What do you think of this computer?

Check out the attatchment.  It is a pdf of the computer that I want to put together.  Let me know what you think.  I want it to run all of the games that are currently out on the market today.

Thanks

Mmm yes that is a SWELL setup

I would go with 2 4GB sticks instead of 4 2GB sticks of RAM. I would also go with XP Pro 64-bit or wait for Win 7 to come out. It looks great other than that. You might have to go with Crossfire or SLI if you want to play games with all of the eye candy on. The 4870 is a great card but you'll be pushing it with a monitor that big.

Dr. Evil said:

I would go with 2 4GB sticks instead of 4 2GB sticks of RAM. I would also go with XP Pro 64-bit or wait for Win 7 to come out. It looks great other than that. You might have to go with Crossfire or SLI if you want to play games with all of the eye candy on. The 4870 is a great card but you'll be pushing it with a monitor that big.

Click to expand...

I have a 4870 on another computer that is pushing a 27 inch monitor. Trust me, it can handle the eye candy on most games.

I personaly love Vista 64bit and would never ever ever ever use XP pro 64. No support, and it seems like no one makes drivers for it anymore, but thanks for your input.

Is your budget maxed out? It's an amazing rig, but for $100 more you could get-
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188046

This is what I'm planning to build this summer:
http://jwc.mit.edu/t/corei7.pdf

I'm still not sure about the mobo... I might go for something a little cheaper, but this is one of the better mobos.. I also might go for a GTX 285 since they are considerably cheaper; I'll get a 300-series later. I also might go for a different PSU; 850W really isn't necessary.

Since I'll be using Linux, I won't need more than 6 gigs of RAM. The hard drives will go into a RAID 5 setup.

iskor, I would spend a little extra money for a Core i7 setup instead. Also, instead of buying everything from Newegg, you might want to check out FatWallet.com for deals on your parts. For example, for $189.99 you could be buying an overclocked HD4890 1GB instead (be advised that the price has changed since it was first posted on April 2nd).

If you were a college student, I would advise you to go and checkout Microsoft's Dreamspark website before you buy an OS, and see if you can get a copy of Windows Server 2008 for free. You can use an automated program to transform it into a workstation that functions similar to a Vista Enterprise installation. Personally, I'd use that until Windows 7 comes out.

iewed said:

Is your budget maxed out? It's an amazing rig, but for $100 more you could get-
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188046

Click to expand...

Wow, well, I will have to ask the buyer.  I am building this for a friend.  I am still not sure if the I7 is worth the extra money though.

FYI: I refuse to buy EVGA. They have screwed me over to many times.

I'd suggest investing ind DDR3 and a DDR3-compatible motherboard, also, for the cost the Q6600 or 45nm equivalent shouold give better bang for buck? Also, is Vista def. the right choice for that machine? I have been running the free beta of Windows 7 for months now, and it's been excellent and faster than Vista all this time.

charlie bruce said:

I'd suggest investing ind DDR3 and a DDR3-compatible motherboard, also, for the cost the Q6600 or 45nm equivalent shouold give better bang for buck? Also, is Vista def. the right choice for that machine? I have been running the free beta of Windows 7 for months now, and it's been excellent and faster than Vista all this time.

Click to expand...

If this was going to be my computer, I would put Vista 7 on it, but since this is going to be some one elses pc, I am simply just going to install Vista 64 bit.

Plus Vista 7 is a beta version, meaning that Microsoft is going to disable it and force you to purchase it in the fall.

Ok, your best bet here would be changing your configuration to AMD and getting a 720 black edition if you know how to OC.

If you wanna keep the Intel config then do not get a core quad, just get an e8800 (dual core is better for gaming).

The memory is just too much, the processor won't handle it, get 2*2GB G.Skill Pi Black and OC it with the e8800.

Speakers, get some Edifier or a GOOD JWIN 5.1 configuration.

But my biggest complaint here is the 4870. If you are getting a 750W PSU then just get two 4850... or a 4870X2, you need something better, a 4870 will NOT handle all the eye candy as you say if you're as strict as I am

One more thing, TWO 500GB drives in Raid 0 are better than just one 1TB drive, trust me, you'll get better speeds.



Oh....and why are you buying a vista copy? You don't need to pay for what is free !

Niko said:

Ok, your best bet here would be changing your configuration to AMD and getting a 720 black edition if you know how to OC.

If you wanna keep the Intel config then do not get a core quad, just get an e8800 [highlight](dual core is better for gaming).[/highlight]
The memory is just too much, the processor won't handle it, get 2*2GB G.Skill Pi Black and OC it with the e8800.

Speakers, get some Edifier or a GOOD JWIN 5.1 configuration.

But my biggest complaint here is the 4870. If you are getting a 750W PSU then just get two 4850... or a 4870X2, you need something better, a 4870 will NOT handle all the eye candy as you say if you're as strict as I am

One more thing, TWO 500GB drives in Raid 0 are better than just one 1TB drive, trust me, you'll get better speeds.



Oh....and why are you buying a vista copy? You don't need to pay for what is free !

Click to expand...

First off.....New games are now utilizing all 4 processing cores, so you do now bennifit having a quad core cpu.
A Raid 0 setup is more proned to errors.  I don't want to have to do repairs on my budies computer in the future.
For the price verses performance, I think that the 4870 will do him just fine.  He doesn't play FPS.

I am an intel guy.  I do not buy AMD Processors unless I am buying a video card.  

As for the processor not being able to handle that much ram? well, I don't know about that one.  I do know that if I wanted to OC this system for him, I easilly could with this setup.



FYI: the hd4870 pushes my 27" monitor at home just fine. Frame rate never drops below 30fps, unless I am playing Crysis on max. I can play Crysis on high though with no problems.

iskor12 said:

[quote author=Niko link=1239032782/0#10 date=1239886692]Ok, your best bet here would be changing your configuration to AMD and getting a 720 black edition if you know how to OC.

If you wanna keep the Intel config then do not get a core quad, just get an e8800 [highlight](dual core is better for gaming).[/highlight]
The memory is just too much, the processor won't handle it, get 2*2GB G.Skill Pi Black and OC it with the e8800.

Speakers, get some Edifier or a GOOD JWIN 5.1 configuration.

But my biggest complaint here is the 4870. If you are getting a 750W PSU then just get two 4850... or a 4870X2, you need something better, a 4870 will NOT handle all the eye candy as you say if you're as strict as I am

One more thing, TWO 500GB drives in Raid 0 are better than just one 1TB drive, trust me, you'll get better speeds.



Oh....and why are you buying a vista copy? You don't need to pay for what is free !

Click to expand...

First off.....New games are now utilizing all 4 processing cores, so you do now bennifit having a quad core cpu.
A Raid 0 setup is more proned to errors.  I don't want to have to do repairs on my budies computer in the future.
For the price verses performance, I think that the 4870 will do him just fine.  He doesn't play FPS.

I am an intel guy.  I do not buy AMD Processors unless I am buying a video card.  

As for the processor not being able to handle that much ram? well, I don't know about that one.  I do know that if I wanted to OC this system for him, I easilly could with this setup.



FYI: the hd4870 pushes my 27" monitor at home just fine.  Frame rate never drops below 30fps, unless I am playing Crysis on max.  I can play Crysis on high though with no problems.[/quote]


Well I'm sorry but that's not true, a hardcore enthusiast can't accept a single 4870 to run every game in a 22" screen.

Quad cores aren't yet as good as dual cores for gaming (yet).

I don't think you really need 8 GB of ram, you'll be good with 4GB, if you wanted 6GB then you should use a Core i7 to manage the triple channel.




Oh, and 30fps is unacceptable for me, I can't play anything if it's below 60fps, that's why I said I didn't know how strict you were regarding games.

All in all, you don't need a monster rig if you're not going to play FPS games

Cheers.

Niko said:

[quote author=iskor12 link=1239032782/0#11 date=1239889709][quote author=Niko link=1239032782/0#10 date=1239886692]Ok, your best bet here would be changing your configuration to AMD and getting a 720 black edition if you know how to OC.

If you wanna keep the Intel config then do not get a core quad, just get an e8800 [highlight](dual core is better for gaming).[/highlight]
The memory is just too much, the processor won't handle it, get 2*2GB G.Skill Pi Black and OC it with the e8800.

Speakers, get some Edifier or a GOOD JWIN 5.1 configuration.

But my biggest complaint here is the 4870. If you are getting a 750W PSU then just get two 4850... or a 4870X2, you need something better, a 4870 will NOT handle all the eye candy as you say if you're as strict as I am

One more thing, TWO 500GB drives in Raid 0 are better than just one 1TB drive, trust me, you'll get better speeds.



Oh....and why are you buying a vista copy? You don't need to pay for what is free !

Click to expand...

First off.....New games are now utilizing all 4 processing cores, so you do now bennifit having a quad core cpu.
A Raid 0 setup is more proned to errors.  I don't want to have to do repairs on my budies computer in the future.
For the price verses performance, I think that the 4870 will do him just fine.  He doesn't play FPS.

I am an intel guy.  I do not buy AMD Processors unless I am buying a video card.  

As for the processor not being able to handle that much ram? well, I don't know about that one.  I do know that if I wanted to OC this system for him, I easilly could with this setup.



FYI: [highlight]the hd4870 pushes my 27" monitor at home just fine[/highlight].  Frame rate never drops below 30fps, unless I am playing Crysis on max.  I can play Crysis on high though with no problems.[/quote]


Well I'm sorry but that's not true, a hardcore enthusiast can't accept a single 4870 to run [highlight]every game [/highlight]in a 22" screen.

[highlight]Quad cores aren't yet as good as dual cores for gaming (yet).[/highlight]

I don't think you really need 8 GB of ram, you'll be good with 4GB, if you wanted 6GB then you should use a Core i7 to manage the triple channel.




Oh, and 30fps is unacceptable for me, [highlight]I can't play anything if it's below 60fps[/highlight], that's why I said I didn't know how strict you were regarding games.

All in all, you don't need a monster rig if you're not going to play FPS games

Cheers.[/quote]
Ok how about this....Lets compare your dual core verses my quad in my current pc on the game......Far Cry 2.....My quad will and does out perform a dual core on this game. Almost all new games are starting to use multiple threads to reduce the stress and raise the effeicency and processing power of the cpu when it come to performance. But if you wanted to compare a game like Call of Duty 4....Then your dual core would be better.

You made me laugh...sorry, anything below 60fps....I can't believe that you can honestly say that you would visually se the difference between 30fps and 60fps. The only thing that you would possibly notice is that the darker parts of your game would look darker (less light bleed on an lcd)....lol

hd4870 alone cannot push a 27" on max with all games...I am willing to admit that, but it can play most games on max, without ever droping below 30fps. Plus with all due consideration, 2 hd4850 cost over $275, one hd 4870 costs $175, and the improvement from having 2 hd4850's is not worth the extra money.

Do you really think that a Core 2 quad can't manage 8gigs of ram well?...With all due consideration, they are made to handle up to 128gigs of ram...but ram and cpu management of ram, is definity not my expertise in the computer field. Do you have any documentation that can explain this to me that it can't manage 8 gigs well? I really would like more information on this and I am honestly not trying to be a jerk. I really want to know.

I am tire of arguing..Everyone has their own personal prefference.

Yes...this isn't going to be a monster rig...I understand this, but it is what my friend wants. [highlight]I am trying to convince him to get an i7 though, due to everyones advice.....thanks[/highlight]

You made me laugh...sorry, anything below 60fps....I can't believe that you can honestly say that you would visually se the difference between 30fps and 60fps. The only thing that you would possibly notice is that the darker parts of your game would look darker (less light bleed on an lcd)....lol

Click to expand...

Not true.

By counterexample: When you play Crysis your video card will show 20-45 fps and you will see sloppyness while playing BECAUSE it's not >= 60 FPS!
So you DO need 60fps to play perfectly. it's not that "oh yeah the eye sees 30fps only so you don't need more". You DO notice it. It has to do with the refresh rate of the screen. Why do you think companies are releasing 120hz monitors right now? Do a google for that

I am trying to convince him to get an i7 though, due to everyones advice.....thanks

Click to expand...

i7's are NOT for gaming!
If he's gonna use it for photoshop, winrar and video editing software then YES. But NOT for everyday use and gaming.
Get a dual core, best bang for the buck right now, I could see money was being taken into consideration and that is the reason I told you that stuff.

Do you really think that a Core 2 quad can't manage 8gigs of ram well?...With all due consideration, they are made to handle up to 128gigs of ram...but ram and cpu management of ram, is definity not my expertise in the computer field. Do you have any documentation that can explain this to me that it can't manage 8 gigs well? I really would like more information on this and I am honestly not trying to be a jerk. I really want to know.

Click to expand...

No problem, man, learning is the way.
I'm not saying it can't manage the RAM, I'm saying it's too much RAM as in "You will never use all of it", therefore you're paying for something you will rarely use. Then again, if you work with HEAVY photoshop jobs and video editing software you could use the 8GB, but with 4GB you'll be more than great for everyday/gaming use.

niko is not thinking about the future, there are games out now that use all 4 cores.

try putting a 3.33GHz e6600 dual core against a 2.4GHz q6600 quad and run gta4.

the e6600 is about 50% more expensive and would get raped. not to mention my q6600 has run at 4.00GHz on air. i really dont see the point of buying a dual core now, not when soon 95% of games are going to support quads.

as for the original build in first post if it was me i would spend $700 instead of $1500 but thats me.

if i was spending $1500 id try and get an i7 system w/ ddr3 for that and stick 4GB of ram in.