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Around $3000.00 budget

Post Date: 2012-11-25

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impcuser View Drop Down
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  Quote impcuser Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Topic: Around $3000.00 budget
    Posted: 25 Nov 2012 at 11:28am
My wife needs a new computer. She already has mouse, keyboard, monitor etc.
She will mainly use it for Photoshop editing, Quarkxpress, occasional video editing, email, web surfing,

When she is not using her computer I would like to play video games on it.
Games I'm playing now are Max Payne 3, Mass Effect 3, Skyrim, Borderlands 2.
Future games such as Far Cry 3, Splinter Cell Blacklist I'm also looking forward to play,

Her monitor is a 20 inch 1600x1200 resolution however sometimes I would like to hook it up to either a 1080P projector or tv.

Here is the configuration I made:

Configuration ID: 754097

Specifications:
Chassis Model: Special Deal Hot Seller - Black OPS HailStorm Edition
Exterior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish
Trim Accents: - Standard Factory Finish
Processor: Intel Core i7 3930K 3.2GHz (Unlocked CPU for Extreme Overclocking) (Six-Core)
Motherboard: ASUS Sabertooth X79 (Intel X79 Chipset) (Features USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gb/s)
System Memory: 16GB DDR3 1600MHz Digital Storm Certified Performance Series (Highly Recommended) (Hand Tested)
Power Supply: 800W Corsair GS (Dual SLI Compatible)
Expansion Bay: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 1: Operating System: 1x (240GB Solid State (By: Corsair) (Model: Neutron GTX Series) (SATA 6Gbps)
Set 1 Raid Options: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 2: Multimedia\Data: 1x (1TB Western Digital Caviar (7200 RPM) (Model: Black Edition)
Hard Drive Set 3: Backup\Misc.: - No Thanks
Optical Drive 1: Blu-Ray & DVD Writer/Reader (Burn + Play Blu-Ray & DVDs) (12x BD-R)
Optical Drive 2: - No Thanks
Internet Access: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections)
Video Card: 1x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 2GB (Includes PhysX)
Add-on Card: USB 3.0 4-Port PCI Express Card
Sound Card: Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium HD 24-bit 96KHz 7.1
Extreme Cooling: H20: Stage 1: Corsair H60 Liquid CPU Cooler (High-Performance Edition)
H20 Tube Color:- Not Applicable, I do not have a FrostChill or Sub-Zero LCS Cooling System Selected
Chassis Airflow: Standard Factory Chassis Fans
Internal Lighting: - No Thanks
Enhancements: - No Thanks
Chassis Mods: - No Thanks
Noise Reduction: - No Thanks
LaserMark: - No Thanks
Boost Processor: Stage 2: Overclock CPU 4.5GHz to 4.8GHz (Requires Pro/Deluxe/Sabertooth Motherboard)
Boost Video Card: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s)
Boost Memory: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my memory
Boost OS: FREE: Yes, Disable and tweak all of the non-crucial services on the operating system
Windows OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional (64-Bit Edition)
Recovery Tools: Advanced Recovery Kit (40GB Hard Drive Partition of Image With OS & Drivers) <b></b>
Virus Protection: - No Thanks
Office: - No Thanks
Game: - No Thanks
Display: - No Thanks
Surge Shield: - No Thanks
Speakers: - No Thanks
Keyboard: - No Thanks
Mouse: - No Thanks
External Storage: - No Thanks
Exclusive T-Shirt: - No Thanks
Priority Build: - No Thanks, Ship Within 10-15 Business Days After Order Is Successfully Processed
Warranty: Life-time Expert Customer Care with 3 Year Limited Warranty
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  Quote bprat22 Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Nov 2012 at 12:09pm
Hi impcuser.   Welcome to the forums.
 
That is a nice rig you put together.  The Hailstorm case is primarily designed for full water cooled setups like stage 6 which is what the pic shows.  It only has a single 140mm fan feeding air directly into the mobo cavity.  It will work and lots use it  but the HafX in my build is the best for air cooled systems. 
 
Here's a config to check out.  Just another way to go.
 
Config # 754580     Cost $ 3022
 
Chassis Model: Special Deal Hot Seller - Cooler Master 942 HAF X
Exterior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish
Trim Accents: - Standard Factory Finish
Processor: Intel Core i7 3930K 3.2GHz (Unlocked CPU for Extreme Overclocking) (Six-Core)
Motherboard: ASUS Sabertooth X79 (Intel X79 Chipset) (Features USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gb/s)
System Memory: 16GB DDR3 1600MHz Digital Storm Certified Performance Series (Highly Recommended) (Hand Tested)
Power Supply: 800W Corsair GS (Dual SLI Compatible)
Expansion Bay: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 1: Operating System: 1x (240GB Solid State (By: Corsair) (Model: Neutron GTX Series) (SATA 6Gbps)
Set 1 Raid Options: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 2: Multimedia\Data: 1x (1TB Western Digital Caviar (7200 RPM) (Model: Black Edition)
Hard Drive Set 3: Backup\Misc.: - No Thanks
Optical Drive 1: Blu-Ray & DVD Writer/Reader (Burn + Play Blu-Ray & DVDs) (12x BD-R)
Optical Drive 2: - No Thanks
Internet Access: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections)
Video Card: 1x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670 2GB (PhysX) (FTW Overclocked EVGA)
Add-on Card: - No Thanks
Sound Card: Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium HD 24-bit 96KHz 7.1
Extreme Cooling: H20: Stage 2: Digital Storm Vortex 240mm Radiator Liquid CPU Cooler (Extreme-Performance Edition)
H20 Tube Color:- Not Applicable, I do not have a FrostChill or Sub-Zero LCS Cooling System Selected
Chassis Airflow: Standard Factory Chassis Fans
Internal Lighting: - No Thanks
Enhancements: - No Thanks
Chassis Mods: - No Thanks
Noise Reduction: - No Thanks
LaserMark: - No Thanks
Boost Processor: Stage 2: Overclock CPU 4.5GHz to 4.8GHz (Requires Pro/Deluxe/Sabertooth Motherboard)
Boost Video Card: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s)
Boost Memory: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my memory
Boost OS: - No Thanks, Please do not tweak the services on the operating system
Windows OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional (64-Bit Edition)
Recovery Tools: Windows Recovery Toolkit (Bundled with Windows 7 CD)
Virus Protection: - No Thanks
Office: - No Thanks
Game: - No Thanks
Display: - No Thanks
Surge Shield: - No Thanks
Speakers: - No Thanks
Keyboard: - No Thanks
Mouse: - No Thanks
External Storage: - No Thanks
Exclusive T-Shirt: FREE: Digital Storm T-Shirt - Black (Large)
Priority Build: - No Thanks, Ship Within 10-15 Business Days After Order Is Successfully Processed
Warranty: Life-time Expert Customer Care with 3 Year Limited Warranty
 
It's closer to your budget with the same performance.  Saves you $250 or so.
 
 The HafX case is the best for air cooling.  The small sealed Vortex coolers are still primarily an air cooled setup.  The HafX has a front 230mm fan, side and top 200mm fans and rear 140mm fan.  The large fans turn slow , push alot of air and are quieter than smaller higher rpm fans.
 
I changed the video card to the gtx 670 FTW EVGA card.  The same performance as the 680 for less.  The gtx680 is a great card so your call of course.
 
The audio card I left in but the onboard audio is pretty darn good unless your into it.
 
I left out the USB card since this has, I believe, 2 USB 3.0 in the front and 4 USB 3.0 in the back.  But that's up to you.  Depends on your needs.
 
The H60 won't do it for stage 2 oc so I put in the Vortex 240mm cooler.  For tops in dependability the Noctua D14 also works great and is quiet.  It is huge but works great.  I didn't put it in the config because I'm not 100% DS will use it for the 3930k cpu.  I think so but you could ask.
 
Your build will work just fine but this does have better cooling and is less for the same gaming, editing, etc.
 
Good Luck and hope this helps.  Big%20Smile
 
 


Edited by bprat22 - 25 Nov 2012 at 12:20pm
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  Quote impcuser Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Nov 2012 at 1:28pm
Thank youb prat22! I will definitely go with the Cooler Master 942 HAF X case. That is good advice.
My wife doesn't really want anything overclocked.
However I convinced her to at least have the cpu overclocked.
So I went with the basic 680gtx.
High quality sound is important for me (and my wife too) as I have a high-end stereo and a very good surround sound system that I would like to feed a very high quality audio signal to.

The amount of USB 3.0 ports on the case is definitely enough. No need for an add in card.

My wife would very much like to have an image file backup of the OS & drivers as "insurance" even though it takes up precious space on the ss hdd.

This is the new configuration I'm thinking of thanks to your advice!

Configuration ID: 754614

Ticket Number: 754614
Total Price with Instant Savings: $3,183.00

Specifications:
Chassis Model: Special Deal Hot Seller - Cooler Master 942 HAF X
Exterior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish
Trim Accents: - Standard Factory Finish
Processor: Intel Core i7 3930K 3.2GHz (Unlocked CPU for Extreme Overclocking) (Six-Core)
Motherboard: ASUS Sabertooth X79 (Intel X79 Chipset) (Features USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gb/s)
System Memory: 16GB DDR3 1600MHz Digital Storm Certified Performance Series (Highly Recommended) (Hand Tested)
Power Supply: 800W Corsair GS (Dual SLI Compatible)
Expansion Bay: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 1: Operating System: 1x (240GB Solid State (By: Corsair) (Model: Neutron GTX Series) (SATA 6Gbps)
Set 1 Raid Options: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 2: Multimedia\Data: 1x (1TB Western Digital Caviar (7200 RPM) (Model: Black Edition)
Hard Drive Set 3: Backup\Misc.: - No Thanks
Optical Drive 1: Blu-Ray & DVD Writer/Reader (Burn + Play Blu-Ray & DVDs) (12x BD-R)
Optical Drive 2: - No Thanks
Internet Access: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections)
Video Card: 1x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 2GB (Includes PhysX) <b></b>
Add-on Card: - No Thanks
Sound Card: Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium HD 24-bit 96KHz 7.1
Extreme Cooling: H20: Stage 2: Digital Storm Vortex 240mm Radiator Liquid CPU Cooler (Extreme-Performance Edition)
H20 Tube Color:- Not Applicable, I do not have a FrostChill or Sub-Zero LCS Cooling System Selected
Chassis Airflow: Standard Factory Chassis Fans
Internal Lighting: - No Thanks
Enhancements: - No Thanks
Chassis Mods: - No Thanks
Noise Reduction: - No Thanks
LaserMark: - No Thanks
Boost Processor: Stage 2: Overclock CPU 4.5GHz to 4.8GHz (Requires Pro/Deluxe/Sabertooth Motherboard)
Boost Video Card: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s)
Boost Memory: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my memory
Boost OS: - No Thanks, Please do not tweak the services on the operating system
Windows OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional (64-Bit Edition)
Recovery Tools: Advanced Recovery Kit (40GB Hard Drive Partition of Image With OS & Drivers) <b></b>
Virus Protection: - No Thanks
Office: - No Thanks
Game: - No Thanks
Display: - No Thanks
Surge Shield: - No Thanks
Speakers: - No Thanks
Keyboard: - No Thanks
Mouse: - No Thanks
External Storage: - No Thanks
Exclusive T-Shirt: FREE: Digital Storm T-Shirt - Black (Large)
Priority Build: - No Thanks, Ship Within 10-15 Business Days After Order Is Successfully Processed
Warranty: Life-time Expert Customer Care with 3 Year Limited Warranty


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  Quote bprat22 Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Nov 2012 at 1:50pm
That is an awesome rig.      

I say, go for it.    

Keep us updated.      
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  Quote impcuser Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Nov 2012 at 2:17pm
Thank you for you advice!

I will definitely keep you posted!
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  Quote impcuser Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Nov 2012 at 2:47pm
Slight adjustment...
My wife now wants a new keyboard and mouse so I added the Logitech Media Combo MK200 Keyboard and Mouse.

I also added the free OS Boost since I figured it couldn't hurt.

Newest configuration:

Configuration ID: 754662


Ticket Number: 754662
Total Price with Instant Savings: $3,207.00

Specifications:
Chassis Model: Special Deal Hot Seller - Cooler Master 942 HAF X
Exterior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish
Trim Accents: - Standard Factory Finish
Processor: Intel Core i7 3930K 3.2GHz (Unlocked CPU for Extreme Overclocking) (Six-Core)
Motherboard: ASUS Sabertooth X79 (Intel X79 Chipset) (Features USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gb/s)
System Memory: 16GB DDR3 1600MHz Digital Storm Certified Performance Series (Highly Recommended) (Hand Tested)
Power Supply: 800W Corsair GS (Dual SLI Compatible)
Expansion Bay: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 1: Operating System: 1x (240GB Solid State (By: Corsair) (Model: Neutron GTX Series) (SATA 6Gbps)
Set 1 Raid Options: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 2: Multimedia\Data: 1x (1TB Western Digital Caviar (7200 RPM) (Model: Black Edition)
Hard Drive Set 3: Backup\Misc.: - No Thanks
Optical Drive 1: Blu-Ray & DVD Writer/Reader (Burn + Play Blu-Ray & DVDs) (12x BD-R)
Optical Drive 2: - No Thanks
Internet Access: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections)
Video Card: 1x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 2GB (Includes PhysX)
Add-on Card: - No Thanks
Sound Card: Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium HD 24-bit 96KHz 7.1
Extreme Cooling: H20: Stage 2: Digital Storm Vortex 240mm Radiator Liquid CPU Cooler (Extreme-Performance Edition)
H20 Tube Color:- Not Applicable, I do not have a FrostChill or Sub-Zero LCS Cooling System Selected
Chassis Airflow: Standard Factory Chassis Fans
Internal Lighting: - No Thanks
Enhancements: - No Thanks
Chassis Mods: - No Thanks
Noise Reduction: - No Thanks
LaserMark: - No Thanks
Boost Processor: Stage 2: Overclock CPU 4.5GHz to 4.8GHz (Requires Pro/Deluxe/Sabertooth Motherboard)
Boost Video Card: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s)
Boost Memory: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my memory
Boost OS: FREE: Yes, Disable and tweak all of the non-crucial services on the operating system
Windows OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional (64-Bit Edition)
Recovery Tools: Advanced Recovery Kit (40GB Hard Drive Partition of Image With OS & Drivers)
Virus Protection: - No Thanks
Office: - No Thanks
Game: - No Thanks
Display: - No Thanks
Surge Shield: - No Thanks
Speakers: - No Thanks
Keyboard:  Logitech Media Combo MK200 Keyboard and Mouse
Mouse: - No Thanks
External Storage: - No Thanks
Exclusive T-Shirt: FREE: Digital Storm T-Shirt - Black (Extra Large) <b></b>
Priority Build: - No Thanks, Ship Within 10-15 Business Days After Order Is Successfully Processed
Warranty: Life-time Expert Customer Care with 3 Year Limited Warranty





Edited by impcuser - 25 Nov 2012 at 2:49pm
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  Quote bprat22 Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Nov 2012 at 2:56pm
The rig comes in bloat free.    Not sure what they disable in OS Boost but in my opinion I' d rather decide for myself.    
Just me.   
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  Quote impcuser Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Nov 2012 at 2:02pm
Purchased!
Geraldo (DS Sales) suggested that I NOT overclock the cpu for maximum stability and since my wife really did not want anything overclocked that's what I did.
Also taking an additional 10% off (Black Friday/Cyber Monday) let me bump up the 680gtx from 2GB to 4GB
Thank you once again bprat22!
This is the system I went with:

Ticket Number: 755227
Total Price with Instant Savings: $3,210.00

Specifications:
Chassis Model: Special Deal Hot Seller - Cooler Master 942 HAF X
Exterior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish
Trim Accents: - Standard Factory Finish
Processor: Intel Core i7 3930K 3.2GHz (Unlocked CPU for Extreme Overclocking) (Six-Core)
Motherboard: ASUS Sabertooth X79 (Intel X79 Chipset) (Features USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gb/s)
System Memory: 16GB DDR3 1600MHz Digital Storm Certified Performance Series (Highly Recommended) (Hand Tested)
Power Supply: 800W Corsair GS (Dual SLI Compatible)
Expansion Bay: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 1: Operating System: 1x (240GB Solid State (By: Corsair) (Model: Neutron GTX Series) (SATA 6Gbps)
Set 1 Raid Options: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 2: Multimedia\Data: 1x (1TB Western Digital Caviar (7200 RPM) (Model: Black Edition)
Hard Drive Set 3: Backup\Misc.: - No Thanks
Optical Drive 1: Blu-Ray & DVD Writer/Reader (Burn + Play Blu-Ray & DVDs) (12x BD-R)
Optical Drive 2: - No Thanks
Internet Access: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections)
Video Card: 1x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 4GB (Includes PhysX)
Add-on Card: - No Thanks
Sound Card: Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium HD 24-bit 96KHz 7.1
Extreme Cooling: AIR: Stage 2: Noctua NH-D14 SE2011 Extreme Performance <b></b>
H20 Tube Color:- Not Applicable, I do not have a FrostChill or Sub-Zero LCS Cooling System Selected
Chassis Airflow: Standard Factory Chassis Fans
Internal Lighting: - No Thanks
Enhancements: - No Thanks
Chassis Mods: - No Thanks
Noise Reduction: - No Thanks
LaserMark: - No Thanks
Boost Processor: Standard Intel Turbo Boost 2.0 Automatic Overclocking <b></b>
Boost Video Card: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s)
Boost Memory: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my memory
Boost OS: FREE: Yes, Disable and tweak all of the non-crucial services on the operating system
Windows OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional (64-Bit Edition)
Recovery Tools: Advanced Recovery Kit (40GB Hard Drive Partition of Image With OS & Drivers)
Virus Protection: - No Thanks
Office: - No Thanks
Game: - No Thanks
Display: - No Thanks
Surge Shield: - No Thanks
Speakers: - No Thanks
Keyboard:  Logitech Media Combo MK200 Keyboard and Mouse
Mouse: - No Thanks
External Storage: - No Thanks
Exclusive T-Shirt: FREE: Digital Storm T-Shirt - Black (Extra Large)
Priority Build: - No Thanks, Ship Within 10-15 Business Days After Order Is Successfully Processed
Warranty: Life-time Expert Customer Care with 3 Year Limited Warranty

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  Quote bprat22 Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Nov 2012 at 2:20pm
That is an awesome rig.     Congrats.    Let's hope your wife gives it up long enough for you to get into serious gaming.     

Keep us updated. And pics when you get it would be great.     
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  Quote impcuser Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Nov 2012 at 3:09pm
Thanks! Will do!!
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