Spec me a Core i7 setup (MB/CPU/RAM/HSF) + PSU

Sweey · 31 Mar 2009 at 10:37

Hi,

I'm looking into purchasing a Core i7 920 with an Asus P6T Deluxe (feel free to suggest alternatives) but am unsure which RAM and aftermarket cooler to go with and probably need a PSU with plenty of connectors to replace my Seasonic S12-600 which is a few years old - unless I'm strongly advised otherwise. I'd like the HSF to be fairly easy to install but good at its job.

I will be overclocking the machine and using my existing components for the rest of the machine, including a Radeon HD 4870, three internal hard drives, one external drive and a fan controller.

As I'll be replacing an E6850 overclocked at 3.6Ghz, I'm just wondering what sort of temperatures to expect from a Core i7 overclocked to a similar speed.

I can spend £1,000 at a push - would prefer less obviously

Dazboots · 31 Mar 2009 at 10:52

Sweey said:
Hi,

I'm looking into purchasing a Core i7 920 with an Asus P6T Deluxe (feel free to suggest alternatives) but am unsure which RAM and aftermarket cooler to go with and need a PSU with plenty of connectors to replace my Seasonic S12-600. I'd like the HSF to be fairly easy to install but good at its job.

I will be overclocking the machine and using my existing components for the rest of the machine, including a Radeon HD 4870, three internal hard drives, one external drive and a fan controller.

As I'll be replacing an E6850 overclocked at 3.6Ghz, I'm just wondering what sort of temperatures to expect from a Core i7 overclocked to a similar speed.

I can spend £1,000 at a push - would prefer less obviously

if u can spend just a little more on mobo get the asus rampage extreme amazing board.
i use the ocz reaper 1866 memory 6 gig. very cheap now.
and my psu is the coolermaster 1kw. all that with a i7920 u cant go wrong.

formatuk · 31 Mar 2009 at 11:42

I dont think the rampage is worth the money, get the Gigabyte EX58-UD5 Intel X58 and save yourself £50. Only 2 other boards that are technically better is the Asus revolution and EVGA classified which have true Tri-Sli cause of the NF200 chip, but are very pricey. The MSI Eclipse comes with a X-FI Sound card if thats anything your interested in.

Noctua NH-U12P SE1366 CPU Cooler seems to be getting the best results lately, bit pricey but worth it. And the Corsair TX 650/850 seem to be power houses at a good price.

My 2 cents

icey_haj · 31 Mar 2009 at 12:04

Top quality components there.

formatuk · 31 Mar 2009 at 12:51

^^ looks good and cheaper than my recommendations

Sweey · 31 Mar 2009 at 13:53

Looks like I'll definitely be getting the i7 920 with a P6T or P6T Deluxe and 6GB OCZ Reaper PC3-15000 RAM

Would I be better off with, say, an 800W PSU just to ensure there's lots of headroom on the basis that its well within my budget to do so?

I'll have to make sure the V8 fits - would it do so if a Thermalright Ultra 120 JUST fits into my Silverstone (can't remember which model) case?

Sadgeek · 31 Mar 2009 at 14:10

P6T Dlx - £247.24
i7 920 OEM - £229.99
Corsair TX750 - £103.98
Corsair XMS3(1600) 6Gb - £97.99
Noctua NH-U12P 1366 - £57.49

Total - £748.19

I think the Reaper memory is overkill, 1600Mhz is more than enough to reach 4Ghz OC easily.

Shame OC don't stock the Thermalright range of coolers, I'd have voted for the TRUE.

750W PSU should be more than enough to keep you safe for the foreseeable future, and the Corsair TX is rock-solid.

If you already have a TRUE, then just get the bracket for it, and save yourself £40

icey_haj · 31 Mar 2009 at 15:36

Yes he could get slower RAM, but that reaper is quite a bargain tbh.

The Coolermaster V8 is one of the best i7 coolers out there.

The BeQuiet! PSU is very highly recommended and 650W is more than enough for that setup.

Sweey · 31 Mar 2009 at 16:05

Right I'm on the verge of ordering now:

Asus P6T Deluxe £247.24
Core i7 920 £229.99
6GB OCZ Reaper PC3-15000 £137.99 (due to the good price)
Corsair TX 750 £103.98
Noctua NH-U12P SE1366 £57.49
Shipping £10.00
Total £786.69

The height of the Coolermaster V8 puts me off as its a tiny bit taller than the TRUE 120.

Now I've another concern which I've only just remembered: does the P6T Deluxe have onboard wifi?? That's going to be a necessity as my two PCI cards are a sound card and TV card.

EDIT: Right unless there's some on-board wifi miracle, I'm clearly going to have to buy a Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatality Titanium Pro (as opposed to the standard for audio creation reasons) with a PCI-E interface. Woe is me.