Mid-to-High-End Gaming Rig

[Dragonwell]

Why hello thar.


I'm looking for some input on a gaming build that I'm going to start buying parts for over the next month or so. I don't have a "budget" per-se but when all is said and done I'm looking to have spent in the neighbourhood of $1200.


Right now I plan to buy all the parts on this list, with the GPU and PSU coming last. I plan on using the 9800GTX+, 650W PSU and harddrive (just bought it about a month ago) I have right now in this new system until I get the money together to get the PSU and GPU. The PSU is the single component I'm least sure of, so feel free to tell me whether or not what I picked is adequate (I selected the PSU from the lists in a sticky on this board, in fact).


Here's the lineup:

Up to date with info from the thread as of post #10.


Case *Purchased*
Coolermaster HAF 932
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...ID=3463938&SID=


Operating System *Purchased*
Windows 7 Home
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-986-_-Product


Power Supply *Holdover*
Antec EarthWatts 650W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371015
A holdover from my current system, though I may still invest in this one for the sake of modularity:
XFX 650W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...&SID=u00000687

Mobo + CPU
Intel i5-2500K Sandy Bridge + GIGABYTE Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) Package Deal
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboD...&SID=u00000687

Memory
G.Skill 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1333
http://detonator.dynamitedata.com/c...com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231247http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...a-_-na&AID=10440897&PID=3332167&SID=u00000687

Hard Drive *Holdover*
Seagate Barracuda 1TB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-321-_-Product
Another holdover from my current system. It's just over a month old, so it still has plenty of life.

GPU
XFX Radeon 6970 2GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-517-_-Product

Any further input is appreciated.

Thanks


-DW

Edit: Thought I'd throw some of my choice games out there for the sake of reference. I play EVE and WoW off and on; Counter-Strike: Source and Team Fortress 2 I play frequently, and the occasional Bad Company 2. Having watched Thunder Run I really want to be able to play Battlefield 3 at max settings, as well as Rage and Diablo 3.

 

[DesiPower]

Hello and welcome!

Mobo and CPU are not compatible... you need a LGA 1155 mobo.

ASUS MAXIMUS IV EXTREME IMO is the equivalent 1155

You will have more options if you go for 2x4GB modules. Explore...

I didnt hear a HDD, for your setup you need something like this

Although at this point, with the kind of components you listed, you are pretty much looking at 1600-1700 price range...

IMHO you budget should look something like this for a $1200 setup.
mobo - $200
CPU - 320
RAM - $80
PSU - $100
Case - $100
GPU - $250
HDD - 175 ($100 SDD + $75HDD)
_____________
Total - $1225

 

[Dragonwell]

Whoops. Fixed that, thanks. I picked the memory based on the vendor listing for the Rampage III Formula, so I'll likely be changing the memory choice sometime soon to something off the vendor list.

The posting on that board doesn't say anything about Crossfire compatibility. I would assume for the price it IS Crossfire compatible, but I'm not sure.

Edit: That memory is on the vendor list for the Maximus IV as well, so the memory choice stays the same.

 

[Gigantopithecus]

850W is serious overkill for your system. Even if you plan on CrossFiring eventually, the 650W version of the same series you picked out (which is an excellent line of PSUs) will be more than adequate. Even a pair of 6950s with the rest of your components likely won't draw more than 500W, and definitely not more than 550W. That leaves you almost 20% for headroom, and that Corsair PSU is definitely a genuine 650W PSU, it's not some overrated PoS.

 

[Dragonwell]

Hello and welcome!

Mobo and CPU are not compatible... you need a LGA 1155 mobo.

ASUS MAXIMUS IV EXTREME IMO is the equivalent 1155

You will have more options if you go for 2x4GB modules. Explore...

I didnt hear a HDD, for your setup you need something like this

Although at this point you are pretty much looking at 1600-1700 price range...

I'll be using my PC's current 1TB hard drive for now. It's only about a month old, so I'm not really worried about it up and cratering on me.

If I opt for two sticks as opposed to three, I'll be forced to use dual channel. If I opt for 2 x 4GB instead of 3 x 2GB I will have more overall memory but would I be better off with that extra 2GB of memory or the extra speed from triple channel?

In regard to the cash, 1200 was a guesstimate. I'm building it a part or two at a time, paycheck to paycheck, so any overall increase in price just means more time for the build to be completed. The wait's going to kill me, but since I'm using a rig that's about 5 years old, it will definitely be worth it. That being said, I feel as though I could go all-out on the CPU, get a mobo that supports it and meets my earlier criteria, and then budget out the GPU and memory. Both of the latter are very easy to upgrade; with the mobo and CPU I'm essentially stuck. Merits more thought over the weekend.

850W is serious overkill for your system. Even if you plan on CrossFiring eventually, the 650W version of the same series you picked out (which is an excellent line of PSUs) will be more than adequate. Even a pair of 6950s with the rest of your components likely won't draw more than 500W, and definitely not more than 550W. That leaves you almost 20% for headroom, and that Corsair PSU is definitely a genuine 650W PSU, it's not some overrated PoS.

Alrighty, making the switch on the listings shortly. In my current system I'm using a 650W Antec (I believe it's part of the EarthWatts series) PSU and have had no problems. It's over 3 years old now, though, so for the sake of both cable management and it not up and dying on me, would I be better off getting a new PSU?

Random late-grats on breaking 5000 posts, by the way.

 

[mfenn]

First things first, stop listening to the friend who recommended you those parts. You're wasting a hell of a lot of money for no performance gain.

If I opt for two sticks as opposed to three, I'll be forced to use dual channel. If I opt for 2 x 4GB instead of 3 x 2GB I will have more overall memory but would I be better off with that extra 2GB of memory or the extra speed from triple channel?

The current Sandy Bridge processors do not support triple-channel memory configurations, so this is a moot point.

In regard to the cash, 1200 was a guesstimate. I'm building it a part or two at a time, paycheck to paycheck, so any overall increase in price just means more time for the build to be completed.

Please don't do this. Buying parts just to have them sit around is just asking for trouble if something is DOA.

That being said, I feel as though I could go all-out on the CPU, get a mobo that supports it and meets my earlier criteria, and then budget out the GPU and memory. Both of the latter are very easy to upgrade; with the mobo and CPU I'm essentially stuck. Merits more thought over the weekend.

Going all out on the CPU does not make sense when the Hyperthreading on the i7 is worthless for gaming.

Alrighty, making the switch on the listings shortly. In my current system I'm using a 650W Antec (I believe it's part of the EarthWatts series) PSU and have had no problems. It's over 3 years old now, though, so for the sake of both cable management and it not up and dying on me, would I be better off getting a new PSU?

A 650W Earthwatts is probably sufficient for the parts that you have picked out. List the specs on the sticker (how many rails of each voltage, how many amps on each rail) and I can tell you for sure.

As for the parts:
- Case: Really expensive, so make sure that you will like it.
- PSU: Probably unnecessary altogether, but definitely unnecessarily expensive. This XFX 650W is just as good and less expensive.
- Mobo: $365 on a motherboard? You've got to be kidding me. A GA-Z67A-D3H (combo with i5 2500K) will do everything you need at 1/3 the price.
- CPU: As mentioned above, overkill for gaming. Get the i5 2500K in the combo linked above instead.
- RAM: As mentioned above, triple-channel isn't supported on Sandy Bridge. Not to mention the fact that that RAM is (a) expensive, (b) has stupidly tall heatspreaders that will get in the way, and (c) runs at 1.6V. This G.Skill 8GB kit is less expensive and gets you 2GB more capacity.
- GPU: The XFX looks fine to me.

 

[techniz]

First, you need to change the memory. Socket 1155 which is the socket for 2600k only supports dual channel memory. Find yourself a quality pair of sticks. Personally, I would go with:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231303
because the CAS Latency is 7.

Also, buy a cpu cooler. Even if you don’t overclock, a quality cpu cooler will remain quiet even under load. I recommend:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...212%20plus
W/ http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-...7760581&sr=8-1
And http://www.amazon.com/Gelid-Solution...7760609&sr=1-1

Also, throw in a fan controller. If you have a full tower case, you don’t want all your fans running at full speed. There will be plenty of ventilation so control those fans. I’ll leave that one for your choosing.

Lastly, the hardest part about a build is the video card. Personally, I like nvidia because they offer solid performance. I currently have 560 ti and I plan on upgrading to SLI in the future. Go with what you think will offer the best bang for the buck and since you are getting a quality motherboard, keep the 850w power supply so you can go crossfire/sli in the future.

I hope this helps. Also, be prepared to order more parts after you initial build. You can always fine tune your system. If you need any cable management equipment, check out monoprice.com for cable ties and tie mounts. They come in handy.

 

[fffblackmage]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231303
because the CAS Latency is 7.

wtf... $60 for 4GB? You can get 8GB for $60 (after a promo code).

Also, buy a cpu cooler. Even if you don’t overclock, a quality cpu cooler will remain quiet even under load. I recommend:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...212%20plus
W/ http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-...7760581&sr=8-1
And http://www.amazon.com/Gelid-Solution...7760609&sr=1-1

Adding a second fan is counter-productive, if you're looking for quiet. Other than that, the 212+ is an excellent HSF, though the Corsair A50 is essentially a clone and is cheaper.

Personally, I like nvidia because they offer solid performance.

And AMD doesn't?

I currently have 560 ti and I plan on upgrading to SLI in the future. Go with what you think will offer the best bang for the buck and since you are getting a quality motherboard, keep the 850w power supply so you can go crossfire/sli in the future.

Depending on how soon you want to buy another gfx card for SLI/CFX, you might as well simply replace the older gfx card entirely. You'd also save some money from having to buy the more expensive PSU and mobo in the first place.

 

[techniz]

wtf... $60 for 4GB? You can get 8GB for $60 (after a promo code).

Depending on what hes doing, most people won't need 8gb of ram. He should go with 4gb ram sticks with a lower latency.

Adding a second fan is counter-productive, if you're looking for quiet. Other than that, the 212+ is an excellent HSF, though the Corsair A50 is essentially a clone and is cheaper.

How is it counter-productive. The performance to noise ratio is minimal. If he really wanted a quiet setup, which he didnt specificy, he could always put some fan controlled yate loons on either HSF

And AMD doesn't?

I did say the word "personally". I have nothing against AMD and I have purchased from both but lately, I like nvidia. Especially for the games I play. (brink, bfbc2)

Depending on how soon you want to buy another gfx card for SLI/CFX, you might as well simply replace the older gfx card entirely. You'd also save some money from having to buy the more expensive PSU and mobo in the first place.

QFT

Also, register your card. You will regret it if you don't.



p.s.

Adding a second fan is counter-productive, if you're looking for quiet. Other than that, the 212+ is an excellent HSF, though the Corsair A50 is essentially a clone and is cheaper.

cheaper

 

[fffblackmage]

Depending on what hes doing, most people won't need 8gb of ram. He should go with 4gb ram sticks with a lower latency.

There's no way anyone should be paying the same price for less ram. You wouldn't know the difference between CAS 7 and CAS 9 ram outside of benchmarks anyways. And in the event you do find yourself with insufficient ram, you will definitely notice. Windows 7 also makes good use of any extra ram you might have.

How is it counter-productive. The performance to noise ratio is minimal. If he really wanted a quiet setup, which he didnt specificy, he could always put some fan controlled yate loons on either HSF

Your suggestion to buy the aftermarket HSF was because it would "remain quiet even under load." Thus, it seemed counter-productive to add a second fan, which adds noise.

btw, it should be a large ratio, because you want high performance with low noise.

p.s.
cheaper

Nice find. :thumbsup:

 

[Dragonwell]

Lots of good input rolled in overnight.

As for the parts:
- Case: Really expensive, so make sure that you will like it.
- PSU: Probably unnecessary altogether, but definitely unnecessarily expensive. This XFX 650W is just as good and less expensive.
- Mobo: $365 on a motherboard? You've got to be kidding me. A GA-Z67A-D3H (combo with i5 2500K) will do everything you need at 1/3 the price.
- CPU: As mentioned above, overkill for gaming. Get the i5 2500K in the combo linked above instead.
- RAM: As mentioned above, triple-channel isn't supported on Sandy Bridge. Not to mention the fact that that RAM is (a) expensive, (b) has stupidly tall heatspreaders that will get in the way, and (c) runs at 1.6V. This G.Skill 8GB kit is less expensive and gets you 2GB more capacity.
- GPU: The XFX looks fine to me.

That mobo / cpu deal is just killer, and I didn't realize Sandy Bridge doesn't support triple channel. I /fail at CPU research. Good recommendation on the memory as well. Will update the OP soon.


The memory you suggested is clocked at 1333; I'm assuming there's a neglible difference between that and 1600? I'm going to jump from DDR2 665, so either way it's going to seem godly. I'm just curious.


Regarding my PSU, I managed to find it on NewEgg: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371015


Assuming it's suitable for what I've listed above, my only concern is whether it's also sufficient to run two 6970s in Crossfire if I go that route in the future.

Please don't do this. Buying parts just to have them sit around is just asking for trouble if something is DOA.

With the parts you've suggested (the memory and the CPU + mobo combo), I can get all but the GPU and get this thing up and running within the next two weeks by ordering the cpu + mobo and memory on Friday. I still plan on using my 9800GTX+ until I get my 6970, or am I really better off getting everything at the same time? I'm assuming the big concern there is that if I wait too long to get all the parts I need to run the system, I could be beyond the return-for-replacement window on a DOA part.

Also, buy a cpu cooler. Even if you don’t overclock, a quality cpu cooler will remain quiet even under load.

This relates to my number one concern in this build, which is getting the thermal paste on the CPU right the first time. Beyond that I'm confident I can assemble the thing without problems. I will definitely look into a CPU cooler.

 

[fffblackmage]

The memory you suggested is clocked at 1333; I'm assuming there's a neglible difference between that and 1600?

Correct.

Assuming it's suitable for what I've listed above, my only concern is whether it's also sufficient to run two 6970s in Crossfire if I go that route in the future.

It's borderline capable. It'll be perfectly fine for one 6970, but I wouldn't do two. Well, I'd probably try it anyways and use my Kill-A-Watt meter to get a rough idea of the power consumption, and then decide if it's ok or if there's enough headroom.

With the parts you've suggested (the memory and the CPU + mobo combo), I can get all but the GPU and get this thing up and running within the next two weeks by ordering the cpu + mobo and memory on Friday. I still plan on using my 9800GTX+ until I get my 6970, or am I really better off getting everything at the same time? I'm assuming the big concern there is that if I wait too long to get all the parts I need to run the system, I could be beyond the return-for-replacement window on a DOA part.

If you're buying from newegg:
Standard Return Policy
* Return for refund within: 30 days
* Return for replacement within: 30 days

More details for return policies for specific products like CPUs can be found here.

Getting it running within a couple weeks sounds alright to me.

 

[techniz]

This relates to my number one concern in this build, which is getting the thermal paste on the CPU right the first time. Beyond that I'm confident I can assemble the thing without problems. I will definitely look into a CPU cooler.

There are a lot of different methods to apply thermal paste but a popular way is to put a drop of thermal paste in the center of the cpu. The drop should be slightly bigger than a grain of rice. After that, apply the HSF and gently put pressure on it. Wiggle it slightly back and forth to spread the thermal grease and then mount it.

This method will mostly eliminate air bubbles in the thermal grease. Also, if your worried about the edges being covered, dont worry about it. The grease will spread to a nice round circle and the most important part of the cpu is the center.

watch this video

 

[Dragonwell]

It's borderline capable. It'll be perfectly fine for one 6970, but I wouldn't do two. Well, I'd probably try it anyways and use my Kill-A-Watt meter to get a rough idea of the power consumption, and then decide if it's ok or if there's enough headroom.

Sounds good. By the time I'm ready to drop in another 6970 I'll probably have the cash saved up for a new GPU as well. I also plan on dropping an SSD in there sometime, so that'll ratchet up power consumption as well. If I were to Crossfire 6970s, would an 850W likely be sufficient? Looking at the chart you posted, and then at the GeForce 580 as a single card and then SLI, there's a rather large 350W-ish jump from a single to an SLI config. I've heard that the latest Radeons like the 6970 aren't quite as power-efficient as their nVidia brethren, so might I need to aim even higher than 850W? Sorry, PSU's and considering power consumption one of my most lacking areas of hardware knowledge.


Speaking of SSD's, are there any brands in particular to avoid? I notice some $200 high-capacity SSD's on NewEgg from brands I've never heard of. The price is attractive for the capacity but I'm leery of getting an "off-brand" piece of hardware.

If you're buying from newegg:

Definitely going NewEgg all the way.

There are a lot of different methods to apply thermal paste but a popular way is to put a drop of thermal paste in the center of the cpu. The drop should be slightly bigger than a grain of rice. After that, apply the HSF and gently put pressure on it. Wiggle it slightly back and forth to spread the thermal grease and then mount it.

This method will mostly eliminate air bubbles in the thermal grease. Also, if your worried about the edges being covered, dont worry about it. The grease will spread to a nice round circle and the most important part of the cpu is the center.

Watched that one and a couple others. Seems easy enough. What with the i5 I'm getting having unlocked multipliers I am interested in overclocking now, and of course heat is the big concern there. Someone mentioned the Corsair A50 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...&SID=u00000687) for an aftermarket cooler. I don't plan on setting any records with overclocking, so should an A50 be sufficient for, say, 10 – 20% overclock, or at that point will I need to be looking at liquid cooling?

Edit: I'm about traipse through the boards for this, but if anyone knows of an all-around introductory guide to the ins-and-outs of hardware and can link me, I'd be greatly appreciative. I feel as though I walked into this whole ordeal totally unprepared.

 

[Gigantopithecus]

In regard to the cash, 1200 was a guesstimate. I'm building it a part or two at a time, paycheck to paycheck, so any overall increase in price just means more time for the build to be completed. The wait's going to kill me, but since I'm using a rig that's about 5 years old, it will definitely be worth it. That being said, I feel as though I could go all-out on the CPU, get a mobo that supports it and meets my earlier criteria, and then budget out the GPU and memory. Both of the latter are very easy to upgrade; with the mobo and CPU I'm essentially stuck. Merits more thought over the weekend.

Others are doing a nice job of advising on components, so I lifted this bit of advice from one of my builder's guides:
"...it’s best to purchase parts in a short period of time. This is mostly so you have the opportunity to return or exchange DOA parts or components that fail shortly after assembly for a quick exchange or refund instead of having to go through the longer manufacturer’s RMA process that will likely lead to getting a refurbished part back."

Something to consider.

 

[Dragonwell]

Others are doing a nice job of advising on components, so I lifted this bit of advice from one of my builder's guides:
"...it’s best to purchase parts in a short period of time. This is mostly so you have the opportunity to return or exchange DOA parts or components that fail shortly after assembly for a quick exchange or refund instead of having to go through the longer manufacturer’s RMA process that will likely lead to getting a refurbished part back."

Something to consider.

Yes indeed they are. I'm concerned about DOA parts for sure, and having decided to order my CPU, mobo, and memory next friday this leads me to a new dilemma.


I mentioned I've been using nVidia cards for a long time. I've done some browsing and the general feeling seems to be that in a contest between the Radeon 6970 and the GeForce 570, the 570 is the better overall card. More than that, though, I've also heard whisperings that we're going to see a new line of cards from these two companies sometime later this year.


Right now I own a BFG 9800GTX+, which is really just a re-hash of the 8800GTS. I'm beginning to think I should wait until later in the year for an entirely new generation of cards to arrive (assuming that's when it will happen), but I'm not sure. Upgrading to this system I've got lined up here and using my 9800GTX+ I don't think I'm going to see a big performance jump (currently Core 2 Duo 6400, 2GB DDR2 665, and Windows XP 32-bit). I won't be ordering a 6970 for a couple weeks yet at any rate, so there's plenty of time to weigh options. I simply don't want to spend $350 on a GPU that's going to get decimated by a brand-new offering at the same price point like four months from now, but I suppose that's the nature of hardware.


Also, thanks for all the input so far, people.

 

[Gigantopithecus]

I mentioned I've been using nVidia cards for a long time. I've done some browsing and the general feeling seems to be that in a contest between the Radeon 6970 and the GeForce 570, the 570 is the better overall card.

Not sure about that. You can http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/292?vs=306see[/url] that they really do trade blows, with one card producing more FPS in some games and the other card producing more FPS in others. And even those differences are mostly meaningless (like you can tell the difference between 51.5 and 48.5 FPS in Crysis at 1920x1200?).

What tilts my favor to the 6970 is its power consumption is anywhere from 20 to 60+ watts lower under load. Power is a big consideration to me - but I don't think it's unreasonable to be less concerned about it than I am.

 

[mfenn]

Sounds good. By the time I'm ready to drop in another 6970 I'll probably have the cash saved up for a new GPU as well. I also plan on dropping an SSD in there sometime, so that'll ratchet up power consumption as well. If I were to Crossfire 6970s, would an 850W likely be sufficient? Looking at the chart you posted, and then at the GeForce 580 as a single card and then SLI, there's a rather large 350W-ish jump from a single to an SLI config. I've heard that the latest Radeons like the 6970 aren't quite as power-efficient as their nVidia brethren, so might I need to aim even higher than 850W? Sorry, PSU's and considering power consumption one of my most lacking areas of hardware knowledge.

Not sure where you're getting your power-efficiency info from, but Radeons have been more power efficient than GeForces for a while now. A 650W PSU is perfectly sufficient for 6970 CFX. Your PSU can output 540W on the 12V rails, so you're fine in that regard.

However, I don't recommend planning to upgrade to 6970 Crossfire. What I predict will happen is that since you don't have a 2560x1600 monitor, you'll be perfectly happy with 6970 performance for quite a while. By the time the 6970 is starting too feel slow, you'll be able to get a card with more than double its performance for the same price.

Speaking of SSD's, are there any brands in particular to avoid? I notice some $200 high-capacity SSD's on NewEgg from brands I've never heard of. The price is attractive for the capacity but I'm leery of getting an "off-brand" piece of hardware.

Corsair, Mushkin, Intel, Crucial, OCZ (3 series) are all good.

Watched that one and a couple others. Seems easy enough. What with the i5 I'm getting having unlocked multipliers I am interested in overclocking now, and of course heat is the big concern there. Someone mentioned the Corsair A50 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...&SID=u00000687) for an aftermarket cooler. I don't plan on setting any records with overclocking, so should an A50 be sufficient for, say, 10 – 20% overclock, or at that point will I need to be looking at liquid cooling?

20% is cake on a Sandy Bridge. You can do 4.5GHz (33%) with the stock cooler and stock volts.

 

[Dragonwell]

What tilts my favor to the 6970 is its power consumption is anywhere from 20 to 60+ watts lower under load. Power is a big consideration to me - but I don't think it's unreasonable to be less concerned about it than I am.

Huh. More evidence that I should believe little of what I read and even less of what I hear.

However, I don't recommend planning to upgrade to 6970 Crossfire. What I predict will happen is that since you don't have a 2560x1600 monitor, you'll be perfectly happy with 6970 performance for quite a while. By the time the 6970 is starting too feel slow, you'll be able to get a card with more than double its performance for the same price.

Time will tell but you're probably right. It's not imperative to me that a system run well at 2560x1600 since I just don't care to play at that resolution. In fact even with games that run really well on my current system I will often opt for 1600x1024 (and 1920x1200 is max for my 24" LG). I've just never seen much difference in visuals between lower and higher resolutions unless we're talking an extreme difference. I also typically run games in windowed mode, so that's probably a good part of the reason why. Very much looking forward to trying out the 6970.

Corsair, Mushkin, Intel, Crucial, OCZ (3 series) are all good.

I figured as much. If I were to get an SSD sometime in the future would it be worth reformatting such that the SSD is my master drive? As I understand it, with an SSD as your master you're looking at crazy fast boot times but how might that choice affect performance across the board, if at all? Actually, that might be a bad idea, given that iTunes refuses to use any but your master as its place for storing your music. That'd eat the vast majority of any affordable SSD's space.

20% is cake on a Sandy Bridge. You can do 4.5GHz (33%) with the stock cooler and stock volts.

Sounds good. I've never attempted an overclock but from what I've read the i-series processors seem to be making it easier than ever. I'll be looking up some guides for this.

 

[mfenn]

I figured as much. If I were to get an SSD sometime in the future would it be worth reformatting such that the SSD is my master drive? As I understand it, with an SSD as your master you're looking at crazy fast boot times but how might that choice affect performance across the board, if at all? Actually, that might be a bad idea, given that iTunes refuses to use any but your master as its place for storing your music. That'd eat the vast majority of any affordable SSD's space.

Yes, you will want to use your SSD as your system drive and for all your applications. Fast boot time is one of the lesser benefits of an SSD in my opinion. The greatest benefit of having one is the application launch times. Literally every app that I have on my SSD opens instantly. Not with a 5 second delay, but instantly. It's one of those things where you never realized how damn slow an HDD is until you have something better.

As for iTunes, I don't use it on Windows, but on a Mac it is trivial to move the music folder to a different location. Preferences->Advanced->iTunes Media folder location.

 

[Dragonwell]

Yes, you will want to use your SSD as your system drive and for all your applications. Fast boot time is one of the lesser benefits of an SSD in my opinion. The greatest benefit of having one is the application launch times. Literally every app that I have on my SSD opens instantly. Not with a 5 second delay, but instantly. It's one of those things where you never realized how damn slow an HDD is until you have something better.

As for iTunes, I don't use it on Windows, but on a Mac it is trivial to move the music folder to a different location. Preferences->Advanced->iTunes Media folder location.

So I take it it's plenty worth it to get an SSD all around, if the price is right? Some of my games do suffer from long load times, like Crysis. I'd expect those load times to shorten at least a little bit when I get my new PC, but I'd love to see it power up and load a level in very short order, along with some other games I have.

Huh. I never noticed that setting. That just might alleviate the whole iTunes problem.

 

[Morg.]

850W is serious overkill for your system. Even if you plan on CrossFiring eventually, the 650W version of the same series you picked out (which is an excellent line of PSUs) will be more than adequate. Even a pair of 6950s with the rest of your components likely won't draw more than 500W, and definitely not more than 550W. That leaves you almost 20% for headroom, and that Corsair PSU is definitely a genuine 650W PSU, it's not some overrated PoS.

Again this is CLEARLY misinformed.
Without any overclocking, you're looking at 200+200+90+ system power which is more than 550 total on spikes (take into account hdd spikes, RAM, fans and you're in for a psu overload).

IF any overclocking, 600W is fine for the i5 and an unlocked / oc'd 6950, but you WILL need 850 to CFX those w/ OC and headroom (277+277+200 for the i5).

 

[Morg.]

Not sure about that. You can http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/292?vs=306see[/url] that they really do trade blows, with one card producing more FPS in some games and the other card producing more FPS in others. And even those differences are mostly meaningless (like you can tell the difference between 51.5 and 48.5 FPS in Crysis at 1920x1200?).

What tilts my favor to the 6970 is its power consumption is anywhere from 20 to 60+ watts lower under load. Power is a big consideration to me - but I don't think it's unreasonable to be less concerned about it than I am.

This ... is something I read too often around Anandtech tbh.

The 6970 is BETTER than the 570
MUCH BETTER

.. it wins in the important games
.. it has 2 gigs of vram for the future
.. it uses less power
.. it has the advantage in big resolutions

And besides, any unlocked, clocked 6950 is equal to a 6970, so in fact even the 6950 > 570 . tAke advantage of the limited supply of non-fused dies

 

[Gigantopithecus]

Again this is CLEARLY misinformed.
Without any overclocking, you're looking at 200+200+90+ system power which is more than 550 total on spikes (take into account hdd spikes, RAM, fans and you're in for a psu overload).

IF any overclocking, 600W is fine for the i5 and an unlocked / oc'd 6950, but you WILL need 850 to CFX those w/ OC and headroom (277+277+200 for the i5).

200+200+90 = 490. Where are you pulling an extra 60W from spikes? FAN spikes!? Maybe if the OP is putting a dozen 15k rpm SAS disks in there, those might spike a considerable number of watts... Why are you even considering the full load TDP? Do you not realize that normal game play does not load CPUs and GPUs to their rated TDPs? Crysis =! Furmark.

Look at Bench, which uses a 95W TDP CPU. System power consumption at the wall under load in Crysis for a pair of 6950s is 470W. In Furmark, which is not at all a real world use scenario, it's still only 509W. That's a long way off from 650W, and OP will not 'spike' his system under Furmark an additional 100W...

You sound like someone who reads a bit but doesn't actually build much. I agree that you might want a bit more headroom if OC'ing the GPUs, but ...no one mentioned anything about OCing the GPUs when I posted that 650W is fine...

 

[mfenn]

So I take it it's plenty worth it to get an SSD all around, if the price is right? Some of my games do suffer from long load times, like Crysis. I'd expect those load times to shorten at least a little bit when I get my new PC, but I'd love to see it power up and load a level in very short order, along with some other games I have.

Yeah, I would say so. You probably won't be able to put too many games on the SSD though. It's more for general usage speedup, though games do benefit (they're just huge).

This ... is something I read too often around Anandtech tbh.

The 6970 is BETTER than the 570
MUCH BETTER

.. it wins in the games that I think are important
.. it has 2 gigs of vram for the future
.. it uses less power
.. it has the advantage in big resolutions

Fixed that for you.

And besides, any unlocked, clocked 6950 is equal to a 6970, so in fact even the 6950 > 570 . tAke advantage of the limited supply of non-fused dies

Most reference 6950s are sold out (or sold at a large premium) in the US by now (where the OP is).

Look at Bench, which uses a 95W TDP CPU. System power consumption at the wall under load in Crysis for a pair of 6950s is 470W.

The CPU used in the GPU Bench is actually an overclocked i7 920 (130W TDP) , so your point is even stronger when you consider that Sandy Bridge is much lower power.