Comment on my possible rig?

[Pianomahnn]

I think this is the right place for such a thing...

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=11353871

Edited with some changes:

1 - Corsair P128 CMFSSD-128GBG2D 2.5" 128GB SATA II MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) - Retail
1 - Corsair Obsidian Series 800D CC800DW Black Aluminum / Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case
1 - GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
1 - XFX HD-585A-ZNBC Radeon HD 5850 (Cypress Pro) 1GB Black Edition 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card
1 - CORSAIR CMPSU-850HX 850W ATX12V 2.3 / EPS12V 2.91 80 PLUS SILVER Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
1 - Intel Core i7-920 Bloomfield 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80601920
1 - OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3G1600LV6GK
2 - Western Digital Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5
1 - LG Black 10X Blu-ray Burner - Bulk SATA Model WH10LS30 LightScribe Support
1 - CORSAIR Cooling Hydro Series CWCH50-1 120mm High Performance CPU Cooler - Retail

 

[gwarren007]

Please answer the questions "Answer These Questions First" at the top sticky

Unless you're running folding at home, the 5850 is a better videocard. Get the XFX for $299
Ditch the Dominators- There is no performance increase over the regular Corsairs or the Gskills. Spend the money on the videocard.


Is this for a home theatre? This is 1000X overkill.

 

[Pianomahnn]

1) Home theater, gaming (but not much, that's what my consoles are for), audio (Reason, etc.), video encoding
2) Preferably < $2K
3) Chicago
4) Everything I have in that list...
5) No parts reusing
6) Probably, but not at this point.
7) 46" Plasma and then a 24" LCD I'm getting at some point
8) Soon!
9) The features I'm looking for are on the MoBo I've selected
10) I do!

 

[Dangman]

9) The features I'm looking for are on the MoBo I've selected

That does not help us help you at all considering that there are ton of features on that mobo. In addition, you may not actually need all the features of that mobo. So please answer that question again with more specifics.

gwarren007 is right so far though:

Unless you love to waste money, ditch the GTX 260 and get the significantly faster $300 HD 5850. Oh and the reason why the GTX 260 is a waste of money is that the $160 HD 5770 performs about the same as the GTX 260 but is $50 cheaper and offers Eyefinity, DX11, and lower power usage. You're gonna free up extra cash when you swap out the RAM so the HD 5850 is definitely withing budget range.

Dominator RAM is never worth it. So I recommend this RAM set instead:
$165 - G.Skill F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ 3 x 2GB DDR3 1600 RAM

Also, how will you be setting up the hard drives? I see that you got two of each which means you might be doing some sort of RAID?

 

[Perilous]

Do you have a Microcenter near by? If so you can get the 920 for 200-229. As gwarren007 said dominators are a waste. You are better off with cheaper gskill or the midrange coirsairs.

Why an 800d for a home theater? Just curious because there are much better options out there for an htpc.

There are much better cards out there than the gtx260. If it were me I would totally stay away from nvidia until March 26th when fermi releases. If you don't want to wait that long, take the cash you saved from ditching the dominators and get a 5850 instead. Hell for an htpc you should get a 5670/5770/ or possibly even a 5830.

 

[gwarren007]

If its primay use is a HTPC you don't need a videocard at all.

 

[Pianomahnn]

That does not help us help you at all considering that there are ton of features on that mobo. In addition, you may not actually need all the features of that mobo. So please answer that question again with more specifics.

It's sexy! Also, RAID, triple channel, potential upgrade to the next gen processor, usb3, sata 6.

Also, how will you be setting up the hard drives? I see that you got two of each which means you might be doing some sort of RAID?

I was just going to do a RAID ! with the 640GBs and no raid for the 1TBs. I actually have no intention of using RAID for redundancy.

 

[Pianomahnn]

Why an 800d for a home theater? Just curious because there are much better options out there for an htpc.

The HTPC portion is just one of it's functions. This is more of a PC that can play video on my tele. Plus, I saw the case and just really liked it. Everything about it.

 

[Dangman]

It's sexy! Also, RAID, triple channel, potential upgrade to the next gen processor, usb3, sata 6.

Besides the "sexy" part (that's subjective), this mobo has all of the features you just described:
$210 - Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R Intel X58 ATX Motherboard

 

[Pianomahnn]

Besides the "sexy" part (that's subjective), this mobo has all of the features you just described:
$210 - Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R Intel X58 ATX Motherboard

That's quite true. I looked at that one maybe a month ago, and I can't really remember why I chose the ASUS over it.

 

[Pianomahnn]

I did some soul searching and made a few changes. I think I'm happier with it.

 

[tiraides]

Are you planning on a multi-card CrossFire or SLI setup within the next 12 months? If not, you could save yourself some money by choosing a 600-750 watt PSU for less than the HX850.

If you're even thinking about overclocking, get rid of the OCZ RAM and pick up a DDR3 kit that runs at 1.5V. Most OCZ brand RAM kits run at 1.65V, which is the limit for safe operation with Intel's Socket 1156 and 1366 processors.

If you're buying an OEM Blu-ray drive, you'll need to buy BR playback software separately.

I'm curious as to which games you plan on playing on this machine. Well...?

How badly do you want to stay under $2000? Would you consider getting a different, cheaper case? Are you willing to go with a Socket 1156 board and processor instead? Do you live near a Micro Center and/or a Fry's B&M store?

 

[Pianomahnn]

Are you planning on a multi-card CrossFire or SLI setup within the next 12 months? If not, you could save yourself some money by choosing a 600-750 watt PSU for less than the HX850.

Possibly. I doubt I'll need it, but I'm buying for that possibility.

I'm curious as to which games you plan on playing on this machine. Well...?

Honestly, no clue. My brother wants me to get L4D2 and CODMW2. But I have that for PS3 already. This is a gaming PC 3rd, media PC 2nd, audio recording 1st.

How badly do you want to stay under $2000? Would you consider getting a different, cheaper case? Are you willing to go with a Socket 1156 board and processor instead? Do you live near a Micro Center and/or a Fry's B&M store?

As my recent updates show, I'm willing to make that $2000-ish. I want the board for the opportunity to rock the upcoming intel processors at some point while still having great performance now.

 

[jtvd78]

If you're even thinking about overclocking, get rid of the OCZ RAM and pick up a DDR3 kit that runs at 1.5V. Most OCZ brand RAM kits run at 1.65V, which is the limit for safe operation with Intel's Socket 1156 and 1366 processors.

I agree with tiraides. You should go for 1.5V memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...ption=&Ntk=&CFG=&SpeTabStoreType=&srchInDesc=

How badly do you want to stay under $2000? Would you consider getting a different, cheaper case? Are you willing to go with a Socket 1156 board and processor instead? Do you live near a Micro Center and/or a Fry's B&M store?

The 800D is way overpriced. Are you really going to use the hotswap bays? Also, It comes with only 3 fans. Also, The case only comes with holes for 140mm fans. There are not many 140mm fans out there. That is not too great when it comes to cooling. If you want the extra fans, that adds an additional $100-$200 of just fans. Just go with another highly rated case, such as the HAF932(no dust filters), Antec 1200, Cooler master ATCS 840( no side panel window).

Honestly, no clue. My brother wants me to get L4D2 and CODMW2. But I have that for PS3 already. This is a gaming PC 3rd, media PC 2nd, audio recording 1st.

Use the saved money from NOT getting the 800D, and go out and buy some games!

 

[tiraides]

I've read your comments...

Possibly. I doubt I'll need it, but I'm buying for that possibility.

Honestly, no clue. My brother wants me to get L4D2 and CODMW2. But I have that for PS3 already. This is a gaming PC 3rd, media PC 2nd, audio recording 1st.

As my recent updates show, I'm willing to make that $2000-ish. I want the board for the opportunity to rock the upcoming intel processors at some point while still having great performance now.

... but, honestly, you don't need to buy all of those expensive parts. What, in the future, are you trying to prepare for... six-core processors? Fermi? More USB 3.0 and/or SATA III devices? And how long do you plan on keeping your case, let alone the rest of your system?

If you have the money for everything, and you really, really want those things, then go ahead and get what you want. But the if your priorities are (in order) audio, then HTPC, then gaming, you can just as easily make a decent system off a $500-$750 AMD-based system that would be better than your last system. But I digress....

How do you want to use this system as an audio editing machine? As an HTPC? Seriously, how often do you see yourself playing games on this system? How long do you want this system to last BEFORE you make your first upgrade?

 

[Pianomahnn]

Bought and a built.

Intel Core i7 920
Corsair C50 Cooler
ASUS P6X58D Premium mobo
Corsair HX850W
XFX Radeon HD 5850 Black Edition
6GB (2x3) OCZ 1600
Intel X25-M 80GB SSD
2x Samsung Spinpoint 1TB drives
LG Bluray burner

 

[engiNURD]

no pics?

Definitely overkill for the usage you listed, but you won't have to upgrade for a WHILE, lol. Audio recording was your primary usage, yet you listed no soundcard?

 

[Pianomahnn]

I'm going to see how the onboard goes. I used to do soundcard, but that was before mobos had decent chips. If I find it's lacking, I'll add it in.

And I'm embarrassed about my cable routing at this point...

 

[Dangman]

Looking good so far.

 

[tiraides]

I'm curious as to the voltage level that your OCZ kit is currently running at. Also, which RAM speeds are you running right now?

 

[stephen0983]

Audio recording was your primary usage, yet you listed no soundcard?

This

 

[Pianomahnn]

I'm curious as to the voltage level that your OCZ kit is currently running at. Also, which RAM speeds are you running right now?

I just put things in and went go! I have no idea.

edit: But this model of RAM is listed as all good in my mobo manual, so I'm not concerned. Things are running smooth.

 

[engiNURD]

I'm going to see how the onboard goes. I used to do soundcard, but that was before mobos had decent chips. If I find it's lacking, I'll add it in. ...

Oh, ok. The super high end spec'd rig led me to believe you were doing some serious audio recording, not just casual stuff.

I just put things in and went go! I have no idea.

edit: But this model of RAM is listed as all good in my mobo manual, so I'm not concerned. Things are running smooth.

The memory controller is no longer on the mobo, but integrated into the CPU. The JEDEC standard voltage for DDR3 is 1.5v, and the maximum voltage listed by Intel is 1.65v; any higher may damage the CPU. That OCZ kit claims to be "low voltage," but its actually high voltage compared to the standard, lol. Anyhow, it's within spec, so you should be fine unless you're pumping more than 1.65v to it.