i7 setup, comments please!

[Bob_Bobber0]

Originally posted by Bob_Bobber0[br]Hey guys, I'm building a computer for my friend, just wanted to know what you guys thought of this setup. I'm pretty sure everything is compatible and all that junk. This is my 4th or 5th build, but they have all been quads so check it out and let me know what ya think, thanks. Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813128375 Processor: Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115202 Ram: G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231225 Video Card: SAPPHIRE 100259-1GL Radeon HD 4870 1GB http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102801 Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 RPM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822136218 Power Supply: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139006 Case: COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 CAC-T05-WW http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119077 Cpu Cooler: XIGMATEK Dark Knight-S1283V 120mm http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835233029 Anyway, thats it along with a 22'' Acer Monitor, sata dvd drive, logitec 5.1 speakers and a usb mic.

Edit* Links fixed

[Khalil]

Looks good other than the fact the chipset is problematic, it is a crap shoot with the i7, make sure and keep all the boxes, books and CDs in the very likely case you will be RMAing several times.

I would recommend going with this motherboard instead of the Gigabyte http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131365
It will cost more but it will work. I am not saying the Gigabyte won't work but if for some reason if you have issues with the motherboard you can go directly to Asus, with Gigabyte you will get the run around and it could take weeks before you can RMA. Remember you can only RMA back to Newegg the first 30 days after that you would have to deal with Gigabyte where there is no phone support and most of the time emails don't get replied to for a week or more.

[Bob_Bobber0]

Thank you for the suggestions. On my previous builds I have used gigabyte motherboards and never had problems so I'll probably stick with them.

This particular model has great reviews and works well with my price range..trying to keep it around $1200-$1300.

I'm wondering if the 4870 will have any problem running Crysis on all High settings with that 22'' at native resolution of 1650x1050?

[tomtoon]

Shouldn't do mate. Great card that is.

[jdeb]

I wish they would come out with the new chipsets already...

[Patch]

Everything looks fine.

I think too much is often made of mobo manufacturer brand. Frankly, just about all of the X58 motherboards are pretty solid. The notable standout is the EVGA Classified. It's leaps and bounds ahead of all others in very high overclocks as it is the only board that can consistently go past a 221 baseclock wall (which equates to a roughly 4.6 Ghz clock on an i7 920). But it is disgustingly overpriced at $400-450.

One godsend of the X58 platform is the ability to do crossfire or SLI without pigeonholing yourself into a hardware rut that's hard to get out of.

For typical use (or even heavily overclocked use) just pick a company you're familiar with or go by features. Raid controllers, layout, on board sound quality, bios features, drivers, perception of customer support quality, number of RAM slots, etc.. etc...

Or even pick by color:
Red: Bloodrage or Classified.
Dark Blue: ASUS
Baby Blue: Gigabyte
Lemon/Lime: DFI.
Puke: Biostar. (Don't get me wrong, I have a Biostar i45 coming for some suicide runs. But their colors are awful).

You get the picture.

Have fun!

[scuderia]

It might just be me, but if you're going to be spending $1,300 on a computer, I'd suggest going with the HD4890 for a few extra bucks. Hell, if you can get a hold of a copy, grab the Sapphire Atomic 4890. It's drop dead sexy.

[glc]

I would recommend a WD Caviar Black hard drive instead of that SE16. It's a faster drive.

[tomtoon]

(which equates to a roughly 4.6 Ghz clock on an i7 920). But it is disgustingly overpriced at $400-450.

Although Im not in US, i don't totally think it is as not all boards can get a 2.66GHz to 4.6GHz can they?

[Khalil]

Originally Posted by Patch Everything looks fine. I think too much is often made of mobo manufacturer brand. Frankly, just about all of the X58 motherboards are pretty solid. The notable standout is the EVGA Classified. It's leaps and bounds ahead of all others in very high overclocks as it is the only board that can consistently go past a 221 baseclock wall (which equates to a roughly 4.6 Ghz clock on an i7 920). But it is disgustingly overpriced at $400-450. One godsend of the X58 platform is the ability to do crossfire or SLI without pigeonholing yourself into a hardware rut that's hard to get out of. For typical use (or even heavily overclocked use) just pick a company you're familiar with or go by features. Raid controllers, layout, on board sound quality, bios features, drivers, perception of customer support quality, number of RAM slots, etc.. etc... Or even pick by color: Red: Bloodrage or Classified. Dark Blue: ASUS Baby Blue: Gigabyte Lemon/Lime: DFI. Puke: Biostar. (Don't get me wrong, I have a Biostar i45 coming for some suicide runs. But their colors are awful). You get the picture. Have fun!

This forum is to discuss different opinions so it is cool when you want to disagree with someone however your argument should be based on facts. You are telling the OP all X58 motherboards on the market are solid. Have you built X58 systems using all the brands?

How many i7 builds have you done so far? You should order an ECS X58 motherboard and let us know how that goes for you Please make sure and include pictures of you pulling your hair out. That EVGA stand out is probably the most problematic motherboard on the martket.
How do I know. We had a customer recently who wanted 2 i7 machines built for him and his wife, he insisted on that EVGA standout board you linked. They are both online gamers, the 2 boards were both DOA when we got them. After sending them back for replacement one of the 2 we got back was DOA and the other would not work with the EVGA 295 we put in it, yet it would work with an E9500. Mind you there was nothing wrong with the actual EVGA 295 video card. I finally convinced the customer to let us go with an Asus motherboard.

Please give advise based on facts and your own experiences and not what you read on some website that might be paid by a manufacturer to say whatever, what makes this site better than any out there is we are doing our best to give people factual advise based on experiences with good and bad, this is why we created a special thread for motherboard brands and the quality to be expected.