After your advice and a couple others I started looking into the 2500k's and will probably go that route with a P67 MB. I don't need SSD Cache and Intels onboard video, plus I couldn't find a Z68 board I liked. They were either into the $300+ range, didn't have what I want or I didn't like the color combo. Probably going to go with the Sabertooth P67, although I really like the Maximus IV Extreme

For water cooling do you guys recommend a custom setup or something already put together like Corsair and others have?

Ooooooooo so shiny

 

I have the corsair all in one and it works great. For a novice first timer it would prob be your best bet vs messing with building your own and having to be sure you get all the air out and so on. Before you pull the trigger on your mobo selection check out toms hardware for reviews. I googled p67 vs Z68 and there were some good reads and some solid P67 mobo's suggested.

 

They are just for looks and I had they laying around.

Yeah I just went SLI when it was not keeping up, but OC video cards can do well still But I agree 100% the full coverage blocks are crazy $$ ....x2







The water cooled NB is kind of over kill. The problem is that it bottle necks the system so I went with air. ideally I would have two loops and could do the CPU and NB on one and VC on the other.

I have a sivlerstone TJ07 radiators 3x120 and a 2x120 are in teh bottom with teh power supply






That foam sound deadener that you see there................... DOES NOT A DAMN THING!

Dusty now


I recomment a custom one because I think its fun. The prebuilt ones sucked back in teh day. They have come up, and are not pure crap now a days D:

 

Not too sure about the recommendations for a Z68, I've heard great reviews on p67s, but I guess z68's are the newer model. I haven't looked into them, but get yourself a nice sandy bridge 25k and do some nutty OCing!

 

Gotta question about memory, if a MB supports dual channel memory and quad channel memory is used, will there be any issues?

 

Pretty sure the memory will be just the same, it might just be the position it is installed like dual or triple channel memory.

 

Eh, you just cap our your memory, your memory will clock down to whatever you use. But again, that's why i like reading tomshardware to get more information. I like using things that I buy...

It's kind of like purchasing an STI, but you never go past 4krpm and never go over 70 on the freeway.
Or spending money to make some food, but realize you only got half of 1 ingredient, then the rest can't be made. Can't use it to its full potential. That's why ya research =)

 

Anyone know of any other video cards that help with multitasking and running programs like Photoshop and the like that don't break the bank?

 

PS eats RAM

 

Thanks sigma

Well just placed my order, actually went through Amazon which saved on shipping and didn't pay sales tax So an extra $100+ in my pocket.

Ended up changing a few things up and added a couple things to my build list:

Asus Sabertooth P67 MB
Cooler Master Silent Pro 1000W PSU
Cooler Master V8 CPU Cooler
Corsair Vengeance 16GB 1600 RAM
Corsair SE White Graphite Series 600t Case
Corsair Force Series GT 120GB SSD
Intel i5 2500k CPU
Windows 7 Professional SP1 64-bit
Saitek Cyborg R.A.T 3 Mouse
Microsoft Sidewinder X6 Keyboard
Lexar Professional USB 3.0 Dual-Slot Reader

Now to wait out the shipping time frame

Thanks to everyone for the advice and suggestions. I ended up passing on water cooling for right now since it is my first build, want to make sure I get everything up and running properly first.

 

You're using a NVid 440 right? My only comment would be your PS is overkill. Can't hurt to have a mondo one, but looks to be unnecessary for your build. Nice case - I have been eyeballing that one myself. Sweet build.

 

Thanks nokio! I agree, really like that case too. Not flashy but not too boring lol I was thinking the same thing about the PSU, probably shouldve went with something less powerful for this current build. But I do want to run a custom water/liquid cooled setup after seeing a few custom setups One day though lol

 

Yeah only used my 1k when I was super over clocking everything / benching and even then i dont think i hit it.

as long as its quiet.

 

Was checking out that MOBO - looks damn sexy to me. Well at least with 1000w you could go crazy SLI/Crossfire if you wanted (the temptation will be there).

At least you went with a quality PSU (and other components too ) it will make putting it together a blast!

Agreed on the quiet front, I have a Seasonic 750w that's overkill for me but I cannot recall the last time I heard its fan turn on. The beauty of these super-efficient PSU's is that they can be very quiet if you never put too much load on them. I guess with that said, for 04Imprez - you will likely never hear the thing!

 

anyone know if a ocz modxtreme 700w is good enough to power 2 6870?