i7 920 Build - Advice please

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fxit_man

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Hey guys.

Thinking of building a new i7 PC which will be used for gaming mostly

Can get the following stuff from frontosa @ the following prices.

If anyone has any advice please post!

MOBO: R2 109 excl. (pcint)
ASUS Intel X58, LGA1366, 6.4GT/s QPI, 6xTriple DDR3 2000(O.C), 3xPCI-x16(CrossFire), 1xPCI-x1, 2xPCI, 6xSATAII(Raid 0,1,5,10), 1x eSATA, 1xATA133, Gbe Lan, 8ch-Sound HD, Max 12xUSB, 2xIEEE1394, ATX

CPU: R 2,466 excl. (pcint)
Intel lga1366 i7 920 - Quad core+Hyper-Threading / 8 threads , 2.66ghz box cpu , 4.8GT/s QPi , built-in tripple channel DDR3-1333 memory controler , 45nm - 4x64k L1 + 1mb(4 x 256kb) L2 cache + 8mb L3 cache
RAM: R999 Kingston Hyper-X KHX1600C8D3K3/3GX ( KHX12800D3LLK3/3GX ) , 3x 1Gb/1024mb kit - support Intel XMP ( eXtreme Memory Profiles ) , ddr3-1600, CL8 , 1.65v - 240pin - lifetime warranty

RAM:R898 excl. (pcint)
3 X 2GB DDRIII-1333 (Kingston) @R449excl ea.

GPU: R3 579 excl.
Sapphire HD5870 Game edition , 40nm , HDMi ready , support support DirectX 11 , crossfire-X , built-in HDMi codec+7.1 audio , 1080p HDCP Compliant , pci-e 2.0 x16 , 1Gb 256bit 4 channel DDR5 , 32RoPs , 153Gb/sec memory transfer ; 1600 stream processors ( pixel shader engine + vertex pipelines ) , 80 texture unit , 2.7 TeraFLoPs , core/memory : 850/4800mhz , dvi+D-sub+Hdmi+DisplayPort, HDTV+HDMi tv-out - full retail pack with bundle DiRT2 DirectX11 game coupon

CASE: R1 099 excl.
Antec 900 Two (Nine Hundred Two) with Windowed side panel , black , No psu , bottom placed PSU ; 2 x front usb + audio in/out + 1 x eSATA - 0/3/6/9 x 5.25", 9/6/3/0 x 3.5" hdd , 2 front loaded HDD cages - top-mounted 200mm tri-cool blue fan + 2 x front 120mm blue + 1 x rear 120mm blue + 1x top 200mm blue tri-cool fan upto 6 , quick-release drive cages with rubber grommets , with accessories tray on top

PSU: R1 133 excl.
Antec EA-750 , 80PLUS certified for energy saving , with EPS12V + Modular cable management - 750w , 24pin ( 4pin detachable ) , with active-PFC , 2x6 or 2x6+2x8(6+2)pin PCI-E power connectors , quad 12V rail , 1x 140mm thermal controled fan ; with OVP, OCP, SCP - 3 years warranty , SABS approved

SCREEN: R1,877 excl (pcint)
2494HS 23.6 WIDE TFT, 1920 X 1080 @ 85Hz, 5 Millisecond, 0.27mm dot pitch, 50000:1 Contrast Ratio, D-Sub/DVI/HDMI, Tilt & Swivel Stand

BLU-RAY: R1937 excl.
LG BH08-LS20 blu-ray writer

TOTAL excl: R15416

(TOTAL incl: R17574)

NOTE* I already have 5x Seagate 500GB 3.5" HDD's so they are excluded from the above.

What you think?

- Anyone know where I can get any of these components cheaper? Or are these prices good?
- Will they work together? Compatible etc.
- Any other advice appreciated

Thanks!
 
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PCInternational has the Core i7 920 for R2,466 excluding VAT. If you are planning on overclocking the CPU make sure you buy a good CPU cooler (the Core i7 920 has ample overclocking headroom), if not the stock cooling is sufficient. Also DDR3-1600 will offer no real gaming performance boost, I'd recommend getting some cheaper DDR3-1333 modules (not to mention that DDR3-1600 is not officially supported by the X58 chipset at its rated speed).

Other than that, the build looks quite good :)
 
The_Techie said:
PCInternational has the Core i7 920 for R2,466 excluding VAT. If you are planning on overclocking the CPU make sure you buy a good CPU cooler (the Core i7 920 has ample overclocking headroom), if not the stock cooling is sufficient. Also DDR3-1600 will offer no real gaming performance boost, I'd recommend getting some cheaper DDR3-1333 modules (not to mention that DDR3-1600 is not officially supported by the X58 chipset at its rated speed).

Other than that, the build looks quite good :)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the quick reply and for the advice man!

Great stuff, 1333MHz it is then :) And that CPU is quite a bit cheaper from PCint! Thanks!! Will modify the OP now ;)
 
I guess it is my duty to point out that, gaming-wise, a good quad core CPU will come close to the performance of the Core i7 range for substantially cheaper (especially if you factor in the cost of a motherboard).

Won't stop me from advising you to disregard it, though :p The Core i7 flies. Are you planning on overclocking your system?

EDIT: I forgot to mention, compatibility should not be an issue. :)
 
The_Techie said:
I guess it is my duty to point out that, gaming-wise, a good quad core CPU will come close to the performance of the Core i7 range for substantially cheaper (especially if you factor in the cost of a motherboard).

Won't stop me from advising you to disregard it, though :p The Core i7 flies. Are you planning on overclocking your system?

EDIT: I forgot to mention, compatibility should not be an issue. :)
Click to expand...

Yeah I understand that, but it's nice to have the latest/greatest and also this should last longer in the long-run :) If I had to cut some costs it would be that though!

Hmm would I need to overclock? Haven't really dabbled in it before so I dunno if I need to etc.

Glad to hear they are compatible :)
 
+1 for 1333 RAM.

Afaik, unless you OC your CPU, your 1600 will default to 1333 as this is the memory speed supported by the chip at stock... i could be wrong though
 
fxit_man said:
Yeah I understand that, but it's nice to have the latest/greatest and also this should last longer in the long-run :) If I had to cut some costs it would be that though!
Click to expand...

Fair enough :) I had to mention it, however most people don't use their PC exclusively for gaming, which is where a fast CPU really comes into play.

fxit_man said:
Hmm would I need to overclock? Haven't really dabbled in it before so I dunno if I need to etc.

Glad to hear they are compatible :)
Click to expand...

You won't need to overclock, it'll run just fine as is. However, if you ever find you need extra power you can always overclock it (it's not all that difficult to achieve a modest overclock). See it as jailbreaking your iPhone, not really necessary but once you've done it you'll be glad you did :p

acidrain said:
+1 for 1333 RAM.

Afaik, unless you OC your CPU, your 1600 will default to 1333 as this is the memory speed supported by the chip at stock... i could be wrong though
Click to expand...

I believe it defaults to DDR3-1066 (well, it does on the Rampage II Extreme, don't know about the other motherboards).
 
The_Techie said:
You won't need to overclock, it'll run just fine as is. However, if you ever find you need extra power you can always overclock it (it's not all that difficult to achieve a modest overclock). See it as jailbreaking your iPhone, not really necessary but once you've done it you'll be glad you did :p
Click to expand...

Hahahahaha! In that case I shall definitely do a "modest" overclock :)

With regards to silent cases, is this Antec 900 case good that i've chosen above? I like the look etc, but was also considering the Antec P183 cos it looks awesome and as I understand, is very quiet! Just don't know about the door :/ Would probably be irritating opening and closing all the time to access the power button/blu-ray drive etc. Also the P183 has fan switches on the back.. As I understand from a friend with the 900, the fan switches are inside the case :/ So you;d have to buy an external fan control..

But I like the see-thru side of the Antec 900!

acidrain said:
+1 for 1333 RAM.

Afaik, unless you OC your CPU, your 1600 will default to 1333 as this is the memory speed supported by the chip at stock... i could be wrong though
Click to expand...

Interesting!
 
fxit_man said:
Hahahahaha! In that case I shall definitely do a "modest" overclock :)

With regards to silent cases, is this Antec 900 case good that i've chosen above? I like the look etc, but was also considering the Antec P183 cos it looks awesome and as I understand, is very quiet! Just don't know about the door :/ Would probably be irritating opening and closing all the time to access the power button/blu-ray drive etc.

But I like the see-thru side of the Antec 900!
Click to expand...

Can't really comment on that, currently using a Coolermaster HAF932 (which is quite silent, volume levels are below ambient). Hopefully someone who owns an Antec 900 can comment on that.

I'm not sure how well the Intel stock CPU cooler handles overclocks on the Core i7 920. You should be able to reach 3GHz at least.

fxit_man said:
Interesting!
Click to expand...

Yes, the integrated memory controller only supports up to DDR3-1333 (if I'm correct, in which case I'm not entirely sure why mine defaulted to DDR3-1066) by default and is also overclocked when the core speed of the CPU is raised, thus enabling faster RAM to be accessed at their rated speed.
 
I was under the impression that the 1366 systems use tri-channel RAM?
Can someone confirm this...

So looking at getting 3x whatever RAM you choose :)
 
Cool! Thanks for the explanation.

Friend has the 900 and he says it sounds like a jet engine when the fans are on full, and that he can't sleep with the PC on.. :)

Maybe he was exaggerating..I dunno :p

SuperAntMD said:
I was under the impression that the 1366 systems use tri-channel RAM?
Can someone confirm this...

So looking at getting 3x whatever RAM you choose :)
Click to expand...

Yes i've read this, but apparently you don't need to run in triple channel as the i7 core can run in single/dual/triple channel.. and apparently difference between dual and triple channel is minimal? :confused:
 
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SuperAntMD said:
I was under the impression that the 1366 systems use tri-channel RAM?
Can someone confirm this...

So looking at getting 3x whatever RAM you choose :)
Click to expand...

Indeed, it does support triple-channel access. Didn't see he changed it from 3x1GB to 2x2GB :o

I agree, try to get three identical modules so you will be able to use triple-channel.
 
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fxit_man said:
Cool! Thanks for the explanation.

Friend has the 900 and he says it sounds like a jet engine when the fans are on full, and that he can't sleep with the PC on.. :)

Maybe he was exaggerating..I dunno :p
Click to expand...

I guess it depends on the person and the fans installed. I find the CM Sickleflows to be pretty quiet compared to the standard fans my case came with.

Edit: Come to think of it, the sickleflows are pretty much near silent and by silent I mean your CPU/GPU coolers will probably be louder. Looking at the noise levels for the Sapphire 5870, it's rated between 56-60dB load/idle, about 3x louder than the sickleflows.
 
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