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System Builder Marathon, Sept. '09: $2,500 Performance PC

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  • Performance
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September 28, 2009 6:01:06 AM

Reader suggestions and previous test results defined most of this month’s highest-priced build. Will the extra planning and testing pay off in clear overclocking and performance superiority? We use Radeon HD 4890s, SSDs, and 8GB of RAM to find out!

System Builder Marathon, Sept. '09: $2,500 Performance PC : Read more

More about : system builder marathon sept 500 performance

September 28, 2009 6:14:02 AM

Just thinking about winning this system in the giveaway gets me excited.
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18
September 28, 2009 6:17:30 AM

Me too this is an awesome build.
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8
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September 28, 2009 6:23:36 AM

... do the video compression using ATi Streem...
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0
Anonymous
September 28, 2009 6:30:27 AM

The Quality of video on ATI streem is shit on sticks and doesn't even support high profile.

The last build was a bit too odd for me but this one seems like a very nice chose of parts and on a larger screen set up makes a lot of sense the loss of i7 for AMD only build was a bit sad but the addition of those great SSD kind of makes up for me along with the nice chose of case and cooling. That case looks like it is very nice to work on.
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-7
September 28, 2009 6:31:28 AM

The Corsair CMPSU-850HX is rated Silver, not Gold. Nice build, good results, great work.
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-4
September 28, 2009 6:39:26 AM

Please don't call RAID 1 a backup solution.
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-9
September 28, 2009 6:43:31 AM

now that is one slick gaming machine! could'nt imagine them frames rates on a big monitor. love the insides water cooling 3 radeon 4890's with room for a 4th. great pictures by the way lots of eye candy. you can tell alot of work went into tis kmonster. great article.
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10
September 28, 2009 6:44:28 AM

The overclock was disappointing, but it seems to be one capable system!

Anyone who wins this has an awesome rig on their hands!
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2
September 28, 2009 6:46:04 AM

I'm sure anyone that wins any of the rigs will be quite happy and hopefully happy enough to post pictures and other things on the forums.
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1
September 28, 2009 6:55:01 AM

Your PSU calculations do not include transient loads, which happen too quickly to measure on a Kill-a-watt. 1000HX was the better choice.

Either water cool the GPUs or use a case with better air flow. Perhaps 90C is within spec (although I'm not aware of any published official max temps for 4890s)but it doesn't seem like a good idea to me.

What's with the limited choice for a case anyway? You seem to want to experiment? CM Storm Scout has handles, or Lian Li Lancool has great air cooling and radiator hose grommets.

I did like the inclusion of the Swiftech kit.

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2
September 28, 2009 7:01:19 AM

I only fear what a QuadFire 5870 would bring if a tri 4890s does this much damage. Thanks for doing AMD it may not be the best CPU but its always nice to see a change.
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3
September 28, 2009 7:15:43 AM

dirtmountainSo does Jonnyguruhttp://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.p [...] 2&reid=153I guess you just can't believe everything you find on a brands site.


80 plus is an independant rating site, the 850HX was upgraded to Gold status so unless you're using an old unit you should be fine.

ProximonWhat's with the limited choice for a case anyway? You seem to want to experiment? CM Storm Scout has handles, or Lian Li Lancool has great air cooling and radiator hose grommets.I did like the inclusion of the Swiftech kit.


This editor never uses external radiators because they're too easily damaged, ugly, and make transportation difficult. The only choice not mentioned was the HAF932: There's one in the lab, it's enormous and cheaply built.

Also, there's absolutely nothing wrong with the ventilation of the case used. It's remarkable. It's darned near perfect. The GPU's run hot for two reasons: HD 4890's are horribly inefficient and there's not much space between them.

The other option would have been to face the PSU fan towards the cards so it could draw warm air away from them.
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4
September 28, 2009 7:40:10 AM

this thing is truely alswome anyway you slice it. eye candy galore, and im sure anyone who won this thing would be more then happy. and what makes this beast realy shine is how much performance it gets not only in gaming but alswome productivity/ap[plication scores as well. all the way around it is alswome. also very interesting to see AMD parts stacking up like this in a high end gaming. very interesting.
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0
September 28, 2009 7:49:16 AM

"Happy birthday", "Happy Halloween", "Merry Christmas", and "Happy New Year" to the lucky one who would get his hands on this one.
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2
September 28, 2009 8:05:19 AM

Wow...
I would take this over your last $2,500 Intel system no doubt!
This thing is a work of art.

Excellent work.
Wait wait wait... why would I want a phenom when i have a i7? I don't know, but this system is that cool.

I love the case used on it too. Tri-4890, 2x80GB SSD etc. even on a 2.5k budget is admirable.
Making me wonder were all the money on my build went...

Also nice to see a cheap motherboard being promoted. I paid over $300 for my mobo, and I regret it (good overclocking mobo... crappy overclocker cpu). >_<


Keep up the good work.
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1
September 28, 2009 8:14:14 AM

P.S.
Intel X25-M SSDSA2MH080G1 80GB are now $300 USD or $370 at newegg.com and newegg.ca respectively.
Damn you SSDs and apparantly getting more expensive...
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-1
September 28, 2009 8:15:19 AM

more money than i have to spend but an awesome build !
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0
September 28, 2009 8:28:49 AM

Nice build, the computer fully assembled makes the case look cramped. Then again I didn't expect to see water cooling which is a plus. Definitely a good system though I would have loved to see last sbm included in the graphs like the other systems for this price point.
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0
September 28, 2009 8:45:45 AM

toxxelNice build, the computer fully assembled makes the case look cramped. Then again I didn't expect to see water cooling which is a plus. Definitely a good system though I would have loved to see last sbm included in the graphs like the other systems for this price point.


It wouldn't be fair to compare a big system to a tiny system when both are overclocked, especially when the tiny system had to be undervolted just to run at stock speed.

The $1250 PC has such a comparison only because the builder used a big cooler both times.
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0
September 28, 2009 9:45:06 AM

wow
it`s a wonderful dragon

amd has a best recommendation every time (performance/cost)
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2
September 28, 2009 9:47:48 AM

masterjaw"Happy birthday", "Happy Halloween", "Merry Christmas", and "Happy New Year" to the lucky one who would get his hands on this one.


more like happy heart attack. seriously if i won this thing i'd be shitting bricks for the next month!
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1
September 28, 2009 10:29:20 AM

stardude82If I had the system I'd hock one of the vid cards for a decent RAID controler.


You wouldn't have to. Remember that the bottom slot supports x8 mode.
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0
September 28, 2009 11:20:55 AM

interesting that the 1250 system puts up nearly identical gaming numbers
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2
September 28, 2009 11:36:03 AM

I just compared game benchmarks with this system and the 5870 review. This system runs almost same framerates as the i7@4.0GHZ with the 2x 5870 in crossfire. That is pretty impressive.
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0
September 28, 2009 11:49:26 AM

ArticleRAID 1 adds neither capacity nor performance.

Not really true. Some raid controllers utilize both/all drives for read operations instead of just one. Yielding read speeds close to a striped raid set. I'm not aware of any software controllers doing so, but there's not really any technical restriciton to doing it.
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1
September 28, 2009 11:50:34 AM

Corsair HX850W Power Supply Review

Understanding the 80 Plus Certification

Hardware Secrets Power Supply Test Methodology


Those Corsair PSUs can put out way more than its official certification. Great article, by the way, how does one enter the give-away contest?
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-1
September 28, 2009 11:53:49 AM

neiroatopelccNot really true. Some raid controllers utilize both/all drives for read operations instead of just one. Yielding read speeds close to a striped raid set. I'm not aware of any software controllers doing so, but there's not really any technical restriciton to doing it.


That's the difference between theory and practice. Rather than comment on theory, the editor considered only the wide range of Tom's Hardware RAID controller reviews.
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-1
September 28, 2009 11:56:15 AM

Bah I'll never win the system. Most people that do are probably too busy to use it.
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0
September 28, 2009 12:00:01 PM

CrashmanThat's the difference between theory and practice. Rather than comment on theory, the editor considered only the wide range of Tom's Hardware RAID controller reviews.

Regardles of what a reviewer chooses, claiming that raid 1 doesn't provide performance is incorrect. Most of the time it won't show any performance increase, but that's dependant on the controller, not on the raid 1 marketing term. I've got a 16 drive eonstor system 4 meters away, which supports improved read speed on raid 1 setups. Though we admittedly utilize a raid with parity and spares instead, the feature does exist in practice.
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2
September 28, 2009 12:00:58 PM

By the way, can't help but to wonder what'd happen with this system if the cooling system'd been used on the graphics instead of on the cpu - I know it would've been too expensive as the waterblocks don't come free of charge, but can't help but wonder anyway.
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0
September 28, 2009 12:41:11 PM

With a budget of $2,500 you would have thought they would have gone for the best.... an i7.
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-5
September 28, 2009 12:44:59 PM

ElectroGoofyWith a budget of $2,500 you would have thought they would have gone for the best.... an i7.

another non-reader.
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7
September 28, 2009 12:55:51 PM

With a budget of $2,500 you would have thought they would have gone for the best.... an i7.

Was looking forward to seeing what kind of i7 based computer they could put together for $2,500, but I guess they went with and AMD :sarcastic: 

But yea, I am happy for the AMD fanboys, there haven't been many AMD based computers lately :) 
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-5
September 28, 2009 12:57:23 PM

P.S.

@proro1974

woops, accidentally hit the post comment... there was more to it.
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-4
September 28, 2009 1:35:09 PM

Very nice system, although the assembly was a little complex, but nothing an enthusiast can't handle.
When I started to read this article I thought amd won't suit such a high-end system, but seeing how the extra cash was diverted to a powerful GFX setup and storage and the gaming results it achieved, I changed my mind.
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2
September 28, 2009 2:11:23 PM

What about previous overclocked version vs new overclocked version?

Isn't the benchmark sort of skewed?
Score
0
September 28, 2009 2:13:39 PM

Awesome build, I wish I had money to spare like that.
I can't even dish out $350 for upgrades.

I'm surprised it's an AMD system. (Although I do feel that the core i7 processors and motherboards are overpriced.)

RAID 0 Solid State!! OMG!
8GB of RAM!!
4890 X3!! WOW!!
I would do anything to win a pc like this!
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-1
September 28, 2009 2:17:29 PM

pocketdrummerWhat about previous overclocked version vs new overclocked version?Isn't the benchmark sort of skewed?

There's a comparison article on the way comparing the builds, and I assume where applicable it'll include the last builds as well.

@ dark_lord69 : 8GB memory is quite affordable, and if you already have 2x2gb (I would assume any build from mid-end 2006 and now has that), it's very simple to upgrade. You may want to wait till october and get a win 7 64bit to go with it though - and then it's not so cheap anymore.
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-1
September 28, 2009 2:39:07 PM

Since the rational in the conclusion to spend this much is to enhance the gaming experience, here's a suggestion for next quarter. Build a system around Nvidia's 3D glasses. Include a monitor or HD TV in the cost since it needs the 120mhz refresh rate, and see what you can come up with. I think the debate is over for mainstream water vs big air, save the money and stick with the air.
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0
September 28, 2009 2:47:02 PM

120mhz refresh? bloody hell! And I thought 200hz was fast!
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-1
September 28, 2009 3:28:35 PM

neiroatopelcc said:
120mhz refresh? bloody hell! And I thought 200hz was fast!


LOL, thank you for pointing out my typo. Soon, your monitor will have windows 3.11 installed on it!

The principal behind needing 120hz is each eye has to see 60hz so it doesn't recognize a difference from a regular monitor. The glasses will close tiny shutters on one eye for 1 hz while the other eye sees the screen. Then the lens switch for 1 hz and the screen shows a slightly different picture so the brain will precieve depth. It does this back and forth, the brain never realizes the 1hz blackout for each eye, and your gaming experience is enhanced. Haven't done any research in a while, so I don't know if faster refresh rates effect performance or not.
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-1
September 28, 2009 3:35:44 PM

skora said:
LOL, thank you for pointing out my typo. Soon, your monitor will have windows 3.11 installed on it!

The principal behind needing 120hz is each eye has to see 60hz so it doesn't recognize a difference from a regular monitor. The glasses will close tiny shutters on one eye for 1 hz while the other eye sees the screen. Then the lens switch for 1 hz and the screen shows a slightly different picture so the brain will precieve depth. It does this back and forth, the brain never realizes the 1hz blackout for each eye, and your gaming experience is enhanced. Haven't done any research in a while, so I don't know if faster refresh rates effect performance or not.


I know how they work. I see very poorly on one eye, and found out those kinds of hardware didn't work for me (back in 96 when matrox introduced similar ones), so I ofc tried to understand why.

In any event - I've actually got 3.11 in a vmware mashine on this pc, so it's already there :) 
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-1
September 28, 2009 3:39:40 PM

dirtmountainThe Corsair CMPSU-850HX is rated Silver, not Gold. Nice build, good results, great work.

dirtmountainhttp://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817139011Newegg says differently. I did check sources.


Why are you people giving this guy thumbs down? He's spotted an error and is apparently right.

http://www.corsair.com/products/hx850/default.aspx

Corsair claims it is Silver. They made it, they are the ones who have to stand behind their claims. So I'd be most inclined to go by their information.
Score
-1
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