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LGA2011 Build(s)

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RogueRage

Registered
Joined
Nov 13, 2011
Hi All,

I took a stroll to Microcenter today and one of the reps confirmed the LGA2011 sockets and Mobo's will be on the shelf officially on Tuesday. I am guessing this is in-line with the planned public announcement of Intel releasing the 2011 CPU on the 15th I have read about. I guess we will know for sure soon.

Well, I have been out of the grounds-up system building for a while (well over a decade). I finally decided to take the jump back into custom builds since I could not find anything I liked out in the consumer market. All I can say is WOW! So much has changed, but I am anxious about the new build. I have been following the new LGA lineup for the last year when I was about to purchase the 1366.


Hopefully, if all goes well the following will be included in my custom build. I welcome your input and also discussion on other builds if there are anyone out there that will also be upgrading.


===================================
Intel core i7 3960x
Rampage IV Extreme x79
EVGA GeForce GTX 580 Classified Hydro Copper (x2/x3)
OCZ 120 GB Vertex 3 SATA III 6.0 Gb-s
WD VelociRaptor 600 GB SATA III 10,000 RPM (x1/x2)
Enermax MaxRevo EVO EMR1350EWT
Asus Xonar Xense Premium Gaming Audio Set
G.Skill / Dominator 32GB RAM (Undecided but I am a fan of G.Skill)
Lamptron FC-5 V2 Black Fan Speed Controller (this seems to be the best controller I could find but I welcome your input if you use another.)

Great Respect! to all
RogueRage

===================================

UPDATE:
There are 3 pics of the LGA 2011 water cooled system on page-1 of the responses below. Also, on page-2 of the posts in addition to this update there is an attached Excel sheet (Itemized_list.xls) that lists all of the items used in my build, as well as, the cost at the time of purchase. For each item purchased I also listed the vendor I used.

The PC is about 8k
Monitors about 3.5k
Sound System 2.5k

Much Respect!
RogueRage


A year later ...NEW Additions to my home network below.

===========================HTPC============================
Case:......LIAN LI PC-TU200B Mini-ITX
Mobo:......ASUS P8Z77-I Deluxe LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Mini ITX
GPU........HIS H657H1G Radeon HD 6570 1GB 128-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready
RAM:.......G.SKILL Sniper Series 8GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 Low Voltage Desktop
CPU:.......Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 Quad-Core
Cooler:....CORSAIR CWCH60 Hydro Series H60 High Performance Liquid CPU
PSU:.......SeaSonic X series SS-400FL Active PFC F3 400W ATX12V Fanless
HD:........Western Digital Caviar Green WD20EARX 2TB 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s
SSD:.......OCZ Vertex 4 VTX4-25SAT3-128G 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC
Fan:.......(120mm x120mm x 15mm) CoolerMaster Blade Master XtraFlo 120 Slim Case Fan
K & M......Cideko Air Keyboard Conqueror


===========================NAS==================== ========
Case:.....LIAN LI PC-V354B Micro ATX
Mobo:.....ASUS M5A88-M AM3+ AMD 880G HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX AMD Motherboard
RAM:......G.SKILL Sniper Series 8GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 Low Voltage Desktop
CPU:.......AMD FX-8150 FX 8-Core Black Edition Processor Socket AM3+ - FD8150FRGUBOX
Cooler:....CORSAIR CWCH60 Hydro Series H60 High Performance Liquid CPU
PSU:.......KINGWIN Lazer Platinum Series LZP-550 550W ATX SLI Ready
HD:.........Western Digital Caviar Green WD20EARX 2TB 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s (x4) Raid5
SSD:.......Intel 520 Series Solid-State Drive 120 GB SATA 6 Gb/s 2.5-Inch
Fan:........(120mm x120mm x 15mm) CoolerMaster Blade Master XtraFlo 120 Slim Case Fan
BD-RW:....Home Surplus



picture.php

picture.php

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That sounds like an absolute monster!! I will say if you're not planning on overclocking quite a bit, that mobo may be a bit unnecessary.. Although, you might need a board that's a bit over the top to accommodate those 3 580s! You should definitely do a build log, I'd be very interested in seeing this come together...
 
I usually do not go for the latest components that is on the market due to the premium markups. I have not bought much in years so I am really splurging here.. to put it mildly. I do plan on OC as much as I can. That said, the system will be able to handle anything out there as is. I will try to post a log as the items come in. I already received one of the Hydro 580's this past Thursday and its a huge beast. Although EVGA limits 4 of these cards per household, I was only able to obtain just one. I would be happy if I get my hands on just one more.
 
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They limit how many you can OWN?? I can see limiting per order, but that's nuts!

Yup I agree, but only for the moment since the cards are pretty new on the market. I spoke with a EVGA rep a couple weeks back, ...I was informed that they will be supplying their vendors/commitments first before it goes out to the public. At least that's what they told me on the phone and there are no backorder option. So you literally have to keep trying. I guess this is one way to keep the premium up...lol;)

But the cards do look pretty sweet.
 
Well, the build is complete. Between work and other events I finally got some time to complete my LGA2011 rig. The system is bare with just the OS and the latest drivers installed. I just wanted to update the post before the new year.

I am posting a few pics of the rig in my home office. Let me know what you think being that this is my first build in over a decade. As well as, being my first attempt at a water cooling rig.

==========================================
Intel core i7 3960x
Rampage IV Extreme x79
EVGA GeForce GTX 580 Classified Hydro Copper (x3)
OCZ 120 GB Vertex 3 SATA III 6.0 Gb-s
WD VelociRaptor 600 GB SATA III 10,000 RPM (x2) in Raid1
Enermax MaxRevo EVO EMR1350EWT
Asus Xonar Xense Premium Gaming Audio Set
G.Skill Ripjaws @ 2133Mhz 32GB RAM
Lamptron FC-5 V2 Black Fan Speed Controller
 

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Thanks Guys! for the approval ;). Yeah this build was not the most cost effective I have to say but it was very enjoyable to be building a system from grounds up again. Thanks to my wife as well for allowing me to splurge on this self reward.
 
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i plan to build something nuts like this some day.. for now the 7 odd grand is be better spent on my first house...

hehehe yup I am so with you on that...you definitely got your priorities in order.

Thanks Gremlinkiller, I am glad you like it. And, I am 100% in agreement with you. Definitely, worth to spend the money on a house first, bills, credit cards, family etc. before thinking about any major luxury item. Also, helps to have a reasonable income to support any $$$ hobby. Anything less would be plain crazy. Plus in about 3 months down-the-line there will always be a better and newer CPU, MOBO's etc. so you really got to think is it worth it (much like cars). Also, any decision like this will need to be discussed with your significant partner too for approval ;).
 
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Wow!... that is quite the new build.

How about some more information on your cooling loop? (Rad, block, fans, etc.)

Are those new monitors as well? If so what kind of panel did you decide on? What is the intent behind the large flatscreen?... viewing films?

I also think that since you have now splurged on a high end build, you're going to want to spend a fair amount of time enjoying this new toy, so perhaps the next order of business is a new high quality task chair for all the hours your going to be spending with your bottom planted in it. :)
 
LOL you made me laugh, but you know it! Hell yeah! I need a new chair and I am currently looking for a new one. So, if you have any nice recommendations send me a reply. I would greatly appreciate it. That old chair served me well over the years. A gift I received when I went off to college... A long time ago. But its all worn out now... waaaay overdue.

Keep in mind I am not a pro at water cooling and this is my first water cooling setup so take/use my information with a grain of salt. Suggestions are welcomed from all as well.

About the loop, originally I had planned to include a dual loop but decided on just one loop at the last moment. I found in my research that the temperature changes between one or two loops were not a huge difference. This all depends of course on what you are cooling, level of OC, components, and how much a couple of degrees bothers you. There were a lot of information I found online for advantages and disadvantages of both, but it really comes down to each individual preference and setup. In my opinion, you just have to go with the information you have and try out different configurations yourself for each individual system to find out what works best.

For my system, I wanted to go for a decent quiet setup while still looking aesthetically pleasing. I do plan to OC the system, but I will not be going crazy on the OC. As you can see the memory is not water/fan cooled ...yet. We will see, something for me to work on in the near future.

For the rads I went with the traditional Black Ice SR 1 rads with a lower fin per inch ratio.
*Inside the case I used the 360mm Black Ice SR1
*Back of the case I used the 480mm Black Ice SR1. A Koolance quick release radiator bracket secures the radiator to the back of the case.

As a result, I went for low noise/low CFM fans that also looked pleasing for a reasonable quiet setup.
*10 Enermax T.B.Silence UCTB12N-BL 120mm fans
*1 CoolJag 4.75 x 4.75" (120mm) Programmable LED System Fan (for fun)

I replaced all of the solid black HAF X 200mm fans with...
*Cooler Master MegaFlow 200mm LED Case Fans (Blue at the top Red for the intakes at the bottom)

The fans on the rads are set up in a push pull configuration keeping the movement of air away from the system.

As for the cooling loop setup? I changed my mind at the last minute from a two loop to a one loop scenario. I not only had to take into consideration how I wanted to cool the components with this change, but also how the tubing's placement will look aesthetically running inside the case.

Items used:
*Bitspower 150mm reservoir with the Bitspower compression 3/8 ID, 5/8OD fittings throughout the system.
*Koolance filter fitting above pump
*Koolance No-spill shutoff nozzles for quick disconnects
*Koolance drain valve
*Dual 655 fully modded D5 water pumps (one pump is enough but I wanted the redundancy)
*EK FB KIT RE4 (Full Nickel-Plexi waterblock kit for the Rampage IV)
*EK Supreme HF Nickel-Plexi CPU block
*Tygon 3603 3/8" ID (5/8" OD) Clear Tubing
*EK EKoolant - Blood Red (EKOOLANT-RD)

Loop:
Reservoir >Dual Pump>360 rad>VRM>CPU>Mobo block>480 rad> GPUs> back into reservoir.
Ideally, I would have liked the GPU's leading into the 480mm then to the CPU. Temps average at 25-26 degree Celsius with average usage. I have not stress tested the system yet.

Sleeving:
That I did myself. Although, the cabling neatness could be much better. The GPU cards uses a lot of power (lots of cabling needed) and the dual pumps took up about half the PSU cabling area. So there was a lot of massaging of the cabling to keep it in the cluster. As a last resort, I would have moved the pumps into the HD bay area had it not worked out. To secure the pumps I scribed and drilled 3 holes through the bottom of the case so it can be bolted securely. I also replaced the supplied three M4 screws that holds the acetal pump tops together with longer ones so I can bolt it through the case. To help reduce sound vibration I added a layer of rubber (cut and shaped) between the case and the pump. You can probably see a reflection of the brown rubber in the image above at the bottom of the case.

I would not recommend sleeving to anyone if you do not have the patience or enjoy the satisfaction of doing the work and seeing the end result. Pre-sleeved cables are cheap enough if you shop around.

Tools used for sleeving:
*One 1mm width flathead eye-glasses screw driver repair kit worked on ALL the connectors. I tried using the sunbeam kits, paper clip and staples method but that did not work for me. It did work well for other people though. Instead, I ended up using two 1mm flat head screw drivers through the entire sleeving since I broke one early in the process. They are about $2.00 each. The screw drivers needs to be 1mm and not 1.2mm to work well. Note: You only need to use one screw driver to remove ALL the connectors.
*Heat gun used: $30 for a Kawasaki 840015 10-Piece Heat Gun Kit. Works well, heats up fast. I used it on its low setting for no longer than 5-7secs when heat shrinking. You can use a hair dryer or other method.
*A pair of needle nose pliers. Used to expand one end of the heat shrink so it slips on easier.
*Mini Scissors to trim sleeving.
*Cheap paper cutting board I had made it easy to cut all the heat shrink to equal lengths.
*Permanent Marker used to mark where the bare wiring leads into each connector. This gives you a guide of where the sleeving should end and where you can place the heat shrink.

Monitors:
Yes, those are new. It replaces a Dell 24" and a Samsung 22" I had previously.
I went with IPS panels. I really hate the TN panels for the blackout angles, but they do have great refresh rates. I went with the DELL 30"s even though it is 7ms and 60Hz refresh. The color contrast and brightness is amazing. I have also heard great things from the comparable HP and BenQ's. I always had great experiences with the quality of the Dell monitors so I stuck with those.
The one downside I would have to say are the bezels of course. Some people also complain about the anti-glare screen Dell uses which gives that grainy sparkly look. It is not noticeable when gaming but against a static white background like against MS Word it will be more noticeable.
LOL, the TV above? That's just there to watch some regular TV/movies when the other TV is occupied. It will not be used for gaming/surfing or will be hooked up to the Computer. Although, it can be if needed. When watching movies, I personally like to feel and hear the sound effects of the movie. Like any movie system junkie, you need a good surround sound system to help with that, so I invested in a decent sound system that needed to be small, looks good, made well and sound excellent. I am really happy with the purchase and the sound of the KEF 3005SE BL setup.

And yes, I do plan to spend some time on this rig but not too much to make the wife unhappy. ;)

I hope I answered everything you asked.
 
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Those wires need to go behind the wall.

The GPU's? Yup I tried originally. I could not do it with the original PSU cables. It was a really, really, tight fit but its something I may try to incorporate down the line with some extensions. Plus, I wanted to get everything up and running quickly in the case I needed to return any defective components. It is one of the reasons the cabling is not so neat. But I do agree, the cabling could have been better.

The only options I had in my setup was to route the cables from the side section between the cards and the hard drive bays. Then send it to the back panel. The other option is what I have currently. Either way you will still have a bunch of exposed cables connections. There is not much room between the cards or below the cards where the water block is located like other setups.

The PSU was the first thing I ordered so I could sleeve the cables ahead of time while I waited for the Black Friday sales on Newegg and Amazon to order the rest of the setup. Each of the cards uses two 8pins and one 6pin. That is a lot of wiring. I think it is a lot easier though with sleeveless cables or if I just used a one or two-way GPU setup.

The other reason why I went for the over the cards option... besides it being water cooled I wanted to allow for additional airflow between the cards coming from the HD intake fans at the front as well as the intake on the side panel. The only area that is being blocked currently is the one section where the pin connectors are already located. These cards are crazy huge so there is not much play room between the cards and the bays.

But, I do agree with you and it is one of the sore points that bothered me a tad. I will probably see what others have done that I can incorporate if they have a similar setup.
 
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Thanks for the detailed reponse to my questions. :thup:

I've been recently looking into a few watercooling parts for my test bench and was curious about what you decided on for your build. Did you go with 3/8" fittings vs. 1/2" because of concerns regarding the bulk of ~3/4" tubing?

Three 30" Monitors!... :drool:

As far as chairs go... like many other things in life a high quality task chair can cost some $$$. I had a couple of cheap Chinese made task chairs from Walmart until I finally decided to purhase some decent chairs at a big Levenger warehouse sale when I living in Memphis a few years ago. They seem to be holding up nicely and offer good support.

This is the brand:
http://www.humanscale.com/products/product_detail.cfm?group=FreedomTaskChair
 
That PC looks sexy as hell.
Will be a pain in the *** to clean up all the dissolved coolant coloring chemicals tho.
 
Thanks for the detailed reponse to my questions. :thup:

I've been recently looking into a few watercooling parts for my test bench and was curious about what you decided on for your build. Did you go with 3/8" fittings vs. 1/2" because of concerns regarding the bulk of ~3/4" tubing?

Three 30" Monitors!... :drool:

As far as chairs go... like many other things in life a high quality task chair can cost some $$$. I had a couple of cheap Chinese made task chairs from Walmart until I finally decided to purhase some decent chairs at a big Levenger warehouse sale when I living in Memphis a few years ago. They seem to be holding up nicely and offer good support.

This is the brand:
http://www.humanscale.com/products/product_detail.cfm?group=FreedomTaskChair

Yup, that is one of the main reasons I went with the 3/8. Also, in my research I found out that the gain and benefit was small using the 1/2. I personally have not tested that theory, but it was confirmed by sources that built water cooling systems before. However, if you are trying to scrape every degree out of your system you might as well go for the 1/2 if you have the room for it.

Hahaha! Trust me I tried to avoid the three 30" monitor buy. But the deal I got was a deciding factor as well.

Thanks for the link on the chair. It looks pretty sweet. I will check it out.
 
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