Best for Dragon Platform

[rauchster]

Building a computer around the new AMD Phenom II Deneb 940.
Aiming to build a perfect Dragon Platform for it.

So which would be better? I know performance wise, but which is most cost-effective and has the best cost/performance ratio?
I'd prefer to spend as little as possible, but I don't mind buying the bigger stuff.

Option #1: MSI R4870 w/ 1Gb GDDR5

Option #2: 2x MSI R4870 w/ 1Gb GDDR5 in Crossfire

Option #3: ASUS EAH4870X2 w/ 2Gb GDDR5

Option #4: 3x SAPPHIRE 100258-1GL w/ 1Gb GDDR3

The system behind the build is probably going to be:
ASUS M3A79-T Deluxe Motherboard
AMD Phenom II Deneb 940 (OC hopefully up to about 4.0Ghz)
Zalman 9700
OCZ Reaper DDR2 800Mhz RAM 2x2Gb
Corsair 1000W Modular PSU


Thoughts? Ideas? Suggestions?

 

[shugs]

If you go to www.frostytech.com they got an overview on CPU coolers and if I'm not mistaken the Zalman 9700 wasn't that promising. I have the coolermaster V8 and i'm very satisfied with it can handle up to 180W TDP.

You should also have an athlon chip at hand, or know someone that has one which u can use to update the BIOS. You can easily update it to 602 w/a USB stick. Because I got my board a 2 weeks ago and it did recognize the CPU (old BIOS). Only 602 recognizes the Phenom II series.

I would advise option 3, although if you want to save money I can advise the Sapphire HD4870 1GB memory, friend of mine has it and its running very good and flawless.

Personally I have the Powercolor HD4870 1GB DDR5 PCS+ and i'm not very satisfied with it. Atleast I can't OC above the standard OC that it came with (780/925) even tho it keeps the temps extremely low.

 

[rauchster]

If you go to www.frostytech.com they got an overview on CPU coolers and if I'm not mistaken the Zalman 9700 wasn't that promising. I have the coolermaster V8 and i'm very satisfied with it can handle up to 180W TDP.

You should also have an athlon chip at hand, or know someone that has one which u can use to update the BIOS. You can easily update it to 602 w/a USB stick. Because I got my board a 2 weeks ago and it did recognize the CPU (old BIOS). Only 602 recognizes the Phenom II series.

I would advise option 3, although if you want to save money I can advise the Sapphire HD4870 1GB memory, friend of mine has it and its running very good and flawless.

Personally I have the Powercolor HD4870 1GB DDR5 PCS+ and i'm not very satisfied with it. Atleast I can't OC above the standard OC that it came with (780/925) even tho it keeps the temps extremely low.

This is a quote directly from frostytech.com
"The Zalman CNPS9700 LED is a supersized version of the CNPS9500-series heatsinks we've all come to know so well. Now, there's no point in dancing around the fact that Zalman's CNPS9700 LED is just about the best socket 775 heatsink FrostyTech has tested to date, and among the very best ever on the socket 939/AM2 platform."

I've been using it on My 9600BE OC'ed to 2.66Ghz for over a year, with idle temps at room temp (70F), and stress load test temps (all 4 cores 100%, about 110F)
Absolutely nothing wrong with it, in fact, it's the best I've ever used for air cooling.

I like the ASUS 4870X2 2Gb, I really do. It's why I listed it as an option. And I agree it is the most powerful. Hell, a 4870X2 rivals the 295. Completely destroys my MSI NX8800GT 512Mb.

What I want to know is which card is the most cost-effective. Power is nice, but am I going to see notable differences over just a single 4870 1Gb (or the Crossfire dual) in games like Assassin's Creed, Warhammer Online, and of course, Crysis?

 

[The_Blood_Raven]

WOW no! The Zalman 9500 and 9700 are poor performing by todays standards and cost way to much. When the Zalman were "the best" was a LONG time ago. It still is a decent cooler I suppose, but $25-$35 can net you a Xigmatek HST-s1283 which will destroy any Zalman cooler to date.

 

[rauchster]

WOW no! The Zalman 9500 and 9700 are poor performing by todays standards and cost way to much. When the Zalman were "the best" was a LONG time ago. It still is a decent cooler I suppose, but $25-$35 can net you a Xigmatek HST-s1283 which will destroy any Zalman cooler to date.

Well, I already own the Zalman CNPS9700, since I'm taking it off of my old build. So, that's not the question here.

I'm more concerned about the capabilities of the Gfx Card, and which one will fit my situation the best.

 

[The_Blood_Raven]

Oh, I see my bad. The 4870 X2 is easily the best option, one card that performs like the other options, maybe a bit better, and it just slides in without worrying about setting up crossfire.

 

[pb7280]

4870x2, good luck on the ocing i can get stable 3.6 on stock voltage and air cooling