HAF X, NZXT Phantom, or something else?

L

Lynx908

New Member
Hey all, I've been trying to put together a build for myself for sometime now.

I need to get it over with because new stuff keeps coming out and I keep wanting that stuff so before I'm broke I figured I needed to narrow some things down.

The build I'm looking at right now is:
i7 950 (Although I've been looking into the i5 2500k coming out soon as well)
Asus sabertooth x58 mobo
corsair 850w PSU
dual gtx 460s
6gb tripple channel RAM
Caviar Black 1tb HDD

I will need a case able to keep this cool, I've heard great things about both in my title but this will only be my second build ever so I'm sure to still make a mistake somewhere.
 
sandy brigde been out since the 9th.if you havent already got the i7 950 than get the new i7 or i5(2nd generation),they spank the 1st generation of i7 and i5's.

mobo- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131695

ram- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231431
^Designed for Intel's P67

i7 2600k- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070
i5 2500k- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072
^both the i7 and i5 beat the i7 950

throw a GTX 570 in there and you got a urself a very good gaming rig.oh and if you not going to CF or SLI than the 850w is a overkill.

edit:for the money i think this case is great.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137
 
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I would still be using dual gtx 460s (MSI Hawk), I wouldn't come across any bottle necking if I still used SLI 460s with new mobo/CPU like those would I?
 
Like tech savvy said the sandy bridge runs dual channel memory so look for maybe a 2x4gb or 4x4gb, something like that. Also I have the NZXT Phantom, and its an amazing case, cable management is fantastic, tons of room, it is a full tower. The only problem I came across was cooling, the air flow thats supposed to be fantastic really isnt, although it is easily fixed by taking the top fan and having it blow into the case instead of out it dropped my processor temp 8 degrees amazingly. I will be adding another 200mm up top as well and that one will be blowing out again.
 
I would definitely like to go with a full tower this time around, although if the air flow in the phantom isn't as good as I thought I might be leaning towards the HAF X.

Chances are I'll probably still end up going with the i7 950, didn't know about these new i5 and i7 models that recently came out but I was under the impression tripple channel RAM was much better and these are utilizing dual channel. So clearly I still have a lot of research to do.
 
there should be no reason to get the i7 950 over the new i7's and i5's.the new CPU's offers better performance at lower cost,less heat , and uses less power, oh and they OC waay better.not tryin to be mean in anyway but you'll be stupid if you got the i7 950 over the new i7 and i5's.but ultimately its going to be your choice in the end so chose wisely.

edit:the new socket(1155)supports up to 32gb compared to 24gb on the 1366 plateform.
 
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Well with an arguement like that, it looks like my only choice is one of the new models! What would be the equivalent to the i7 930 and 950

i7 2###k and 2600k?

I shouldn't have been so dead set on triple channel memory but ever since I've been looking into the i7 930 and 950 it seemed that was the new way to go.
 
Well if I'm gunna go with one of the 2nd generation ones I'm gunna do it up good and go with the best I can get. i7 2600k would be the new best one I could get correct?
 
Lynx908 said:
I would definitely like to go with a full tower this time around, although if the air flow in the phantom isn't as good as I thought I might be leaning towards the HAF X.
Click to expand...

I might have worded that wrong... airflow isnt horrible, it just needs some more fans, another 200mm in the top and a 140mm on the front (i think thats the size that goes there) and it should be golden. Also my heatsink isnt facing in the optimal direction, im still waiting on adapters for my mobo. If you do decide to go with the Phantom Im sure you wont be disapointed
 
Very cool, seeing as how I've totally derailed this thread from it's original intent (Finding a good case to keep my parts cool) if I have any additional GPU or CPU questions I'll post them in the correct forum.

Thanks for all the advice everyone.
 
The haf-x looks like a solid case, has some improvements over the 932. I would have gotten it if I didn't get a better deal on mine, which had all the features I felt was necessary. The phantom looks a little too ultra, and I don't like to open a flap to access ports or drives. Appears to be highly functional though.
 
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