Opinion on mid-range system (part list)

[bugmenot]

I am a novice in this area so I was hoping an expert could make recommendations on the mid-range system I am trying to build. I intend to use the integrated graphics included on the motherboard. The part I am least certain about is the heatsink. Part list below. Thanks for any advice.

Antec P183 V3 Aluminum ATX Tower Case 4X5.25EXT 6X3.5 2X2.5INT Front Audio USB3.0 *No PS*
In Stock 60754 $138.98 $138.98

Intel Core i5 2500 Quad Core Processor LGA1155 3.3GHZ Sandy Bridge 6MB
In Stock 57963 $214.87 $214.87

2x Kingston KVR1333D3N9/2G 2GB 1X2GB DDR3-1333 NON-ECC CL9 240PIN DIMM Memory Module
In Stock 40180 $27.98 $55.96

Western Digital WD20EARS Caviar Green 2TB SATA2 3Gbps 64MB Cache 3.5IN Hard Drive OEM
In Stock 49591 $77.99 $77.99


Samsung SH-S243D/BEBE 24X Black DVD Writer SATA OEM
In Stock 45667 $27.99 $27.99

ASUS P8Z68-V Pro Z68 LGA1155 ATX 3PCI-E16 2PCI-E1 2 PCI B3 Motherboard
In Stock 61183 $210.90 $210.90


3x Scythe S-FLEX SFF21F 120MM Cooling Fan 1600RPM 28.0DBA 63.7CFM FDB
In Stock 17749 $19.98 $59.94

Seasonic X-560 ATX 12V 24PIN 560W Active PFC 80PLUS Gold Modular Power Supply W Sanyo Denki Fan
Back Order 55672 $129.96 $129.96


Liteon IHAS124 24X DVD Writer SATA Black OEM
In Stock 45244 $25.99 $25.99

Prolimatech Megahalems Rev B CPU Heatsink Cooler LGA1156 LGA1155 LGA1366 LGA775 *IR-$13*
In Stock 48882 $44.99 $44.99

[Abula]

If you are set Z68 board and using the integrated gpu, why not invest a little more and go for the 2500K, the Z68 board will allow OCing if you ever want to and the K versions come with intels 3000 gpus, so imo worth the extra $15 from your price, if you dont benefit from 3000 gpu, then just go with H67 mobo and 2500. One thing that i would consider also if you can, is a small ssd for OS and apps, specially with Z68 mobo with the new feature of using the ssd as a cache, something like Crucial M4 CT064M4SSD2 2.5" 64GB SATA III. The SFLEX fan in no way quiet, specially the 1600rpm, unless you are going to lower their rpms, but consider also the Slipstreams.

[m0002a]

My understanding is that the Z68 motherboard has these main features:

Support for 3 full size video cards (you are only using integrated graphics)
CPU overclocking (unlike the 2500K, the 2500 you have chosen is locked)
SSD caching (you have no SSD)

[bugmenot]

If you are set Z68 board and using the integrated gpu, why not invest a little more and go for the 2500K, the Z68 board will allow OCing if you ever want to and the K versions come with intels 3000 gpus, so imo worth the extra $15 from your price, if you dont benefit from 3000 gpu, then just go with H67 mobo and 2500. One thing that i would consider also if you can, is a small ssd for OS and apps, specially with Z68 mobo with the new feature of using the ssd as a cache, something like Crucial M4 CT064M4SSD2 2.5" 64GB SATA III. The SFLEX fan in no way quiet, specially the 1600rpm, unless you are going to lower their rpms, but consider also the Slipstreams.

Thank you for the suggestions.

I am not terribly interested in overclocking and elected to use the 2500 in lieu of the 2500k because the latter does not support Vt-D which I mistook for virtualization support when in fact it is hardware virtualization support. I have to assess if support for that functionality is worthwhile for me when compared with the benefit of HD 3000. My immediate inclination is follow your recommendation.

Also per your recommendation I will definitely add an SSD though I will have to research them more to select the model.

Regarding the SFLEX fan I selected it from the SPCR recommend list. Is that list not reliable?

Anyone have comments on the number of fans and the choice of heatsink? Should I be getting a fan controller?

[Abula]

Regarding the SFLEX fan I selected it from the SPCR recommend list. Is that list not reliable?

The list is great, and very accurate in my experience. What i was trying to say is that the SFLEX @ 1600RPM (I own 3 1600rpm) is really noisy but also pushes a lot of air, you will need to undervolt it probably below 800rpm to put it quiet, so the idea was just so you know that you will need to have some way to reduce it, and not just plun n play and expect quiet fan.

It really depends into what you need though, what i mean is a lot of people like to have high rpm fan and just lower it to their personal liking, some fans don't like undervolting that much or dont go that low, in case you need more cooling (OCing, Gaming, rendering etc) then you can let them run at higher rpm, etc. Personally i prefer to go into lower model, 1200rpm is good, sometimes i go with 800rpm fans, but again depends on your needs and what you trying to achieve.

Anyone have comments on the number of fans and the choice of heatsink?

Really depends on the system and its airflow, intended purpose, etc. Some poeople like to put the least amount of fans as possible, but you will need a least 1 to have some airflow inside your case, personally i like at least two, one for intake and for outake, but its better for you to test with you own setup see if it makes a difference in both temps and noise. On the CPU heatsink, i would try the intel first some people say its noisy some say its not that much, but then again there are very good cheap coolers in the market like Coolermaster Hyper 212+ $30 (just change the fan or control it) to high end that can run passive like Thermalright HR02. Since you are not OCing at all, i would probably try intel stock first or if you want go for 212.

Should I be getting a fan controller?

Personally i think its best solution, specially for going with high rpm fans like you want, this will allow you to adjust more to your personal liking/needs, but its not needed, you can also get in line resistors or adapters that will lower the voltage to each fan and since you might run very few could end up cheaper or easier to do.

[bugmenot]

I should mention that I will be using a Linux distro and my understanding that SSD caching is not supported there so I will not be interested in that feature.

[HFat]

elected to use the 2500 in lieu of the 2500k because the latter does not support Vt-D which I mistook for virtualization support when in fact it is hardware virtualization support.

No, that's VT-x! VT-d is an additional extension that's supposed to speed up virutalized I/O.

Also per your recommendation I will definitely add an SSD though I will have to research them more to select the model.

The SSD cache supported by Z68 boards is completely different from a regular SSD. The SSD cache is mostly useful if you have no regular SSD and vice versa. If you're going to use a regular SSD, you have little use for a Z68 board.
There are special SSDs sold for use as cache. You could use a regular SSD for cache but it's probably not the best idea.

It looks like you're planning to waste money. The 2400 is a fine CPU and it looks like you've got no use for such an expensive board.

Linux will likely offer software-based SSD caching down the road. You can probably already hack something like that together but there is as of yet no such mature feature for mainstream use. I think BSD has it through ZFS however.

[bugmenot]

The SFLEX fan in no way quiet, specially the 1600rpm, unless you are going to lower their rpms, but consider also the Slipstreams.

How is this fan?
3x Scythe Slip Stream Kaze Jyuni 120MM Fan 500RPM 24.5CFM 7.5DBA

What about this heatsink/heatpipe?
Noctua NH-U12P 120MM Heatpipe Cooler

[m0002a]

High-end Asus motherboards like you are considering have Q-Fan control in the bios to control fan speed. But make sure the CPU fan is a 4-pin PWM. Some Asus boards (like mine) have an additional PWM fan header, and a couple fo 4 pin headers. So make sure you get the right fans for the fan headers on your motherboard (if you want to use Q-Fan). You can download the Asus motherboard manual from their site.

[bugmenot]

High-end Asus motherboards like you are considering have Q-Fan control in the bios to control fan speed. But make sure the CPU fan is a 4-pin PWM. Some Asus boards (like mine) have an additional PWM fan header, and a couple fo 4 pin headers. So make sure you get the right fans for the fan headers on your motherboard (if you want to use Q-Fan). You can download the Asus motherboard manual from their site.

Are Q-Fan control and PWM fans the most reasonable thing to use?

[Abula]

High-end Asus motherboards like you are considering have Q-Fan control in the bios to control fan speed. But make sure the CPU fan is a 4-pin PWM. Some Asus boards (like mine) have an additional PWM fan header, and a couple fo 4 pin headers. So make sure you get the right fans for the fan headers on your motherboard (if you want to use Q-Fan). You can download the Asus motherboard manual from their site.

This imo is good advice, i havent upgraded my desktop yet, only did a new sandy bridge with intels but the controling of the fans is limited, seems it can but very wierd once i adjust the low and high, the bios only lowerest it once windows finishes loading, still testing with it, but at the default settings its only 1 second while the bios kicks in from start and all fans are lowered by it. But this could end up a better choice, as you saved on the fan controller and you can tweak in the bios. The one that i went was Scythe Kama Flex 120mm x 25mm PWM Fan w/ S-Fluid Dynamic Bearings (SA1225FDB12H-P) totally inaudible atm, but the intel mobo has it runing at 291rpm, i tried tweaking it, and at 450 was still inaudible, but the loading it goes to 1600rpm until windows loads (still testing it). There are slipstreams pwm cheaper like Scythe Slip Stream 120mm x 25mm PWM Mid Speed Fan - (SY1225SL12LM-P)

What about this heatsink/heatpipe?
Noctua NH-U12P 120MM Heatpipe Cooler

I have that cooler the SE on my X58 desktop, that version which came with 2 fans, just plugging the 3pin to the mobo the fans are audible (but worth mentioning mine came with 4 resistors to plug in to lower the rpms), but you can always tweak it to lower the rpm to your personal liking. In all honesty i would probably just go for 212, its only $30 and if you mobo has a lot of PWM connectors, just slap a Kaza flex i posted above and just tweak it from the bios to your personal liking/need (i dont know the board nor the bios to know how this really works).

It seems you have 3x 4pins from the asus website specs

2 x CPU Fan connector(s) (4 -pin)
2 x Chassis Fan connector(s) (1 x 4 -pin, 1 x 3 -pin)
2 x Power Fan connector(s) (3 -pin)

So you could use one for the cpu, one for the back fan, and maybe use the same one for the two on the front, i have used a PWM-Y Cable Adapter (both are 4pin connectors but one is missing the rpm but since both fans are the same should be same rpms reported by the mobo), but im not sure if its recommended to have 2 fans running on one connector i did it on my premade WHS out of not having any other source to add a fan, been working fine.

[bugmenot]

Hello, my name is bugmenot and I am too lazy to create an account of my own.

[m0002a]

This imo is good advice, i havent upgraded my desktop yet, only did a new sandy bridge with intels but the controling of the fans is limited, seems it can but very wierd once i adjust the low and high, the bios only lowerest it once windows finishes loading, still testing with it, but at the default settings its only 1 second while the bios kicks in from start and all fans are lowered by it. But this could end up a better choice, as you saved on the fan controller and you can tweak in the bios. The one that i went was Scythe Kama Flex 120mm x 25mm PWM Fan w/ S-Fluid Dynamic Bearings (SA1225FDB12H-P) totally inaudible atm, but the intel mobo has it runing at 291rpm, i tried tweaking it, and at 450 was still inaudible, but the loading it goes to 1600rpm until windows loads (still testing it).

I have the exact same fan on my CPU cooler controlled by my Asus bios. The Q-Fan manual settings are a little tricky, but I ended up setting it to Turbo mode to get it run about 900 rpm at idle (I guess it thinks the average CPU fan has a lot higher RPM than 1600). The fact that all fans go to full speed in the first few seconds after startup, then down to then Q-Fan controlled speed, is of course a big advantage (even if a little noisy) since you don't have to worry about fan starting RPM.

[bugnotme]

To clarify the use case I should say that I don't intend to do anything CPU heavy regularly. In particular, no gaming. I seldom compile programs or run numerical computations but if ever I do I do not want to overheat my computer.

[bugnotme]

Based on the recommendations in this thread I updated the system part manifest as detailed below.

I opted for the 2500k (solely for better graphics performance), H67 mobo (cognizant of the fact that I will not be able to overclock), added an SSD (not for use with SSD cache, I will install the OS there), replaced the heatsink with a Coolermaster and replaced the fans with Scythe Kama Flex PWM fans. Any final comments before I place my order are appreciated.

Antec P183 V3 Aluminum ATX Tower Case 4X5.25EXT 6X3.5 2X2.5INT Front Audio USB3.0 *No PS*
Usually ships in 1-2 business days.
In Stock 60754 $138.98 $138.98

Kingston KVR1333D3N9/2G 2GB 1X2GB DDR3-1333 NON-ECC CL9 240PIN DIMM Memory Module
Usually ships in 1-2 business days.
In Stock 40180 $27.98 $55.96

Western Digital WD20EARS Caviar Green 2TB SATA2 3Gbps 64MB Cache 3.5IN Hard Drive OEM
Usually ships in 1-2 business days.
In Stock 49591 $77.99 $77.99


Seasonic X-560 ATX 12V 24PIN 560W Active PFC 80PLUS Gold Modular Power Supply W Sanyo Denki Fan
Back Order 55672 $129.96 $129.96

Liteon IHAS124 24X DVD Writer SATA Black OEM
Usually ships in 1-2 business days.
In Stock 45244 $25.99 $25.99

ASUS P8H67-M Evo REV3.0 mATX H67 LGA1155 2PCI-E16 PCI-E1 PCI DP HDMI Sandy Bridge B3 Motherboard
Usually ships in 1-2 business days.
In Stock 59324 $139.98 $139.98

Intel Core i5 2500K Quad Core Unlocked Processor LGA1155 3.3GHZ Sandy Bridge 6MB
Usually ships in 1-2 business days.
In Stock 57962 $238.99 $238.99

Crucial M4 SSD Micron C400 64GB 2.5IN Solid State Disk Flash Drive SATA3 6Gbps
Usually ships in 1-2 business days.
Back Order 60444 $129.99 $129.99

Scythe Kama Flex PWM 120MM Fluid Dynamic Bearing Cooling Fan 300-1600RPM 27.50DBA 63.4CFM by Sony
Usually ships in 1-2 business days.
In Stock 55842 $17.99 $53.97

Coolermaster Hyper 212 Plus Direct Touch 4 Heatpipe Heatsink AM2 AM3 LGA1366 LGA1155 LGA1156 120MM
Usually ships in 1-2 business days.

[Abula]

Seems solid choices.

I don't know much about linux though, idk how would be the support for the drivers like chipset, video, etc. Or how will an ssd work with it, i dont even know if Linux has support for trim. But for windows seems a solid setup, i would guess for linux as well, but i know very little about it, i would probably research more about this before you buy it.

Remember you will have to play around with the bios fan settings to lower the Kama Flex fans to your personal liking/needs. The wire on the fans are not short, might or not need some 4pin extensions, will depend on the mobo. Just as a final comment, if you are not planning to add more hdd, gpu etc, you could go with fanless Seasonic X400, your setup should not go above 200W under load, but i read really good reviews from X560, specially comments from Jonnyguru as being the best X series he has tested, so its a great choice also, i doubt the fan will even kick for your setup.

Good luck,

[bugnotme]

Thanks Abula

[SilentStorm]

Purpose of the machine? you've said you won't be overclocking or doing anything cpu intensive, but also that you want better graphics than the low end integrated graphics(Not just a server?), so I'm a bit confused why you want to spend so much money in a way that won't pave the road for later upgrades. You're spending $1000 and hitting the same bottleneck as a $400 i3 2105 based rig.

Why are you using integrated graphics? even a passive 5570 or 5670 for $65-$100 with an i3 2100 (100 from micro center 125 elsewhere) will absolutely demolish a 2500k w/ integrated graphics in GPU intensive tasks. (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814102902) (or gt 430 if drivers for AMD cards are intolerable): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814500175)
If you do get a 2500k, get it from microcenter for $180, and get a mobo with the z68 chipset
That psu is over spec for your build, i'd suggest getting a much cheaper one(a high quality ~300 watt PSU?), or getting a CP 850 if you plan on building a more power hungry rig in that case at a later date (you're already getting a P183, it really is a beautiful PSU, and slightly cheaper than that seasonic.)

[kuzzia]

How much RAM do you intend to use?

[Nicias]

If you are planning on using this machine for Linux, many people stay way from AMD/ATI graphics for linux. Nvidia is usually the way to go. However, the new SNB graphics are looking very promising. Check out phoronix.com for updates about that.

[bugnotme]

How much RAM do you intend to use?

4GB?

[bugnotme]

Purpose of the machine? you've said you won't be overclocking or doing anything cpu intensive, but also that you want better graphics than the low end integrated graphics(Not just a server?), so I'm a bit confused why you want to spend so much money in a way that won't pave the road for later upgrades. You're spending $1000 and hitting the same bottleneck as a $400 i3 2105 based rig.

Why are you using integrated graphics? even a passive 5570 or 5670 for $65-$100 with an i3 2100 (100 from micro center 125 elsewhere) will absolutely demolish a 2500k w/ integrated graphics in GPU intensive tasks. (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814102902) (or gt 430 if drivers for AMD cards are intolerable): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814500175)
If you do get a 2500k, get it from microcenter for $180, and get a mobo with the z68 chipset
That psu is over spec for your build, i'd suggest getting a much cheaper one(a high quality ~300 watt PSU?), or getting a CP 850 if you plan on building a more power hungry rig in that case at a later date (you're already getting a P183, it really is a beautiful PSU, and slightly cheaper than that seasonic.)

I wanted the graphics solely to occasionally decode video. I prefer the integrated graphics for heat, cost and linux support. Thanks for the other advice.