If you want to get your hands on a pre-built Sandy Bridge E system you could do worse than the Puget Systems Deluge. You get the Core i7-3960X on an ASUS Sabertooth X79 with 32GB of 1500MHz Patriot Viper Xtreme DDR3, a pair of EVGA GTX580s and both an Intel 510 250GB SSD and a 2TB WD Caviar Black for storage. The whole system is cooled with a custom watercooler with a 360mm radiator and will only cost $7,254. The system does give you enough power to game in NVIDIA Surround with decent frame rates, but AnandTech is of the opinion that this system is perhaps a bit too powerful. So much of the capability of this system is not utilized by even the most demanding of games, and what is needed can be duplicated with parts that have a much smaller price tag. However if you need the bragging rights then this system is for you.
"It’s been a little while since we’ve had a Puget Systems desktop in, and so far we haven’t yet tested any of their big dog gaming machines. Everything else we’ve tested, we’ve liked, but what happens when the fine folks over at Puget Systems pull out all the stops and put together a high end gaming machine? The answer: the Deluge, an X79-based rig in a modified Antec P183, employing a custom liquid-cooling loop. It’s big, powerful, and expensive. Did Puget Systems hit another custom out of the park, and is Sandy Bridge-E the enthusiast platform we were waiting for?"
Here are some more Systems articles from around the web:
- CyberPower Gamer Xtreme 1000 SE @ Bjorn3D
- Holiday 2011 Midrange System Buyer’s Guide @ AnandTech
- Sony VAIO VPC-L231FX/W Review @ TechReviewSource
- Toshiba DX735 All-in-One: Notebooks Without Batteries @ AnandTech
- Pre-Built Desktop Buyer’s Guide: Holiday 2011 Edition @ AnandTech