~1200$ New gaming PC

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Nannari

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Well, I'm few weeks away from ordering a new, homebuildt, demi-gamer PC. My budget is kinda tight, as I'm a student, and as I'm from one of the highest taxed nations in the world, the setup won't be as good as I could get in other countries, e.g. the U.S..
Reason for posting here, instead of on a Norwegian forum, is that most of them are biased by lack of knowlegde and a stubborn mind. Two things that hardly go hand-in-hand.

Using links from Newegg, as my suppliers are all 100% based in Norway, and has no English sites.

The price of the system will be 1,167$, excl. the shipping fees, but including all taxes.


Case
Aplus Monolize II (Newegg says monolith, but its Monolize :p)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811294007


PSU
Chieftec Super Series 650W Modular. Can't find ANY Chieftec products at Newegg, so I'm linking to the manufacturers site.
http://www.chieftec.com/super-power.html


Motherboard:
Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3
www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128344


CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115037


Memory
OCZ Gold XTC 4096 MB DDR2 PC6400
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227199


Harddrive
Samsung Spinpoint F1 500 GB 16 MB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152098


DVD-R
Samsung SH-S203D (The product in the link is actually the S203N, but couldn't find any differences anyway...)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151155


GPU
PowerColor Radeon HD 4850
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131111


OS
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116488


So. Questions are basically if this is a decent setup?
As far as i can see, i can purchase another HD4850 at a later date, and run a Crossfire setup?
Will I need anything besides these parts?


Cheers.






 
N

Nannari

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I see.. Quite a leap as far as price goes though. Is this needed bc. of the Crossfire setup later on?
 
D

dirtmountain

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Since the P45 has only been out for a short time there aren't many reviews on how well they crossfire. This article by Tweaktown was the first and is usually referred to
http://www.tweaktown.com/articles/1472/intel_p45_vs_x48_crossfire_performance/index.html
I've seen several other reviews with the HD4850 that show the P45 at 8X-8X to be only a couple of percentage points slower that an X38 or X48
board at 16X-16X. If you want the full potential of your GPU you should probably go the X48 motherboard.
Get SATA for your hard drives and DVD burner.
Western Digital 640MD HD
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136218
Sorry, i know nothing about Chieftain power supplies.
 
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jevon

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If you plan on overclocking that processor you'll want an aftermarket heatsink. I'd recommend the Xigmatek or OCZ Vendetta 2 - either of those PLUS a sold-seperately retention bracket to mount it to the motherboard securely. Or, the Sunbeam Core Contact that comes with a different kind of retention bracket - not as good as a metal bolt through, but better than the push pins that come wtih the Xigmatek or OCZ.

I barely recognize the Chieftec brand and don't think I would Crossfire 4850's on it. Corsair 620W or 650W would better choices, PSU's are too important too skimp out on.

X48 does give better CF performance, but there hasn't been enough testing done to see if a P45 bottlenecks 4850's in Crossfire enough to justify the extra cost of X48. I'd stick with the P45 you have listed.

Also, check around the forums, others have posted links to some larger European eTailers that you may be able to order from and same some money.

Good luck!

EDIT: Whoops, left this open too long and others posted before I replied. Along the same lines though, and I agree with the 640gb drive too.
 
N

Nannari

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Well, my main reason for the P45 Motherboard is the price. I dont want to spend 400 NOK (90ish$) when I dont need to.

The Samsung Spinpoint is SATA, and the DVD-R is of no significance, I could just aswell use my 5 year old DVD-R. Only times I use them are at night, burning one single DVD and for Installing Windows.

I'm not going to overclock anything. Can't really afford a breakdown, and I prefer to keep my warranties. :)

I'm not going to run a Crossfire setup right away, I'm buying 1x HD4850, and then later on I might consider buying another.

My reason for the Chieftec is that it has been getting good reviews, it's very cheap (Under 100$ for a 650w Modular), and it's modular. My old PC is also self-buildt, and is horrible as far as layout of cables. Just too damn many.
 
Zenthar

Zenthar

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I tend to disagree about SLI/Crossfire as an upgrade path unless buying some very expansive card up-front or upgrading on very short term (< 1 year).

At the rates thing goes, in 1 to 1.5 years, the mid-range cards will beat or equal older cards in SLI. Right now, ask anyone if adding a second 8800GTS (G80) is better than a <300$ 4870 and most will say go for the 4870. The G80 isn't even 2 years old yet and was launched at 400-450$ ...

My 2 cents
 
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Nannari

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Well, the reason for not purchasing two GPU right away is money. I'm a student with a new apartment, and I have limited funds per month. I could purchase another card a month after the first, or maybe right after christmas if I feel the need for it.
That's basically what it comes down to. If I'm content with the preformance of 1x HD4850, I won't bother buying a second one. If I do, however, feel like I need more power, I can buy an additional card a month or maybe even less later.
 
N

Nannari

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Oh, Just realized something.
I'm also looking to buy a cheap LCD monitor, 19-22". preferably a 22" i suppose. I got quite a good guess on what I'm going to get, but how preferable is a DVI-D connection compared to an old VGA? If I could stick with the VGA, I can get a really good screen, cheap (Read: Asus VK222S). Low ms and high contrast is what I want.

Oh also, finding an Euro-supplier wouldn't make a difference for me. As Norway is not a part of the EU, and I'd still have to pay the 25% Tax, plus the postal fees internal in norway.
 
Proximon

Proximon

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Apr 10, 2006
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If you are just getting a 22" you do NOT need a x48 MB.

Early reviews gave the P45 low marks on crossfire it's true. More recent reviews showed very little difference for normal resolutions. Only at the resolutions supported by large monitors do you NEED an x48.

If a sacrifice of 2 FPS in most games seems like a reasonable trade, get yourself an ASUS P5Q Pro or P5Q-E.

Two reviews to look at:
http://en.hardspell.com/doc/showcont.asp?news_id=3763&pageid=3085
http://www.legionhardware.com/document.php?id=761&p=5
 
N

Nannari

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Thanks. Great input.
Don't think I'm going to spend 40$ more getting the Asus P5Q though, as I've buildt and used Gigabyte motherboards previously, and I'm very content with them.

Cheers
 
Zenthar

Zenthar

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22" LCD (widescreen) have a resolutions of 1680x1050 and at that resolution, a single 4850 would do fine, a 4870 would last a bit longer for more demanding games (Crysis, Farcry 2 and the likes). SLI/Crossfire make a difference mostly at resolutions above that.
 
N

Nannari

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Yeah. I won't be playing the most advanced games. Possibly games such as Assassins Creed, DiabloIII(eventually ;) ), Free MMOs, Shaiya, CO, etc. :)
 
Proximon

Proximon

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Apr 10, 2006
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The P5Q Pro I referenced is actually $10.00 less than the board you are getting, and seems to be getting better reviews.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131299

I'm sure you'll be happy with the Gigabyte though. It has some better features.

Edit:

Well of course I have no idea what your prices are in Norway.

The only thing I really don't like is your case. That huge side fan could be a problem with higher cards and tall CPU coolers, and you really want a vent in the lower front to intake most of your air there, so that you have a better flow.

Given the approximate price range of your system and your taste in cases, would you be interested in:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129042
Should be easy to find anywhere and is a great case for the price range.
 
N

Nannari

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Actually, I'm not sure if you checked the images for the Monolize or not, but the 25cm fan is actually as slim as standard 8 or 12cm fans for the side window. And I love the way the Monolize looks. ;>

Still a couple of weeks until I order, but the setup I first posted will be the one. I guess. Already pushing my budget a lot by buying windows vista, and a 22" monitor. :)
 
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