New PC Build (last tedious thread, I swear)

[helpiveimploded]

OK, since I'm here, and asking advice from you lovely, lovely people (and laying it on a bit thick, as is my custom), I thought I'd post my finalised build here in case I've made some horrendous, obvious error that makes people hear a donkey sound in their head. Please let me know if I've done so, preferably by making the donkey sound then explaining exactly why.

Case : Corsair Graphite 600T White
PSU : 800w Coolermaster Modular 80+ Gold
Mobo : Asus P8P67
CPU : Intel Sandy Bridge 2500k
Cooler : Noctua NH-D14
RAM : 8GB Corsair XMS3 1600MHz 9-9-9-24 (1.5v)
OS Drive : 120GB OCZ Vertex 2 SSD
Other HDDs : 1TB Caviar Black
2 x 2TB Caviar Green
Graphics : 2x Sapphire HD6850 Crossfire (I already have one)
OS : Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit
Optical : Samsung Lightscribe DVD Burner
Sound : Creative Labs Sound Blaster X-Fi Extreme Audio PCI Sound Card
Wireless : Edimax EW-7612PIn 300Mbps Wireless 802.11 b/g/n PCI Express

So if there's any obvious bottleneck or possible incompatibility, please let me know. I think this is a pretty good build but it is my first one, so please be brutal. It's the only way I'll learn.

Thanks guys.

[Biscuit]

Power supply seems a bit OTT, you could probably go for a 750 or even a 650. Other than that there is nothing obviously wrong with it. You could go for a Vetex 3 i guess?

[Phage]

As per Biscuit. But overall - very nice.

[MSIC]

Cant see any obvious mistakes.
I checked that since you have 3 SATA HDDs, 1 SDD and 1 Optical Drive your motherboard supports all this - which it seems to.
I would recommend installing the SSD and optical drive first just to install the system (so as to prevent any confusion about where to install, and then connect all the others (remembering to ensure that in the BIOS / EFI it boots still from the SSD first).

It might be worth having a (re)read of Hexus' review of the Corsair case just before you begin the build, to avoid any little snags:
http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=26877&page=2

Should be good though.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Bulldozer is being released next month so I would wait until then to see how good it is!

[Attila the Bun]

As per Biscuit and CAT.

[MSIC]

As per Biscuit and CAT.

Ohh, i feel sad

[helpiveimploded]

Thanks everyone. You will all live on in my dreams. My dreams of gratitude.

[Biscuit]

It might be worth having a (re)read of Hexus' review of the Corsair case just before you begin the build, to avoid any little snags:
http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=26877&page=2

Should be good though.

I got the 650D at the weekend and i kinda wish i hadd got the 600T white... such a striking case. Please put up some images when the build is complete!

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

Ohh, i feel sad

If BD is a pile of reheated Ferret droppings perhaps you will be having the last laugh??

[helpiveimploded]

I will do, biscuit. Although it is my first build, so it is possible I'll just be posting images of smouldering wreckage.

[krazy_olie]

That x-fi card is not a real x-fi, it's an audigy with the x-fi software. Other than that it looks sweet. I would recommend the titanium or xtreme gamer x-fi (they are pretty much the same).

supposedly BD is delayed... In all seriousness it's highly unlikely that it's going to knock intel out the water. it way well be better value but it's hardly likely to make intel a bad choice. bear in mind there are benefits of sandy bridge such as the motherboards being more mature than bulldozer ones will be. Also we know it will be upgradeable to Ivy Bridge so some guaranteed longevity in there. For most situations these days having the best cpu really isn't the most important thing, in terms of gaming an i5 will be fine for a long time!

[Biscuit]

woahhhh i didnt spot the creative soundcard... get it out of there!

Stick with stock or go for an Asus/Auzentech

[Blackmage]

woahhhh i didnt spot the creative soundcard... get it out of there!

Stick with stock or go for an Asus/Auzentech

Nothing wrong with an XFI, just make sure you purchuse a decent one...

[Biscuit]

I have a personal dislike for creative, their customer support (including driver release) is piss poor. In tests the Auzentech and Asus cards generally wipe the floor with them aswell.

[krazy_olie]

Nothing wrong with an XFI, just make sure you purchuse a decent one...

Yep they are fine cards I've been using one for nearly 5 years! Windows7/vista gaming support is supposedly a tad better than asus, with allegedly a slight hit on fidelity, I have a decent ear and have had no issues with the quality of sound. Most of the driver issues seem resolved. The only problem I have is that I use cmss 3d virtual, which takes a multi speaker source and downscales it to psuedo 3d, you used to be able to trick windows in to thinking it had 5 speakers but now you can't. The result is that it doesn't work properly on some games which insist on using windows speaker configuration. Works best with hardware accelerated sound which is true 3d sound downscaled to 2 speakers. Works really well with source engine if you set it up properly.

I believe asus has some similar tech inside though.

P.s i may be biased I've been using creative soundcards since I was about 5 and I even did a uni project for them