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The decision to build a Sandy Bridge system was mostly driven by curiosity and excitement about the 2011 CPU revolution. This is the first time I've had the opportunity to buy (relatively) cutting edge components, and could not resists the bang for the buck delivered by Intel’s newest release. Although I seriously considered waiting for Ivy Bridge, the itch to build something now just wouldn’t go away!
I usually go for the low-end items, but this time I am pulling out as many stops as I can. 3D animation and other digital art is primarily what I use my machine for, but also do a bit of gaming. Above all else though, I simply love tinkering with new stuff.
Corsair 700D
Core i7 2600K
Asus P8Z68
16 GB Corsair Vengence DDR3-1600
128 GB Crucial RealSSD C300
PNY GeForce GTX 550 Ti
Corsair 750HX PSU
XSPC Rasa RS360 Water cooling kit
Now before you start in on me, I know the 550 Ti is not the most exquisite GPU choice. My old Asus GT240 died unexpectedly earlier this month and in a rage of frustration, I ran out to Best Buy and bought the “best” card they had. My requirements were dual dual-link DVI, HDMI, and SLI capability. The 550 Ti was the only one they had that was suitable. Although I overpaid and was pigeonholed into buying it, I have been satisfied with it thus far!
Anyway, on to some pics. I’m using my Sony HDR-SR11 and some make-shift lighting to take these. Not brilliant, but hopefully you get the idea. White balance = random.
My first modular power supply. So nice, so clean...I'll never go back!
I went with the Asus P8Z68 because of the SSD caching, on-board Bluetooth, and UEFI BIOS. Although it is not a definitive point of this board, I am also excited about the 6 GB/S SATA ports as I recently came to realize that my SSD had been operating at half-speed on the 3 GB/S ports of my old EVGA 780i.
I’m reusing the 700D and RS360 cooling kit from my previous build.
I talked about the reasoning behind my 550 Ti above. Even though it tends to be hated on around here, I plan to purchase a second one when I can find it at a decent price. I do not plan to OC the GPUs, nor do I do a ton lot of extremely graphics intense gaming. My primary reason for getting a second graphics card is so I can run three (or four) large monitors. Why? Because I have them laying around anyway! I realize I wouldn’t need $150 graphics cards to do that, but might as well have a little power when I need it. I also require all monitor connections to be dual-link DVI.
I am however, willing to listen to compelling arguments for ditching the 550 Ti now before I buy another one. If there is another card that would be better to double up on and has good reason to go through the hassle to buying two of them (instead of just grabbing 1 more of these 550s since I’m already half way there), then I am all ears. I do a lot of 3D graphics work, but have not been able to find a workstation GPU that fulfills my requirements and also comes at a reasonable price. Not to mention we have had better luck at work with the newer GeForce cards than we have with the Quadros.
The water cooling system is pretty straight forward. I have Feser One fluid that runs clear but glows blue under UV. I don’t have any extreme lighting in mind, and might not even end up using UV lights. I’m playing around with some UV LEDs right now but am not loving the results. I like the blue glow, but I HATE the purple cast of UV lights. I’ll post some pictures of that soon.
I might get a Corsair RAM cooler, or at least some new heat-sinks. I thought the Vengence chips looked cool in the thumbnails, but they look very cheap to me now that I have them in hand.
Anyway, I am going to keep this thread updated as I add and upgrade. I’m hoping to get the GPU situation sorted out soon, as I also just got a new computer desk that will easily accommodate my three monitors.
I also grabbed a window'd side panel from Corsair.
Other updates to come:
-Subtle, elegant lighting
-SLI graphics
-More visually appealing hose clamps
-Cable management on the rear panel (currently to messy to even show)
-Integration of my hacked Doomsday Device as the power switched
No plans to water cool the GPUs currently.
I usually go for the low-end items, but this time I am pulling out as many stops as I can. 3D animation and other digital art is primarily what I use my machine for, but also do a bit of gaming. Above all else though, I simply love tinkering with new stuff.
Corsair 700D
Core i7 2600K
Asus P8Z68
16 GB Corsair Vengence DDR3-1600
128 GB Crucial RealSSD C300
PNY GeForce GTX 550 Ti
Corsair 750HX PSU
XSPC Rasa RS360 Water cooling kit
Now before you start in on me, I know the 550 Ti is not the most exquisite GPU choice. My old Asus GT240 died unexpectedly earlier this month and in a rage of frustration, I ran out to Best Buy and bought the “best” card they had. My requirements were dual dual-link DVI, HDMI, and SLI capability. The 550 Ti was the only one they had that was suitable. Although I overpaid and was pigeonholed into buying it, I have been satisfied with it thus far!
Anyway, on to some pics. I’m using my Sony HDR-SR11 and some make-shift lighting to take these. Not brilliant, but hopefully you get the idea. White balance = random.
My first modular power supply. So nice, so clean...I'll never go back!
I went with the Asus P8Z68 because of the SSD caching, on-board Bluetooth, and UEFI BIOS. Although it is not a definitive point of this board, I am also excited about the 6 GB/S SATA ports as I recently came to realize that my SSD had been operating at half-speed on the 3 GB/S ports of my old EVGA 780i.
I’m reusing the 700D and RS360 cooling kit from my previous build.
I talked about the reasoning behind my 550 Ti above. Even though it tends to be hated on around here, I plan to purchase a second one when I can find it at a decent price. I do not plan to OC the GPUs, nor do I do a ton lot of extremely graphics intense gaming. My primary reason for getting a second graphics card is so I can run three (or four) large monitors. Why? Because I have them laying around anyway! I realize I wouldn’t need $150 graphics cards to do that, but might as well have a little power when I need it. I also require all monitor connections to be dual-link DVI.
I am however, willing to listen to compelling arguments for ditching the 550 Ti now before I buy another one. If there is another card that would be better to double up on and has good reason to go through the hassle to buying two of them (instead of just grabbing 1 more of these 550s since I’m already half way there), then I am all ears. I do a lot of 3D graphics work, but have not been able to find a workstation GPU that fulfills my requirements and also comes at a reasonable price. Not to mention we have had better luck at work with the newer GeForce cards than we have with the Quadros.
The water cooling system is pretty straight forward. I have Feser One fluid that runs clear but glows blue under UV. I don’t have any extreme lighting in mind, and might not even end up using UV lights. I’m playing around with some UV LEDs right now but am not loving the results. I like the blue glow, but I HATE the purple cast of UV lights. I’ll post some pictures of that soon.
I might get a Corsair RAM cooler, or at least some new heat-sinks. I thought the Vengence chips looked cool in the thumbnails, but they look very cheap to me now that I have them in hand.
Anyway, I am going to keep this thread updated as I add and upgrade. I’m hoping to get the GPU situation sorted out soon, as I also just got a new computer desk that will easily accommodate my three monitors.
I also grabbed a window'd side panel from Corsair.
Other updates to come:
-Subtle, elegant lighting
-SLI graphics
-More visually appealing hose clamps
-Cable management on the rear panel (currently to messy to even show)
-Integration of my hacked Doomsday Device as the power switched
No plans to water cool the GPUs currently.
Last edited:
$259 after MIR.
