I'm currently on an old Dell XPS P4 with an 8800 GTS and it's time to upgrade. (I've had this thing for more than 5 years and I hope to be able to have the next one running for that long.)
Here's what I'm considering. (PCpartpicker website seems helpful.)
Part list permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3rfk
Part price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3rfk/by_merchant
CPU: Intel Core i7-2600K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($279.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P8P67 WS Revolution (REV 3.0) ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($234.49 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Corsair Force Series 3 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Rosewill THOR V2 ATX Full Tower Case ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Silverstone 1500W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($329.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG WH12LS39 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Dell U3011 30.0" Monitor ($1368.72 @ Mwave)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional Full (32/64-bit) ($229.00 @ Adorama)
Keyboard: Lite-On SK-1688U/B Wired Standard Keyboard ($14.97 @ Newegg)
Total: $3142.09
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated 2012-01-02 16:33 EST-0500)
1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.
Primarily gaming and surfing with some visual studio developing as well. My main immediate goal would be to play Skyrim at 2560x1600 with all of the bells and whistles and .ini tweaks to increase draw distances, etc. I tend to load a bunch of streaming videos in a web browser in the background because my internet isn't super-fast.
2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread.
I don't want to spend more than $6k, but it seems like I can do what I want for quite a bit less. (I'm guessing this will run me ~$4,500 after video cards.)
3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.
USA
4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc.
I have a slight preference for nvidia, but the 7970 looks pretty good to me.
I have leaned towards all of these at some point. (In some cases perhaps I would buy one card and then add the second/additional cards later.)
2 x 2GB 560's SLI
2-3 x 3GB 580's SLI
2 x 3GB 590's SLI
3-4 x 6950's Crossfire
1-3 x 7970's Crossfire
I imagine myself buying a 7970 when it becomes available and then deciding if I'm happy with the performance. If not, add another one. I imagine having 3x30" monitors at some point in the future and would need some real juice going on in the GPU slot to keep up with that. I don't really have the desk space for that many monitors at the moment, so that would wait for another 8 months plus.
5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
I'm intending to keep using my nifty logitech mouse and my klipsch promedia 5.1 speakers. I was hoping I might be able to use my 8800 GTS for a short while until the new radeons come out, but I haven't verified that that would actually work yet. (Obviously couldn't play skyrim at desired level, but might be able to get the system working/verified.)
6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads.
Yes. I think maybe what I'm looking at system-wise is overkill but it does have a lot of flexibility and (I hope) quality components. I'm not sure if I want 1,2,3, or 4 graphics cards in this thing at some point. (maybe later if not today) But I don't really care about spending a little extra on the components to have that flexibility provided that they are high-quality components.
7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
I'm interested in doing some mild overclocking with air cooling unless someone convinces me that water is much much better and has a low PITA factor. Considering how much I'm thinking about spending, I'm a little reticent to do a first-time water cooling rig.
8. What resolution YOU plan on gaming with.
2560x1600 (maybe go to three of these eventually)
9. WHEN do you plan to build it?
Start buying parts ASAP. Wait ~2 weeks for better information on video card options.
10. Don't ask for a build configuration critique or rating if you are thin skinned.
I look forward to the great ideas I've missed and corrections to the blunders I've made.
Thanks for your feedback, advice, and assistance!
ETA: Is the HP ZR30w 30" monitor approximately the same as the dell ultrasharp? Anybody have a preference between the two?
Here's what I'm considering. (PCpartpicker website seems helpful.)
Part list permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3rfk
Part price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3rfk/by_merchant
CPU: Intel Core i7-2600K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($279.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P8P67 WS Revolution (REV 3.0) ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($234.49 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Corsair Force Series 3 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Rosewill THOR V2 ATX Full Tower Case ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Silverstone 1500W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($329.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG WH12LS39 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Dell U3011 30.0" Monitor ($1368.72 @ Mwave)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional Full (32/64-bit) ($229.00 @ Adorama)
Keyboard: Lite-On SK-1688U/B Wired Standard Keyboard ($14.97 @ Newegg)
Total: $3142.09
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated 2012-01-02 16:33 EST-0500)
1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.
Primarily gaming and surfing with some visual studio developing as well. My main immediate goal would be to play Skyrim at 2560x1600 with all of the bells and whistles and .ini tweaks to increase draw distances, etc. I tend to load a bunch of streaming videos in a web browser in the background because my internet isn't super-fast.
2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread.
I don't want to spend more than $6k, but it seems like I can do what I want for quite a bit less. (I'm guessing this will run me ~$4,500 after video cards.)
3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.
USA
4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc.
I have a slight preference for nvidia, but the 7970 looks pretty good to me.
I have leaned towards all of these at some point. (In some cases perhaps I would buy one card and then add the second/additional cards later.)
2 x 2GB 560's SLI
2-3 x 3GB 580's SLI
2 x 3GB 590's SLI
3-4 x 6950's Crossfire
1-3 x 7970's Crossfire
I imagine myself buying a 7970 when it becomes available and then deciding if I'm happy with the performance. If not, add another one. I imagine having 3x30" monitors at some point in the future and would need some real juice going on in the GPU slot to keep up with that. I don't really have the desk space for that many monitors at the moment, so that would wait for another 8 months plus.
5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
I'm intending to keep using my nifty logitech mouse and my klipsch promedia 5.1 speakers. I was hoping I might be able to use my 8800 GTS for a short while until the new radeons come out, but I haven't verified that that would actually work yet. (Obviously couldn't play skyrim at desired level, but might be able to get the system working/verified.)
6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads.
Yes. I think maybe what I'm looking at system-wise is overkill but it does have a lot of flexibility and (I hope) quality components. I'm not sure if I want 1,2,3, or 4 graphics cards in this thing at some point. (maybe later if not today) But I don't really care about spending a little extra on the components to have that flexibility provided that they are high-quality components.
7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
I'm interested in doing some mild overclocking with air cooling unless someone convinces me that water is much much better and has a low PITA factor. Considering how much I'm thinking about spending, I'm a little reticent to do a first-time water cooling rig.
8. What resolution YOU plan on gaming with.
2560x1600 (maybe go to three of these eventually)
9. WHEN do you plan to build it?
Start buying parts ASAP. Wait ~2 weeks for better information on video card options.
10. Don't ask for a build configuration critique or rating if you are thin skinned.
I look forward to the great ideas I've missed and corrections to the blunders I've made.
Thanks for your feedback, advice, and assistance!
ETA: Is the HP ZR30w 30" monitor approximately the same as the dell ultrasharp? Anybody have a preference between the two?
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