I 7 920 self build- can you look over this build?

greasy dave

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use: mostly gaming, some video processing
overclocking: No, at least not if I use the bundled fan
budget: 1000 Euros
Will be crossfiring in the future
Have a monitor and dvd burner

Processor: i7 920
Mobo: asus p6t se
http://www.alza.cz/asus-p6t-se-d113000.htm
Hard drive: samsung spinpoint f3
PSU: corsair tx 650W
grafic card: HD 5850
case: antec gamer 300
RAM: zeppelin 6 GB kit
http://www.alza.cz/zeppelin-6gb-kit-ddr3-1600mhz-d119958.htm
fan :intel bundled fan

my questions:
regards mobo, I've looked over these two other boards:
http://www.alza.cz/asus-rampage-ii-gene-d112825.htm
http://www.alza.cz/zakladni-deska-asus-p6t-ws-pro-d105455.htm

But it seems that they just have extras which I don't need. asus p6t se seems fine from reviews I've read - opinions?

Regards hard drive, I was planning on a WD black, but someone on this forum told me that the spinpoint f 3 is good and fast (something about a bigger head) - and the price comes in way lower than a WD black. True? False?

Do i need a 650 W PSU, or is 550 W enough for crossfiring the 5850?

The RAM is some "no" brand, cos I can't afford the extra 100 dollars for OCZ. I've no idea what the difference is between 1600 Mhz and 1000 Mhz - which is better? I'm guessing from price that CL7 is better than CL9, but again, it's out of my budget range.

Thanks in advance.
 
^ For your usage, I would suggest the i5(Faster than the AMD Phenom II 965 3.4GHz) or at the max i7 860(faster than the 920 but for gaming, even the i5 would suffice)...they are as good or maybe even better than the i7 920 in gaming and also can handle video processing quite well...
http://www.alza.cz/intel-core-i5-750-quad-core-2-66ghz-95w-d136077.htm
http://www.alza.cz/gigabyte-p55-ud4-d135149.htm
http://www.alza.cz/msi-p55-gd65-d134263.htm
http://www.alza.cz/zakladni-deska-asus-p6t-ws-pro-d105455.htm

So save money by switching to the P55 boards and invest in a good quality PSU...

And yes you would need atleast 650W(A high quality one from Corsair/ Antec/ Seasonic/ Silverstone/ PCP&S) inorder to run 2x hd 5850s...
But just make sure than it has atleast 4x 6Pin PCIe power connector as eash 5850 would require 2...
This PSU would be very good if you want some headroom left...
http://www.alza.cz/pocitacovy-zdroj-corsair-tx750-d83564.htm

And RAM - 4GB wkit would be good and operating voltage not more than 1.65V

And as for the HDD, Yes the Samsung is a very good drive and is nearly as fast as the Black but has slightly higher access time...but for the price, they are very good...
 

greasy dave

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Thanks.

I was steering away from the i5 and the P55 boards because of what I read on this website about problems with the Foxconn sockets.
 

greasy dave

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LOL! You really know how to turn a guy's head.

The i5 750 certainly prices in a 100 dollars cheaper.

I've been chewing over the choice between i5, X4-955, and i7, for the last couple of weeks - reading all the reviews and comparisons. I know in gaming there's not alot of difference between them. And I know logically I should shop by price therefore. But I've had half an eye on the long term view.

Future proofing is impossible - I know, I know - but I'd been leaning towards the AM3 socket or 1366 socket because at least they are supposed to have a future of some sort. If only for this year. And when I priced out that I could get the i7 920 for under 1000 Euros I was leaning towards that...because well, the reviews state it's better architecture, a better chip...and in my layman's logic it seems therefore possibly more likely to stand up to the tests of time . . . possibly . . .whatever they might be. It might seem like overkill now, but maybe in two years it'll seem like a good decision. . .or not. . . :lol:

Hmm, but the price of the i5 is certainly very very attractive.
 
^ Lolz...was just trying to suggest what was best suitable for your needs...

And as for the socket, the LGA 1156 has better prospects than the AM3...
Reason - AMD will most probably launch a newer socket in 2011 as they will be launching a new archietecture "Bulldozer" then...So I dont think they would stick with AM3...
But Intel has just launched the LGA 1156 and looking back at Intel's way of changing sockets, I feel the LGA 1156 atleast has 2+ years of socket life...

And as for the difference between the i7 920 and i5, Yes the 920 is very powerful...but like I said for your needs, the 750 can handle it very well...And when you feel the need for more power, just overclock the CPU...The i5s really have a very good overclock headroom(3.8GHz is easily achievable with a good aftermarket HSF) So at that speeds, am sure it can hold on...And also if you want you can upgrade to a faster i7(i7 8xx series) CPU, that are as good as the 920 and in some cases slightly better...
And at what resolution do you play and what kind of games ?
If you play FPS/ RPG/ Racing games at 1080p or above, then you can go with i5 and maybe get the HD 5870 with the money saved...It will play games better than the i7 + HD 5850 for sure and will last longer... ;)

So finally its you choice...And 1 thing is for sure that all the above CPUs are good for your requirements...
 

greasy dave

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LOL
Your logic again completely wins me over.

True, i've read all kinds of different opinions about the future of the 1156 socket . . and I'm not gonna bet the bank on it having a future.

But I'd forgotten about the option of upgrading to i7 8xx. So I'll probably go for the i5 and the gigabyte pd 55a ud4 mobo you reccomended, if you think that mobo will do the trick.

AS for the choice of graphic card, now yuo've really got me scratching my head LOL.

I play games at max res now of 1280 x 1040. I have a 19 inch monitor. And I play mostly rpg (Dragon Age, Mass Effect, Fallout 3) and strategy ( Total War - in fact Total War and Civ are the main reason I'm building this monster and not switching to a console)

I know it's overkill for a 19 inch monitor - and the games I mentioned above, but I wanted to give myself some room for growth, in the future.

I picked the 5850 over the 5870, because the 5870 seemed even more like overkill with my current monitor - and I'd save myself 150 dollars. I was thinking that when the single 5850 could no longer handle it, I'd crossfire it ( the card price will have dropped by then). Hence the need for a bigger PSU.

But maybe you're right. Maybe a 5870 now, a smaller PSU (550 or 650W). and buy a new single card sometime in the future...or HD 5870 and 750 W PSU now and crossfire in the future when a second one will be cheaper. something to think about over the weekend :) I'll have to reprice everything :)

Thanks a million for all the advice, can I ask one last question...you mentioned a good aftermarket HSF (I guess that means fan) - I've been having a hard time trying to find a brand reccomended on this website, over here (I'm based in the Czech republic). Are there any brand names in this selection that you think would do the trick on a i5?

http://www.alza.cz/chlazeni/na-procesory/socket-1156/18850285.htm

This company is the equivalent of Newegg over here, and these are the range of fans they have available for the 1156 socket - a better choice I probably won't find :-(

Once again many, many thanks for the advice. It's helped an awful lot.
 
^ Well looking at your current resolution, stick with the HD 5850(Still an overkill though) for now...
Just get a bigger PSU...when you upgrade your monitor, then add 1 more in crossfire later on...Don't spend extra money on the 5870 for now...I dint know your monitor resolution so in general suggested the 5870...
Actually with the money saved, why not a new wide-screen monitor ? But if you are happy with your current one, stick with it...

HSF - CPU Cooler -> CM Hyper 212+
http://www.alza.cz/coolermasterhyper212-d127035.htm

Glad I could help...
 

greasy dave

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greasy dave

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Yeah, i'ev just been doing further reading about the Foxconn problem and the two mobo's, and now I'm starting to doubt..

http://www.xtremesystems.org/Forums/showthread.php?t=234723#
http://www.anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.aspx?i=3661
http://forums.techgage.com/showthread.php?t=5379

This problem was discovered in November. I doubt either company will have changed over to a new socket by this time. Ad the mobo's that are over here in the czech Republic, will be more likely be older mobo's cos it takes everythign so much longer to get here.

I'm not planning on extreeme over clocking...but... makes me wonder.
 

xrodney

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AM3 most likely stay longer then 1156 and i think same will do 1356.
Also i doubt there will many new cpu models for 1156, probably just faster versions for same model and P55 boards are not that great for enthusiasts as they have only few PCI-e links, that means CF will only run in 8x8x mode if get version that supports that.
 
^ You can never say...I had just given a rough time period taking into considerations the current situation and the past figures...
And you should check out the recent article that was posted today at TOMs comparing the performance of P55 and X58 chipsets...And I feel the P55 would suffice for the ainstream crwod and that is what Intel is aiming for...And as far as the CPU goes, there will be 32NM parts, which am sure will be faster and better(Similar to the Core2Duo series)...

@greasy dave as I said before Gigabyte and ASUS had moved to a different socket(Lotes)...and the newer mobos(ones with the USB 3.0 and SATA 6GB/s) will likely be using different ones...And also like obsidian86 said, it only happens during extreme overclock...
But still go with P55 only if you feel OK...
 

greasy dave

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I'm Mr. Mainstream regards computers, and looking at the Tom's review of the crossfire potential, I'm persuaded that the price difference is worth the slight drop in crossfire power from 8x 8x. I can only see a difference in performance if I look really, really hard.

The truth is I don't have the budget to do the 1366 properly.
As for the future.....I guess that's my main sticking point . . .I'd been drawn towards AM3 cos of talk of the hexacore thuban being AM 3. But that's for release this year and then like you say, new architecture.
I'll think it over, over the weekend. I'm inclined to go p55, i5.
 

greasy dave

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Actually, I met with a friend at the weekend who works with software and hardware - and who knows my needs really well - and can also explain the tech specs. He took me to the intel website and explained the pro's and cons of the i5 750, i7 860 and i7920, then we browsed the gigabyte and asus websites.

What he said made me decide to wait for a month and put a little extra money into it, after I get paid. I realised I'm looking for something with a little more staying power than the i5 750. The theory being if I put a little more money into the build now, I'll get more out of it in the long run. Comparative performance reviews are all very well, but the architecture is the bottom line. I'm looking at either the i7 860 or the i7 920 with their 8 channels.

I was going to stick with the 1366 because there'll be further processors for it - a potential (uncertain, but still potential) upgrade path. Intel have been absolutely silent about the future of the 1156, which doesn't reassure me.

Then we examined the mobo's for each socket, and my friend explained the tech specs - and, well, as I'm sure you're aware, the mobo's for the 1566 are way better than the 1366. So much so, that now I'm swinging back towards the 1156.

Many of the 1366 boards were originally released early last year, and haven't been updated, or become cheaper.

We were comparing the Gigabyte P55 UD5 with the Gigabyte X58 UD7. The P55 is able to take 2600 Mhz RAM, the X58 only 2000 Mhz - true the X58 can have up to 24 GB, and the P55 only 16GB - but the P55 is 25 percent cheaper than the X58 :fou: I'm not sure a 25 percent price hike is worth 8 GB RAM

I don't see the point of spending more for the same which - in my layman's view - this is a case of, yet I feel frustrated that I'm being price pushed towards a socket with an uncertain future. So the decision was, no decision :D And when I have a little more money to afford the system I want, we'll look at it again. Who knows in four weeks time, maybe, just maybe, some freakishly brilliant new line of 1366 boards might have come onto the market at a ridiculously good price. :(

Or maybe I'll go i 860 and P55 UD5 / UD5 C and accept the lack of CPU upgrade future for the price of a better mobo.

Anyway, the decisions been postponed, and I'd like to thank you for your help and advice. It's been really illuminating.
 
^ Hmm...
In few weeks time, you can expect Intel to release i7 930(920's replacement) so on the CPU front, it should provide a better match for the 860...
And as for the mobo, I feel you shouldn't conclude that the current X58 boards are not good just based on the RAM speed alone(going over 2000MHz speed would be of no actual use - maybe benchmarking...)

But then again a lot can change in a months time in the hardware world...So its good that you keep your options open...
 

greasy dave

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Not concluding the X58 boards are no good - I was concluding that they are expensive for what they offer - 25 percent more expensive for 8 GB of extra RAM. :(

This made me unhappy.

Interesting news about the i7 930 - the i7 920 will probably drop in price on its release :) Definitely a reason to wait :)
 
^ Dont expect a significant price drop because the 930 is a replacement so the 920's production would stop...

Well it is not only the extra 8GB RAM...dint you include the full x16x16 bandwidth + Tri-Channel memory controller ?
 

greasy dave

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Well it is not only the extra 8GB RAM...dint you include the full x16x16 bandwidth + Tri-Channel memory controller ?

Aah. hmmm....OK, a fair point
Is there a 1366 mobo you'd reccomend me look at, btw? (Apart from the Gigabyte X58A range)
And are there any new 1366 mobo's due for release this Spring, ie, worth waiting for?

Is there a date on the i7 930? Feb, or March or April?