decripple

I look forward to seeing some stuff! You may want to put this into the build logs section, though.

I look forward to seeing some stuff! You may want to put this into the build logs section, though.

I look forward to seeing some stuff! You may want to put this into the build logs section, though.

I look forward to seeing some stuff! You may want to put this into the build logs section, though.

I look forward to seeing some stuff! You may want to put this into the build logs section, though.

Get a 350d micro at is enough expanding.

Yeah just prepay for the game to only buy it and the basic ship. Also, there will probably be a few ships that are only available as pledge packages that won't be available in the game when it releases, or maybe they will carry a heavy in game price premium.

Not a terrible price considering the 4GB part, but R9 280s can be had for around 170. I think you did not get ripped off at all.

The only decent downdraft coolers that will handle a 125W CPU like that would be a short list and between 30-50 USD:
 
Here are the Top 5 with the Enermax unit being the best performance (IIRC) and the Cooler Master unit being the minimum I would recommend:
 

That question sounds like you didn't even bother to read my damn post.
BECAUSE DIFFERENT METALS IN ONE SINGLE LOOP WILL CORRODEEEEE!
aluminium block + aluminium radiator   is GOOD        aluminium block + copper      radiator  is BAD
copper      block + copper         radiator  is GOOD        copper      block +  aluminium radiator  is BAD
you do not want to do a mixed metal loop. 

You should easily be able to switch the fan to the opposite side from the ram with the included fan mounts (you will have to peel off and reapply the rubber vibration pads) and then you won't have any issues.

Looks like it will be fast and quiet. Posts more pics when it is done!

I would do option A because I have used that same configuration on a corsair Obsidian 650D case (very similar ventilation layout) and I will also say you probably want to filter the top vents with something mesh maybe Thermaltake Matrix fan filters or the like.

Finally the experiment is over! Here are the screen shots of my exact settings while running the stress test and my overclock settings:
 

 
Digi+ Settings for power regulation stuff:
 

 
TIM application example of the rice grain/dot method:
 

  Power Use from the wall with CPU at above settings and R9 270 @1100111010/5500 1.210 vcore 115% power: Yes that is in watts.... Keep in mind PSU is 80+ Bronze rated CX750M PSU:     Other Random Test bench pictures taken through the top & side mesh of the HAF XB:       Results:  Arctic Cooling MX-2:  73C 72C  XSPC K2:  75C 74C  Arctic Silver Ceramique 2:  74C 80C  Cooler Master Black tube (Eiscreme):  74C 75C  Cooler Master Pink Tube (212 Evo paste):  73C 74C  Prolimatech PK-3:  73C 72C  AC MX-4:  72C 74C  Noctua NT-H1:  74C 72C  Gelid GC-Extreme:  70C 72C    FujiPoly (core frequency and vcore voltage + average temperature of 2 runs):  3.8GHz @1.35V: 56C  Stock Settings =  4.0GHz Turbo off 1.375V: 62C  4.4GHz 1.4375V: 68C  4.6GHz 1.475V: 79C    So pretty much everything performed as expected with the Gelid being a solid 1-2C improvement over the other pastes. This is a very small lead as my test bench ambient was within 1 degree celcius ambient environment. Realistically all the pastes are good enough to handle overclocks, but the MX-2 and GCE where easier to clean and apply IMO.    The Ceramique is get what you paid for. It was terrible to clean and apply as it was very thick and viscous. All other pastes were similar in ease of use and perform very similar, too.    Lastly the Fujipoly pads were cut down to about an 1/8 inch beyond the size of the CPU heatspreader to minimize waste and make mounting the Tt AIO easier. They were the most consistent bringing in identical load temps at their settings. You can see how I gradually stepped up the load until I reached my "safe" limit for Temps which I arbitrarily chose as 80C.    Price to performance crown definitely goes to the Arctic Cooling MX-2 which comes in a pretty good sized 4gram tube for only 8 bucks and allows for a solid 15-20 applications so only about 50 cents per application.    The Gelid is my current go to paste because of the reviews I read in the past, but now I have my own evidence that lets me feel confident with that decision.    One last note I think that should give a pat on the back of the Fujipoly pads is that although they performed worse than all of the other TIMs tested, they were still dealing with a 300 watt (from the wall) CPU power draw of idle versus OCCT load. The fact that this enormous load can be handled by a pad at all amazes me and I think that deserves a thumbs up even if the practicality and value isn't there.    For the future I might swap a custom loop on a heavier OC like 5.1GHz and 1.5375V Vcore and see if there is a larger difference between the MX-2 and Gelid pastes.    That's all for now!  

That PSU is a good option and so is an upgrade to an FX-8350 BUT upgrading to an Intel 1150 platform would still be doable for a similar price
 
PSU you listed
Cheapest Intel Core i3 = $115
Asrock H97M Pro 4 or other cheap 4+ phase VRM mobo = $80
 
The upgrade in gaming performance will still be huge, but in a while if you want to upgrade you can get an Intel Core i5 or i7 that smokes an FX series CPU in most applications (including games)

Wow I saw this in the OP's sig and had to take a look
 
 
Golf clap for originality.
 
Sorry I'm not reading through 6 pages of stuff but are the benches? Also, another golf clap for the 5GHz club

More like ignored now that the G3258 is on the market. I wait for coupons and I got my G3258 for ~$45
 
honestly more people should look at the Pentium line though they perform surprisingly well in games
 
to OP the 4790K does quite well in threaded applications and has very good efficiency per core instruction so I think it is a really good option, but not a massive upgrade for someone who already has a 4690K running the same clock speeds (4.4GHz correct?) IF not just overclock the 4690K for now and maybe upgrade to a next gen i7 when they come out and benefit from even more efficiency

I hate to say this, but they truly lack features vs their competition. Even Asrock is better in the features department.
 
if you have to choose between those to go with the Cheaper one
 
If you don't I would go for the Asrock Z97 Extreme4 or MSI Z97 Gaming 5(worked awesome with my 4690K and auto OC to 4.3GHz.......)

either can handle the job. the extra the D5 costs gets eaten up by the heatsink
for the DDC. the D5 is much larger (mid-full towers cases) and DDC for the
mATX-mITX builds for the compact size.

This or Thermaltake Urban R31

@steveowashere
 
What is your Vccin set to? If you are pushing 1.3Vcore, set it to 1.9V. It might stabilize your OC. Also make sure your ram is not loading any XMP profiles, and is set to the bios defaults. Make sure spread spectrum is off, etc. Get back to me with your results, i will try to walk you through this if possible.

To answer your question, when Haswell goes into its C7 sleep state, it can reduce its power draw down to 0.05A, and this power is drawn from the 12v rail (as low as 0.6w).
There are certain PSUs that requires a certain balance in load for it to operate optimally between the 12v and the 3.3/5v rail. A change in load on one side can affect the voltages on the other. These PSUs are "group-regulated".
 
As to how Intel test PSUs to see if they are "Haswell Certified" is by putting 0.1A on 12v1 and .05A on 12v2, while the 3.3v and 5v will set at MAX load. This will cause the voltages of the +12v to spike up and the 3.3v/5v drop down significantly, where the voltages must stay within the +/-5% tolerance. If it doesn't, it will fail.
 
Here's an example: http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Bitfenix/Fury_750G/5.html
Scroll down to the graph at the bottom and look at "Crossload 1", as it's most similar to Intel's test. You will see that the 12v has spiked up to 12.734v (~ 6.1%), while the 5v has drop down to 4.720v (~ -5.9%). Both of which goes out of ATX specification.
_____
 
Should you worry? No. Intel's testing methodology is extreme and likely will not happen in the real world. This is because 1) you will not drawing anywhere near max load on the 3.3/5v rails and 2) you will typically have other components that draws from the 12v rail to increase the load such as your graphic card.
 
And let's say by chance you do run into problems, where you see some stability issues or that the voltages go so out of specs that it trips the over/under voltage protection of the PSU, you can simply disable it in the BIOS.

Less flaming more gaming friends. Keep calm and represent PC master race.
 
Personally GTX 970s in SLI would offer vastly superior performance to a GTX 980 for ~$100-150 more but SLI support is not perfect and if you play a lot of early access or beta release games then a single flagship card is best for you.

^^^^^^^^That is the best advice I have seen so far in this thread

According to a few websites the GTX 960 is coming out Next week January 22nd although this has not been confirmed. Also, some places are saying it should perform about as well as a GTX 770 for around $200.
 
If you are not dead set on nvidia cards then you can find R9 290's under $300 that although power hungry and hot, they will push seriously great framerates. 
 
Personally I would wait for GTX 960 just because mid range nvidia cards are always beasts for the price.