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I've had a Pentium dual core build for several years now, so I decided it was time for something new. So I went and bought myself a sandybridge build 
I received this last week, and got it built then, except I had to take the HDDs out of my old PC to use, so I didn't get to use it for an extra couple of days, then I've been quite busy, but OCing it when I have time, and I've only just got round to getting any pictures up (as I know how much all of you like pictures of shiny things
)
First of all, the whole lot:
A picture of all items, minus the case (so you can get a better look):
Consists of:
Coolermaster HAF-X
Asus P8P67 Pro
Intel 2500k
ATI HD6950 (which I'm going to flash to a 6970 when I get the time)
Corsair XMS3 - 2x4GB
Noctua D14
And to power it all: a Corsair HX750
And an active mini-Dp->DVI adapter, so I can run all 3 of my monitors
Now to start taking stuff out of the boxes, and to start the assembly:
The case in the flesh, it wasn't actually as big as I was expecting, however it's a lot bigger than my old case.
After taking the GPU duct, and the PSU cable cover out, I added the power supply. Looks quite nice in the case, as if it was made for it
Now that the PSU is installed, it's time to get the main components sorted...
After inserting the CPU, RAM, and the Noctua bracket (I was going to go with the Vengeance modules, however after talking with Noctua support, they confirmed they wouldn't fit (which you'll see is true later)):
Getting ready to put the cooler on, in the picture, the cooler is actually facing the wrong way, as the rubber grommets on it, should be facing to the left.
After mounting the cooler, it quite dwarfs the board. I intended on getting a picture of the cooler next to the stock Intel one, however I forgot, so I can't show how different in size they are!
Now I've add the fans to the cooler, you can see from this picture, why it was a good thing I didn't go with the Vengeance RAM!
Now to mount the Motherboard into the case. Fitted quite nicely, if anything, looks a little on the small side in that case! I had a slight issue when installing the motherboard standoffs. It wasn't until after I had finished the build, that I realised that Coolermaster had included a small tool, to allow you to screw the standoffs in with a normal screwdriver. I therefore had to use some pliers, and I ended up slipping slightly and putting a small scratch on the motherboard tray. Luckily, the motherboard covers this up, so it can't be seen, otherwise I would have been very annoyed.
Time to add some cables. I've never been able to do much in the way of cable tidying before, as my previous case didn't have any extra space for it, but I feel I've made a reasonable job of it. One little thing that did annoy me though, was that the USB3 adapter that came with the motherboard, to plug into the header on the board, and go in a PCI backplate, came out perpendicular to the board, and was quite a thick cable, so made it hard to bend round a tight bend. This bothered me, as my case has support for USB3 on the front, so I wanted the put the PCI plate, with the extra connectors, behind the motherboard tray to connect them up. You can see the cable disappearing in the picture (it's the round black cable, just below the motherboard power connector)
Now it's time to add the graphics card in, which is rather huge in itself, but still plenty of room.
That's as far as I got on the day I received, and built the PC, but I plan to take some more pictures, with my ODD, and HDDs added, and a little more cable management. I also plan on getting a picture of my new case (and contained build) compared to my old case (and contained build), just to show how different they are!
That'll have to do for now though, and I welcome any comments, questions, or criticisms (although make them constructive, if at all possible please)
I received this last week, and got it built then, except I had to take the HDDs out of my old PC to use, so I didn't get to use it for an extra couple of days, then I've been quite busy, but OCing it when I have time, and I've only just got round to getting any pictures up (as I know how much all of you like pictures of shiny things
)First of all, the whole lot:
A picture of all items, minus the case (so you can get a better look):
Consists of:
Coolermaster HAF-X
Asus P8P67 Pro
Intel 2500k
ATI HD6950 (which I'm going to flash to a 6970 when I get the time)
Corsair XMS3 - 2x4GB
Noctua D14
And to power it all: a Corsair HX750
And an active mini-Dp->DVI adapter, so I can run all 3 of my monitors
Now to start taking stuff out of the boxes, and to start the assembly:
The case in the flesh, it wasn't actually as big as I was expecting, however it's a lot bigger than my old case.
After taking the GPU duct, and the PSU cable cover out, I added the power supply. Looks quite nice in the case, as if it was made for it
Now that the PSU is installed, it's time to get the main components sorted...
After inserting the CPU, RAM, and the Noctua bracket (I was going to go with the Vengeance modules, however after talking with Noctua support, they confirmed they wouldn't fit (which you'll see is true later)):
Getting ready to put the cooler on, in the picture, the cooler is actually facing the wrong way, as the rubber grommets on it, should be facing to the left.
After mounting the cooler, it quite dwarfs the board. I intended on getting a picture of the cooler next to the stock Intel one, however I forgot, so I can't show how different in size they are!
Now I've add the fans to the cooler, you can see from this picture, why it was a good thing I didn't go with the Vengeance RAM!
Now to mount the Motherboard into the case. Fitted quite nicely, if anything, looks a little on the small side in that case! I had a slight issue when installing the motherboard standoffs. It wasn't until after I had finished the build, that I realised that Coolermaster had included a small tool, to allow you to screw the standoffs in with a normal screwdriver. I therefore had to use some pliers, and I ended up slipping slightly and putting a small scratch on the motherboard tray. Luckily, the motherboard covers this up, so it can't be seen, otherwise I would have been very annoyed.
Time to add some cables. I've never been able to do much in the way of cable tidying before, as my previous case didn't have any extra space for it, but I feel I've made a reasonable job of it. One little thing that did annoy me though, was that the USB3 adapter that came with the motherboard, to plug into the header on the board, and go in a PCI backplate, came out perpendicular to the board, and was quite a thick cable, so made it hard to bend round a tight bend. This bothered me, as my case has support for USB3 on the front, so I wanted the put the PCI plate, with the extra connectors, behind the motherboard tray to connect them up. You can see the cable disappearing in the picture (it's the round black cable, just below the motherboard power connector)
Now it's time to add the graphics card in, which is rather huge in itself, but still plenty of room.
That's as far as I got on the day I received, and built the PC, but I plan to take some more pictures, with my ODD, and HDDs added, and a little more cable management. I also plan on getting a picture of my new case (and contained build) compared to my old case (and contained build), just to show how different they are!
That'll have to do for now though, and I welcome any comments, questions, or criticisms (although make them constructive, if at all possible please)
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or around the inside edge of the case for full effect 
