Name: DeathboxV3
OS: Windows XP Performance Edition SP3
Motherboard: DFI LANPARTY DK P35-T2RS
CPU: Intel E6400 @ 3.2GHz. Cooled by an Arctic 7 Freezer Pro w/YL 120mm HS fan and MX-2 thermal compound.
Case: CM RC690 with 4x 120mm fans and 1x 140mm.
RAM: 2x1GB G.Skill DDR2 800 @ 5-5-5-15
GFX: ASUS HD 4870 1GB Dark Knight Edition
Sound: Creative Audigy ZS
PSU: Seasonic 500w
Drives: DVD ROM, DVD/CD-RW Burner

Monitor: HannsG 23.6" @ 1920x1080.
Speakers: Dell 2.1 speaker system.
Mouse: Dell Optical USB Mouse
Keyboard: Dell USB Keyboard

Changes in blue.
Name: Descent v1
OS: Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit
Motherboard: DFI LP DK X58 T3eH6
CPU: Intel Core i7 920 D0 w/Thermolab BARAM
Case: CM RC690 v1 with 4x 120mm fans and 1x 140mm.
RAM: 3x2GB OCZ Platinum DDR3 1600 7-7-7-24-2T
GFX: ASUS HD 4870 1GB Dark Knight Edition w/Zalman VF1000
Sound: Creative Audigy ZS
PSU: Seasonic 500w
Drives: DVD ROM, DVD/CD-RW Burner

Monitor: HannsG 23.6" @ 1920x1080.
Speakers: Dell 2.1 speaker system.
Mouse: Dell Optical USB Mouse
Keyboard: Dell USB Keyboard

Current:
01/04/10 - Project Thread Started

01/05/10 - Motherboard delivery
-Notes: For an Open Box item, the ASRock X58 Extreme I got sure seemed retail.
Everything and I mean everything was in the box, even the backplate, which is what I really wanted.
When you get an open box item you usually check and say 'Now why did the first buyer send it back...'
I think I found out: Some of the I/Os are a little loose, as if someone tried to shove the backplate in too hard.
Their actual connections to the board are fine but the plastic holding them in was loose. A little push and they're all fine.
Now to get my 920.

01/05/10 (Later)
And now some bad news: Microcenter raised their 920 prices. This means I'll need to secure more funds before getting my 920.


01/06/10
Microcenter is my new favorite store. Its about an hour away which sucks but everyone in there is as tech geeky as me.
The guy who got me the 920 out of the case and the cashier were both talking to me about how they recently got theirs.
I wish I could work there even if it is so far away. Also because it is in a shitty neighborhood it was only 3.5% sales tax.

01/07/10
RAM arrived in some very very very padded and excellent packaging on the part of the guy I ordered them from.
However they were supposed to be CL7 and the sticker says CL8. If they can do CL7 that'll be fine.
I'm an overclocker. What a part is rated for and what it can actually do are two different things, and we like the latter.

01/29/10
The ASRock X58 Open Box that I ordered had a dead memory channel and had to be sent back. I had to wait another week for work to pay me, and then wait for checks to clear, and then wait for funds to transfer to paypal. All of these things take days and it really pisses me off that a company can't transfer funds or verify an order in less than two to three BUSINESS DAYS so you know every time a weekend rolls along I get fucked.

Anyway, after all was said and done, I ordered the following:
DFI LP DK X58 T3eH6 (Steal for 140$ shipped.)
Thermloab BARAM (Again, good price at 53$ shipped.)
Zalman VF1000 (Fucking 42$ shipped. Cocknipples.)
Tuniq TX-2 compound (Probably will use my MX-2 but I'm running out. 6$ shipped.)

What's that? Why the Zalman? Oh because while tightening the screws on my HD4870 Dark Knight, one of them decided to FUCKING SPLIT IN HALF! The cooler was loose, the screws could have been tighter, and trying to tighten them resulting in the head snapping in half. Fucking joy. So I needed to order a replacement GPU cooler, and thus I did. However I'll have to make due with the loose Dark Knight cooler for the first few days of my build due to just having the screw snapping happen not ten minutes ago.

Nearly all of this could've been avoided if:
Newegg tested 3 memory channels on a fucking triple channel board.
The Intel stock cooler wasn't so terrible at its job.
The Dark Knight cooler had been tightened properly when made.


Pictures will be taken throughout the process.

TBA

Current CPUz Tabs w/Coretemp

(Yes, I do idle 25C. )

DFI LP DK X58 T3eH6


ASUS DK HD4870 1GB

Zalman VF1000


Thermolab BARAM