# 1st attempt at a system build



## cosmicblunder (Dec 21, 2009)

Here we go, feel free to thrown in your 2 cents.  My budget is around $3000ish give or take few hundred.  Primarily a gaming system with hopefully some HTPC functionality as well.  I do have a couple HDD's I could salvage from my current system and use short-term if needed to buy better, not so easily upgraded components.  I've also got a new 1TB external I'm planning to use for back/up storage.  Also no need for speakers, keyboard, or mouse.

On to the system:

Mobo: ASUS P6X58D Premium LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard  $300
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131614

Processor: Core I7-960 $590
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115216

PSU: ABS Majesty series MJ1100-M Continuous 1100W@50°C $300
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817814019

RAM: G.SKILL Trident 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600  $195
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231272

Video Card: ATI 5970  (any particular manufactures to look for?)  $650ish
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131324

Opt. Drv.: Pioneer Blu-Ray R/W  $220
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827129051

Monitor: SAMSUNG 2343BWX High Glossy Black 23" 5ms 16:9 Widescreen LCD Monitor $200
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001317

SSD: Corsair P128 $375
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233087

How am I doing so far? This comes out around $2875 still needing a Case, Soundcard, and whatever cooling/fans/cardreader type stuff I may need.  Also making use of a couple of salvaged HDD's off my current system, they're nothing fancy.. but could work for a while and upgrade later when needed.

Am I missing anything anything other than what I've listed, looks like i'm going to be slightly over my $3000ish budget which is ok.. but it's also my first attempt.  I'm certainly open to any suggestions as to how to finish this off or whatever changes could be made.

Thanks in advance for taking the time.


----------



## InTeL-iNsIdE (Dec 21, 2009)

get an i7 920 and oc it to 3-3.2ghz for $300 less, you dont need a 1.1kw psu a corsair 850w would be ideal. Unless you are going to be burning blu-ray's just get a blu-ray player for half the price that will play br movies but also burn dvd's, cd's etc again saving you $150ish ? 

Thats what I would change the rest is good, and case etc well thats preference I guess. You will also want an aftermarket cooler for your cpu dont go stock on that i7


----------



## kyle2020 (Dec 21, 2009)

InTeL-iNsIdE said:


> get an i7 920 and oc it to 3-3.2ghz for $300 less, you dont need a 1.1kw psu a corsair 850w would be ideal. Unless you are going to be burning blu-ray's just get a blu-ray player for half the price that will play br movies but also burn dvd's, cd's etc again saving you $150ish ?
> 
> Thats what I would change the rest is good, and case etc well thats preference I guess. You will also want an aftermarket cooler for your cpu dont go stock on that i7



big +1 on the cpu / psu area.


----------



## erocker (Dec 21, 2009)

I agree with intel. Corsair HX850w are excellent PSU's. I really like the Corsair Obsidian 800D for a case.


----------



## brandonwh64 (Dec 21, 2009)

Listen to these guys! they are gods


----------



## BraveSoul (Dec 21, 2009)

Motherboard       awesome
80+ GOLD PSU    awesome
I7 960 is good,expensive,   920 would be a smarter choice from a price/performance stand point
video card,5850  now, then sell it and get geforce380 which should be closer to twice as fast 
this monitor is better Response Time 2ms/Pixel Pitch 0.266mm/Contrast Ratio DC 50000:1


----------



## kyle2020 (Dec 21, 2009)

I recently read a review on a 5970 and apparently they arent worth the cost yet due to immature drivers, but if you want bleeding edge I say go for it


----------



## assaulter_99 (Dec 21, 2009)

Nice build bro. A badass rig like that needs a badass case! I smell an HAF 932/922 here!  and a giant prolimatech megahalems (i wonder if i wrote it well this time, what kinda name is that?)


----------



## cosmicblunder (Dec 21, 2009)

I'm currently searching for this answer.. but perhaps someone can answer it for me quicker than I'll find it.

Why would anyone buy the 960 or 975 processors over the 920?  Is the clock speed the only difference there?  Is there a difference between a 920 OC'd to a certain speed and a higher model OC'd to the exact same speed?  Difference in expected lifespan or anything?

Just trying to become a bit more informed about it as opposed to blindly following advice.

Thanks!


----------



## assaulter_99 (Dec 21, 2009)

Has a performance difference, but you ll never ever beat the hell out of the 920 so I guess its just a case of mine is better than yours stuff lol.

And by the time the 920 will be used and abused, the 960 and 975 will be old tech. So if you won t stress the 920 (which I guarantee you wont) no need for the higher end stuff, especially when you see the price tag.


----------



## kyle2020 (Dec 21, 2009)

Its the price thats causing the suggestion. You can easily overclock a 920 to outperform a 960 and save a buttload of cash.


----------



## assaulter_99 (Dec 21, 2009)

I may be wrong but some people have OC'd the 920 past 4ghz with water cooling so its no slouch, you don t have to be worried, just save your cash man.


----------



## cosmicblunder (Dec 21, 2009)

my cash must be spent, if I don't spend it... my loving wife wills spend the leftovers to add to my already incredibly long honey-do list by buying even more light fixtures, ceiling fans, flooring, paint etc.  Said list of stuff that needs to be done and is just awaiting my recovery from surgery is already insurmountable.

In fact, I'm looking at it this way... this PC is my way of forcing an intervention on my wife's remodeling addiction, so I'm doing her a favor!


----------



## erocker (Dec 21, 2009)

cosmicblunder said:


> I'm currently searching for this answer.. but perhaps someone can answer it for me quicker than I'll find it.
> 
> Why would anyone buy the 960 or 975 processors over the 920?  Is the clock speed the only difference there?  Is there a difference between a 920 OC'd to a certain speed and a higher model OC'd to the exact same speed?  Difference in expected lifespan or anything?
> 
> ...



Essentially they are exactly the same chip with the 960 and the 975 running at a higher stock multiplier to give it more frequency. If you feel the extra money is worth not having to overclock a 920 to reach those speeds, then it may be worth it to you. However, getting an i7 920 to run at 3.6ghz+ takes minimal effort.



cosmicblunder said:


> my cash must be spent, if I don't spend it... my loving wife wills spend the leftovers to add to my already incredibly long honey-do list by buying even more light fixtures, ceiling fans, flooring, paint etc.  Said list of stuff that needs to be done and is just awaiting my recovery from surgery is already insurmountable.
> 
> In fact, I'm looking at it this way... this PC is my way of forcing an intervention on my wife's remodeling addiction, so I'm doing her a favor!



Get a Dunnington 6 core Xeon! She'll be happy to get food money!


----------



## assaulter_99 (Dec 21, 2009)

cosmicblunder said:


> In fact, I'm looking at it this way... this PC is my way of forcing an intervention on my wife's remodeling addiction, so I'm doing her a favor!



Don't like your gal being sexy for ya?  Anyways if you've got the cash, to hell reason, just splash for anything thats extreme!


----------



## cosmicblunder (Dec 21, 2009)

erocker said:


> Essentially they are exactly the same chip with the 960 and the 975 running at a higher stock multiplier to give it more frequency. If you feel the extra money is worth not having to overclock a 920 to reach those speeds, then it may be worth it to you. However, getting an i7 920 to run at 3.6ghz+ takes minimal effort.



Makes sense to me, thanks.


----------



## assaulter_99 (Dec 21, 2009)

erocker said:


> Get a Dunnington 6 core Xeon! She'll be happy to get food money!



At this price, she'll be left with leftovers!


----------



## theonedub (Dec 21, 2009)

Good pick on the monitor


----------



## Asylum (Dec 22, 2009)

As people have stated above....Get the 920. you can get to 4.2Ghz with two clicks of a mouse with a good aftermarket cooler.
Pick up this ram with the money you saved from the chip. I have this ram and its some of the best you will find right now.
Will run @ 1600mhz @ 6-7-6-18-59 1T on 1.65 volts and will overclock higher.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104122


----------



## cosmicblunder (Dec 22, 2009)

Alright, doing some reconfiguring... changing to the I7-920 and Blu-Ray player as opposed to burner as suggested and adding the above mentioned Corsair Case and a creative Xi-Fi Titanium card : 
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102019

I'm sitting right around $3000 before looking for any combo deals and such... I know the PSU I have selected comes with a combo for Win7 x64 Home Edition.   As for switching the PSU to the 850W Corsair, I'm still up in the air about it.... It would be nice to not  have to mess with it should I decide down the road to add a second video card, however it is a bit more pricey.  Then again, the Win 7 Combo is nice as well.

I'll put a little more thought into that... as for OCin' the 920, what am I looking at needing to add?  I'll start doing some searching around in the forums here and maybe sneak a peek at what others are using, but if anyone wants to toss in some suggestions, feel free to do so.


----------



## cosmicblunder (Dec 22, 2009)

Asylum said:


> As people have stated above....Get the 920. you can get to 4.2Ghz with two clicks of a mouse with a good aftermarket cooler.
> Pick up this ram with the money you saved from the chip. I have this ram and its some of the best you will find right now.
> Will run @ 1600mhz @ 6-7-6-18-59 1T on 1.65 volts and will overclock higher.



I'll definitely check it out, thanks!


----------



## Soylent Joe (Dec 22, 2009)

cosmicblunder said:


> As for switching the PSU to the 850W Corsair, I'm still up in the air about it.... It would be nice to not  have to mess with it should I decide down the road to add a second video card, however it is a bit more pricey.



I'm fairly sure you'd be able to run 2x 5970's on an 850W PSU, esp. a Corsair. A single 5970 sucks 300W max.


----------



## BraveSoul (Dec 22, 2009)

cosmicblunder said:


> as for OCin' the 920, what am I looking at needing to add?


a big fat ass air cooler   preferably with direct touch 8mm heatpipes, the more of them the better


----------



## DirectorC (Dec 22, 2009)

If you end up saving enough money or just for the hell of it since you have a lot of money, and to really see a ton of blazing fast performance, you should get two of those drives and setup a RAID0 array.  It's pretty easy, once you boot you just enable RAID control in the BIOS then go to the Intel RAID controller (appears after POST) and add the drives to a striped set and you've got almost twice the speed of a single drive.

Edit: Also, take heed of what this reviewer stated:

"They finally released an official update to the drives firmware on the Corsair forums to support TRIM function for Windows 7 users. Updating the firmware wont void your warranty either. All drive data will be lost when you update this drives firmware which is clearly stated on their forums. Not really a con if you buy this new and can update it befoer installing the OS or don't use Windows 7"


----------



## StukaJU87 (Dec 22, 2009)

Another case to consider is the Thermaltake Spedo Advance Package.  Yes it has a funny name and I know it's not for everyone, but it's a great case.  First time builders will like the cable management.  CM is so good, you'd really have to try to screw it up and the case is big enough to handle anything you throw at it.  Here's a link to some specs and a video review.  http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4197077&CatId=1510
Not pushing the site, just a link with some info to help you out


----------



## KieX (Dec 22, 2009)

Some really good advice there from the pro's. Not much I can really add to that, except:

*Light It Up!*

Cold Cathode Tubes: show off all that computer's goodness  (as long as you go for a case with a window)


----------



## cosmicblunder (Dec 22, 2009)

DirectorC said:


> If you end up saving enough money...



Just trying to get by on HDD's or an SSD until some of the Sata 6.0 GB/s starts to have a few more options in the future.  Any thoughts on just picking up a couple of those Samsung F3 drives I seem to recall reading about?  Putting a couple of this in RAID 0 for now as opposed to that SSD I've picked out?


----------



## cosmicblunder (Dec 22, 2009)

KieX said:


> Some really good advice there from the pro's. Not much I can really add to that, except:
> 
> *Light It Up!*
> 
> Cold Cathode Tubes: show off all that computer's goodness  (as long as you go for a case with a window)



Wouldn't mind a little bling... I'd just have to add a switch to kill the lighting when it's movie time in that room if that's possible.


----------



## assaulter_99 (Dec 22, 2009)

KieX said:


> Cold Cathode Tubes: show off all that computer's goodness  (as long as you go for a case with a window)



I love the sound reactive ones! Makes your case look like a night club! 

Dont worry, they come with a switch, you can turn them off if and when you wish!


----------



## KieX (Dec 22, 2009)

cosmicblunder said:


> Wouldn't mind a little bling... I'd just have to add a switch to kill the lighting when it's movie time in that room if that's possible.



They normally come with a small switch. I bought some from a UK website and the button fitted the rubber gromet holes for water cooling tubes. Otherwise you might need to dremel a small hole for a switch at the front. Unless opening and closing the case each time you want to switch on/off is not a problem (i'm just lazy)


----------



## KieX (Dec 22, 2009)

assaulter_99 said:


> I love the sound reactive ones! Makes your case look like a night club!
> 
> Dont worry, they come with a switch, you can turn them off if and when you wish!



I didn't know those existed :O ZOMG! To the internets to buy!


----------



## assaulter_99 (Dec 22, 2009)

KieX said:


> I didn't know those existed :O ZOMG! To the internets to buy!



Had a pair a couple of years ago, they were awesome. It reacts to bass, has a sensor and you can choose which mode you want etc. They died sadly  But its a good buy, you ll see what i mean when you get them!


----------



## DirectorC (Dec 22, 2009)

cosmicblunder said:


> Just trying to get by on HDD's or an SSD until some of the Sata 6.0 GB/s starts to have a few more options in the future.  Any thoughts on just picking up a couple of those Samsung F3 drives I seem to recall reading about?  Putting a couple of this in RAID 0 for now as opposed to that SSD I've picked out?



A single one of those SSD drives is pretty much as fast as two HDs in RAID0.


----------



## cosmicblunder (Dec 22, 2009)

BraveSoul said:


> a big fat ass air cooler   preferably with direct touch 8mm heatpipes, the more of them the better



Soo... something like this?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835242001&Tpk=megahalems


----------



## cosmicblunder (Dec 22, 2009)

DirectorC said:


> A single one of those SSD drives is pretty much as fast as two HDs in RAID0.



Two of the F3's would be quite a bit cheaper.. as well as more capacity than the SSD if I remember correctly..  As for the performance in RAID, I have no experience with ever having stuff in RAID so I'm not sure what the difference would be.  Probably more stuff to put on my "to read about" list.


----------



## wolf (Dec 22, 2009)

I'd change the core i7 for a 920, as many have already stated, and a 850-1000w Enermax Revolution 85+ PSU would be my weapon of choice there.

Also I'd start the build at just one 5850, and add from there as you see fit, but this is from a bang for buck point of view I guess, if the missus is just going to spend the rest on more chores as such, grab a pair of 5970's and call it a day.


----------



## KieX (Dec 22, 2009)

cosmicblunder said:


> Soo... something like this?
> 
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835242001&Tpk=megahalems



That's a good choice. I had a look but couldn't find it in newegg, but there is the Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme, which is also a really good air cooler (not sure of american name though).



cosmicblunder said:


> Two of the F3's would be quite a bit cheaper.. as well as more capacity than the SSD if I remember correctly..  As for the performance in RAID, I have no experience with ever having stuff in RAID so I'm not sure what the difference would be.  Probably more stuff to put on my "to read about" list.



Best combo at the moment seems to be to have a single SSD for your Operating System and apps, and a big ass hard drive for everything else. Trust me, once you go SSD, you'll never want back. It's not solely to the speed differnce but to random writes too, err, basically everything is a LOT snappier.


----------



## dr emulator (madmax) (Dec 22, 2009)

you'll definately need a good case if your thinking of going xfire in the future as them 5970's get hot 
i like the choice of motherboard, might look into one of them for myself


----------



## assaulter_99 (Dec 22, 2009)

Yeah you definitely need a good house for all these dream components! don t forget to look at the haf 922, thats one helluva case. Its ugly but it looks wicked. Heck it ll even scare lizards out of your case with its looks!


----------



## cosmicblunder (Dec 22, 2009)

dr emulator (madmax) said:


> View attachment 31562 you'll definately need a good case if your thinking of going xfire in the future as them 5970's get hot
> i like the choice of motherboard, might look into one of them for myself



I'd rather have the option to do it in the future than not have the option I guess...  I'm still browsing through cases and cooling stuff.  Something with some wheels on the bottom would be nifty, but if not I'm sure I could easily make a cart or just screw/bolt some random casters on the bottom pretty easily if I really found something I liked..


----------



## JTS (Dec 22, 2009)

Another alternative to the megahalem for consideration:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608018&cm_re=noctua-_-35-608-018-_-Product

Everything I've read about this new Noctua Cooler has been positive.


----------



## DirectorC (Dec 22, 2009)

JTS said:


> Another alternative to the megahalem for consideration:
> 
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608018&cm_re=noctua-_-35-608-018-_-Product
> 
> Everything I've read about this new Noctua Cooler has been positive.



OMG it's two coolers in one.


----------



## Mussels (Dec 22, 2009)

you havent listed a mouse, keyboard, monitor, speakers, or headphones in the first post.

From discussions in the previous thread with you, i thought you needed an entire PC, and not just the tower + screen?


----------



## cosmicblunder (Dec 22, 2009)

Mussels said:


> you havent listed a mouse, keyboard, monitor, speakers, or headphones in the first post.
> 
> From discussions in the previous thread with you, i thought you needed an entire PC, and not just the tower + screen?



Nope, I've got a Logitech keyboard & mouse setup that I like and a couple of headsets lying around here that work perfectly fine.  As far as speakers go, I've got an older set of desktop speakers that are ok.. with the room that this thing is going in, it's already going to have the Home Theater surround sound stuff set up in there for the T.V.  No real need to go putting more speakers around for the PC.


----------



## BraveSoul (Dec 24, 2009)

JTS said:


> Another alternative to the megahalem for consideration:
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608018&cm_re=noctua-_-35-608-018-_-Product
> Everything I've read about this new Noctua Cooler has been positive.


whooooaaaaa that Noctua is more then 50% heavier then Megahalem MASSIVE


----------



## cosmicblunder (Jan 10, 2010)

Just to update this thread and thank everyone for their input.  System was ordered a few weeks ago with a few changes to some stuff I had originally wanted do to a few items being out of stock at the time I was ordering.  The Air Cooler I had decided upon was out of stock, so I ended up with the Corsair H-50 which I'm actually pretty happy with.  The two sets of RAM I was originally deciding between were both out of stock at NewEgg as well.. so I ended up spending a bit more on that than planned, but it's really hard to complain about what I ended up with other than the price.

The actual build when pretty well considering this was my first attempt at building a system.  I made a few and had a couple switch wiring issues and what not.  I absolutely love the Corsair case, especially for a first time builder.  It's so easy to hide all your wiring behind the mother board tray.  I actually went through and sleeved all my cables that did not come pre-sleeved which I probably would have never done had I not spent so much time looking at other systems here while researching what I wanted.

I also mounted 4 military style switches to one of the front bezel to control various system lighting and the three Noctua exhaust fans mounted in the top of the case. and it all went fairly smoothly.

Anyhow, thanks to everyone for their input and to the sit for all the help and research material provided!  I'm very happy with the results thus far, and do have a few future mods bouncing around in my head already.  Now, I'm off to do some research on overclocking!


----------



## DirectorC (Jan 10, 2010)

Nice, dude!

Good luck!  We're always here to help if you need it.


----------



## assaulter_99 (Jan 10, 2010)

Happy for you man! Don't forget to check the OC guides in the OC'in section of the site!  Post some pics too!


----------



## brandonwh64 (Jan 10, 2010)

cosmicblunder said:


> Just to update this thread and thank everyone for their input.  System was ordered a few weeks ago with a few changes to some stuff I had originally wanted do to a few items being out of stock at the time I was ordering.  The Air Cooler I had decided upon was out of stock, so I ended up with the Corsair H-50 which I'm actually pretty happy with.  The two sets of RAM I was originally deciding between were both out of stock at NewEgg as well.. so I ended up spending a bit more on that than planned, but it's really hard to complain about what I ended up with other than the price.
> 
> The actual build when pretty well considering this was my first attempt at building a system.  I made a few and had a couple switch wiring issues and what not.  I absolutely love the Corsair case, especially for a first time builder.  It's so easy to hide all your wiring behind the mother board tray.  I actually went through and sleeved all my cables that did not come pre-sleeved which I probably would have never done had I not spent so much time looking at other systems here while researching what I wanted.
> 
> ...





NICE cosmicblunder! now post some pictures of this puppy!!!


----------



## cosmicblunder (Jan 10, 2010)

Just threw an album together in photobucket real quick before heading out for a movie... hopefully this link works.

http://s810.photobucket.com/albums/zz30/CosmicBlunder/Corsair PC/

I had grand plans of painting those ugly Noctua fans... but it just looked to be too involved and I was itching to flip the switch and fire the thing up.   I have to say, the system is very very quiet even with the fans sitting right next to me pretty much.  Anyhow, hope that worked, if not I'll attempt to fix it when I get home.  Enjoy the pics!


----------



## MK4512 (Jan 10, 2010)

Go with the i7-920, a slightly higher clock isn't worth $600, also, 1kw is not needed unless your going to CF your 5970. 0_0

I guess I have nothing new to add  I'm a little late!


----------



## DirectorC (Jan 10, 2010)

MK4512 said:


> Go with the i7-920, a slightly higher clock isn't worth $600, also, 1kw is not needed unless your going to CF your 5970. 0_0



Please read the last 5 posts on page 2.


----------



## KieX (Jan 10, 2010)

cosmicblunder said:


> Just threw an album together in photobucket real quick before heading out for a movie... hopefully this link works.
> 
> http://s810.photobucket.com/albums/zz30/CosmicBlunder/Corsair PC/
> 
> I had grand plans of painting those ugly Noctua fans... but it just looked to be too involved and I was itching to flip the switch and fire the thing up.   I have to say, the system is very very quiet even with the fans sitting right next to me pretty much.  Anyhow, hope that worked, if not I'll attempt to fix it when I get home.  Enjoy the pics!



That is looking great man!


----------

