3,500 dollar budget, what to do?

[Dallascisco]

I'm being commissioned by a client to build a high end gaming unit. The budget of 3500 is by far the most any client has ever given me. I'm usually lucky to get close to 2000. I'd like some advice items I could use to make the best machine possible. Here is what I have so far so help me fill in the blanks.

Case- Antec 1200

Cpu- client deciding on amd fx or intel lga 2011 platform.

motherboard- depending on platform chosen asus rampage\crosshair\sabertooth

ram- crucial performance ram compatible with motherboard chosen

hdd- ssd for main drive, possibly 2 extra drives for some type of raid

video- not sure but something to put in sli\crossfire

power supply- antec or pc power and cooling with enough power plus some overhead

cpu cooler- not sure

Anything I'm missing? General advice?

 

[Athadeus]

Does the customer values absolute performance over a balance of having a computer that isn't noisy? Is the customer willing to deal with the hassle of watercooling maintenance?

 

[Dallascisco]

I'm still waiting on an answer of value vs raw performance. That will determine which way I go cpu wise. This person isn't an overlocker so water cooling would not be something to include.

Does the customer values absolute performance over a balance of having a computer that isn't noisy? Is the customer willing to deal with the hassle of watercooling maintenance?

 

[Ken g6]

Cpu- client deciding on amd fx or intel lga 2011 platform.

Client should be deciding on intel lga 1155 or intel lga 2011.

I'd think about 2 7950s or 7970s in crossfire, with 3 large monitors.

 

[tynopik]

does that budget include monitors

This person isn't an overlocker

But do they expect you to provide that service for them?

also, keyboard/mouse/speakers/headset

 

[dma0991]

Here's what I think you should consider.

Core i7 3930K
16GB DDR3-1600
HD7970 Dual Crossfire
Intel/Crucial SSDs in RAID 0
Reputable PSU brand in the 800-1000W range (Corsair, Seasonic, Silverstone, Antec)
Corsair H100

You could still do a minor overclock to 4GHz with the H100. Provide detailed information on the overclocked settings that you use in case something happens and the BIOS resets. I've not calculated the total for these parts but it should not exceed or near $3500. The rest I believe is more of personal preference and you could choose yourself or ask him.

 

[Dallascisco]

The way I see it is if they wanted the best they would just go for the 2011. The amd fx is a better value than the 1155.

Client should be deciding on intel lga 1155 or intel lga 2011.

I'd think about 2 7950s or 7970s in crossfire, with 3 large monitors.

 

[Dallascisco]

No, that's for the machine only. For customers I don't overclock systems so they can't blame me when they fry it.

does that budget include monitors



But do they expect you to provide that service for them?

also, keyboard/mouse/speakers/headset

 

[Dallascisco]

Seems pretty reasonable but I read that raid 0 on ssd over time will produce degraded performance due to the OS and TRIM not having direct access to the drive but having to go through the raid controller.

Here's what I think you should consider.

Core i7 3930K
16GB DDR3-1600
HD7970 Dual Crossfire
Intel/Crucial SSDs in RAID 0
Reputable PSU brand in the 800-1000W range (Corsair, Seasonic, Silverstone, Antec)
Corsair H100

You could still do a minor overclock to 4GHz with the H100. Provide detailed information on the overclocked settings that you use in case something happens and the BIOS resets. I've not calculated the total for these parts but it should not exceed or near $3500. The rest I believe is more of personal preference and you could choose yourself or ask him.

 

[dma0991]

Seems pretty reasonable but I read that raid 0 on ssd over time will produce degraded performance due to the OS and TRIM not having direct access to the drive but having to go through the raid controller.

He could still do background garbage collection. I'm not 100% sure of the method but it is done by leaving the PC idle for a few hours whether in BIOS or on the desktop. Even if the performance degrades a little bit, just break the array and rebuild it by doing a clean format.

The budget is pretty high and I think that it would be a waste to not include a dual SSD RAID 0 into the mix.

 

[AdamK47]

I'd think about 2 7950s or 7970s in crossfire, with a large single monitor.

 

[tynopik]

The budget is pretty high and I think that it would be a waste to not include a dual SSD RAID 0 into the mix.

completely disagree, no need to raid 0 an SSD, just get a single larger drive

raid just introduces unnecessary hassles

 

[tynopik]

The amd fx is a better value than the 1155.

for gaming? no

 

[General Kenobi]

Huh... that's some budget if you're not even including a monitor. Overkill for any game unless your client is using a single very high resolution monitor or Eyefinity. With that said, 7970s in CrossFire would be the thing right now if you have the money to burn.

According to Guru3D's 7970 CrossFire review, you need a minimum of a 750W PSU for your average build. If your client insists on the getting the best and biggest (for whatever reason) there's the Antec High Current Pro 1200W, 80 PLUS Gold Certified. I stress that it's overkill to buy it though.

 

[Dallascisco]

That's what i gathered from tomshardware's latest cpu ranking.

for gaming? no

 

[Dallascisco]

Yeah, it's the most I've ever been given for a custom rig. I'm used to having to watch the budget not try to use all of it. I think once I explain that there will be heavy diminishing returns it might change.

Interesting note, many are referring to the client as "him". It's actually for a woman.

Huh... that's some budget if you're not even including a monitor. Overkill for any game unless your client is using a single very high resolution monitor or Eyefinity. With that said, 7970s in CrossFire would be the thing right now if you have the money to burn.

According to Guru3D's 7970 CrossFire review, you need a minimum of a 750W PSU for your average build. If your client insists on the getting the best and biggest (for whatever reason) there's the Antec High Current Pro 1200W, 80 PLUS Gold Certified. I stress that it's overkill to buy it though.

 

[dma0991]

completely disagree, no need to raid 0 an SSD, just get a single larger drive

raid just introduces unnecessary hassles

That may only apply to those who are not savvy enough to know the inner workings of their rig. As for me, I'd rather get two 60GB SSDs in RAID 0 than a single 120GB SSD. It is not for the added capacity, it is for the added performance and capacity.

It totally depends on the user whether they are capable of managing and maintaining their rig properly.

 

[tynopik]

That's what i gathered from tomshardware's latest cpu ranking.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/434?vs=288

note the gaming benchmarks

 

[General Kenobi]

Yeah, it's the most I've ever been given for a custom rig. I'm used to having to watch the budget not try to use all of it. I think once I explain that there will be heavy diminishing returns it might change.

Interesting note, many are referring to the client as "him". It's actually for a woman.

I would recommend trying to explain the diminishing returns to your client, otherwise this is just a ridiculously expensive build that will probably only be used like a "normal" high end build, wasting its potential.

Although I didn't assume it this time, I'll have to say that statistical probability suggests a male buyer with that kind of money.

 

[tynopik]

It is not for the added capacity, it is for the added performance and capacity.

Larger SSDs are already faster than smaller SSDs, so any marginal gain from 2 smaller SSDs over 1 larger SSD is going to be negligible and certainly not worth the hassle.

It totally depends on the user whether they are capable of managing and maintaining their rig properly.

It's for a client, make it as bulletproof as possible.

You want to screw around with RAID-0 on your system? Great. But don't foist it off on the hapless consumer.

 

[Dallascisco]

In6teresting...I'll take a close look.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/434?vs=288

note the gaming benchmarks

 

[Dallascisco]

Agreed on all accounts. I was surprised myself.

I would recommend trying to explain the diminishing returns to your client, otherwise this is just a ridiculously expensive build that will probably only be used like a "normal" high end build, wasting its potential.

Although I didn't assume it this time, I'll have to say that statistical probability suggests a male buyer with that kind of money.

 

[DaveSimmons]

Perhaps you could spec out 2 builds, i7-2700K against 2011, and print out some gaming benchmarks to show what you (don't) get for the extra $700+.

With the 2700K you should be able to afford intel 510 SSD(s) (single or separate OS and data) for reliability. Air cooling is fine for i7 and is more customer-proof.

Buying all of the most expensive parts could be fun, but if you want to help them make the best choice it's usually the much cheaper parts with 90% of the same performance.

 

[AdamK47]

I would recommend trying to explain the diminishing returns to your client, otherwise this is just a ridiculously expensive build that will probably only be used like a "normal" high end build, wasting its potential.

Although I didn't assume it this time, I'll have to say that statistical probability suggests a male buyer with that kind of money.

It's much cheaper than a few builds I've seen on this forum.

 

[janas19]

Perhaps you could spec out 2 builds, i7-2700K against 2011, and print out some gaming benchmarks to show what you (don't) get for the extra $700+.

With the 2700K you should be able to afford intel 510 SSD(s) (single or separate OS and data) for reliability. Air cooling is fine for i7 and is more customer-proof.

Buying all of the most expensive parts could be fun, but if you want to help them make the best choice it's usually the much cheaper parts with 90% of the same performance.

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