New Gaming Rig - seeking review before I buy

Hello all;

Please review the below system and suggest modifications.

Two points to consider:

1. I have a 30" LCD monitor - native mode 2560x1600.
2. I've got another $300 - $400 to use in the budget for this box if I need it.

Thanks in advance for all suggestions!


1 Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Retail $119.99

1 GIGABYTE GA-X48-DS4 LGA 775 Intel X48 ATX Intel Motherboard $224.99

2 POWERCOLOR AX4850 512MD3-H Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire

Supported Video Card $184.99

1 CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply $119.99

1 Intel Core 2 Duo E8500 Wolfdale 3.16GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80570E8500 $189.99

1 A-DATA 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model

ADQVE1B16K $74.99

1 Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive $84.99

1 Sony NEC Optiarc 20X DVD±R Burner Black SATA Model AD-7200S-0B $25.99

1 Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound $5.99

1 XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler - Retail $36.99

1 XIGMATEK ACK-I7751 Retention Bracket - Retail $6.99

Subtotal: $1,260.89

Gaming.
Feel free to bump the price as needed to support the resolution.

the hd4870 or 4870x2 (the better option imo) would be good, or you could add on another 4850 for xfire, i am in canada so i am not sure of any good prices on them if you are in the US
I am sure there are some good deals if you look around, the rest looks good, the x48 ds4 is a good board and i have both the tx750 and antec 900 which are both great

hey John you might want to reconsider the processor it would be better for you to buy

Intel Core 2 Duo E 8400 @ 3.0 Ghz price at $169 available at newegg
here is the link
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819115037

• I Currently have 2 4850s in crossfire in this configuration. Are you saying I would be better off with 1 4870 card rather than 2 4850?

• The high rez worries me a bit- what is best for supporting 2560x1600? 2 cards in crossfire, or one bigger / better card?

• What about 2 4870s? Will the PSU support that? Is it worth it?

• Is the e8400 suggestion just to save $20 over the e8500? Or is there more to that choice?

Thanks for all your help so far - please, keep it coming!

Having done a bit of reading, I'm considering this change now:

Junk the 4850's.

Add this to the build:


GIGABYTE GV-R487X2-2GH-B Radeon HD 4870 X2 2GB 512-bit (256-bit x 2) GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail $579

At high resolution, this monster just rocks. It pushes the total system price to $1470 before mail in rebates, but I'm willing to spend this much to drive games on this monitor.

Questions i have for you wizards:

• Will my selected PSU support a second one of these monsters in the distant future?
• Is the processor fast enough to support the card?
• Have I selected the best motherboard for this card?