Need some input on my upcomming Ivy build

Smoke1991

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jul 17, 2004
Messages
159
So i pretty much nailed everything down to components, just would like some input

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
gaming, VM's, encoding... Nothing to hard core

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
I would like to keep it below 2G's

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

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 (3770K) RAM(16GB) (HDD, SSD + storage) fans, case, gfx card, H100

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific
about the power supply. List make and model.
Cooler master 1000W PSU (80 plus gold, cant remember the model)

6) Will you be overclocking?
Yes!

7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
Planning on getting a 27" display

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Month after Ivy Bridge gets released

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.
I have space limitations for the tower, planning on M-ATX build

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
Win 7 64 Bit.

Ok so here is my proposed build. These are the components that are a definite.
Fractal Design Arc Mini (length size is below my maximum allowed size (19.5")
ASUS Maximus V Gene (looks like a rock solid board and has all the features id need)
Intel 3770K (when its out)
WD black SATA 3 1.0TB HDD (storage)
Corsair H100
GTX 680 (waiting for custom versions to come out, MSI allready has one)

Now because for the things I want some input on:
SSD - Boot drive, 128gb is the size, was looking at the 520 series (need something rock solid, any other recommendations, and yes im afraid of the OCZ products) I did read good things about the vertex 4 but then again I know I wont have any worries with the 520

Ram, was originally looking at G.SKILL Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1866 (PC3 14900) Desktop Memory Model F3-1866C10D-16GAB Ram. Is it really worth spending the extra few bucks to get the 1866 or no? granted the heat spreaders are blue and not orange like the slower clocked ares ram, I wont have a window so color is irrelevant. I need to go with something low profile because of clearance issues with the H100 and fans.

Display, currently on a 22inch acer. was looking at ASUS VE276Q Black 27" Full HD HDMI Widescreen LCD Monitor w/Display Port & Speakers. Good reviews on the EGG, inputs?

H100 fans and case fans:
COUGAR CF-V12HP Vortex Hydro-Dynamic-Bearing (Fluid) 300,000 Hours 12CM Silent Cooling Fan with Pulse Width Modulation.

Now i was thinking of running 3 of these for chassis cooling and use PWM function on the motherboard to control them (saves on a fan controller) which ive done my research and they are really nice. But in terms of keeping equivalent inlet and outlet air flow I was going to use these as well on the H100. I did read a few people having problems with these mounted horizontally and causing noises similar to a rotating HDD, so im up in the air about these. So im curious as to what other fans people would recommend (besides noctua)

Also im also reading mixed reviews doing a Push/Pull setup for the H100, what does the [H]ord think on this one. So in total i would use 7 of these fans (4 for the H100, 3 for chassis cooling).

Last but not least, if I do go P/P for the H100, I would need to change the rear fan out to a slim fan, any recommendations?


I know this is a wicked setup and i have been doing tons of research on all the components. Ive built many systems before, but never with such High end stuff. My goal is to get about 4 years of use out of the system before its severely outdated (like my E8400 that im on).

Thanks in advance!
 
WD black SATA 3 1.0TB HDD (storage)
Not a good choice: There are 1TB hard drives from Samsung, Seagate, and Hitachi that are all significantly faster than that WD 1TB drive. I recommend this instead:
$120 - Hitachi Desktar 7K1000.D HDS721010DLE630 1TB SATA 6.0Gb/s Hard Drive
Now because for the things I want some input on:
SSD - Boot drive, 128gb is the size, was looking at the 520 series (need something rock solid, any other recommendations, and yes im afraid of the OCZ products) I did read good things about the vertex 4 but then again I know I wont have any worries with the 520
The Intel 520 series appear to be very solid depite being Sandforce. However, they're a tad pricey considering that the similarily reliable Crucial m4 128GB costs $22 less and offes 8GB more storage.

Ram, was originally looking at G.SKILL Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1866 (PC3 14900) Desktop Memory Model F3-1866C10D-16GAB Ram. Is it really worth spending the extra few bucks to get the 1866 or no?
For current Intel CPUs, not worth it at all. For IB, I don't know as there's a possible chance that IB might need greater RAM speed. Then again, it may not.
 
Thanks a lot danny, yah i decided to go with the lower speed ram.

In terms of the WD drive, i never had an issues with WD thats why i naturally go with them first, On the other hand I had horrible problems with my IBM deskstar (deathstar) drives, which i believe is now under the Hitachi name. And after reading the tons of reviews on the egg id still be worried about getting that drive you recommended.

It might be worth it to me just to pay the premimum for both the intel drive and the WD drive

Now, still trying to figure out this whole fan issue.
 
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