Recently upgraded to i7; have not used Intel for ~10yrs now, but now was certaintly a good time to do it. Upgraded from a AMD x2 6400+ to this new i7 system. Previous MB was a Asus Crosshair and am using it in a networked HTPC setup on our 50" Plasma in bedroom. Ive had nothing but good experiences with the Crosshair...hence my new upgrade went to a Asus P6T Deluxe. So far three weeks testing, no abnormal problems.
I am very satisfied with my upgrade. I have built many systems,but this being my first i7 setup. IMHO their is no comparison to the i7 and you can not go wrong with it as long as $ are not the upgrade issue.
As for those considering going to H2O cooling, if u use a great air cooler the only real difference is the amount of time it takes the temp recovery once load is taken away. It cools back down to idle temps within 1-2 min when on H2O. ( and im not talking of just any cheap H2O setup, it has to be done right, so make sure you do your research) The looks of this system also get the oooohh's and aaaahh's it deserves, and water cooling also plays its part in that as well. I will leave it at that, I am being humble here ppl.
As you can see below I put alot of $ and research through these forums (thank you [H]) and others towards this upgrade.
I am certainly of my new system.
i7 920 @ 3.8Ghz (18 x 200) [email protected]
*Water cooled W/Danger Den Nahalem block\D5 Pump\2x120 Rad\1/2" tubing\AS5
*idle 38c - 1hr full load 68c ,but cools instantly once load stopped
*does run stable @ 4Ghz 1.30vcore, but I like to keep voltage down
*Batch #3839A606
Asus P6T Deluxe (BIOS v1206)
Patriot Viper DDR3-12800 6GB ( 3 x 2) @ DDR 1600
eVGA GTX 285 SSC ( hooked up to 24" HP(primary) and 50" Plasma & 1000w receiver via HDMI)
Haugpauge HVR-1800 TV tuner PCIe x4(keeps me from missing any shows this system distracts me from)
Thermaltake Toughpower 1200W PSU (had a zalman 850, but only lasted 1 week..is what I get for skimping on my homework)
WD VelociRaptor 300MB running Vista x64
WD Raptor 150MB for Games (also running Win7 testing)
8TB total various other SATA HDD's(2x 1.5TB Seagates in Raid0, 2x 1TB Maxtors in Raid0, 1TB Seagate, and hot swapable bay w/1 TB seagate or 1of2 500GB Maxtors)
DangerDen Water Box Plus case
Nice setup you have and congrats on the new system!