$900-$1000 Gaming PC Please rate & comment

thorox · Jul 11, 2009

Well this will be my first PC build and I'm building it for gaming.

Here's the parts:

Motherboard:ASUS P6T SE
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131386

Video Card: SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 4870 1GB(Xfire in future)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102801

Case: COOLER MASTER RC-690
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137&Tpk=COOLER%20MASTER%20RC-690

PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

CPU: Intel Core i7 920
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202

RAM: OCZ Platinum 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227381

HDD: Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319

CD-ROM Drive: SAMSUNG Black 22X DVD+R
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151171

OS: Windows 7 RC

CPU Cooler: XIGMATEK Dark Knight-S1283V 120mm Long Life Bearing
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233029

Thermal Paste: Artic Silver 5
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100007

Well, let me know what you think.

EDIT: has been changed many times Ive decided to go with a i7 build look ^

AKM880 · Jul 11, 2009

Looks like a good build overall, good luck with it!

kevin1212 · Jul 11, 2009

Great build.

kickinwing · Jul 11, 2009

Great Build

skora · Jul 11, 2009

On the HSF, the sunbeams are very difficult to fit on the UD3P. I have the 120mm on a Asus board and I think its the best bang for the buck HSF ever. But if it won't fit on you're board, might want to consider something else. This site will have some quality alternatives:
http://www.frostytech.com/top5heatsinks.cfm#INTELHEATSINK
Either of the XIGMATEK s1283 would work very well for you.

Also, for $5-10 more, you can get a 4870 1gb card. Well worth the extra few bucks.

Be sure to check combos too, you might be able to substitute some parts with other quality parts to get a discount.

Not that the 4870 isn't a capable GPU, but what size monitor you running?

blackhawk1928 · Jul 11, 2009

Great build, but be warned, in the future, you will not be able to upgrade much at all, your system is using end of life technology, like your socket,ram,processor,and motherboard

thorox · Jul 11, 2009

skora :

On the HSF, the sunbeams are very difficult to fit on the UD3P. I have the 120mm on a Asus board and I think its the best bang for the buck HSF ever. But if it won't fit on you're board, might want to consider something else. This site will have some quality alternatives:
http://www.frostytech.com/top5heatsinks.cfm#INTELHEATSINK
Either of the XIGMATEK s1283 would work very well for you.

Also, for $5-10 more, you can get a 4870 1gb card. Well worth the extra few bucks.

Be sure to check combos too, you might be able to substitute some parts with other quality parts to get a discount.

Not that the 4870 isn't a capable GPU, but what size monitor you running?

Monitor is a 19 inch wide screen native resolution is 1400x900

thorox · Jul 11, 2009

blackhawk1928 :

yes maybe 5-6 years down the road but this system should last 3-4 years

blackhawk1928 · Jul 11, 2009

mhm...doubt that with a new socket out and another one due at the end of this year, his comp will be out of the game

meatwad53186 · Jul 11, 2009

Yea, at this point AM3 looks to be the way to go for a gaming PC with upgrade-ability down the road at this price point. Try this build and tell me what you think:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137
COOLER MASTER RC-690-KKN1-GP Black SECC/ ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail $69.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006
CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Retail $119.49 ($99.49 after $20 MIR)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.212581 Combo Discount: -$85.00 Combo Price: $339.99
AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor - Retail
ASUS M4A79T Deluxe AM3 DDR3 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835207004 $39.99 ($24.99 after $15.00 MIR)
Sunbeam CR-CCTF 120 mm Core-Contact Freezer CPU Cooler W/TX-2 - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150359 $199.99
XFX HD-489A-ZDFC Radeon HD 4890 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231200&Tpk=g%20skill $64.99
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL7D-4GBPI - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319 $74.99
Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136167 $25.99
LG Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 22X DVD-R 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD Burner - OEM

Total: $935.42 / $900.42 After MIR

thorox · Jul 11, 2009

meatwad53186 :

Yea, at this point AM3 looks to be the way to go for a gaming PC with upgrade-ability down the road at this price point. Try this build and tell me what you think:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137
COOLER MASTER RC-690-KKN1-GP Black SECC/ ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail $69.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006
CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Retail $119.49 ($99.49 after $20 MIR)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.212581 Combo Discount: -$85.00 Combo Price: $339.99
AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor - Retail
ASUS M4A79T Deluxe AM3 DDR3 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835207004 $39.99 ($24.99 after $15.00 MIR)
Sunbeam CR-CCTF 120 mm Core-Contact Freezer CPU Cooler W/TX-2 - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150359 $199.99
XFX HD-489A-ZDFC Radeon HD 4890 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231200&Tpk=g%20skill $64.99
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL7D-4GBPI - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319 $74.99
Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136167 $25.99
LG Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 22X DVD-R 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD Burner - OEM

Total: $935.42 / $900.42 After MIR

Hmm id really like to stay with a intel quad 9550

thorox · Jul 11, 2009

So the EP45T-UD3P is going to be out of the game in 2 years or so with the 45nm quad cores?

thorox · Jul 11, 2009

Gedoe_ · Jul 11, 2009

$1000 buys you i7 easily. Take that chance.

sighQ2 · Jul 11, 2009

agree with meatwad

UD3P is a bad compromise - the amd platform saves money for better components. don't be thinking spintel has your interests first on the agenda. google eu intel and see what you learn.

jbakerlent · Jul 11, 2009

Just throwing this out here for you to look at... It's a Core i7 based build on a micro-atx platform. I know what you're thinking micro-atx but check it out its nothing to laugh at

. Here are the parts:

MOBO: Asus Rampage II GENE
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4496437&CatId=4070

CPU: Intel Core i7
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4240166&CatId=4072

GPU: Radeon HD 4870 1024mb
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4431355&CatId=3669

RAM: OCZ Platinum Triple Channel 6GB 1600MHZ (Assuming you're going for a 64 bit OS)
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4350431&CatId=4331

HDD: WD 500GB, 7200RPM, 16MB
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2795126&CatId=2459

PSU: OCZ ModXStream Modular, 80-Plus
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4362115&CatId=2533

Case: Thermaltake Micro-ATX 16 x 7 x 14
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3829127

All together it comes in at $1007 from Tiger. Unfortunately your build, although good, is not upgradeable and so I thought I might explain to you how this particular build could be upgraded: Since the socket 1366 is brand new there will certainly be better processors you can swap in for the 920, you can easily add another 4870 in crossfire, you can double the RAM to 12GB, and you can add another 500GB hard drive. Let me know what you think and if you have any problems with it. Good luck!

blackhawk1928 · Jul 11, 2009

^...yeah, new quadcores like i7's and the new i5's coming out is what you want to get if you are building a pc right now.

frozenlead · Jul 11, 2009

+1 for i7.

Thought AMD is a good option, it just won't perform as well as an Intel box will. I wouldn't get an AMD.

thorox · Jul 11, 2009

jbakerlent :

Looks like a good build but what if I stayed with the q9550? Could you recommend a future proof socket 1366 mobo and good ram that will fit inside antec 300/900?
Id like to stay with the 4870 1gb and what's the differnce between a q9550 and lets say a i7 920? Im hoping This rig will last me a few years and all i would have to do is upgrade to another 4870 in crossfire in the future and then if needed upgrade to w/e new processor that 's out if quads are outdated then.

jbakerlent · Jul 11, 2009

From what I've seen the Core i7 920 just massacres the q9550 in just about every benchmark... As to the full size ATX motherboard a good option is this board by ASUS: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4366643&CatId=4068. The RAM that I recommended above will work in this motherboard and case so no need to find a new set there. BTW I recommended the same 4870 that you're looking at (1024mb = 1gb).

jbakerlent · Jul 11, 2009

Maybe knowing which games exactly you plan on playing on it would help too...

thorox · Jul 11, 2009

jbakerlent :

All the latest games at high/highest settings GTA 4 (not expecting to get 100fps in Crysis tho) Bioshock Source engine games etc...

Hmm so Socket 775 will be Non-upgradeable in lets say a year or so?

jbakerlent · Jul 11, 2009

OK, the 920 will perform about 12-15% better in Crysis. And yes the Socket 775 is EOL (End of Life) and there will be no newer processors released for it.

skora · Jul 11, 2009

The only processors that might come along for the socket 775 is a low power version of the products out there already. And since you're picking the top of the line (except for the extreme versions) there's no upgrades available for you. Only replacements.

Here's benchies for the i7 vs the 9550. Neither are OC'd though.
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/default.aspx?p=47&p2=50

If you're looking for an upgrade option in 3-4 years, the 1366 should be viable still and by then, the 32nm chips will be available with lots of options. You'd probably need a bios flash just like everyone did for the 45nm chips on the older P35 or 945 mobo chipsets. With that in mind, definately pick a mobo manufacture that will support their products down the line like gigabyte, asus, or evga.

thorox · Jul 11, 2009

jbakerlent :

But it seems that Intel cant make up there mind on which i7 board to use. Hell, I might just stick with the 775 board with q9550 and be happy with it for a few years

$900-$1000 Gaming PC Please rate & comment

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