Now we all know, Boli's on DRUGS,,, ROFL. optionman31601: I think you could save yourself a ton of money on this build, maybe half the amount of your posted pick list. I wanted to offer my opinion of these components, nothing more, you can take what you want and leave the rest so to speak. I believe the i7-2700k is over the top for the needs of most traders but then again why not. If you're going to game and play with this box then by all means get the 2700k. That said, if you do intend to game on this box then look carefully at the MB and video cards you choose, if you're after the ultimate gaming experience. If you really want to drive a Ferrari most of the time and trade with the Ferrari stuck in first gear for six hours a day that's your choice and it's surly possible. I believe the most important factor of a trading computer is reliability, overclocking and gaming at night or on weekends may jeopardize the system when it's time to trade. I'm just saying,,, (this might generate some lively discussion). Your List: 1. As you said, you could save money here. Keep in mind it's very easy to add cooling fans. You can add a front fan to cool the SSD and or HDD. If you decide on passively cooled video cards (and your case is vented in this area) drilling a few holes in the side of the case to mount a fan here is a simple task. The main thing to consider when it comes to adding fans is the amount/availability/location of the fan pin headers on the MotherBoard, some boards have 3 or 4 some don't, so the length of the wire on the fan needs to be another thought. 2. This power supply is massive, but if your intentions are to OC/crossfire and game this box ALL NIGHT and trade with it in the morning then, have at it. Take a look at the NEEDED connections for your build and the power draw of the components, this will dictate the size of PSU you need. 3. This should create a shit storm of controversy, but I'm not sold on the Asus boards. As far as I can tell they don't offer a 1155/Z68 MB with 2-PCIe slots running in X16 mode simultaneously. The GIGABYTE GA-Z68X-UD7-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 does (I think this was leapUP's MB choice). I'm going to stop here on this issue of X16/X8 and X4 mode. One more point on the ASUS P8Z68-V PRO I don't like is the Integrated Graphics, if I'm going to add my own video cards why buy a MB with an Integrated GPU that draws current when ever the computer is on? 4. Why not, we all want one (or two ). 5. In a trading computer 8GB is fine, Windows will always nibble away at our RAM. 6. Nice, great price too. 7. This is indeed a very nice SSD, you could probably get buy with a smaller one and add a spinner for data storage. FYI, I have a 64GB SSD on my trading box and use about half of it. 8. On my trading box I use my Burner alot. I copy my charts/trades to disk and take them home for study and review. I can send or post them from the disk, from a different computer. 9. I made the move from XP to W7-Pro and I'm still learning my way around with help from a few forums. 10. I have a old sound system from an old IBM computer hooked to my trading box with a couple bookshelf speakers. They still sound great after all these years and my trading apps do have several audio alerts that fire off a few times a day. But I wonder why you'd buy 4 (or more) monitors with "built in speakers," price wise you might do better getting monitors with out speakers. Recently I bought 4 23" LED back lit monitors, the problem I had was I couldn't find LED monitors with the VESA mounting pattern integrated into the back, I worked around the issue of course, but it was an issue. 11. Video Cards, your build seems like a gamer that trades, that's fine. I believe you can build a very reliable and extremely fast computer with many of the parts you've chosen. But for a trading rig you could lower your costs quite a bit. If you like to game, finding that middle ground isn't that challenging. But a gaming computer with an i7-2700k and four monitors must be an awesome thing. I've been wondering if LeapUP has been successful in keeping his kids away from his resent build, I bet NOT.
I received a pm regarding the Asus Sabertooth X58 Here is a review of the board http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/motherboards/2010/11/18/asus-sabertooth-x58-review/1 As asked about a board that will support 5 graphics cards ( 2 monitors each card ), This board however will not support 5 video cards in the expansion slots , as it supports Three 16x PCI-E 2.0 slots (two 16x and one 4x) I would say Boli's MSI Big Bang X58 motherboard is something to consider for a MB that will support 5 video cards and is a quality,serious board X58 There is a price difference between these boards, but you will pay up when going beyond 3 video cards (supporting 2 monitors each) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130289 Asus Sabertooth X58 MSI Big Bang X58
WF, I'm putting together all that info ATM. I'm trying to have pics up here, to show how I built mine and I think it may be beneficial to someone that has never built one before (like me a few weeks ago). I'm trying to make it as dummy proof as possible. The labeling of the pics is taking a little time And you may be right. This is what I have tried. I've swapped all the cards in different slots and the black and gray slot work fine. It is the blue slot that is the issue. I have also tried the cards on a friends PC and they all run ok. My assumption is that the cards are ok and there may be an issue with the blue slot. I spoke to ASUS and we did the diagnosis. They found it safe to say that the blue slot may not be working and so are sending me a new one. I will try this later today. Gotta take the mother-in-law to Downtown Disney. Against the grid, she really is the best mo-in-law anyone can have, so I feel blessed. Thanks for all the help again guys. I may not be posting everyday, but I'm still here and will do so soon
I see that we may have a few potential builders and the transition to SSD seems to be in full effect. I didn't think I needed it, but after trying it out, I'm glad that I got it. It's like Amazon overnight vs 3-5 business days. You don't need the overnight, but it makes a whole lot of a difference. On that note, this may be a decent deal ($1/GB) if someone wants it NOW!. Cheaper can be found, but we must be patient. http://www.buy.com/prod/kingston-12...ii-solid-state-drive/q/loc/101/218194460.html <img src="http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/attachment.php?s=&postid=3291759.png">
Thanks Sam for the follow-up, forgive me for assuming it was an issue with the X4 slot. I'm truly surprised that the issue is with the BLUE slot, but with that knowledge I'd have to be the first to agree you have a bad MB, sorry to hear that but it appears ASUS is going to make it right and your new one is on the way.
My job is to ensure all pieces will functionally work together. Not whether one needs them. And it's Sam's department to bargain on price! LOL
Hey she was standing there behind you watching you typed, wasn't she? That's okay... you don't need to answer this.
Thanks for evaluating the components . @ Went Fishing Yea, i Really went overboard when i first started checking on available components for a new system build, and from what i chose on the list it does look like a gaming box. This list is on the Highest end of what my budget would allow for. I was thinking i might need all this power for a new build for trading with up to 6 displays, But since reading this thread up to this point, i can see i do not need such a powerful system. I will be deciding on several new components based on what you have pointed out. The GIGABYTE GA-Z68X-UD7-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 is a board i will look into as you suggested, i may go with P67. Thank you for all your time and help on evaluating with this Future build. @ TIKITRADER I Appreciate the info and links on these 2 boards, i will check in on these, the amount of 16x PCI-E 2.0 slots have to be one of the main concerns with multiple cards, i will take a look at these 2 boards, and compare them to some P67 boards thats also on my new list of possibles. By the way, Your Build is Excellent, Very Nice with Plenty of Power, and i Appreciate the time you have spent on this thread.
@ Sam Morgan, this is the Best deal i have seen on a 128 Gb SSD, Thanks for posting that, i Hope these deals continue. i have seen many of your posts on items you have found and they are bargains. I have to ask, could you list some of the better sites that i could keep a check on for these prices. here is the ones i am currently checking: based on this threads posts and the ones i know about. microcenter buy.com amazon would you list some more please?
My MSI Bag Bang motherboard runs 4 video cards just fine. I had tried a few times... but every time I added a 5th card, things went haywire. Display became extremely slow. I had given up. I had tried putting the 5th card in different slots but no difference made.