So im currently building a new PC, just got my order in. I'm just looking for some outside input on my new set-up and if it's all compatible. [I know my motherboard is nvidia and video card is ati, now im not 100% sure if that's compatible, if it isn't i would rather switch my motherboard out for an ati one rather then get rid of the dual ati's for a gtx 280, so can someone suggest a good ati board] Case, $144.99 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133154 Motherboard, $399.99 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131274 Power Supply, $109.99 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341002 CPU, $209.99 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103286 Graphics Card, $479.99 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814103066 HD, $89.99 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148335 RAM, $69.99 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145184 DVD, $22.99 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135176 Sound Card, $29.99 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102002 OS, $174.99 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116493 Monitor, $259.99 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824112011 Keyboard, $89.99 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823126034 Mouse, $79.99 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826104079 Grand total = $2,202.87 (After rebates and without shipping) Now i'm not a "newbie" when it comes to PC's or building them, but as i stated previously just looking for outside opinions on the order. If you couldn't tell after reviewing it i'm building a new gaming PC, so any constructive criticism is welcome, as long as there's info/reason behind the change. Thanks in advance =)
Edit: I want to run liquid cooling in it, but i've never used it in a system before, how easy is it to install?
The motherboard will be compatible, but it's crap. Any awards it got were paid marketing, it's just a useless board. Ditch it for one of these instead: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128336 the PSU is also not great, as most OCZ GameXStreams don't put out the watts they say they do, and they ripple quite a lot. I prefer these: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005 For a high performance build you want to stay away from AMD, Phenoms use lots of power, run very hot and are slow compared to core 2 quads. They're usually cheap, but that CPU isn't, so certainly don't buy that one. Oh, and you chose an AMD CPU for an Intel board? That wil never have worked... Get this CPU: Video card is excellent, I own one Hard disk is fine, RAM is fine but won't overclock very far, if you want an overclocked system go with this RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145197 Rest of the components are fine. I'd avoid watercooling unless you have ample prior experience, it can go very bad very easily. It's not cheap, and not for the faint-hearted! Instead, get this CPU cooler, and relax... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835154002
That first post was before i tweaked my system, i currently changed my motherboard, CPU, RAM, and Sound Card, but you seem to know quite a bit about these products, so instead of showing you the system i currently plan on getting, what would you buy for a really high end gaming rig? The case i have picked out i believe has maximum air flow and since i don't know how to install liquid cooling (i still believe it can't be rocket science, but i'm giving you the benefit of the doubt), i should have as much air flow as possible. Case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146029 The video card i don't want to switch out and i know it's superb so that's not a problem. The HD, DVD, OS, Monitor, Keyboard and Mouse i have all sorted out and again no problem. It just seems i can't find a great CPU/Motherboard/Power Supply/RAM. I know you posted those changes, but i want to reassure you that im not building a "cheap" system, as it's meant to be high-end gaming. So will those parts you picked out be top notch? or will i be heading back online to replace them in less than a year? P.S. Thanks for the great response, over the past couple days i've been on several different boards and no one really has much input, your post by far has helped the most.
The Zero is a nice looking case with lots of fans, but the airflow isn't balanced properly, in a similar fashion to those cheap cases with the vast fans on the side. What I'd do is this: Case $129.98: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146047 Mobo $235.16: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128336 RAM $149.00: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145197 ($40 rebate) CPU $324.99: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115041 PSU $99.99: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005 ($20 rebate) GPU $559.38: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814103066 ($50 rebate) - your price was a little out of date HDD $84.99: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148335 DVD $25.99: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136152 (your previous drive wasn't able to burn discs, that's almost pointless now burners are so cheap) Sound $38.94: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102002 OS I'll leave up to you, I prefer XP, other people differ, and I will say the same thing about the keyboard and mouse, I use a Razer Diamondback and Saitek Eclipse which is fine but lacks the macro and LCD function.
Ok, threw all the parts you suggested in and it came out to be a bit cheaper then before which is always good. Couple questions though. I noticed the tower you picked out is good, but it's only a mid not a full, so am i going to be able to fit everything in it? Is the power supply going to be able to handle everything, worried mainly about the HD4870x2? While i was picking up the CPU you posted i also grabbed this CPU fan >>> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835200026 <<< is that going to help with the CPU temperature? and lastly, i'm still pondering about the liquid cooling. I'm going to be OC'ing this to an extent and if the air cooling will hold up then it's not a problem, but i know liquid cooling is going to help alot. Again, thanks for the great post =)
1. You can fit everything in a mid tower, I use one, and a 4870X2 fits in fine. You may have an interference fit with your hard disks though, so it may be worth checking that. Full Towers tend to offer extra height, not necessarily any extra length, however, as I say, I own an NZXT Midtower case and a 4870X2 fits. 2. Yes, I use one with a 520W HX, a 650 TX will be ample. 3. The CPU cooler I posted is much better, and I would recommend it, especially if overclocking. 4. Liquid cooling is nice, but there's little it can do above what air cooling can do for a stable 24/7 setup, Watercooling just helps get those stupidly high benchmark numbers that will never make for a stable system in practice.
Ahh yah yours is alot better. So the overall price comes out to $2250 which i believe is pretty damn good. Everything should be compatible and will be up and running within two weeks (depending on shipping time and when i can pick it up). If everything goes smoothly i'll make sure to post some pics P.S. Forgot to ask, if i turn most of the settings on Crysis to max, what type of framerate should i be expecting approximately.(I don't plan on playing Crysis much, but it's currently the most demanding game out there and i'd sooner see real-time numbers then some benchmark.)
I run DX9 as I still use XP, so I only have "high" and not "very high", but I use a much higher resolution of 2560x1600 and typically get 30fps or so at that. At 1920x1200 I make around 45, around 30-35 if I enable 4xAA. If you leave AA disabled, you could probably run very high at around 25-30fps.
So im assuming that's "not bad." What part(s) should i look to upgrade to see the biggest performance jump later down the line. I plan to grab another 4gb of RAM about 2 weeks after. The video card is top line, so im assuming the weak point is the processor in which i plan to OC, but i'd probably have to pick up part of the "extreme" series to see a big difference, but that's just a waste of money considering the Bloomfields are coming out soon IIRC.
The extra 4GB of RAM will significantly curtail your overclock, so unless you actually need it, I'd hold back. Right now, Vista systems use close to 4GB of RAM when gaming, but I've not managed to break it yet. The new Core i7 Architecture comes out in a bit, but I'm honestly not expecting all that much from it.
Yah the i7 i wasn't totally impressed with, especially when i heard that in some cases it performed slower in games then our current CPU's. Anyways, so another 4gb will help, and i plan to OC CPU, but how high do you think i could get off just air cooling, it's default is 2.83 so i was hoping to at least push 3.5?
