Suggestions for workstation build

O

obs

Supreme [H]ardness
Joined
Nov 4, 2002
Messages
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1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Development

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
Sub $2k w/ dual monitors

3) Where do you live?
USA

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.
Motherboard, CPU, RAM, case, PSU, monitors, HDDs, GPU, DVD burner, keyboard, mouse

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
None

6) Will you be overclocking?
No

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
~23-24", 1900x1200 or 1900x1080

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Next week

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? etc.
RAID 1 most likely a must. Crossfire/SLI, USB 3.0 & SATA 6Gb/s nice but not necessary.

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? 32bit or 64bit?
Yes

So with some changes at the company I work for I need to get a new machine ordered and built quick. This machine will be used 99% of the time for Visual Studio development and installer creation. Will also need a decent gpu as the product being developed is CAD software. No overclocking will be done. Sub $2k budget with dual monitors. Stability, performance, and being quiet are all needed (in that order).

Some preliminary thoughts:

Motherboard: Asus Sabertooth X58
CPU: Intel Core i7-950
RAM: G.SKILL 3x2GB DDR3 1600
HDD: WD 1TB RE3 x2 in RAID 1
GPU: GTX 460
Case: Antec Sonata w/500w PSU

Not sure about monitors yet.
 
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Make sure that you buy that mobo and CPU from this combo link to save $35:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.523542

Ditch the Sonata w/500W PSU. The Sonata case is not that good of case when it comes to cooling, ease of cable management and assembly, and room. I recommend any of these cases instead:
$50 - Cooler Master Elite 335 RC-335-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$50 - Thermaltake WingRS 201 VJ60001N2Z ATX Case
$60 - NZXT M59 ATX Case
$70 - Lian Li Lancool PC-K56 ATX Case
$70 - Cooler Master RC-590-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$70 - Cooler Master CM690 II Basic ATX Case
$90 - Cooler Master CM690 II Advance ATX Case
$90 - Cooler Master HAF 922 RC-922M-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$90 - Lian Li PC-7B Plus II ATX Case
$105 - Fractal Design Define R3 Black ATX Case (Fill in the ++++ with "N C I X" without the spaces)
$105 - Fractal Design Define R3 Titanium ATX Case (Fill in the ++++ with "N C I X" without the spaces)
$105 - Fractal Design Define R3 Silver ATX Case (Fill in the ++++ with "N C I X" without the spaces)
$100 - Lian Li Lancool PC-K7B ATX Case
$110 - Lian Li PC-7FN ATX Case
$120 - Velocity Micro GX2-W Silver Classic Aluminum Case with Side Window
$140 - NZXT Phantom PHAN-001WT White Full Tower ATX Case
$140 - NZXT Phantom PHAN-001WT Black Full Tower ATX Case
$140 - Cooler Master HAF 932 RC-932-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$135 - Antec P183 ATX Case

PSU wise, I recommend this PSU:
$90 - Corsair 650TX 650W PSU

RAM wise, for $15 more, you can get an extra 2GB of RAM:
$140 - 2 x G.Skill Ripjaw Series F3-10666CL9S-4GBRL 4GB DDR3 1333 RAM

No there's no difference between triple and dual channel RAM in real world performance. Same goes for DDR3 1333 and DDR3 1600 RAM.
 
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