i7 Builds - Specs and Results

[sunburst79]

Originally Posted by Shan

But 6.9 looks so good now. Instead of working you can just look at it and go defend it on audio forums with a cult like mindset of a true fan boy.

Shane

But I keep trying to click things on your screen shot........

[DannyAnalogue]

Originally Posted by Shan

Thanks for the heads up with this one!



Well at least tease us with your record breaking results! You can share the love on how you achieved this later.

Shane

Frustration, frustration...

So, clocked to 3.8... although, sustaining this speed strikes fear into the hearts of everybody in the studio, I managed to hit 361 and 428, at 64 and 1024 buffer, respectively (with the new D-Verb, as I haven't got the old one installed yet).

So a nice result. The reason it's frustrating is because I only managed it once. A lot goes on with this machine so things are changing constantly as projects are started, and drives get fragged - the difference now being: I can't hit 5 minutes.

I will say, though, the two aforementioned apps. were what got me there. XP's a big old bloated mess when you see it from the inside. There's no doubt in my mind that Win 7, with the i7 (hmmm), is going to be BAD (meaning good ).

I'm looking now at - and I know Shane's bang on this already - the wonderful nLite It's clearly the way forward.

Oh, any of you cats running on 7RC1, yet? I've got both 64 and 32. What's the verdict?

[Shan]

Originally Posted by DannyAnalogue

Frustration, frustration...

So, clocked to 3.8... although, sustaining this speed strikes fear into the hearts of everybody in the studio, I managed to hit 361 and 428, at 64 and 1024 buffer, respectively (with the new D-Verb, as I haven't got the old one installed yet).

Very impressive nonetheless.

I'm looking now at - and I know Shane's bang on this already - the wonderful nLite It's clearly the way forward.

I really wish Digi would issue an unsupported nLite distribution. It would be XP completely setup and tweaked for Pro Tools only and nothing more. The absolute bare minimum. This will never happen but it should.

Since that is very unlikely, I'd like us die hard users to create the ultimate PT nLite distribution, have Digidesign look at it, give us any tips and suggestions that would make it better, then give us the nod and make it a sticky so that it's user supported. It would end a good chunk of the setup madness.

Shane

[DannyAnalogue]

Originally Posted by Shan

Very impressive nonetheless.



I really wish Digi would issue an unsupported nLite distribution. It would be XP completely setup and tweaked for Pro Tools only and nothing more. The absolute bare minimum. This will never happen but it should.

Since that is very unlikely, I'd like us die hard users to create the ultimate PT nLite distribution, have Digidesign look at it, give us any tips and suggestions that would make it better, then give us the nod and make it a sticky so that it's user supported. It would end a good chunk of the setup madness.

Shane

Fantastic idea. I've got some spare days coming up so I had planned to make a start on an nLite install, for testing purposes. I'll let you know where I am with it.

I do hope things change at Digi - and not just the ASS WUPing bit. I'm running alternatives along side PT at the moment, as sadly, and as much as I love PT, I don't consider it to be a finished product. The Play/Pause nonsense is beyond a joke and not having ADC makes an alleged in-the-box DAW, unusable for my needs. Ironically I use the most omni-present multi-track recorder for sound design alone, these days

Now what about this Win 7 business?

[guitardom]

Originally Posted by DannyAnalogue

Frustration, frustration...

So, clocked to 3.8... although, sustaining this speed strikes fear into the hearts of everybody in the studio, I managed to hit 361 and 428, at 64 and 1024 buffer, respectively (with the new D-Verb, as I haven't got the old one installed yet).

So a nice result. The reason it's frustrating is because I only managed it once. A lot goes on with this machine so things are changing constantly as projects are started, and drives get fragged - the difference now being: I can't hit 5 minutes.

I will say, though, the two aforementioned apps. were what got me there. XP's a big old bloated mess when you see it from the inside. There's no doubt in my mind that Win 7, with the i7 (hmmm), is going to be BAD (meaning good ).

I'm looking now at - and I know Shane's bang on this already - the wonderful nLite It's clearly the way forward.

Oh, any of you cats running on 7RC1, yet? I've got both 64 and 32. What's the verdict?

in the oc'ing articles on the i7 i have read, 3.8 was as fast as they could get it and keep it stable, but the testing was done open air, not in a case because of the heat problems, and they recomended against 3.8 for the life of the processor. partly the reason i have now stuck at 3.6 and running great.

it seems for the most part our performance issues are lying with digi, not the operating system for the most part. our processor and computer speeds is moving faster than anything else, so now it just seems pt may not be utilizing the sheer power of the new computers but getting big increases just by hangin on. when i first built the i7 i did TONS of tweaking and such and the performance increase was minimal. just to much overhead of power on these machines pt is not tapping into.

nothing spectacular on win 7. it does have a larger footprint than xp, so is using more ram and a bit less performance than xp. so nothing amazing here, other than we will for most cases have to start moving to this route sometime. but overall xp is still performing better.

[shawnames]

Where can I find the 7.4 Dverb? Can it be downloaded somewhere? I'm wanting to run the dverb test with it.

Thanks!
Shawn Ames

[macr0w]

Originally Posted by guitardom

give me a parts list and double check your vid drivers especially, make sure they are up to date. also are you saying pt 7.1 and the 7.1 mptk or a more recent version of pt and the 7.1 mptk??

Here is a SANDRA report from my machine.

I'll check on the video driver.

If you see anything that looks funny let me know.

Thanks

SiSoftware Sandra

System
Host Name : CLEARSPO-X2GAHD
User : Mark
Workgroup : WORKGROUP

Processor
Model : Intel(R) Core(TM) i7 CPU 920 @ 2.67GHz
Speed : 2.67GHz
Cores per Processor : 4 Unit(s)
Threads per Core : 2 Unit(s)
Type : Quad-Core
Internal Data Cache : 2x 32kB, Synchronous, Write-Thru, 8-way, 64 byte line size, 2 threads sharing
L2 On-board Cache : 2x 256kB, Synchronous, ATC, 8-way, 64 byte line size, 2 threads sharing
L3 On-board Cache : 8MB, Synchronous, ATC, 16-way, 64 byte line size, 16 threads sharing

System
System : System manufacturer System Product Name
Mainboard : ASUSTeK Computer INC. P6T
Bus(es) : ISA PCI PCIe IMB USB FireWire/1394
Multi-Processor (MP) Support : 1 Processor(s)
Multi-Processor Advanced PIC (APIC) : Yes
System BIOS : American Megatrends Inc. 8.15
Total Memory : 2.99GB

Chipset 1
Model : ASUS ??? (3405)
Front Side Bus Speed : 1x 133MHz (133MHz)

Video System
Desktop Monitors/Panels : 2
Monitor/Panel : Plug and Play Monitor
Monitor/Panel : Plug and Play Monitor
Adapter : ATI Radeon HD 4650

Physical Storage Devices
ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ) : 465.76GB (C:)
ST3320620AS 320GB (SATA150, NCQ, 16MB Cache) : 298.09GB (F:)
ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ) : 465.76GB (D:)
ST3320620AS 320GB (SATA300, NCQ, 16MB Cache) : 298.09GB (E:)
ST31000333AS 1000GB (SATA300, NCQ) : 931.51GB (G:)
ST31000333AS 1000GB (SATA300, NCQ) : 931.51GB (H:)
Maxtor OneTouch 500GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ) : 465.76GB (J:)
Maxtor OneTouch II 300GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ) : 279.48GB (L:)
Maxtor OneTouch 164GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ) : 152.67GB (K:)
Maxtor OneTouch 164GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ) : 152.67GB (I:)
SONY DVD RW DRU-820A (USB) : N/A (M:)

Logical Storage Devices
Hard Disk (C:) : 465.75GB (355.47GB, 76% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ)
Local Disk (F:) : 298.09GB (24.98GB, 8% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST3320620AS 320GB (SATA150, NCQ, 16MB Cache)
Local Disk (D:) : 465.76GB (430.26GB, 92% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ)
Local Disk (E:) : 298.09GB (16.86GB, 6% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST3320620AS 320GB (SATA300, NCQ, 16MB Cache)
Local Disk (G:) : 931.51GB (931.40GB, 100% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST31000333AS 1000GB (SATA300, NCQ)
Local Disk (H:) : 931.51GB (799.17GB, 86% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST31000333AS 1000GB (SATA300, NCQ)
Hard Disk (J:) : 465.76GB (52.06GB, 11% Free Space) (NTFS) @ Maxtor OneTouch 500GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ)
Hard Disk (L:) : 279.47GB (8.23GB, 3% Free Space) (NTFS) @ Maxtor OneTouch II 300GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ)
Hard Disk (K:) : 152.66GB (63.92GB, 42% Free Space) (NTFS) @ Maxtor OneTouch 164GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ)
Hard Disk (I:) : 152.66GB (37.12GB, 24% Free Space) (NTFS) @ Maxtor OneTouch 164GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ)
3.5" 1.44MB (A:) : N/A @ ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ)
CD-ROM/DVD (M:) : N/A @ SONY DVD RW DRU-820A (USB)

Peripherals
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Composite Device
USB Controller/Hub : USB Mass Storage Device
USB Controller/Hub : USB Mass Storage Device
FireWire/1394 Controller/Hub : Texas Instruments OHCI Compliant IEEE 1394 Host Controller
FireWire/1394 Controller/Hub : VIA OHCI Compliant IEEE 1394 Host Controller
Keyboard : HID Keyboard Device
Mouse : HID-compliant mouse
Mouse : HID-compliant mouse
Human Interface : HID-compliant consumer control device
Human Interface : HID-compliant consumer control device
Human Interface : HID-compliant device
Human Interface : HID-compliant consumer control device
Human Interface : USB Human Interface Device
Human Interface : USB Human Interface Device
Human Interface : USB Human Interface Device

Power Management
Mains (AC) Line Status : On-Line

Operating System(s)
Windows System : Microsoft Windows XP (2002) Professional 5.01.2600 (Service Pack 2)
Platform Compliance : Win32 x86

Network Services
Network Drivers Enabled : No

[guitardom]

Originally Posted by macr0w

Here is a SANDRA report from my machine.

I'll check on the video driver.

If you see anything that looks funny let me know.

Thanks

SiSoftware Sandra

System
Host Name : CLEARSPO-X2GAHD
User : Mark
Workgroup : WORKGROUP

Processor
Model : Intel(R) Core(TM) i7 CPU 920 @ 2.67GHz
Speed : 2.67GHz
Cores per Processor : 4 Unit(s)
Threads per Core : 2 Unit(s)
Type : Quad-Core
Internal Data Cache : 2x 32kB, Synchronous, Write-Thru, 8-way, 64 byte line size, 2 threads sharing
L2 On-board Cache : 2x 256kB, Synchronous, ATC, 8-way, 64 byte line size, 2 threads sharing
L3 On-board Cache : 8MB, Synchronous, ATC, 16-way, 64 byte line size, 16 threads sharing

System
System : System manufacturer System Product Name
Mainboard : ASUSTeK Computer INC. P6T
Bus(es) : ISA PCI PCIe IMB USB FireWire/1394
Multi-Processor (MP) Support : 1 Processor(s)
Multi-Processor Advanced PIC (APIC) : Yes
System BIOS : American Megatrends Inc. 8.15
Total Memory : 2.99GB

Chipset 1
Model : ASUS ??? (3405)
Front Side Bus Speed : 1x 133MHz (133MHz)

Video System
Desktop Monitors/Panels : 2
Monitor/Panel : Plug and Play Monitor
Monitor/Panel : Plug and Play Monitor
Adapter : ATI Radeon HD 4650

Physical Storage Devices
ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ) : 465.76GB (C:)
ST3320620AS 320GB (SATA150, NCQ, 16MB Cache) : 298.09GB (F:)
ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ) : 465.76GB (D:)
ST3320620AS 320GB (SATA300, NCQ, 16MB Cache) : 298.09GB (E:)
ST31000333AS 1000GB (SATA300, NCQ) : 931.51GB (G:)
ST31000333AS 1000GB (SATA300, NCQ) : 931.51GB (H:)
Maxtor OneTouch 500GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ) : 465.76GB (J:)
Maxtor OneTouch II 300GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ) : 279.48GB (L:)
Maxtor OneTouch 164GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ) : 152.67GB (K:)
Maxtor OneTouch 164GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ) : 152.67GB (I:)
SONY DVD RW DRU-820A (USB) : N/A (M:)

Logical Storage Devices
Hard Disk (C:) : 465.75GB (355.47GB, 76% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ)
Local Disk (F:) : 298.09GB (24.98GB, 8% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST3320620AS 320GB (SATA150, NCQ, 16MB Cache)
Local Disk (D:) : 465.76GB (430.26GB, 92% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ)
Local Disk (E:) : 298.09GB (16.86GB, 6% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST3320620AS 320GB (SATA300, NCQ, 16MB Cache)
Local Disk (G:) : 931.51GB (931.40GB, 100% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST31000333AS 1000GB (SATA300, NCQ)
Local Disk (H:) : 931.51GB (799.17GB, 86% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST31000333AS 1000GB (SATA300, NCQ)
Hard Disk (J:) : 465.76GB (52.06GB, 11% Free Space) (NTFS) @ Maxtor OneTouch 500GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ)
Hard Disk (L:) : 279.47GB (8.23GB, 3% Free Space) (NTFS) @ Maxtor OneTouch II 300GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ)
Hard Disk (K:) : 152.66GB (63.92GB, 42% Free Space) (NTFS) @ Maxtor OneTouch 164GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ)
Hard Disk (I:) : 152.66GB (37.12GB, 24% Free Space) (NTFS) @ Maxtor OneTouch 164GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ)
3.5" 1.44MB (A:) : N/A @ ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ)
CD-ROM/DVD (M:) : N/A @ SONY DVD RW DRU-820A (USB)

Peripherals
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Composite Device
USB Controller/Hub : USB Mass Storage Device
USB Controller/Hub : USB Mass Storage Device
FireWire/1394 Controller/Hub : Texas Instruments OHCI Compliant IEEE 1394 Host Controller
FireWire/1394 Controller/Hub : VIA OHCI Compliant IEEE 1394 Host Controller
Keyboard : HID Keyboard Device
Mouse : HID-compliant mouse
Mouse : HID-compliant mouse
Human Interface : HID-compliant consumer control device
Human Interface : HID-compliant consumer control device
Human Interface : HID-compliant device
Human Interface : HID-compliant consumer control device
Human Interface : USB Human Interface Device
Human Interface : USB Human Interface Device
Human Interface : USB Human Interface Device

Power Management
Mains (AC) Line Status : On-Line

Operating System(s)
Windows System : Microsoft Windows XP (2002) Professional 5.01.2600 (Service Pack 2)
Platform Compliance : Win32 x86

Network Services
Network Drivers Enabled : No

check the vid driver, have you done the 3gb switch?? found some probs last night with the vid card doing this, which caused some pt probs.

there are a lot of drives/partitions hooked up. which ones are you recording audio to?? which ones are os??

have you done stuff in the bios?? like setting your ram speed or anything like that.

sorry if you have answered these. i get confused sometimes when doing this as to whom i asked what

[mykhal c]

Originally Posted by macr0w

Here is a SANDRA report from my machine.

I'll check on the video driver.

If you see anything that looks funny let me know.

Thanks

SiSoftware Sandra

System
Host Name : CLEARSPO-X2GAHD
User : Mark
Workgroup : WORKGROUP

Processor
Model : Intel(R) Core(TM) i7 CPU 920 @ 2.67GHz
Speed : 2.67GHz
Cores per Processor : 4 Unit(s)
Threads per Core : 2 Unit(s)
Type : Quad-Core
Internal Data Cache : 2x 32kB, Synchronous, Write-Thru, 8-way, 64 byte line size, 2 threads sharing
L2 On-board Cache : 2x 256kB, Synchronous, ATC, 8-way, 64 byte line size, 2 threads sharing
L3 On-board Cache : 8MB, Synchronous, ATC, 16-way, 64 byte line size, 16 threads sharing

System
System : System manufacturer System Product Name
Mainboard : ASUSTeK Computer INC. P6T
Bus(es) : ISA PCI PCIe IMB USB FireWire/1394
Multi-Processor (MP) Support : 1 Processor(s)
Multi-Processor Advanced PIC (APIC) : Yes
System BIOS : American Megatrends Inc. 8.15
Total Memory : 2.99GB

Chipset 1
Model : ASUS ??? (3405)
Front Side Bus Speed : 1x 133MHz (133MHz)

Video System
Desktop Monitors/Panels : 2
Monitor/Panel : Plug and Play Monitor
Monitor/Panel : Plug and Play Monitor
Adapter : ATI Radeon HD 4650

Physical Storage Devices
ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ) : 465.76GB (C:)
ST3320620AS 320GB (SATA150, NCQ, 16MB Cache) : 298.09GB (F:)
ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ) : 465.76GB (D:)
ST3320620AS 320GB (SATA300, NCQ, 16MB Cache) : 298.09GB (E:)
ST31000333AS 1000GB (SATA300, NCQ) : 931.51GB (G:)
ST31000333AS 1000GB (SATA300, NCQ) : 931.51GB (H:)
Maxtor OneTouch 500GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ) : 465.76GB (J:)
Maxtor OneTouch II 300GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ) : 279.48GB (L:)
Maxtor OneTouch 164GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ) : 152.67GB (K:)
Maxtor OneTouch 164GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ) : 152.67GB (I:)
SONY DVD RW DRU-820A (USB) : N/A (M:)

Logical Storage Devices
Hard Disk (C:) : 465.75GB (355.47GB, 76% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ)
Local Disk (F:) : 298.09GB (24.98GB, 8% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST3320620AS 320GB (SATA150, NCQ, 16MB Cache)
Local Disk (D:) : 465.76GB (430.26GB, 92% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ)
Local Disk (E:) : 298.09GB (16.86GB, 6% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST3320620AS 320GB (SATA300, NCQ, 16MB Cache)
Local Disk (G:) : 931.51GB (931.40GB, 100% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST31000333AS 1000GB (SATA300, NCQ)
Local Disk (H:) : 931.51GB (799.17GB, 86% Free Space) (NTFS) @ ST31000333AS 1000GB (SATA300, NCQ)
Hard Disk (J:) : 465.76GB (52.06GB, 11% Free Space) (NTFS) @ Maxtor OneTouch 500GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ)
Hard Disk (L:) : 279.47GB (8.23GB, 3% Free Space) (NTFS) @ Maxtor OneTouch II 300GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ)
Hard Disk (K:) : 152.66GB (63.92GB, 42% Free Space) (NTFS) @ Maxtor OneTouch 164GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ)
Hard Disk (I:) : 152.66GB (37.12GB, 24% Free Space) (NTFS) @ Maxtor OneTouch 164GB (FireWire/1394, NCQ)
3.5" 1.44MB (A:) : N/A @ ST3500320AS 500GB (SATA300, NCQ)
CD-ROM/DVD (M:) : N/A @ SONY DVD RW DRU-820A (USB)

Peripherals
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Universal PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : Standard Enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Root Hub
USB Controller/Hub : USB Composite Device
USB Controller/Hub : USB Mass Storage Device
USB Controller/Hub : USB Mass Storage Device
FireWire/1394 Controller/Hub : Texas Instruments OHCI Compliant IEEE 1394 Host Controller
FireWire/1394 Controller/Hub : VIA OHCI Compliant IEEE 1394 Host Controller
Keyboard : HID Keyboard Device
Mouse : HID-compliant mouse
Mouse : HID-compliant mouse
Human Interface : HID-compliant consumer control device
Human Interface : HID-compliant consumer control device
Human Interface : HID-compliant device
Human Interface : HID-compliant consumer control device
Human Interface : USB Human Interface Device
Human Interface : USB Human Interface Device
Human Interface : USB Human Interface Device

Power Management
Mains (AC) Line Status : On-Line

Operating System(s)
Windows System : Microsoft Windows XP (2002) Professional 5.01.2600 (Service Pack 2)
Platform Compliance : Win32 x86

Network Services
Network Drivers Enabled : No

if those partitions are used for anythin' other than 'storage' then you are lookin' for trouble!! if you are doin' any realtime processin'/streamin' from those partitions then that freespace won't cut it

[mowaylyn]

Originally Posted by guitardom

i enjoy having my system in a rack for sure, but it seems you can get a system quieter with a full size standard case. more room for play which means more possible insulating, and more fans.

finding a cpu cooler for the i7 in a rack has been quite simple to my surprise. there are a few to choose from, we can get you a list if you need. but i have had no heat probs in my rack. fortunatley the i7 can withstand an amazing amount of heat.

Guitardom, could you give me the list of CPU coolers that you referred to for the i7 ? I've read where some thought the Noctua was the quietest, especially if OC'ing isn't a big concern, and I also read where you used one that ran cooler than the Noctua, but is it noiser ? thx.