Need gaming build advice, ~$4k budget

I've never bought a hardcore gaming pc before, and after doing a significant amount of research/forum browsing, I'm still a bit lost. I am very open to suggestions about any of the components; all advice is much appreciated.

My goal is to be able to smoothly run any current game on max settings, and I want to make sure I invest enough for this computer to last me a long time. I also need to be able to do pretty high level audio editing, as I am a music major. Sorry in advance for asking so many questions...I've never dropped nearly this much money on a computer and I want to make sure I'm spending wisely. Here is the config I am thinking about:

$3868

ticket number: 429505
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 930 2.8GHz (Quad Core)
Motherboard: EVGA X58 LE Edition SLI (Intel X58 Chipset)
System Memory: 6GB DDR3 1600MHz Digital Storm Certified Performance Series (Highly Recommended) (Hand Tested)
Power Supply: 1200W Digital Storm Certified (Dual/Triple/Quad SLI Compatible) (Silent Edition Highly Recommended)
Expansion Bay: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 1: Operating System: 1x (160GB Solid State (By: Intel) (Model: X25-M MLC Edition) (Extreme Performance)
Set 1 Raid Options: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 2: Multimedia\Data: 1x (1.5TB Seagate Barracuda (7200 RPM) (32MB Cache)
Hard Drive Set 3: Backup\Misc.: - No Thanks
Optical Drive 1: DVD-R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 24x / CD-Writer 48x)
Optical Drive 2: - No Thanks
Internet Access: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections)
Video Card: 2x SLI Dual (NVIDIA GeForce GTX 480 1.5GB (Includes PhysX Technology)
Add-on Card: - No Thanks
Sound Card: Creative Labs X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional (PCI-Express Slot Based)
Extreme Cooling: AIR: Stage 2: Noctua NH-D14 Extreme Performance (Does NOT fit on the regular EVGA X58 3X SLI)
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
Boost Processor: FREE: Stage 1: Overclock the processor between 3.3GHz to 3.9GHz (Cooling Upgrade Recommended)
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 Home Premium (64-Bit Edition)
Restore Kit: Digital Storm Specialized Recovery System (DVD Image Based)
Virus Protection: - No Thanks
Office: - No Thanks
Benchmarking: - No Thanks
Install/Test Game: FREE: Hot-selling game with a NVIDIA GeForce GTS 250 or above graphics card
Display: !PROMO BUNDLE: NVIDIA 3D Vision Kit (Asus 23 inch 120Hz VG236H + NVIDIA 3D Glasses)
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 (Small)
Priority Build: - No Thanks, Ship Within 5-15 Business Days After Order Is Successfully Processed
Warranty: Life-time Expert Customer Care with 3 Year Limited Warranty


Here are my questions:

1. Chassis Model: Is the case a good choice? I've heard the HAF 942 works well with air cooling, but the 932 is cheaper, and I've also heard good things about the Raven 2. Which one of these 3 would serve me best, or should I look at a different chassis?

2. Motherboard: I don't really know anything about motherboards, but I've seen this one recommended several times for similar builds. Will it support my slot needs, and is there a cheaper option that works?

3. Memory: Keeping the next few years in mind, is there any advantage to getting 12 GB DDR 3 1600 Mhz, or is that total overkill?

4. Power Supply: I would have picked the 1250W Enermax Galaxy EVO as I've heard good things about it being coupled with similar builds, but I couldn't find it as an option. Will the power supply I have selected be sufficient, or if the Enermax would be better, is there a way to choose it?

5. Hard Drive Set 1/2: I decided to go with this 160 GB SSD for the following reasons. I've heard intel is hands down the way to go for SSD, so that make the brand choice easy. As of right now, I plan on putting my OS, apps, and games on this drive. Because of the games I decided on 160 GB. I've heard very mixed opinions about game performance on SSDs. Many say that only load times are improved, and that actual gameplay is essentially the same. I have, however, seen convincing arguments for the opposite side, saying that actual performance is significantly better (e.g. search "does putting games on a ssd make a difference in performance?" in google and look at the pdf document that comes up as the first result). If it really doesn't make a difference, then I would definitely go with a smaller SSD (probably an 80). For the HDD, I decided to go with the 1.5 TB. As a music major and an audiophile, I have a huge amount of high quality music I want to store, along with quite a few pictures and many movies.

6. Video Card: I know that for my monitor's resolution (1920 x 1080) this is a bit of overkill, but I really want this system to run flawlessly, and I'm keeping the next few years in mind. I'm planning on playing FFxiv, and MMOs can have a ludicrous amount of things happening on screen simultaneously. I also don't know if the nVidia 3D setup puts any extra stress on the GPU (which I will be using with FF and many other games). From what I've read, it seems like if there's one place to splurge a bit on a gaming PC it's the video card setup, but if SLi is truly completely unnecessary I may decide to go with a single card.

7. Sound Card: As mentioned above, I'm an audiophile. I have a pair of Sennheiser HD 650s, and I don't want them or a DAC that I purchase to be choked by my system. How does this card stack up to the other ones available?

8. Extreme Cooling: I selected this because everyone on these forums seems to think this is the way to go for the Stage 1/2 options. However, I have never had my processor overclocked before, and I want to make sure It is running cool enough to last a long time. Should I go up to stage 3 or above? Also, do my video cards need any form of cooling (the cheapest level with a video card cooling option is an extra $700! I'd like to avoid this if possible...)?

9. Chassis Airflow: Are these upgrades worth it?

10. Video/Memory/OS boost: Are these necessary?

11. Display: Does anyone recommend a different monitor for use with the nVidia 3D kit? The pricing on this promo package seems comparable to, if not better in price than other sites/monitors with the same resolution/size. And I certainly don't want to go below 1920 x 1080.

12. Optical Drive 2: This question is related to my display choice. The monitor I chose has a "dual-link DVI and hdmi port." I want to be able to watch blu-ray 3D movies on my monitor with my PS3. I have both a regular hdmi cable and an hdmi <-> DVI cable. Is this possible? If not, I figure I'll just add a blu-ray player in my second optical drive. On a related note, can I play 3D enabled PS3 games on my monitor with the nVidia glasses, or does it have to be an actual "3D TV"?

Again, sorry for so many questions, and thank you SO much to anyone that takes the time to respond to any of my inquiries! ^_^

Originally posted by somedude988 1. Chassis Model: Is the case a good choice? I've heard the HAF 942 works well with air cooling, but the 932 is cheaper, and I've also heard good things about the Raven 2. Which one of these 3 would serve me best, or should I look at a different chassis?

The HAF 942 works pretty well but the 932 is better and cheaper. The 942 is just for big over sized motherboards. I'd stick with the 932.

2. Motherboard: I don't really know anything about motherboards, but I've seen this one recommended several times for similar builds. Will it support my slot needs, and is there a cheaper option that works?

The EVGA x58 LE is a great choice. The only one cheaper is the EVGA x58 Micro, which is pretty much the LE but with less PCIe expansion slots. If you're absolutely sure you wouldn't need the future expandability then the Micro is a great board too.

3. Memory: Keeping the next few years in mind, is there any advantage to getting 12 GB DDR 3 1600 Mhz, or is that total overkill?

For gaming or general multitasking, no. But you said you do high level audio editing, do you use applications that can make use of the extra memory? If you use applications that can use the extra memory to store and buffer more or larger files for quick real time editing then you're welcome to select 12GB if you think you'd get a use from it. DS Certified memory is a very good price so not like the extra 6GB costs too much anyway.

4. Power Supply: I would have picked the 1250W Enermax Galaxy EVO as I've heard good things about it being coupled with similar builds, but I couldn't find it as an option. Will the power supply I have selected be sufficient, or if the Enermax would be better, is there a way to choose it?

The DS 1200w (TechNPS) will be fine.

5. Hard Drive Set 1/2: I decided to go with this 160 GB SSD for the following reasons. I've heard intel is hands down the way to go for SSD, so that make the brand choice easy. As of right now, I plan on putting my OS, apps, and games on this drive. Because of the games I decided on 160 GB. I've heard very mixed opinions about game performance on SSDs. Many say that only load times are improved, and that actual gameplay is essentially the same. I have, however, seen convincing arguments for the opposite side, saying that actual performance is significantly better (e.g. search "does putting games on a ssd make a difference in performance?" in google and look at the pdf document that comes up as the first result). If it really doesn't make a difference, then I would definitely go with a smaller SSD (probably an 80). For the HDD, I decided to go with the 1.5 TB. As a music major and an audiophile, I have a huge amount of high quality music I want to store, along with quite a few pictures and many movies.

Very few games will have performance benefits from SSDs. Some can if they have a bad tendency to load things on the fly, but primarily it is just start up and load times that will see an improvement. And while they can be all kinds nice in its own right, it is very expensive to store games on SSDs because of their very high GB/$ prices and games usually being so large and taking up so many GBs. So games on SSD definitely luxury territory, you'll be fine with a smaller one. You can fit a small library of them on the 80GB too though.

8. Extreme Cooling: I selected this because everyone on these forums seems to think this is the way to go for the Stage 1/2 options. However, I have never had my processor overclocked before, and I want to make sure It is running cool enough to last a long time. Should I go up to stage 3 or above? Also, do my video cards need any form of cooling (the cheapest level with a video card cooling option is an extra $700! I'd like to avoid this if possible...)?

Video cards cool themselves just fine, no LCing is ever ever required unless you try to push high overclocks out of them, but that isn't a cost effective option. Stage 1 or 2 Noctua air cooler is also fine for the CPU unless you are trying to push unusually high overclocks, it will last a long time.

9. Chassis Airflow: Are these upgrades worth it?

No, not on a HAF.

10. Video/Memory/OS boost: Are these necessary?

CPU air coolers also have the side effect/benefit of cooling the memory, so no memory fan needed. I would not get the free OS tweak. The disabled services or visual effects are barely even a blip on the radar of an overclocked 930 processor and you can easily miss out on helpful or nice looking things by disabling them. Better to just tweak the OS to your preferences on your own.

looks good to me though i find it hard to justify buying the noctua 14 when the u12p is so similar.. unless you plan on adding a 3rd fan to the 14 i couldnt reccomend it