Crosschecking my build

[Hikouryuu]

Hello Anandtech forums! Sorry to impose, on the very first post, but many appreciates if someone can review this build.

01)This PC will be used for gaming, and game development related work.
02)Budget will be around $1500(CAD).
03)Parts will come from Canada.
04)I don't have a brand preference at all.
05)All of my previous parts are 7 to 8 years old now... so I won't be re-using any.
06)I've spent about a year reading about the hardware from various sites, when Sandy Bridge hit, it was about time I went for it.
07)I plan on overclocking the CPU, and unlocking the 6950 GPUs.
08)Gaming resolution will most likely be 1920x1080.
09)I hope to build it directly after this build gets checked.
10)Ready for criticism, this will count as my first build after all.

Parts:
CPU - Intel Core i5-2500K
MOBO - ASUS P8P67 PRO
RAM - G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1333 (PC 10666)
HDD - Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB
GPU - GIGABYTE Radeon HD 6950 x2
PSU - XFX Black Edition 750W
CASE - COOLER MASTER HAF 932
DRIVES - ASUS DVD Burner-Bulk Black SATA-OEM x2

Total at this point is: $1,501.90

I'm considering adding this soundcard to my build:
ASUS XONAR DG 5.1
...and would appreciate suggestions for a under $50 Heatsink.

Since there a quite a bit of claims for a 4.5 GHz overclock on stock and soundcards are easily installed later, I'm not thinking very strongly on these two parts, so if you can help me on this and improvements on the main parts... that would be awesome!

Thank you for your time, guys.

 

[mnewsham]

Looks fine, why pray tell would you like a sound card?

 

[mfenn]

Looks good to me! If you can get the Samsung F3 1TB for cheaper, do that.

I don't think that you need a sound card at all, spend that money on a good outboard DAC instead. As for the HSF, you can get the 2500K up to 4.4 on the stock cooler, but if you think that you need an aftermarket one, grab a Hyper 212+.

 

[BoomerD]

I like the choices you made. I'm not a fan of the ASUS optical drives, but they're pretty good.
I disagree with mfenn on the CPU cooler. If you want something other than the stock unit...get a Noctua cooler.
I LIKE mine...excellent cooling...dead silent.

 

[Hikouryuu]

Looks fine, why pray tell would you like a sound card?

Heh, even if you ask me that... I guess, personally, I've been curious about greater sound quality and would like to at least prepare suitable hardware to match headphones of at most similar levels to say... Sennheiser HD555s. I'm a big music listener, but aside from that, I would also like some extra quality assurance to the sounds I'm going to be inserting into games.
That being said, I haven't invested a lot of time researching soundcards, and am willing to accept not needing it.

I don't think that you need a sound card at all, spend that money on a good outboard DAC instead.

And yup, as proof, this is the first I've heard of this alternative. I will look into this.
Thank you for the heads up, the F3 is cheaper! Nearly missed that.

excellent cooling...dead silent.

Definitely like the sound of this!

I'm very glad to hear that I'm on the right track, at the very least. Thanks for all the recommendations so far.

 

[Battoe]

The F3 is also quieter and faster.

 

[Hikouryuu]

Yep, the F3 is quite a steal. As of right now I'm checking local computer stores for better prices/deals (only two barely decent ones where I live).

It feels like I shouldn't skimp on the sound system so I'll wait for some more cash for that. And the heatsink will be decided after I see how much I knock off from my total.

Now for this next part, I'm unsure if I should have made a thread in Peripherals about. But here goes...
Does anyone recommend the ASUS VH236H 1920x1080 monitor?

I'm a ridiculously heavy fighting gamer, and I've heard that this is one of the monitors that have the lowest input lag (7-8ms/0.459frames) currently out. Does this still hold true, and if not is there one to recommend?
Connectivity to consoles is important to me, and LED Backlight is something I'd see as a plus. Monitor budget is around $200.

 

[mnewsham]

You wont notice a difference with input lag its all a gimmick, just get one that looks good unless you want IPS or e-IPS

 

[Hikouryuu]

Ah, however I do feel the delay, especially in sprite based 2D fighters.

Can you elaborate what you mean by gimmick?
Noted that its not a manufacturer's marketing gimmick, seeing as they do not even list this value. And also noted, that I acknowledge the fact that this is not the defining factor that will improve my play in any significant way.

What it does effect is the risk of certain actions in the game, whether it be Ex-Guarding, Ex-Shielding, parrying, mixups, using certain combos, etc... but that is heading off into a, longer, off-topic discussion.

I do appreciate your input, as I forgot about IPS, but as long as two people can access this monitor, I can route the image to another screen for the audience.

 

[mfenn]

Yep, the F3 is quite a steal. As of right now I'm checking local computer stores for better prices/deals (only two barely decent ones where I live).

It feels like I shouldn't skimp on the sound system so I'll wait for some more cash for that. And the heatsink will be decided after I see how much I knock off from my total.

Now for this next part, I'm unsure if I should have made a thread in Peripherals about. But here goes...
Does anyone recommend the ASUS VH236H 1920x1080 monitor?

I'm a ridiculously heavy fighting gamer, and I've heard that this is one of the monitors that have the lowest input lag (7-8ms/0.459frames) currently out. Does this still hold true, and if not is there one to recommend?
Connectivity to consoles is important to me, and LED Backlight is something I'd see as a plus. Monitor budget is around $200.

Yeah, I've recommended it a few times. It's a good monitor when color accuracy isn't important.

Ah, however I do feel the delay, especially in sprite based 2D fighters.

Can you elaborate what you mean by gimmick?
Noted that its not a manufacturer's marketing gimmick, seeing as they do not even list this value. And also noted, that I acknowledge the fact that this is not the defining factor that will improve my play in any significant way.

What it does effect is the risk of certain actions in the game, whether it be Ex-Guarding, Ex-Shielding, parrying, mixups, using certain combos, etc... but that is heading off into a, longer, off-topic discussion.

I do appreciate your input, as I forgot about IPS, but as long as two people can access this monitor, I can route the image to another screen for the audience.

I think that mnewsham was thinking of response time, which is a marketing gimmick. I agree that input lag is a really issue, though I'm skeptical if you could tell a difference between a normal and a fast one. (Some really slow IPS panels like the 2407 are very noticeable in games.)