System Build Question

[manshiny]

Hello

Excuse my noobyness but i have a few questions. Its my first time building (well upgrading) a computer (and my friends helping me) but i was wondering if im on the right track with parts.
my current rig:
Intel i5 2500k @ stock speed
Gigabyte P67 (some low end one)
Sapphire HD 6950 1gb
Kingston HyperX 8gb @1600mhz
CoolerMaster V8
Raidmax Aelous
Blu-ray combo thing
1tb HDD
A random brand 660w psu

Im currently changing/adding these parts:
Asus Maximus iv extreme-z
Sapphire 6950 dirt 3 edition
Corsair HX850w
Intel 320 120gb

I also may change the ram to corsair dominator gt (looking into 8-12gb, figured 8 would be enough)
and i was concerned with the power supply, i used the cooler master psu calculator and it said something like 947w, also is the intel SSD the right way to go, i only plan on putting the OS on and some of my more important apps and games.

Your wise words would be much appreciated

 

[Outlander_04]

If you change motherboards you will see very little performance increase . Maybe 1-2 % . The P67 chipset will perform identically on a $100 motherboard and on a $250 one .
Z68 will also perform identically . I would not spend the money on this upgrade .

The power supply makes sense . A single 6950 on a sandybridge computer and the total system draw under load is going to be less than 300 watts even with a bunch of hard drives and bling running .
A 600 - 650 watt quality unit will run cool and quiet . An 850 watt unit could run TWO 6950's and still run cool . Are you ever going to run two?

 

[ScrewySqrl]

looks like he is adding a second 6950 if you read the message.

the 850 should do both, however, you can get a good 8x/8x board for far less than the Maximus IV, which is for people with more money than sense.

this MSI model is $129.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130583

 

[manshiny]

Thanks your for replies.

My current motherboard is a gigabyte p67-ud3-b3 which is extremely inferior to the Maximus IV and im not aiming at boosting performance based on the motherboard, i was actually more keen on the features themselves.

I understand there are other motherboards providing similar performance at a cheaper price, (infact i was orginally looking into the p8z68-v pro) however I was planning to take full advantage of the extreme-z's features (especially for overclocking)
I have been researching the upgrading parts for a few months now and with a friend who also has that motherboard (who has given me a lot of good feedback regarding it), i came to a conclusion that i would like to go with that mobo.

I will be crossfiring the 6950's, however regarding my orginal question, i was wondering if -overall- i had made a wise decision. I plan on adding a few more things in the later months, but in the long run i dont plan on upgrading for quite awhile (hence the extreme-z)

Regarding the Psu, I figured that 850w would be enough, but i still didnt want to take the risk. is there any other options with psu's that would be better?
also regarding ram, would it be smart to change to dominator gt or stick with hyperX.

Thank you and sorry for ranting on about motherboards, i am still open to suggestions. But i think i may stick to the Maximus IV (if not that then the v pro, but as i said, fully open to suggestions)

 

[ScrewySqrl]

you'll do fine with the 850W and the ASUS Maximus . in terms of RAM, only speed and timings matter, don't worry about the brand name. 8 GB of DDR3-1600 with 8-8-8 timings will be plenty.

 

[mjmjpfaff]

Hello

Excuse my noobyness but i have a few questions. Its my first time building (well upgrading) a computer (and my friends helping me) but i was wondering if im on the right track with parts.
my current rig:
Intel i5 2500k @ stock speed
Gigabyte P67 (some low end one)
Sapphire HD 6950 1gb
Kingston HyperX 8gb @1600mhz
CoolerMaster V8
Raidmax Aelous
Blu-ray combo thing
1tb HDD
A random brand 660w psu

Im currently changing/adding these parts:
Asus Maximus iv extreme-z
Sapphire 6950 dirt 3 edition
Corsair HX850w
Intel 320 120gb

I also may change the ram to corsair dominator gt (looking into 8-12gb, figured 8 would be enough)
and i was concerned with the power supply, i used the cooler master psu calculator and it said something like 947w, also is the intel SSD the right way to go, i only plan on putting the OS on and some of my more important apps and games.

Your wise words would be much appreciated

can you sli/cf on the board you have? that board is way overpriced. look into the asrock z68 extreme_ gen3 motherboards they will be a better upgrade because they are more future proof. i am guessing that you are only playing at 1080p. you do not need a 2gb card just add another 1gb card. 750w pf power is more than enough to cf 2 6950's. i suggest the pc power and cooling 750w psu. it is 99$ at newegg after promo code. you can get a faster ssd than the 320. look into the crucial m4 128gb it is out of stock but coming back in around the 10th of this month.

 

[AdrianPerry]

Make sure your using 1.5v RAM with SandyBridge.

 

[mjmjpfaff]

if you already have that 1.65v ram i wouldnt buy a whole new 8gb. 1.65v ram runs fine with sandybridge. i am running some right now and i have not encountered any problems.

 

[Murissokah]

If you are upgrading the motherboard because of the features, than it makes sense to buy that one. I don't think its worth the money, but its your call.

As mentioned before, forget the RAM. All it will do is look nice, and nobody will see it inside the case anyway.

The PSU upgrade is what makes most sense, since you will be crossfiring. 850W should be enough.

As for the SSD, Intel is nice, but I would go for an OCZ Vertex 3 for sure. Way better performance.

My last bit of advice: You may want to consider if the money you would spend on a motherboard or RAM upgrade won't be better spent on a new Monitor, a second data drive, or even a second SSD for raid (raid0 Vertex3 = 1000MBps R/W, overkill though).

 

[manshiny]

Thanks for all your replies.

After reading through i figured going with the Z68-V Pro or the Extreme 4 would be a lot better for money.

Regarding the SSD, i was reading a lot of forums and reviews on them, and had some personal advice given by friends and they all pointed at Intel or OCZ, but i didnt quite know what to aim towards between the two so i just went with a brand i know more.
and i especially do not believe i need two (for running in raid0), One is enough for me

I wasn't going to bother fiddling with ram for awhile either, i know 8gb is a well
enough especially @1600mhz.

In the end i end up with this:

Psu:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139011

SSD:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227706

Mobo:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157250
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131730
(but the maximus is still tempting XD)

GPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102949

 

[manshiny]

One other offtopic question
I live outside of the US and the local computer stores sell parts for literally double the price, are there any international shipping stores that sell parts. I heard tiger direct does.

 

[ScrewySqrl]

what country are you in?

 

[manshiny]

what country are you in?

New Zealand

 

[AdrianPerry]

I personally use the z68-v PRO and its a really nice board. Lots of features, easy to over-clock, solid performance.

Its probably worth seriously considering the EXTREME4 GEN3 though just for that PCI 3.0 support. Or even the much cheaper EXTREME3 GEN3 i believe supports crossfire and SLI.

 

[madchemist83]

send me invitation to New Zealand and I'll bring u ur comp 😀

 

[manshiny]

Best answer selected by Manshiny.