My build, need opinions :P

[Zhawn]

Hi, here's the build and below I have some questions:


Asus P6X58D-E Intel X58 LGA1366 ATX
Intel Core i7 960 3,2GHz, boxed
Asus ENGTX590/3DIS/3GD5 NVIDIA GeForce GTX590 3072 MB
Kingston HyperX 12GB (3x4GB) XMP 1600MHz DDR3 1.65V CL9
Western Digital 750GB Caviar Black, 3.5", 7200rpm, 64MB, SataIII
SilverStone Strider ST1200 1200W ATX
LG CH10LS20 Blu-ray Combo 8X Black Sata Bulk
Cooler Master HAF X NVIDIA Edition ATX

Questions:
1. Is this mobo better choice than RampageIII Extreme and/or is it worth it to pay the extra to get the R3 Extreme ?
2. You can add 2 graphics cards to both P6X58D-E & R3 Extreme, right ?
3. Would it be wise to go with the 1600MHz memories or go with the 1800MHz ones ?
4. The 750GB WD hard drive is for the beginning, plan on getting a smaller, faster and better one for Windows/installations and such. <- I know its not a question
5. Do you have anything to add to this list or is there anything you would definetly change ?

Woot, thanks for reading and looking forward to some replies so that I could start with that project alrdy

[glc]

1. We no longer recommend the socket 1366 platform. The socket 1155 Sandy Bridge platform outperforms it at substantially less cost, look at the i7-2600K and one of the Asus P8Z68-V boards.

2. I can't possibly see the need for TWO 590's - EVER! However, if you DO want to do it, the P8Z68-V and higher can run 2 cards, each at PCI-E 2.0 x8. If you insist on both cards at x16 (you will NEVER notice the difference), get a board with a NF200 bridge such as the Maximus IV Extreme-Z.

3. 1600 is plenty fast enough unless you plan on heavily overclocking. Note that the 1155 platform (Z68 chipset recommended) takes pairs, not threes, and 1.5 volt ram is recommended for best stability. Corsair, Crucial, Kingston, or A-Data recommended.

4. There aren't any conventional hard drives noticeably faster than that WD Black, if you want more speed look at a SSD - and the Z68 chipset can use a 64gb SSD to "cache" a standard hard drive (read up on Intel Smart Response Technology). You can, of course, use a standalone SSD for your OS and apps.

[Zhawn]

Originally Posted by glc 2. I can't possibly see the need for TWO 590's - EVER! However, if you DO want to do it, the P8Z68-V and higher can run 2 cards, each at PCI-E 2.0 x8. If you insist on both cards at x16 (you will NEVER notice the difference), get a board with a NF200 bridge such as the Maximus IV Extreme-Z.

Your reply has been very helpful, thank you for that.

I have been doing some research on the 1155 mobo's and what gets me confused is about the resolution it says (max. 1920 x 1200 @60Hz), but on the graphics card 590 its DVI: 2560 x 1600 / VGA: 2048 x 1536. So will I get the most out of that graphics card using a Maximus IV Extreme-Z ? I did forget to mention above that I'm building a 3D gaming rig, so if the display is at 120 Hz and it says under mobo's description that its 60 Hz that kinda got me confused and no matter how many different sites I go through, I still can't seem to find the answer..
Can I build a 3D gaming rig using Maximus IV Extreme-Z mobo + 590 graphics ?
Ty

[glc]

1920x1200/60 is the maximum resolution of the onboard graphics, which you will not be using, unless you install Lucid Virtu to use the onboard graphics for other purposes than gaming.

The Maximus is a huge waste with only ONE card. All the Z68 boards will run a SINGLE card at x16.

[Zhawn]

So what you're saying is that I can run 3D games and stuff with any mobo, as long as i go with one gtx 590 ?
And also, I know i won't be adding 2 cards right now, I just want a computer that is easily upgradeable in 2-3 years when the games requirements go higher and higher
And 3D I want because it's a possibility, and if im starting from zero i might as well go with the 3D right now, rather than starting to upgrade graphics and monitors later on, and reason I'm asking questions which may sound dumb for you, is to make sure I won't purchase wrong items

[glc]

The 590 is already a dual GPU card - it and the Radeon 6990 are the fastest single cards on the planet.

[Zhawn]

Okay, I think I only have one more question - 3x EVGA NVIDIA GeForce GTX550 Ti 2 GB cards or 1x Asus ENGTX590/3DIS/3GD5 3GB ? Since the price would come up to about the same so i was wondering...

[Sourtop]

You're almost always better off with a single powerful GPU instead of the problems with SLI/Crossfire. Honestly, a single 590 is going to perform better than you'll ever need it to.

[Zhawn]

Alrighty, I'll stick to the 590 then, thanks a lot for the help