Quick spec rating please

[Alexrose1uk]

I'm just going to start by saying that whilst my PRIMARY usage of the PC is video gaming, I do video encode at points which is why I'd wanted a CPU with hyperthreading. As it stands, the 2700K is only a few pounds more than the 2600K which is why I've specced that.

I also DELIBERATELY have not included a graphics card, as I intend to decide which new GPU to buy after the new ATI cards have hit and made thier mark.

Intel Core i7-2700K 3.50GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail
Crucial RealSSD M4 128GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive (CT128M4SSD2)
Gigabyte Z68AP-D3 Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard
Antec High Current Gamer 620W '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply
Samsung SH-B123L/BSBP 12x BluRay ROM / 16x DVD±RW Lightscribe SATA-II Optical Drive - Black (OEM)
Antec 300 Three Hundred Ultimate Gaming Case - Black
Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX)
Gelid Tranquillo CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2/AM2+/AM3/LGA775/LGA1155/LGA1156/LGA1366)
Arctic Cooling MX-4 Thermal Compound (4g)

Total:

£721.74 including shipping and the 15% Antec deal.

Screen/Windows etc are already sorted

Any thoughts appreciated

 

[Alexrose1uk]

No problem, will look into other cases.

The original case I'd been planning to go for was the Zalman Z9 and a Coolermaster PSU, but the Antec combo deal seemed good value

Whilst it's on offer, the Antec 300 is actually a couple of quid cheaper than the 100.

 

[Alexrose1uk]

Haha fair point.
Oddly enough the PSU and Case are the biggest bone of debate with this purchase with me.

The CPU is perhaps expensive with I7, and Ivybridge due in 4-5 months but I'd wanted hyperthreading to speed up the video encoding now and then and that doesn't come cheap (I have an entire set of HDDVD I want to backup before my players fail as an example).

It's the want to cut cost but not corners that hurts the most really, I sold my old gaming laptop for £850, so thats pretty much paying for this and a new screen, and the graphics card will be my choice next month I have a 4850 sitting in the box gathering dust so I'll use that for a week or two whilst I let the new cards come out, play havoc with the market and then pick the best value card I can afford.

Noise also comes into it, as it'll be going in my room, and that and the desire to get a little extra out of the I7 is the reason I added the Gelid

I also have a Nexus RealSilent 120mm fan sitting doing nothing I'll throw in as the front fan.

 

[Alexrose1uk]

It's not just the HDDVDs, as once I've got a machine capable of doing it overnight, I plan to run BD's I own through it as I purchase them, last one I ran through my old laptop even with a decent mobile I7, at my virtually placebo settings took about 20 hours, so I've waited until the revamp I was planning to do took place before starting.

The Antec Gamer PSUs are meant to be made by Seasonic, which usually means it'll be both solid and quiet so I'm not worried about that really
I think based on pricing it's probably between the two Antec models and the Zalman Z9. I've just not quite decided yet

 

[Alexrose1uk]

Sorry about belated response, had a band practice this evening

I use MKV too, but I tend to reencode to save space whilst retaining quality. Typically once reencoded, with either FLAC or the original source audio, I'm looking about 15-16GB a rip, which is just a little nicer than 25GB or more in some cases

I have to admit a small voice is also sitting in the back of my head saying 'just save the cash for now, get the 2500k now and Ivybridge later next year'...I'm trying to ignore it.
Also tempted to swap the motherboard as I hear the ASUS are better overclockers than the Gigabyte, which Kitguru at last found dissapointing (although I've seen better reports elsewhere), that said even Kitguru's 'dissapointing' was running a 2700K at 4.6-65Ghz which sounds plenty fast to me, especially coming from a clarkdale processor which loaded at 2-2.4Ghz
(And as I was planning to spend money on a better cooler to help with noise, it'd be a real shame not to overclock )

 

[Alexrose1uk]

Ordered

Had to change the Antec 620W to the 750W model for another £8 as someone else ordered the last one at some point between putting it in the basket and order confirmation but it's all good, and should last a little longer. (can't complain with the £15 off knocking it down to about £70 for a decent Seasonic PSU)

Potentially a little more efficient too as I'll be using a lower percentage of the output, and should cope with Crossfire if I decide to go there

Also decided to spend the extra money and grab an extra 8GB of RAM as it's sooooo cheap right now, and whilst it probably won't be needed, PCs tend to stick around in this family and it could come in handy at a later date.

 

[Alexrose1uk]

I've gone for the 100 in the end, due to having another 300 in the household
That said, I'm waiting before picking up the GPU, simply but with a new series just on the horizon, I'd like to see what that brings at what price points, and what it does to the old cards and thier price points on release and the week or two after.

The cards are due to be released in the next week or two, so I see no harm in waiting when I have a 4850 sitting doing nothing to tide me by

 

[Alexrose1uk]

Sorry RJC, ended up not taking any pictures of the build, as in a rage inducing moment after working out during the build how I was meant to attach the cooler, I realised one of the mounting screws was knackered

Luckily I bought the retail CPU so I've been able to get the system running, but man is the official stock cooler awful heh. Very quiet, but cooling is rather poor, they really should have bundled a better cooler with the premier consumer CPU, it's smaller than the ones you used to get with some of the C2D, and under stressed load it does get more than a little toasty
(70-80 degrees is apparently normal...made me jump the first time I saw it!!)

Hoping to get a replacement Gelid sorted out soon, and will take some pictures then.
The plus side is even running at stock, the system is very fast, the W7 logo doesnt even finish spinning before it stops and windows goes to desktop.

 

[Alexrose1uk]

Yeah, I was just a little angry when I realised, luckily the Antec 100 makes the backplate of the CPU cooler easy to access so I probably wont have to remove the motherboard to change the cooler...hopefully!

The 2700K stock cooler is absolutely pitiful though, not only is it absolutely tiny, the CPU shoots from Idle temps of just shy of 40 degrees up to late 70s and 80s if you decide to say run linpack on it. Terrible performance!

 

[Alexrose1uk]

I actually thought it was quiet quiet for a stock cooler (or mine is at least), its the performance I had the beef with! My thoughts are a stock cooler whilst not performing amazingly should keep a CPU within tolerances, which it only just seems capable of doing (I mean 80+ degrees when stress tested, thank god it doesnt get that hot normally!).

I certainly won't be doing any encoding or the likes until I've replaced it, I wouldn't want to risk my CPU running 70s or so long term unnecessarily.

 

[Alexrose1uk]

Pics will be coming once I've got the Tranquillo sorted out
I was a little frustrated when building it the other day, and the PSU doesn't have modular cables so at the moment it's a bit of a mass of cables folded into drive bays and the like as I knew I'd be having to finish it off another day.

 

[Alexrose1uk]

Right, Tranquillo replacement arrived today (thanks OcUK!!) so I've managed to get that fitted this evening after work, and whilst it was a little bit of a pig due to space, thanks to the backplate cutout on the Antec 100, I didn't have to remove the motherboard, which did save a lot of time (glad I got the 100 not the 300 now!!)

Made a MAJOR difference to the temps too, stock cooler and linpack standard...late 70s to mid 80s
Now I'm hitting about 60 degrees and idling cooler too (went from ~40 to low 30s). Happy times!! Also added my Nexus RealSilent 120mm as a side panel fan, with attached Zalman fanmate knocked down to minimum (6v?) to slightly improve airflow into the case, whilst not adding much to the noise; there are no front fans and the current GPU isn't a rear exhausting type so I thought it was a good idea!

Also as promised some pictures of the build, now I've tidied the cabling up!!

And a quick pic of the new, improved temps

Much happier man than I was this time last week!