New i7 Build - Opinions and advice please

Simes

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Hi folks
Noobie here looking to break my self-build cherry.:hiya:

Currently looking at:
Asus P6T X58
Intel Core i7 920 D0 Stepping - OEM
Patriot Viper 3x2Gb DDR3 PC3-12800 (1600)
OCZ ModXStream Pro 700w Silent PSU
Asus ATI Radeon HD 4770 512Mb
Noctua NH-U21P SE1366 CPU cooler
Antec 300 case
WD Caviar Black 640 Gb SATA-II
Sony NEC Otiarc AD-7201S DVD RW

(The top four items are currently on offer in a certain web retailer's "Offer of the Week" which makes them a bit more attractive!)

Apart from the obvious "Whaddaya think of my choice of bits?", I have a couple of questions I'd appreciate some advice on.

Firstly, does anyone have experience with OCZ for PSU? I know they're recommended by a few of you on the RAM side of things, but if anyone has good or bad feedback on their PSU's I'd be pleased to hear.

Secondly, the Antec 300 comes with a rear and a top fan. I was looking to get three more Noctua NF-S12 1200RPM 120mm fans (two for the front, one for the side). Do I need to get filters for the new fans, or will these come as part of the case (the Antec website is a bit vague).

BTW - budget is £900 - £950 (including Vista 64), but the cheaper I do it, the sooner my wife will start talking to me again:D.
I do a bit of video editing and my current retail PC (4 years old) is really struggling. I'm not a gamer, but I have been getting more and more interested in the idea of trying overclocking. I don't want a Deep Thought, I just want to see if a dunce like me could manage it.

Thanks in advance for any comments or advice.

Simes
 
Hi mate

I would go for this as psu, one of the best Corsair 650W TX Series PSU - 120mm Fan, 80+% Efficiency, Single +12V Rail - Ebuyer.
As far as overclocking goes anybody can do it ;)

Thanks Oggie

I did look at Corsair as they do seem well recommended on this site, but I was hoping to go modular to minimise cables and therefore (I thought) maximise cooling. What is the normal method of dealling with the unused cables from a non-modular PSU?

I'd previously looked at the Corsair HX 620w modular, but it's £38 more expensive and would put me over budget before I start (but then again, what's a budget for but breaking?):suicide:
 
the i7 is a hungry beast, the 650w corsair is going to be the minimum wattage, might be worth stretching that budget and seeing if you can squeeze 750w. even asus' own power calculator recommends 750w minimum.... although im sure the corsair can punch above its wieght its worth remembering that the psu is the heart of the pc and its one area you dont want to skimp.... its easy to pop in another stick of ram or a graphics card but if the psu goes it can take the mobo or cpu with it...

and be prepared for the size of the cooler!! ive just fit a sycthe mugen 2 to my asus p6t deluxe and its enormous. lol.

the noctua is a good cooler but in the recent custompc group test it was 9th coolest under load. it was 6c hotter than the rest and if youre going to overclock this gap is going to be bigger. dont know what price youre getting it for but on scan its £55... the scythe mugen 2 (my choice) is only £37 and was 3rd in the group test. (by only 1c) the Thermalright ultra 120, cooler master v8, titan fenrir TTC where some of the other top coolers and are cheaper than the noctua too. id say save £15 and get the scythe..

i just put my system together for around £650 so not sure how you manage to go over your budget of £900. lol. from my calculations everything youve listed should be £820 at the most.. so youve got plenty of room to splash out for a nice powerful psu :)

edit: just noticed youre getting vista 64 aswell. so i can see how u get £900...
 
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the i7 is a hungry beast, the 650w corsair is going to be the minimum wattage,

Actually it uses less power than the 775 socket quads. I am running everything in my sig as well as a watercooling setup all from a Corsair HX620 (620watt). :)
 
Actually it uses less power than the 775 socket quads. I am running everything in my sig as well as a watercooling setup all from a Corsair HX620 (620watt). :)

Thanks Razor - I'd seen your HX620 quoted in your other posts, but wasn't sure if your major legue water cooling system also ran of this or if it had a separate supply, thus leaving more power available to the non-cooling components. BTW, your water cooling looks soooo cool and the posts on the installation of it are excellent:thumbsup:

While I appreciate that the Corsair brand name is extremely well regarded on this, and other forums, I was wondering if anyone had any reason to advise away from the OCZ PSU. Every review I've read of the OCZ PSU's has been favourable (maybe a bit noisy under high load) and I haven't seen any negative reports in this forum.

Thanks also to anothadave. I've dropped the Noctua in favour of the Scythe Mugen - it's actually a wee bit smaller than the Noctua so hopefully the Antec will be big enough to take it!

Houghsx - I had thought of trying the Win7 RC, but was uncertain how to load it up into a brand new PC. If I downloaded it, would I need to make a boot disc, or am I on completely the wrong track?

BTW guys, thanks a lot for all the advice. It's very comforting having this kind of input for a slightly nervous amateur.
 
Thanks Razor - I'd seen your HX620 quoted in your other posts, but wasn't sure if your major legue water cooling system also ran of this or if it had a separate supply, thus leaving more power available to the non-cooling components. BTW, your water cooling looks soooo cool and the posts on the installation of it are excellent:thumbsup:

While I appreciate that the Corsair brand name is extremely well regarded on this, and other forums, I was wondering if anyone had any reason to advise away from the OCZ PSU. Every review I've read of the OCZ PSU's has been favourable (maybe a bit noisy under high load) and I haven't seen any negative reports in this forum.

Thanks also to anothadave. I've dropped the Noctua in favour of the Scythe Mugen - it's actually a wee bit smaller than the Noctua so hopefully the Antec will be big enough to take it!

Houghsx - I had thought of trying the Win7 RC, but was uncertain how to load it up into a brand new PC. If I downloaded it, would I need to make a boot disc, or am I on completely the wrong track?

BTW guys, thanks a lot for all the advice. It's very comforting having this kind of input for a slightly nervous amateur.

Regards W7 - indeed - download, burn to DVD and install - simple. It's rock solid and free!

Another vote for Corsair 620hx - rock solid and quiet. runs all my water cooling, fans, fan controller, 3 hard drives, dvd etc.

You could probably be fine with a 520HX corsair @ about £70. With only one hard drive and a few case fans and a mid range gfx card you should be absolutely fine with 520hx. 620hx is more expensive but also might give you more head room for future upgrades.
 
the noctua is bigger than the scythe?? lol. watch out for that patriot ram too, theyve got biggish heatsink coolers havent they? ive actually got ocz 12800 ram and theyve got about 3mm clearance. but you can move the fan up and down slightly because its on spring clips so the patriots should just squeeze in...

i think the i7 920 isnt too bad at stock speed, but overclocked its actually more power hungry than the 940 and 965! the 4770 graphics card isnt too bad though so overall the 620w should be ok, a corsair 620w is probably better than most 700w from cheaper manufactures anyway. if you want the OCZ psu it should be fine as an alternative. theyre a respected brand aswell.

im tempted to give windows 7 a try too. but got so much stuff on my xp install i dont want to lose it.. might try a dual install... :)
 
the noctua is bigger than the scythe?? lol. watch out for that patriot ram too, theyve got biggish heatsink coolers havent they? ive actually got ocz 12800 ram and theyve got about 3mm clearance. but you can move the fan up and down slightly because its on spring clips so the patriots should just squeeze in...

i think the i7 920 isnt too bad at stock speed, but overclocked its actually more power hungry than the 940 and 965! the 4770 graphics card isnt too bad though so overall the 620w should be ok, a corsair 620w is probably better than most 700w from cheaper manufactures anyway. if you want the OCZ psu it should be fine as an alternative. theyre a respected brand aswell.

im tempted to give windows 7 a try too. but got so much stuff on my xp install i dont want to lose it.. might try a dual install... :)
I think it's a bit bigger. The Scythe is coming in at 130mm x 100mm x 158mm with the fan being 120mm x 120mm x 25mm. The noctua is 158mm x 126mm x 95-120mm(?) with two 120mm x 120mm x 25mm fans. Don't know if the fans are included in the overall dimensions. Also don't know what the 25mm variance on the Noctua is - maybe if you only install one fan?!?

I'll give the Patriot RAM a go - hopefully I can crowbar it in.

I'll do some serious thinking over the weekend over the PSU. The OCZ is very tempting at that price and hopefully there would be enough under the hood that it wouldn't have to work too hard. However, I do appreciate that the experienced heads here are pointing towards Corsair.

To RC or not to RC, that's the question. I've currently got all my data backed up (I'm that nervous of my current PC!), but it doesn't help that my internet connection is as slow as a valliumed tortoise. "May take several hours to download" is Microsoft's estimate - I might be better off measuring with a calander than a clock!
 
To RC or not to RC, that's the question. I've currently got all my data backed up (I'm that nervous of my current PC!), but it doesn't help that my internet connection is as slow as a valliumed tortoise. "May take several hours to download" is Microsoft's estimate - I might be better off measuring with a calander than a clock!

just start the download and leave it on - overnight if needed.
 
you can get windows 7 on torrents aswell. just make sure its the latest version, might prove quicker than through microsofts own website. im sure youll have no problem with the ocz psu if thats the one you prefer. aslong as u steer clear of the unbranded rubbish then theres plenty of decent psus to choose from.

i believe youre correct in the 25mm variance. one is with the two fans, one is without. u shouldnt need the back fan to be honest as thats about an inch away from where most case fans are! and having two fans so close together is pointless. aslong as you got one on the memory stick side pushing air towards the back of the case youll be fine. the case fan will then carry on with the job.

one other thing to think about is the thermal paste. the one with the cooler is unbranded, im not sure how good it is so i got a tube of artic silver V for a couple quid.
 
I'm another that has just done a new i7 system build and have downloaded and installed Win7. Win7 was no hassle at all :)
 
O I use an Enermax 500W modular PSU. Its powering the i7 920, Ati 4890, and 3 sata drives with no problems. I don't oc the cpu.
 
Thanks Razor - I'd seen your HX620 quoted in your other posts, but wasn't sure if your major legue water cooling system also ran of this or if it had a separate supply, thus leaving more power available to the non-cooling components. BTW, your water cooling looks soooo cool and the posts on the installation of it are excellent:thumbsup:

While I appreciate that the Corsair brand name is extremely well regarded on this, and other forums, I was wondering if anyone had any reason to advise away from the OCZ PSU. Every review I've read of the OCZ PSU's has been favourable (maybe a bit noisy under high load) and I haven't seen any negative reports in this forum.

Cheers Simes :smashin:

I am running a i7 overclocked to 4.0ghz along with 3 HDD, dvd drive, 4870X2, 4 case fans etc... The corsair does a fine job at powering all these with no problems.

The benefit of going with the corsair is silent running even when its loaded up as I have done.
As anothadave says the corsair HX620 can often outperform 700w psu's. It has triple 12v rails and is rated at 50amps. Its also a better psu than the Corsair 650 watt. Its such a good psu I have two of them and replaced one of my pc's fanless psu with one of these and its quieter. My other fanless psu used to make a low humming noise which my corsair HX620 doesnt. :)
 
OK, I'm pretty much decided (didn't quite take all weekend, did it?).

While I've got no qualms about the HX620 powering everything, especially as I'll probably have half the power draw Razor has, I'm still nervous about not having enough if I want to expand or experiment.

So, I've decided on a Corsair HX750 instead.:rotfl:

If I go with Win7 RC instead of Vista, I can up the ante on the PSU & HDD and still have change for a deep fried Mars bar.

Anothadave - I was looking at the OCZ Freeze Extreme paste. It gets very good reviews, and before you ask, no, I don't work for OCZ:D

This is probably where everyone comes back with "Dear God man! You can't go for the HX750. It sounds like a jet engine and has half the power of an AAA battery!".

Thanks for all the help. I'm now going to broach the subject with my wife. If I'm not back in three days, send a search party.
 
I would go for TX personally, know its not modular but its better :rotfl: By the way good luck with the boss
 
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OK, I'm pretty much decided (didn't quite take all weekend, did it?).

While I've got no qualms about the HX620 powering everything, especially as I'll probably have half the power draw Razor has, I'm still nervous about not having enough if I want to expand or experiment.

So, I've decided on a Corsair HX750 instead.:rotfl:

If I go with Win7 RC instead of Vista, I can up the ante on the PSU & HDD and still have change for a deep fried Mars bar.

Anothadave - I was looking at the OCZ Freeze Extreme paste. It gets very good reviews, and before you ask, no, I don't work for OCZ:D

This is probably where everyone comes back with "Dear God man! You can't go for the HX750. It sounds like a jet engine and has half the power of an AAA battery!".

Thanks for all the help. I'm now going to broach the subject with my wife. If I'm not back in three days, send a search party.

I didnt realise the HX750 and HX850 were out already. Excellent choice there Simes. :smashin:
 
lol nowt wrong with ocz simes :p ive had ocz ram for last 2 years and just popped in 3 sticks of the ocz ddr3 currently ticking over at 1600mhz :) buyin the seperate paste is good because you know exactly what youre getting. finished my system build yesterday and waiting for a day off so i can have a go at this overclocking lark!
 
lol nowt wrong with ocz simes :p ive had ocz ram for last 2 years and just popped in 3 sticks of the ocz ddr3 currently ticking over at 1600mhz :) buyin the seperate paste is good because you know exactly what youre getting. finished my system build yesterday and waiting for a day off so i can have a go at this overclocking lark!

How long do you let the paste settle before O/C or is that a myth?
 
I'm now going to broach the subject with my wife. If I'm not back in three days, send a search party.

Logged on Today 1:06 AM, so your still alive :D but are all your body parts still intact?
 
How long do you let the paste settle before O/C or is that a myth?

About 3 seconds. :D

Some TC do improve once they have cured but your only looking at a few degrees difference. :)
 
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Logged on Today 1:06 AM, so your still alive :D but are all your body parts still intact?
Alive and kicking! Senior Management approval received.:clap:

I just haven't been logging on much this weekend cos I've been waiting for Win7 RC to finish downloading. It's now safely sitting on my desktop, a USB stick and my back-up drive (can't be too careful) after a 28 hour download:D

I now have to try and download an ISO burner or something and burn it to DVD ready for installing. I'll check the MS instructions to make sure. Is an ISO burner different to a normal DVD burning application?

I'll be ordering the components tonight, but with a few of them out of stock, I'll be lucky to see everything here before next weekend. Still, patience is a virtue. And a song by Take That. And a different song by Guns'n'Roses.

I was going for the Asus HD4770 cos it's a couple of pence cheaper than the others, but is there anything to choose between Asus, Sapphire and XFX? Sorry, I know I shouldn't drift off into the graphics here on the MB, CPU & PSU threads, but hopefully no-one will notice:D

Thanks for all the advice. Believe it or not, having this forum proabably helped persuade my wife that this is the best route to go down. I got some excellent advice here last year on a new home theatre system (which she loves) and she appreciates how much expertise sits here.
 
I would go for TX personally, know its not modular but its better :rotfl: By the way good luck with the boss
I know there are advantages to the modular system in that fewer cables mean less clutter and more airflow, but is there any reason to go with non modular over modular?
 

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