Build from a few months ago update. Help please?

[karm100fists]

Hello,

I've finally got together a little money and I think that I'm going to build the system that I put together a few months ago. I just wanted to know if there were any sweeping changes in the past 5 months or so that I should incorporate into the build

So far my system looks like this

Motherboard = ASUS P5Q Pro LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel
$139.99
Processor = Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz LGA 775
$189.99
Graphics Cards=SAPPHIRE 100242L Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 P
$179.99
Power Supply = CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V
$119.99
RAM = G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500)
104.99
DVD burner = Sony NEC Optiarc 20X DVD±R Burner Black SATA Model
$25.99
Case = LIAN LI Lancool PC-K7B Aluminum/ SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
$89.99
HDD = Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3500630AS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s
$69.99
Case Fan = Scythe S-FLEX SFF21E 120mm Case Fan - Retail
$29.98

Total is $992.32 - 40.00 MIR
$952.32
Anything that I should change?

In addition I'm planning on using Windows XP Pro until I save up enough to get
Transcend TS32GSSD25S-M 2.5" 32GB SATA Internal Solid state disk (SSD) - Retail $155.00
and Windows Vista Home Premium 64-Bit $99.99
2 x 2gb ram $115.99

 

[particleman]

You can probably get ram in a 2x2gb format for less. That leaves space for future upgrades.

Vista Ultimate is overkill, unless you run a business too.
Save money and get Home Premium, and go for 64-bit.

Cheers.

-PM

 

[hopkiller]

this is just my opinon and that would be to get a Asus P5Q-Pro mobo for 140 dollars and get a singel HD 4870 instead of the two 8800 GT

 

[Nik_I]

i think you would get better performance by getting a 4870 instead of 2 8800GT's. i would also say to stay away from open box items, and i'm not sure if a 650i board is such a great idea. and as for the ram, get 2x2GB. that'll leave you room to upgrade later on.

 

[jpdykes]

^ +1.

Definitely move to 4870. Go with one to start then add a second later if you feel the need.

Given that ATi tech is better go with an Asus P5Q-Pro or Gigabyte P45 motherboard. Intel chipsets are superior to NVidia's.

I would also migrate to a Corsair 750TX. It gives a few more connectors and a few extra watts over the OCZ. Corsair are very reliable and the 750 will have a good lifetime as it can also support Core i7 architecture.

Jeremy

 

[alvine]

Asus P5Q ($139.99) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131299

4850 ($150 after MIR) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102747

 

[jpdykes]

Given that the original spec was a $300 spend on graphics you could probably push the boat out for a 4870 and still save $10-20.

 

[karm100fists]

Wow thanks for the amazingly quick responses. I updated the specs and saved like $50 for a better system! So the 4850 performs better than 2 8800 GTs? Wow.

 

[karm100fists]

The PSU you reccomended Corsair 750TX. has a lot of bad reviews on Newegg. It has a lot of good reviews as well which suggests that it works great more often than not but I was wondering why you reccomended it (stats or personal experience) and what the advantage might be over something like
Antec EA650 650W ATX12V

Thanks

 

[jpdykes]

From what I can see 78% of reviews gave it 5 out of 5. The 13% at 4 out of 5. Making 91% giving it 4 or above. Seems like a pretty high number of good reviews to me.

The PSU hierarchy charts rank Corsair very well and I have come across very few problems with the units.

 

[resonance451]

I think you need to go browse newegg for a little while. There are far better configs out there now.

 

[karm100fists]

Resonance could you be more specific about which pieces you think are insufficient?

 

[jpdykes]

I don't know the build design looks fairly solid. The prices may be a little out. Have a quick check again. If there is a saving either you can buy something better or pocket the saving.

 

[karm100fists]

I'd prefer to buy a very nice Mobo and be able to upgrade on it for a long time then going cheap in that department. Would spending $200+ increase the lifetime of the board? I'd rather spend $50 more now than upgrade the motherboard in two years and have to buy a new processor different ram video card etc...

 

[karm100fists]

Oh and also, will I need a new heatsink for the CPU? Will the stock one support any ammount of overclocking? I don't anticipate a need to overclock my processor but at some point I will probably mess around with it.

Edit: I made a few changes (2$ cheaper DVD writer without lightscribe! and $10 cheaper hdd for no apparent reason!) New total is 942.32 after MIRs.

 

[jpdykes]

The board will be scrap when the new Intel chipsets are released into the mainstream this time next year. i7 requires an entirely different socket. So probably by the time you upgrade again you will use that architecture.

I would wager that there unlikely to be revisions on current designs in the motherboard department that are very significant before that point. We are expecting USB3 and SATA 600 but there probably won't be immediate uptake or need.

To my mind I can't see the requirement for X48. It will give you slightly better performance if you add a second graphics card, but given the step forward graphics have just taken and NVidia's poor response to ATi I would expect a rapid improvement in that department. Consequently when you start to think about a 2nd GPU I expect there to be something faster and cheaper than the dual GPU solution.

Jeremy

 

[karm100fists]

OK thanks I will probably stick with the cheaper board then.