Tips/Comments on My First PC Build in a While

[Ambient2012]

Hello everyone!

This is my first post here, I've browsed for a while, and figured it was time to register and introduce myself because I wanted to get some feedback on the computer I'm going to be putting together. I haven't put together my own PC for quite some time, so I wanted to get some feedback and advice on the parts I'll be getting. If you have any better ideas, or can think of something that would be more cost effective, let me know!

Here's what I plan on getting:

ASRock Z68 Professional Gen3 LGA1155 Intel Moetherboard
Intel core i7-2700k Sandy Bridge 3.5GHz Processor
G.Skill Ripjaws Z series 32GB 240-pin DDR3 1600 Memory
XFX FX-797A-TNFC Radeon HD 7970 3GB PCI-E 3.0 Graphics Card
OCZ Agility 60GB SATAIII SSD
Seagate Barracuda 1TB 7200 RPM Hard Drive
OCZ ZX Series 1250W PSU
Lite-On Blu-Ray Burner

I plan on getting a second HD 7970 at some point.

I'm also going to do liquid cooling with a 3x120mm radiator, a CPU block, and a full-coverage GPU block. Will also have additional case fans, and memory cooling fans.

My main goal is overclock-ability. I was originally going to get one of the i7 extreme edition processors, but it seems like the 2700k can perform almost just as well with proper overclocking. I'll also be overclocking the HD 7970. With the liquid cooling, I should be able to push it pretty far, correct?

If I can cut costs anywhere and get similar, if not better, performance, that would be great.

Anyone have any comments, advice, tweaks, additions, questions, etc?

Thanks!

 

[DSF]

"I plan on getting a second HD 7970 at some point."

Can you define "at some point"?

If you're not planning to add the second card until well into the future (let's say 1 year or more) it's not really an effective upgrade path. If you're just waiting until your next couple paychecks come in or something, that might be a different story.

Either way, you don't need a 1250W PSU unless water cooling takes a lot more power than I expect. Even 1kW is more than you need.

 

[lehtv]

Answer these please: http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=80121

 

[Ken g6]

One thing I think I can comment on even without those answers:

OCZ Agility 60GB SATAIII SSD

You're spending so much everywhere else; why skimp on the SSD? I suggest a Samsung 830 128GB.

 

[raasco]

One thing I think I can comment on even without those answers:

You're spending so much everywhere else; why skimp on the SSD? I suggest a Samsung 830 128GB.

+1

Also, 32GB of DDR3 looks like overkill.

 

[ElFenix]

is there any evidence that 2700Ks overclock any better than 2600Ks?

 

[mfenn]

is there any evidence that 2700Ks overclock any better than 2600Ks?

Nope.

 

[mfenn]

Answer these please: http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=80121

This.

OP, I can tell you that if gaming performance is your goal, you are barking up the wrong tree. It's better to cut back on the ridiculous parts like the i7 2700K, super-expensive mobo, 32GB of RAM, absolute top-end GPU, really overkill PSU and instead spend that money on 2 or 3 7950's.

 

[Ambient2012]

Thanks for the feedback guys!

Here's the answers to the questions posted in that link:

1) The PC will mainly be used for gaming, video (encryption/decryption), and 3D Rendering (3D Studios Max).

2) No Budget, but I don't need to spend anymore that what I need to meet my goals.

3) I'll be getting my parts from the USA.

4) I don't really have a brand preference; however, I do prefer intel processors.

5) Starting from scratch, won't be using any old parts.

6) Haven't seen similar threads.

7) I plan on over clocking.

8) I plan on gaming at maximum resolution.

9) I plan on building it within a month.

10) Not thick skinned Definitely looking for constructive criticism.

Now to address what you guys have said:

I plan on getting a second GPU as soon as I can afford it. I could get it right away, but I was just thinking of spreading out the cost a bit. But if you guys think I would be better off going for GPU processing power over everything else, then I can just get 2 GPU's right off the bat.

Do you think I need more than a 60GB SSD? I'm just getting the SSD to run Windows 7 and maybe a few games. How is the SSD you suggested better? It seems very similar to me, but I'm not too informed when it comes to SSD's.

Should I drop the RAM down to 16GB, or even 8GB? I went with 32GB just because RAM is cheap. Would I be better off going with less higher-end RAM than more cheap RAM? At what point does the extra RAM become pointless?

The 2700k is only $10 more than the 2600k, so I figured why not. Its only slightly faster, but about the same price.

As far as the PSU goes, I wasn't sure how much I would really need, so I thought it would be better to get more and not need it than not have enough. If 1250W is overkill for the machine I originally listed, would it still be overkill if I had two HD 7970's?

Based on what you guys said, this is what I'm thinking about doing:

14x4GB G.Skill Sniper Gaming Series DDR3 2133

ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 Mobo.

2 HD 7970's with liquid cooling.

Also, would one radiator/reservoir be enough to liquid cool two GPU's and one CPU? Or would the liquid get too hot by the time it reached the last component?

Any other questions or comments?

Thanks,
Ambient

 

[Charlie98]

I would go with at least a 120GB SSD. I bought a 60GB (in fact, an Agility3) for my build and I'm kicking myself for not going bigger. I have my OS and a few programs on the SSD, and other programs over on the HDD, it's kind of a pain to backup. The larger SSD's are actually more efficent (that may not be the technically correct word for it...) than the smaller ones, and you don't have to worry about performance degredation if you fill up the poor, little 60GB.

The Samsung SSD has a different controller than the Agility's SandForce controller; the early SandForce controlled SSD's were plagued with problems. That being said, I have not had one problem with my SSD and would buy another confidently... but given a close price difference, I would probably choose one of the other controllers (for example, the Samsung, Crucial M4, or the Plextor M3.)

2) No Budget, but I don't need to spend anymore that what I need to meet my goals.

...then you are buying waaaay too much RAM, even though it's cheap. Get a nice set of 2x 4GB 1600, if you wind up needing more, you can get another set cheap... much cheaper than any 8GB sticks or the faster sticks. Take that money you save and put it towards a bigger SSD... which will allow you to realize real speed gains.

 

[Fire&Blood]

I would generally follow path mfenn is suggesting.

I7's, 32GB RAM and 1250W power supplies deviate too much from the price/performance intersection. Even if budget is not an issue, (lucky you) i5 K's, 16GB RAM and a ~ 700W Seasonic X series power supply are arguably best choices. If you choose so, you are better off spending these "savings" on a case, cooling options, limited edition video/sound cards and SSD/HDD options.

 

[mfenn]

OP, what kind of monitor do you have? With the kind of money you're looking to throw around on a machine, you are doing yourself a disservice if you have (or are planning to get) anything less than a 30".

A general sketch of a good, high-end gaming system is:
i5 2500K $210 AP
Scythe Mugen 3 $50
GA-Z68X-UD3H $160
Patriot DDR3 1600 8GB $38 x2 $76
7950 3GB $460 x2 $920
Crucial M4 128GB $175
Hitachi 7K1000.D $100
DVD Burner $18
XFX Core 850W $100 AR
Corsair 500R $125 AR
Total: $1934 AR AP

I want to re-emphasize: If you don't have a 30", get one before you spend money on anything else. If you really don't want a 30", then spending this much on a gaming machine is pointless.

 

[Ambient2012]

Okay, so it sounds like I need a bigger SSD, less memory, possibly a different CPU, lower wattage PSU, and a big monitor.

Why do I need a 30" monitor? I was going to go with a nice LED backlit LCD 27". What makes a 30" so much better?

I looked at the 2500k i5 vs the 2700k i7. They do seem very similar. Is the only real difference the slight speed increase going from the i5 to i7? If so, then it seems like it would be better to save money and go with an i5 and over clock it since I'm going to be liquid cooling it, I should be able to over clock it to very similar speeds to the i7, correct?

Lastly, does the higher-end, more expensive RAM not really provide much of a benefit over cheap RAM? Should I just go with RAM that is reliable, but cheap over "performance" models, and spend that money I saved on a better SSD or monitor?

Thanks again,
Ambient

 

[mfenn]

First, a 27" monitor would be acceptable if it is 2560x1440 (30" is 2560x1600). Don't bother building a ~$2K rig if you're only going to run at 1080P, you won't see any benefit over a $1200 machine.

Second, why are you so keen on doing a custom water loop? It's not exactly a good project for somebody who is on their first PC build. You will still be able to overclock the heck out of an i5 with a good air cooler.

Third, fancy RAM does not provide much (if any) benefit on a Sandy Bridge system. You're talking about a 1% difference between 1600 and 2133. The price difference, however, is a lot more than 1%. That's money better spent in places where it will actually make a difference.

 

[Ambient2012]

Its not my first PC build, just my first in a while. I got out of gaming for a while, then got into counsel gaming. Now I want to get back into PC gaming. I'm fairly knowledgable about computer, I've just been out of the loop for a long time, so I'm not up to date at all with the new standards. I got my A+ certification a few years ago, so its not like I'm not capable of building a machine. Also, like I mentioned, I won't be using this for just gaming. I'll also be using it for decrypting blu-ray movies, encrypting them, and compiling 3D scenes.

I know I don't need water cooling - I just enjoy customizing my stuff and messing around with over clocking and stuff like that. Its not necessary, but I enjoy it. I did decide that I will stick with air cooling at first though, and then move on to water cooling at a later date.

Maybe I'll just go with the bare minimum I need for running games like Crysis and BF3, or go with a 2011 setup. We'll see.

 

[lehtv]

An LGA2011 setup is a bad idea, it's such bad value for money and the platform isn't as versatile as LGA1155.

As mfenn pointed out, either settle for 1080p and a single video card like the rest of us mortals, or go all out and get a 2560 wide monitor (or even 3x 1080p) along with graphics processing power to go with it.