Help With Eyefinity Gaming Build

[Thadius856]

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc

Primarily gaming - mostly MMOs (multi-clienting), some RPGs, some RTS (Civ V), some retro and casual, some catching up on a few years of great games I've missed (Arkham Asylum, Portal 2, etc).

3x1 portrait Eyefinity is a must initially, with enough overhead left to go 5x1 portrait in the future. If some games can't be pushed past 3x1 smoothly, that'd be fine; I'd just use the outside monitors for web/reference/guides/walkthroughs/videos while playing.Otherwise, the usual web browsing and video playback (DLNA push).

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?

Hopefully $1200 or so initially, with planned upgrades later. Can go higher if I needed, but don't want to waste on overkill if I don't have to.

3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.

US. Nor Cal, in a cow town between Sacramento and Yuba City. 8% local sale tax rate.

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. The word "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.

CPU, RAM, GPU, Mobo, heatsink/fan.

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.

Full-ATX case (Antec 1200 or CM HAF 932)
Power supply (Silverstone SST-ST70F 700W) - will upgrade eventually
SSD (Crucial M4 64gb CT064M4SSD2)
Several assorted 1TB 7200rpm HDD's
DVD-RW and BD-R (Lite-On SATA models)

6) Will you be overclocking?

Not planning on it, but if the hardware is particularly overclockable and I have the cooling to support it already, sure, why not.

7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?

3x1 1900x1200 initially. 5x1 1900x1200 eventually. Probably Dell 24" U2412M IPS panels.

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?

Within a few weeks of finalizing the build list.

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video (as a backup or main GPU)? UEFI? etc.

Crossfire support, USB 3.0, Wifi-g/n and at least one gbit ethernet port. Bolt-through cooler support. Raid 1 would be nice.

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?

Yup. Have legit Win 7 x64 Home Pro and Ultimate keys coming out my ears (wife's a Microsoft Advisor at work).

 

[rtangwai]

Is nVSurround an option or must it be Eyefinity?

 

[Thadius856]

If nVSurround supports 5x1 portrait, then it's certainly an option.

Intial research on Google came back that Surround didn't support more than 2 monitors per card, but that may well be outdated by now.

 

[King Icewind]

You have the monitors right? Three U2412m's will run you around $900. That leaves $300 for a motherboard, processor, ram, and video card... It's not going to happen.

 

[Thadius856]

Monitors are on their own, separate budget.

The full $1200 budget (or more, if I need to) is available for everything else that I need.

 

[257Tony]

Even though Haswell just came out, I would opt for a z77 system with a 3770k, 8gb of 1600 RAM, and a GTX 780. That would comfortably run your 3 monitor setup great. If you are really stuck on the 5x1 monitors you would need to go AMD. Crossfire right now is pretty much borked on several titles, so not a great option until they get the drivers figured out (I currently have 7970 xfire). A single 7970 would run your 3 monitor Eyefinity just fine though if you don't mind turning down a few settings.

 

[rtangwai]

The problem with 5x1 portrait is that you are driving 10 megapixels, which is a strain on *ANY* current GPU setup if you like eyecandy. If you are thinking beyond CrossFire/SLI and into triple or quad GPUs then you need a LGA2011 board and CPU (the Z77 and Z87 don't have enough PCI-E lanes and the AMD FX series are no match for IvyBridge/Haswell in gaming) and that will blow your budget out pretty darn fast. You also have to account for VRAM, 2-3GB isn't going to cut it for 10 megapixels which means more expensive GPUs.

3x1 is pretty nice and can be handled by a single high-end card though it wouldn't hurt to go CrossFire/SLI.

 

[Thadius856]

GTX 780? Aren't those in the $600 - $700 range, each?

 

[Deleted member 88227]

Don't have time right now, but you want an i5 Haswell (Non K since you aren't overclocking), 16GB of DDR3 1600, decent $150 - $170 motherboard, ~$20 ASUS N15 wifi card (cheaper than getting a motherboard with one built in), then get two Gigabyte 7970 3GB cards (They are $400 each) and that should be around your $1200 budget and two 3GB 7970's should power your 5x1 1920P setup. When I get a little more time I will do a proper build list if one of the other regulars here doesn't by the time I get back.

 

[Thadius856]

The problem with 5x1 portrait is that you are driving 10 megapixels, which is a strain on *ANY* current GPU setup if you like eyecandy.

FWIW, I love EyeCandy, but I haven't kept up with the times so I wouldn't recognize it if it slapped me in the face. I'm still playing at 1080p on a C2D E8400 with a 5770 (RMA replacement, used to be a 4870). Settings have bad to be toned down a pretty decent amount to be playable by my definitions (30 FPS), which many here don't consider playable at all. So, I'll definitely yield to the expertise here.

Installing 5x1, but only gaming on the center 3x1 and using the outer-most screens for web browsing/etc wouldn't be too stressful for a 7970 or pair of them, would it?

 

[DoubleTap]

Multi monitor gaming is one of the most demanding things you can do on a PC.

Unless you're one of those people who only plays 1 or 2 specific games obsessively and exclusively and those games are relatively old, you're probably going to be very disappointed in the performance you get from a $1200 PC on 3 screens. Never mind 5.

If you play tons of TF2 or other Valve games or maybe WoW (I don't play it but the graphics seem a bit dated) then you should be OK.

It seems like AMD has a lot of issues with consistent frame rates on multi GPU system and from what I understand, the engine they use to do Eyefinity is software based and image quality compromises are built into the system.

If I was going to multi-box and run a ton of screens, I would start with the LGA2011 platform - get 6 cores and quad channel memory (up to 64GB) and lots more PCIE lanes.

Even if you just go with a single card at first, that would be a good foundation to build on over time.

 

[Deleted member 88227]

It's not a $1200 PC first of all. It's $1200 for the motherboard, CPU, ram and GPU. I would hardly call that a PC.

Like I said, a Crossfire 7970 3GB setup should handle your game setup just fine.

I got a friend who's running a 6970 + 6990 in trifire setup with 3 1080P screens and he has NO issues what-so-ever gaming on all three. Granted it's a big different between 5 1080P screens set on portrait, two 7970s are also faster than a 6970 + 6990 and it has 3GB of VRAM.

I can't find the article now, but someone did a test with a 680 2GB card vs a 680 4GB card and the level of resoultion needed before the 4GB card showed even the slightest bit of edge over the 2GB card was something like three 1600P screens... and even then it wasn't much faster than the 2GB card setup.

 

[DoubleTap]

It's not a $1200 PC first of all. It's $1200 for the motherboard, CPU, ram and GPU. I would hardly call that a PC.

3930k (buy on forum for $450)
Rampage IV Formula ($350 ish)
RAM ($100-300)
7970 ($300 ish)

done.

Maybe a different motherboard, but the Rampage boards seem to be the most popular and you should get good support.

 

[Thadius856]

Skillz, would love you hear what you had in mind.

DoubleTap, thanks for the info.

 

[Thadius856]

Just caught this.

Unless you're one of those people who only plays 1 or 2 specific games obsessively and exclusively and those games are relatively old...

I did mention that I'm mainly an MMO player, didn't I? My current Korean F2P kick runs 40-60 fps at 1080p on this old E8400 and 5770, stock.

 

[Thadius856]

Spoke with a friend. To help repay a debt and just generally be an awesome guy, he's offered to put some purchases on his card and wipe the debt clean. My wife, now wanting a system update of her own, has said she'll pay for an identical system to what I build, up to a limit. In an effort to reuse as many old components as possible, I'm going to add one case, so I can toss all of the old parts into a 3rd system to give away to family.

Bear with me guys. You've been awesome so far.

OVERALL BUDGET: $4,500 (for 2 systems, plus an extra part here or there to make a 3rd for donation)
less (6) Dell U2412M 24" 1920x1200 IPS Monitors @ $270 ea shipped
= $2,880 remaining
less (1) Full ATX Case (Antec 1200, Cooler Master HAF 932, Cooler Master Storm Stryker, or similar) @ $125 ea shipped
= $2,755 remaining
less (2) Radeon HD 7970 3gb @ $400 ea shipped
= $1,955 remaining
less (2) 2x8gb DDR3-1600 @ $130 ea shipped
= $1,695 remaining

That leaves up to $1,695 for 2 mobos, 2 CPUs, and 2 heatsink/fans. i5 seems to be preferable for gaming. Keep in mind that I'd like to go 5x1 later when I add a second GPU and 2 extra monitors per build. If we can squeeze some SSD love into that budget, that'd be even better, but anything left unspent will go towards the monitor and GPU additions later. Or maybe adding a few faucets to my keezer...

Ideas, anybody?

 

[Dangman]

NVM

 

[Dangman]

Unless I'm mistaken, it doesn't appear that you have another PSU for the second build. Or is that coming from your wife's current system? If so, what's the current specs of her system?

Also, the RAM you chose is a tad overpriced. You can get four of this RAM to meet your RAM requirement and that will shave off $72:
$47 - Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB DDR3 1600 RAM

As for the other parts, that's easy:
$250 - Intel Core i5-4670K CPU
$145 - Asus Z87-A Intel Z87 Motherboard
$220 - Samsung 840 Pro 256GB SSD
$40 - Thermalright TRUE Spirit 120 120mm HSF
----
Total: $655 shipped or $1310 for the two.

If you want to spend the rest of that budget, let us know and we'll come up with ways to spend that money.

 

[Thadius856]

Unless I'm mistaken, it doesn't appear that you have another PSU for the second build. Or is that coming from your wife's current system? If so, what's the current specs of her system?

Oh. Sorry, forgot to mention. Our old systems are identical as well, so she has a ST70F of her own, identical to mine... except her old mobo just burned out so she's been using her laptop recently.

Trying to wrap my brain around the rest of your post. Give me a minute. Beer has soaked in.

 

[Thadius856]

As far as the Crucial Ballistix you linked, I'm seeing $56 per on the linked page, not $47. That puts them at $112 per set, or $18 less per build.

That said, these last builds had 4x2gb Crucial Ballistix each, and I have had to put in no less than 6 RMAs over their lifespan because of failures. All tested good out of the box. I really appreciate the offer to save me some cash, but I'm leery to go with Crucial again. I really don't want to be pulling sticks for RMA every month or two like I have been. Check out all of the 1-egg reviews for kicks 'n' grins.

How about these Corsair 10-10-27 at $8 more per build, or these low-profile Corsairs also at $5 more per build?

Edit: My mistake. I used the NewZon link. $47 ea + $8 shipping brings us to $98 per pair and 4-7 days delivery. Still a bit less, and still leery of Crucial. Hmmmm. Decisions, decisions.

 

[Dangman]

As far as the Crucial Ballistix you linked, I'm seeing $56 per on the linked page, not $47. That puts them at $112 per set, or $18 less per build.

I just opened the link again in three different browsers. Still shows up at $47 shipped.

How about these Corsair 10-10-27 at $8 more per build, or these low-profile Corsairs also at $5 more per build?

If you're really that hesistent on going with Crucial, go for the low profile Corsair set you linked as that won't interfere with the HSF placement.

 

[Thadius856]

The Thermalright True Spirit 120 for $40 (linked above) looks like a decent deal. However, it led me right to the Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO, which is $7 cheaper and better cooling performance in testing and includes the bolt-through kit for free.

The 4670k looks like a champ for gaming, though I haven't had a chance to dig through numbers and Tom's Hardware charts on it yet. Haven't even glanced at the Samsung SSD, but have only heard good things about their SSDs. Will dig into both of these tomorrow.

To summarize each build so far:

3x U2414M 24" 1920x1200 IPS panels - $270 ea shipped
1x 7970, either Gigabyte Windforce Ghz Edition or Sapphire Vapor-X Ghz Edition - $400-410 + tax
1x i5-4670k - $250 + tax
1x Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO - $33 + tax
1x 2x8gb DDR3-1600 - $98-117 + tax
1x Asus Z87-A - $146 + tax

Still taking recommendations, of course. If anybody has recommendations, or comments, please let me know. Since this build is coming together quicker than I thought, I may just order tomorrow night if I run out of feedback.

 

[Thadius856]

I just opened the link again in three different browsers. Still shows up at $47 shipped.

Yea, was my bad. I clicked the NewZon version. -.-

If you're really that hesistent on going with Crucial, go for the low profile Corsair set you linked as that won't interfere with the HSF placement.

I am. It's silly that I'm paranoid, but it's really frustrating to take my systems down, pull sticks for testing, call for RMA, pack, ship, wait, receive, re-test, and install... just to repeat the cycle two weeks later. If I have to spent $20 more to avoid a chance at all that anger and those arguments it starts when I take down the wife's system, I'm certainly willing to spend it.

Looks like we're coming in about $900 under budget. :ban:

 

[Deleted member 88227]

You should be fine with the RAM danny linked, but even spending the extra money you're still within' budget.

I told you the guys here will get you all fixed up.

 

[Dangman]

The Thermalright True Spirit 120 for $40 (linked above) looks like a decent deal. However, it led me right to the Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO, which is $7 cheaper and better cooling performance in testing and includes the bolt-through kit for free.

Not sure what you mean by the bolt-through kit bit considering that the True Spirit 120 does have one. But you have a point in regards to the cooling difference.

In regards to the video card, I would go for the Gigabyte simply because Sapphire's customer support sucks in comparison to Asus', MSI's,or Gigabyte's customer support.

 

[Thadius856]

I'll drop this $410 Sapphire GHZ edition for this $400 Gigabyte OC edition if you think it's a better deal (would lose 1 DVI port).

The $395 XFX Black Edition is a contender, as is the $410 ASUS Direct CU II, though it's a triple-width card.

 

[DoubleTap]

Just caught this.



I did mention that I'm mainly an MMO player, didn't I? My current Korean F2P kick runs 40-60 fps at 1080p on this old E8400 and 5770, stock.

I did see that.

If that's all you're playing, then almost anything will run it well.

However - it's not completely clear to me whether you really want to run one of these MMO games on 5 screens, or run the same game in 2-5 instances or what.

You mention running the game on 3 screens and using 2 screens for web surfing and that sort of thing.

I don't run Eyefinity so I don't know what the limitations are but there is a difference between "Eyefinity" and NV Surround and just having multiple monitors.

I would be interested to hear from an Eyefinity 5 screen user just how flexible it is to run on 3 screens while putting info on the other screens.

In NV Surround, once you are in surround mode, all 3 screens behave as a single monitor and it's a minor hassle to switch back to a mode where you have 3 distinct screens.

So my worry is that while you will probably use Eyefinity, I don't know if that completely covers everything you're talking about doing and what sort of hidden limitations or issues might be waiting for you.

I stand by my assertion that you should consider the LGA2011 platform - if you do want to multi-box, then the PCIE and memory bandwidth and extra CPU cores will make a big difference and I don't think the cost is that much more ($250ish?)

 

[Deleted member 88227]

If that's all you're playing, then almost anything will run it well.

Not so much. 5 1080P displays in portrait is a lot of pixels. That will take a beefy system for sure, even by MMO standards. While it's cheaper/easier to get a 5 1080P Portrait display setup to run most MMOs than say BF3, I wouldn't really say almost anything.

However - it's not completely clear to me whether you really want to run one of these MMO games on 5 screens, or run the same game in 2-5 instances or what.

This would for sure be a "game changer" and the recommended build from myself and Danny wont be the ideal setup.

You mention running the game on 3 screens and using 2 screens for web surfing and that sort of thing.

I think he only said this because people in his other thread claimed that with a $400 GPU budget, getting a 5 1080P display in Portrait is nearly impossible; which I agree with. $400 isn't a lot of GPU.

I don't run Eyefinity so I don't know what the limitations are but there is a difference between "Eyefinity" and NV Surround and just having multiple monitors.

I don't run Eyefinity myself, but I did help my best friend who lives down the road setup his eyefinity setup (3 1080P displays in landscape) with a 6970 and 6990, backed by an i5 2500k.

You can set profiles to easily switch between eyefinity and just multiple monitors. Which he usually does. He and I both find it rather unnatural to do regular desktop work in eyefinity, but multiple monitor setups are awesome. So he only assigns an eyefinity profile when he plays a game that supports and/or he wishes to eyefinity game with. Otherwise, he just plays games on the middle monitor while other stuff could be opened on the other displays.

Pretty sure NVSurround has a similar feature with presets, profiles and the ability to choose how many sreens you want in the eyefinity display.

I would be interested to hear from an Eyefinity 5 screen user just how flexible it is to run on 3 screens while putting info on the other screens.

Like I said. it's easy in eyefinity. You choose what screens you want in the eyefinity display and done. save the profile and rock on.

In NV Surround, once you are in surround mode, all 3 screens behave as a single monitor and it's a minor hassle to switch back to a mode where you have 3 distinct screens.

So they don't have profiles where you can easily switch between the two? You have to go and "manually" change the settings back and forth?

So my worry is that while you will probably use Eyefinity, I don't know if that completely covers everything you're talking about doing and what sort of hidden limitations or issues might be waiting for you.

His only limitations with the build Danny and I somewhat, recommended is that fact that playing high demanding games such as BF3 in 5 1080P portrait displays would be really demanding, even by two 7970s.

I stand by my assertion that you should consider the LGA2011 platform - if you do want to multi-box, then the PCIE and memory bandwidth and extra CPU cores will make a big difference and I don't think the cost is that much more ($250ish?)

Not really true completely. He will only see a benefit if he intends to run multiple MMO clients at once with a 6 core Intel setup. Multiple PCIE 16x lanes really only become apparent on some triple card setups and nearly all newer quad card setups. It's also a good bit more than $250 more. Motherboards cost more as well as the CPU (We wont recommend him buying used.) is a good bit more than his current offerings.

With that being said, a 2011 setup would probably be beneficial if he intends to run three 7970s in Trifire, but I need to do some research when I get time to see just how much of a benefit it gives. It might not (most likely wont) be worth the added costs.

Like I said, my buddy runs overclocked 6970 and 6990 in trifire and an overclocked 2500k. He aims for 60fps and generally has no problems with the games he's been playing.

 

[Eureka!]

You're going to want a large amount of your budget to go to GPUs. Cut back on the RAM. Do you have any friends in Orange County (and would be going to Sacramento anyway)? There's a microcenter there and that would knock off about $100 on a CPU/Mobo combo if you can do that.

Alternatively, there have been reports online of Fry's or Best Buy matching Microcenter pricing on 3770k. You may be able to score one for $250 shipped.

Otherwise the breakdown (estimating prices):
1x i5-4670k - $250 + tax
1x Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO - $33 + tax
1x 2x8gb DDR3-1600 - $98-117 + tax
1x Asus Z87-A - $146 + tax
Some 700W+ power supply $60-100 + tax

That would put you about 643 leaving you 560. If you can scrounge up a little more, you can pick up two 7950s for under $600 (as low as $500 for both after rebates, selling games, etc).

That would probably be the best way to go about it. 2x 7950 will give you good performance over a 7970, while not being extremely expensive. Yes you'll have to deal with the headaches of Crossfire, figure out which games you play and whether or not Crossfire will work.

Alternatively, look for used 670 4GB SLI setups, or wait until the 760 Ti hits. SLI will be better than Crossfire (but more expensive and VRAM limited unless you go 4GB).

 

[Deleted member 88227]

He has a PSU and case already.

 

[Thadius856]

I did see that.

If that's all you're playing, then almost anything will run it well.

Pretty much right now.

However - it's not completely clear to me whether you really want to run one of these MMO games on 5 screens, or run the same game in 2-5 instances or what.

I was hoping for one instance across 3 screens at High settings, the other 4-5 instances are just dumb clients and require less than WoW if tuned all the way down. The game I play right now dosen't allow key cloning software, so most of those clients time are just on follow with my main character or sitting in a corner somewhere for a passive buff.

My current setup is 1920x1080 windowed on my left monitor, all settings maxed except water reflectivity and distortion. AA does not exist in this game. The other 5 run on the right monitor, in a 5-in-1 PiP layout, at the lowest graphical settings, 640x480 resolution, and then framerate locked to 5 FPS (when not the active window) or 10 FPS (when the active window). When they're not in use (90% of the time), I throw a Chrome or Explorer to save on cycles spend rendering them.

Eyecandy would be nice, but isn't necessary in the build since the other 5 don't really do anything and are minimized most of the time.

You mention running the game on 3 screens and using 2 screens for web surfing and that sort of thing.

I don't run Eyefinity so I don't know what the limitations are but there is a difference between "Eyefinity" and NV Surround and just having multiple monitors.

I would be interested to hear from an Eyefinity 5 screen user just how flexible it is to run on 3 screens while putting info on the other screens.

In NV Surround, once you are in surround mode, all 3 screens behave as a single monitor and it's a minor hassle to switch back to a mode where you have 3 distinct screens.

So my worry is that while you will probably use Eyefinity, I don't know if that completely covers everything you're talking about doing and what sort of hidden limitations or issues might be waiting for you.

CCC allows profiles to be hot-swapped, either from the main GUI or from right-clicking the system tray icon. Hopefully I can apply a global hotkey to it like Ctrl-Alt-Shift-1 or somesuch.

I stand by my assertion that you should consider the LGA2011 platform - if you do want to multi-box, then the PCIE and memory bandwidth and extra CPU cores will make a big difference and I don't think the cost is that much more ($250ish?)

 

[Thadius856]

That would put you about 643 leaving you 560. If you can scrounge up a little more, you can pick up two 7950s for under $600 (as low as $500 for both after rebates, selling games, etc).

That would probably be the best way to go about it. 2x 7950 will give you good performance over a 7970, while not being extremely expensive. Yes you'll have to deal with the headaches of Crossfire, figure out which games you play and whether or not Crossfire will work.

Alternatively, look for used 670 4GB SLI setups, or wait until the 760 Ti hits. SLI will be better than Crossfire (but more expensive and VRAM limited unless you go 4GB).

Had planned on one 7970 now, and a second 7970 in a few months when I up it to 5x1.

Not sure 5x1 would be wise on a CF'd 7950's.

He has a PSU and case already.

Indeed, have a PSU already. The CM part he mentioned is a CPU cooler.

 

[DoubleTap]

Pretty sure NVSurround has a similar feature with presets, profiles and the ability to choose how many sreens you want in the eyefinity display.



Like I said. it's easy in eyefinity. You choose what screens you want in the eyefinity display and done. save the profile and rock on.



So they [NV Surround - DT] don't have profiles where you can easily switch between the two? You have to go and "manually" change the settings back and forth?

NV Surround does not have screen configuration profiles.

I think NV Surround has better performance and scaling than Eyefinity, but more limitations - you can only run 3 screens and you have to mode switch if you want to get out of it. Mode switching in it's self is not a big deal, but often (always) you may have to close several programs to do so (I have to close the Logitech peripheral software and my USB Headphone control panel software and any web page playing a flash video) so it's very disruptive. Also, Nvidia still has not figured out how to keep track of the order of your screens. In normal mode, they may go 1-2-3 but when you go surround, it may think they should be 3-1-2 and no matter how often you re-arrange them, it seems to forget when you switch modes.

I usually just leave Surround on - there is an option to have windows maximize to the current monitor and 95% of the time it's fine. I run my PC on the left screen and work PC on the Center and Right screens.

 

[Thadius856]

NV Surround does not have screen configuration profiles.

Yuck. I'll check out nVidia cards again next build, but this time, I'll stick with ATI cards.

3930k (buy on forum for $450)
Rampage IV Formula ($350 ish)

If I were to go LGA1155, is there a less expensive setup than this that is still beneficial, or is this as low as makes sense?

I'll drop this $410 Sapphire GHZ edition for this $400 Gigabyte OC edition if you think it's a better deal (would lose 1 DVI port).

The $395 XFX Black Edition is a contender, as is the $410 ASUS Direct CU II, though it's a triple-width card.

Still looking for feedback on this one.

If we can lock in which GPU, and which CPU/Mobo combo, then I'll probably pull the trigger tonight.

 

[Deleted member 88227]

Go with what Danny suggested.

 

[Thadius856]

Alright guys. Pulled the trigger last night. Why fuss over a locked-in build spec for weeks on end when I can have it here and playing with it by the weekend? Build follows closely to what we spoke of here.

6x Dell U2412M 1920x1200 IPS
1x CM Master Storm Trooper Full Tower (for hand-me-downs... I'll use the Storm Trooper, the wife will get my old HAF 932, the family will get her old Twelve Hundred)
2x ASUS Z87-A LGA 1150
2x i5-4670k
2x Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO cooler
2x Gigabyte 7970 OC Windforce
2x 16gb kit (2x8gb) DDR3 1600
2x ASUS PCE-N15 300mbit 802.11n PCI-e cards
1x Antec Nano Diamond Formula 7 thermal compound

Total price: $3,892.16 shipped, arriving on Friday.

Additionally, picked up 2x Sparkle SCC-850AF 850-watt 80+ Gold modular PSU's that I picked up for $69 each, shipped, after rebates. They'll mostly be for spares, though I'll have to run them until some X-850's go back on sale. I'd love to keep running these ST70F's, but one just developed a bearing whine last night and I can't find the box with their cables anymore.

Had to hold off on the Samsung840 Pro SSDs because stock of 256gb dropped down to 1, and it fell off Prime, before I could order. There's 5 returned ones, marked "Used" on the Amazon Warehouse site, but they're only marked down to $201-$208 each. Seems like a lot of risk for only $14 off. We'll limp along on 1tb HDDs for now, and I'll make the system partition 250gb so it's easy to clone over when that time comes.

One last thing I learned last night. If I want to go Crossfire/Eyefinity for 5 monitors later, I'll need a ASUS DirectCU II, Sapphire Toxic, or MSI Lightning to get 5 usable ports on a 7970. They're the only cards with 5 ports, and a Crossfire/Eyefinity setup must run all displays off the ports from a single card. I hadn't planned for that twist, and since the ASUS DirectCU II is the most likely candidate (price), I went with the 7970 OC edition instead of the Ghz edition. Why throw money at performance that will disappear once you Crossfire?

Thanks everybody for the help!

 

[Dangman]

You didn't need that Antec thermal compound since the thermal paste that comes with the Coolermaster is pretty solid.

 

[Thadius856]

Oh. Well. I'll save it then. I'm sure I'll need to re-seat sooner rather than later.

 

[Eureka!]

Did I miss something? Are you building two computers?

Either way, congrats, and have fun.

 

[Thadius856]

Yeah, you missed Post #16. Two computers. Gotta keep the wife's up to date as well.

Spoke with a friend. To help repay a debt and just generally be an awesome guy, he's offered to put some purchases on his card and wipe the debt clean. My wife, now wanting a system update of her own, has said she'll pay for an identical system to what I build, up to a limit. In an effort to reuse as many old components as possible, I'm going to add one case, so I can toss all of the old parts into a 3rd system to give away to family.

Bear with me guys. You've been awesome so far.

OVERALL BUDGET: $4,500 (for 2 systems, plus an extra part here or there to make a 3rd for donation)
less (6) Dell U2412M 24" 1920x1200 IPS Monitors @ $270 ea shipped
= $2,880 remaining
less (1) Full ATX Case (Antec 1200, Cooler Master HAF 932, Cooler Master Storm Stryker, or similar) @ $125 ea shipped
= $2,755 remaining
less (2) Radeon HD 7970 3gb @ $400 ea shipped
= $1,955 remaining
less (2) 2x8gb DDR3-1600 @ $130 ea shipped
= $1,695 remaining

That leaves up to $1,695 for 2 mobos, 2 CPUs, and 2 heatsink/fans. i5 seems to be preferable for gaming. Keep in mind that I'd like to go 5x1 later when I add a second GPU and 2 extra monitors per build. If we can squeeze some SSD love into that budget, that'd be even better, but anything left unspent will go towards the monitor and GPU additions later. Or maybe adding a few faucets to my keezer...

Ideas, anybody?

No worries man. I skim too.