Gaming Rig w/ SLI-DR Expert - Plz Advise!

[palehorse]

Proposed Gaming Rig:

- DFI Lanparty UT NF4 SLI-DR Expert Mobo: $209.99

- ThermalTake Tsunami Series Aluminum ATX Mid-Tower Case - Black: $109.99

- Two (2) XFX GeForce 7800 GT Overclocked 256MB DDR3 PCI Express Video Cards bundled with an Ultra X-Finity 600 Watt Power Supply: $679.99

- Two (2) ARCTIC COOLING AVC-NV5R3 NV Silencer Rev.3: $61.98

- AMD Athlon 64 FX-55: $849.99

- OCZ Dual Channel Gold GX 2048MB PC4000 DDR 500MHz Memory (2 x 1024MB): $275.99

- Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD3200KS 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive: $142.90

- Asetek VapoChill Micro - Extreme (CPU HS/Fan): $41.95

- Viewsonic VX924 19in LCD Monitor: $349.99

 

Total thus far (Shipped): $2809.95

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Ok, as you can see, I've already put alot of time into researching this. The prices are just to show the lowest I have been able to find from reputable dealers. (And each item was linked to a review for your reading pleasure!)

 

The areas I am most unsure about are the case and cooling systems. I plan to initially go with an all-air solution, and then maybe down the road convert to a liquid-cooled solution when I have the time to do it right. With that in mind, and asthetics as well, is the Tsunami case a good idea? What other active or passive air-only heatsinks/fans will I need to get this thing cooled down enough for minor OCing?

 

Does anyone here have any advice on alternatives, problems they forsee, bad experiences, etc, with any of the above equipment? Any good/great experiences they want to share to make me feel better about spending this much $?

 

Thanks ahead of time!

[Angry_Games]

Ultra X-Finity 600 Watt Power Supply: $679.99

 

AVOID AVOID AVOID AVOID AVOID

 

 

click the PSU link in my sig to find a proper psu

 

also I would never personally purchase an FX- cpu

 

get a 4000+ and it will EASILY clock up to 2600Mhz, which is the FX's stock speed...especially with that great OCZ memory (4000+'s will usually clock up to 2800 or better)

 

save yourself $400 or $500 and forget an FX cpu...they are so not worth the money...

 

Thermalright XP-90 @ svc.com for $28 is the best bang for the buck in cpu cooling

 

i have the XFX 7800GT and GTX and they are excellent excellent cards

[palehorse]

AVOID AVOID AVOID AVOID AVOID

 

click the PSU link in my sig to find a proper psu

The only reason I was sticking with the X-Finity is due to the bundle at tigerdirect with the VidCards, and I hadn't read anything bad about it anywhere. Is there a specific reason you say I should avoid it?

 

also I would never personally purchase an FX- cpu

 

get a 4000+ and it will EASILY clock up to 2600Mhz, which is the FX's stock speed...especially with that great OCZ memory (4000+'s will usually clock up to 2800 or better)

 

save yourself $400 or $500 and forget an FX cpu...they are so not worth the money...

Will I be able to do so with the air-cooled setup you see above? Also, cant the FX go over 3ghz using that same line of thought?

 

Thermalright XP-90 @ svc.com for $28 is the best bang for the buck in cpu cooling

So you dont believe the XP-120 is better than the 90c? Or perhaps the Scythe Ninja? I am trying to decide between the XP-120, Ninja, and the Micro I listed above.... and so far, I havent seen any figures that show one seriously outperforming the others, so I went with the one that looked like the easiest to install, has a solid build, AND provides some airflow over the DIMMS...

 

i have the XFX 7800GT and GTX and they are excellent excellent cards

...EXCELLENT!

[palehorse]

"These quality brands are highly recommended,

however not every power supply they offer will meet your needs,

be especially careful to make sure that the +12V rail(s) offer a

Minimum of +12V@26A for Single Video Card Systems & +12V@34A for Dual Video Card (SLI) Systems."

 

I took that from the PSU thread after you suggested I read it...

 

now, based on what you read in the X-Finity Link from my first post above, do I add the two +12V lines together? The Chart at that link shows a +12V1 and a +12V2...@18A and 20A respectively.

 

does that mean it does 38A total, therefore being enough for the dual-SLI config?

 

or does EACH +12V have to be over 34A?

 

/confused

 

thanks ahead of time!

[lowboy]

Those PSUs known to be not great. Though each to their own I would never buy one.Buy for quality not just specs.Why ask for problems.

[Angry_Games]

ultra-x psu's = worst choice of psu you can make for DFI NF4 motherboards

 

use the search function if you want to find threads about them...or take my advice which I don't just give to make myself feel good...look for one of the "A" list psu's like the OCZ Powerstream 520w (highest recommended psu for our boards)

 

 

FX = I wouldn't buy one. The only 3Ghz you will see is phase change and maybe a watercooling rig or two...why spend $800+ for a cpu that is 2600Mhz when you can get a 4000+ San Diego for half or less the price that will overclock more?

 

Or an Opteron if you can find a good stepping...though they are not supported.

 

if you got money to burn and want an FX...get one...but you will find they don't overclock Mhz-wise very well since they are near their max limit

 

if your FX does 2900Mhz overclocked...and a 4000+ for half or less the price does 2900Mhz overclocked...which is the better deal? Mhz clocking is the key...not HTT, not FSB, not memory bandwidth...not anything but cpu Mhz (read the stickies in teh AMD - Overclocking section)

 

 

XP-90 aluminum = best bang for the buck. period. search function if you want to find out there's only a degree or three difference between any of the coolers...I bought 16 XP-90's this year alone, and purchased zero XP-120's, zero XP-90C's, zero SI-120's....thats just my opinion though...though spending money is something i avoid when i can get something as good for less (or better)

 

I havent seen any figures that show one seriously outperforming the others, so I went with the one that looked like the easiest to install, has a solid build, AND provides some airflow over the DIMMS...

 

*cough*XP-90*cough*

 

:tooth:

[shicx1]

if your FX does 2900Mhz overclocked...and a 4000+ for half or less the price does 2900Mhz overclocked...which is the better deal? Mhz clocking is the key...not HTT, not FSB, not memory bandwidth...not anything but cpu Mhz (read the stickies in teh AMD - Overclocking section)

I thought a higher FSB is better than more MHz. So is 10x260 and 9x289 the same performance?

[Angry_Games]

I thought a higher FSB is better than more MHz. So is 10x260 and 9x289 the same performance?

you guys need to do as i tell ya and read read read read read:

http://www.dfi-street.com/forum/showthread.php?t=27875

[StylesCD]

"These quality brands are highly recommended,

however not every power supply they offer will meet your needs,

be especially careful to make sure that the +12V rail(s) offer a

Minimum of +12V@26A for Single Video Card Systems & +12V@34A for Dual Video Card (SLI) Systems."

 

I took that from the PSU thread after you suggested I read it...

 

now, based on what you read in the X-Finity Link from my first post above, do I add the two +12V lines together? The Chart at that link shows a +12V1 and a +12V2...@18A and 20A respectively.

 

does that mean it does 38A total, therefore being enough for the dual-SLI config?

 

or does EACH +12V have to be over 34A?

 

/confused

 

thanks ahead of time!

add them together

[inphared]

The VX924 was the monitor I was looking at purchasing but a few people have told me that the Samsung Syncmaster 930BF is a better monitor .. not to sure .. maybe angry has a suggestion?

[palehorse]

The VX924 was the monitor I was looking at purchasing but a few people have told me that the Samsung Syncmaster 930BF is a better monitor .. not to sure .. maybe angry has a suggestion?

AFAIK, the 930BF is slightly faster on refresh, but the 924 has it beat on color quality, and is almost as fast... sooo, im going with the 924 personally. Both are great gaming displays, so it's totally up to you.

 

Ok, so, Angry: You suggest the 4000+ San Diego? How high will I be able to get that with ONLY air cooling (active and passive)? Let's say that I go with the XP-90, some passive heatsinks on the other onboard chips, and the Silencers for my two vidcards.... what else would you add to clock that 4000+ past 2.6?

 

just curious... let's just say that you have my attention!

 

ps: i'm going to read all of your stickies now...

[inphared]

Yeah I have 2 buddies that use the 924 and it looks awesome and there is abolutely NO GHOSTING. I actually heard the 930BF has better coloring though because the vx924 is 550:1 contrast ratio while the 930BF is 700:1. So itll give you slightly better color (so ive heard). I am an AVID Viewsonic user .. I currently use a 19" CRT and its awesome .. so its hard to make me switch brands .. but this is just what ive heard.