[Romis]

Hi! I'm buying a new computer very soon, and these are the parts I have picked out:

Asus Radeon HD 5970 - $740
Intel Core i7 930 - $370
eVGA X58 Classified 4-Way SLI - $615
Crucial RealSSD C300 2,5" 128GB - $545
Corsair XMS3 Twin3x DDR3-1600 6GB (3x2GB) - $230
Corsair Obsidian Series 700D - $260
Corsair H50 - $90
Chieftec A-135 Series 1000W PSU - $220

Rough estimate: $3070

I still need help chosing a good cooling sulotion ( watercooling ) for my GPU, or should I just get a cooling system for both GPU and CPU?
If there are any bottlenecks, tell me. :)

[Questions]

- Is the motherboard overkill?
- Is there a place I can buy 5970 ready for a waterblock?
- What waterblock do I need?
- What is a good watercooling system for CPU and GPU or seperate.
- Will by hdd/ram need additional fan support other than the natural air circulation in the case?
- Is the case good for building?
- Is the case big enough for every single part?
- Is the case big enough for a watercooling system?


Additional info: I have a WD Cavier 1,5 TB hdd I will put in the computer.

[Tools]

- Is the motherboard overkill?
- Is there a place I can buy 5970 ready for a waterblock?
- What waterblock do I need?
- What is a good watercooling system for CPU and GPU or seperate.
- Will by hdd/ram need additional fan support other than the natural air circulation in the case?
- Is the case good for building?
- Is the case big enough for every single part?
- Is the case big enough for a watercooling system?

- Yes, and a $4k build is overkill in general.
- Yes, a minute on google will find the place. (I believe there's an eVGA 5970 with preinstalled watercool support)
- Probably a 240mm long, if you mean radiator
- I've heard XSPC is pretty good, not sure about GPU watercooling
- No RAM nor HDD won't need additional fans.
- That case's pretty decent.
- Easily.
- Yes, I believe it even has a feature to have the radiator on the inside (at the top of the case)

[PieClock]

That amount of money shouldn't all be used on a build.

[Romis]

I have estimated it's around $3000. I don't think it's A LOT of money. It's also going to hold longer because of watercooling with overclocking.

I am a bit unsure though. The whole watercooling thing seems a bit scary, I've never attempted to build a computer with watercooling, so I have no idea on what to buy, and how to assemble them together. I would aprecciate if you could give me some pointers.

Edit:

Do you think EVGA X58 SLI/EVGA X58 SLI Micro would be a better choice for a motherboard? It's a lot cheaper.

[FlameCow]

You shouldn't spend that much on a PC, because a year months it'll be extremely outdated. Update your PC or build it slowly, because you could build a $4,000 build one day, and the next day a GPU that revolutionizes graphics technologies comes out.

[FHamster]

There is no reason to get a 1kW psu and a 4 way sli Mobo if you're just running a single 5970.
Powercolor sells a 5870 with a waterblock preinstalled. Its a pretty good deal.

[Romis]

Well, here's the thing. I am willing to pay $4,000 for a build. I want to get an extremely good computer as cheap as possible.

Let's review the things I am going to buy, shall we?

Asus 5970 - Which is the best at the moment
1000w PSU - Which doesn't cost a lot of money
DDR3 Ram - 6GB is futuristic
Obsidian 700d case - Nothing is going to outdate there, the tower is big enough
Intel Core i7 930 - Very good CPU for gaming
Crucial RealSSD C300 - This is an extremely big step forward from my current HDD
Lastly, some kind of watercooling.

I can get this build really cheap. I still haven't decided what motherboard I'm going for, but this build isn't really expensive. So I don't think I'm wasting money, and it's going to be outdated in a few months.

Edited:

FHamster posted:

There is no reason to get a 1kW psu and a 4 way sli Mobo if you're just running a single 5970.
Powercolor sells a 5870 with a waterblock preinstalled. Its a pretty good deal.

I really want the 5970. What kind of PSU do you think I should get? Why not go full 1000w? I'm obviously going to upgrade the computer after some time. I have also decided not to go with the overkill motherboard.

[FHamster]

Romis posted:

I really want the 5970. What kind of PSU do you think I should get? Why not go full 1000w? I'm obviously going to upgrade the computer after some time. I have also decided not to go with the overkill motherboard.

You can get a 1k PSU if youw ant to, however a psu such as the corsair 750TX will run just as fine.
Running 2 5870s in crossfire will perform better than one 5970. Although the 5970 contains the same chips, it is underclocked and nerfed like every 2 GPU card for heat issues.
Plus theres the preinstalled waterbloc

[Romis]

So I should buy the ones from Sapphire?

[ferrus]

With that budget, I would get one GTX 480. IMO, most of the time watercooling doesn't justify its cost for the performance gained through overclocking.

For a 480 or 5970, I'd say a good 650W or a 750 PSU would be fine.

[Romis]

ferrus posted:

With that budget, I would get one GTX 480.

Don't even mention nVidia. I am sticking with ATi. Let's not go into the discussion, but I want 2x 5870. I want performance for the price, not overheated overpriced piece of .. well ..

[Skull435]

GTX 480 = ATi 5870
ATi 5970 = ATi 5870x2

So why should he be getting a 480?

[derlicious]

yeh with that budget i would get SLi 480, its not much more than a 5970.

Also get a 920

[Romis]

Why should I get a 920? :) How will it perform contrary to the 930 in terms of power and overclcoking?

[derlicious]

Skull435 posted:

GTX 480 = ATi 5870
ATi 5970 = ATi 5870x2

A 480 is better than a 5870, in DX 11 that is.

I would SLi Two 480s

[ferrus]

Skull435 posted:

GTX 480 = ATi 5870
ATi 5970 = ATi 5870x2

So why should he be getting a 480?

He 'should' get whatever he wants. And no, a 5970 does not = 5870x2.

Edited:

Romis posted:

Why should I get a 920? :) How will it perform contrary to the 930 in terms of power and overclcoking?

Derlicious made a mistake there; it's the 930 you want.

Edited:

I think it's a good policy to stand in a position of neutrality when it comes to ATi/nVidia. Make your decision based purely on the cost & ability, without a shred of bias for either company. Bias is idiotic, besides being detrimental to your wallet.

[Romis]

I've seen enough reviews to know that the 5970 is a better choice for me. Please let's keep the discussion of nVidia contrary to ATi to a minumum.

[ferrus]

Romis, don't forget this is a forum. Discussion is allowed, even encouraged.

Performance comparison - http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforc...-480-review/24

Cheapest 480 -http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125319&cm_re=gtx_480-_-14-125-319-_-Product

Cheapest 5970 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-887-_-Product

480 = $500

5970 = $700

In Crysis, the 480 gets 51 FPS, that's $9.8 per frame

The 5970 gets 61, that's $11.5.

[Romis]

I just want to get the most value for my money, I don't want this thread closed because of flaming.

[OCELOT323]

but Two 480s is better than a 5970.

[Romis]

ferrus posted:

Romis, don't forget this is a forum. Discussion is allowed, even encouraged.

Performance comparison - http://www.guru3d.com/article/geforc...-480-review/24

Cheapest 480 -http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125319&cm_re=gtx_480-_-14-125-319-_-Product

Cheapest 5970 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-887-_-Product

$200 for 10 fps?

I aprecciate the offer, but I have already taken a look at a waterblock for the 5970. I am just wondering how it get's water inside to cool it. Check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HfXEA2EJpI and go to 4:47

Do I have to pour water inside there? Do I mount on tubes from my reservoir? I don't see any holes for that.

[M_B]

do not get an H50, it requires that instead of acting as an exhaust, what you would use for exhaust is instead an intake, in turn causing everything else to heat up.
if you want a single circuit water cooler for your cpu, get an Eco ALC

[Romis]

OCELOT323 posted:

but Two 480s is better than a 5970.

Also more expensive, and I don't want to pay extra for a system like that, if it gets outdated.

[reapaninja]

Romis posted:

I just want to get the most value for my money

then why are you restricting what you can buy

pointless brand preferences are the perfect way to ensure you don't get the most out of your budget

[M_B]

Romis posted:

Why should I get a 920? :) How will it perform contrary to the 930 in terms of power and overclcoking?

while the 930 on paper seems much better, it doesn't overclock very well at all, in fact the 920 overclocks better, more stable.

and seeing as a 920 is no different than a 960 or whatever the highest end was when the 9xx series debuted aside for the clocking, there's really no point in getting a 930 aside for the 22nd multiplier, which benchmarks show doesn't really matter that much as you can't overclock it as much anyway

[Romis]

M_B posted:

do not get an H50, it requires that instead of acting as an exhaust, what you would use for exhaust is instead an intake, in turn causing everything else to heat up.
if you want a single circuit water cooler for your cpu, get an Eco ALC

I'm thinking of a reservoir, and tubing running to a waterblock on both CPU and GPU. Got any tips?

[M_B]

Romis posted:

Also more expensive, and I don't want to pay extra for a system like that, if it gets outdated.

what about your "$4000" budget

[Romis]

M_B posted:

while the 930 on paper seems much better, it doesn't overclock very well at all, in fact the 920 overclocks better, more stable.

and seeing as a 920 is no different than a 960 or whatever the highest end was when the 9xx series debuted aside for the clocking, there's really no point in getting a 930 aside for the 22nd multiplier, which benchmarks show doesn't really matter that much as you can't overclock it as much anyway

What kind of differences are we talking about? How much more can I press the 920?

Edited:

M_B posted:

what about your "$4000" budget

I'm having second thoughts. I mean I have the money, but I might save it to upgrade later.

[M_B]

Romis posted:

I'm thinking of a reservoir, and tubing running to a waterblock on both CPU and GPU. Got any tips?

...then neither would work for you. if you were to break open a single circuit cooler to use it with something else, it will be completely ruined.

i don't have any experience with full on water cooling, i just know that the H50 is borderline retarded

[ferrus]

M_B posted:

while the 930 on paper seems much better, it doesn't overclock very well at all, in fact the 920 overclocks better, more stable.

and seeing as a 920 is no different than a 960 or whatever the highest end was when the 9xx series debuted aside for the clocking, there's really no point in getting a 930 aside for the 22nd multiplier, which benchmarks show doesn't really matter that much as you can't overclock it as much anyway

Not according to these guys: http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cpu...0-cpu-review/9

Conclusion

While on paper, the i7-930 is a mere 133MHz clock bump up from the i7-920, the fact that it's the same price and is slightly faster means that you'd be foolish to buy an i7-920 now (if you literally just bought one without knowing, then, sorry!).

What really sells us on the idea of the i7-930 though is it's improved overclocking potential. While there's no guarantee that every i7-930 will overclock as well as our test sample, it's very pleasing to see how much better it overclocked than any i7-920 we've played with over the 12 months at identical voltages. Any CPU, let alone one with four physical cores, four logical cores and triple-channel memory, that can run at 4.3GHz with a standard air-cooler is great news. Given that the i7-920 itself is a great overclocker, it's really good to see Intel launching an even more overclockable CPU at the same price, and not forcing enthusiasts into buying uber-expensive Extreme Editions.

The i7-920 was a classic CPU that will almost certainly be included in the next update to the Hall of Fame but 16 months on, it's now past its sell-by date.

The i7-930 is a worthy update and one overclocking enthusiasts should still consider. We'd love a bit of a budget refresh to the X58-ICH10R platform which we appreciate may still push people along the P55-i5-750 or even i7-860 route, but consider it a solid investment because an i7-930 will be fast for a long while yet to come and it will overclock further than an i7-920, making the performance difference between the two CPUs even greater.

[M_B]

Romis posted:

What kind of differences are we talking about? How much more can I press the 920?

Negligibly, just bare data, but the point is that there's no point in spending the extra $20 or whatever for a 930. it's like paying $2 more for a t-shirt because it has a glow in the dark price tag - stupid.

also something about the 930 getting hotter than the 920 but i think if you have an aftermarket cooler that really shouldn't matter.

Romis posted:

I'm having second thoughts.

well, two 480s would still outperform a single 5970 (which is, if i'm correct, a dual gpu card)

[derlicious]

Dude SLi GTX 480 will not get out dated for another 5+ Years

Even 8 seeming the rate we are making technological advances and the limit of actual power you can have.

[Romis]

Ok, so it's either 480 or 5970. I want the best card, which is better? I want the one most reliable? Which is better? I want the card that can overclock further, go the extra mile. Which is better? I want the one most compatible with watercooling. Which is better?

[M_B]

ferrus posted:

Not according to these guys: http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cpu...0-cpu-review/9

funny thing - they were only the same price upon release, they're not the same price anymore

[ferrus]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-225-_-Product

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-202-_-Product

There's only $15 in it, and that's pretty inconsequential when we're talking $3000

[M_B]

Romis posted:

Ok, so it's either 480 or 5970. I want the best card, which is better? I want the one most reliable? Which is better? I want the card that can overclock further, go the extra mile. Which is better? I want the one most compatible with watercooling. Which is better?

single card? 5970
most reliable? well at this end of the spectrum when it comes to graphics cards, there really shouldn't be anything unreliable
not sure about overclocking but i think it's about the same
better in general? two 480s, but a 5970 is better than one 480
i don't think there's a specific watercooling block out for either one yet, but CoolIt is releasing their Omni ALC gpu cooler that will have interchangable plates and all that good stuff out in june, so it doesn't really matter

Edited:

ferrus posted:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-225-_-Product

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-202-_-Product

There's only $15 in it, and that's pretty inconsequential when we're talking $3000

yeah and my point is that it's still not worth the $15

it's not a difficult concept to grasp

[Craptasket]

Romis posted:

Ok, so it's either 480 or 5970. I want the best card, which is better? I want the one most reliable? Which is better? I want the card that can overclock further, go the extra mile. Which is better? I want the one most compatible with watercooling. Which is better?

Damn if I was juggling 4k on a new rig, I wouldn't be asking these questions here.


look up reviews, do your research

[Romis]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HfXEA2EJpI Check it out. It's specificly made for the Dual GPU 5970.


Edit:

I have set the cost limit to 3200 dollar, which should change a few things.

[ferrus]

yeah and my point is that it's still not worth the $15

it's not a difficult concept to grasp

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cpu...0-cpu-review/9

[M_B]

thank you because you know i mean i didn't see that link the first time

Edited:

as far as specifications go and all that jazz, it is LITERALLY the exact same cpu with a slightly higher clock (and if you're overclocking anyway this doesn't mean a thing) and an unlocked multiplier