Triple monitor gaming build - opinions?

MadHarlequin

Hi all,

Ive wanted to put together a gaming PC since forever and I finally have the money to take the plunge. Im planning on going with an Eyefinity setup using three monitors and was hoping someone could have a look over what Im planning to buy before I commit.

1. What is your budget? 1200

2. What will be the main purpose of the computer? Gaming

3. Do you need a copy of Windows? No

4. Can you use any parts from an old computer? Have a hard drive I can use so Id like to get a SSD as a primary drive

5. Do you need a monitor? Yep

5a. If yes, what size do you need. Planning on getting 3 22" monitors

6. Do you need any of these peripherals? Just a wireless card

7. Are you willing to try overclocking? Yep

8. How can you pay? Whatever

9. When are you purchasing? Probably 2-3 weeks

10. If you need help building it, where are you based? South Dublin

Planned build;

Intel Core i5-3570K Tray, LGA1155
ASRock Z77 Pro3, Sockel 1155, ATX
Sapphire HD 7870 OC 2GB GDDR5 PCI-Express
8GB-Kit G.Skill PC3-10667U CL9
Super-Flower Amazon 80Plus 450W
Special item: BitFenix Merc Alpha
OCZ Agility 3 120GB 6,4cm (2,5") SATA3
LG Flatron E2251VR x3
LG GH22NS50/70/90 bare schwarz
TP-Link TL-WN781N, 150Mbps, PCIe x1
XFX Mini DisplayPort auf DVI Adapter, Aktiv, Single Link

Whole lot comes to about 1160 on Hardwareversand. Apologises for formatting Im in work.

So I have a few questions

On the motherboard is the pro3 a decent choice or would I be better off getting the extreme4?

Is the agility 3 any use? Ive seen mixed opinions online. Also will I need to get mounting brackets to fit a 2.5" drive on the case?

Is the mini displayport adapter the right one to be using?

Is there anything else I need to get? I have the feeling that Im going to forget something important when I order.

Cheers

Eboggles

If you're gaming on three screens It'd be worth your while to get a Radeon 7950 instead. It has an extra 1GB of VRAM and is slightly faster.

The Agility 3 isn't great, get the Samsung 830 instead.

If you're getting the 7950, you should bump up the PSU to a 550 watt, so you can overclock both processor and GPU, and still have a bit of breathing space.

Also, don't get anything that says special item. It means a returned item, or a display model.

Everything else is fine though

MadHarlequin

I knew posting on here would end up costing me money! Ive heard good things about the samsung SSDs will change that.

Is the extra 70-80 quid for a 7950 worth it? Any particular one you would recommend? Ive always been a little lost when it came to picking graphics cards

Dr_Teeth

Will you be able to run games at 5760x1080 with acceptable frame-rates using a single gfx card? Or are you gaming in one monitor while the other two display other applications?

ShadowHearth

i dont want to be a party pooper, but having a 3 monitor gaming setup on 7870 is very optimistic.

what sort of games you planning to play on 3 monitors? if something like wow, then you could get away on low to med settings, racing games? you should be okayish, but if you plan to play BF3, then sorry, it wont go so well.

i got single gtx 680 and i am still not very confident in getting my third monitor to finish my setup.


if you plan on having best eye finity setup now, you could look in to getting 2x7850 and OC them to ****. it would be best performance/cost solution for you.
2gb vram will be enough and 2 of those will push out some serious performance.

*i know someone will storm in and yell: MULTY GPU SETUPS ARE DEVILS MINIONS, but it is not as bad as people making it to be. multy gpu setups went quit far.

MadHarlequin

Ive seen reviews showing the 7870 getting decent framerates across 3 monitors, and the 7950 will perform even better. I wont be able to run every new game with ultrahigh settings but since ill be coming from console gaming it should still be a massive step up. And theres nothing stopping me picking up a second card 6 months from now, after all I never know what to ask the missus for at christmas!

MadHarlequin

As much as Id love to I really cant afford 2 cards at the moment and I know if I dont spend the money in the next few weeks Ill end up finding something far more sensible and boring to spend the money on.

Think a 7950 is probably the best I can afford right now, even that is really stretching the budget. Will probably be able to pick a second one up in the near future, once the price on them starts dropping.

Any idea what kind of wattage would I need to run 2 OCd cards?

deceit

Just to point out I run 3 1200p screens on a single HD7970 un-overclocked and I get good frame rates on the likes of bf3 maxed out.

Procrastastudy

I'm on a 6870 and running three screens. On BF3 I'm on Ultra but have to turn the AA off (or very low). Most other games it grand though. Personally if I had the cash I'd buy a 7950 - in your situation I think you'd be mad not to go for it from the word go. That said I'm a happy camper at 40FPS most people aren't.

A word of warning ref eyefinity. Have you used one? If not try and make sure you do before buying. I'm really in two minds about it as the left and right images are stretched to simulate peripheral vision. I can look really odd. I certainly messed about with it for ages trying to 'fix' it.

Example:
http://youtu.be/W9eMnqyBjGo

MadHarlequin

Yeah I have tried using an eyefinity setup. It was a bit strange at first but I reckon once you get used to it you wouldnt go back. I still remember when being able to look and move in different directions in a game felt completely alien but i got used to it pretty quick

Yeah I think I will have to go for the 7950 itll just mean an extra week saving for the cash. Anybody any recommendations for a particular make? I was looking at either the gigabyte or the sapphire card.

Procrastastudy

Good rule of thumb (stolen from eboggles) is the cheapest non reference. Personally I've been looking as the ASUS Direct CU. That said there is a V2 of that card due soon.

If you're willing to try over clocking you can get 7970 performance out of them which going by a poster here should get you some nice performance even at mad resolutions.

MadHarlequin

Thats grand Ill just grab the cheapest model when I eventually get around to ordering