New computer help

[noble_aloof]

Hey. i posted here awhile back asking about building my own computer. well, i got good grades this year so my parents are going to finally buy me a new one. i've been extensively comparing systems and this one i found on newegg seems to be my best bet:

 

Newegg

 

its perfectly priced and has the expandability and power usually found in high end computers. I'm almost set on getting it (but any suggestions will be considered)

 

now, i have a few questions. please ignore my lack of knowledge:

 

i have an older (but crossfire enabled) radeon card in this computer. is there any distinct advantage (or is it even possible) to crossfire it with the new card?

 

i noticed a low power supply voltage when compared to other high-end systems. first, why is this? and would an upgraded power supply be needed if i was to add ram/ video cards?

 

since there are 3 free slots on the motherboard, would buying 3 ram sticks that don't match the brand of the current ram be a problem ?

 

with this liquid cooling is it possible to overclock? what additional gadgets would i need in order to overclock.

 

you've been helpful in the past guys, thanks in advance.

[sohkmj1]

i have an older (but crossfire enabled) radeon card in this computer. is there any distinct advantage (or is it even possible) to crossfire it with the new card?

 

i noticed a low power supply voltage when compared to other high-end systems. first, why is this? and would an upgraded power supply be needed if i was to add ram/ video cards?

 

since there are 3 free slots on the motherboard, would buying 3 ram sticks that don't match the brand of the current ram be a problem ?

 

with this liquid cooling is it possible to overclock? what additional gadgets would i need in order to overclock.

 

you've been helpful in the past guys, thanks in advance.

1. I don't use Radeons (although I'm considering it)

2. You don't need excessive power. Usually if you buy a prebuilt computer, they will have the power supply sorted out for you. 600W should be pretty high end.

3. I can't help you with this one, although I have a 1GB Kingston along with some unspecified brands in my motherboard, and it's fine.

4. You could always overclock even without liquid cooling, just to a smaller extent.

[Jernlov]

5770 with an i7 is going to be painful. Why? The 5770 is a mid-range card; the 930 is a very high-end consumer processor. You're probably going to get some bottlenecking that would be reasonably noticeable in games that push your system, assuming you're not playing at 1024x768.

 

You can't crossfire two different cards.

 

It's enough to run the system but you probably won't get much out of it in terms of expandability.

 

It's fine. Just make sure the timings and clock speeds are the same.

 

Overclocking prebuilts is a bad idea.

 

If you're so intent on a gaming PC, then, why don't you build your own? I think you could build something that would perform better in games for $100/200 less. It's not like it's a hard task and it's almost impossible to go wrong when you're doing it. I'm not saying that there's much wrong with the PC you've shown us, but you've mentioned expandability and overclocking. I think you would want to build your own if you need either of those things.

[OldJoe]

^You do know that 5770 is similar to 4870/GTX260 in performance, right? If that's mid range, we have some different views then.

You can crossfire different cards. Depends on which one it is tho.

 

What psu is it?

And the ram, it must be 1.65v or less. Anything over will damage the i7 and you won't be able to complain to Intel about it since they are pretty clear on this matter. You can use those which have different timings but the slowest one will be the one dictating.

 

I think it was Nadril who recommended other brands than that tho, or if it was ibuy power.... Someone of 'em.

If you're thinking about overclocking, first read about each hardware component and get a perspective about them. No point of just turning up the hertz without knowing what you're working with. Secondly, read a lot of guides. And third i would say that picking your own stuff would be better than trying with a prebuilt, partly because it's you who chooses what to use and partly because it voids the warranty.

And before rushing and buying some watercooling, read about it.

[Hobgoblinpie]

To use Crossfire, you have to use two of the same cards.

 

600W should be fine, at least for the time being.

 

It's better to use RAM that is of the same brand (and preferably the same range from that brand). It shouldn't cause any problems, but like OldJoe said, the slowest stick will be the one that determines speed.

 

Overclocking is simple enough, as long as you don't push it too far (for instance, my Laptop's Core/Shader/Memory clocks by default are 550/1350/900, which is already overclocked, and I can get them to 660/1600/1100 stable. But, my system is designed for overclocking, whereas I wouldn't trust that computer so much). All you'd need is a piece of software. Again, I'd read up about it and be very cautious. After all, if the system is damaged from overclocking, you're not covered in the warranty.

[OldJoe]

To use Crossfire, you have to use two of the same cards.

 

Again no. Or yes, if you want the proper words used. Crossfire for using the same card model and CrossfireX for different ones.