Build Noob and Case Advice

[Orpheus22]

Hey Guys,

So for years I have been one of those guys who thinks he can put a computer together no problem, and have always really wanted to do my own. I have helped with others but never had the chance (well I did once but thats another story...). I was looking into get a desktop for my final year at uni and I was hoping to get a pre-configured unit, but I just cant get what I want, so its time to bite the bullet and DIY it (at last!)

Now I think I have all the vital components covered (im lucky that my gf has done this before) but im so stuck on case choices its stupid. I wanted to get something nice and sexy cool, with the potential for both upgrading and modding later on, when im finally earning a decent wage.

I have been looking at these cases;

Raidmax Aztec
Raidmax Sagitta 2
NZXT Hush (Black)
NZXT Alpha
NZXT Tempest
NZXT Lexa

Basically cases that are something a bit different. I have looked at the Coolermaster CM690 and Thermaltake 900. Of those two I prefer the CM690, but I know that loads of people have got these kinds of cases nowaday (although I know they are good for airflow).

The rig will hopefully consist of an nVidia GTX280 (just one for now ) a Q9550 CPU and a Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 (unless anyone can recommend anything better for a similar price). And BTW, I hate lots of noise.

Anyway, any help you guys can give would be greatly appreciated and I will be sure to keep you updated with pics of the rig when its going.

Thanks guys,

Orpheus

[Webby]

Just want to say your worried about spending more than £15 on a cooler when your spending ~£225 on the CPU and at least the same again on the graphics card... it does seem rather silly.

Spend a bit extra not loads £22 will get you a Xigmatek S1283 which will beat the Freezer performance wise and noise wise a much better purchase all round.
http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=700899

As to cases I have to say Silverstone tend to get my money as they are well build and look classy not show off wow but understated with an air of quality, they do tend to be a little pricey mind. The TJ07, TJ09 and TJ10 are the current top of the line but prices start at ~£200 the older models are cheaper with the TJ04, TJ05 and TJ06 offering nice quality cases, the is also the Kublai series which are cheaper than the Tremjins (TJ) but still well made and look good of them I would probably go for the KL01 which has the door as this looks the cleanest.

Other manufacturers to look at include Lian Li and Antec, depending on how big you are prepared to go Thermaltake's Mozart TX is definitely different http://www.specialtech.co.uk/spshop/...cat=370&page=1

[moogle]

Spend a bit extra not loads £22 will get you a Xigmatek S1283 which will beat the Freezer performance wise and noise wise a much better purchase all round.
http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=700899

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835233003

For him as I'm assuming he's from the US based on the list of cases

[Orpheus22]

Thanks lads. Nah im from the UK. I wasn't concerned with spending more on a cooler, but as I said, im a bit of a new boy to it and so dont know how much room these coolers take up, or how much stress they put on the motherboard.

Thanks for those cases. If anyone else has anyother ideas that would be great.

Iv also got to be very careful of my budget. Its about £1200. I think I have between £60-£80 spend on a case. Pretty restrictive, but im sure we can find something decent.

Also if anyone can suggest a good cooler from Novatech that would be awesome. Thats where im getting all my stuff from. Delivery on a single item at Scan is criminal!

Thanks again

[Orpheus22]

So i think that i have narrowed it down somewhat. I have been looking around and i think its down to these cases now;

- Coolermaster 690 (now one of my favourites)
- Antec 300
- Antec 900 (don't like this one as much)
- NZXT Tempest
- NZXT Hush

I honestly think it will be the Coolermaster. I think there is a lot of potential for expansion and modding.

What is everyone elses opinion, and will there be enough room for my GTX280 (maybe 2 eventually?) along with my new Xigmatek S1283

Thanks,

P.S. I redid all my components through Scan and its works out a fair bit cheaper. LoL.

[Lanky123]

If you are ordering from Scan and don't need to order immediately then you may want to keep your eye on the Today Only page. You'll often find a few of your items discounted on there, weekends are usually best. The deals change every day at around 1pm except at weekends where it doesn't change.

If you're interested in shaving the postage cost off too (you'll have to reach 20 posts without spamming ) then you'll want to read this.

[Hicks12]

What size is the gtx280 in length? ill check if there is room as i got the cm690. Its a nice case but some of it feels a bit cheap, once you get over that(not a big issue) then its great especially the tooless design. I have found no fault yet apart from no dust filters on the top(for top fans) as it gets dusty because of it. Highly recommend it for the cable management and the look of it .

[Orpheus22]

Thanks dude, it would be great if you could check the sizes. Iv been looking for cases for ages, its the last thing i have to nail down. I really wanted something different to start with and really didnt want a coolermaster (no reason, just preferance) but the 690 looks awesome and looks like it has real modding potential. Im sure the "cheapness" wont be a problem as its the first proper desktop im going to have owned (i have a laptop that has got me through uni so far, right little soldier it is! and i have a desktop at home but its an old skool mesh that we got about 10 years ago, so i suppose i lied (cant let the mesh feel left out) its my second desktop but the first i will be buying).

The dimensions that i found (dont know if they are the right ones) are as follows;

Dimensions L (Inches) 10.5 Inches (26.67 cm)
Dimensions W (Inches) 4.376 Inches (11.11 cm)
Dimensions H (Inches) 1.5 Inches (3.81 cm)

Off the top of my head, i reckon im going to need a larger case especially if i want two 280's SLI at a later point.

Also i thought i better outline whats going in the case;

- Q9550 CPU
- 1 x GTX280 GPU
- 4 X 2GB Corsair DDR2 (8GB Total)
- Asus P5N-D 750i SLI motherboard
- 500 GB Samsung Spinpoint F1 HDD
- Samsung DVD Burner
- USB Card
- 630W HiperPower SLI PSU
- Xigmatek HDT-S1283 Cooler
- Might grab some extra 120 fans too and maybe a cathode or two

But thats just about the lot. If anyone has any advice then please shout it out.
Look forward to hearing from you Hicks12 about case size.


Thanks guys,
Really appreciate all the help,

Orpheus

[Pob255]

Don't get that HIPER psu if you value your graphics card and cpu.
They have a bad habbit of dieing and takeing stuff with them (when the first hipers came out they were good quality, but that quickly changed)

Please please don't skimp on the PSU, no need to go silly but don't skimp on it, seeing hundreds of pounds worth of graphics card an cpu destroyed by an el-cheapo psu is not a good thing.

I was just going to say don't get the freezer7pro on a quadcore if you want quiet.
Novatech have the good old Big Typhoon, it's a little old and large but still a very good cooler http://www.novatech.co.uk/novatech/s...html?TT-BIGTYP
Also this Nexus LXM-8200 looks intresting, on paper it should be very good
http://www.novatech.co.uk/novatech/s...tml?NEX-LXM820

However if you're going to scan
then the Xigmatek HDT-S1283 is a good choise

Case
Large low cost: Sharkoon rebel12 http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=723376
instead of the coolermaster 690 have a look at the coolermaster 590
http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=797621
It's basically an updated version (usb+audio on the front is better) although I think it might be a little tight inside for a GTX280 (but so will most cases if I remember correctly)

[Webby]

Pob255 while I agree with you apparently they have got their act together again...

http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php...Story&reid=102

Well that review tells you how well it faired in testing and it was quite good, doesn't test longevity though.

I will say though good piece of mind by buying Corsair, Enermax, Seasonic etc. does make a lot of sense.

As for the case the 590 looks nice, should hold a long graphics card no problem (you only require a couple of cm longer than a standard motherboard) also the HardDrive cage which is mounted in 3 of the 5.25" bays can be relocated to any bay you like so a bit of extra wiggle room can be made available I would think. Although with the PSU bottom mounted I don't think this will be an issue if left in its starting location.

Oh and I second the Xigmatek no wait I already suggested that earlier

[tomawest]

I spent hours myself on a case for my new system and im sorry right now as i am jumping on a familiar bandwagon but...

You arent watercooling and are using a cheap cooler. This isnt going to be quiet. the "quiet" solutions arent really quiet compared to an extra 20 quid for something like the Thermalright IFX-14. I have this on a 9450 and Im using an Antec P182

I wanted to have a window on my 1st PC and as cool as it was to start with, i got bored quickly with the case. It would be too bright to run in the background when I wanted to sleep or it would just look poor because it would always be dusty. It also really doesnt help to block out much noise.

I chose the P182 because it looks awesome and simple as well as being well cool. Also with the PSU at the bottom and the positioning of the case fans I can use my CPU cooler without any fans at all and this really really keeps things quiet. Top of the budget at round 80 quid but i personally think that it is well worth the money.

[Orpheus22]

Thanks for all the advice guys. So out of these three which would be your ideal choices? Which would give me the quietest build? Are we still thinking the Xigmatek?

- Xigmatek HDT-S1283
- Big Typhoon
- Nexus LXM-8200

Also the next big barrier i have got is motherboards. Lots of people are telling me to avoid SLI and avoid 750i motherboards, or any 7 series for that matter lol.
Any experiences? I thought SLI would be best for my type of work; computer modelling and rendering, large files, and lots of photoshop. I assumed it would distro the work load between GPU's making for a better solution (of course the SLI-ing i am refering to is in the future when i can afford another gtx280, not right now).

Thanks again for everything guys,
Oh and i will look at PSU's and cases.

P.S. Does the 590 give ALOT of difference over the 690? I think the 690 looks alot sexier...

[Pob255]

Yes webby I just spotted that hiper have gotten better Anandtech review, seems like CWT are produceing the main guts of them and hiper are doing a few finishing touches.
Haveing looked at that jonnyguru and anandtech review, looks like hiper is back with a vengence.
although personally still don't like the mesh, esp on thoes coolermaster cases, as not only are they psu-at-the-bottom but designed for the psu to draw in air from below the case and vent the hot air out the back so they don't add to or use warm air from inside the case, building the psu out of mesh sort of throws that out the window.

For a very quiet psu look at the "be quiet!" range (yes that's the companies name) they are some of the quietest psu's on the market but not exactly cheap
http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=801619
Also modular wich is often nice as psu's are more and more resembling octopuses

You might want to consider the Antec earthwatts 650w psu, it's not very pritty but it's a decent unit (made by seasonic btw ) at a low cost.
http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=866142
ignore that pic it's a 120mm fan on the bottom as is most common now
http://www.antec.com/uk/productDetails.php?ProdID=04661

[Pob255]

Also the next big barrier i have got is motherboards. Lots of people are telling me to avoid SLI and avoid 750i motherboards, or any 7 series for that matter lol.
Any experiences? I thought SLI would be best for my type of work; computer modelling and rendering, large files, and lots of photoshop. I assumed it would distro the work load between GPU's making for a better solution (of course the SLI-ing i am refering to is in the future when i can afford another gtx280, not right now).

Ahhhh now we''re getting to it.
if you're not gameing graphics becomes very differnt.

For Photoshop, effect = 0, well very little, here your graphics card will do nothing in the way of off loading cpu usage, what's important here is colour output and correction and that is often affected more by your monitor and it's correct setup.

For 3d modeling, it veries, for actual renders it does nothing, that is down totally to the cpu and memory.
viewport can be off loaded to the graphics card, ie the window that you use when you are actually working on the model.
Now here's some bad news, gameing cards are not great for it (not bad but not great) while both nvidia and ati make "proffessional" graphics cards these are not that good ether, they are the best things you can currently get currently.
Unfortunately the best proffessional cards were made by wildcat and 3d labs who were driven out of the market by the nvidia/ati war and it's only recently that nvidia and ati's proffessional cards have overtaken the the old top end wildcat/3d labs cards. (oh and the original cheap prices of these proffessional nvidia/ati cards have now gone up so they are not cheap any more)
This is a biggest area were we the consumers have lost out in this graphics war.

If you're doing some high polycount complex 3d modeling then a single gtx280 is probably your best bet as a decent nvidia quadro or ati fireGL is going to set you back £900+

Don't bother with Sli the price is not worth it, esp as the motherboards are very pricey and you'll need to step up your PSU as well
A decent p45 chipset motherboard would be your best bet here.

EDIT:
If you really want to go SLi then you'd want a 780i (DDR2 memory) or 790i (DDR3 memory)
Otherpoint, Vista 64bit, you'll want that as well other wise 8gb of memory is pointless as a 32bit OS cannot use more than 4gb (less in most cases)

[Pob255]

Actually thinking about it for a bit, it might be an idea to drop down to a gtx260 or ati 4870
Use the money that saves on a antec p182 case (good for quiet and large) also add in a couple of extra hard drives, I'd say 3 or 4 decent 250mb hard drives and set them up in a raid array to improve access and write speeds.
Not sure exactly on which, I'm a little behind on Hard Drives
I think this is a good one http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=870464
Sure I'll be corrected if not.

[Orpheus22]

Thanks for that advice dude. So if im not SLI-ing then what would be the best motherboard? Budget of about £110-£120.

Im more than happy not to SLI as long as people are sure that it wont hurt my performance or anything, although in saying that, if im not doing it for a while i could just save up and buy a brand new top end graphics card.

And yeah i was going with Vista 64bit as i am shoving in 8GB of lovely lovey ram.

Ta lads