Two new boxes by the end of the year

Ahhzz · Aug 3, 2011

Identical, for the most part.

I'm going to stop side-barring on theeldests thread and start my own thread for a couple of questions he doesn't have.

I'm an Nvidia guy, so I'm looking at the 580 range of cards, and I'm also trying to decide between the Sabertooth and the Crosshair V.

I love the EVGA's for the lifetime warranty, altho, to prop ASUS, I came home last night to a video display on BIOS with white dots all over it :nutkick:

, and my 2 year, 11 month old 9800GT is in the mail today, RMA'd for repair (can we hope for replacement? :rockout:

). So, they'll definitely get my MB money, while EVGA's got my vid card.

Obviously with those Motherboard choices, I'm aiming at the 'Dozer, not sure which series yet. Any thoughts on one board over the other, or anyone have a specific 580 that they're partial to? Or can I knock $50 off the vid card, and only 5% performance loss with a different card?

Thanks!

*edit*

Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 6950 2GB x 2 (with free Deus Ex : Human Revolution )
Power Supply: Corsair Enthusiast 750
Ram: G.Skill Ripjaws 8 GB
Hard Drive : Western Digital Black 2Tb, 6Gb/S
Case (Inadvertant extra :eek:

) : Antec Lanboy air Blue Black / Blue

Still waiting on Bulldozer, so not a lot to update for a month or so, unless I catch a steal on Hard drives, or the motherboard.

INSTG8R · Aug 3, 2011

Been awhile since I have been on AMD(Opty 170) But I will say I am very happy with my Sabertooth. It's a great board. The UEFI Bios is awesome.

Ahhzz · Aug 3, 2011

Thanks

If you'll see my Sig, that's actually what I'm upgrading from to get the new 'Dozer

Been happy as hell with mine, but it's time for a new Box, especially with Skyrim and Deus Ex hitting this year

theeldest · Oct 11, 2011

Hey Ahhzz,

Have you purchased any of this yet?

Did you see Obrovsky's post here: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pyUWXUhTaBg/To3yPVbK3vI/AAAAAAAABLo/2dFwwB7Bn_Y/s1600/bulld_unigine.jpg

Obviously the guy is a nutjob but this was interesting, specifically where AMD had a much better minimum framerate than Intel on this test. I think it'll be interesting to see where it comes out with regards to gaming tests.

Are you doing Eyefinity or single monitor?

brandonwh64 · Oct 11, 2011

6950/70 2gb is one of the best options out there in terms of price and performance.

theeldest · Oct 11, 2011

This one too: http://lenzfire.com/2011/10/amd-bulldozer-fx-8150-vs-phenom-ii-1100t-vs-i7-2600k-video-review-31439/

Looking like it'll give good gaming performance. And the Crosshair V is about $100 less than the Maximus IV Extreme for basically the same feature set.

And the FX8150 will be about $100 less than the 2700k

That's enough to upgrade from 6950s to 570s in SLI which will give a noticeable bump in gaming performance. (unless you're doing eyefinity; AMD graphics scales better at higher resolutions)

JrRacinFan · Oct 11, 2011

Just wondering if you have maybe been pondering 560ti's as well for another option in the video card dept. Just seems logical to me as they aren't much slower than a 570 and 6950 2gb cards but arent quite as expensive.

Ahhzz · Oct 11, 2011

theeldest said:
Hey Ahhzz,

Have you purchased any of this yet?

Did you see Obrovsky's post here: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pyUWXUhTaBg/To3yPVbK3vI/AAAAAAAABLo/2dFwwB7Bn_Y/s1600/bulld_unigine.jpg

Obviously the guy is a nutjob but this was interesting, specifically where AMD had a much better minimum framerate than Intel on this test. I think it'll be interesting to see where it comes out with regards to gaming tests.

Are you doing Eyefinity or single monitor?

I've already purchased everything but the board/proc, still being hopeful for tomorrow... I'm running two 22" monitors, and I've got a 36" that I may play with, just to see, but mainly the two side-by-side.

The numbers I'm seeing put the 'Dozer pretty solid in the performance area, and making a huge impact in the speed/cost. Mostly, I'm afraid I'm not going to see something tomorrow that screams Yes or No at me, which means I'll be spending a hard time weighing the benefit of saving some cash over the performance drop.... I'm really big on analyzing my ROI, but I'm worried that long-term, I might be better off in the Intel camp for a while... I ran that Opty (still running heheh) to the ground for longer than I should have for enjoyment, but I still paid a bit more to make sure I had something that would run solidly for the longest....

theeldest · Oct 11, 2011

As far as longevity is concerned one of the big advantages with the AMD system is 32 PCIe lanes. It's not going to make a difference on the current generation of GPUs but a couple years from now upgrading will see a benefit to the full 16 lanes per card whereas Intel's 1155 is 8x per slot for SLI/Crossfire.

AMD gives you good memory bandwidth compared to 1155 (but not socket 2011 obviously).

Intel gives better single threaded performance whereas AMD will be better in the multi-threaded space.

My personal opinion: As the platforms age (1155 vs Bulldozer) Bulldozer is going to do more with future upgrades and future games.

We'll probably get one more processor line out of Intel's 1155 (Ivy Bridge is slated to be compatible but it could change).

And we'll probably get one more processor out of AMD before they finally upgrade sockets.

Tell yourself that by going AMD you can get the dual 2GB 6950s. And if you go Intel you need to drop down to 1GB cards or even 6870s. (or by going AMD you could upgrade to 570s ;-) )

Before deciding one way or the other try to base opinions of performance on a review that tested crossfire with the processors as I think it's going to make a difference when you really give the processor a chance to stretch it's 8 legs.

theeldest · Oct 12, 2011

[H]ard|OCP - http://www.hardocp.com/article/2011/10/11/amd_bulldozer_fx8150_gameplay_performance_review/1

Tom's Hardware - http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/fx-8150-zambezi-bulldozer-990fx,3043.html

My take away is that gaming performance is generally GPU limited. The games that Tom's tested show that AMD scales better to higher resolutions. The HardOCP review shows about equal performance in the games they tested (though higher numbers from AMD in BF3, actually)

Ahhzz · Oct 12, 2011

*sigh* .... I'm afraid I'll be crawling into intel's bed...

theeldest · Oct 12, 2011

Ahhzz said:
*sigh* .... I'm afraid I'll be crawling into intel's bed...

Given the choice, that'd be my recommendation. (don't worry, it's pretty warm and comfy here ;-)

I'd still like to see some crossfire/eyefinity action in reviews.

Ahhzz · Oct 12, 2011

Well eldest, I'll probably go the 2600k, full monty and all that... Any rec's on a motherboard? How do you like yours?

theeldest · Oct 12, 2011

The Maximus IV is pretty darn good. I think it's smarter than me, though.

I used the Gigabyte UD3H in a friend's build and I really like that board. Easy to overclock and good features. Nice spacing for the dual GPUs too. GIGABYTE GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI S...

The main reason I didn't personally go with the UD3H for my build was lack of SATA ports. I needed at least 7 with more being a bonus. And I like the Red & Black of the Maximus.

Ahhzz · Oct 13, 2011

Gggrrrrrrrrrrr

:banghead:

Ok guys. I've come to a head. I've given up on BD as a "not where I want it" processor. Which puts me at the 2600k. So, given this wish list, any input?

Once You Know, You Newegg

I'm at 4:00 EST, will be home by 5:30 or 6. Will be pulling the trigger before 10:00 tonite. I WANT MY PC!!!!!

JrRacinFan · Oct 13, 2011

I have a vote-in...

ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI S...

theeldest · Oct 14, 2011

Ahhzz said:
<snip> Which puts me at the 2600k. So, given this wish list, any input?

Once You Know, You Newegg

I'm at 4:00 EST, will be home by 5:30 or 6. Will be pulling the trigger before 10:00 tonite. I WANT MY PC!!!!!

Why the 2600k and not the 2500k?

theeldest · Oct 14, 2011

Well!? Did you pull the trigger? What'd you get?

Ahhzz · Oct 14, 2011

Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Tu...

ASRock Z68 PROFESSIONAL GEN3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HD...

Done done

Thanks for the advice and assist

theeldest · Oct 14, 2011

Did you make sure to use the promo code on the processor?

Ahhzz · Oct 14, 2011

yup yup

theeldest · Oct 14, 2011

Awesome.

That'll be a pretty wicked system when it's all set up. Change your System Specs. NOW! ;-)

Are you going to upgrade the HSF for the CPU?

And are you going to try out the SSD caching that the z68 chipset offers? I'd at least recommend going to Best Buy, Fry's or similar and picking one up to try it out. You can always remove it and return it if you don't like it.

Only thing to remember is to set your hard drives as RAID when you install Windows. Even if you're not running RAID now, you'll need that setting to use the SSD caching down the road.

And if you get an SSD right away for caching, do not install it in your system right away. Install Windows on the 2TB drive you have (with the SSD not plugged in).

After you load windows and the Intel RST drivers then you can add the SSD and turn on acceleration. (took me about 10 installs to figure out that these steps were what I needed).

Have fun!!

theeldest · Oct 15, 2011

Have you though about something like the h70 or h100 by corsair? With that Lanboy Air it looks like you can fit a 2x120 WC unit on the top.

CORSAIR H100 (CWCH100) Extreme Performance Liquid ...

Exhausting the CPU heat from the case directly without it swirling around will help your GPU overclocking.

Have you unlocked your GPUs? Overclocked? How are they working?

Ahhzz · Oct 15, 2011

Don't have the motherboards in yet, and will be out of town right after they arrive, so won't be able to play for three weeks. Mainly going to stay stock cooling for now, and see what I can tweak out of them, but I did take a look at the all in one WC units...

Ahhzz · Apr 21, 2012

theeldest said:
Awesome.

That'll be a pretty wicked system when it's all set up. Change your System Specs. NOW! ;-)

Are you going to upgrade the HSF for the CPU?

And are you going to try out the SSD caching that the z68 chipset offers? I'd at least recommend going to Best Buy, Fry's or similar and picking one up to try it out. You can always remove it and return it if you don't like it.

Only thing to remember is to set your hard drives as RAID when you install Windows. Even if you're not running RAID now, you'll need that setting to use the SSD caching down the road.

And if you get an SSD right away for caching, do not install it in your system right away. Install Windows on the 2TB drive you have (with the SSD not plugged in).

After you load windows and the Intel RST drivers then you can add the SSD and turn on acceleration. (took me about 10 installs to figure out that these steps were what I needed).

Have fun!!

Ahhh, to have paid attention at the time

I've ordered an OCZ agi 3 60G for cache. However, I did find a reg hack that should let me change to Raid on the fly, and get me up and running without a reload. I'll let you know towards the end of the week, after I've snagged a backup, and the balls to make the change

System Name	OrangeHaze / Silence
Processor	i7-13700KF / i5-10400 /
Motherboard	ROG STRIX Z690-E / MSI Z490 A-Pro Motherboard
Cooling	Corsair H75 / TT ToughAir 510
Memory	64Gb GSkill Trident Z5 / 32GB Team Dark Za 3600
Video Card(s)	Palit GeForce RTX 2070 / Sapphire R9 290 Vapor-X 4Gb
Storage	Hynix Plat P41 2Tb\Samsung MZVL21 1Tb / Samsung 980 Pro 1Tb
Display(s)	22" Dell Wide/24" Asus
Case	Lian Li PC-101 ATX custom mod / Antec Lanboy Air Black & Blue
Audio Device(s)	SB Audigy 7.1
Power Supply	Corsair Enthusiast TX750
Mouse	Logitech G502 Lightspeed Wireless / Logitech G502 Proteus Spectrum
Keyboard	K68 RGB — CHERRY® MX Red
Software	Win10 Pro \ RIP:Win 7 Ult 64 bit

System Name	Hellbox 5.1(same case new guts)
Processor	Ryzen 7 5800X3D
Motherboard	MSI X570S MAG Torpedo Max
Cooling	TT Kandalf L.C.S.(Water/Air)EK Velocity CPU Block/Noctua EK Quantum DDC Pump/Res
Memory	2x16GB Gskill Trident Neo Z 3600 CL16
Video Card(s)	Powercolor Hellhound 7900XTX
Storage	970 Evo Plus 500GB 2xSamsung 850 Evo 500GB RAID 0 1TB WD Blue Corsair MP600 Core 2TB
Display(s)	Alienware QD-OLED 34” 3440x1440 144hz 10Bit VESA HDR 400
Case	TT Kandalf L.C.S.
Audio Device(s)	Soundblaster ZX/Logitech Z906 5.1
Power Supply	Seasonic TX~’850 Platinum
Mouse	G502 Hero
Keyboard	G19s
VR HMD	Oculus Quest 2
Software	Win 10 Pro x64

System Name	OrangeHaze / Silence
Processor	i7-13700KF / i5-10400 /
Motherboard	ROG STRIX Z690-E / MSI Z490 A-Pro Motherboard
Cooling	Corsair H75 / TT ToughAir 510
Memory	64Gb GSkill Trident Z5 / 32GB Team Dark Za 3600
Video Card(s)	Palit GeForce RTX 2070 / Sapphire R9 290 Vapor-X 4Gb
Storage	Hynix Plat P41 2Tb\Samsung MZVL21 1Tb / Samsung 980 Pro 1Tb
Display(s)	22" Dell Wide/24" Asus
Case	Lian Li PC-101 ATX custom mod / Antec Lanboy Air Black & Blue
Audio Device(s)	SB Audigy 7.1
Power Supply	Corsair Enthusiast TX750
Mouse	Logitech G502 Lightspeed Wireless / Logitech G502 Proteus Spectrum
Keyboard	K68 RGB — CHERRY® MX Red
Software	Win10 Pro \ RIP:Win 7 Ult 64 bit

System Name	WAZAAM!
Processor	AMD Ryzen 3900x
Motherboard	ASRock Fatal1ty X370 Pro Gaming
Cooling	Kraken x62
Memory	G.Skill 16GB 3200 MHz
Video Card(s)	EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB SC
Storage	Micron 9200 Max
Display(s)	Samsung 49" 5120x1440 120hz
Case	Corsair 600D
Audio Device(s)	Onboard - Bose Companion 2 Speakers
Power Supply	CORSAIR Professional Series HX850
Keyboard	Corsair K95 RGB
Software	Windows 10 Pro

System Name	WAZAAM!
Processor	AMD Ryzen 3900x
Motherboard	ASRock Fatal1ty X370 Pro Gaming
Cooling	Kraken x62
Memory	G.Skill 16GB 3200 MHz
Video Card(s)	EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB SC
Storage	Micron 9200 Max
Display(s)	Samsung 49" 5120x1440 120hz
Case	Corsair 600D
Audio Device(s)	Onboard - Bose Companion 2 Speakers
Power Supply	CORSAIR Professional Series HX850
Keyboard	Corsair K95 RGB
Software	Windows 10 Pro

Two new boxes by the end of the year

Ahhzz

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INSTG8R

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Addicted to Bacon and StarCrunches!!!

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Served 5k and counting ...

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Served 5k and counting ...

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System Name	Dual Build Streamer
Processor	Ryzen 7900x3d : Ryzen 4600G
Motherboard	AsRock B650E Steel Legend : Giga B450i Aorus
Cooling	Custom Water 1x420 : Stock
Memory	32GB T-Force Deltas : 16GB Dominator Platinums
Video Card(s)	PowerColor 7900 XTX Liquid Devil: iGPU
Storage	20+ TB
Display(s)	Sammy 49" 5k Ultrawide
Case	Custom White Painted Phanteks Enthoo Pro 2
Audio Device(s)	Onboard : Onboard
Power Supply	EVGA 1200W P2
Mouse	Corsair M65 RGB Elite White
Keyboard	Hyperx Origins 65
Software	Windows 10