Speccing out a midrange research/gaming rig

[hoplitehiker]

Hey all,

It is time for me to update my computer. Below are proposed specs for a rig I'll use primarily for graduate research (lots of multitasking and intensive computer simulation modeling) and gaming (woo). The goal is to stay below $3500 and provide a system that will upgrade nicely in terms of RAM, hard disks, and videocards throughout the next few years. Hopefully that will keep me futureproof for the next little while.

On with the parts:

* Motherboard: EVGA 780i
* Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz Dual-Core
* CPU Heatsink: ZALMAN CNPS 9700 NT 110mm 2 Ball
* Power Supply: Thermaltake ToughPower 1200-Watt PSU
* Full Tower Case: COOLER MASTER Stacker 830
* Case Fans: SILVERSTONE FM123
* Boot Drive: Western Digital Raptor 150GB 10,000 RPM
* Storage Drive: HITACHI Deskstar 1TB 7200 RPM
* Memory: G.SKILL 4GB DDR2 1000 Dual Channel
* Optical Drive: ASUS DVD +/-R/RW, CD-R/RW with Lightscribe
* Card Reader: Silverstone Zillion in one reader
* UPS: powercom King Pro 1320 Watts 6 Outlets
* Video Card: EVGA GeForce 8800Ultra 768MB
* OS: Windows 64 bit Home Premium


In compiling the list, I stuck to brands and components that got high reviews and lots of them on Newegg. I do not plan to overclock these components, as warranty protection is important to me (all these items are 1 year minimum mfg. warranty).

The 8800 Ultra is overkill for most current games, but I help pay the bills by consulting in Second Life, which kills even high-end gaming PCs. Thus, the plan is to add RAM, additional 8800Ultras in SLI (up to 3-way) as price drops, and in a few years update to a newer 45nm proessor, whatever makes sense at that point.

Maybe some day add RAIDed drives (I am storing mission critical data), but for now my external drives will work for data security.

I already have a Gateway monitor and plenty of peripherals. Sufficient cables come with the parts.

The plan is to buy components on sale and assemble myself. As specced above and with misc parts (e.g., thermal transfer & cabling management bits) & shipping, this system comes in around 3,300.

Are these components a good fit?

One thing I can't figure out is if the RAM is compatible with the MOBO.

Best regards,
Hoplite

 

[steven zwickel]

Well, I can tell you as a Computer Science grad student myself, if you are doing anything involving simulation you will be writing multithreaded code or using threaded software packages.

1. Spending 3300 on a computer and not getting a quad core proc is not a good move. Drop the 8800Ultra to an 8800GTX, use the difference to get a q6600 or q9X00 instead of the e8400. You want many cores for simulations. Trust me on this. I'm not a big proponent of quadcore in games and general use, but you will be working with highly parallel algorithms. Parallel algorithms like extra cores. Just do it

2. 8800 Ultras will not get much cheaper, they will just be discontinued. Triple 8800 Ultra SLI will get stomped by two $500 cards within the next year. Don't plan on this as a long term upgrade path. I would personally just get a nice 2xSLI board, buy an 8800GT for now and then get 2x9800GTX when they come out or later as you need them.

3. Again, going with the simulation theme, depending on what you are doing 8gb of ram may be more useful to you than a raptor boot drive. Again a personal choice, but I would go with the extra ram instead based on your uses. You did say you plan to up it soon though, so your choice.

4. Is there a reason you need a UPS?

5. The ram should be fine with the mobo.

 

[aevm]

If you won't overclock get rid of the Zalman.

With all that multitasking you're going to want a quad. How about getting a cheap E2180 for now (which incidentally avoids the need to flash the BIOS) and getting a Q9550 in March.

I'd replace the Ultras with BFG 8800GTX OC2. I only have one but it does the job very well. Much cheaper, and you'll have a better chance to find the second and third one later. I read that they stopped making Ultras already (don't quote me on that, I haven't verified it yet). There are also eVGA and XFX versions of the GTX, already overclocked from factory. OK, there are other brands too but I'd stick with these 3.

The Toughpower brand is generally good but I heard it has issues with the 8800-series cards. Get an Enermax Galaxy 1000W or a PC Power & Cooling TurboCool 1000W. They are expensive, but very good.

 

[croc]

Hey all,

It is time for me to update my computer. Below are proposed specs for a rig I'll use primarily for graduate research (lots of multitasking and intensive computer simulation modeling) and gaming (woo). The goal is to stay below $3500 and provide a system that will upgrade nicely in terms of RAM, hard disks, and videocards throughout the next few years. Hopefully that will keep me futureproof for the next little while.

On with the parts:

* Motherboard: EVGA 780i
* Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz Dual-Core
* CPU Heatsink: ZALMAN CNPS 9700 NT 110mm 2 Ball
* Power Supply: Thermaltake ToughPower 1200-Watt PSU
* Full Tower Case: COOLER MASTER Stacker 830
* Case Fans: SILVERSTONE FM123
* Boot Drive: Western Digital Raptor 150GB 10,000 RPM
* Storage Drive: HITACHI Deskstar 1TB 7200 RPM
* Memory: G.SKILL 4GB DDR2 1000 Dual Channel
* Optical Drive: ASUS DVD +/-R/RW, CD-R/RW with Lightscribe
* Card Reader: Silverstone Zillion in one reader
* UPS: powercom King Pro 1320 Watts 6 Outlets
* Video Card: EVGA GeForce 8800Ultra 768MB
* OS: Windows 64 bit Home Premium


In compiling the list, I stuck to brands and components that got high reviews and lots of them on Newegg. I do not plan to overclock these components, as warranty protection is important to me (all these items are 1 year minimum mfg. warranty).

The 8800 Ultra is overkill for most current games, but I help pay the bills by consulting in Second Life, which kills even high-end gaming PCs. Thus, the plan is to add RAM, additional 8800Ultras in SLI (up to 3-way) as price drops, and in a few years update to a newer 45nm proessor, whatever makes sense at that point.

Maybe some day add RAIDed drives (I am storing mission critical data), but for now my external drives will work for data security.

I already have a Gateway monitor and plenty of peripherals. Sufficient cables come with the parts.

The plan is to buy components on sale and assemble myself. As specced above and with misc parts (e.g., thermal transfer & cabling management bits) & shipping, this system comes in around 3,300.

Are these components a good fit?

One thing I can't figure out is if the RAM is compatible with the MOBO.

Best regards,
Hoplite

your UPS choice is a bit sus. (2 to 4 MS to switch from line to battery?) And I can't find that model on powercom's website. If you really need a UPS, I'd probably go with an APC smartups, around 1000kva should get you by. Tripplite is also good, but unavailable (or not easily available) here in AUS, so haveno personal experience.

As to the newegg reviews..... Really trustworthy. Not.

Dump the raptor, get a smallish seagate 7200.11 model. You'll not notice the speed difference, and the noise output will be considerablly less.

As others have already said, dump the Ultra, go for a stock GTX. And get a quad CPU.

 

[aevm]

About the quad: right now the most popular is Q6600. If you don't want to overclock you can get a Q6700 for $200 or $250 more and it's 10% faster. There's also the QX9650, but that's expensive and a total waste if you don't overclock. In March there will be the Q9300 and Q9450, under $350, a bit better than the Q6600 and Q6700 respectively.

 

[hoplitehiker]

Well, I can tell you as a Computer Science grad student myself, if you are doing anything involving simulation you will be writing multithreaded code or using threaded software packages.
(snip) Parallel algorithms like extra cores. Just do it

Unfortunately, we're simulating on homebrew stuff written by the university that isn't multithreaded and won't be for some time, according to the devs. So I'm thinking fewer cores means more horsepower for those monolithic threads. Yus? No? Everybody here has weighed in in favor of a quad, so I'm still open to it, I just don't see the boost for my mission critical stuff. Thoughts?

Regarding upping the RAM, yep, that will come along soon so I'm not worried about sacrificing the Raptor drive for that for now.

Regarding UPS, isn't it a good idea to have UPS for desktops against power failures? Granted, the one I selected is apparently crappy, but I can find a better one once I know what to look for.

I will change my spec to an 8800GTX OC2 by BFG Tech. Seems like a pretty good deal.

Also, how hard is it to set up RAID on my own (in say 6 months)?

 

[aevm]

If you're sure you won't have any multithreaded software then yes, a higher-clocked dual core is better. As in, an E8500 will outperform a Q6700.

I've just been told that the eVGA 780i works with Wolfdale CPUs (E8400, E8500) without even requiring a BIOS flash, isn't that nice

UPS: it depends. Does your homebrew stuff actually save from time to time, so it can resume after a power outage without losing more than a few minutes of work? If it does, then you can avoid the cost and headaches of the UPS. If it doesn't, then the UPS is useful, but you should ask the "brewers" to improve the software if possible. I'm a programmer myself and I'm usually happy to get improvement ideas from my clients. Some of them came up with brilliant things that made other clients happy too.

Don't know about RAID. My local shop adds $5 to the assembly cost (normally $35) if I select RAID. I am guessing it only takes a few minutes of work for somebody who does it often. Maybe you can get somebody to help there. If you want to use RAID you should first decide what type of RAID is best for you. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAID

 

[amd_fanboi]

drop the ultra- atm it's a waste of money...

 

[WR2]

Unfortunately, we're simulating on homebrew stuff written by the university that isn't multithreaded and won't be for some time, according to the devs.

Regarding UPS, isn't it a good idea to have UPS for desktops against power failures? Granted, the one I selected is apparently crappy, but I can find a better one once I know what to look for.

I will change my spec to an 8800GTX OC2 by BFG Tech. Seems like a pretty good deal.

If you're set against overclocking then an E8500 is the best you can do. You probably should have mentioned the single threaded primary application when you listed your requirements.

The BFG GTX OC2 in place of an Ultra is a good decision. If you limit a future upgrade to a dual GTX in SLI or what ever future SLI GTX follow on GPU you can easily down size your PSU and UPS. An 850watt PSU and 750watt UPS would easily handle your spec'd system with plenty of room for the future upgrades you've outlined. Even a high quality 750watt PSU and 600watt UPS should get the job done. If you leave your computer running unattended its good to know your UPS software will safely shutdown the system in a power outage.

If you have your OS/Boot HD already running on a single disk then setting up a raid array for data storage is very easy.