First Build

[Cyanide89]

What do you think about the i7 3770?

I'm unfamiliar with this CPU unfortunately.

and what is so good about ssd's?

Much faster than regular HDDs. Substantial difference in boot and load times.

from what i can see 690's are just for those who want more than one. I mean the differences are virtually nil between 2x680 vs 690. and by me purchasing 680's i can stagger the cost.

If you're worried about cooling, the 690 is a much better way to go. You won't have to deal with the heat between two cards... not to mention the power that two cards would consume compared to the 690.

680:

Thermal and Power Specs:

Maximum GPU Tempurature - 98 C

Maximum Graphics Card Power - 195W

Minimum System Power Requirement - 550W

Two 6-pinSupplementary Power Connectors

690:

Thermal and Power Specs:

Maximum GPU Tempurature - 98 C

Maximum Graphics Card Power - 300W

Minimum System Power Requirement - 650W

Two 8-pinSupplementary Power Connectors

 

[The Scientific Moustache]

I'm unfamiliar with this CPU unfortunately.

Much faster than regular HDDs. Substantial difference in boot and load times.

If you're worried about cooling, the 690 is a much better way to go. You won't have to deal with the heat between two cards... not to mention the power that two cards would consume compared to the 690.

680:

Thermal and Power Specs:

98 C Maximum GPU Tempurature (in C)

195 W Maximum Graphics Card Power (W)

550 WMinimum System Power Requirement (W)

Two 6-pinSupplementary Power Connectors

690:

Thermal and Power Specs:

98 CMaximum GPU Tempurature (in C)

300 WMaximum Graphics Card Power (W)

650 WMinimum System Power Requirement (W)

Two 8-pinSupplementary Power Connectors

granted but i still can't buy a 690 in 2 halves...

 

[Cyanide89]

What about putting it on a credit card and making payments? Or just putting off the card until you save the money and using onboard graphics. I've heard that the HD4000 graphics are fantastic.

Also, there can be complications with cards in SLI and from what Nvidia has said about the 690, it has been significantly improved performance wise over the 590.

 

[CommissarJAG]

So the 690 seems like the way to go. The money isn't much of a problem for me so I am not worried about buying in segments. Does anyone know if the Seasonic Platinum is a good power source for this build?

 

[Cyanide89]

So the 690 seems like the way to go. The money isn't much of a problem for me so I am not worried about buying in segments. Does anyone know if the Seasonic Platinum is a good power source for this build?

I would go with the AX1200. More than enough juice and one of the best PSU's around.

 

[CommissarJAG]

Okay, that looks pretty good, also do you think a 240 GB ssd is too much?

 

[Cyanide89]

Okay, that looks pretty good, also do you think a 240 GB ssd is too much?

I think a 120-128Gb is ideal. It gives you room for the OS as your boot drive and for your most used apps and games.

That way you can have a couple terabyte storage HDDs and your SSD as boot, this setup would run great. Also, if you have SSD caching you can get a small SSD for that.

I used to have a 64Gb drive but it just wasn't enough space after a couple games and apps, so I bought the 128Gb Samsung 830 and it's perfect. And by far the best SSD I have used.

If you have the money, the larger drives offer better speeds.

All sizes of the Samsung 830 have a sequential read speed of 520MB/s while the write speeds are 160MB/s (64Gb), 320MB/s (128Gb) and 400MB/s (256/512Gb).

 

[CommissarJAG]

Do you know if the kingston ssd's are good? And I have no idea what ssd caching is

 

[Cyanide89]

I've heard good things about the Kingston SSDs, but as far as I know the Intel 500 series and Samsung 830 are at the top.

 

[Cthaine]

SSD's are about idk 4/5x faster in read then a HDD. So fast boot up; fast game save loads. Faster write time means faster install, ofc. Really removes a bottle neck on a fair bit of tasks. If you have the cash, get one. They are more reliable too.

(Edit* oops XD i realized i didn't go to page 2 so i only read his original SSD question. SSD's are cool though

)