A new build

[squeakyfish]

Hiya all,

i am looking into getting a new system to use for gaming mostly and was wondering what everyone thought of it.

Intel® Core™2 Quad Q6600 (4 X 2.40GHz) 1066MHz FSB/8MB L2 Cache

4GB CORSAIR XMS3 DDR3 1066MHz - LIFETIME WARRANTY

ASUS® MAXIMUS EXTREME: The Ultimate Gaming/OC Platform

64 BIT WINDOWS® VISTA HOME PREM SP1

1000GB SERIAL ATA II HARD DRIVE WITH 32MB CACHE (7200rpm)

20x Dual Layer LightScribe DVD Writer ±R/±RW/RAM

512MB GEFORCE 9800GTX PCI Express + DVI + TV-OUT

Onboard 7.1 SupremeFX II High Definition Audio (Maximus Extreme)

800W Quiet Quad Rail PSU + 120mm Case Fan

ASUS SILENT KNIGHT II PURE COPPER ULTRA COOLER


whole thing comes to around £1200 ish.

any thoughts?

 

[rich218]

Hi Squeakyfish, just a few pointers:

1) I expect you're paying a very high premium for higher FSB DDR3 memory when the reality is, particularly for gaming, that the benefit from using DDR3-1066 rather than DDR2-800 (very well priced) is minimal. I'm not sure whether you're bothered about saving money or not, but it's definitely something to consider. There's some benchmarks on ram here:
http://www.trustedreviews.com/cpu-memory/review/2007/09/14/DDR2-and-DDR3-Memory-Round-Up/p14

2) I presume you're using 5.1 or better suround sound? if you're not then intergrated sound quality nowadays is actually perfectly viable and can save a fair amount of money.

3) Personally for gaming i wouldn't choose vista-64 due to the fact that PC games aren't natively designed for it, and driver issues can cause all sorts of problems. Although you do get access to more ram most games won't see much difference between 3.5GB or more anyway. Vista-32 is always a good option.

4) What brands are your PSU/optical drive/HDD/Graphics card?

5) Which case are you thinking of using? an older one? the GTX is a large card so make sure it fits!

Overall seems like you have a decent build, particularly your graphics card. With a few changes and money saved you might want to look into upgrading your processor or even SLI (although not suggested unless you have a massive screen 24"+), what sort of screen/resolutions are you looking to play at?

Just a few suggestions hope this helps.

Rich

 

[squeakyfish]

Hi Rich.

thanks for your response, this build i was looking into getting from a website that does to an extent. custom builds

http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/

and this is what i came up with after some playing on that website.

whith reguards to your points,

1) The DDR3 RAM is the only option i could get with that selected build. but i do understand that the gains over DDR2 isnt amazing to say the least.

2) I am using 5.1 surround sound. but really to save some cash i thought the onboard would be ok?

3) I know the reception of Vista wasnt well recieved, and i was going to go for XP. but it has been a while since its release and id like to think that prehaps in the near future that Vista 64 good option, which is why i thought of getting it now rather then later.

Also i was under the impression that if i were to get 32bit Vista then i might as well not get the 4gigs of RAM and instead go for 2 gigs ??


4) Unfort, the website doesnt give details as to the brand of the Equipment. at least not from i could see.

5) I get a new case with the build. and the people there build it for me.


Has anyone had any dealing with that website, from what i can see they seem to be quite cheap consdiering they build it for you etc.
however that said i havent looked into getting the bit seperatly and build it myself. so i dont know how much cash id save by doing that way.

thanks in advance to any help you guys can offer

 

[rich218]

Ahh ok i wasn't aware you were getting it from a custom build website, my brother used pcspecialist to build his pc and it came out fine. The only disadvantage is that you don't get to pick out your own quality components, but if you don't want the hassle of building it yourself that's fine

If you are building it yourself you can save a fair amount of money and ensure all your components are high quality, however picking your components is time consuming. It depends how much time/money you're willing to spend on this computer.

After having a quick look at the website i realised the maximus formula board is a crossfire design, which is the ATI version for SLI and only supports two radeon cards. This is fine if you want to just have 1 nvidia GPU (personally i think SLI is a poor upgrade path) but if you want to upgrade later to SLI (2 GPUs) then you'll have to choose a different board. There's an SLI section on the website

There are a few other websites that may offer similar builds, it might be worthwhile checking just incase they're cheaper and/or have better components available:

http://www.computerplanet.co.uk/custom/core2duo/step1.html
http://pcoption.co.uk/
http://www.cyberpowersystem.co.uk/

Yeah onboard sound will be fine, sorry i misread your initial post and thought you were getting a sound card.

Vista 64 is entirely your choice, and yes 2 gigs will be fine with vista 32 (i'm building my own atm with 2 gigs). Just expect there may be a couple of issues here and there with certain games, most will be fine!

It's a shame that they don't offer DDR2 but there's not much you can do about that, i'd suggest checking those other websites to see if they offer anything different.

Oh btw are you planning to overclock? Those extreme boards are designed for overclocking and so are extra expensive.

Rich

 

[mihirkula]

squeakyfish... since you mentioned you'd be using the system mainly for gaming i suggest you get the E8400 raher than the Q6600... and if you HAVE to get a quad, get the Q9450 then.

PS: the DDR3 isn't much worth that money right now. Also make sure the PSU is a quality branded one.

 

[squeakyfish]

Thanks for your replys both of you, after some thinking i came up with:

Intel® Core™2 Quad Q9450 (4 X 2.66GHz) 1333MHz FSB/12MB L2 Cache

Memory (RAM)
2GB CORSAIR XMS3 DDR3 1066MHz - LIFETIME WARRANTY

Motherboard
ASUS® MAXIMUS EXTREME: The Ultimate Gaming/OC Platform

Operating System
WINDOWS® VISTA HOME BASIC SP1 (inc CD & License)

Memory - 1st Hard Disk
1000GB SERIAL ATA II HARD DRIVE WITH 32MB CACHE (7200rpm)

1st CD/DVD Drive
20x Dual Layer LightScribe DVD Writer ±R/±RW/RAM

Graphics Card
512MB GEFORCE 9800GTX PCI Express + DVI + TV-OUT

Sound Card
Onboard 7.1 SupremeFX II High Definition Audio (Maximus Extreme)

Power Supply & Case Cooling
800W Quiet Quad Rail PSU + 120mm Case Fan

Processor Cooling
ASUS SILENT KNIGHT II PURE COPPER ULTRA COOLER


My question would be, as the prices of this build and the one i posted before are basicly the same. Which would yeild better peformance??

 

[dagger]

What chipset motherboard is that? p35 or x38/48? If you plan to overclock above 3.2ghz for Q9450 (1600mhz fsb) get the x38/48. If you overclock at 3.2ghz or below, or don't oc, the cheaper p35 will do fine.

You will need more than 2gb of ram in Vista. Page file usage will lag your system badly. And, get the 64bit version, 32bit can only use up to about 3.5gb of ram.

 

[rich218]

vista home basic is pretty lame, you want home premium! you don't get the cool stuff like aero with basic. You're going 32 or 64 bit after all?

Rich

 

[englandr753]

Dont do Vista basic. Premium is your best bet and I did 64 bit and I do believe for long term use its the best path IMO.

I would go 4gigs of ram too.

 

[squeakyfish]

Cheers for the help guys, here is the revised (again!) build

Intel® Core™2 Quad Q9450 (4 X 2.66GHz) 1333MHz FSB/12MB L2 Cache

Memory (RAM)
4GB CORSAIR XMS3 DDR3 1066MHz - LIFETIME WARRANTY

Motherboard
ASUS® P5K3 DELUXE/WiFi: DUAL DDR3, S-ATA II,2 x x16 VGA, 3 x PCI

Operating System
64 BIT WINDOWS® VISTA ULTIMATE SP1 (inc CD & License)

1st CD/DVD Drive
20x Dual Layer LightScribe DVD Writer ±R/±RW/RAM

Graphics Card
512MB GEFORCE 9800GTX PCI Express + DVI + TV-OUT

Sound Card
Onboard 7.1 ADI 1988B High Definition Audio (P5K3 DELUX)

Power Supply & Case Cooling
800W Quiet Quad Rail PSU + 120mm Case Fan

Processor Cooling
ASUS SILENT KNIGHT II PURE COPPER ULTRA COOLER

So i dropped the ASUS® MAXIMUS EXTREME Mobo for ASUS® P5K3 DELUXE to save cost really, reckon thats ok?

went back up to 4 gigs of RAM,

Went down to a 500GB hard disk.

and 64 bit vista Ultimate.

which comes to £1228 inc VAT and Delivery. which again around the same cost as the other builds ive posted.

what do you guys reckon????

cheers for all the help again guys

 

[rich218]

looks sweet! is ultimate really necessary for an extra £70 almost? may want to check how much you'll really gain from that, your money though

Rich

 

[englandr753]

You should be able to get it for $149 US and yes, to me its worth it.

 

[squeakyfish]

thank you all for your good advice, ill look into the differences of Ultimate and Premium and make a decision on which suits me nearer to when i get this build

 

[englandr753]

Premium is good, basic is what you want to stay away from. Ultimate will likely have more than you will use...

 

[aevm]

That site looks like an Asus branch (or an Asus fanboy-club). Also, I suspect all their hard drives are Western Digital. TBH I think they are very annoying, not showing the brands and the individual part prices. Maybe it's just a badly designed Web site. Anyway, here's what I'd pick:

Processor (CPU)


Intel® Core™2 Duo E8400 (2 X 3.00GHz) 1333MHz FSB/6MB L2 Cache

Memory (RAM)


4GB CORSAIR XMS2 800MHz - LIFETIME WARRANTY! (2x2GB)

Motherboard


ASUS® STRIKER || FORMULA: DUAL DDR2, S-ATA II, 3 x X16 VGA

Operating System


64 BIT WINDOWS® VISTA HOME PREM SP1 (inc CD & License) (£55)

USB Options


6 x USB 2.0 PORTS (4 REAR + 2 FRONT) AS STANDARD

Memory - 1st Hard Disk


1000GB SERIAL ATA II HARD DRIVE WITH 32MB CACHE (7200rpm)

2nd Hard Disk


NONE

RAID (HDD 1 & 2)


NONE

1st CD/DVD Drive


20x Dual Layer LightScribe DVD Writer ±R/±RW/RAM

2nd CD/DVD Drive


NONE

Graphics Card


512MB GEFORCE 8800GTS PCI Express + DVI + TV-OUT

2nd Graphics Card


512MB GEFORCE 8800GTS PCI Express + DVI + TV-OUT

Sound Card


Onboard 8 Channel High Definition Audio (P5N-T DELUX & P5N-D)

Modem


NONE, I WILL BE USING BROADBAND

Network Facilities


ONBOARD 10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT

Floppy Disk Drive


NONE

Memory Card Reader


INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (READS XD, MS, CF, SD, etc)

Case


CoolerMaster CM Stacker 831 Black Aluminium Case

Power Supply & Case Cooling


850W GALAXY ENERMAX FIVE RAIL PSU + 120mm Case Fan (£149)

Processor Cooling


ASUS SILENT KNIGHT II PURE COPPER ULTRA COOLER (£36)

Firewire & Video Editing


2 x IEEE 1394a FIREWIRE PORTS (1 onboard, 1 at back panel)

TV Card


NONE

Monitor


NONE

2nd Monitor


NONE

DVI Cable


NONE

Keyboard & Mouse


NONE

Mouse


NONE

Speakers


NONE

Printer


NONE

Surge Protection


NONE

Webcam & VoIP


NONE

Media Center Kit


NONE

Anti-Virus


NONE

Office Software


NONE

External Hard Drive


NONE

Warranty


1 Year Return-to-Base incl 1st Month Free Collect & Return

Delivery


Standard Insured Delivery to UK Mainland (Mon-Fri 8am-6pm)

Quantity


1


Other Features Included As Standard...

Software


CD/DVD authoring software and Power DVD software is included with all DVD Writers.

Ports


Each computer comes with 1 x PS/2 keyboard port and either 1 x PS/2 mouse port or 2 extra USB ports.

Fans


Where necessary your computer will come with extra case fans fitted.

Memory


Our memory comes with a 100% tested lifetime warranty!

Bezels


All our drives come in either silver, black or beige and are all of a
high quality & matched brand.

Support


We offer lifetime hardware technical support during normal office hours.

Cables & Manuals


A power cable, all drivers, manuals, and a heatsink & fan are included with every order.

Service


Our computers come fully assembled & thoroughly tested. We are so confident
in the quality of our computers that we offer a free collection and re-delivery service* should you ever have a problem with your computer.

Installation


If you order an operating system it will come fully installed with the CD and licence key.

And Finally


If you are lucky enough to have seen a cheaper quote, click here.


Price for this PC System:

Price for this PC System:

£1151.49 ex VAT.

£1353 inc VAT and Delivery.