My first rig and i need advice.

[Deimos]

I'm new to this game. But I don't know what to go with. I"ve got a few good ideas, been reading here and there, talking to a lot of friends. I just dont' know what to go with.

I think i'm gonna go with a Vista Ultimate 64 bit edition for my os. So here's the build I got in mind. Please educate me!

Look on page 4 for current build. Stop telling me to to use a 280GTx instead of 9800, i already am =P.

I'm not gonna post all the extra crap, just the key components. My main thoughts are, should I spend a little extra and bother going to DDR3 ram? And what about the new Intel processors coming out later this year? I've considered just waiting, since i'll have to buy a new mobo/cpu if I plan on upgrading to the Intel I7's.

 

[RandomSunchips]

To me, the q9300 is basically a neutered quad core. It doesn't have the cache of the q6x00 series, nor does it clock as well. I would say to get a q6600 or q6700 instead at that price point.

 

[BarbaricSoul]

wait for the I7's. A I7 set-up will cost you about the same as a q9450 set-up on a 790sli board.

 

[Deimos]

I had forgotten about the I7's up until recently which kinda through my whole idea for a loop. Any idea when those CPU's are coming out?

And Should I go with a DDR3 setup with it instead of DDR2?

 

[CDdude55]

Screw the i7's, for gaming there pointless. For benchmarking there gods.

 

[Deimos]

Screw the i7's, for gaming there pointless. For benchmarking there god.

If that's the case correct me and tell me what I should go with? I know they are excessive but I would like to have a rig that is fairly future proof.

 

[freaksavior]

wait till august 22nd and get a Q9550.

 

[CDdude55]

If that's the case correct me and tell me what I should go with? I know they are excessive but I would like to have a rig that is fairly future proof.

Well get a 45nm Quad Core CPU, it will last you a long time for gaming(expecally when most games will use all the cores later on)

Heres the Q9550 CPU:http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115041

Or a Q9450, but it is not that much cheaper:http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115042

 

[CDdude55]

DDR2 is still the standard now. But if you really feel like you need DDR3 then get it. DDR3 will future proof your system tho.

 

[Deimos]

Alright. so a Q9550 it is then on my current build. As for DDR3 I'm still not sure on that. I know that DDR2 is the standard and I"m sure till be for what, another year or two easily? And by then I can upgrade as I see fit. I'll post the rest of my rig setup then to see what you guys think.

This all comes down to, in my mind. Futureproofing as much as possible while getting the best bang for the dollar. My budget is rather flexible as of right now.

 

[farlex85]

Screw the i7's, for gaming there pointless. For benchmarking there gods.

This doesn't make any sense for you to say that and then recommend a 45nm quad? Gaming doesn't require multiple cores right now, and as such a quad of any kind isn't needed. Pointless? Hardly. There are many instances where multiple cores are used, computers are after all capable of much more than gaming (why spend $1000 when your just gaming?). From your argument here, his best choice would be a e8500 or similar dual core. A q9550 is in no way future proofing for gaming, it's really not even future proofing at all considering a new architecture is just around the corner.

I do suggest you indeed wait for nehalem (i7). It is supposed to be around next month sometime, and building from scratch a system that will be outdated so soon is silly. Nehalem should be superior to the current Core 2 architecture in many, many ways, and the amount of money you would spend on a system now will go further then. Optimally, it would be great if you could wait until amd's new procs are also released, everything shakes out, then buy. Of course, you may not want to wait until then. I would at least wait until next month though, nehalem brings a number of improvements to the architecture that imo will render current quads nearly obsolete.

 

[Deimos]

Thats what I was thinking in all honestly. I know Nehalem won't be exactly necessessary but it means I won't have to do anything for a long while with the CPU. Considering I can't build a rig till late next month at the earliest anyway waiting is becoming my more favored option as of this point. The PC i am on is a withered old hag and is starting to have issues that are bothering me. I'm not running on a tight budget either so its not like i have to find the best bang for the buck, more so the best long term bang for the buck.

 

[farlex85]

Thats what I was thinking in all honestly. I know Nehalem won't be exactly necessessary but it means I won't have to do anything for a long while with the CPU. Considering I can't build a rig till late next month at the earliest anyway waiting is becoming my more favored option as of this point. I can't wait till the AMD chips come out because the PC i am on is a withered old hag and is starting to have issues that are bothering me.

Yeah, I mean, there's always something better just around the corner, but a completely new architecture only come once in a while. Nehalem's direct memory controller, quick path interconnect, and Hyperthreading alone make it better than a core 2, then it's also a little faster clock for clock. The entry level one is supposed to launch around $300, same price of a q9550 now. If your not going to be able to build until next month anyway, just keep your eyes open we should be getting some reviews and such shortly.

 

[Deimos]

I had forgotten about them and just needed to know when the new processors come out. What about ram. Do you suggest going with a DDR3 setup? Or will they even use DDR2?

 

[farlex85]

I had forgotten about them and just needed to know when the new processors come out. What about ram. Do you suggest going with a DDR3 setup? Or will they even use DDR2?

Nehalem's memory controller is strictly DDR3, so that's your only option if you go that route. Prices and latencies are coming down, almost enough to make it viably advantageous over ddr2. If your going for future-proof, DDR3 most definitely.

 

[Deimos]

Nehalem's memory controller is strictly DDR3, so that's your only option if you go that route. Prices and latencies are coming down, almost enough to make it viably advantageous over ddr2. If your going for future-proof, DDR3 most definitely.

Haha, I had figured so, so that sets the decision for me. Kinda means within a year or so the door will close on DDR2 then. Now its just a matter of finding out how much the new mobo are gonna cost. And of course their actual release dates.

 

[Kursah]

I don't necessarily think recommending the new Intel I7 stuff is the greatest of ideas tho. Yeah it sounds pretty good overall, has some awesome features, none of which is anything any of us have yet to try with it...this is what I call the ginuea pig approach...someone's gotta be it, I usually let the guys that can't resist upgrading get into that mess...sure things could be bug free, issue free, massive OC's and performance, or there could be BIOS issues, chip issues, all sorts of things can happen.

So as-far-as recommended something completely new and not even on the market yet comes as a little less than something I would personally suggest. So suggesting stuff that's out now and soon to be outdated by the "next best thing"...hell yes, it's proven, it works, prices are continually going down, you can build a very nice gaming rig that could last years if you wanted it to. Sure the I7 will be big news, I don't think it will change the face of gaming or computing, it's just Intel taking a new strategy and using some implementations AMD's had for years, I hope it's great, I doubt it'll be cheap or competitevely cheap with current Intel goodies...remember what the first Core2's were costing around launch?

That's my food for thought, if you're going to wait...see the costs, performance from real users, and what headaches there may be before going I7...I'd say wait for the price drops on the last core2 quads/duals, 775 chipsets, coolers and DDR2. You could make quite the powerful machine that would truly last and maintain kickass performance.

 

[farlex85]

I don't necessarily think recommending the new Intel I7 stuff is the greatest of ideas tho. Yeah it sounds pretty good overall, has some awesome features, none of which is anything any of us have yet to try with it...this is what I call the ginuea pig approach...someone's gotta be it, I usually let the guys that can't resist upgrading get into that mess...sure things could be bug free, issue free, massive OC's and performance, or there could be BIOS issues, chip issues, all sorts of things can happen.

So as-far-as recommended something completely new and not even on the market yet comes as a little less than something I would personally suggest. So suggesting stuff that's out now and soon to be outdated by the "next best thing"...hell yes, it's proven, it works, prices are continually going down, you can build a very nice gaming rig that could last years if you wanted it to. Sure the I7 will be big news, I don't think it will change the face of gaming or computing, it's just Intel taking a new strategy and using some implementations AMD's had for years, I hope it's great, I doubt it'll be cheap or competitevely cheap with current Intel goodies...remember what the first Core2's were costing around launch?

That's my food for thought, if you're going to wait...see the costs, performance from real users, and what headaches there may be before going I7...I'd say wait for the price drops on the last core2 quads/duals, 775 chipsets, coolers and DDR2. You could make quite the powerful machine that would truly last and maintain kickass performance.

I would doubt if there will be many problems. However, before release there will be plenty of reviews and such, and prices will be evident. At that point a educated decision can be made. Nehalem looks to be adequately superior to core 2 to make that choice, but if there are problems or something goes awry, the Core 2's will at least be cheaper then. He should wait either way, which was my main suggestion, as we can't know for sure what's best now, but in a months time the situation will be clearer.

 

[Deimos]

Bah. Everyone keeps making good points on this that and the other. And I'm still not set to one way or the other. I planned on building a pc and tweaked my old list.

Can you tell me what you think of this. Considering this isn't definite, it all depends on what happens at the end of next month. Consider this the rig i'd build if i don't go with Nehalem then, since I can't make an I7 rig yet. =P.

CPU: Core2 Quad Yorkfield
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115041

MOBO: Asus Striker II Extreme
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131274R

RAM: G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231194

GPU: EVGA 9800GTX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130376

PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

Hard Drive: Western Digital Cavalier SE16
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136218

CPU Cooler: XIGMATEK
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233003

For the case i'm going with a Coolmaster Cosmos and a Liteon DVDRW drive.

I'm still a little hesitant about Vista though. Should I go with Vista 64 bit or maybe stick with an XP 64??

 

[farlex85]

Bah. Everyone keeps making good points on this that and the other. And I'm still not set to one way or the other. I planned on building a pc and tweaked my old list.

Can you tell me what you think of this. Considering this isn't definite, it all depends on what happens at the end of next month.

CPU: Core2 Quad Yorkfield
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115041

MOBO: Asus Striker II Extreme
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131274R

RAM: G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231194

GPU: EVGA 9800GTX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130376

PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

Hard Drive: Western Digital Cavalier SE16
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136218

CPU Cooler: XIGMATEK
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233003

For the case i'm going with a Coolmaster Cosmos and a Liteon DVDRW drive.

I'm still a little hesitant about Vista though. Should I go with Vista 64 bit or maybe stick with an XP 64??

I definitely would not spend that much on the striker. I guess your planning on doing sli? And what is your main uses of the machine? If gaming, is top end settings important? Vista has been good to me and I love it. You shouldn't have any problems, but some still like xp better.

 

[J-Man]

I'd get the Q6700 instead mate. I'm not upgrading to Nahalem until after my 20th birthday anyway (January).

 

[Deimos]

I've been told the Asus is a bit much. What's a better alternative? I don't really consider SLI worth while, since they're always coming out with single cards that seem to push the dual card setup kinda down the way.

 

[farlex85]

I've been told the Asus is a bit much. What's a better alternative? I don't really consider SLI worth while, since they're always coming out with single cards that seem to push the dual card setup kinda down the way.

Exactly. I would go w/ a p45, they oc very nicely. They'll only cost around $100-250, depending on which one you get (which depends on what features your looking for). With the extra money you can bump up that video card to a gtx 280 perhaps, which is a beast of a card that should be good for maxing out everything for several months to come. The rest of that stuff looks pretty good, I wouldn't make any final decisions until I see some full nehalem reviews and prices though.

 

[Deimos]

Can you recommend me a good board then? I did consider looking at the P45 mobo's but I couldn't decide which one was worth the money. And should I go with the Q6700. That ones fairly cheaper then the Q9550 and I doubt the performance difference would be too great?

 

[farlex85]

Can you recommend me a good board then? I did consider looking at the P45 mobo's but I couldn't decide which one was worth the money.

Well, you can't really go wrong, they're all good, just depends on your preferences and features. Asus's entire P5Q line-up is pretty good, w/ some of the more expensive ones including ddr3. I personally wouldn't pay for it though, as the fsb is a big bandwidth choker for ddr3, rendering it largely a waste (hence the ddr3 direct controller and triple-channel on nehalem). The Biostar Tforce series has been solid, providing fsb records. Gigabyte is generally solid and simple for the overclocking beginner, they generally allow most things to be on auto. DFI is popular around TPU, and they make solid boards all around. MSI, anybody but ECS. Plus most p45s do have two pci-ex16 slots, so if this PhysX thing works out, you can get a cheap video card and pop it in there for physics processing. Overall I'd say one of the P5Qs, a gigabyte, or one of the Biostars.

Sorry I'm not more specific, I could just recommend one board, most of the others will, often the one they have. It just depends on things like sata ports, ddr3/ddr2, ide, heatsink, look, bios options, many are different, and it depends on personal preference. Pick one out of those and we can discuss it more.

And no, I would not recommend the q6700 over the q9550. It's not that much cheaper, and the q9550 can generally oc just as high or higher (in fact, going off recent batches, the q9550 will almost definitely go higher), is faster clock for clock, has more L2 cache, and is cooler.