Need some advise on building a core i7 rig

Cdaman · 03-31-2009, 10:50 AM

Hey Guys, need some advise

Im thinking about building a good gaming core i7 setup, but its been a few years since i done a complete build, so i just wana ask if this machine will run ok?

Ive only got about £700 to spend, and here are the components i think should work

CPU
Intel i7 920, Socket 1366 (B), Nehalem, 2.66GHz

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Intel...-Cache-8MB-OEM

MOBO
Asus P6T Deluxe V2, Intel X58, SLi/Xfire, Sok 1366

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Asus-...)-1600(OC)-ATX

MEMORY
TR3X6G1333C9 - 6GB (3x2GB) CorsairXMS3, DDR3 PC3-10666 (1333)

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/6GB-(...d-CAS-9-9-9-24

GRAPHICS
896MB EVGA GTX 260 SSC

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/896MB...-x-DL-DVI-HDTV

HDD
500GB Seagate ST3500418AS Barracuda 7200.12

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/500GB...MB-Cache-11-ms

PSU (is my current PSU which i would like to keep)
Antec truepower trio 650W

http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product.php?id=MTIyOA==

CASE/DVD rom also keeping

I would also like to upgrade to dual SLI or crossfire in the future, but have never done it before. Would i have to buy the exact same card in the future for SLI to work properley?

Once the prices for triple memory kits come down i will want to overclock as i already have a custom 360 watercooling setup which i would use again. But i am happy to run at stock speeds for the time being until i can save up some more cash.

**wrench97** · 03-31-2009, 01:15 PM

For a GTX260 we would normally recommend at least a 750w watt Quality PSU 850 or Higher to run SLI.

I don't see SLI being worth the extra hassle you only get a 10-30% performance bump for double the price of the video card and need a larger PSU, and a lot of games will run slower in SLI mode than a single card. You'll get better performance from a single GTX285 then 2 GTX260's but yes they have to be the same GPU, if the cards are set at different speeds or have different amounts of memory both will run at the lower Specs. but the GPU it self must be the same.

The X58 setups are still a little buggy in my opinion the i7 920 is about equal to a Q9550 C2Q If your looking for the latest and greatest and like tweaking then the x58 system fit your needs, if you just want build and forget look at a P45 or x48 setup with a Q9650.

That said all that have listed are compatible and will work together.

Scythe X10 · 03-31-2009, 02:45 PM

I just want to say something I've found during my research on i7 builds.

It seems some people have had compatibility issues when pairing Asus boards (Deluxe V2 specifically) and Corsair memory, Some people have had a hassle getting the board to see the memory. It seems OCZ Plats do not have this issue and I've seen ZERO issues regarding Asus DV2 and OCZ gold/plats.

Like I said, I found this during research and I would not know for a fact if this is the case.

03-31-2009, 10:50 AM	#1 (permalink)
Cdaman Registered User Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 9 OS: xp pro	Need some advise on building a core i7 rig Hey Guys, need some advise Im thinking about building a good gaming core i7 setup, but its been a few years since i done a complete build, so i just wana ask if this machine will run ok? Ive only got about £700 to spend, and here are the components i think should work CPU Intel i7 920, Socket 1366 (B), Nehalem, 2.66GHz http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Intel...-Cache-8MB-OEM MOBO Asus P6T Deluxe V2, Intel X58, SLi/Xfire, Sok 1366 http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Asus-...)-1600(OC)-ATX MEMORY TR3X6G1333C9 - 6GB (3x2GB) CorsairXMS3, DDR3 PC3-10666 (1333) http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/6GB-(...d-CAS-9-9-9-24 GRAPHICS 896MB EVGA GTX 260 SSC http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/896MB...-x-DL-DVI-HDTV HDD 500GB Seagate ST3500418AS Barracuda 7200.12 http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/500GB...MB-Cache-11-ms PSU (is my current PSU which i would like to keep) Antec truepower trio 650W http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product.php?id=MTIyOA== CASE/DVD rom also keeping I would also like to upgrade to dual SLI or crossfire in the future, but have never done it before. Would i have to buy the exact same card in the future for SLI to work properley? Once the prices for triple memory kits come down i will want to overclock as i already have a custom 360 watercooling setup which i would use again. But i am happy to run at stock speeds for the time being until i can save up some more cash.

03-31-2009, 01:15 PM	#2 (permalink)
wrench97 Moderator, Hardware Team Join Date: May 2008 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania Posts: 18,527 OS: Win7	Re: Need some advise on building a core i7 rig For a GTX260 we would normally recommend at least a 750w watt Quality PSU 850 or Higher to run SLI. I don't see SLI being worth the extra hassle you only get a 10-30% performance bump for double the price of the video card and need a larger PSU, and a lot of games will run slower in SLI mode than a single card. You'll get better performance from a single GTX285 then 2 GTX260's but yes they have to be the same GPU, if the cards are set at different speeds or have different amounts of memory both will run at the lower Specs. but the GPU it self must be the same. The X58 setups are still a little buggy in my opinion the i7 920 is about equal to a Q9550 C2Q If your looking for the latest and greatest and like tweaking then the x58 system fit your needs, if you just want build and forget look at a P45 or x48 setup with a Q9650. That said all that have listed are compatible and will work together. __________________ Power Supply and Selection

03-31-2009, 02:45 PM	#3 (permalink)
Scythe X10 Registered User Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 64 OS: Vista32	Re: Need some advise on building a core i7 rig I just want to say something I've found during my research on i7 builds. It seems some people have had compatibility issues when pairing Asus boards (Deluxe V2 specifically) and Corsair memory, Some people have had a hassle getting the board to see the memory. It seems OCZ Plats do not have this issue and I've seen ZERO issues regarding Asus DV2 and OCZ gold/plats. Like I said, I found this during research and I would not know for a fact if this is the case. Last edited by Scythe X10; 03-31-2009 at 02:47 PM.