My i7 build. Performance plus affordability.

[bl@ckvr4]

Finally finished the build for my new i7 setup. Now I'm ready to tackle Crysis 2, Deus Ex and hopefully anything else 2011 can throw at me.

Started off like this:



Let the build begin.







Installing the Corsair H50 water-cooling system:





Water cooling and an nVidia GeForce 8800 GTS OC as a PhysX processor:



Corsair GS800 800watt power supply installed. Needs some cable management.





Went with the 6GB triple channel Corsair Dominators with fast timings and an nVidia GeForce 460 GTX as a primary GPU.





Final set up:





She runs Crysis perfectly. Everything on Very High with 16QX MSAA, without a single hiccup. Source engine games get about 6000fps as per timerefresh. Having a dedicated PhysX card really makes for a much smoother and considerably better gameplay experience in PhysX enabled games, like Mafia II and Metro 2033.

Final specs are as follows:

• Intel i7 960 CPU @ 3.20GHz with hyperthreading to 8 cores
• 6GB DDR3 Corsair Dominators utilizing triple channel technology
• 1GB GDDR5 video memory via nVidia GeForce 460 GTX
• Secondary PhysX processing via nVidia GeForce 8800 GTS OC
• 24x LG DVD drive/writer
• 1TB Seagate 7200RPM HDD
• 500GB Seagate 7200RPM HDD
• 800watt Corsair GS800 power supply
• Six fan setup plus Corsair H50 water cooling

Comments and suggestions are welcome!

[boostjunky]

Dude, get a Dell.






















Lol I'm just kidding. That's badass.

Sent from my Garminfone using Tapatalk

[c0nfl1kt]

Those Harman/Kardons are very good for their size. I had them before I got me some serious audiophile monitors.

[DTownHemiD]

Nice build

[WolfsFang]

cost of said build?

[bl@ckvr4]

Originally Posted by WolfsFang

cost of said build?

I was a dumbass and didn't save any receipts, but if I had to venture a solid guess, I'd say about $800-$900.

Just ran a 3D Mark test. Got 20437. Very satisfied with that.

[cmr076]

wtf. I have no idea what any of what you typed means, but it looks cool so I give it 3.5 stars (out of 4) the only reason you didnt get 4 of 4 stars on my extremely complex "computer build rating system" is because there isnt early enough underglow!

[mcperson2k]

You should get another fan for the h50 for push/pull(like the h70), works really well.

I just built a pc from Micro Center last month...

4gb ddr3 1600
500gb 7200 HD
Phenom II x2 BE(the extra 2 cores unlocked so its a Phenom II x4)
GeminII cooler
768MB GTX 460
$15 micro atx case

Only cost me $307 and I reused a PSU and DVD drive. They were having mad sales. I got the video card for $99 after an $80 rebate.

Im having trouble selling my i7 and MB so I might turn it into an HTPC. You should return the h50 and i will sell you a 1 month used h70 for $60

[nissamax]

i have no idea what that frankenstien contraption is but it looks awesome.

[GeforceXtreme]

Nice looking system.

When you get some extra cash treat yourself to an SSD hard drive.. you will never go back to a mechanical hdd after that....

[bl@ckvr4]

Originally Posted by cmr076

wtf. I have no idea what any of what you typed means, but it looks cool so I give it 3.5 stars (out of 4) the only reason you didnt get 4 of 4 stars on my extremely complex "computer build rating system" is because there isnt early enough underglow!

lol. I build my computers like I build my cars. Clean and not riced out.

Originally Posted by mcperson2k

You should get another fan for the h50 for push/pull(like the h70), works really well.

I can't use the H70 or mount another fan for push/pull. The extra fan and radiator don't clear my ram modules, since Corsair Dominators have enormous heat spreaders.

Originally Posted by nissamax

i have no idea what that frankenstien contraption is but it looks awesome.

lol. Thanks!

Originally Posted by GeforceXtreme

Nice looking system.

When you get some extra cash treat yourself to an SSD hard drive.. you will never go back to a mechanical hdd after that....

Thanks! I know! I really want to get an SSD HDD, but the $/GB of storage ratio for SSD would definitely not be appropriate for a budget build. I will definitely upgrade when it gets a bit cheaper, since the HDD is what's holding this system back at this point.

[GeforceXtreme]

Originally Posted by bl@ckvr4

Thanks! I know! I really want to get an SSD HDD, but the $/GB of storage ratio for SSD would definitely not be appropriate for a budget build. I will definitely upgrade when it gets a bit cheaper, since the HDD is what's holding this system back at this point.

Yeah i waited around forever until I found an SSD on sale. Originally planned to just get a 60GB SSD for the OS drive then use my spare 500GB for storage. But during the holidays an OCZ Vertex 2 120GB went on sale for a steal of a price so I went with that.

Honestly blown away by the performance difference of the SSD vs my old Sata-I hdd.

For the dollar the OCZ Vertex 2 drives are great for the price.

[bl@ckvr4]

Originally Posted by GeforceXtreme

Yeah i waited around forever until I found an SSD on sale. Originally planned to just get a 60GB SSD for the OS drive then use my spare 500GB for storage. But during the holidays an OCZ Vertex 2 120GB went on sale for a steal of a price so I went with that.

Honestly blown away by the performance difference of the SSD vs my old Sata-I hdd.

For the dollar the OCZ Vertex 2 drives are great for the price.

I will consider that in the future. Thanks for the advice. They go on sale often?

[GeforceXtreme]

Originally Posted by bl@ckvr4

I will consider that in the future. Thanks for the advice. They go on sale often?

You can find deals. I just got the OCZ Vertex 2 80GB for $115 after discounts. Normally go $160+

Got my 120GB for $140 at the time and currently they go for $230+ range lol.

[c0nfl1kt]

Originally Posted by GeforceXtreme

you will never go back to a mechanical hdd after that....

Except for pure capacity.

[GeforceXtreme]

Originally Posted by c0nfl1kt

Except for pure capacity.

Yes your right there..

500GB normal HDD = 50 bucks vs $500+ for the same size SSD rofl.

[sean3]

Why the 960 and not a 2500k?

[bl@ckvr4]

Originally Posted by sean3

Why the 960 and not a 2500k?

Simply because SandyBridge technology is not even close to being properly implemented or mastered. I hear at lot of guys are having trouble with them. When I was doing research on what processor I wanted, I ran into a ton of horror stories from guys who picked up SandyBridge processors. I do want to upgrade when they get a bit more reliable. There is a ton of potential in that technology.

[mcperson2k]

What settings do you use for source? I could only get 100-300 fps on my sli machine. 1080p res

[bl@ckvr4]

Originally Posted by mcperson2k

What settings do you use for source? I could only get 100-300 fps on my sli machine. 1080p res

Everything max. 16QX MSAA, 16X AF. Bloom and HDR on. Don't follow the netgraph. Enable cheats (sv_cheats 1) and type timerefresh in the console and it'll show you the fps.