Some advice on my new build ...

[Vixe]

My knowledge of the tech-world isn't what it used to be, and I need some advice on what to choose ...

I've always favoured the i7 920, but I see that I can get the i7 860 for cheaper. Which is better and why? I'm planning on getting a P55 mobo because the X58 is more expensive. If I use a i7 920 on a P55 board, is it a bad idea? And must I use triple-channel memory? I really can't decide.

So far I have chosen the following specs:

CPU - Intel i7 860
Mobo- Asus P7P55D
RAM - OCZ 4GB DDR3-1300 (2 x 2GB)

What would you guys change to the above?

P.S. I'm not listing a budget or prices or anything because I live in South Africa and I don't want to hear about "OMG you can get the i7 965 for $100 if you pick it up on location and sell your soul" bullcrap. It takes about 2 weeks for big upgrades to the tech world to reach our doorsteps (like DX11 cards) but up to 6 weeks for new products such as new motherboard released from ASUS/Gigabyte or what have you. So please just give some standard item recommendations and nothing that we most likely won't have, and even if we had what you recommend it would cost twice as much over here.

 

[mavanhel]

Well, without a standard budget it'll be tough, but I understand your situation and I'll do my best, but we also need to know what the purpose of this build is for. As for the 920 on the p55 platform, BAD question. The 920 will not fit in the socket 1156, so must be on the x58 platform. This means that the 920 is completely out of your league if you don't want to go x58. As far as parts go, here are my suggestions:

CPU: i7-860

Mobo: ASUS P7P55D-E PRO (Has new USB 3.0 and SATA III ports)

HDD: Samsung F3 Spinpoint 500GB (or 1TB if needed)

GPU: HD 5850, or if you have the money go for the 5870

RAM: G.SKILL 4GB (2x2GB) CL = 7 DDR3

OD: Any cheap DVD Burner, make sure it's SATA

Case: Something with good airflow, HAF 922/932, Antec 1200.

HSF: Cooler Master Hyper 212

Something like this would run you around $1200 in Canada. This is a standard quality gaming build and will be able to run any game on the market at any resolution at mid - high settings.

 

[MadAdmiral]

The above is a good build, except that the i5-750 is better for gaming and significantly cheaper ($80ish US). The i7 has hyperthreading allowing for better multi-tasking and more use of the multiple cores. The i5 has the ability to automatically overclock the cores in use when others are idle. Thus, since games only use one core, it will overclock that one without any changes necessary.

I would stick with the HAF 922. It's cheaper than the 932 and Antec 1200, and just as good.

All of that has been out for a while, so it should be available. If you want a USD equivalent, it'd be about $1,000 with the 5850, $1,100 with the 5870.

 

[Vixe]

Thanks for the support guys.

The self-overclocking feature is very desirable in my case, and so the i5-750 might be a better option. The money that I saved on the CPU will probably go to the motherboard for the ASUS P7P55D-E PRO. I already knew of it beforehand but many of the suppliers here don't have it yet.

I've already planned on getting the HAF 922 (best bang for buck, I say) and I'm buying an HD 4890 from a friend for pretty cheap ... funny story ... I went to a massive LAN Party, booked seats for my friends and the organizers messed the seats up, so my one friend took my seat. Then there was a lucky draw for an HD 4890 and his seat won (which was meant to be mine). Needless to say I guilt-tripped him into selling it to me for really cheap (seeing how his case can't fit it, PSU can't power it) !

But again thanks for the support. More people can add some of their opinions if they feel it necessary.