New gaming rig for about 2000$

[Magnusenl]

I've been planning to build a watercooled system for mostly gaming and some minor videoediting. This will be my first build and has a current 2000$(Excluding shipping) budget.

This is my current setup:)

PC Components:

I5 3570K

Evga GTX 680 4GB

Asus Rog Maximus V Formula

Corsair 16 GB vengeance

Seagate barracuda 1-3TB

Kingston HyperX 3K 120GB for OS and games

EVGA SuperNOVA NEX750G Gold

Watercooling Components:

NZXT Switch 810

Phobya G-Changer 280 and 420

Swiftech MCP655 pump (12 V)

Phobya balancer 150 silver Nickel Reservior

XSPC Raystorm CPU waterblock

XSPC Razor GTX 680 Full Cover

EK coolant blood red

Bitfenix spectre pro 140 mm white fans

1/2" ID 3/4" Mastercleer tubing

Compressionfittings

I will try to overclock nearly max.

I live in Norway and are restricted when it comes to shipping. The current shop i used for this setup is performance-pcs.com Any other shops you recommend?

I chose the 4gb 680 ver. cause I'm hoping I could get a cheap highres monitor for gaming(and it cost only 530$, which is the price of a reference 670 card in norway!), any suggestions on monitor? :)

Would the 670 be enough on a highres monitor when running a game on max?

I wonder if all this will work together? And in that case, what do I need to change?

Any suggestions on changing some parts to improve performance or removing any possible bottleneck?

As said, this is my first build. So I got no experience other than a shit load of hours on youtube and research on the web.

I will be pleased with any help, and you can feel free to discuss whatever you want, just stick to the topic :)

[Dim]

Stick with a 4GB 680 for something like 2560x1600.

You will notice the difference.

Overall, excellent choice of components!

3570K is great, that choice of RAM is good, though 8GB is probably enough (even for video editing--you would be surprised how little RAM gets used).

I use 12gigs on a RAM disk, with 4gigs for gaming :P

With the Barracuda's, if you can get 3x1TB rather than 1x3TB, it would be preferable imo.

Perhaps try building on NCIX and see what the total shipping comes to? You may still get it cheaper if it's like $200 shipping or something.

Good work and good luck! :)

[Money]

You definitely want a 680 if you want high res gaming. Even that will struggle to play games at 60FPS. Overall it looks like a very nice build. You may want a 3770k though if you're gonna be spending so much!

[TheProf]

I agree with what's been said, the 680 is a better choice for higher res gaming, especially on 1080p+ resolution. The 4GB of memory is going to help a lot with frame rates in games.

[T-D0S]

I am really starting to like the EVGA SuperNova 750W for its 12v rail ripple suppression.

From the benchmarks that I looked at, the 670 would be a better value than the 680 even with the 670 having 2GB of memory at 2560x1600, however the extra CUDA cores from the 680 would help in video editing. As far as the difference between 2GB and 4GB on the 680, from what I have read, their isn't a noticeable difference. The only game that exceeded 2GB was Crysis 2 at 5780x1080.

Here is the review that I looked at:

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Point_Of_View/GeForce_GTX_680_TGT_Ultra_4_GB/1.html

As far as your SSD, you may want to get a larger capacity unless you plan on only installing a few games.

Otherwise the rest of your build looks good. Good luck!

[BathroomSecurity]

Your build is looking great. Stick with the 680 and good luck!

[Richard Burton]

I would recommed if your building a custom loop that you use EK's nickel plexi or nickel CSQ design waterblocks. (I am a bit BIAS to EK's products but they are really good. Bitspower is great for other parts of your loop and I highly recommend there black sparkle fittings to use throughout the loop. If you are video editing then a 3770K will benefit you greatly and 670/680 is more than adequate. And downgrading to the Maximus V gene should save you the money that you'd want for the 3770K. Apart from a liquid cooled VRM, the aesthetic and some audio improvements the formula doesn't offer that much more than the Gene. I don't think you will cool the VRM given that I believe it uses 1/4 inch barb fittings and in your loop I believe your using 3/8's inch tubing and Compression fittings. You could use an adapter but that is bulky and flow restrictive.

A really good source on YouTube about watercooling is "singularitycomputers" he does numerous system build all with super specs and overkill liquid cooling as well as modding.

[BCreation]

Great build overall. For the GPU I would stick with the 680. Your watercooling selection looks great. Make sure you post pictures when this is complete!

[J House]

looks cool! for the monitor there is a cool 23 inch dell one that I have called S2340L, 1080p monitor but it's glossy, If that doesn't bother you it is a great choice especially for multi-monitor setups (really thin border) If you do get multi monitor I would go for the amd 7970 as the eyefinity on that is MUCH better than nvidia and it's cheaper usually.

[Magnusenl]

Stick with a 4GB 680 for something like 2560x1600.

You will notice the difference.

Overall, excellent choice of components!

3570K is great, that choice of RAM is good, though 8GB is probably enough (even for video editing--you would be surprised how little RAM gets used).

I use 12gigs on a RAM disk, with 4gigs for gaming :P

With the Barracuda's, if you can get 3x1TB rather than 1x3TB, it would be preferable imo.

Perhaps try building on NCIX and see what the total shipping comes to? You may still get it cheaper if it's like $200 shipping or something.

Good work and good luck! :)

I do multitasking alot. On my old laptop i got 700Mhz of 6 GB RAM and I sometime get restricted by RAM, and 15$ for 6gb more of vengeance RAM wouldn't hurt:)

THANK YOU alot!! It helped ;)

[Magnusenl]

I am really starting to like the EVGA SuperNova 750W for its 12v rail ripple suppression.

From the benchmarks that I looked at, the 670 would be a better value than the 680 even with the 670 having 2GB of memory at 2560x1600, however the extra CUDA cores from the 680 would help in video editing. As far as the difference between 2GB and 4GB on the 680, from what I have read, their isn't a noticeable difference. The only game that exceeded 2GB was Crysis 2 at 5780x1080.

Here is the review that I looked at:

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Point_Of_View/GeForce_GTX_680_TGT_Ultra_4_GB/1.html

As far as your SSD, you may want to get a larger capacity unless you plan on only installing a few games.

Otherwise the rest of your build looks good. Good luck!

I know a 670 is alot more bang for buck, but if i'm going with a 2560x1600 monitor, i would go for the 680 i think :) If I go for a 1080p monitor i would ofcourse go with a 670 2GB:)

[Magnusenl]

I would recommed if your building a custom loop that you use EK's nickel plexi or nickel CSQ design waterblocks. (I am a bit BIAS to EK's products but they are really good. Bitspower is great for other parts of your loop and I highly recommend there black sparkle fittings to use throughout the loop. If you are video editing then a 3770K will benefit you greatly and 670/680 is more than adequate. And downgrading to the Maximus V gene should save you the money that you'd want for the 3770K. Apart from a liquid cooled VRM, the aesthetic and some audio improvements the formula doesn't offer that much more than the Gene. I don't think you will cool the VRM given that I believe it uses 1/4 inch barb fittings and in your loop I believe your using 3/8's inch tubing and Compression fittings. You could use an adapter but that is bulky and flow restrictive.

A really good source on YouTube about watercooling is "singularitycomputers" he does numerous system build all with super specs and overkill liquid cooling as well as modding.

I'll stick to the 3570k when i only do light videoediting and nothing heavy. as for the EK and bitspower I will try going for that :) I am using 1/4 threads and 1/2 tubing.

I've watched singularitycomputers alot, I really like him alot though the reviews are a bit long:) I will think about the gene-board. Thank you!

[Magnusenl]

Stick with a 4GB 680 for something like 2560x1600.

You will notice the difference.

Overall, excellent choice of components!

3570K is great, that choice of RAM is good, though 8GB is probably enough (even for video editing--you would be surprised how little RAM gets used).

I use 12gigs on a RAM disk, with 4gigs for gaming :P

With the Barracuda's, if you can get 3x1TB rather than 1x3TB, it would be preferable imo.

Perhaps try building on NCIX and see what the total shipping comes to? You may still get it cheaper if it's like $200 shipping or something.

Good work and good luck! :)

I've tried NCIX and wanted to buy from there, but as I see, they don't ship to other countries than US and Canada. Or do they? I can't choose other than US and Canada when i'm on the billingadress... Too bad.

[Coonmeister Funkyfresh]

I would recommed if your building a custom loop that you use EK's nickel plexi or nickel CSQ design waterblocks. (I am a bit BIAS to EK's products but they are really good. Bitspower is great for other parts of your loop and I highly recommend there black sparkle fittings to use throughout the loop. If you are video editing then a 3770K will benefit you greatly and 670/680 is more than adequate. And downgrading to the Maximus V gene should save you the money that you'd want for the 3770K. Apart from a liquid cooled VRM, the aesthetic and some audio improvements the formula doesn't offer that much more than the Gene. I don't think you will cool the VRM given that I believe it uses 1/4 inch barb fittings and in your loop I believe your using 3/8's inch tubing and Compression fittings. You could use an adapter but that is bulky and flow restrictive.

A really good source on YouTube about watercooling is "singularitycomputers" he does numerous system build all with super specs and overkill liquid cooling as well as modding.

The Gene is matx...

[Coonmeister Funkyfresh]

Instead of Masterkleer, go for Primichill Advanced LRT Tubing. Masterkleer is awful as of late with plasticizer issues. Also, make sure you get Primochill Advanced, not Pro. The Pro has similar issues to the Masterkleer.

This is it: http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=36349

[Magnusenl]

I would recommed if your building a custom loop that you use EK's nickel plexi or nickel CSQ design waterblocks. (I am a bit BIAS to EK's products but they are really good. Bitspower is great for other parts of your loop and I highly recommend there black sparkle fittings to use throughout the loop. If you are video editing then a 3770K will benefit you greatly and 670/680 is more than adequate. And downgrading to the Maximus V gene should save you the money that you'd want for the 3770K. Apart from a liquid cooled VRM, the aesthetic and some audio improvements the formula doesn't offer that much more than the Gene. I don't think you will cool the VRM given that I believe it uses 1/4 inch barb fittings and in your loop I believe your using 3/8's inch tubing and Compression fittings. You could use an adapter but that is bulky and flow restrictive.

A really good source on YouTube about watercooling is "singularitycomputers" he does numerous system build all with super specs and overkill liquid cooling as well as modding.

Yes, i know. I think its a bit small if I ever will put another 680 in SLI sometime in the future and an audiocard. And maybe a PCI-e SSD when they get cheaper..

[ForumSage]

If you're doing a lot of multitasking and possibly even video editing, upgrade your CPU to a 3770K

[Dim]

Stick with a 4GB 680 for something like 2560x1600.

You will notice the difference.

Overall, excellent choice of components!

3570K is great, that choice of RAM is good, though 8GB is probably enough (even for video editing--you would be surprised how little RAM gets used).

I use 12gigs on a RAM disk, with 4gigs for gaming :P

With the Barracuda's, if you can get 3x1TB rather than 1x3TB, it would be preferable imo.

Perhaps try building on NCIX and see what the total shipping comes to? You may still get it cheaper if it's like $200 shipping or something.

Good work and good luck! :)

You can choose an option that states International Shipping; it's on the bottom left :)

[Magnusenl]

Stick with a 4GB 680 for something like 2560x1600.

You will notice the difference.

Overall, excellent choice of components!

3570K is great, that choice of RAM is good, though 8GB is probably enough (even for video editing--you would be surprised how little RAM gets used).

I use 12gigs on a RAM disk, with 4gigs for gaming :P

With the Barracuda's, if you can get 3x1TB rather than 1x3TB, it would be preferable imo.

Perhaps try building on NCIX and see what the total shipping comes to? You may still get it cheaper if it's like $200 shipping or something.

Good work and good luck! :)

Ohh, yeahXD it was more expensive than ppc's anyway

[Magnusenl]

Instead of Masterkleer, go for Primichill Advanced LRT Tubing. Masterkleer is awful as of late with plasticizer issues. Also, make sure you get Primochill Advanced, not Pro. The Pro has similar issues to the Masterkleer.

This is it: http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=36349

Okei thank u!! ;)

[Magnusenl]

If you're doing a lot of multitasking and possibly even video editing, upgrade your CPU to a 3770K

Sorry, waste of money... ./ I'm on a budget.

[Magnusenl]

I use Overclockers UK they say ship international 4 days door to door.

I'll try it out :P

[Magnusenl]

looks cool! for the monitor there is a cool 23 inch dell one that I have called S2340L, 1080p monitor but it's glossy, If that doesn't bother you it is a great choice especially for multi-monitor setups (really thin border) If you do get multi monitor I would go for the amd 7970 as the eyefinity on that is MUCH better than nvidia and it's cheaper usually.

1080p isn't highres... :)

[Dr3nz4r]

Kingston HyperX 3K 120GB for OS and games I would recomend some 250Gig Crucial M4 since you won't see huge Performence differences but HUGE capacity differents..

Also SSDs performe worse if they are almost full.. you shouldn't load it more then 80%

And 120Gigs a a littlebis small..

lets calculate:

Starting Value 120Gig

about 20% off for max performence ~20Gigs

100Gig left

~10Gigs OS

90Gigs left

lets say you install some programms too..

10Gigs off

80Gigs left for actual games

When i browse my steam Libary I fastly see, that i could install MAX 3-4 games then..

adding the 130Gigs extra storage from the m4 you would have 190Gigs left for all kind of stuff..

[Jrjy3]

For that amount of money, you could get a much better motherboard. I do like the features of the Maximus V Formula, but, to be honest, it is overpriced. For a cheaper price, you could get a motherboard with very similar features. If you need help choosing a different motherboard (IF you want help) I will be glad to help.