Gaming Rig for around 130K

[Myth]

^^ Good info there.
I always thought single card setups are better and preferable.
The 660ti sli is 6% faster than a single 7970 and around 4k costlier.
OCing the 7970 could cover that gap as well.
Amd drivers are getting better. Wouldnt another 7970 for CF sometime later be even better ?

PS: I am going to love the debate over your post

 

[sumonpathak]

^i was expecting this

 

[vickybat]

^^ Good info there.
I always thought single card setups are better and preferable.
The 660ti sli is 6% faster than a single 7970 and around 4k costlier.
OCing the 7970 could cover that gap as well.
Amd drivers are getting better. Wouldnt another 7970 for CF sometime later be even better ?

PS: I am going to love the debate over your post

No mate its not 6% but higher than that.

Consider sleeping dogs:

7970 matrix platinum - HARDOCP - Sleeping Dogs - ASUS MATRIX HD 7970 Platinum Video Card Review
660-ti sli - HARDOCP - Sleeping Dogs - GALAXY GeForce GTX 660 Ti GC 3GB SLI Review

Look closely and you'll see that the settings aren't same. Both 7950cf and 660-ti sli are employing highest AA settings while single 7970 is employing normal AA.
You get much better image quality in multigpu at those settings.

Bring down the AA and settings to 7970 levels and you'll see a much significant performance advantage. Single 7970 or 680 are a no contest for multi-gpu setups of higher mid-end cards. No matter how much you overclock the 7970, its no match for a 660-ti sli or even 7950 cf in pure performance. They simply have more no. of shaders and horsepower to back performance.

 

[Cilus]

Vicky, I am also going through your suggestions and infos and found that SLI smoothness really interesting, will dig into that. But buddy, suggesting him a VFM Motherboard like Asrock Extreme 6 over a ROG or Sabertooth is simply a bad idea. When a person has the budget, he should go with the best Motherboard available.
Also it is a misconception that ROG and Sabertooth boards are only for Overclocking, there are plenty of cheaper boards available shich offer almost same level of overclocking. They are recommended because the amaount of stress you can put over there. Consider overclocking the CPU to 4 GHz, 100 MHz overclocking to each of the GPU, 2000 MHz+ for the Rams and running them 8 Hrs a day and try to think of how much amount of stress you're putting over there. The ROG and Sabertooth and high end Gigabyte boards like the US7 and UD7 series use some advance technologies like full digital VRM (Asrock has an Analogue Controller over the Digital VRM), very high capacity and excess Solid caps for dividing the workload, advanced Ceramic coating for Voltage protection etc which are not present in any cheaper or VFM motherboards.

You have seen both my cheaper Crossfire Motherboards, the MSI 890GXM-GD65 and the new Sabertooth 990FX and you have seen what happended with the old board with slight voltage fluctuation. Also now I am running a 3 GPU setting, FX 8150 with Sabertooth can easily feel the stability compared to my other solutions. I could have gone for cheaper Asrock Extreme 4 and Fatality 990FX series, available within 11K and looks lot like the ROG boards but the similarity ends there only.

 

[sumonpathak]

^^this

 

[vickybat]

Vicky, I am also going through your suggestions and infos and found that SLI smoothness really interesting, will dig into that. But buddy, suggesting him a VFM Motherboard like Asrock Extreme 6 over a ROG or Sabertooth is simply a bad idea. When a person has the budget, he should go with the best Motherboard available.
Also it is a misconception that ROG and Sabertooth boards are only for Overclocking, there are plenty of cheaper boards available shich offer almost same level of overclocking. They are recommended because the amaount of stress you can put over there. Consider overclocking the CPU to 4 GHz, 100 MHz overclocking to each of the GPU, 2000 MHz+ for the Rams and running them 8 Hrs a day and try to think of how much amount of stress you're putting over there. The ROG and Sabertooth and high end Gigabyte boards like the US7 and UD7 series use some advance technologies like full digital VRM (Asrock has an Analogue Controller over the Digital VRM), very high capacity and excess Solid caps for dividing the workload, advanced Ceramic coating for Voltage protection etc which are not present in any cheaper or VFM motherboards.

You have seen both my cheaper Crossfire Motherboards, the MSI 890GXM-GD65 and the new Sabertooth 990FX and you have seen what happended with the old board with slight voltage fluctuation. Also now I am running a 3 GPU setting, FX 8150 with Sabertooth can easily feel the stability compared to my other solutions. I could have gone for cheaper Asrock Extreme 4 and Fatality 990FX series, available within 11K and looks lot like the TOG boards but the similarity ends there only.

I don't think its a bad idea buddy. You are underestimating asrock. The board that's the match of extreme 6 is the z77 v-pro from asus which is again 5k expensive.
Asrock trumped it in the test below.

Read the following and you can see why asrock is recommended :

Six $160-220 Z77 Motherboards, Benchmarked And Reviewed : Z77 Express: The Perfect Replacement For Older Machines

AnandTech - ASRock Z77 Extreme6 Review: Legacy Bites Back

You simply cannot compare an extreme 6 with your former 890 gxm. Its a no contest in terms of component quality. This is as good as the v-pro board and slightly lesser than z77 sabretooth (which is 19k).

Its an extreme well balanced board and it can take all the stress gameranand's gonna put to it. ROG doesn't make sense here sacrificing other vital components like ssd. Asrock 6 is no way considered an inferior board.

I don't think you sacrifice that much going for extreme 6. It can take all the stress.
Its a mid-range board and its all that is required for op's current setup.

P.S - Asrock extreme 6 has 12 phase (8+4) digital VRM. Its not analog.

*www.xbitlabs.com/articles/mainboards/display/asrock-z77-extreme6-extreme4.html

Spoiler

As you know the looks is not the priority, and the mainboard’s functionality is the one thing that matters most. This is where ASRock Z77 Extreme6 can boast a few very unique features, which are not that common among contemporary mainboards. The CPU is powered by the digital voltage regulator circuitry designed as 8+4. Its heating components are covered with two large additional heatsinks connected with each other via a heatpipe. All heatsinks, including the chipset one, are installed with screws. Note that there are four additional retention holes around the processor socket, which will allow you to use old coolers, originally designed for LGA 775 platforms. This feature is called Combo Cooler Option (C.C.O.). It was very popular when LGA 11xx processors just came out, but even today it may come in very handy in some cases. However, there is one more unique feature, which currently doesn’t have a name for some reason, which has much more practical value, in my opinion. Namely, out of six fans that can be connected to this mainboard, two are the processor fans. Since one of these connectors is a three-pin connector and another – is a four-pin one, ASRock’s mainboards are currently the only ones that allow adjusting the rotation speed of the processor fan depending on the CPU temperature in either case.

 

[skeletor]

I guess I'll stick with single GPU solution, thats why I am getting the best GPU in the market. However in 2-3 years if need really desires then I'll go for multi-GPU but that is highly unlikely.

The right thing to do.

 

[sumonpathak]

so basically what we are seeing here is that people suggesting to add nitro to a maruti 800?
the motherboards he chose initially and finally are fine IMHO...if one spends over one lakh all total its utter stupidity to buy a substandard motherboard..it being THE most important part in building a PC.
In terms of LLC variation and BIOS Asrock still needs to learn..and they have much to learn.
When it comes to long term stability brands like asrock or msi doesn't really stand a chance against the big players..knowing his usage patterns he needs something that will be able to withstand long sessions.He aint ur everyday gamer

 

[Myth]

^ And what about the multi gpu option ?

 

[The Incinerator]

I believe the motherboard is the foundation of the Computer and the foundation better be strong and more so since the budget is not a constraint here.

 

[sumonpathak]

^ And what about the multi gpu option ?

a single card setup is more better...Multi Gpu has its own can of worms..

 

[Cilus]

^^ Exactly. The amount of stress GamerAnand is going to put on the Motherboard can easily be guessed from his config and Sabertooth or ROG is perfect for this. Vicky, check the price of Asrock Fatality Z77 which costs around 17.3K. Buy paying 2K extra if I can get an Top end Asus ROG then I'll go for it. SSD can be added anytime but you can't change the Motherboard like that.
If was a sub 80K config then the Asrock board were a strong contender but for a rig of 140 thousands, Asus or Gigabyte is the way to go.

 

[Skud]

See the motherboard. You'll get the answer, The next GPU slot is after 3 slots so I guess ASUS will give that long crossfire bridge.

You can't use the 2nd x16 slot, so you need to plug the 2nd card in the 3rd slot and I haven't seen such a long CF bridge in my lifetime. They, however, do supply such long triple card SLI connectors. Also most of the mobos don't bundle a CF connector.

In any case, I don't think you will ever need to go dual GPU with this card. And by the time you do (people are already saying current PCs are more powerful than upcoming consoles), you will want something else.

BTW, even my 1.5 years old 6950 is more than sufficient so far with a slightly OCed 2600k (4.2 GHz). Guess you are going to blast through the games at 8x MSAA or supersampling.

 

[The Incinerator]

I have been on SLi for the last 4 years and I know what it is like when you have to wait for driver updates to play a following game!!! But yes I also believe Sli is good only if you can add up two entry level cards and gain performance of single cards which cost more than twice the price of the entry level card in Sli. If its not...... then Why the Hell SLi?

 

[sumonpathak]

You can't use the 2nd x16 slot, so you need to plug the 2nd card in the 3rd slot and I haven't seen such a long CF bridge in my lifetime. They, however, do supply such long triple card SLI connectors. Also most of the mobos don't bundle a CF connector.

In any case, I don't think you will ever need to go dual GPU with this card. And by the time you do (people are already saying current PCs are more powerful than upcoming consoles), you will want something else.

BTW, even my 1.5 years old 6950 is more than sufficient so far with a slightly OCed 2600k (4.2 GHz). Guess you are going to blast through the games at 8x MSAA or supersampling.

*www.ocfreaks.com/imgs/maximus-v-formula-z77-review/M5F_8.jpg


he is covered...

 

[Skud]

Thanks.

 

[gameranand]

OK let me clear some doubts here.
1. I'll add SSD later, its just that I don't have 6K more right now. I have given that to a friend in need and when he returns that then I'll add a SSD.

2. As for Motherboard, when I'll overclock and I'll eventually then most probably I would like to run it on that settings 24*7 as I hardly shut down my PC. Sometimes downloading, sometimes movies and games so suggest me only mobos which can withstand that much pressure. Also I would like to overclock my CPU and GPU as far as I can before upgrading my RIG.

3. As for GPU both options are good for me but there are some other reasons too why I chose 7970. Its Direct Computing is hilarious and I read a article on that many months back which was given by Cilus I think and maybe in near future I might need that also. Please don't ask the reference because its been months and now I don't remember so I would have to read that again to remember why I was wondered by that.

4. Its not that I can't go for Crossfire, I am saying that I wouldn't do it unless I need it so multi GPU is always an option for me.

5. I guess Skud's confusion is already covered by sumonpathak.

6. Also the problem is stated but Incinerator for the SLI setup is not heart breaking for me but still kind of an issue sometimes.

Now please continue.

 

[Cilus]

GamerAnand, I have not tried till now towards your configuration, in fact not aware of most of it. Do you want me try a rig for you of my own without looking to the other configs, but obviously stressing over the parts you want in your rig? It might or might not be in same with your reference config but I'll do my best and will do my research independently. Also I have personal experience of running both Crossfire (HD 6870 CF) and SLI (long back, GTX 6800 Ultra SLI) and also dedicated PhysX card which I will try to use here. Let me know. This will also include my research about display technologies, Human Human Psycho-visual model for display choice, surround sound effects, FPS study etc.

 

[sumonpathak]

this calls for a Loooong writeup....

 

[gameranand]

GamerAnand, I have not tried till now towards your configuration, in fact not aware of most of it. Do you want me try a rig for you of my own without looking to the other configs, but obviously stressing over the parts you want in your rig? It might or might not be in same with your reference config but I'll do my best and will do my research independently. Also I have personal experience of running both Crossfire (HD 6870 CF) and SLI (long back, GTX 6800 Ultra SLI) and also dedicated PhysX card which I will try to use here. Let me know. This will also include my research about display technologies, Human Human Psycho-visual model for display choice, surround sound effects, FPS study etc.

Please do. I would be grateful. I guess you already know my preference. Also one more is that I would like to have a open port for a future upgrade, that is one of the reasons I was more towards single fastest GPU.

this calls for a Loooong writeup....

From you or Cilus ?? If from you then please take the pain.