How is my build?

Welcome to the forum McClutch!

Good processor, motherboard, and RAM choices.   I know how to make the build way stronger for gaming for about the same money.

One change keeps you close to your budget and gets enough results to do the job.   Drop to the Corsair H115i CPU Cooler.   That AIO cooler can handle a Stage 2 Overclock on the CPU.    That makes room to make the following improvements.....

*Change from HydroLux Pro CPU only to Corsair H115i 280 mm AIO Cooler.

*Overclock that excellent and easy OC’ing Intel i7-9700K processor to Stage 2 for the full performance its been built by Intel to produce.

*Change Drive 1 from the SATA III DS 500 GB SSD to the 5X faster 500GB Samsung Evo 970 Plus M.2 NVME SSD.   M.2 NVME SSD use the faster PCIE video bus, and your mobo has a spare M.2 slot to use when you need it.

* Upgrade from NVidia GTX 1660 to NVidia RTX 2070 Super GPU.    The best all around midrange performance GPU, for strong 1080P and very good 2K/1440P performance at high game settings.

*we do not recommend Overclocking GPU on air cooling alone.   Not enough gain to be had...for more heat and risk to the GPU. Not worth it.

Lumos build2: Config # 2746104. $3,055 - DS Sale $300 Off = $2,755 Total

See what you think... but this build would far out perform your Config ...If you can afford to stick with HydroLux or HydroLux on both CPU + GPU then obviously that’s even better for top performance...

Edited by HockeyBuck - 29 Nov 2019 at 12:30pm

Glad to lend a hand.

OK... Adding 16 GB RAM later is an easy to do yourself upgrade...but pay attention to the RAM timing numbers as the DDR4 Corsair Vengeance RAM you add later from your buddy should match timing numbers of the DDR4 Corsair Vengeance 3000 mHZ DIMMS DS supplies you with in the build. Can't just slap in any old RAM...

OK I see you made the Drive 1 upgrade to NVME...now you are speedy.

I see you raised the budget so you could keep HydroLux Pro CPU cooling, but you spent +$167 for hard line tubing that admittedly does look cool. Flex tubing is less expensive, will survive shipping better (when we hear of leaks here it's usually inflexible hard line that moved in shipping bounces), and is infinitely easier to work around for maintenance, to work with or to replace yourself. Either way you decide to go, ask for quick disconnects, a drain valve, and spare coolant matching that which DS uses.

GPU...You would in my opinion be better off investing in 1x RTX 2080 Ti.   Plenty of max gaming performance and a more simple solution. For one benefit, the Ti has more active GPU cores and 11 GB VRAM to utilize....while the 2X SLI/NVLink RTX 2070 Super still can only use 8 GB VRAM.   Another issue is less heat in the case on one air cooled GPU than with 2x..   Be aware that not all games will support SLI/NVLink or scale video properly when using it.   SLI/NVLink is distinctly less popular now in the landscape of gaming than it once was 5 yrs ago, and game developers supporting it now might not continue to do so in the future.   That means your big investment in 2x GPU is a risky one that may not always be useful to you.

All that said, in bench testing 2x SLI/NVLink RTX 2070 Super can perform very strong in the right activity or game.   Long as you hear and understand the arguments, if you still want 2x 2070 Super then drive on. Could help in some gaming using 4K panels.

PSU...with 2x SLI 2070 Super, you will now be using 430 watts just for the GPU's, so to maintain plenty of power headroom I suggest you boost the PSU in that case to the DS 1000 watt Gold Modular PSU (only 1 yr DS warranty) or the far better 1200 watt Corsair AX1200i Modular Digital Platinum Efficiency PSU with a whopping 15 yr Corsair warranty.

As I mentioned before, with plenty of cooling selected I suggest you should take full advantage of the $99 Stage 2 Overclocking on the I7-9700K. HydroLux Pro will keep the CPU frosty, while you would get max CPU performance in everything you do.

We do not recommend Overclocking the GPU's on air cooling alone.
Not enough gain to be had for more heat & GPU stress...especially with 2x GPU on air cooling alone.

You won't need the Corsair Air Management Pro board. Your Corsair LL Fan upgrade includes 1x Corsair Fan Expert Pro board that will do the job of connecting, controlling and syncing your on board Corsair RGB Fans & components, allowing you to manage all RGB & Fans with the Corsair iCUE software.

Originally posted by McClutch Thanks for the feedback again! The part numbers for the RAM are identical so they will be fine. I swapped to the colored flex tubing with clear liquid, I wasn't aware I could get quick disconnects with the flexible option which was my main concern, but maybe I just missed that. I also heard of concerns with the colored fluid requiring more maintenance. I switched to the single RTX 2080 Ti, I'm hoping the extra money put into the GPU will end up being a worthwhile investment. From what I can tell, the 850W power supply should then be sufficient? Dropped the unnecessary air management and stepped up to stage 2. Probably going to be pulling the trigger on it after work today.

Yup the 850W PSU will do the job.   The most practical coolant is clear, as you can easily see and judge how clean the coolant is.   Color is fun and green is my fav...lol.   I think you would be fine using color coolant from DS.   Ask for extra coolant to use for top offs.    You will have to ask DS Sales about cost for quick disconnects but DS can do them.   

Lots of us that used to use SLI have gone single GPU these days and it’s good!   They make GPUs so much stronger now one is all ya need to fly all Ultra game settings.    Going to be a beast of a rig for you!   Keep us posted!


Edited by HockeyBuck - 02 Dec 2019 at 11:05am

Originally posted by jcmcn5 I know I asked the forum this question once before, but that was 3 years ago.  At that time, the MSI GTX top of the line card was the 980.  Now I see they're up to like 2060 and the prices have dropped.  So I'm not sure what's the current route to go.

Sure...I have a 2011 DS Ode with the same CPU and motherboard.     

1) If you haven’t already upgraded to Windows 10...you should get that done first.

2) Upgrade your DDR3 RAM to at least 16 GB. Match what you have now if ya can
     find it.   RAM is an easy upgrade, but match your RAM timing numbers.

3) Pop in one new NVidia RTX 2070 Super, RTX 2080 Super 8 GB VRAM and
     the rig should still perform quite well.   Mine has a 2 yr old GTX 1080 Ti in it and
     games very well...but my Mrs uses it now.   I prefer the high quality of EVGA
     branded video cards.   Their EVGA RTX 2080 Super FTW3 Ultra has a huge
     heatsink and 3 fan cooler that works well...   

Just one video card.    One of those solid GPU will fly circles around your old 2x SLI GTX 570 setup.    My 2011 Ode was originally configured that way.    The Sabertooth mobos are built to last!    It currently uses a single EVGA GTX 1080 Ti FTW2 and everything runs on Ultra settings.   

Originally posted by jcmcn5 Hope you don't mind a follow-up.  At the moment, a $560 card is a bit steep.  Was wondering if you knew if an EVGA DeForce GTX 1660 Ti SC ultra Gaming, 06G-P$-1667 6GB dual fan is going to be compatible with my system.  I've read reviews from some complaining about the size.   $350 is my budget at the moment

Yes it should fit, but you should confirm from the card specs.....

Height: 4.38 in - 111.15 mm
Length: 10.55 in - 267.97 mm
Width: Dual Slot

I just checked around and the EVGA RTX 2060 Super XC Ultra Gaming 6 GB VRAM 2 fan model can be had for $389 (amazon, Newegg, others) and would be a much stronger choice than the GTX 1660 Ti.... RTX features and more GPU cores.. Believe currently there’s a mail in $20 rebate deal from EVGA... Card size is the same as above.    Get the very best GPU performance you can afford and you are likely to be happy for longer...

Originally posted by HockeyBuck Yup the 850W PSU will do the job.   The most practical coolant is clear, as you can easily see and judge how clean the coolant is.   Color is fun and green is my fav...lol.   I think you would be fine using color coolant from DS.   Ask for extra coolant to use for top offs.    You will have to ask DS Sales about cost for quick disconnects but DS can do them.    Lots of us that used to use SLI have gone single GPU these days and it’s good!   They make GPUs so much stronger now one is all ya need to fly all Ultra game settings.    Going to be a beast of a rig for you!   Keep us posted!

Delivery was a little delayed due to the holiday but it came in around the new year. The 32 GBs of ram is overkill but I enjoy it, and so far it’s made a walk in the park out of anything my roommates and I have been able to throw at it. It runs super quiet and outside of the lights it’s hard to tell it’s even on. Very satisfied with the support on small additions after placing the order, and the status updates as the build progressed. Definitely one of the crazier things I’ve purchased but well worth it.

Edited by hoserator - 23 Feb 2020 at 1:48am