My current PC I built myself from the ground up about 5 or 6 years ago, upgrading components as and when I've felt the need to. Has been a great experience, learning from my various mistakes etc. However I feel the time has come for another upgrade, but, my current machine I think is at the stage where it would really benefit from having most if not at all of the components replaced and upgraded. A rough outline of my current spec:
AMD Phenom II x4 965
8Gb RAM 1600MHz
GTX560Ti
Corsair 128Gb SSD (+ external HDD)
Can't remember specifics on the case, mobo or PSU (writing this at work), however they're all old and a little tired.
The majority of the time I spend using the machine is for gaming, however I also do work on it too, which can involve manipulating very large XML files for example, hence my pick of an i7 over an i5. I have never overclocked a CPU myself before, and would definitely feel more comfortable letting an expert do this part. The RAM on the spec below is chosen for the relatively small price upgrade over lower speeds, and research I've seen linked on this forum suggests 2400MHz is where the performance increase tops out for the most part. The graphics cards, well, I currently run a dual screen 24" setup (potential to add a third down the line maybe), and I do wish to be able to max games on dual monitors, and (importantly) continue to do so for ideally 4 or 5 years, hence the SLI option straight off the bat. I like the idea of a modular PSU, enables me to have a tidier layout, and store away extra cables not being used (my current case innards are a mess with cables - don't want to repeat that). Case again picked for good cooling and airflow, along with the H60 water cooling.
My main questions revolve around lifespan, how long would this spec continue to be able to run games effectively for at max/ultra settings on two monitors would you envision? Is the motherboard overkill, would a simpler P8Z77-V (pro?) be sufficient? Is the H60 cooler going to be enough given the graphics cards, case, PSU etc? (I realise it's a CPU cooler, but ambient case temperature could come into it possibly?) It might seem a little over the top for what is essentially a gaming machine, but I would seriously like it to last 4-5 years without any upgrades if possible. Any suggestions on this front gladly welcomed.
Case
COOLERMASTER HAF XM - GAMING ENTHUSIAST CASE + USB 3.0
Overclocked CPU
Overclocked Intel® Core™i7-3770k Quad Core (3.50GHz @ max 4.60GHz)
Motherboard
ASUS® SABERTOOTH Z77: USB 3.0, SATA 6.0GB/s, THERMAL ARMOR
Memory (RAM)
16GB KINGSTON HYPERX BEAST DUAL-DDR3 2400MHz X.M.P (4 x 4GB KIT)
Graphics Card
2GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 670 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready
2nd Graphics Card
2GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 670 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
240GB INTEL® 520 SERIES SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 550MB/sR | 520MB/sW)
2nd Hard Disk
2TB WD CAVIAR BLACK WD2002FAEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W PRO SERIES™ HX750-80 PLUS® GOLD MODULAR (£119)
Processor Cooling
Corsair H60 Hydro Series High Performance CPU Cooler (£59)
Thermal Paste
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND (£9)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT - AS STANDARD ON ALL PCs
USB Options
6 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit w/SP1 - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 7 to 9 working days
Price: £1,836.00 including VAT and delivery.
Unique URL to re-configure: http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/quotes/intel-1155-overclocked/qRPC3YKkyx/
AMD Phenom II x4 965
8Gb RAM 1600MHz
GTX560Ti
Corsair 128Gb SSD (+ external HDD)
Can't remember specifics on the case, mobo or PSU (writing this at work), however they're all old and a little tired.
The majority of the time I spend using the machine is for gaming, however I also do work on it too, which can involve manipulating very large XML files for example, hence my pick of an i7 over an i5. I have never overclocked a CPU myself before, and would definitely feel more comfortable letting an expert do this part. The RAM on the spec below is chosen for the relatively small price upgrade over lower speeds, and research I've seen linked on this forum suggests 2400MHz is where the performance increase tops out for the most part. The graphics cards, well, I currently run a dual screen 24" setup (potential to add a third down the line maybe), and I do wish to be able to max games on dual monitors, and (importantly) continue to do so for ideally 4 or 5 years, hence the SLI option straight off the bat. I like the idea of a modular PSU, enables me to have a tidier layout, and store away extra cables not being used (my current case innards are a mess with cables - don't want to repeat that). Case again picked for good cooling and airflow, along with the H60 water cooling.
My main questions revolve around lifespan, how long would this spec continue to be able to run games effectively for at max/ultra settings on two monitors would you envision? Is the motherboard overkill, would a simpler P8Z77-V (pro?) be sufficient? Is the H60 cooler going to be enough given the graphics cards, case, PSU etc? (I realise it's a CPU cooler, but ambient case temperature could come into it possibly?) It might seem a little over the top for what is essentially a gaming machine, but I would seriously like it to last 4-5 years without any upgrades if possible. Any suggestions on this front gladly welcomed.
Case
COOLERMASTER HAF XM - GAMING ENTHUSIAST CASE + USB 3.0
Overclocked CPU
Overclocked Intel® Core™i7-3770k Quad Core (3.50GHz @ max 4.60GHz)
Motherboard
ASUS® SABERTOOTH Z77: USB 3.0, SATA 6.0GB/s, THERMAL ARMOR
Memory (RAM)
16GB KINGSTON HYPERX BEAST DUAL-DDR3 2400MHz X.M.P (4 x 4GB KIT)
Graphics Card
2GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 670 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready
2nd Graphics Card
2GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 670 - 2 DVI, HDMI, DP - 3D Vision Ready
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
240GB INTEL® 520 SERIES SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 550MB/sR | 520MB/sW)
2nd Hard Disk
2TB WD CAVIAR BLACK WD2002FAEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W PRO SERIES™ HX750-80 PLUS® GOLD MODULAR (£119)
Processor Cooling
Corsair H60 Hydro Series High Performance CPU Cooler (£59)
Thermal Paste
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND (£9)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT - AS STANDARD ON ALL PCs
USB Options
6 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit w/SP1 - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 7 to 9 working days
Price: £1,836.00 including VAT and delivery.
Unique URL to re-configure: http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/quotes/intel-1155-overclocked/qRPC3YKkyx/
