Upgrade spec check (£2k)

Trifid

Trifid

Trifid

Soldato
Joined
18 Feb 2006
Posts
9,837
Hi,

Looking to give my 7 year old i7 920 a upgrade this month. I use Vmware workstation a lot on my PC so wanted the extra cores and RAM and don't do a huge amount of gaming but like to have the option available (and will be using my 980 GTX)

I've put together these items as a rough idea.

My basket at Overclockers UK:

Total: £2,025.39
(includes shipping: £22.50)
​

Is the motherboard OK? Will it come with the latest BIOS for Broadwell-e? I did also consider the https://www.overclockers.co.uk/asus...cket-2011-ddr4-atx-motherboard-mb-689-as.html but Asus seem to have a bad reputation at the moment? Can these both boot off M.2 SSDs?

I really like the case, despite the price but am concerned about CPU cooling on it. I was going to have a Corsair H110 but am unsure whether the pipes would reach to the compartment at the back? I did do a custom water cooling setup over 10 years ago but would rather not go that route again. The Noctua doesn't seem perfect either with it being so large (and the case not looking ideal for air coolers). I did consider the H440 but looks a bit plasticy.

Anyone have any ideas when the SM961 will be out? I would upgrade the SSD to it, but haven't heard seen anything since it was announced a few months back.

Thanks for reading.
 
I did consider them a while back but decided I don't really want the power draw of a dual processor system and would rather have a more prosumer intended motherboard rather then entry level enterprise.

To be honest, it is more the case/cooling combination that is troubling me the most. I really like the case but have concerns over its cooling ability without a full water cooling setup. It looks like the Predator 360 is the only AIO that will fit, and it fits by being slightly compressed top and bottom of the rear section.
 
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Both those boards should boot from a M2 nvme.
(be aware that win 7 doesn't have native nvme support)
The SM961 is meant to be out second half of this year.
2 sm951's in raid 0 is another alternative (I think the 256mb ones were £80ish here a week ago, so worth keeping an eye on, though a single 961 is less faff).
From user forums, people seemed to prefer the Asus X99-a to the deluxe and more expensive versions as it was more stable.
Do you need 64gb of ram?
 
stuartharrison said:
Do you need 64gb of ram?
Click to expand...

I have 48GB at the moment and have peaked at just over half that. However I sometimes load OVA's for work with very high requirements and for the cost of RAM, I don't want to be limited and if it saves me having to replace it mid cycle (like I did previously) then great.

I might go the Asus then if it is recommended.
 
I'm skipping these broadwell's. Instead, i've saved some money and gone with a 5960X on a Broadwell-E compatible Mainboard for a possible future 10+ core upgrade. I'm so miffed at the new Broadwell-E lack of overclockability

I've currently got the Asus X99-A II Intel X99 in my basket. It seems like it's a very good board.

Actually, does that MSI X99A SLI PLUS even support the 14nm Broadwell-E ? I would check that first, it doesn't mention anything about Broadwell-E in the description. It does mention support for the Extreme Edition 2011-3 CPU's But yours is a K chip. Maybe worth ringing to ask before buying methinks. Also going off the review, this board seems funky on how you install the memory?
 
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I would pick a better case to be honest. The Inwin 909 is supposedly all about the looks although that's down to personal preference (not mine). The cooling is rubbish and it's little more than a hotbox. You basically have a single 120/140mm rear exhaust and nothing at all in the roof. The three fan positions on the very back do nothing for a convential setup and only come into play if you stick a rad in that position. You can do much better for a lot less than £333.
 
Case wise I think you couldn't go much wrong if you went with the Antec Signature S10 or something like the Lian Li PC-A75X Full Tower Aluminium Case they're both decent looking cases that move pleanty of air.

While I do like the Inwin 909 it seems they're purely for water cooling.
 
You're all correct with saying ditch the case I think. Shame as I love the looks of it. Their smaller ones seem to have better airflow, such as the 303. Also wondering if I'd actually get £500 extra value from the 6900 over the 6800, 2 extra cores for £500 has me doubting the value.
 
I wouldn't go for the 303 either. In fact I wouldn't go for any of the Inwin cases. They seem to be all about the looks and anything else is a afterthought. The 303 looks to be little better than the 909 for cooling. The Phanteks cases are probably the best for the money at the moment. Excellent cooling, they have really thought about cable management, dust filters, psu behind a shroud, good looks while still being very aggressively priced. From your interest in the Inwins though I am guessing the Phanteks are not your style. What about the NZXT H440 then? That's a fine looking case with good cooling.
 
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