New System Help

Hi guys,

I'm new here and about to place an order with Scan in 2 weeks (student loan time :) ).
This is the order i'm planning (i've emailed phillip but just wanted to post for opinions - too excited to wait for reply!):

Case: Coolermaster CM 690 II Advanced Black Mid Tower Case
Motherboard H55 or P55 SLI: Asus P7P55D Deluxe Intel P55 Express -- i5 750 Overclock CPU & SLI Option --
CPU: Intel Core i5 760 Quad Core 2.8Ghz 8Mb Cache
CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro v2
Overclocking: 3XS Overclock i5 760 CPU up to 4.0Ghz
Memory - Selecting 8Gb will limit the overclock!!: 4GB (2x2GB) Corsair XMS3 DDR3 PC3-12800 (1600) CAS 9
NVIDIA Graphics - Multi GPU SLI Options Available when P55 SLI board selected!: 1Gb EVGA GTX 460 SC 763Mhz GPU 336 Cores 3800Mhz GDDR5
ATI Graphics - Multi GPU Crossfire Options Available when P55 SLI board selected!: *No ATI VGA Card Required* (NVIDIA Required)
Power Supply Unit: 650W Corsair 650HX Modular PSU - Needed for SLI or Crossfire
System Drives 3GB s: 1TB Samsung Spinpoint F3 7200rpm 32MB Cache
System Drives 6GB s: *Sata 6GB s Hard Drive Not Required*
Solid State Drives: *Solid State Drive Not Required*
Storage Hard drives: *Storage Hard Drive Not Required*
Optical Drive 1 - DVD Blu Ray: Pioneer DVR-S18LBK - DVDRW
Optical Drive 2 - DVD Blu Ray: *DVD Writer Not Required*
Flash - Card Readers & Writers: Akasa AK-ICR-07S 3.5" Internal Multi Mem. Card Reader Incl. M2 Micro SD & USB port
Sound Card: *Sound Card Not Required Use On Board Sound*
Internal External (USB) Wireless Adaptors: Edimax EW-7728In 300Mbps Wireless PCI Adaptor
Operating system: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit - OEM
Software - Acronis True Image 2010 complete back-up software. : A hidden partition is created & a complete system image is produced. Giving you the option to reset it back to factory defaults should you need to. The software also lets you create scheduled backups.
Software - DVD Blu Ray Decoding: CyberLink PowerDVD 9 - Movie Audio Player & Decoder Software
NVIDIA 3D Vision TFT Monitor - Requires NVIDIA Graphics Card: *NVIDIA 3D Vision Not Required*
Monitor - 23" LG W2361V, Black Widescreen LCD, 1920x1080, 50000:1 DCR, 300cd/m², 2 ms, 1080p Full HD - £160
Gaming Mouse Option: Logitech MX518 Gaming Mouse - 1600dpi - 7 Buttons
Headphones: Speed-Link Medusa NX 5.1 Gaming Headset


With a budget of around £1250, I have a few questions/concerns about this build:

1) I have read that this cooler isn't great for quad core processors. Any recomendations for a cost effective (ie cheap :o ) alternative?

2) The motherboard is expensive - I was thinking the Gigabyte p55M-UD4 as its around £50 cheaper but still has SLI support? (if I can get usb3 that would be a bonus so any suggestions appeciated).

3) are there any cables etc I need which are not included, adding more cost?

4) Was thinking of adding in the Speed-Link SL-8871-SRD sound card. Its a cheapo model but I've heard its OK - any thoughts? (related: will adding a 2nd gtx460 later cut off the slot for this or a usb3 expansion card?)

Factoring in the £30 cost of a G11 keyboard from another source :o this takes the overal cost to about £1350, assuming the UD4 MB and another £10 for a better cooler.

Any thoughts or suggestions to improve the build and/or reduce the cost would be much appreciated!

Thanks in advance,

George

Ah - i've just been checking reviews and the p55M-UD4 is a micro-ATX board so this would affect upgradability. Now leaning towards the Asus P7P55D PRO.
I am also pretty much resigned to not getting usb3 and SLI compatibility within my budget. Thanks Nvidia... :mad:

forget the sound card - just read this from hardwaresecrets.com:


'Another highlight from ASUS P7P55D PRO is its professional grade on-board audio, which will allow you to edit analog audio sources without practically non-existent white noise, due to its high signal-to-noise ratio (100 dB). Translation: you can use this board to professionally edit audio without the need of buying an add-on sound card.'

The 'professional grade' thing may be going a bit far but it should be enough for my needs. £20 saved! :rockon:

Hi

I recently placed an order for a 3XS system and my spec is identical to yours (click on 'shahid76s system'). I know it aint cheap but you should seriously consider the Corsair H50 watercooler as that is one of the best watercoolers around. Also if you want a silent PSU, then consider the 650W Seasonic X650 Gold series as that is probably the best PSU you can buy in this power range....not saying the Corsairs are bad. Other than that your spec looks good!:woowoo:

Thanks Shahid,

I would love to add the Corasir cooler but think it may be overkill, considering my budget, when a good air cooler will happily handle the overclock on an i5 750. Would be nice though :)

I'll have a look at that power supply though.

Thanks