# Help building i7 920 OC Gaming build please



## SoSpirited (May 3, 2010)

Hi All,

*Aim*
I'm looking at building an overclocked gaming build (my first ever build). Looking to overclock the i7 920 DO processor to 4Ghz and have it run stable with cooling sufficient to make it not go over 80 degrees under load. Oh and to be 'reasonably' quiet. I plan to run Windows 7 Professional 64-bit.

I will list the parts I have in mind and would appreciate your feedback on my set up and any issues I might have with them.

*Parts *
Computer Case - Antec 900
Motherboard - Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R 
CPU - Intel Core i7 920 D0 2.66Ghz Socket 1366 retail (Nehalem)
CPU Cooler - Noctua NH-D14 (EDIT: Confirmed. It DOES fit inside the Antec 300: http://www.eggxpert.com/forums/thread/620025.aspx ) OR Scythe Mugen 2 rev.B
RAM - OCZ XTC 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3 1600Mhz CL8(8-8-8-20)
Graphics Card - ATI XFX 5850 - comes with lifetime warranty
Monitor - 24 LG W2452XT (Aspect Ratio 16:10, resolution 1920x1200)
Hard Drive - Western Digital WD10EALS 1TB 
Power Unit - Thermaltake 700W ToughPower PSU

*Concerns*
EDIT: The following bits may/may not be relevent having edited the parts above, but will leave here for anyone in same position as me

- Would the Noctua be sufficient cooling to run the overclocked i7? The Antec 300 case has room for an additional side fan to cool the graphics card, would it be needed?
- Is 800W enough power for what I am aiming for?
- Is the ASUS branded ATI 5850 worth the extra money? 
- The Antec 300 has room for a side fan which can cool the graphics card, would it be necessary? If so I have been looking at the Scythe Gentle Typhoons.
- Is my motherboard a good choice? My rig is expensive enough as it is so I would like to stick to either Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R or the ASUS P6T SE (I'm not a fan of SLI so that does not bother me)

I welcome any feedback and advice from you knowledgeable people.


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## theonedub (May 3, 2010)

The Noctua DH-14 is one of the best air coolers, it will cool an overclocked i7 920 @4ghz as long as you don't have to pour dummy volts into the chip to get there. If the RAM has tall heatspreaders it might be a no go on fit. 

800W is enough, not familiar with Hi-Power though. It would be a good idea to go with a solid PSU manufacturer like Corsair, Antec, etc. 

The ASUS branded card is probably your personal preference, unless it has an upgraded cooler. At that point it depends on your temp goals. 

Side fan? I say if you can fit them (clearance) and you don't mind noise, use them. Cooler is better. 

I would take Gigabyte over ASUS in budget motherboards for sure personally. 

Other advice- buy used if possible, save money $$ the Buy/Sell/Trade Forum here has killer deals all the time


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## Hellfire (May 3, 2010)

Seems pretty good, I've not used the Motherboard myself but a review I found said for the price it is relitively good. Good choice on the Graphics card however I do prefer the Sapphire over Asus (personal preference I suppose)

I'd consider an extra smaller HDD for your OS and then use the HDD for storage, otherwise if you have to format it'll be a bitch


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## Fourstaff (May 3, 2010)

Power supply sucks, get something quality like corsair or toughpower. 700w should be excess. Dunno about the Antec 300 fitting a Noctua, but I think it might not fit. Please confirm. XFX 5850 preferred, since they offer lifetime warranty, but any brand would do. Some people might have something against certain brands, so listen to them on why they avoid certain brands. WD Caviar Black preferred since its faster, but Blue is fine. Mobo is good.

Edit: 2 people posted ahead of me while I was typing! Grrrr


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## jasper1605 (May 3, 2010)

the noctua cooler is going to be a tight fight in the case especially w/ a side fan in there.  I've got the azza solano 1000 which has same width as that, and I had to cut the side fan panel so I could mount the fan on the outside of the case so my noctua cooler could fit.  I'd say the cooler comes maybe 1/2 inch away from the side at the most.

seventeam is another good psu brand, it's what I've got in mine and I enjoy it.  

for the monitor, I always prefer to have the highest possible native resolution.  If you go off of native sometimes the refresh rate on the screen will drop (like mine.  It's only 60hz at 720p anything other than that I drop to 30 hz)  so if I were you I'd look for a 1920x1080 native.  That and it's just nicer to have more pixels for the 5850 to work at


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## SoSpirited (May 3, 2010)

Thanks for the quick responses thus far. 
Regarding the ASUS graphics card I'm willing to change it, I've heard good things about XFX.

@Fourstaff - Are you saying that a good 700W PSU will be sufficient for my build? Even if I were to add another graphics card for crossfire? (not that I will in the near future but if I plan to then I wouldn't want it to mean I need to get a new PSU)


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## jasper1605 (May 3, 2010)

I personally would like to have an 800+ wattage psu just because they wear down over time so the higher initial start will give you more to work with.  (I don't know the rate at which they lose max power but i do know that they lose max pwr with time as things wear down)


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## Fourstaff (May 3, 2010)

SoSpirited said:


> @Fourstaff - Are you saying that a good 700W PSU will be sufficient for my build? Even if I were to add another graphics card for crossfire? (not that I will in the near future but if I plan to then I wouldn't want it to mean I need to get a new PSU)



Stock 5850 wants 150w max. 700w is plenty, enough for possibly 3 5850.


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## SoSpirited (May 3, 2010)

@Fourstaff thanks, I'll have a look at well branded 700W PSUs.

And it seems you CAN fit the Noctua inside the Antec 300 case;
http://www.eggxpert.com/forums/thread/620025.aspx
Screenshot here; http://img204.imageshack.us/i/p1020232z.jpg/

It clears the RAM chips but that's cool (literally) : )


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## SoSpirited (May 3, 2010)

Thoughts on this PSU? Arctic Power 700W PSU Arctic Power 700W PSU - With PCI-E, 4x SATA, 20+4,...

Does anyone have experiences with the Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R motherboard?

I forgot to mention that I plan to run Windows 7 Professional 64bit on my system (will edit first post).

Thanks again for the feedback all.


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## CDdude55 (May 5, 2010)

SoSpirited said:


> Thoughts on this PSU? Arctic Power 700W PSU Arctic Power 700W PSU - With PCI-E, 4x SATA, 20+4,...
> 
> Does anyone have experiences with the Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R motherboard?
> 
> ...



Never heard of Arctic Power, sounds like a generic brand. Not sure what you're budget is, but here's a good PSU from a great manufacturer.Corsair 750W TX PSU - 120mm Fan, 80+% Efficiency, ...


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## mudkip (May 5, 2010)

The ram is way too expensive. I'd recommend you to buy the OCZ GOLD XTC sticks. save the money and spend it on your motherboard. The UD3R doesn''t overclock that well , I]go for the UD4P  or UD5. Also Noctua is overrated , go for the scythe mugen 2 better performance/price ratio and it will definitely cool your i7 sufficiently. also you might want to loook in the i7 overclock feedback thread


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## n-ster (May 5, 2010)

Scythe Mugen 2 Rev.B as a cooler, downgrade RAM as well... Get the TX750 like CD suggested... Then, you'd have basically what I would have built for a bang/buck i7 build


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## roast (May 5, 2010)

Seems to be all in order. I'm kinda skeptical about that PSU you listed though. Never heard of/owned a Hi-Power before. Perhaps could be better to stick to known and reliable brand like Corsair.


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## SoSpirited (May 5, 2010)

Aria have a special offer for the OCZ RAM; http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Comp...ltage+Triple+Channel+(3x2GB)+?productId=34299

So I might just pick that up, on ebuyer, a reviewer mentions he has it running at CL7 7-7-7-20
OCZ 6gb (3x2GB) DDR3 1600MHz/PC3-12800 Gold XTC Tr..., this wouldnt be too difficult?

With the money I save from the RAM, I could get this mobo (GA-EX58-UD4) http://www.lambda-tek.com/componentshop/index.pl?origin=gbase4.9&prodID=B209794

Can the Scythe Mugen 2 Rev.B handle the i7 at 4ghz?


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## n-ster (May 5, 2010)

The scythe Mugen 2 rev.B can handle 4.0+ghz no problem  After 1600 cl8, the gains are minimal btw... I disagree, I find the EX58A-UD3R more than capable of OCing an i7, and well at that... and USB 3 and SATA 6gbps is futureproofing


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## JATownes (May 5, 2010)

+1 to the Mugen 2...It is an awesome cooler.  As other said, go for the Corsair PSU, they are some of the best out there, that is why everyone is recommending them.  Other than that, your build looks pretty solid.


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## travva (May 5, 2010)

n-ster is right fella. the ud3r is fantastic for ocing, take it from my personal experience. i have an i7 930 at 4 ghz at about 1.3vcore, which is the chips fault. i also have an asus 5850, both a directcu and directcu TOP. i have no point of reference but they are fantastic! lastly, i have that ram kit also. they are awesome too. i run them at about 1530 or so but they do the job well.


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## Joe Public (May 5, 2010)

SoSpirited said:


> Thoughts on this PSU? Arctic Power 700W PSU Arctic Power 700W PSU - With PCI-E, 4x SATA, 20+4,...



No 700W for £40ish is ever good.  Please don't skimp on the PSU.  A bad PSU will kill your hardware, and then the replacement hell begins.


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## SoSpirited (May 5, 2010)

Fourstaff suggested toughpower PSU's, thoughts on this Thermaltake 700W Toughpower PSU? 
http://www.overclock.co.uk/product/Thermaltake-700W-W0105RB-Toughpower-PSU_6360.html

For RAM I'll go with the OCZ 6gb (3x2GB) DDR3 1600MHz/PC3-12800 Gold XTC Triple Channel CL8(8-8-8-20) I posted earlier.

I think I'm almost there with what my parts now (thanks again). Just left to decide on the motherboard whether to go UD3 or UD4...

For my monitor I want 1920x1200 (so a 24 inch monitor with aspect ratio of 16:10). Being on a budget and unwilling to pay over £300 for the 'better' monitors, I'm edging towards purchasing the LG W2452TX http://www.amazon.co_uk/dp/B001NEI7WA/?tag=tec053-21
(ebuyer have it for cheaper, but for those interested, you can find more detailed specs in the link above)


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## Fourstaff (May 5, 2010)

Yeah, the Toughpower PSU is much better than the ones you listed. Usually I would recommend 1920x1200, but after doing some searching, the 1920X1080 screens are actually a lot cheaper than the 1200 ones, I would definitely look for those.


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## aCid888* (May 5, 2010)

BenQ G2420HDBE 24" LCD Monitor 16:9 Widescreen Ful...


Best screen on eBuyer under 150 clams.


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## sneekypeet (May 5, 2010)

while I agree the mugen2 is cheap performance, why has no one listed the fact that is it a major pain in the ass to mount?

Especially on a GB with all the heatsinks around the processor


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## Fourstaff (May 5, 2010)

aCid888* said:


> BenQ G2420HDBE 24" LCD Monitor 16:9 Widescreen Ful...
> 
> 
> Best screen on eBuyer under 150 clams.



Hard to beat that, and I tried.


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## aCid888* (May 5, 2010)

I love my BenQ.....such a nice monitor compared to the Asus sat at the side of it.


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## Binge (May 5, 2010)

Why skimp on the cooling?  With low profile ram there's no reason to turn away the NH-D14


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## JATownes (May 5, 2010)

sneekypeet said:


> while I agree the mugen2 is cheap performance, why has no one listed the fact that is it a major pain in the ass to mount?
> 
> Especially on a GB with all the heatsinks around the processor



I should have mentioned that.  This is SOOOOO true.  Mine was a total pain in the ass.  I had to ask the wife for help, and believe me, you only ask the wife to help with tech when you have to.

Good heads up Sneeky.  Sneeky --><--JAT


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## Binge (May 5, 2010)

P.S. The Mugen 2 isn't great on a 920.


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## SoSpirited (May 5, 2010)

@Binge, yeah I think I will go with the Noctua, my room gets pretty hot around summer time and I'm happy to spend extra on cooling and the NH-D14 holds a pretty good reputation.

I seem to have posted something but it's now gone missing... 
Re: the BenQ monitor, I would love to spend that little on a great monitor, but I need that 1920x1200 with aspect ratio 16:10.

I like to develop games in my spare time, seeing those extra lines of code (vertically) makes a big difference to me. Not too fussed about blu-ray/HD vids being 16:9 format, VLC deals with that for me. 

The LG W2452TX I posted was the best budget monitor I could find that fits this need. 16:9 just doesn't cut it for me I'm afraid.


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## sneekypeet (May 5, 2010)

JATownes said:


> I should have mentioned that.  This is SOOOOO true.  Mine was a total pain in the ass.  I had to ask the wife for help, and believe me, you only ask the wife to help with tech when you have to.
> 
> Good heads up Sneeky.  Sneeky --><--JAT



No need for the pimp hand 

Just making sure he was fully aware of the cooler.

The D14 is a great choice, and super simple to mount with a long phillips screw driver. I installed/removed mine while the case is upright, made no difference


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## mudkip (May 6, 2010)

Binge said:


> P.S. The Mugen 2 isn't great on a 920.



And why do you say that?


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## Binge (May 6, 2010)

mudkip said:


> And why do you say that?



I'd say because it's a decent cooler but it's still 5C behind a TRUE, and I would hate for an i7 to be 5C hotter because I wanted to save $20.


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## n-ster (May 6, 2010)

Really? 5C behind? Well, the Rev.B is better than the normal one though... but 5C? Imana check reviews now lol

http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.p...k=view&id=371&Itemid=62&limit=1&limitstart=11

that and the next page only show 1.5C max difference


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## SoSpirited (May 8, 2010)

To stay within my 'loose' budget, I'm thinking of going for the Western Digital 640GB 7200rpm 64MB cache Sata III hard drive instead of 1TB.

I can see decent prices for this drive but they are all 'OEM'. What additional items would I need for a drive that is OEM?

- Connector cable (specific to SATAIII)
- Screws? how many? what size?
What else?

Has anyone purchased OEM HDD's from ebuyer that can share their experiences on what comes with them?


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## n-ster (May 9, 2010)

OEM means it comes with NOTHING... I got this particular drive, the 640gb 64mb SATA III... You need a SATA III cable and ports if you want to use it under SATA III, else, SATA II cable + port is fine

Screws usually come with your case... actually... always does

Nothing else, except rubber things if you want less vibration/noise


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