Need help with a multi screen new build

A

AnaB

New Member
Hello and Happy Holidays,

I found this forum during a Google search for "how to assemble a trading computer" as I'm shopping for components for a new box for my husband. I'm on the outer edges of novice in skill level and this will be my second build, so I'd really appreciate your inputs on my choices v desired function. These are the parts I'm considering based on an older thread on this forum and some other research. I'm trying to stay under my $1700.00.

OS: Windows 7 Pro 64bit

Case: CoolerMaster HAF 932 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...ter_haf_932_full_tower-_-11-119-160-_-Product
It has the same amount of fans as his current closed case (poor air flow), but they are bigger and better situated. I also like the easy location of the peripheral hook ups. One complaint from others that have reviewed (as opposed to actual users) this is the lack of dust filters for the fans and 5.25" drives--can I just use some air filter, filter material and somehow slip it in place? Or maybe the airflow was designed not to need filtering??

MOBO: Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128413&Tpk=Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD7
I have a GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3R in my graphics box that I built last year and I'm happy with it so I thought I'd stick with the brand unless you all recommend something better suited.
This one http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128423 has almost all the same specs except it doesn't mention multiple display support, does this mean it's not at all capable of it? There is a $140.00 difference in price, so if this one would work I'd go with it.

CPU: Intel Core i7-950.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115211 He's currently running Intel Pentium 4. He runs at least 4 programs at a time so I wanted the "multi-tasking" features of this processor to keep things moving.

CPU Cooler: CoolerMaster V8
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103055&Tpk=V8 COOLERMASTER
The current fan is the one that came with the processor and it sounds like a gear shifting mack-truck (LOUD!!) when the processor is working, so based on happy reviews of this product I've chosen this one. The only question I have is about its size in terms of blocking off access to any of the slots etc.

Memory: Corsair Dominator 6GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145224
He doesn't need more than 6gbs and I'll be paying less for this than I did for A-Data 2x2's last year for my box :(

GPU: Maybe, Sapphire Vapor-X
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...65&Tpk=SAPPHIRE VAPOR-X HD5750 1GB GDDR5 PCIE
This is where I really get stuck. He currently has a 6 screen display set up with 17" Samsung 740n monitors with 1280 x 1024 resolution ( http://www.samsung.com/sg/consumer/...r/LS17HALKB/XSS/index.idx?pagetype=prd_detail )
and there is nothing wrong with them, so I'm hoping to find a card that has VGA or DVI-I compatibility, performance level quality, has a decent fan and hopefully will support 3 screens like the Sapphire. I'm not sure the Sapphire will work for me because the specs say that in order to support 3 displays, one of the monitors has to support DisplayPort. I can't tell if his monitors do or not, so if I had to use 3 cards, I don't think that they'd fit because the card looks like it takes up 2 slots each. So here I could really use some suggestions. OR, could I just replace 2 of the monitors with new ones that support DisplayPort, (can you mix and match monitors?) OR is this a situation where an adaptor of some sort would be a solution?

DVD: this Samsung model
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...re=SATA_22X_DVD_Burner-_-27-151-188-_-Product
Not picky here. Just need to have 2, with DVD viewing/burning and CD playing/burning capabilities and this one seems to do what I need.

PSU: Seasonic X-850
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...m_re=850w_power_supply-_-17-151-102-_-Product
I have a Seasonic X650 in my box and it is quieter than a snail and since I'm happy with mine I was looking for its higher wattage cousin. This one also has enough connectors.

HD: Western Digital. It's a toss-up between these two, and I'd get at least 2.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...rn Digital 1.5TB Caviar Green SATA 32MB cache OR this...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136490
1 TB is plenty of storage space for all his charts etc., and I'm just learning about the pros/cons/variances between RPMs, cache size, the effects of rotational speed and temperature, so I'm kinda at a loss as to which one is best. Basically, I'd like the best combination of writing speed, efficient data storage/retrieval and quiet/coolness, so help/suggestions are appreciated.

And here is what I'm trying to achieve. A cool running, as quiet as possible system that is reliable and will last at least 5 years and is as future proofed as I can make it while not spending a fortune. His current system has lasted 5 years of nearly 24/7 use without a glitch until now, and is starting to show physical signs of wear. One of his video cards died and another is on its way out, and in the last two weeks the system has been making weird straining noises and will suddenly just turn off, and not want to turn on again until significant time has passed. (an overheating issue maybe?) Aside from all this, his current processor can't handle some of the new programs he needs to install.
I think I have everything listed; no need for floppy drives and no gaming and over-clocking needs. So I'd love to hear comments, suggestions, better and/or cheaper component options, from you experienced builders on my shopping list.

Thanks and I look forward to hearing from you!

Best,
Ana
 
Hey Ana, Welcome to CF.

Just to comment on the build the coolermaster V8 is a great cooler but unless you are doing any heavy overclocking, it is serious overkill. This cooler will give you great temps while keeping costs and noise low.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

One other thing to mention is that if he runs 6 monitors there are cards that will run all 6 off of one card

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...2888&cm_re=eyefiniry_6-_-14-102-888-_-Product

paired with

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...9031&cm_re=eyefiniry_6-_-14-999-031-_-Product

This card is complete overkill for a work computer but I thought I would throw that out there.
 
I would not overclock a system that is going to be used for stock trading. Stability is what you want if that is what the system is going to be used for.

And just in case you did not know SSD is a "solid state drive."
 
Looks like you know what you're doing for the most part...that's a good, high quality build. :)

It would not be hard to get one good graphics card to run two monitors from, and then two weaker graphics cards to run the other four. The cheap cards will likely have at least one VGA connector, but otherwise it's all DVI...

Something like a Radeon HD3450/4350/5450 would be cheap, and would serve the purpose admirably. All of them can be had in single slot versions, so there's no worries about fitting them in. (The 4350/5450 would be much better, since they have roughly twice the amount of processing power as the 3450)
 
Many thanks for all of the responses.

Salvage, thanks for the cooler info. I'll exchange the hyper 212 for the V8. I love the idea of one GPU for all 6 screens, but as this gorgeous card is serious overkill I think I'll opt for a cheaper solution :)

BennyBoy, done some reading and I'm going to go with the WD Black 7200s. I'm still reading/learning about an ssd boot drive solution, I'll update later.

OK so these are my latest two set up options for the MOBO/GPUs.
#1. Using the ASUS P6T6 MOBO http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131358&Tpk=NVIDIA NF200 lga 1366 so that I can use just 2, double slot GPUs: Sapphire 5750s http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...65&Tpk=SAPPHIRE VAPOR-X HD5750 1GB GDDR5 PCIE. I'll use (per card) 2 DVI to VGA adapters and 1 DP to VGA http://www.amazon.com/Black-Display...6B7C/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1293407416&sr=8-4 for the third monitor. Will this last adapter make up for my monitors not supporting DisplayPort?

#2. Using the Gigabyte GA- X58A-UD3R http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128423 if it will support multiple screens and use 3 of the single slot card options below (Drenlin, thanks for the input on the GPUs.) This MOBO doesn't specifically say it supports multi-displays, but does that mean that it's NOT capable? It has 4 expansion slots after all.

Card A. EVGA GeForce GT 220 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...2&cm_re=GeForce_GT_220-_-14-130-522-_-Product OR
Card B. ASUS Radeon HD 5450 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ..._re=ati_radeon_hd_5450-_-14-121-365-_-Product

Both of these cards seem to be low end gaming models, which I think will deliver a decent picture. The 220 has a fan but some users have complained that is loud. The 5450 has passive cooling and I'm wondering if the 1, 230mm fan on the side of the case will be enough to keep 3 cards cool? If so I'd go with this card because they will be quiet. For either card, I'll just use adapters for DVI to VGA, like his current configuration has. Do any of you have any experience/knowledge with these cards, do you think they will suitable for stock trading use?
My husband won't be gaming, but he does use stock charts and 2 trading platforms that are streaming in live data during market hours and they have caused his current system's fan to screech into overdrive, but I really think part of the heat issue is the system's poor case choice.

Both set up options have potential glitches that may send me back to the drawing board, but I'm hoping that you all can help me sort them out.

Hope you all had a great Holiday and I look forward to hearing you!

Ana
 
If you are looking for a lower price why not look at an AMD processor? Intel Socket 1366 processors are pretty expensive. It appears to me that a Phenom II Six-Core Processor would be a decent choice to put at the heart of this custom system since it is mainly going to be used for multi-tasking. You won't need to buy a third party heat sink either since Advanced Micro Devices provides decent stock heat sinks with their processors.

Phenom II 1055T Thuban Six-Core (2.8 gigahertz) Socket AM3 125 Watt Processor - $179
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...851&cm_re=Phenom_II_x6-_-19-103-851-_-Product

Here is a decent motherboard that will work with the Phenom II 1055T Six-Core:

GIGABYTE GA-890FXA-UD5 Socket AM3 Motherboard - $183
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...motherboard_socket_am3-_-13-128-441-_-Product
 
The 5450 will be perfectly fine just for driving monitors, and passive cooling is perfectly ok for them. :good:
Here's a slightly cheaper one. (free shipping/better rebate)- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102877

The 220 is a little more powerful, but it uses more power as well, and doesn't support the newest technologies like the 5450. It's also more expensive...for about the same price, you can get a 5550, which has 320 stream processors instead 80.

Actually, a 5550 would be perfect for the primary monitors:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131355



Also, +1 on the Phenom II x6 is you want to cut costs. Good mobo as well. It has a combo with the 750W version of that PSU:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.567437
 
Last edited:
Sorry for the slow response, but with my kids home for two weeks and keeping me busy, Christmas won't be over till the 3rd :)

Anyway, thanks for the the new recommendations. I'll be going over my list and finalizing it this weekend, then I'll update here with the verdict. Thanks again!!


Cheers,
Ana
 
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