3-Way SLI/ A&GbE/ ATX Motherboard
Use Code: MEMORIAL20 to get an extra $20 off

https://www.antaresdigital.com/customer/product.php?productid=16135&cat=282&page=1" $ 277.00
Intel Core i7 920 2.66GHz LGA 1366 Socket 8MB Cache CPU D0 Stepping

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233029 $41.99 Free Shipping*
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.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130480 $329.99 ($299.99 after $30.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
EVGA 01G-P3-1180-AR GeForce GTX 285 1GB 512-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
Free Cryostasis game w/ registration at manufacturer website

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130480 $329.99 ($299.99 after $30.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
EVGA 01G-P3-1180-AR GeForce GTX 285 1GB 512-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
Free Cryostasis game w/ registration at manufacturer website

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231247 $94.99 Free Shipping*
G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284 $94.99 Free Shipping*
Western Digital Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drives - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136152 $23.99 Free Shipping*
LG Black 22X (CAV) DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X (CAV) 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±R DVD Burner - OEM

Total: $1,662.40 | $1,567.40 w/mail in rebates

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

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128374 <--- more pics, specs, and customer reviews of that Gigabyte UD4P mobo used in this build

http://www.coolermaster-usa.com/product.php?category_id=18&product_id=2810 <--- more pics, specs, and reviews of the case used in this build.

http://www.anandtech.com/weblog/showpost.aspx?i=584 <--- Short review of the D0 stepping i7 920

 

[nico335]

D0 Stepping i7 w/dual gtx 285's in SLI

You have a nice build there. You might want to take a look at this one. It not only saves you a few dollars, but it doesn't lack any performance and / or quality components. The sweet spot for over clocking the i7 and getting the most fps is 3.6GHz according the article done on this site. This build will easily get you there and then some.

The gtx 285 produces a lot less heat, and has better drivers atm than the 295. Also these 285's in SLI rock.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197 $129.99
COOLER MASTER HAF 922 RC-922M-KKN1-GP Black Steel + Plastic and Mesh Bezel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
New Arrival

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139009 $134.49 ($114.49 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
CORSAIR CMPSU-850TX 850W ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Active PFC Power Supply - Retail

http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=MB-EX58U4P $219.99 | -$20 w/promo code = $199.99 | $184.99. after rebate Free Ground Shipping
GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD4P Core i7/ Intel X58/ DDR3/ CorssFireX & 3-Way SLI/ A&GbE/ ATX Motherboard
Use Code: MEMORIAL20 to get an extra $20 off

https://www.antaresdigital.com/customer/product.php?productid=16135&cat=282&page=1&#034; $ 277.00
Intel Core i7 920 2.66GHz LGA 1366 Socket 8MB Cache CPU D0 Stepping

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233029 $41.99 Free Shipping*
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.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130480 $329.99 ($299.99 after $30.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
EVGA 01G-P3-1180-AR GeForce GTX 285 1GB 512-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
Free Cryostasis game w/ registration at manufacturer website

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130480 $329.99 ($299.99 after $30.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
EVGA 01G-P3-1180-AR GeForce GTX 285 1GB 512-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
Free Cryostasis game w/ registration at manufacturer website

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231247 $94.99 Free Shipping*
G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284 $94.99 Free Shipping*
Western Digital Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drives - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136152 $23.99 Free Shipping*
LG Black 22X (CAV) DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X (CAV) 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±R DVD Burner - OEM

Total: $1,662.40 | $1,567.40 w/mail in rebates

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

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128374 <--- more pics, specs, and customer reviews of that Gigabyte UD4P mobo

http://www.anandtech.com/weblog/showpost.aspx?i=584 <--- Short review of the D0 stepping i7 920

awesome.... thanks a lot

 

[HosainH]

Good luck seems like a good build.

 

[Helloworld_98]

also if you plan on filling up the ram dimm slots so you have 6 dimms then the i7 can only run them at a max of 1333mhz each dimm so on your next set of dimms that you buy to compliment these, don't spend the extra for 1600mhz dimm's.

 

[sprucebr1]

I agree, Save some $ and just use DDR3 1333Mhz. Going above 6GB of RAM is not needed at this point. DDR3 1600Mhz is a little overkill. Looks good otherwise.