Input on box specs

[Nemis79]

Hey.

I'm building a new box mainly for 5 boxing WoW, but also for gaming in general. I'm planning on OC'ing to the highest stable config.

Case: Lancool PC-K62
PSU: Corsair HX 750W or HX 850W
Motherboard: LGA1366 Intel X58 Asus Rampage II GENE or Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5
CPU: Intel Core i7 920 D0 stepping
Cooling paste: Arctic Cooling MX-3
CPU HS: Thermalright Ultra120 Extreme
CPU Fan: 2 x Scythe Ultra Kaze 120mm 2000RPM
Memory: Corsair XMS3 TWIN3X DDR3-1600 CL9 6x2GB
GPU: EVGA GeForce GTX 275 896MB
HD: Crucial M225 64GB 2.5 SSD
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit

1. The Lancool PC-K62 has received excellent reviews, but the looks arent that great. It would be nice with some input on alternative cases in the same price range that offers great cooling and good looks.

2. How much wattage do I need for such a box, is 750 enough or should I go for 850 in case I want to add an extra GPU or whatever?

3. I have chosen the LGA1366 Intel X58 platform. The two motherboards that stand out are the Asus and Gigabyte. The former is uATX and the latter is ATX. Any input on which I should choose and why?

4. I've also read that the northbridge gets really hot on the X58, so to overclock I'm adding active cooling using an Antec Spotcool. Is it realistic to reach 4GHz with this setup and the D0 stepping?

5. Is the GPU okay or should I choose something else? What kind of FPS can I hope for in Dalaran on a 5 box?

6. I just picked a cheap SSD, but I guess it's ok.

7. Anything else...

Thanks in advance!

[mebben]

1. No comment about chassi, that's just personal preference :)
2. The watt isn't the important thing when buying a PSU.. its what it actual delievers in amp and power during load
3. Either will work, but I'd get a 1156 board instead, since it's the new standard. But that's just me.
4. -
5. I have a similar spec and I have around 40-50 fps in Dalaran.
6. A SSD will definately help, but my biggest improvement was going from 6 to 12 gig of ram.
7. Have fun boxing !

[Ualaa]

A lot of cases work, it is preference.
I personally love the Antec 900 Gamer.
Tons of space inside, and (stock) six 120mm fans and one 240mm fan.

I like more watts over less.
It lets you expand in the future.

My roommate has the Asus Rampage II, and loves it.
I went with an Asus P6T, and have no complaints.

The i7 920 is a much better price then the options above it.
I believe the 965 (highest of the three, I think they're 920, 940 and 965) has the ability for unlocked multipliers, which means the fastest overclocking possible, but is much more expensive.

12gb of ram is plenty for 5 boxing wow.

The GTX275 is a very nice card.
The X1 cards, seem to run a lot better then the X2 cards for Warcraft at least.
If you'll play DX11 games, consider an ATI 5870 as the only card that might be stronger (and is DX11 ready).

I don't have experience with SSD's, but have a couple on my list.
From what I've read, the low end ones are great for read speed of games.
And you only need a higher end (more expensive one) if you're putting the operating system on it too.

Operating system is 64-bit, and Windows 7 is a good OS.

[BobGnarly]

2. Not to nitpick above, but wattage is important. In fact, they are exactly deliverable load (joules of energy/second). It is true that it's not the only important thing in a PSU, so you want to stay with a reputable vendor. Corsair is decent. I would not build a new machine these days with less that 800, assuming a current or future plan for SLI.
4. I'm not a big fan of overclocking in general. I used to be a diehard OCer, and it's just not worth it. Nothing pisses me off faster than a computer that isn't stable, and while I'm not suggesting all OC's aren't, it's a lot more probable when you're pushing limits. Plus, if something does go wrong, it's always the first thing in your mind.
5. You can 5box with it. I was using a gtx260 for a time, got about 40fps on an i7 with 12G and all the slaves capped at 15fps. Highly recommend EVGA.
6. Not a fan of the SSD for this application, tbh. I've tried two different ones now and noticed very little different. Having tons of memory, I think, somewhat invalidates their usefulness for boxing because we are always using 5 copies of the same data, which will be cached in RAM.

Invest in a good monitor. Don't listen to the "it's too big to be useful" crowd, there is no such thing. :)

[Ualaa]

I'm running 5 toons on a 30.5" widescreen.
I love watching dvd's on that screen, with my Logitech Z5500 speakers cranked to quarter volume (which is quite a bit louder then maximum on any previous speakers I've had).

Although for the same price, you could get two 25" monitors or three 22" monitors and cash left over.