My proposed insane system...

[Phier]

SanDisk Extreme SDSSDX-240G-G25 2.5" 240GB SATA III (2 in raid 0)
CORSAIR H100 (CWCH100) Extreme Performance Liquid CPU Cooler
MSI X79 Big Bang XPower II
Intel Core i7-3930K
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) (16 GB)
COOLER MASTER HAF X RC-942-KKN1 Black Steel/ Plastic ATX Full Tower Computer Case
Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

For video cards I'll be using my 460 GTX SLI until the new nvidia line comes out.

I plan on OCing heavily.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. The only thing that can't be changed is the CPU, I already have that.

[Totalheadache]

prefer this case atm http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811553002 but coolermaster are good.

any reason to spend that much on the cpu?

also an h70 might do the trick. often there's no need to buy the most expensive out there...

[Phier]

I could have downgraded the CPU but as I said I already have it. I normally build systems buying down a tech level or two for value. I decided to go for broke this time.

As for the case I've really liked the construction of the coolmaster cases and I want to make sure I have room for the H100 radiator. That case you linked would be acceptable though looking at it, I'm not into case modding and no one will see it.

[Totalheadache]

I could have downgraded the CPU but as I said I already have it. I normally build systems buying down a tech level or two for value. I decided to go for broke this time.

As for the case I've really liked the construction of the coolmaster cases and I want to make sure I have room for the H100 radiator.

ahh my bad. still it's overkill for a home pc that's used for gaming/net. nvm...

send it back if you can..save you money.

true coolermaster cases can be more friendly for watercooling, but as the h60/70/100 mounts the radiator externally there's no issues with using something like a cougar case.(at least am pretty sure there isnt).

its when you install a 360 radiator inside that certain cases become an issue. hence why i got a haf932 (which btw is similar to the hafx).

[snuggans]

for the hard drives you could have two 500GBs in RAID 0, improve speed, same size as 1TB.

what kind of sound system are you using?
if speakers you should have a dedicated sound-card obviously, and if you're using headset you should have a headphone amplifier.

by the way what monitor is this system displaying on?

[Phier]

for the hard drives you could have two 500GBs in RAID 0, improve speed, same size as 1TB.

what kind of sound system are you using?
if speakers you should have a dedicated sound-card obviously, and if you're using headset you should have a headphone amplifier.

by the way what monitor is this system displaying on?

The SSD's are in raid 0, which will be all the games etc. The HD is just for storage of things that don't need to be on the SSD's which is why I didn't bother to set them up as a raid. Being the 2011 socket chips only have two intel 6gb sata channels directly, those will get the SSDs.

I do have speakers and a headset, the headset is fine with its own amp, the speakers I've been running off the onboard sound currently didn't give the soundcard much thought.

Monitor I'm using is an ASUS 120hz. Its a good monitor and needed for Nvidia 3d vision which I currently use. My current system is heading to my office to be my work computer so I'll set it up with a cheaper monitor.

[Top-Tier-Tech]

ahh my bad. still it's overkill for a home pc that's used for gaming/net. nvm...

send it back if you can..save you money.

Yup. The problem with a hex core is for gaming use it won't give you any performance boost over the $300 quad core since games aren't designed to utilize typically any more than 2 and sometimes 4. You pay 100% the price of a quad more to gain only 50% more cores that gives you typically a 0% boost in games. By the time games are coded to utilize that many cores that CPU will be obsolete which is why the $300 should have been saved for GPU fodder or something else of benefit. There are certainly things that benefit from a hex-core but gaming isn't one of them.

[Darkpriest667]

Yup. The problem with a hex core is for gaming use it won't give you any performance boost over the $300 quad core since games aren't designed to utilize typically any more than 2 and sometimes 4. You pay 100% the price of a quad more to gain only 50% more cores that gives you typically a 0% boost in games. By the time games are coded to utilize that many cores that CPU will be obsolete which is why the $300 should have been saved for GPU fodder or something else of benefit. There are certainly things that benefit from a hex-core but gaming isn't one of them.

Meet my friends battlefield 3 and Eve Online.

both will use 6 or 8 threads easily.

[Crazyeyesreaper]

change the SSD's

dont bother with an H100, if your going to get a big expensive cooler, get a Phantek, or Noctua, both cool about the same as the H100, and heres the kicker their far quieter.

X79 Big Bang Power Nice board but there are far better options out their

ram 2x4gb = WRONG, X79 requires 4 sticks of ram for quadchannel means you need 4x2gb 4x4gb minimum = 8 - 16gb unless you planned to grab 2 kits,

my suggestions

SSD: If your going to go Raid get something relaible aka
2x http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820147135

Mobo: If you have a particular color theme you want say so otherwise i suggest the following
First up it might be Micro ATX but dont let that fool you.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131805
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131799
finally 1 other choice
If you really want to go for broke Altho for most situations the above Micro ATX board makes more sense.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131802

CPU Cooler: Yes the H100 is nice yes it cools well, sadly its also loud as , and im not a fan of listening to crappy fans spinning at 2500rpms that are as loud as my Delta's at 3000rpms
I would suggest,
Phantek Coolers better then Noctua, but its a bit Gaudy to look at, Comes in Various colors just search newegg.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835709004
My Recommendation
Noctua NHD14 Might look uglier then Sin but Noctua's Quality is above and beyond anything else
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835608024

RAM: need 4x2GB or 4x4GB, I suggest 4x4GB just for the hell of it, i would grab
Gskill 2011 kit, 4x4GB = 16GB total, with promo code its only $80 low profile heat spreaders means they will fit under the heatsink
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231497
Corsair 2x4GB x2 1866 for a bit more performance 1866 tends to be the sweet spot for Sandybridge, but with Quadchannel on SB-E the speed offers little but less latency is still a good thing
2x http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820233240
or should they arrive back in stock i can vouch for the sticks below
2x http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820226223


Case is fine, but it is an extreme Dust magnet, so keep that in mind, Cases are more of a personal taste situation
Some other suggestion, i may or may not like these cases, but i keep cable routing and ease of working in a case far above looks

NZXT Switch 810
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811146089

The 800D has already been mentions,

If you go with the Asus micro ATX motherboard the following CASE is a damn good value again the MSI board your looking at, and the high end ASUS i linked are E-ATX or XL-ATX, the Micro ATX Asus board which is significantly cheaper but packs just as many features will fit all the cases, but the 500R has the best value for what you get, also LED off is awesome, which more cases had that.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811139009

as for the HDD
Samsung F3
Cheaper same performance as the WD 1TB Black
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...k=Samsung%20F3

[Bolkonsky]

Yeah, just hold off for the GTX 6xx series, and Ivy Bridge.

[Top-Tier-Tech]

Yeah, just hold off for the GTX 6xx series, and Ivy Bridge.

That makes sense if he wants no more than two GPUs. However he should go with the LGA2011 if he wants to get Tri-Quad SLI or even just ample spacing between cards.

[Darkpriest667]

That makes sense if he wants no more than two GPUs. However he should go with the LGA2011 if he wants to get Tri-Quad SLI or even just ample spacing between cards.

^

What he said.

[Totalheadache]

with the money u saved on the cpu you could even watercool a single gpu...or get a better screen etc etc.(i did my watercooling setup for around $300).

you wont regret it. p.s let crazy do you a build...

also if you do go water cooling as that's pretty "insane" you do want something like a hafx or an obsidian d.

so your choice of case re the hafx is good as it keeps your options open.

[Crazyeyesreaper]

if you want to stick with Sandybridge E just get the i7 3820 quadcore,

its $300 and slighly faster then a 2600 / 2700k its quadcore 8 threads, overclocks well, puts out little less heat then the 6 core chips, and should hold you over till Ivy-Bridge-E releases for socket 2011 late this year. which would be a drop in upgrade for you, Ivy-Bridge / IvyBridge-E will be about 10-15% faster then Sandy Bridge or Sandy Bridge-E at the same clock speeds, they will have a drop of about 20-25w in terms of TDP so runs cooler, less heat, and should overclock better, in order to appreciate a 6 core i would wait till Ivy Bridge-E, that way you can get a 3930k equivalent from the new series of Chips at less cost, with better performance better thermals, and better overclocking.

as for Triple or Quad GPU,

for Nvidia dual gpu tends to be best, Tri SLI doesnt really scale,
for AMD Triple GPUs are actually the sweet spot, as it eliminates frame Jitter so its something to consider, as 2x 580s for example would cost more then 3x 6950 2GB, the 3 6950s offer better performance at around the same power draw, and wont experience frame jitter, just something to keep in mind really

[Totalheadache]

I personally think sli/xfire isnt needed unless you are using more than one monitor(eyefinity). I prefer to spend quite a bit on a good single screen that lasts me...but if you have money and want 3 screen gaming heaven...

Then yep 3x6950's or 580's in sli is what's called for.

It's also a hassle when certain games dont work as they should (and this is a definate not an "if"). For some this causes more hassle than for others (depends a bit on the tech savvy of the individual, i know crazy likes his xfire but he knows what he is doing).

You dont need to go crazy on a soundcard but you should look at spending $100 or so on your speakers etc...perhaps a wee bit more.

I think also $300 or so on a screen. Avoid TN panels (or so i have been told over @guru). I was advised 2 yrs ago to get a BENQ ips panel and it really has been possibly the best part of my build...depends what u got atm ofc.

HDD prices suck atm.

have got by with around a tb....am not a massive film downloader. bear in mind if you get an ssd you want something that's big enough for your os and a few choice games. for price v gb storage isnt enough..(i.e bit of a rip off i feel). (speed of hdd doesnt make 2 much diff in games...well os boots quicker).

[Crazyeyesreaper]

actually depends on the game,

SSDs can have a dramatic impact, but in all honesty an SSD caching said data, with HDD being used as normal will offer 90% of the speed increase for the stuff you use most, so its a moot point

60GB ssd + 1TB drive works but if your going to go big, 2x 240-256GB drives will definitely be extremely fast and with 500gb of space its enough to install most items you need, just put redundant files like music movies, tv series, documents onto the 1TB, same goes for any apps that dont need SSD speed.

[Phier]

I've given you rep too recently but crazy that list is great.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835608024

That cooler looks like a beast. I was a bit concerned about the h100 noise, I think that would do nicely.

[Top-Tier-Tech]

I've given you rep too recently but crazy that list is great.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835608024

That cooler looks like a beast. I was a bit concerned about the h100 noise, I think that would do nicely.

If you're looking at the Noctua check this out too:

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/15...369s1568#blank

The heatsink itself (disregard the fans) looks nicer and is of almost identical design and cooling otherwise.

[Crazyeyesreaper]

yea Noctua and Phantek beat it, but not enough to matter,

I would still take the Noctua do to the better Quality over all,


That and simply put the Noctua beats the Deepcool Assassin 8 by 2'C but does so at 5 Decibles quieter aka

Noctua beats the Deepcool by 7% in terms of temp reduction, and the Noctua is 16% quieter when used on an i7 3930K

I do have to admit the Deepcool Assassin 8 does look alot more attractive.

[Totalheadache]

Yep +1 to the noctua. Own one and it's brill, you really can whack some extra volts through your cpu with one. (which is lucky as mine is a pretty average chip and needs a huge whack of vcore for 4ghz).

Looks like your almost set to go. Post pics of new build....

Shame we dont have a sticky in basement so we can see some build logs+pics..

Like the look of that corsair case...(didnt see if it was watercooling friendly...am in the market for one myself soonish).