Thoughts on my system build?

[sw0mgt]

I'm building a new computer for professional audio production. Major concerns are quietness, performance for pro audio, and stability with my audio software (Pro Tools 8 LE).

CPU:
I chose the i7-3930k LGA 2011 (six-core) because they were rated the king of the hill for stability and performance for Pro Tools.

Intel Core i7-3930K Sandy Bridge-E 3.2GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) LGA 2011 130W Six-Core Desktop Processor BX80619i73930K

RAM:
I chose 32GB of RAM because I plan on actually using it. Single audio sample libraries can run 40 gbs, so I wanted as much RAM as possible. I chose 8GB kits so I can upgrade to 64GB next year. I chose 1866 RAM because it was only $15 more than 1600 RAM, and I don't expect much better performance from 2100 or 2400. I chose G.SKILL because everybody loves G.SKILL lately.

G.SKILL Ripjaws Z Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1866 (PC3 14900) Desktop Memory Model F3-14900CL10Q-32GBZL

Motherboard:
I chose the Asus P9X79 Deluxe because it has great sound (for leisure, mp3s, etc.) and onboard WiFi (which I need). However, the board has a 50% rating on NewEgg with customers complaining about receiving 2 or 3 defunct boards in a row. So I am considering changing boards, or dropping ASUS altogether and going for Gigabyte. Stability/reliability is the most important thing to me, as I DON'T want to spend months RMA'ing defunct boards. Any suggestions or thoughts on the Deluxe?

ASUS P9X79 DELUXE LGA 2011 Intel X79 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS

Thermal Compound:
Prolimatech has outperformed AS5 and other compounds on almost every benchmark I've seen:

Prolimatech PRO-PK1-5G PK-1 Thermal Compound - 5 Gram

Heatsink:
I chose the Noctua NH-D14 because it is consistently rated as the best air-cooler on the market. It is spoken of as the best combination of air-flow and quietness. Plus, paired with my case, it offers sick airflow (see my case-choice for a picture).

Noctua NH-D14 SE2011 140mm and 120mm SSO CPU Cooler

Case:
I chose the FT02 because it is a silent case, beautiful, and one of the best coolers out there. Sound insulated foam, 3 large quiet 180mm fans, one-way pressurized air-flow. This case gets wonderful reviews

SilverStone Fortress Series SST-FT02B-USB3.0 Black 4.5mm aluminum unibody frame, 0.8mm steel body ATX Mid Tower Computer

FT02 (case) with NH-D14 (cooler): All seven fans flow in one direction! Pressurized, directional airflow driven by 3 quiet 180mm fans on the bottom blowing out 1 120mm fan on the top. Natural convection at its best!

SSDs:
Rated good for reliability. Cheaper than one 256GB drive. I will use one for reading sample data and one as an OS boot drive.
2x Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

HDDs: (already purchased)
I will write my audio data to these drives.
1 x SeaSonic S12 Energy Plus SS-650HT 650W ATX12V V2.3 / EPS12V V2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified ...Western Digital AV-GP WD10EVDS 1TB SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal AV Hard Drive -Bare Drive

1 x Western Digital Caviar Blue WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

GPU: (already purchased)
Not the best choice as the fan is loud and it generates a ton of heat, but I'm trying to recycle parts. I will never use my computer for gaming. Just need to project to a monitor.
EVGA 320-P2-N811-AR GeForce 8800 GTS 320MB 320-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

PSU: (already purchased)
I have been told by numerous folks that this PSU is good enough for my purposes, but I still worry it's either too old (bought in 2007) or it doesn't deliver enough power.
SeaSonic S12 Energy Plus SS-650HT 650W ATX12V V2.3 / EPS12V V2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified ...

1394a: (already purchased)
Will fit in an PCIe.
SIIG FireWire 2-Port PCIe Model NN-E20012-S2

DVD-ROM: (already purchased)
1 x PLEXTOR 18X DVD±R Super Multi DVD Burner Black SATA Model PX-810SA/SW-BL

Fan controller:
Scythe Kaze Master Pro 5.25 Fan Controller

Fan: (to replace the loud 120mm case fan)
Scythe SY1225SL12L 120mm "Slipstream" Case Fan

 

[Knufire]

All onboard sound is more or less the same quality, no matter what features some advertise over others. For quality playback, you'll want to get a sound card.

The Phantek coolers are a few degrees better than the NH-D14. Personally though, I'd just go with a Corsair H series cooler. Performance is a bit better, but more importantly, you don't have to worry about having a huge dual-stack air cooler blocking any of the RAM slots.

I'd probably go with an ASRock X79 Extreme6. Much cheaper, less bells and whistles though. Wifi can be added with a relatively cheap PCIe card though.

That is ridiculously expensive for a case, especially for an air-cooled build that doesn't even necessitate a GPU. If you're concerned about noise, replacing the GPU and getting a better case will probably give you a better net result.

Crucial M4s are also a bit slow compared to the latest generation of drives. Samsung 830, Intel 520, and OCZ 4-series drives should be just as reliable, but a good bit faster on the writes.

EDIT: Okay, both these promo codes expire today, just a warning. Fractal Design is also known for making extremely quiet cases as well, this one has noise-isolating foam as well. Stock fans on the H100 are loud, the Cougars should be very quiet. Video card is completely passive cooling as well.

 

[InhumanSkills]

I think Knifire hit the nail on the head.

Although you might want to invest in a sound card. Since you are mainly focused on Professional Audio Production.

Something like this maybe?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829132006

 

[Knufire]

I think Knifire hit the nail on the head.

Although you might want to invest in a sound card. Since you are mainly focused on Professional Audio Production.

Something like this maybe?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829132006

There's a difference between production and playback though. Budget production cards is almost solely M-AUDIO cards. The other common thing is to have external equipment that plugs in VIA a firewire port, which is what the OP has. Sound cards are just for playback/listening to stuff on your computer.

The DX is a great card, but you might need a separate amp to drive higher impedance headphones. Extremely similar DAC to the ST/STX/Phoebus.

 

[PolePosition]

I also would opt out of the big tower radiator air cooler and go with the Intel RTS2011LC closed loop high performance CPU cooler, made by ASETEK, branded by Intel, and you may find a bundle with your CPU choice since Intel announced they would be bundling their CPUs with this cooler. Could save you some $$. The mount is much easier than Corsair's and easier to intall. The radiator is also not as bulky where you can mount the cooler at the rear exhaust fan and do a push/pull on the radiator, leaving you still plenty of room to access RAM slots. I guarantee you that the Corsair radiator mounted this way will block all your RAM slots at the I/O back of case, leaving you to mount it at the top. (Depending on your configuration and case layout of course)

I am not a big Corsair fanboy, they began by specializing in memory modules and expanded into other areas like cases, PSUs, and coolers. ASETEK on the other hand, specializes in CPU cooling products, for PCs, servers, etc.

 

[PolePosition]

Motherboard:
I chose the Asus P9X79 Deluxe because it has great sound (for leisure, mp3s, etc.) and onboard WiFi (which I need). However, the board has a 50% rating on NewEgg with customers complaining about receiving 2 or 3 defunct boards in a row. So I am considering changing boards, or dropping ASUS altogether and going for Gigabyte. Stability/reliability is the most important thing to me, as I DON'T want to spend months RMA'ing defunct boards. Any suggestions or thoughts on the Deluxe?

Personally, I wouldn't pay that much attention to "most" of the reviews on Newegg. I'd be almost certain a LOT of those people are either;
1. ASUS haters
2. Incompetant builders
3. ASRock fanboys, determined to bring ASUS down

The ASRock X79 extreme 6 is a very nice board, but it is primarily for gamers who run multiple GPU cards and utilize SLI/ Crossfire for the absolute best gaming experience.

The ASUS P9X79 Deluxe is certainly the "real deal" and absolute best motherboard currently on the market in the LGA 2011 platform, It offers all the features you could ask for in audio production, though as others have suggested, you might want to add a sound card since the standard onboard Realtec audio chip is probably not enough for your needs.
Now if reliability and cooling are more primary concerns, you can go with the ASUS Sabertooth X79 as I have. This board won awards as being the most cool running of all X79 boards, plus you get 5 year warranty. The "TUFF" components on it are surely to last as long as you need. It is a nice looking board too IMO, and you will find great reviews on Newegg as far less people have had problems with DOAs, RMAs, etc with this board.

 

[InhumanSkills]

Personally, I wouldn't pay that much attention to "most" of the reviews on Newegg. I'd be almost certain a LOT of those people are either;
1. ASUS haters
2. Incompetant builders
3. ASRock fanboys, determined to bring ASUS down

The ASRock X79 extreme 6 is a very nice board, but it is primarily for gamers who run multiple GPU cards and utilize SLI/ Crossfire for the absolute best gaming experience.

The ASUS P9X79 Deluxe is certainly the "real deal" and absolute best motherboard currently on the market in the LGA 2011 platform, It offers all the features you could ask for in audio production, though as others have suggested, you might want to add a sound card since the standard onboard Realtec audio chip is probably not enough for your needs.
Now if reliability and cooling are more primary concerns, you can go with the ASUS Sabertooth X79 as I have. This board won awards as being the most cool running of all X79 boards, plus you get 5 year warranty. The "TUFF" components on it are surely to last as long as you need. It is a nice looking board too IMO, and you will find great reviews on Newegg as far less people have had problems with DOAs, RMAs, etc with this board.

I have an ASUS mobo, it's nice and does what I want it to, but pray to god you don't have to send it in for repair... Whoever thought putting customer support in Jamaica was a good idea is an idiot...

 

[Knufire]

All the features you need in audio production? Lol, all he needs is a Firewire port. Good audio equipment is rarely inside the computer.

A board is a board, there aren't huge differences between them, especially in the way that he is using them. The main difference in board is:
1. The power delivery section to the CPU, also called VRMs or phases.
2. Extra, usually superfluous features such as Wifi, Bluetooth, etc.
3. More ports

The base functionality of motherboards within a given chipset is mostly the same.

 

[derp]

There's a difference between production and playback though. Budget production cards is almost solely M-AUDIO cards. The other common thing is to have external equipment that plugs in VIA a firewire port, which is what the OP has. Sound cards are just for playback/listening to stuff on your computer.

The DX is a great card, but you might need a separate amp to drive higher impedance headphones. Extremely similar DAC to the ST/STX/Phoebus.

Is this why most audio production is with apple? Or atleast it seems like it?]

edit: NVM, brainfart...

 

[Knufire]

Kind of a brain fart, but Firewire was an Apple first thing too. Lots of media editing is done on Apple, though I think it's more due to availability/price of software (speculating here).

 

[PolePosition]

One more little difference overlooked.
RAM slots and RAM potential

 

[Knufire]

One more little difference overlooked.
RAM slots and RAM potential

Extreme6 is an 8 slot board, make reason I recommended that over the Gigabyte UD3.