Building a luxury system

[takreem95]

Building a luxury system (I am not giving suggestions, but taking them)

Good Morning, Gentlemen. I want to build the Luxury System described in TechSpot's PC Buying Guides. Notes: Money is not a problem, so please reply with the best(and expensive) option you have. I am satisfied with all the components, except the PSU, which seems to be insufficient, and I am in a little doubt about the Motherboard, Asus Rampage III Formula. Please also note that I am going for the hexa-core processor, i7 980X.

I am also going for a GTX 580 3-way SLi configuration. Which presents the problem of power supply, can you recommend a good power supply unit from Corsair?
The second thing, now, is the motherboard, I have read that the Asus Rampage III Formula only supports 16x and 16x/16x and 16x/8x/8x PCIe 2.0 configurations. Tha I don't like, can you recommend a similar card made by Asus?
Now to the GTX 580, I have found two of the custom buids that I like, Asus ENGTX Geforce 580, and the Inno3D GTX 580 OC. I prefer the latter in 3-way SLi configuration. Can you recommend a better custom buid of GTX 580, that work better in 3-way SLi? I will also need a liquid cooling system, please recommend a good one.
My custom PC build in short is as follows (I have only written the changes to the Luxury System described in TechSpot's PC Buying Guide, the rest is the same as in the guide)
1: MotherboardPlease recommend, currently none)
2: GPU: 3x Inno3D GTX 580 (3-way SLi).
3SUPlease recommend, currently eyeing 'Antec HCP 1200W PSU' and 'CORSAIR Professional Series AX1200 1200W ATX12V v2.31 / EPS12V v2.92 SLI Certified 80 PLUS GOLD Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply' But Ihave read that you need a certain amount of 6- and 8-pin connectors for the 3-way SLi.) Thank You.

Sorry for the bad formatting.

Update 1: Maximum PSU limit= 1600W Please keep your suggestions within this limit. Thank You.
Update 2: No Pre-Built PCs, unless you are giving an example, or proving a point.
Update 3: I may abandon the Dell monitor for Nvidia Surround Gaming!
Update 4: Bought GPUs, Monitor, the HAF X case, and the Processor.

 

[Rayss523]

http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system/Black_Mamba/

Go here and knock yourself out. and on the mobo your not going to find 16x/16x/16x anywhere

 

[EDO219]

If quality is key, then go with Digital Storm or Falcon instead of CyberPowerPC.

 

[EDO219]

hahaha ... Check out this configuration on Digital Storm:

2x Xeon W5580 quad cores ... OC'd between 4.2 GHz to 4.6 GHz
48 GB DDR3 RAM
1500W PSU
2x 160 GB SSD in RAID 0 (for OS and key programs to reside)
2x 160 GB SSD (additional space for programs)
4x 300 GB Raptor 10k rpm (mass storage)
2x Blue Ray read/ write drives
4x GTX 580s SLi'd for a total of 6 GB v-mem
dedicated card for Tesla stuff
maxed out warranty, case finish, 2100 Killer Lan, liquid cooling on both CPUs and all four 580s, etc, etc.

TOTAL: $20,402

That doesn't even include the cost of the monitors or peripherals. XD

 

[EXCellR8]

i don't think a 1500w PSU would run 2 Xeons and 4 GTX 580's... regardless that is beyond a waste of money. if you have $20k to waste on a computers perhaps you could buy a few and start an internet cafe lol. Digital Storm does build some nice stuff, but i don't really understand the concept of a "luxury system" since nothing will ever utilize any of that power. hmm, i guess i just answered my own question

 

[Mizzou]

If money is really no object then you will probably want to go SSD for your storage needs and also need to consider case requirements ... think the OCZ RevoDrive X2 is the fastest SSD currently available. The following cases are recommended by EVGA for their Classified 4 Way SLI motherboard:

• Lian Li PC-P80 Series
• HEC 98 98R9BB
• Thermaltake Xaser VI Series
• Mountain Mods Acension w/ Modular Motherboard Tray 10 PCI Slot
• Xigmatek CPC-T75UB-U01
• Cooler Master HAF X

There are certainly others, but in any case suggest you choose something that can handle eATX motherboards. I have the Lian Li PC-P80 and it is an excellent case, also using the Corsair HX 1000 which has served me well. Any of the top boards from ASUS, Gigabyte or EVGA should meet your needs.

Subscribed, as it would fun to see this system come together.

 

[takreem95]

hahaha ... Check out this configuration on Digital Storm:

2x Xeon W5580 quad cores ... OC'd between 4.2 GHz to 4.6 GHz
48 GB DDR3 RAM
1500W PSU
2x 160 GB SSD in RAID 0 (for OS and key programs to reside)
2x 160 GB SSD (additional space for programs)
4x 300 GB Raptor 10k rpm (mass storage)
2x Blue Ray read/ write drives
4x GTX 580s SLi'd for a total of 6 GB v-mem
dedicated card for Tesla stuff
maxed out warranty, case finish, 2100 Killer Lan, liquid cooling on both CPUs and all four 580s, etc, etc.

TOTAL: $20,402

That doesn't even include the cost of the monitors or peripherals. XD

Thank You for your kind opinion, sir. But I really hate Pre-Built PCs. I like making my own. And as previously said, a 1500W PSU (if not a good one) will not be able to handle 4 GTX 580s, only 3 580s underload take about 1000W, another will make it ~1300W(?). Plus I may add that money may not be the problem but electricity is . You reach 2000W and BANG! Friendly neighborhood mob at your door So I keep my overclocks well within limits.

Go here and knock yourself out. and on the mobo your not going to find 16x/16x/16x anywhere

Ok then, the Asus Rampage III Formula it is! Or suggest something better, sir?

If money is really no object then you will probably want to go SSD for your storage needs and also need to consider case requirements ... think the OCZ RevoDrive X2 is the fastest SSD currently available. The following cases are recommended by EVGA for their Classified 4 Way SLI motherboard:

• Lian Li PC-P80 Series
• HEC 98 98R9BB
• Thermaltake Xaser VI Series
• Mountain Mods Acension w/ Modular Motherboard Tray 10 PCI Slot
• Xigmatek CPC-T75UB-U01
• Cooler Master HAF X

There are certainly others, but in any case suggest you choose something that can handle eATX motherboards. I have the Lian Li PC-P80 and it is an excellent case, also using the Corsair HX 1000 which has served me well. Any of the top boards from ASUS, Gigabyte or EVGA should meet your needs.

Subscribed, as it would fun to see this system come together.

Can you post your PC specifications, sir? If you have been using HX 1000, then it will be nice to give me some suggestions. Plus, I really only use CM, Corsair, Asus, Nvidia, and Logitech products.

i don't think a 1500w PSU would run 2 Xeons and 4 GTX 580's... regardless that is beyond a waste of money. if you have $20k to waste on a computers perhaps you could buy a few and start an internet cafe lol. Digital Storm does build some nice stuff, but i don't really understand the concept of a "luxury system" since nothing will ever utilize any of that power. hmm, i guess i just answered my own question

Yes, you are right in one place, sir. I am building a system whose full power I can utilize.

P.S I just read the Antec HCP 1200 PSU can run 4 GTX 480s! and can go 2200W!:slurp: But it hasn't got enough 6-pin connectors...

 

[Leeky]

I would use a 1200-1500w PSU, and then run 2x boosters (@450w per booster) to power the remaining two GPUs. This will give you a power output in excess of 1600w, but anything less than this and your just not going to be able to use the full potential of those cards, it just isn't enough.

I would also swap out the Velociraptors for 3TB hard disks. They'll be an absolute waste for data storage.

Also, rather than piss around with 4x 160GB SSD's, just get two 512GB SSDs and run them in RAID 0 instead. I use a 256GB SSD along with W7 Pro, and install all my games and software to it, and I still have plenty of space left. Double the size of mine will allow for even more space.

And I've just realised the OP isn't even considering this system, so just wasted 5 mins typing this... Oh well I'll post it anyway! :haha:

 

[dividebyzero]

...And as previously said, a 1500W PSU (if not a good one) will not be able to handle 4 GTX 580s, only 3 580s underload take about 1000W, another will make it ~1300W(?). Plus I may add that money may not be the problem but electricity is . You reach 2000W and BANG! Friendly neighborhood mob at your door

iirc a fourth card doesn't add greatly to power draw unless you're building a folding farm.
http://www.slizone.com/object/slizone_build_psu.html
You'll notice that 3-way SLI is the top option here. That is because the GTX 580 -unlike the GTX 480- is not officially supported for quad SLI...Any system you see using it (such as here) is running drivers not optimized for quad SLI.

Yes, you are right in one place, sir. I am building a system whose full power I can utilize.

Then why blather on about quad SLI ? A fourth card does not add appreciably to the performance and you would also need either a:
Gigabyte X58A-UD9
EVGA 170-BL-E762-A1 (Classified 4-way SLI)
EVGA 270-WS-W555-A1/-A2 (SR-2) (DP Xeon only)
Asus P6T7 WS SuperComputer

BTW: Contrary to what Rayss523 thinks, all four boards support full bandwidth on 4-way SLI (x16, x16, x16, x16) since all four sport two NF200 bridge chips.

P.S I just read the Antec HCP 1200 PSU can run 4 GTX 480s! and can go 2200W!:slurp: But it hasn't got 6-pin connectors...

Really? I suggest you read a little more carefully. The HCP has eight 6+2 pin connections (half modular cable, half fixed cable). Likewise the Quattro 1200 also features eight connectors ( 4 x 6+2pin, 4x 6pin).

Four-way GPU chassis also include:
Lian Li PC-V2020
Lian Li PC-V2120
Thermaltake Armor+ (VH6000)
Mountain Mods Pinnacle 18 and 24

You seem woefully unprepared in backround information and knowledge base commensurate with what you are supposedly planning on putting together. You might want to start with reading up on multi-GPU scaling efficiency, 3 and 4-way driver effectiveness, relative merits of combining dual power supplies and their connectivity and airflow/cooling and cable management considerations for multi-GPU chassis before you start throwing your credit card around.

ATM I'm seeing new member with pie-in-the-sky build pretensions.......you're not wasting everyone's time here are you? Because trolls and attention wh0res hold an exalted place in my affection for forum posters.

I would use a 1200-1500w PSU, and then run 2x boosters (@450w per booster) to power the remaining two GPUs.

If this is a normal selling price then I'd look more at dual-PSU (and a chassis that would accept two PSU's). A couple of these ( or these) for example will be more efficient, offer less cable clutter and better headroom. The Booster X5 is too underpowered for running two cards, but wasted on one card :
450 watts at 85% efficiency, so 450 x 0.85 / 12v = ~32A, whereas a GTX 580 for example is drawing a nominal 75w through the PCI-E slot, so the booster would only be supplying power through the 8pin (150w) and 6pin (75w) -225w/18.75A total- for each card...
So while the card/s would be getting ample current through the Booster/s, you would then have the situation where the primary PSU is supplying card #1 and 2 ( 2 x 8pin + 2 x 6pin -450w max.), motherboard at 75-90w per PCI-E slot (300-360w), CPU (130-200+w), chipset/MCH (20+w) and assorted harddrives, fans, peripherals etc. close to 1kw draw for continuous gaming with four cards. A rather lopsided power distribution imo.
The Boosters make an excellent choice is you already have a reasonable PSU that you don't want to upgrade, but if you haven't committed to a PSU buy then dual PSU's (in this instance) probably offer some better options going forward.

 

[takreem95]

Good Morning, dividebyzero. Firstly, what are you talking about, sir? htt p://ww w.hardocp.c om/article/2010/10/24/antec_high_current_pro_1200w_power_supply_review/2 look at the first image showing the connectors types, you see there are no 6-pin PCI connectors, maybe we have mistaken each other? I meant the Antec HCP-1200.Secondly, I am NOT going for 4-Way SLI, a previous user just mentioned 4-Way SLI. Sorry for the confusions.

And I've just realised the OP isn't even considering this system, so just wasted 5 mins typing this... Oh well I'll post it anyway! :haha:

I meant that I may not buy the monitor, and go for the 3 Monitor setup (3D Surround Gaming, three 3D monitors), Leeky. Sorry again for the confusion. I will update the main post.

 

[dividebyzero]

Good Morning, dividebyzero. Firstly, what are you talking about, sir? http://www.hardocp.com/article/2010/10/24/antec_high_current_pro_1200w_power_supply_review/2 look at the first image showing the connectors types, you see there are no 6-pin PCI connectors, maybe we have mistaken each other?

What part of this do you not understand?
That the asterix * in the connectors chart that is part of the line "8* 8 PCI Express Connectors" means that that the 8pin plugs are modular 6+2 ?
or...
That NO PSU features solid 8 pin PCIe connectors exclusively?
or...
That most PSU's feature 6+2 connectors, much the same at most PSU's feature 20+4pin ATX motherboard plugs?
or..
That the manufacturers own specification page which I linked you to clearly shows the 6+2 pin configuration?
or that...
6+2 pin means that the PCIe plug can be used either as a 6 pin connector or an 8 pin connector?

You do realise that if a power supply only offered 8pin PCIe connectors that the only graphics cards that could be used in conjuction with it are the Asus Mars and Asus Ares limited edition (1,000 each produced, $US1000+ MSRP/RRP) cards that are no longer for sale?

takreem95, do yourself a favour, buy a Dell, HP or eMachines prebuilt box and let someone else take the hard work out of thinking for you. I never thought I would recommend one of these systems to anyone on the tech forums I frequent...you sir, are in a class apart.....special, as it were....very special.

Merry Christmas! :wave: And here's my gift to you...
Dell
Hewlett Packard
eMachines

 

[takreem95]

What part of this do you not understand?
That the asterix * in the connectors chart that is part of the line "8* 8 PCI Express Connectors" means that that the 8pin plugs are modular 6+2 ?
or...
That NO PSU features solid 8 pin PCIe connectors exclusively?
or...
That most PSU's feature 6+2 connectors, much the same at most PSU's feature 20+4pin ATX motherboard plugs?
or..
That the manufacturers own specification page which I linked you toclearly shows [/URL]the 6+2 pin configuration?
or that...
6+2 pin means that the PCIe plug can be used either as a 6 pin connector or an 8 pin connector?

You do realise that if a power supply only offered 8pin PCIe connectors that the only graphics cards that could be used in conjuction with it are the Asus Mars and Asus Ares limited edition (1,000 each produced, $US1000+ MSRP/RRP) cards that are no longer for sale?

takreem95, do yourself a favour, buy a Dell, HP or eMachines prebuilt box and let someone else take the hard work out of thinking for you. I never thought I would recommend one of these systems to anyone on the tech forums I frequent...you sir, are in a class apart.....special, as it were....very special.

Merry Christmas! :wave: And here's my gift to you...
[/URL]

Good Morning, sir. You have confused me greatly, sir. The second connector is 1 8-pin, and the third is also similar to the 8-pin one, except that it is divided into 6 and 2 pin. Or maybe you are referring to the fact that the 6+2pin connectors can be used as both 8-pin(combined) and 6-pin connectors. Please correct me if I am wrong, Great Guru. Plus, the Asus Ares needs two 8-pin plus NEEDS one 6-pin connector.

 

[dividebyzero]

6+2 pin connectors (picture 3) can obviously be used as a 6pin or an 8pin.

Picture #2 shows an 8pin EPS12v connector - it is a motherboard auxillary power connector- it is not a PCI-E connector.

I am posting this information in the unlikely event that someone else reading this thread has the same difficulty grasping PSU connectivity.

takreem95, take my advice and buy a prebuilt. Anyone who cannot follow the manufacturers cable connectivity in pictoral form probably is some vast reservoir of knowledge short of assembling a computer. The fact that you base your supposed purchases on an inability to process the correct information on the manufacturers own website- indeed, you actually discount Antec's product specification in preference to (misunderstanding) sort-of reading one online review. Paul Johnson and Kyle Bennett must be absolutely in awe of your slavish devotion.

Now if you'll excuse me, this thread is at an end as far as I'm concerned.

Please be careful- Don't electrocute yourself plugging in the Dell/eMachines/HP- read the manual and study the diagrams very carefully.:wave: