Final Build Choice... Almost there...

stevediaman

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Aug 30, 2007
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Q1. The final choice is between getting a Q6600 and over-clocking it to 3.0 (maybe higher if i can safely do it) or getting an E8400 and doing the same...

Q2. IF the E8400 is better than the Q6600 for my specified reasons, will having only a dual core hold me back in the future?

I play on a 22" monitor at 1440x900. The max ill play is 1680x1050. I like to play max graphics if possible, as long as possible. I want this machine to last a good 3-4 years. I play mainly MMO's and the occasional FPS.

I have plans on playing Age of Conan as soon as i finish building this, and probably front lines a little bit later.

In the foreseeable future, ill be playing Warhammer online, stargate worlds, and just about any big name MMO that releases.

the rest of my computer is:

Motherboard: XFX MB-N780-ISH9 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 780i SLI Intel Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813141005

- $220

Processor Heat-sink: XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233003

- $37

Video Cards: 2x EVGA 512-P3-N807-AR GeForce 8800GT AKIMBO SuperClocked 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130335

- $450

Power Supply: COOLER MASTER Real Power Pro RS-750-ACAA-A1 750W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply 115/ 230 V Nemko, TUV, cUL, CE, BSMI, FCC, CCC
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171024

- $120

Memory: OCZ SLI-Ready Edition 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227269

- $65

Hard-Drive: Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 ST3500320AS 500GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148288

- $100

DvD Drive: ASUS Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 20X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 14X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135156

- $35

Case: COOLER MASTER RC-690-KKN1-GP Black SECC/ ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137

- $85

Case Fans: 4x Antec 75003 120mm Case Fan
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835129030

- $48

Other than these parts, im buying some thermal paste, and windows vista 64-bit home premium.

- $96
 

itheral

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Looks like a pretty good build.. and the q6600 is what i would go for. but there are 2 suggestions i would make..
1: change the psu out for a Thermaltake, Corsair, or PcPC of comparable size/price.
and 2: there is probably a better/cheaper solution for gpu's to go with at that resolution. But someone else on the forum may have a definite solution.
 

stevediaman

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Aug 30, 2007
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the main reason i want to get the 8800gt's is because i dont want to overclock the cards myself, and the best GTS i can find are clocked at 650.

the akimbo is clocked to 720 w/ the better heatsinks on them, not to mention come down to $450 a pair. ($240 each + $30 MIR)

dual evga overclocked GTS's at 650 are $480 after rebates ($255 each + $30 MIR)

im pretty sure u can get only 1 rebate per house-hold, so its just for 1 card.

also im an avid supporter of all things EVGA, i refuse to get anything but EVGA. ive been screwed by far too many third world gpu sellers to want to go anywhere else.

also about the powersupply. i want more than a single 12v rail. I cant find a single tier 1-3 PSU that has more than 1 rail in the 750w range for the price i want to pay.

So im guessing no one thinks the Q6600 will hold me back at all?
 

jpdykes

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Aug 7, 2007
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Slight adaptation of a post I made elsewhere.

A Q6600 (extra +$19 over E8400, 65nm, 2.4GHz, 1066MHz bus) would be compatable with the motherboard you spec'ed.

Obviously the clock speed is lower (2.4GHz vs 3GHz) but there are distinct advantages with quad core tech rather than dual core. The Q6600 processor is also renound for being very stable when overclocked so you could, if you so wished, take it to the same clock speed as the E8400 anyway.

A note I read recently suggested this:
Maybe a dual core will beat a quad in the gaming benchmarks. But the benchmarks don't include the antivirus program, torrent downloads and other background tasks that your home computer will be running.
This is when the quad core will come into it's own. Letting you play whilst the other cores take care of everything else.

I don't think you will be held back by a Q6600, in fact it would almost certainly be a better decision than the E8400 especcially if you are prepared to overclock.

I hope that is helpful.
Jeremy
 

stevediaman

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Aug 30, 2007
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appreciate the post jpdykes, its actual information i can use. makes alot of sense above all. i have no problem overclocking, i just havnt dont it before. I just dont want to cause a orange stain on my motherboard lol when its all done... If you know any really good guides, i <3 u long time :D

on another note... i guess i could go w/ a standard clocked 8800GTS, IF i can clock it high.... i just dont want to break anything... thats my dilema basically.

I really want the thicker heatsink also, when it comes down to it. Im pretty sure heat will be an issue for me, so i need the better fans.

the 8800GT Akimbo's just seem like a safer solution to me. (everything i want for a little more in price)
 

royalcrown

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well you enjoy overpaying and I'll enjoy my 159.00 gts...ECS works fine, I own one.

MMO's don't use 4 cores yet even, games make horrible use of 2 at this point and 4 years from now even a q6600 will be old and slow, future proofing for 4 years is about impossible if you want future proof and high fps or res. Right now, most games with the exception of maybe supreme commander run better on 2, who knows in a year or 2, it's a toss up! Don't pull out your hair trying to decide.