Hi All!! New Guy Here, Ready To build A Monsterr :D

[ShredStar]

Hi everyone i only just signed up today as i found great reviews for this forum section from various places.

I'm After building my own machine, i've never built or modified a tower before so you could say im outta my depth there but i have some mediocre knowledge on components.

I've done some hopefully serious research on the perfect components for me personally on what i would like to do with the machine (which is HD video editing including Encoding, and Gaming) and don't want to be held back!

So the budget i had to start with WAS £1000 but as i read more into it and got carried away it might slightly be higher, but hopefully this can be reduced with some awesome knowledge and recommendations.

Down to the Nitty Gritty

the components i have in mind SO.... Far are as follows :

(All brand new, prices including postage)


MoBo : ASUS Rampage iii GENE - cheapest I found is £200

CPU : Intel Core i7 950 3.06 GHz - cheapest I Found is £211

Graphics Card : GTX 470 1.26GB GDDR5-SDRAM - cheapest i Found is £191

RAM : Corsair CMD12GX3M6A1600C8 12GB DDR3 PC12800 Memory (6 x 2Gb Cards) - cheapest i found is - £240

OS : Win7 pro OR Ultimate due to 192GB max handling any advice on which?

PSU : any advice on makes, models, silent ones and size wattage i will need, as well as descent prices ?

Blu Ray RW : to be added incorporating dvd rw and read as well as cd rw and read and advice on descent makes and prices and compatability?

HD : 1TB needed unsure of make and spec any advice?

Casing : not too bothered for anything flashy just good airflow but would look great see through if avaiable lol tips?

Water cooling : lets keep it cool and maybe if i decide to Over Clock itll be more durable makes models recommendations prices ?

(sound card is included in MoBo)

anything i missed ?
sorry for the essay and feel free to rip what i wrote to bits if its wrong or uncompatible, criticise away!

any help is REALLY appreciated,
and photos of build once planned will be added via links to photobcket.

Thanks

[Nuclear Krusader]

Windows 7 Pro is fine.

Get a Western Digital black for your HDD.

Watercooling is a PITA. And even for ocing, you don't really need it.

[glc]

I would save some money and go with a socket 1156 platform - something like an Asus P7P55D-E Pro with an i7-870 and dual channel memory - you can get 4gb x 2 kits now.

Power supply - almost anything Corsair is excellent. For a single 470, 650 watts is plenty.
Hard drive - I'd get a WD Black SATA 6.0.
Hold off on the water cooling - use the stock heatsink till you want to try for extreme overclocks.
LG is a good bluray brand.

[Khalil]

Make sure your windows operating system is 64 bit if you plan on going higher than 3.2GB memory. I would take glc's advice and go with the 1156 instead of the 1366 platform which is a can of worms at best.
If you don't want to be held back then go with an ATI 5870 or 6870, they are still overall faster than Nvidia and for sure run a lot cooler.

[David M]

MoBo : ASUS Rampage iii GENE - cheapest I found is £200
This is a micro LGA 1366 board....which in a nutshell are nothing but problems unless you are an expert at setting up a board. Did you want a micro board? Consider this roughly equivalent regular sized ATX 1156 board... ASUSTeK Computer Inc.

CPU : Intel Core i7 950 3.06 GHz - cheapest I Found is £211 You will need an LGA 1156 CPU to go with the suggested board. Newegg.com - Intel Core i7-870 Lynnfield 2.93GHz 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor BX80605I7870

Graphics Card : GTX 470 1.26GB GDDR5-SDRAM - cheapest i Found is £191
Good card

RAM : Corsair CMD12GX3M6A1600C8 12GB DDR3 PC12800 Memory (6 x 2Gb Cards) - cheapest i found is - £240
12 gigs is total overkill. Consider 8 gigs of Corsair 1333 1.5 volt. Chances are you will never need this much either. Start out with a 4 gig, two stick kit and then see if you ever run out of RAM.

OS : Win7 pro OR Ultimate due to 192GB max handling any advice on which?
The 192gig limitation ended with Windows XP SP1. Are you certain you need more than Windows 7 Home Premium? Which one is right for you? - Microsoft Windows

PSU : any advice on makes, models, silent ones and size wattage i will need, as well as descent prices ?
This is what I would choose... Newegg.com - CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply

Blu Ray RW : to be added incorporating dvd rw and read as well as cd rw and read and advice on descent makes and prices and compatibility?
Most all Bluray players also do DVD and CD's. I would pick something other than a Sony player but that's my personal bias.

HD : 1TB needed unsure of make and spec any advice?
Reliable and fast... Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

Casing : not too bothered for anything flashy just good airflow but would look great see through if avaiable lol tips?
This is very much a personal preference. If you want quiet then don't buy one with 8 fans.

Water cooling : lets keep it cool and maybe if i decide to Over Clock itll be more durable makes models recommendations prices ?
Forget this PITA idea, if you want to overclock then buy a CPU cooler with a 120mm fan and a large block.

(sound card is included in MoBo)
The motherboard I recommended also comes with an excellent sound card.

[glc]

David, why are you linking to Newegg when the OP is in the UK? We try not to do that, you need to use a vendor in the UK.

[David M]

Originally Posted by glc David, why are you linking to Newegg when the OP is in the UK? We try not to do that, you need to use a vendor in the UK.

I did that because I wanted him to be able to see which hardware I am talking about. I have no idea which are the best vendors in the UK...the OP probably does. Newegg also has good product descriptions and easy to find specifications.

[ShredStar]

Originally Posted by glc I would save some money and go with a socket 1156 platform - something like an Asus P7P55D-E Pro with an i7-870 and dual channel memory - you can get 4gb x 2 kits now. Power supply - almost anything Corsair is excellent. For a single 470, 650 watts is plenty. Hard drive - I'd get a WD Black SATA 6.0. Hold off on the water cooling - use the stock heatsink till you want to try for extreme overclocks. LG is a good bluray brand.

hi thanks for the reply

what is the benefit of this board over the board i chose and the fact that the memory is dual rather than triple channel dosn't hinder anything?

and is the i7-870 chip really upto the chip that i chose, i thought the one i picked was faster?

the ram is a main concern and i was planning on having 12gb due to future camcorders maybe going uber HD or 3d (just a bit of forward planning throughout tbh)

ah so water cooling is not needed unless OCing, thanks

ill have a look at some LG blu-rays there just so expensive lol
thanks for your help!

[ShredStar]

Originally Posted by Khalil Make sure your windows operating system is 64 bit if you plan on going higher than 3.2GB memory. I would take glc's advice and go with the 1156 instead of the 1366 platform which is a can of worms at best. If you don't want to be held back then go with an ATI 5870 or 6870, they are still overall faster than Nvidia and for sure run a lot cooler.

yeah i planned on 64bit win 7 but none that hinders to 16Gb ram.

1366 a can of worms? in what way?

what benefit does the 1156 have over the 1366?

ive always been into Nvidia not sure why sounds foolish i know lol but i really got my heart set on the gtx470, through all the reviews.

[ShredStar]

Originally Posted by David M MoBo : ASUS Rampage iii GENE - cheapest I found is £200 This is a micro LGA 1366 board....which in a nutshell are nothing but problems unless you are an expert at setting up a board. Did you want a micro board? Consider this roughly equivalent regular sized ATX 1156 board... ASUSTeK Computer Inc. CPU : Intel Core i7 950 3.06 GHz - cheapest I Found is £211 You will need an LGA 1156 CPU to go with the suggested board. Newegg.com - Intel Core i7-870 Lynnfield 2.93GHz 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor BX80605I7870 Graphics Card : GTX 470 1.26GB GDDR5-SDRAM - cheapest i Found is £191 Good card RAM : Corsair CMD12GX3M6A1600C8 12GB DDR3 PC12800 Memory (6 x 2Gb Cards) - cheapest i found is - £240 12 gigs is total overkill. Consider 8 gigs of Corsair 1333 1.5 volt. Chances are you will never need this much either. Start out with a 4 gig, two stick kit and then see if you ever run out of RAM. OS : Win7 pro OR Ultimate due to 192GB max handling any advice on which? The 192gig limitation ended with Windows XP SP1. Are you certain you need more than Windows 7 Home Premium? Which one is right for you? - Microsoft Windows PSU : any advice on makes, models, silent ones and size wattage i will need, as well as descent prices ? This is what I would choose... Newegg.com - CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply Blu Ray RW : to be added incorporating dvd rw and read as well as cd rw and read and advice on descent makes and prices and compatibility? Most all Bluray players also do DVD and CD's. I would pick something other than a Sony player but that's my personal bias. HD : 1TB needed unsure of make and spec any advice? Reliable and fast... Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive Casing : not too bothered for anything flashy just good airflow but would look great see through if avaiable lol tips? This is very much a personal preference. If you want quiet then don't buy one with 8 fans. Water cooling : lets keep it cool and maybe if i decide to Over Clock itll be more durable makes models recommendations prices ? Forget this PITA idea, if you want to overclock then buy a CPU cooler with a 120mm fan and a large block. (sound card is included in MoBo) The motherboard I recommended also comes with an excellent sound card.

The maximus III does lack some of the things that the rampage III has though such as:
Max 16GB ram, for future upgrades.
Dual channel rather thatn trip channel , does this matter?
no USB 3.0 ports.
does not support the i7 960 which is faster than the i7 870.

What are the issues with the small ATX boards over the standard size boards?

windows 7 home premium is maxed at 16GB, rampage II has potential of 24GB for future upgrading.

doesnt the psu need to be larger than 650W as the GPU is taking 550W minimum power?

ill search outside of sony blu ray players thanks.

and ill check out the hard drive ive seen that mentioned before thanks again.

after working out that PITA means pain in the ass lol ill stay away from the watercooler for now then, i just wanted to keep heavy power consumption during heat loss really low.

thanks

[glc]

The 1366 platform is very quirky and hard to make stable - it can be a PITA. If you want a ton of ram, just take a 1155 board and fill it up with 16gb. The i7-870 is plenty fast. The P7P55D-E Pro has both SATA 6.0 and USB 3.0. If you REALLY want a 1366, the ONLY board I'd recommend is an Asus P6TD Deluxe - and it has neither SATA 6.0 or USB 3.0. Not worth it in my opinion.

The 550 watt recommendation for a GTX470 takes into account a fully equipped system. The card itself only draws a fraction of that.

[ShredStar]

Originally Posted by glc The 1366 platform is very quirky and hard to make stable - it can be a PITA. If you want a ton of ram, just take a 1155 board and fill it up with 16gb. The i7-870 is plenty fast. The P7P55D-E Pro has both SATA 6.0 and USB 3.0. If you REALLY want a 1366, the ONLY board I'd recommend is an Asus P6TD Deluxe - and it has neither SATA 6.0 or USB 3.0. Not worth it in my opinion. The 550 watt recommendation for a GTX470 takes into account a fully equipped system. The card itself only draws a fraction of that.

Ah I see ill give the P7P55D-e pro a try then if theyre more user friendly, is the i7 870 the best chip I can get for this.board?

But isnt the ram dual channel on this rather than triple channel?

And it has 4 slots so now I need 3x4gb sticks with 1 slot for future?

On the Psu thanks a lot for that too as I was looking at 1kw supplies lol

[glc]

You will never notice the difference between 2.93 and 3.06 Ghz.

Yes, it's dual channel and should be installed in pairs. Put in 8 now, or put in all 16.

If you are contemplating a pair of GTX470's for SLI, then a 1kw would be appropriate.

[ShredStar]

Originally Posted by glc You will never notice the difference between 2.93 and 3.06 Ghz. Yes, it's dual channel and should be installed in pairs. Put in 8 now, or put in all 16. If you are contemplating a pair of GTX470's for SLI, then a 1kw would be appropriate.

no I don't think ill notice speed difference either.

What are the differences between dual channel and trip channel other than how they are installed?

A pair of gtx470 are a bit pricey at the moment but if I change my mind in the future I'm going to need a 1kw then ain't I

[glc]

Well, I looked up certified PSU's at slizone.com, and it looks like a pair of 470's needs at least 750. You don't need a 1kw, but you do need more than 650. Check the cert list. You can't go wrong with a Corsair, whichever certified one you choose.

[ShredStar]

Originally Posted by glc Well, I looked up certified PSU's at slizone.com, and it looks like a pair of 470's needs at least 750. You don't need a 1kw, but you do need more than 650. Check the cert list. You can't go wrong with a Corsair, whichever certified one you choose.

the P7P55D-e pro mobo is looking promising along with the i7-870 i will save money over the rampageIII gene and i7-950, and as you said will be more user friendly,

im going to stick to one gtx470 GPU as HD video editing is only a hobby not my job


now the ram im wanting is 12GB so ill need to get 4 x 3GB dual channel ddr3 can you point me to the right place, that will be compatible with the mobo and safe to run along side the cpu please?

and with the p7p55d-e pro mobo, i7-870 and single gtx470 can you give inyour best opinion the best value PSU please?

thanks for yer repies btw!

[ShredStar]

Originally Posted by glc Well, I looked up certified PSU's at slizone.com, and it looks like a pair of 470's needs at least 750. You don't need a 1kw, but you do need more than 650. Check the cert list. You can't go wrong with a Corsair, whichever certified one you choose.

ill stick to the P7P55D-e pro, single gpu gtx470, i7-870, wd black 1tb hd previously recommended,

theram im wating is 4x 3gb ddr3 dual channel with a speed to run safely with the processor, and that wll be compatble withthe mobo can you point me to a descent set please?

and in your opinion the best forthe setup psu asswell?


thanks for the repies btw

[ShredStar]

so if i use one 1 gtx 470, P7P55D-e pro, i7-870, wd black 1tb hd, ill need about 600watt supply?

but the ram will probably take some power aswell as im wanting 12Gb ill get 4X3GB ddr3 on dual channel.

so overall psu will be?

[glc]

Do not buy 3 ram modules. Buy either 2 or 4. That will get you 4gb or 8gb or 16gb unless you buy a pair of 4's and a pair of 2's to make 12gb, which is kinda pointless.

I'd recommend at least a 750 watt to cover you in the future. A Corsair 750TX would be an excellent choice to balance power and quality with cost.

[ShredStar]

Originally Posted by glc Do not buy 3 ram modules. Buy either 2 or 4. That will get you 4gb or 8gb or 16gb unless you buy a pair of 4's and a pair of 2's to make 12gb, which is kinda pointless. I'd recommend at least a 750 watt to cover you in the future. A Corsair 750TX would be an excellent choice to balance power and quality with cost.

hi the psu looks great but i notice it isnt sli compatible just incase i fancy upgrading later on could this be a problem?

3gb sticks are no good? why not
ah well if i buy this



http://www.ballicom.co.uk/components/memory/corsair-dominator-memory--16-gb--4-x-4-gb--dimm-240pin--ddr3.p550527.html and take it to the full 16GB now will this be ok with all other componenets such as the cpu at the 1333mhz speed?

[glc]

The 750TX is on the certified list at slizone.com for a pair of 470's. It's listed as a TX750W.

They don't make 3gb ram modules - just 2gb and 4gb. 1333 speed is fine unless you plan on overclocking, then I'd get 1600. Buy your ram in matched pairs - dual channel kits.

[David M]

Shred,
Loading up your computer with the maximum amount of RAM it will accept is not going to make your computer run faster. The only exception is if your applications use up all the RAM you have and then start needing to access the hard drive.

It is uncommon for a computer to need more than 4 gigs. It is extremely rare to need more than 8 gigs.

For example, if you have 4 gigs of RAM and your applications are only using 3 gigs of it then having 8 gigs will do nothing to make your computer any faster than if your total was 4 gigs.

Knowing all the applications you will have open at once and the sum of the amount RAM they use will allow you to make an educated decision on this. My guess is that you will probably never need more than four gigs and if you do then you will never need more than eight gigs. Just do as GLC recommended....he is the expert here.

A dual channel chipset (P55 for example) needs DIMM's in pairs to function most efficiently. A triple channel chipset (X58) needs DIMM's in sets of three's to function most efficiently. The difference in processing power between dual and triple is not noticeable...perhaps a couple percentage points depending on the application. The difference in potential for problems is significant.

[ShredStar]

Originally Posted by glc The 750TX is on the certified list at slizone.com for a pair of 470's. It's listed as a TX750W. They don't make 3gb ram modules - just 2gb and 4gb. 1333 speed is fine unless you plan on overclocking, then I'd get 1600. Buy your ram in matched pairs - dual channel kits.

Ah ok so it'll be ok for future sli cheers ill get that psu.
So 1333 won't damage the CPU then?

[ShredStar]

tx750w will be spot on then! thanks
1333mhz ram will be ok then with the i7-870 as mem is ok with 1066/1333.

ill take the advice,
it will be a good idea to buy 2x 4gb sticks then and if i need more get another 2. a corsair set would be good any sugg?

[David M]

Good choices.

If you want to overclock and want 8 gigs total of RAM then consider this...
Newegg.com - CORSAIR XMS 4GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 Desktop Memory Model CMX4GX3M1A1600C9

If you don't want to overclock and want 8 gigs then consider this...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-279-_-Product

Have you picked a vendor in the UK? You will probably want to look around your vendors website to see which combination of kits gets you the lowest bottom line price.

[ShredStar]

Originally Posted by David M Good choices. If you want to overclock and want 8 gigs total of RAM then consider this... Newegg.com - CORSAIR XMS 4GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 Desktop Memory Model CMX4GX3M1A1600C9 If you don't want to overclock and want 8 gigs then consider this... Newegg.com - CORSAIR XMS3 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model CMX8GX3M4B1333C9 Have you picked a vendor in the UK? You will probably want to look around your vendors website to see which combination of kits gets you the lowest bottom line price.

yeah the first link you posted looks good! with the 1600 speed for future oc, and the latency can be reduced slightly through tweaking, although it has no fan cooling do you think i will need a fan for them or is it un-necassary?, i also saw this link:

http://www.google.co.uk/products/cat...&os=tech-specs

what do you reckon?

i dont have a vendor i just search all the sites i can for the best prices

[David M]

If you want to overclock your CPU then having RAM with tall cooling vanes can create a clearance problem with the heat pipes on many of the large aftermarket CPU coolers. Overclocking RAM does not do much compared to overclocking a CPU. Use your RAM dividers properly by not attempting to run your 1600 RAM much over 1600 and keeping your voltage not much over 1.65 volts and you will not need the cooling vanes. It's kind of a waste to overclock RAM.

I don't know about the UK, but in the US many of the lowest prices come from some really disreputable vendors. The lowest price is quite often not the best deal. There are plenty of ways a vendor can give you the shaft.

[ShredStar]

Originally Posted by David M If you want to overclock your CPU then having RAM with tall cooling vanes can create a clearance problem with many of the heat pipes on the large aftermarket CPU coolers. Overclocking RAM does not do much compared to overclocking a CPU. Use your RAM dividers properly and you will not need the cooling vanes.

when you say ram dividers are you referring to the slots that i insert them into?
so if i get the ram you supplied on the first link unclocked they will be fine without cooling and therefore have space to fit a cooler for the CPU instead?

sry i just saw yer edit as i replied, yeah but all the componenets ive seen come with the descent warranty from the vendors i wouldnt get ripped off as i always pay through paypal also





do you think their is a big enough difference in performance to pay more for the ones i found over the ones you found?

[David M]

RAM dividers are settings you make in the BIOS. What you described are RAM slots.

Wikipedia explains it well...
Memory divider - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[ShredStar]

would you personally pay £139 for these

http://www.google.co.uk/products/cat...&os=tech-specs

or would you purchase two of these at a total of £121?

http://www.awd-it.co.uk/scripts/prod...idproduct=9327

your opinion matters