Project: Virgin Enthusiast Build

DeeJayCee

DeeJayCee

DeeJayCee

Associate
Joined
7 Apr 2010
Posts
306
Location
St Albans, UK
That all too well known feeling where the heart starts to brighten up, there seems to be more light in the sky, smiles are more forthcoming and blood starts to turn to gently bubbling tomatoe and basil soup with a hint of red chilli (seeds left in)...

My entire life I have bought computers based on the price/performanc curve. This lead me down the route of bang per buck. Over the years I have owned matrox, amd, ati, intel and nvidia. But all purchases based on a product bang per buck basis as I am totally against brand loyalty.

However....

I am now in a position to afford an enthusiast class PC! All components from scratch, including new case and monitor. Infact, the only surviving piece of hardware will likely be my Razer mouse.

So here it is. Nothing special by the standards set by some on here. But to me, my dream machine will be getting ordered Wednesday. I have booked Friday and Monday off and if you hadn't gathered already, I'm a tad excited.

Specs will be posted here tomorrow once one lucky OCUK member of staff has put up with me on the phone around tomorrow lunchtime for probably an hour or so!

Rawk!
 
mmm... soup.... I like spicy soup... and oh yeah... PC builds too, very much so !

Plenty of pics for us, yes ? Not good to hog all that sweet virgin enthusiasm ! ...damn, that came out wrong lol. :p



- Ordokai
 
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Know exactly what you mean mate, PC parts make me horny too :D

I also booked Fri and Mon off work when I built my rig in sig :)
 
DeeJayCee said:
Just finalising the spec with OCUK now, whoop!
Click to expand...

With the thread and all, might as well keep us in the loop. Post your ideas, a screenie of the currently planned basket etc. We'll be sure to come up with helpful comments and suggestions to better it, fun for us !

Community collaboration for-the-win. :cool:

Unless of course you feel that, given all the bubbling enthusiasm, sharing it now would be.... too revealing and intimate, if so, promises of gentleness are made. :D


- Ordokai
 
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Still waiting back on OCUK :)

agreed bits and bobs:

i7 920
X58 UD7
Corsair XMS 1600MHz
2x 480GTX
Windoze 7 x64

watercooling setup being finalised, as is the case to fit it all in. Will be running CPU, mobo and both 480s under water.

Any constructive / funny comments welcome :)
 
The max I can without getting silly on the voltages. CPU around 4.2GHz and gfx cards I expect to give a 15% to 20% boost each.
 
DeeJayCee said:
The max I can without getting silly on the voltages. CPU around 4.2GHz and gfx cards I expect to give a 15% to 20% boost each.
Click to expand...

Sweet, sounds good. Any info of your WC setup? Blocks, rads etc?

You do realise I expect this to be a build of epic proportion, so don't dissapoint me!
 
Haha!
I'm no experienced builder. Although I'm not afraid to pick up a dremel, I prefer to leave things alone.

This build is more about performance and silence than bling/trick building.

I'm coming from a 3800+ athlon and 8800gts so will be like upgrading to a Ferrari!
 
Radiators.....

Numerous PSU calculators put my power usage at around 800w (though will be getting a psu higher than that for some headroom)

so let's say 850w heat for the rad to play with.

I can't see me getting to a temp delta of 2 or even 5 degrees. But would like to aim for 10 degrees if I can.

Two 120.3 rads will achieve this (I think) with 1000rpm fans.

My preferred case for this would be the Cosmos S.

Just got to figure out a fan controller as would love the fans to drop down to 600rpm or less when computer is idling...

OCUK never got back to me today so will have to wait till Thursday to place the order for a Friday delivery.

Ooooh, cold beers for me tonight to calm me down a bit I think!
 
1x Intel Core i7 920 D0 Stepping (SLBEJ) 2.66GHz (Nehalem) (Socket LGA1366) - Retail
1x Corsair XMS3 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 (1600MHz) Tri-Channel (TR3X6G1600C9)
1x Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD7 Intel X58 (Socket 1366) DDR3 Motherboard
2x OcUK Value GeForce GTX 480 1536MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
1x Western Digital Caviar Green 2TB SATA-II 64MB Cache - OEM (WD20EARS)
1x BeQuiet Dark Power Pro P8 1200W Modular Power Supply
1x Akasa Dual 2.5" SSD/HDD Mounting Kit
1x Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-00599)
1x Acer GD245HQ 23.6" 120Hz 3D Widescreen LCD Monitor (ET.UG5HE.004)
1x Sennheiser PC161 Pro-Gaming Headset (500927)
1x Lian Li PC-P80B Armorsuit Aluminium Super Tower Case - Black
1x LG GH22NS50 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM
1x Akasa AK-967 Nero Direct Contact Heatpipe CPU Cooler (AM2/AM2+/939/LGA775/LGA1366)
4x Fractal Design 140mm Silent Cooling Fan
1x Fractal Design 120mm Silent Cooling Fan
1x Crucial RealSSD C300 256GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive (CTFDDAC256MAG-1G1)
1x EK Supreme i7 High FlowClear Top (775/1156/1366/AM3) CPU Water Block
2x EK 480 GTX Plexi Full Cover VGA Water Block
2x EK FC Links
1x EK FC Bridge
1x Black ICE GT Xtreme 120.4 120mm Quad Radiator
2x Swiftech Laing D5 Vario MCP655 12V DC Pump
2x XSPC Single Bay Reservoir - Clear
12x Thermochill G1/4 Thread 1/2" ID to 3/4" OD SilverCompression Fitting
1x Phobya Variable SLI/Crossfire Connector 1 Slot - Black Nickel
1x 1/2" ID, 3/4" OD Clear Tubing - 1m
1x Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound (3.5g)
6x Sharkoon Silent Eagle 1000 120mm Fan - 3/4 Pin
1x XSPC RX240 120mm Radiator - Black
 
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So will be running it all under air for a bit until all the WC parts get delivered.

Not the case I had originally envisaged getting, but probably the best bet for all that kit.

Lots of rads and fans running at 1000rpm should result in a reasonably quiet system considering the performace it will deliver.

The UD7 will be getting air cooled for now aswell. I am looking into the full UD7 block available out there but need to figrue out if the air solution gigabyte provides is adequate. if not, then the integral waterblock on the UD7 may prove to be fit for purpose but will require a tubing size change to a thinner tube. I may then be forced to run the UD7 block in parallel with the CPU to maintain flow. We will see...

Will still have to mod the Lian Li a wee bit as will be mounting the quad rad for the GTX480s in the floor of the case so will need to cut a hole, install dust filters etc.

Comments welcome, particularly on the WC stuff.

I would also like to say a HUGE thanks to the OCUK staff (Sam in particular, thank you). They did some amazing leg work to come up with teh final specs above and I am very happy and looking forward to the build :D
 
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