Building the 3k computer

[randomperson21]

Heya all,

I'm starting on a new build for my buddy. He has about $3k to spend, but he would like to keep it down to about $2.5k if possible. And since everybody here is freaking geniuses, i need some help with speccing out the system. The price includes everything, monitor, computer, mouse, keybd, everything. Heres what i'm thinking so far.

1. Conroe E6700 --$510
2. Nvidia 8800GTX --$650
3. ASUS P5NSLI Socket T (LGA 775) NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI Intel Edition ATX Intel Motherboard --$106 --this is a big maybe, not sure if i want this exact model. open to suggestions.
4. mushkin eXtreme Performance 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory --$280 -- not sure with this one either.
5. Western Digital Raptor WD360ADFD 36.7GB 10,000 RPM 16MB Cache Serial ATA150 Hard Drive -- 2x$105 --could go with something else too. he doesn't need that much storage space, but speed is good.
6. Antec True Power Trio TP3-650 ATX12V 650W Power Supply --$125. not sure about this one either, only outputs 19a on the 12v rails, not sure if this is enough to power the 8800gtx

Total so far: $1,883.93

Now, what i outlined so far is totally up in the air. i might change all of it, i might not. but i'd highly appreciate any comments you guys have on this setup so far. I'll try to spec the rest of it out later this week.

 

[Polaris573]

Looks pretty good so far. You might want to throw a largar capacity drive in with the Raptor as 40Gb doesn't go very far anymore.

 

[Athlon2K15]

i dont know about the power supply,isnt antec a walmart brand? anyways i would go with a Thermaltake Toughpower 650w,it has modular cables and 52A on 12v rail

 

[Polaris573]

I've never owned an Antec PSU, but a lot of people seem to be satisfied with them.

 

[Batou1986]

antec uses cheap capacitors a lot of there psu's whine and or burst

 

[randomperson21]

psu suggestions noted. i'll check out the thermaltake as well as some others too.

 

[ktr]

if you can spare extra bling...look in to these psu's...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817703006

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817703005

with your gtx, i would go for the silencer...60amps.

 

[tofu]

antec uses cheap capacitors a lot of there psu's whine and or burst

LOL, where'd you get that from?

Antec PSU's are well-known and reliable. I'm using an SP-350 in my older P4P800SE system and my buddy's using a NeoHE430, no issues, no cheap exploding capacitors, or else our systems would all be dead.

 

[randomperson21]

quick question: will the 8800gtx be bottlenecked by the e6700? do i need a faster cpu to make the 8800 worth it?

 

[ktr]

should be fine...

a quick way to avoid a bottleneck is to buy the hottest available technology of that time.

ie...

fx57 came out around the time of the x850's
xp3200+ came out around the 9800's

etc...

 

[randomperson21]

ok just wanted to make sure. and i'm not too sure if i want to go with ddr2 667 or 800 either. any suggestions on that?

 

[tofu]

quick question: will the 8800gtx be bottlenecked by the e6700? do i need a faster cpu to make the 8800 worth it?

You could make sure theres no bottleneck if you overclock the cpu. It really helps!

EDIT: Low latency DDR2 800 is better. The native memory support is DDR2 800 for the Core2's anyways.

 

[technicks]

Don't buy the 8800. Imo you should not buy the first directx10 that has been released.
For sure Nvidia jumped the gun with this card.
Go for a crossfire 1900/1950 or a sli 7900/7950 setup. That will costs as much as a 8800 GTX.

 

[randomperson21]

yeah, he kinda wants this system now-ish, and the 8800gtx still beats the pants off a 7900gtx sli setup. if i had more time, i'd wait for a 2nd gen dx10 card, but i don't think i have the time.

 

[technicks]

He could always sell it if the newer cards are coming.

 

[pt]

you might consider getting a better board

 

[Tatty_Two]

quick question: will the 8800gtx be bottlenecked by the e6700? do i need a faster cpu to make the 8800 worth it?

And TBH ther aint much around faster....specially if he overclocks.

 

[Tatty_Two]

Don't buy the 8800. Imo you should not buy the first directx10 that has been released.
For sure Nvidia jumped the gun with this card.
Go for a crossfire 1900/1950 or a sli 7900/7950 setup. That will costs as much as a 8800 GTX.

If you mean that there aint no DX10 games to make the most of it then I would have to agree but nonetheless its still the fastest out there and NVidia have probably made Billions on it already so either way and no matter what ATi produce NVidia will have made their cash already and be probably ready to release an update by then.

From our perspective yep it's "jumped the gun" from theirs you might argue.....good marketing strategy to get out there first and make the cash with little competition.

 

[Batou1986]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817194003

great power supply nicely made good sleeving and good connectors on both ends no noise whatsoever and 2x22amp rails recently put one of these in a friends system and outof the core 2 the 150$ case and the 800mhz ram i was most impressed with the quality of this psu

and that mobo works fine if your not gonna be big oc ing its the same thing i just put in that computer i was talking bout above, Core2 e6300, 1gb corsair xms800mhz 7600gt and its rock solid booted up with everything at rated speeds no need to force the ram to run at its rated speed like my pc only thing is passive northbridge cooler gets super hot, hot like burn ur damn finger

 

[lemonadesoda]

If your "friend" has cash to burn, then great. But having cash doesn't mean it should be burnt. Better to make a thoughtful investment, even leaving some cash over to go party... (with girls on tap, etc.)... or upgrade in 3-6 months to keep the PC at the top end.

I would suggest a system where you expect to do the following:

1./ Update the GPU in Q1 2007 (since existing cards are getting long in tooth and there is nice new silicon coming soon). 8800 is just overkill for a card that can be pwned in Q1

2./ Update the CPU in Q1/Q2 to Core 2 Quad

Based on these, here is my recommendation

1./ Get a E6400 processor that can be overclocked like crazy. Save a packet, ready for the Core Quad upgrade early 2007
2./ With (some of) the money saved, get super high speed DDR2 that will MATCH A CORE QUAD... so that it survives the CPU upgrade and doesnt become a bottleneck. Get 1GB sticks, not smaller
3./ Get ONE 7950 or X1950 card. I would not recommend a crossfire or SLI at this point. Why? Because although you could replace ONE of the crossfires with a more powerful system later, you will have all sorts of compatibility problems with one card on DX9 and one on DX10. Basically, the cards will drop to the lowest common denominator to work which is DX9.
4./ Don't get Raptors. They are not worth the money for this sort of application. Raptors are for high intensive I/O work. Your "friend" obviously wants a great machine, but FPS won't improve with RAPTORS. Perhaps boot time, or saving 5% between map loads, but in-game he will see no difference. Get the guy some nice high capacity drives like 500GB. They are very very fast due to data density. In some cases, they are actually faster than RAPTORS and a hell of a lot simpler to set up. (See reviews).
5./ With all the money saved, use this to buy a decent speaker set up. Dont get PC speakers. They are truly rubbish. Get a proper "amp" and hook it up to small "monitors", e.g. Canton CD10 or CD100's.
6./ Soundcard? ... I am happy with my Audigy 2, although many people say that it is better to go for a "true" soundcard not a gamescard. Google for reviews or ask around
7./ With all my savings tips, use the cash to buy a really decent TFT screen. Not some silly 17, 18 or 19" thing, but a rock-solid, fast, hi-res screen. I would go for 2400x1600, since 1600x1200 has been "top end" for three years now. Time to move UP.

 

[pt]

Steal the rest of his money. Then give it to master PT.

great idea

 

[randomperson21]

thx for the input guys, i'm going to talk it over with him in a few days. as for stealing the money......
very tempting.

 

[DaMulta]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813131073
ASUS P5N32-E SLI Socket T (LGA 775) NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $299.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819115003
Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6600 - Retail $308.00

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814121033
ASUS EN8800GTX/HTDP/768M 384-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card - Retail $659.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822136011
Western Digital Raptor X WD1500AHFD 150GB 10,000 RPM 16MB Cache Serial ATA150 Hard Drive - OEM $229.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820146563
Crucial Technology Ballistix 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1000 (PC2 8000) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail $359.99


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817341002
OCZ GameXStream OCZ700GXSSLI ATX12V 700W Power Supply 100 - 240 V - Retail $144.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16824002320
NEC Display Solutions 20WMGX2-BK Black-Silver 20.1" 6ms DVI Widescreen LCD Monitor 470 cd/m2 1600:1 Built in Speakers - Retail
$612.99

($562.99 after $50.00 Mail-In Rebate)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16823126179
Logitech G15 2-Tone 104 Normal Keys USB Wired Standard Keyboard - Retail $71.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16826104015

Logitech MX Revolution 931689-0403 Black 7 Buttons 2x Wheels USB RF Laser Mouse - Retail $94.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811119103
COOLER MASTER Stacker 830 RC-830-SSN2-GP Silver Aluminum ATX Full Tower Computer Case - Retail $239.99

 

[Seany1212]

if anythin dont get an sli board just because the 8800 is out, get a crossfire mobo and a single x1600, only until the r600s start to ship and buy two in crossfire, could beat the current 3dmark06 record

 

[gR3iF]

da multa really expressed my opinion
you need something like this:

e6600
ddr2-1000 ram
abit awd-9max, dfi-lanparty,gigabyte dq-6,Asus P5W64 WS Professional one of these although my board would be the lanparty but this board is coming in december
get a x1950 or a 79gtx
get 2x 400gb hdd and 2x80gb raptor
and a creative x-fi for good sound
so far to basic hardware