System Builder Marathon, Q1 2013: $1,600 Alternative PC

[tkp]

Your charts show the wrong resolution. In the text it says 5760X1080 then on the chart is says 5760x1600

 

[Onus]

Chesteracorgi, you raise a very valid point concerning the reduced weight of CLC's.
At what point, however, do we say "Stop the Madness!" and just accept the clock rates that inexpensive but still decent, mid-weight 120mm (or smaller) coolers allow?

 

[cknobman]

This build is much more representative of what I want to see in a affordable high end gaming system.

The intangibles that dont really contribute much to the value/performance charts make all the difference to me.

I would choose this build 10/10 times over this quarters $1000 build.

 

[zero2dash]

No problems with 1.65vdimm on 2 SB machines now of mine (and many other people have had the same success).

The issue here is you had a budget motherboard (ASRock) with a ridiculously cheap and thin PCB design. You exacerbated this by using a heavy cooler which caused even more flexing than the board already has to deal with. If you have any doubt, look at any pictures of the board itself from the side (typically these are the rear IO panel pictures that people have taken) and compare the BEND in that area to a board from a Asus or Gigabyte.

 

[pauldh]

[citation][nom]zero2dash[/nom]No problems with 1.65vdimm on 2 SB machines now of mine (and many other people have had the same success).The issue here is you had a budget motherboard (ASRock) with a ridiculously cheap and thin PCB design. You exacerbated this by using a heavy cooler which caused even more flexing than the board already has to deal with. If you have any doubt, look at any pictures of the board itself from the side (typically these are the rear IO panel pictures that people have taken) and compare the BEND in that area to a board from a Asus or Gigabyte.[/citation]
Just an FYI. Do you have any idea how many motherboards Thomas has touched through the years? He doesn't need to look at photos. For me, it would be in the hundreds, and I don't even review motherboards. He does!

 

[Onus]

[citation][nom]pauldh[/nom]Just an FYI. Do you have any idea how many motherboards Thomas has touched through the years? He doesn't need to look at photos. For me, it would be in the hundreds, and I don't even review motherboards. He does![/citation]
I think z2d's suggestion to review photos was for the benefit of other Tom's readers.
I too have noticed that some of the ASRock boards I've bought are rather thin and flexible. So far I haven't had any failures, but I'm as careful with them as possible, and I haven't put huge coolers on any of them.

I have a question about the case...does it have a HDD activity LED, or is it absent, such as on my Fractal Designs Define Mini? I am considering using a LED fan on the top of mine, and use the front power LED as a HDD activity LED instead.

 

[flong777]

[citation][nom]mayankleoboy1[/nom]Crashman on reply overdrive[/citation]

I own the NH-D14 and I have experienced ZERO problems with it "flexing the motherboard." If you have a lan computer that you are hauling around then MAYBE it might be a consideration. The D-14 is big but it is not that big. My unit has nearly 900 reviews on Newegg and it has an 87% five-star approval rating. There are very few products on Newegg that even approach that kind of customer satisfaction.

Unless you are constantly carrying your computer around to lan parties, I doubt the weight of the D-14 is worth considering. Even if you do, I doubt it would be a problem but I cannot speak from experience because I do not go to lan parties.

 

[flong777]

This build is much higher in quality than the $1000 build. The Corsair PSU and NH-D14 cooler really make it top quality. The mystery is why 1600 RAM was chosen when much faster RAM is available for $75 or less. This would have added 1-3% in overall speed. Not a lot but for the money it would be worth it.

 

[basketcase87]

[citation][nom]cknobman[/nom]This build is much more representative of what I want to see in a affordable high end gaming system. The intangibles that dont really contribute much to the value/performance charts make all the difference to me.I would choose this build 10/10 times over this quarters $1000 build.[/citation]
I completely agree on the "intangibles" as you put it. Having a decent case to put all your nice gear in rather than a cheap pile of junk is worth the extra $50-80. Likewise, a power supply is a place I'm ok spending more, because if you get a quality one it will last for a number of builds. The Noctua is just too big for my taste, but I also appreciate having a quality cooler on there for overclocking. I understand these are the first things to go when you are building a budget build to maximize performance, but it's nice to see them be more in line with what a "real world" build would have.

 

[youssef 2010]

IMHO, the $1000 PC excels @ 1080p. The $1600 PC is built for gaming @ 5760x1080. Each build achieves its target.

 

[g-unit1111]

The build lists Crucial Ballistix, but the picture D14 installation pictures showed G.Skill Ares being used, am I missing something here?

 

[Onus]

Is this system being given away too?
I would love to win this one, mostly for those "intangibles." It would be a nice "bigger brother" to the Fractal Design Define Mini I'm using for my other Intel build. For now, I'd pull one of the graphics cards since I only play at 1920x1080, and I might use a smaller cooler, but this is a very nice machine.

I remember years ago with all the issues the P35 chipset had with non-standard RAM, I was a loud advocate for standard voltage on RAM. This build reinforces my attitudes on that subject.

 

[ibjeepr]

I have a question. So are 2 7870 XT cards worth it or do they fall short when it comes to performance per dollar? Would one GTX 680 or HD 7970 still be a more worth while, long term purchase? Assuming X2 7870 XT's = $480 approx. and I'll just round it to $500.

 

[loops]

hhhmmm..this makes me think twice about BIG AIR coolers. Overall I like this build. Well done.

 

[RedJaron]

The build lists Crucial Ballistix, but the picture D14 installation pictures showed G.Skill Ares being used, am I missing something here?

Apparently you missed actually reading the article. Tom notes that very exception right below that picture and goes into pages of detail of having parts fail and swapping stuff out until the system works.

 

[zooted]

This is off topic, but is everyone having issues with the forums?

 

[RedJaron]

This is off topic, but is everyone having issues with the forums?

I noticed the site in general was down for about an hour. I kept getting DNS errors.

 

[thwstedt]

I don't see how someone can look at the last three builds and see how this one is a step in the right direction. I feel like this series should be called, 'How to build with the AMD 7870'. What do they say is the definition of insanity?

 

[cangelini]

[citation][nom]Onus[/nom]Is this system being given away too?I would love to win this one, mostly for those "intangibles." It would be a nice "bigger brother" to the Fractal Design Define Mini I'm using for my other Intel build. For now, I'd pull one of the graphics cards since I only play at 1920x1080, and I might use a smaller cooler, but this is a very nice machine.I remember years ago with all the issues the P35 chipset had with non-standard RAM, I was a loud advocate for standard voltage on RAM. This build reinforces my attitudes on that subject.[/citation]
Yes, we're giving this one away, too.

 

[lothdk]

[citation][nom]zooted[/nom]This is off topic, but is everyone having issues with the forums?[/citation]

Yes, seem to get DNS errors every now and then.

 

[bgunner]

I always like reading the build articles but this was was the most interesting one yet for me. It is nice to know that crappy stuff happens even to the pro builders.

 

[DarkSable]

The problem is that we've seen these claims dozens of times concerning many versions of Samsung's RAM over the past TWO YEARS and, every time we test these claims, they turn out to be exaggerations. This is the first memory set we've tested to exceed the wild expectations set forth by blusterers.

That's... odd. Perhaps it's a large gamble as to what you get?
Because I have my rig personally running at 1833 Mhz, Cas 7, and the computer I built for my best friend is running it at 2000 Mhz with a Cas of 11.
I'll happily upload a CPU-z validation, should you wish; I'm not simply a blusterer, just apparently someone who'se gotten lucky.

 

[sanilmahambre]

AS rock Extreme 4 Z77 is the best replacement for GIGABYTE mobo!

 

[Onus]

There's an excellent tech review of the ASRock Extreme4 and Extreme6 that I have linked at home, but not here. Anyway, the VRMs on the 4 are nowhere near as good as the ones on the 6. For modest OCs, the 4 is probably fine, but for the madd overclocking these guys like, I think the 6 would be the much safer choice.
Edit: Google was friendly! http://www.overclock.net/t/1333812/asrock-z77-extreme4-z77-extreme6-review

 

[pauldh]

[citation][nom]tourist[/nom]paul are you not at least a little curious how the crossfired 7870 le's would fare your 600 build.[/citation]
For sure. Both one and two Tahiti LE. Endless curiosity, limited time.