Building new battlestation - which motherboard???

[bones]

hi,

I'm looking to spend under $1200-$1300 for a new rig.


so far:

8GB G.Skill DDR3 (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00339X1EM?ie=UTF8&tag=cursegaming0f-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00339X1EM)
Intel Core i7-2600K (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004EBUXSA?ie=UTF8&tag=cursegaming0f-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B004EBUXSA)
Noctua 6 Dual Heatpipe CPU Cooler (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002VKVZ1A?ie=UTF8&tag=cursegaming0f-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B002VKVZ1A)
Corsair Enthusiast Series 650-Watt PSU (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004LB5AZY?ie=UTF8&tag=cursegaming0f-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B004LB5AZY)
Cooler Master HAF 932 Advanced Full Tower (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001EPUQAE?ie=UTF8&tag=cursegaming0f-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B001EPUQAE)
Sapphire DIRT 3 EDITION Radeon HD 6950 2 GB (http://www.amazon.com/Sapphire-DL-DVI-I-SL-DVI-D-PCI-Express-100312-3SR/dp/B0055Y66A4/ref=wl_it_dp_o_npd?ie=UTF8&coliid=I1HONFSXBKRB6B&colid=6XVUV57ZYRRG)



Which motherboard is the best for this setup?

In the future I may want to crossfire another 6950 so i'm looking for a motherboard that will accomodate 2 pci-e x16 easily.

Also, will the heatsink fit into the case? It looks enormous on the picture so i'm just wondering if it will go into the case because i've never used a heatsink before.

Any help, suggestions with this setup and recommendations for motherboard is greatly appreciated. ty

[xtopolis]

Two video cards == more power needed. 650watts is recommended minimum for 1 gaming graphics card. The rest, I can't comment on.

[bones]

Two video cards == more power needed. 650watts is recommended minimum for 1 gaming graphics card. The rest, I can't comment on.
ahhhhh good thinkin.... I'll upgrade the PSU when/if I go crossfire then.. to keep cost down for now.

[Kenpachi]

Full Tower+CPU Cooler SHOULD work. If you are really worried, you should be able to look up the dimensions in the specs. Crossfire/SLI is generally wasteful (it's been debated to death). Ultimately ONE top card on the market will trump 2 lesser cards in most cases.

As far as mobo, you are limited to one that supports LGA 1155 CPU socket type for a start. I personally like Asus or Gigabyte for as far as good brands for mobos. You also want to make sure you find one that can support plenty of DDR3 Ram, so you have some room to grow (12GB+ will soon be the norm).

[Swifteh]

Really want to get a new "Battlestation" ! but im waiting for Ivy bridge-E and Kepler prob be waiting a while by the look of things xD

Hope oc'ing my cpu will hold me off another year or so ><

[v3ga]

i5 2500k is basically same as i7 2600k unless u need the hyperthreading.. for gfx work... if just for gaming.... get i5.. unless price difference is nothing these days..

[Kenpachi]

i5 2500k is basically same as i7 2600k unless u need the hyperthreading.. for gfx work... if just for gaming.... get i5.. unless price difference is nothing these days..

well lets not forget that the i7 is also rocking an 8MB L3 Cache, vs the 6MB L3 Cache of the i5.. So basically it is $90 price difference for 2MB of extra Cache.

[Windwalk]

Bones I wrote a big long reply but I guess I took to long so I'll just give you the short version your graphics card is great here is the same one just different brand for less with a rebate http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150530
Here is a motherboard that looks good for you a little expensive $149 but it should be worth it http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157265
Here is your processor for $279 http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0354587
but if ALL your going to do is game you might be better of with a 2500k for a $100 less and just overclock it to like 4.4ghz http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0354589
only thing though this one doesn't have hyper threading and the 2600k does but games don't use that anyway:wink: so your good
Instead of the Noctua you can try this for $20 it's just as good if not better for cheaper http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Hyper-Sleeve-RR-B10-212P-G1/dp/B002G1YPH0/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1324714363&sr=1-1 and you can add an extra fan if you need it.
Memory try these there cheaper and sit lower so it shouldn't be a problem for your cpu cooler there $40 and a good brand http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226099
Power supply you won't be able to SLI or Crossfire with that power supply try this one it's $89 with a $30 rebate and has 2 6 pin connectors and 2 8 pin connectors for 2 gfx cards http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153136&cm_sp=Cat_Power_Supplies-_-Weekly_Deals-_-17-153-136
Everything should fit inside of your case the HAF case is pretty good plus it has a front usb 3.0 which that motherboard I showed you supports also if you do decide to go with the 2500k you can upgrade the gfx card to a 6970 and then not have to worry about going crossfire since the one card could probably do it all for a couple of bucks more.
Harddrive your out of luck the prices all tripled because of the flood in Thailand your better of getting a SSD and using an old hard drive for storage.
Don't know if I missed anything but if you just get everything through amazon because of amazon prime then your going to wind up spending more,newegg ships pretty fast and microcenter usually sells their processors cheaper than anybody else.

[bones]

Bones I wrote a big long reply but I guess I took to long so I'll just give you the short version your graphics card is great here is the same one just different brand for less with a rebate http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150530
Here is a motherboard that looks good for you a little expensive $149 but it should be worth it http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157265
Here is your processor for $279 http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0354587
but if ALL your going to do is game you might be better of with a 2500k for a $100 less and just overclock it to like 4.4ghz http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0354589
only thing though this one doesn't have hyper threading and the 2600k does but games don't use that anyway:wink: so your good
Instead of the Noctua you can try this for $20 it's just as good if not better for cheaper http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Hyper-Sleeve-RR-B10-212P-G1/dp/B002G1YPH0/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1324714363&sr=1-1 and you can add an extra fan if you need it.
Memory try these there cheaper and sit lower so it shouldn't be a problem for your cpu cooler there $40 and a good brand http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226099
Power supply you won't be able to SLI or Crossfire with that power supply try this one it's $89 with a $30 rebate and has 2 6 pin connectors and 2 8 pin connectors for 2 gfx cards http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153136&cm_sp=Cat_Power_Supplies-_-Weekly_Deals-_-17-153-136
Everything should fit inside of your case the HAF case is pretty good plus it has a front usb 3.0 which that motherboard I showed you supports also if you do decide to go with the 2500k you can upgrade the gfx card to a 6970 and then not have to worry about going crossfire since the one card could probably do it all for a couple of bucks more.
Harddrive your out of luck the prices all tripled because of the flood in Thailand your better of getting a SSD and using an old hard drive for storage.
Don't know if I missed anything but if you just get everything through amazon because of amazon prime then your going to wind up spending more,newegg ships pretty fast and microcenter usually sells their processors cheaper than anybody else.


Wind: you just saved me a ton of money!!! thank you so much for the input you're the best :)

[Nasaan]

the computer i built in this thread here

http://knightsofshadow.org/forums/showthread.php?t=3005

Runs SWTOR with everything on high no problems at all. The mobo I bought only has room for 1 vid card but supports up to 32gb of DDR3 and supports 1155 socket processors for when want to upgrade to an i7.

I love ASUS motherboards for just about any computer your building. I also agree with Windwalk on the HDD issue. I reused my 7400 320gb from old tower because buying a new one that's exactly the same was $169. You can get 120gb SSD for around the same price, which would be far better for gaming than a 7200 or even 10k rpm HDD.

[Windwalk]

Wind: you just saved me a ton of money!!! thank you so much for the input you're the best :)

Np Bones if you need any more help just let me know. I'm building a computer myself at the moment but it's a more high end computer. I'm water cooling everything and it's expensive :sad: hopefully it should be done sometime in January I have all the parts just don't have the time.