Post your gaming setup!

[Drunkenvalley]

It wasn't rebranded, but spot on besides that.

[Asera]

Thinking of doing a complete overhaul of my rig in May, was interested in getting some opinions on this setup.

Hard drives:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16820233204 Corsair 90GB SATA III Force 3 SSD
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16822148837 Seagate Momentus XT 750GB SATA III

Memory:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16820231480 G.Skill Sniper series 4x4GB DDR3 1600Mhz Dual Channel Kit

Motherboard:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16813157271 ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 ATX 2x PCIe 3.0

Graphics:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16814125414 Gigabyte Windforce Radeon HD7950

Power Supply:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16817151102 SeaSonix X series 850 watt Modular 80 Plus Gold PSU

Case:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16811352017 Fractal Define XL

Accessories:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16811998091 Scythe Kaze Q12 fan controller, still deciding on what kind of fans I want to throw in the new case.

I am keeping my optical drives and my CPU plus the cooler, everything else I am going to sell, odds are I can still snag 700 bucks for what's left of my system on Kijiji. Since I got my work contract this past week and I am going to be doing my taxes in a couple of weeks, I will probably drop some money on a much nicer rig, but I am still going to keep my i7 2600k and the Corsair H80.

Aren't you in Ontario? NCIX has a location in Markham and Toronto.

[BicycleMafioso]

Graphics:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16814125414 Gigabyte Windforce Radeon HD7950

Power Supply:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16817151102 SeaSonix X series 850 watt Modular 80 Plus Gold PSU

I hope you are going to get three of those HD7950, else I would just go with a SeaSonic X series 460 watt fanless.

[Rennadrel]

I hope you are going to get three of those HD7950, else I would just go with a SeaSonic X series 460 watt fanless.

I plan on doing a 2x Crossfire eventually, however not at the time of initial purchase no, and seeing as how I am not really interested in dishing out a ton extra for a 3 PCIe 3.0 lane motherboard just to do triple Crossfire, I'd be happier with not gouging my hydro bill when using my computer

Besides, dual 7950's in Crossfire will be more then ahead of the pack for graphics performance for quite some time, I am not too worried. And if eventually I choose to triple Crossfire, the prices will be a lot cheaper by then.

---------- Post added 2012-02-12 at 09:37 PM ----------

Good stuff but not sure about case choice.

I have been nothing but happy with my Define Mini, it's a fantastic case for anyone who wants to do air cooling, and the Define XL is at least big enough to house a radiator if I want to go liquid cooling on my CPU later on down the road. Eventually when I Crossfire two of those Windforce 7950's, I will want that case to deaden the noise of the fans, something my Define Mini does exceptionally well for my 6870 overclocked with a cranked up fan speed.

[BicycleMafioso]

I plan on doing a 2x Crossfire eventually, however not at the time of initial purchase no, and seeing as how I am not really interested in dishing out a ton extra for a 3 PCIe 3.0 lane motherboard just to do triple Crossfire, I'd be happier with not gouging my hydro bill when using my computer

Besides, dual 7950's in Crossfire will be more then ahead of the pack for graphics performance for quite some time, I am not too worried. And if eventually I choose to triple Crossfire, the prices will be a lot cheaper by then.

Then you won't need anything more than a 550-650w PSU.

[Rennadrel]

Fair enough. I have a 750 watt Thermaltake Comet but I am going to sell it with my current rig when I upgrade. Odds are I will go for 650 watts just to be on the safe side then with this one:

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product...82E16817151088

I know it costs 10 bucks more then the HX650 from Corsair, but I would rather have the silent fan that the SeaSonic has.

[Skelly]

The screws are UNC 6-32 threads screws 5 mm.

I'm pretty sure when I was looking for extra rad screws for my XSPC rad they were 6-32s. I couldn't find anywhere that had em. I do have this website bookmarked though, http://www.performance-pcs.com/catal...x&cPath=60_236 never actually went through ordering or anything.

[Rennadrel]

Aren't you in Ontario? NCIX has a location in Markham and Toronto.

Yeah but it depends on the price differences whether I shop there or not. Some stuff is cheaper, and I probably will pick up the case from the NCIX store in Mississauga rather then have one ship from Newegg. Some stuff is cheaper even after shipping with Newegg, especially graphics cards. What it costs in shipping for most parts I will have to pay for in gas though so things like the case I will probably pick up. Since the prices are the same for the case, I will no doubt pick it up, cause 42 dollars for shipping is a lot of wasted money.

[Asera]

Yeah but it depends on the price differences whether I shop there or not. Some stuff is cheaper, and I probably will pick up the case from the NCIX store in Mississauga rather then have one ship from Newegg. Some stuff is cheaper even after shipping with Newegg, especially graphics cards. What it costs in shipping for most parts I will have to pay for in gas though so things like the case I will probably pick up. Since the prices are the same for the case, I will no doubt pick it up, cause 42 dollars for shipping is a lot of wasted money.

I don't think I've ever paid more than $10 for shipping from NCIX.

[kidsafe]

Then you won't need anything more than a 550-650w PSU.

It honestly depends on whether any or all of these components will be overclocked.

OC'd HD 7900 series ~250W
OC'd Sandy Bridge ~130W

That's already 630W without taking into account the rest of the system, and you really shouldn't be running a PSU at near 100% capacity for endurance and efficiency reasons. If he really plans on getting two high-end video cards, then I would suggest a 750W PSU minimum and more likely find him an 850W like a Seasonic X, Corsair AX, Kingwin Lazer Gold/Platinum, NZXT Hale90, etc. Or honestly because 80 Plus certification doesn't really matter that much, a Corsair TX850-M or NZXT Hale82 are absolutely fine.

[BicycleMafioso]

Nah. Using PSUs rated that high will reduce the expected lifespan, since it won't be at a significant enough load% while loading.
650w is fine.

[kidsafe]

Nah. Using PSUs rated that high will reduce the expected lifespan, since it won't be at a significant enough load% while loading.
650w is fine.

Many high-wattage PSUs are less efficient at ~10% load, that's true, but that really won't reduce the overall lifespan of the unit. Let's use a generic 750W 80 Plus Gold PSU as a baseline.

10% load = 83% efficiency = 75W DC and 90W AC ... 15W power --> heat
20% load = 88% efficiency = 150W DC and 170W AC ... 20W
50% load = 90% efficiency = 375W DC and 417W AC ... 42W

Now a 550W:
13.6% load = 85% efficiency = 75W DC / 88W AC ... 13W power --> heat
27.3% load = 89% efficiency = 150W DC / 168W AC ... 18W
68.2% load = 89% efficiency = 375W DC / 421W AC ... 46W

The difference in heat output is negligible, so that cannot really effect component endurance.

What can effect component endurance though is how many components are in the PSU. A PSU with bigger or more capacitors, transformers, filtering coils, VRMs, etc. puts less stress on each component. A PSU also tends to have its best voltage regulation and ripple suppression at lower loads... Voltage regulation is pretty much the most important factor for ensuring system stability while ripple suppression is important for ensuring the lifespan of those components.

All in all, I want something that is modular, fairly to very efficient and gives me a certain amount of breathing room. Modularity and efficiency have a ballooning effect on the price of PSUs. On Newegg the Seasonic X-560 is $135. A Corsair AX750 is $150. They're both based on the same platform...

[BicycleMafioso]

I'd rather buy the same PSU at 650 for more money than the same at 750 if it fits the build better.

If you are at or close to 50% in load, you will put long term stress on the PSU even though you will achieve less efficiency.
The sweet spot for lasting is between 70-80%.
That's why I recommend them.

Of the two you linked, I'd rather pay 150 for the x-560 than 135 for the ax750 for my current build.

[Deleted]

@tetrisGOAT and how would one know if he is using his psu at 50-60 %?

[BicycleMafioso]

@tetrisGOAT and how would one know if he is using his psu at 50-60 %?

http://www.coolermaster.outervision.com/PSUEngine fill in values. 90% system load (only FurMark CAN make it 100%, and only if it runs a CPU-benchmark at the same time, ie, unlikely).
Select GPUs with equal TDP-value if the ones you're using isn't there.

[Deleted]

http://www.coolermaster.outervision.com/PSUEngine fill in values. 90% system load (only FurMark CAN make it 100%, and only if it runs a CPU-benchmark at the same time, ie, unlikely).
Select GPUs with equal TDP-value if the ones you're using isn't there.

Thank you very much.

Edit. It seems that the minimum would be 350 w and im using a 650 W, guess its quite good :-?

[Gottie4u]

I fucking hate cable management.

[Deleted]

@Gottie4u amin to that brother but, as i can see you got a pretty nice gaming rig, why dont u invest some $ for a better case ( btw is that a thermaltake v9?).

[Rennadrel]

I think the case is awesome, dislike the size though. Go with the regular define R3 instead of XL in my opinion unless you have specific need for wasted space. All that equipment could be fitted in a define mini, save the motherboard.

I need more then two 5.25 inch drive bays. With a Scythe Kaze fan controller plus two optical drives, I need at least 3. And I hate having my DVD burner in an external housing with my desktop, it's so damn slow.

[Mark Okuda]

Well i'm too lazy to post pics

Case: Rosewill Thor V2 full tower
CPU: i5 2500k 3.3Ghz
RAM: (2x4GB) Corsair PC1600 XMS
GPU: EVGA GTX560 Ti O'Cd to 900Mhz
MB: Gigabyte GA-Z68A-D3H-B3
PSU: Thermaltake W0319RU 850W
HDD: Seagate 1TB 64MB cache Sata 3
OS: Win 7 x64