Been jonsen to do a bit fenix build ever since logan posted that video of the case, only i'm trying to find the right board that'll hold an i7 and a 690 (laptops have pissed me off enough). The overall budget would be $2000. And of course with 16 gigs of ram.
Also i've had previous experience doing builds and i just want a peer review and some second opinions.
The "Diablo" build: Intel Core i7-3770K @ 4.7GHz (Prime95 -> 81C) Corsair H60 + CoolerMaster XtraFlo Red LED PWM fan (2200rpm) Asus GTX670 DirectCU II OC Asus P8Z77-I DELUXE G.Skill RipjawsX 2x8GB 1600MHz (1800MHz O.C. with same timings and voltage) Corsair Force GT 240GB SSD Corsair TX650 V2 PSU BitFenix Prodigy Black case BitFenix Spectre Pro Red LED 230mm case fan (undervolted via included adapter)
PSU: For that kind of budget and that kind of build, a modular power supply would make your rig quite a bit cleaner. Cable management will already be a challenge, so a modular psu is definitely a welcome sight.
CPU: Why not a 3570k? In gaming they are equal, the extra $100 you save you can invest into a more powerful card then that GTX670 or even into a better watercooling solution.
That ASUS board is definitely a very nice board, it would be interesting to see the mini itx system together.
Thats the best mobo probably available for that size of build.
Unless you are rendering (or graphic design, cpu intensive tasks) there is no point in getting the i7, get the 3570k instead. If its OCing you want your probably going to disable hyperthreading anyway, so whats the point in having it.
I don't find memory OC's that well without decent cooling, so I would just purchase 8GB of the speed you want, and dont bother trying to OC it above that (within reason).
You are going to want the Kingston 3K SSD for color matching to the mobo.
Go with a Fully modular PSU with a small build like this. A 660watt Gold Seasonic would do the trick I believe.
IF your going to get water cooling, the H80i (or H80) is the lowest you want to go, the H60 has pretty terrible temps for the cost. I would look into something like:
Change the fan out so it match's. Personal opinion, blue and white would be the best combo. Or blue and black, in which case the bequiet cooler would look boss.
Spectre fans are really good, I would get blue LED ones, makes everything match a bit more. This would make for a sweet lan rig. Also get a 7970 instead of a 670, near the same price, way better performance. Something like : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202008, so it matchs. Black with a hint of blue.
This is my ultimate LAN build. Everything is color matched (minus the psu, but just take the sticker off), its sooo portable and functional. I want this to be like... yeah its my LAN pc. Dont worry about it boys.
If you are looking at what you can do with this case check out singularity computers he did a watercooled set up with this case and motherboard with I belive the I5 3570K and a 7870 but it is a great case all around and for a $2000 budget you really can't go wrong with it and a I5 and the 670 it is a great card alot of youtubers use the card and play games like battlefield on high so there really is no going wrong with it.
Lol that was the initial plan, the i7 isn't completely needed. Reliablity is more of a concern and something that'll last me all the way through college. Since my netbook just died tonight in hell fire tonight.