New rig - advice appreciated!

[bassa]

Hey boys,

Could you lads help me out configuring a really solid system, please? I'm aiming for a new, custombuilt system sometime this June.

Here's my initial thoughts on a new system:

LCD Monitor: ViewSonic 23” WideScreen VP2330WB / VG2230wm

I'm confused about the monitors above.

Check here:

1. ViewSonic Widescreen Graphic Series LCD [VG2230wm]

2. ViewSonic 23" Widescreen LCD Display [VP2330wb]

What's with the huge price difference?

Which monitor should I choose?

I don't paying the big bucks, if monitor 2 is that much better than the first.

Cabinet: Silverstone TJ09 Black

Power Supply Unit: Silverstone Zeus ST85ZF 850W

Cooling (CPU): Scythe Infinity

Cooling (VGA): ?

Motherboard: EVGA nForce 680i SLI

CPU: Intel Core 2 Extreme Processor QX6700

Memory: Corsair XMS2 Xtreme Performance TwinX Matched (2 x 1 GB / DUAL RAM / DDR II SDRAM / PC2-6400 CL3 / 800 MHz)

Optical Drives: Samsung SH-S182D

Hard Drives: 1 x WD Raptor WD1500ADFD, 2 x 300 GB other brand

Video Cards: 2 x EVGA e-GeForce 8800 GTX KO ACS3

Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum

Keyboard: Razer Tarantula

Mouse: Razer DeathAdder

OS: Microsoft XP Pro w. Vista License Upgrade (Engelsk version)

Are we there yet?


Cheers,
Bassa

 

[lumper]

thats a nice set up, the only things I would consider are, the board and chipset, look at the p5k asus boards or any bopards with the p35 chipset in them.
That is unless you are set on using sli and two cards, there are a ton of good reads on the difference between running sli and not and I was going to do the same thing but decided not to as I couldnt see any difference unless you are playing at highest resolution and all settings then you will maybe see some benefit, but I would read up on that a little yourself, madonion forums are really good for video advice and tested setups.


The power supply I am unfamilair with, but be sure to get a very good one , I recommend antec, fortron, or zalman and a 650 watt or better would be my advice.

You might consider more ram if you plan to run win vista 64 but otherwise it looks pretty good.

Lump

Heres what I am building, all parts are now in except the case and the gpu:

x6800
evga oc2 8800gtx
asus p5k
4 gigs crucial ballistix pc 8500
x-fi extreme gamers
antec 650 trio
400 gig sata 7200.10 3.0 gbps
16x dual layer dvd/rw
creative inspire 7.1 surround speakers
existing monitor 21" mutlisync fp1370
zalman cpu cooler 9700
dual boot win xp pro - win vista 64

 

[skyguy]

Helluva setup you got proposed. VERY nice Can't really knock anything there, well done.

To answer your monitor question......22" LCD are a very nice pricepoint. Jump above those, even 1" or 2" and the prices JUMP ALOT. Resolution also jumps up to 1920 instead of 1680. For the money saved, I'd go with the 22"....I have 2 already 1" extra diagonal won't make a difference. But it's your money. But to answer, no, it's not that much better quality, just slightly bigger, but it's past that threshold I mentioned and that sends you into big-bucks territory.

Good luck, and great setup there.

P.S. Stick with the Silverstone, it'll do just fine. If you want to go hardcore, pick up a PC Power and Cooling. But that's more than fine for what you're showing.

P.P.S. Drop the Scythe Infinity, there are much better solutions. It has a crap mounting system too. Get a Thermalright Ultra 120 (or Extreme if you can find it) and drop in a decent 120mm fan on it to keep that Quad cool. Much better than the Infinity.

 

[jonisginger]

GeIL do some DDR2-800 at 3-3-3-9 or ddr2 1066 at 4-4-4-12 if your looking for shithot ram. ive got GeIL memory and its brilliant.

Look at the:

Zalman CNPS9700-NT nVidia Tritium Super Aero Flower Cooler

ITS AWESOME!!

Get some Arctic Silver 5 thermal paste - don''t bother with anything else

You can save money by only have one GTX if you gett a 1650 x 1050 monitor,

But if your going for a 1920 one get 2x GTXs

Maybe invest in a Dell 30" from eBay, they're prettty cheap offof there.

Whats everyone else think?

 

[nhobo]

a $1,000 processor? what are you using the computer for?

P35 mobo

no SLI - use a single video card

nice case

 

[aevm]

You are aware that the Q6700 will be released on July 22 at around US$ 530, right? A lot of us here on this forum are waiting for that day

 

[bassa]

P.P.S. Drop the Scythe Infinity, there are much better solutions. It has a crap mounting system too. Get a Thermalright Ultra 120 (or Extreme if you can find it) and drop in a decent 120mm fan on it to keep that Quad cool. Much better than the Infinity.

This one then?

Thermaltake Extreme Spirit II CL-C0034


Cheers,
Bassa

 

[bassa]

Alright, some nice ideas and suggestions in here.

Thanks, man. I appreciate it!

I've changed a few specs - check them out.

Monitor:
ViewSonic 22” Widescreen Graphic Series LCD VG2230WM

That monitor is quite possibly just as good as the way more expensive 23" inch alternative I had. But I'd rather save the 500-1000$ difference. My machine will cost a lot in the first case, so I'd prefer to save money where I can.

By the way, I heard that some monitor producers have been making some pretty cool screens these past few months. Anything I should consider before I decide with the ViewSonic above?

Especially Dell and Samsung have come out with some pretty nifty products lately, but are they worth the money, or can I stick with the ViewSonic and rest at ease?

CPU Cooling:
Zalman CNPS 9700 NT + Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Paste

I took JonIsGinger's advice on this. I've no idea if it's that good though, so I'm completely in the blind here.

All I'm looking for is a Highend CPU cooler with as low noise output as possible. Keywords are High Effeciency and Low Noise. Am willing to pay the price.

CPU:
If I can save a lot of money by getting a damn good alternative, I'm all ears.

To nhobo:

I use my box for pretty much everything, but mainly work. I usually work with several heavy applications at a time, when working. These include, but are not limited to, Photoshop CS2, Illustrator CS2, Dreamweaver, MySQL.

Memory:
My initial choice is damn cool, but also very expensive.

I am considering these alternatives:

1. Corsair XMS2 Pro Xtreme Performance TwinX Matched
[4 x 1 GB (2 GB) / DUAL RAM / DDR II SDRAM / PC2-6400 CL4 / 800 MHz]
Price: ~746$

2. G.Skill DDR2 Series F2-6400CL3D-2GBGA
[4 x 1 GB (2 GB) / DUAL RAM / DDR II SDRAM / PC2-6400 CL3 / 800 MHz]
Price: ~632$

3. GeIL Ultra Series DDR2 Dual Channel Kit
[4 x 1 GB (2 GB) / DUAL RAM / DDR II SDRAM / PC2-6400 CL4 / 800 MHz]
Price: ~433$

Ultimately, I really like the G.Skill because of its decent pricing and the CL3 feature.

GeIL is cheapest, but is only CL4.

Which one should I choose? Personally, I'm leaning towards the G.Skill modules. But the question is, will I even notice the difference between a CL3 and a CL4? Will it matter?

Hard Drives:
1 x WD Raptor WD1500ADFD
[150 GB / 10000 rpm / 16 MB / Serial ATA-150 / 4.6 ms / 39 dBA]
Price: ~255$

2 x WD Caviar SE16 WD5000KS
[500 GB / 7200 rpm / 16 MB / Serial ATA-300 / 8.9 ms / 28 dBA / RAID 0]
Price: ~290$

If anyone can come up with some good alternatives to the storage drives, the WD Caviar's, please chime in.

Video Card:
1 x EVGA e-GeForce 8800 GTX KO ACS3

Any new cards coming out real soon that's definitely worth waiting for?

OS:
Windows Vista 64 Bit

Figured I'll need Vista 64 Bit since I went with 4GB Ram instead of the prior 2GB.


Cheers,
Bassa

 

[jonisginger]

Yo

That Zalman cooler is the best cooler on the market I've seen

Perhaps, seeing as your getting a GTX, invest in a screen that does 1920*1200, there's a 23" Viewsonic one that does that - exceptional picture quality because the pixels are very small for the size of the screen (round objects look rounder etc)

Because of this, you won't need 4x AA, only 2x AA, so you get higher framerates. Then, at Xmas, sell your 8800GTX and buy a 9800GTX (out at Xmas)

That will set you up for a long time.

OR

Buy an 8800GTS now and accept slightly less than maximum image quality then get a 9800GTX at Xmas. So you'd save $200 or so, but then your card would sell for less at Xmas and vice versa.

Up to you? What does everyone else think?

:?: :?: :?:

 

[bassa]

I was wondering...

If I go with the Windows Vista 64-Bit edition, will I still be able to run software like Dreamweaver, Photoshop CS2, Illustrator CS2 and all other usual programs? (Well, most of them, anyway.)

What about games? Will they run under 64-bit as well?


Cheers,
Bassa

 

[jonisginger]

Should do. although some programs will not run

Usually low level ones like Partitioning etc

But most should, I've not had a great amount of experience with x64, only a bit with XPx64, and none with x64 vista.

Get 3Gb or more RAM for x64 vista

Vista also causes about 10/20 FPS less in games

 

[bassa]

Actually, I think I'll get the Vista Ultimate 32-bit edition.

It supports my 4 x 1 GB Ram modules, and I can always upgrade to 64-bit later on if I want to.


Cheers,
Bassa

 

[proof]

Looks pretty good. *yawn*

CAS and timings do not matter on an Intel system unless you understand what you are doing. But Intel procs like higher bandwidths instead of tighter timings.

I will use mine as an example:

FSB 271MHz
FSB:RAM Sync
RAM 271MHz

Since I am running my RAM in sync with my FSB, theoretically I have less latency. Another reason I do this is that I can run my RAM at 3-3-3-10 1T and 3-3-3-9 1T for benches. Doing this requires less voltage and gives me the same (if not better) than running it stock speeds and even overclocked speeds. But I would not mess with timings until you have learned more about your BIOS and system in general.

 

[bassa]

You seem to know exactly what you're talking about.

I'm no techie, admittedly.

What modules would you recommend?

The GeIL, or something entirely different?

I will not play with timings or voltage, or anything like that in the BIOS. I'm too ignorant for that, and way too scared up messing things up.


Cheers,
Bassa

 

[bassa]

Oh, and what's the difference between GeForce 8800 GTX and GeForce 8800 Ultra?


Cheers,
Bassa

 

[aevm]

The Ultra is a bit faster and much more expensive. Not worth it.

 

[skyguy]

The Geil modules are good, no question. However, if you're not pushing your system or overclock very hard, then just about any decent DDR2-800 RAM will work fine. The G. Skills are good.....look for the ones with the black heat spreaders.....the HZ modules.....they contain Micron D9 chips that overclock like crazy for a good price.

HOWEVER, if you are not planning on overclocking, then get modules that are lower latency (ie-4-4-4-12, or even 3-x-x-x)....those will be better. Then it simply is a question of what fits your budget. To be honest, I think the price difference to go from CL3 to CL4 is insane....the real world difference isn't worth that big price jump.

For CL4, I would take a look at these:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231114

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146565

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820144062

And for a real bargain on Micron D9's, seriously consider these:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231065

I'm assuming you're in the U.S. If so, those shown above are ALOT cheaper that what you're quoting for some reason.

 

[bassa]

I'm in Denmark, Scandinavia.

Prices are higher here than in the US - for obvious reasons.

I don't overclock. I might up the FSB in the BIOS a little bit, but nothing else, really.


Cheers,
Bassa

 

[skyguy]

Well that makes sense. Ok, look at some of those I listed and see if you can find them over there, and what prices they might be. If you can't, then I'd go with the Geil, they'll do just fine.

 

[proof]

You seem to know exactly what you're talking about.

Phhht! Please! Skyguy has no idea what the hell he is talking about. He sits on his computer with Wikipedia up in a window right next to Tom's and just copies and pastes from there and tries to pass it off as his own. He may sound smart, but in reality he is a semi-retarded, 400lb, crackhead with a cleft lip.

 

[skyguy]

LMAO, good thing I appreciate your sense of humor or else I might be offended

8)

Please, it's 425 lbs, get it right. 400 lbs was before the buffet last night, and the bucket of fried chicken at 3am this morning. Get it right man!!!

:roll:


More like 190.

 

[bassa]

You seem to know exactly what you're talking about.

Phhht! Please! Skyguy has no idea what the hell he is talking about. He sits on his computer with Wikipedia up in a window right next to Tom's and just copies and pastes from there and tries to pass it off as his own. He may sound smart, but in reality he is a semi-retarded, 400lb, crackhead with a cleft lip.

It was actually you I was talking to.


Cheers,
Bassa

 

[proof]

Phhhht! Hahaha! I burnt out a 2800+ last night. It meeeeeelted. Hahahaha! 1.7v and then removed the HSF. It is melted to the board. I tried to put som lighter fluid on it to cool it off but I don't think it worked very well... DIE AMD! DIE! DIE! DIE! :twisted:

 

[bassa]

I went with:

Crucial Ballistix
4 x 1 GB (2 GB) / DUAL RAM / DDR II SDRAM / PC2-6400CL4 / 800 MHz
Best Price = 2.326,00 DKR. = 387$.


Cheers,
Bassa

 

[proof]

4GB? Nice. And yeah, you could say I know what I am talking about lol.