i7 Build Advice

[mmccarthy]

This is what I'm thinking about going with. All prices are in CAD. Any thoughts before I press that Order button?

MB & CPU : NCIX Gaming Bundle Deal Intel Core i7 920 D0 Processor & ASUS P6T Deluxe V2 X58 SLI Motherboard $674.78
http://www.ncix.com/products/i...sku=41292&promoid=1008


CASE : Cooler Master Haf 932 Full Tower Black EATX Case 6X5.25 1X3.5 5X3.5INT No PSU USB eSATA 1394 Audio $168.92
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=33029


GPU : 2 x XFX Radeon HD 4870 750MHZ 1GB 3.6GHZ GDDR5 PCI-E 2XDVI HDCP Video Card $320.98
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=42237


PS : Corsair Professional HX750W 750W ATX 12V 62A 24PIN ATX Modular Power Supply Active PFC 140MM Fan $199.99
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=38649


MONITOR : BenQ E2400HD 24IN 16:9 Widescreen Black LCD Monitor 2MS 1920X1080 10000:1 Senseye HDMI DVI VGA $229.99
http://www.ncix.com/products/i...sku=34465&promoid=1008


RAM : Patriot Extreme Viper PVT36G1600LLK 6GB DDR3 3X2GB DDR3-1600 CL 8-8-8-24 Triple Channel Memory Kit $149.99
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=35294

HD : Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 1TB SATA2 3.5IN 8.5MS 7200RPM 32MB Hard Drive OEM $109.25
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=37232

OS : Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64BIT OEM DVD with Windows 7 Upgrade Offer $151.39
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=40693

HSF : Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme 1366RT Heatpipe Cooler LGA1366 120MM Fan FDB 1600RPM 28.0DBA 63.7CFM $75.24
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=34994

DVD : Samsung SH-S223L/BEBS 22X SATA Black DVD Writer Lightscribe OEM $34.99
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=42349


Total Build Cost : $2,183.01


I really fought with the idea of going with the i5 750 but with the amount of CS4 work that I do I figure that the 8 threads would come in handy. Anyone want to sway me towards going that way anyway?

Would be interested in your thoughts on this! Thanks!

 

[Lunyone]

Well looks pretty good. What are the things that your going to be doing with this build? If your not gaming, than the 2 x 4870's isn't needed. I'd probably get the 5870 myself and than upgrade in 12-24 months, depending on your tastes. I'm also assuming that your going to OC your CPU, since you have the Ultra 120 extreme??

 

[ChaiBabbaChai]

I would rather see you get the IFX-14 and an SSD or WD RE3/4, but the rest is a great build. I agree with Lunyone, if you're just doing photoshop, then you don't need 2 4870s.

 

[mmccarthy]

Thanks for the replies guys. Currently I do a lot of CS4 photo editing where time is money so I feel the snappier this build is the better. I don't currently do a lot of PC gaming but I believe that's because my current system can't handle todays games very well. If/When I get this it will be a great reason to get back into PC gaming. I haven't over clocked anything before but I'm hearing a lot of good things with this processor and it's OC abilities.

I was looking at the 5870 but it's pretty much impossible to get right now. I don't mind getting these two and then updating next year or so depending on needs.

Would I need to buy both of these items or just the main one? http://ncix.com/search/?categoryid=0&q=IFX-14

I was thinking SSD but at the price range right now it puts me a little over what I want to pay right now. The intel x25-m 80GB is $320. I think I may upgrade to that when prices come down a bit.

Thoughts?

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

That CPU & MB combo is way overpriced. And for the price of a PSU, I'd recommend the PCP&C 910 Silencer for the low ripple on all the rails. I think none of the rails go over 30mv.

Here is the big question. Do you have a MicroCenter nearby?

 

[Lunyone]

If your not OC'ing than you wouldn't need an aftermarket CPU HSF. Not that the added cooling is a bad thing, but that is $ that you could save or use towards other parts. Personally you don't even need the Corsair 750tx for a single GPU (which is what I'd suggest). Any quality 400-500w PSU will do with the i7 and 1 x 4870. I suggested the 5870, but if your not gaming for a bit even the 4670 GPU will do for your needs. It's usually around $70 USD, and doesn't require any PCI-e power connectors. This means less noise coming from within your case. I think the i7 is a perfect CPU for your intended needs, but I don't see you needing 2 x 4870's or even 1 for the same needs. If you decide to get into gaming later, just buy the latest (or whatever you can afford) when your needs change.
I'd probably make sure I had 2 HD's to do your work with. IIRC when working with the types of programs that your going to be using, it's better to have a HD for your programs/applications and a HD for your files. So a fairly quick drive for the OS/applications and a large HD for the data files. I think this is a better option for your situation than worrying about 2 x 4870 GPU's. That is just my opinion, for what it's worth.

 

[elconejito]

Are you getting the 2 GPUs for CS4 or for gaming? If it's for CS4, it won't make any difference. The GPU enabled features are almost trivial and any recent GPU (even onboard) can handle it. In Photoshop specifically, the GPU features are just related to zooming, panning, rotating the canvas, etc. It does NOT affect performance for any of the filters, at all. Not that a GPU can't improve workflow, but there is no need to spend massive dollars here. And in particular, Photoshop does not support dual GPUs.

If you're running after effects, then a faster GPU might be warranted, but I don't know if AE supports dual GPUs or not (I doubt it). Premiere will encode much faster, but you need to get a specific $2k quadro to enable that. Otherwise, all GPUs are the same. CS5+ may change this, but that's the way it is for now.

For more info, start here http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/405/kb405445.html
Scroll down to the bottom and it will tell you specifics for each program, what is accelerated and how it is supported.

[Personally, with all the troubles Seagate has had recently I wouldn't go anywhere near a Seagate 1TB+ drive, but thats up to you. I prefer WD, but Samsung and Hitachi are also viable candidates.]
You will definitely want at *least* a second hard drive. You are trying to avoid concurrent (meaning at the same time) reads/writes to the same drive as that will cripple your performance no matter what processor, RAM, GPU you have. If it is all on one drive, you run the risk of having windows reading/writing & photoshop scratch read/writing, and opening or saving a file & maybe even AV reading from all different parts of the disk at the same time.

1st drive is for OS/apps, 2nd drive is for storage. Depending on the size of the files you are working with, you might need a dedicated scratch drive. If you can max out the RAM to 12GB this should be less of a factor. 12GB should hold all but the absolute largest of stitched up, layered panoramas. Take any measures you can to avoid hitting the hard drive, since the hard drive (no matter how fast it is) is exponentially slower than RAM.

What size images are you working with? you can check in photoshop with a file open choose "scratch sizes" from the flyout (little triangle) in the lower left corner next to zoom level. The number on the left is amount of memory used, the number on the right is memory available. If the number on the left is bigger than the number on the right you are using the hard drive and performance suffers.

I agree with the i7. CS4 makes good use of the cores/threads you can throw at it. if you need to cut the budget a little bit you can look at the i7 860 on a P55 mobo. Performance is *very* close to the i7 920. You will lose out on some memory (8GB vs 12GB), but if you image sizes aren't that big this may not be an issue.

 

[mmccarthy]

Thanks! No microcenters around because I'm in St.John's, Canada
I'm not getting the 2 GPUs for CS4, I realize that they don't affect the performance really at all.
I found out this morning that 5870s are now available so I think I'm going to pick one of those up. I'm not gaming right now but when I get this I will be. I have a 19" monitor I want to use as well, will having one GPU hinder this?

I've switched to the IFX-14. Always nice to be able to OC when I want and not have to wait to get a part ordered to do it.

Ok, with the hard drives. Maybe I can switch to this setup?
Samsung Spinpoint F1 500GB SATA2 7200RPM 16MB 8.9MS 3.5IN Hard Drive OEM $74.30
http://www.ncix.com/products/?...IJ&manufacture=Samsung

Western Digital WD1001FALS Caviar Black 1TB SATA2 7200RPM 4.2MS 32MB 3.5IN Dual Proc Hard Drive OEM $129.97
http://www.ncix.com/products/?...Western%20Digital%20WD

Thoughts?? Those 5870s won't last long so the quicker the better! Thanks again!!

 

[elconejito]

what resolution is your 19"? I'm going to guess it's either 1440x900 or 1650x1080. If so, the 5870 (heck even the 4890 and probably 4870) will run ANYTHING (except crysis) at full eye-candy with zero problems. The card is way overkill for that size screen, especially if it's 1440x900.

Between those two drives I'd go for the WD 1TB Black. Do you have the 640GB Black available? speed is very close to the 1TB black and in US it's about 20-30 cheaper. You lose some space, but if you're considering the 500GB from samsung I guess thats not too big of an issue?

 

[mmccarthy]

yeah, it's 1440x900, but I want to use this with the 24" I'm getting. That going to be possible?

I was thinking those two both in the system actually. One for OS and applications, other for files. Thoughts? A raptor drive/SSD would be nice for the OS drive but I think that's pumping up the budget a bit too much.
There is a 650 GB available
http://www.ncix.com/products/?...Western%20Digital%20WD

Thanks for the quick reply.

 

[betasub]

Originally posted by: mmccarthy
yeah, it's 1440x900, but I want to use this with the 24" I'm getting. That going to be possible?

Moving to a decent hi-res monitor is certainly a good idea for all that photoshop work. It also then justifies getting a high-end graphics set-up for gaming. If you can't find a 58*0 card immediately, it might be worth getting a 48*0 1GB card, which might prove adequate by itself, but also gives you the immediate option to go crossfire or hold on for 58*0 availability.

 

[mmccarthy]

OK, so I ended up going to hell with it, lol.

NCIX Gaming Bundle Deal Intel Core i7 920 D0 Processor & ASUS P6T Deluxe V2 X58 SLI Motherboard $674.78

Cooler Master Haf 932 Full Tower Black EATX Case 6X5.25 1X3.5 5X3.5INT No PSU USB eSATA 1394 Audio $168.92

Corsair Professional HX750W 750W ATX 12V 62A 24PIN ATX Modular Power Supply Active PFC 140MM Fan $199.99

BenQ E2400HD 24IN 16:9 Widescreen Black LCD Monitor 2MS 1920X1080 10000:1 Senseye HDMI DVI VGA $229.99

Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64BIT OEM DVD with Windows 7 Upgrade Offer $151.39

Samsung SH-S223L/BEBS 22X SATA Black DVD Writer Lightscribe OEM $34.99

Patriot Extreme Performance Viper 6GB 3X2GB DDR3-1333 CL7-7-7-20 Triple Channel Memory Kit $156.56

Sapphire Radeon HD 5870 850MHZ 1GB 4.8GHZ GDDR5 PCI-E 2XDVI HDMI Display Port DirectX 11 Video Card $405.99

Thermalright IFX-14 Intel Bp Heatpipe CPU Heatsink Cooler LGA1366/775 *Fan Not Included* $84.99

Intel X25-M 80GB 34NM Postville 2.5IN SSD SATA Solid State Disk Flash Drive $303.00

Western Digital WD1001FALS Caviar Black 1TB SATA2 7200RPM 4.2MS 32MB 3.5IN Dual Proc Hard Drive OEM $119.99

Scythe 2.5 Twin Mounter REV.B 2X 2.5IN Hard Drive SSD 3.5IN Drive Bay Mounting Kit $9.99


Thoughts?

 

[ScorcherDarkly]

Originally posted by: mmccarthy

Thoughts?

You need a fan for that heat sink.

 

[Stiffy]

Originally posted by: mmccarthy

Thoughts?

Expensive!!! But sexy....

 

[elconejito]

+1 about the fan

i'm with you on just about everything except... I think you should go for the 12GB of RAM. If you need to shave off some dough from somewhere, out of that list I'd choose a non-modular PSU which should save you 50-75 bucks.

 

[mmccarthy]

D'oh.

Ok, so looking at NCIX they only have 1 140mm fan.

Yate Loon D14SM-12 140MM Quiet Cooling Fan 1400RPM 62CFM 29DB 3PIN & 4PIN Sleeve Bearing OEM
http://www.ncix.com/products/i...anufacture=Yate%20Loon

So I'm looking at 120mm fans. Unless I buy from somewhere else and install them when it gets here...hmmm

Some 120mm fans I'm looking at:

Thermalright Stealth Silent 120MM FDB Case Fan 1300RPM 50CFM 24.1DBA
http://www.ncix.com/products/i...nufacture=Thermalright

Silverstone FM122 120X120X38MM Case Fan White 800-2400RPM 21-42.2DBA 110CFM W/ White Fan Controller
http://www.ncix.com/products/i...lverstone%20Technology

Scythe S-FLEX SFF21G 120MM Cooling Fan 1900RPM 35.0DBA 75CFM FDB 3/4PIN
http://www.ncix.com/products/i...21G&manufacture=Scythe

Nexus 120MM Real Silent Case Fan BLACK/WHITE 1000RPM 22.8DBA 36.87CFM 3/4PIN
http://www.ncix.com/products/i...xus%20Technology%20USA

Thoughts? Suggestions? Thanks!

 

[ChaiBabbaChai]

Originally posted by: mmccarthy
Would I need to buy both of these items or just the main one? http://ncix.com/search/?categoryid=0&q=IFX-14

I was thinking SSD but at the price range right now it puts me a little over what I want to pay right now. The intel x25-m 80GB is $320. I think I may upgrade to that when prices come down a bit.

Thoughts?

That is REALLY pricey. NCIX charges too much for that heatsink. It should be $65 CAD. You don't need the BOLT-THRU kit. Also, you don't need to pay the jacked up price for an Intel SSD. The OCZ Vertex and Vertex Turbo are totally fine. ~$250 for a 64GB.

Originally posted by: BTRY B 529th FA BN
That CPU & MB combo is way overpriced. And for the price of a PSU, I'd recommend the PCP&C 910 Silencer for the low ripple on all the rails. I think none of the rails go over 30mv.

Remember he's listing prices in CAD, not USD. The PCP&C is slightly overpriced because it's not made by PCP&C. They slap a little bit extra on the price. The Seasonic M12D is from the company that actually builds the SIlencer 910, and the same exact platform (just a different fan, heatsinks and metal enclosure) and sometimes a little less expensive than the Silencer 910.

 

[ChaiBabbaChai]

Yeah the fans. Get 2 Noctua NF-P12, and mount the IFX-14 with the fans blowing UP (South to North). You can control the speed depending on how much you OC, and they are good fans I think.

VERY NICE BUILD! Enjoy it!

 

[mmccarthy]

Hey guys (/gals?), thanks for all the help.

I went with a couple Scythe fans so hopefully they'll be just the same as the Noctua fans. If not I can always change them out.

Does anyone have any good articles/videos I can have a look at for OC'n this beast? I'm just going to google it of course but maybe getting pointed to a specific one could help. And maybe things I can do to make sure that things stay cool as possible. I haven't ordered any fans for the case, would this be needed?

Again, thanks for the help. You guys seem a lot better than the people over at the Tom's Hardware forum

 

[ChaiBabbaChai]

You are very welcome. Scythe are popular, I'm sure they are decent enough. Here's some concise articles and a tool for figuring out multipliers:

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articl...20-overclocking_2.html

http://www.maximumpc.com/artic..._its_limits?page=0%2C0

http://forums.techarena.in/guides-tutorials/1111057.htm

i7 multi CALCULATOR: http://icrontic.com/uploads/2008/11/nehalemcalc.zip
http://icrontic.com/downloads/...verclocking-calculator

then you can get memtest and whatever stress test you prefer.

 

[count5by5]

Originally posted by: elconejito
Are you getting the 2 GPUs for CS4 or for gaming? If it's for CS4, it won't make any difference. The GPU enabled features are almost trivial and any recent GPU (even onboard) can handle it. In Photoshop specifically, the GPU features are just related to zooming, panning, rotating the canvas, etc. It does NOT affect performance for any of the filters, at all. Not that a GPU can't improve workflow, but there is no need to spend massive dollars here. And in particular, Photoshop does not support dual GPUs.

If you're running after effects, then a faster GPU might be warranted, but I don't know if AE supports dual GPUs or not (I doubt it). Premiere will encode much faster, but you need to get a specific $2k quadro to enable that. Otherwise, all GPUs are the same. CS5+ may change this, but that's the way it is for now.

For more info, start here http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/405/kb405445.html
Scroll down to the bottom and it will tell you specifics for each program, what is accelerated and how it is supported.

[Personally, with all the troubles Seagate has had recently I wouldn't go anywhere near a Seagate 1TB+ drive, but thats up to you. I prefer WD, but Samsung and Hitachi are also viable candidates.]
You will definitely want at *least* a second hard drive. You are trying to avoid concurrent (meaning at the same time) reads/writes to the same drive as that will cripple your performance no matter what processor, RAM, GPU you have. If it is all on one drive, you run the risk of having windows reading/writing & photoshop scratch read/writing, and opening or saving a file & maybe even AV reading from all different parts of the disk at the same time.

1st drive is for OS/apps, 2nd drive is for storage. Depending on the size of the files you are working with, you might need a dedicated scratch drive. If you can max out the RAM to 12GB this should be less of a factor. 12GB should hold all but the absolute largest of stitched up, layered panoramas. Take any measures you can to avoid hitting the hard drive, since the hard drive (no matter how fast it is) is exponentially slower than RAM.

What size images are you working with? you can check in photoshop with a file open choose "scratch sizes" from the flyout (little triangle) in the lower left corner next to zoom level. The number on the left is amount of memory used, the number on the right is memory available. If the number on the left is bigger than the number on the right you are using the hard drive and performance suffers.

I agree with the i7. CS4 makes good use of the cores/threads you can throw at it. if you need to cut the budget a little bit you can look at the i7 860 on a P55 mobo. Performance is *very* close to the i7 920. You will lose out on some memory (8GB vs 12GB), but if you image sizes aren't that big this may not be an issue.

 

[count5by5]

Whoe there ,you were speaking to zoomming in photoshop, I do a lolt of zooming for photo restoration.,so I might need a more powerful GPU and then get a more powerful PSU ?

 

[elconejito]

The zooming/panning/rotating functions & effects don't require much horsepower. You can totally get away with a low-end GPU for this. Look at the Apple computers, they're running just fine with Nvidia 7300GS.

If you want to spend lots of money on the GPU for games or 3D work that's fine, but for just Photoshop work it's really a waste.

If you look on youtube, search for photoshop CS4 demos (or something like that) and you'll find lots of vids showing the effects.

The PSU is not really relevant to performance. It's enough to power your system, or it isn't.