$1200 Gaming Rig opinions wanted

Lord_Foortwenti · Mar 30, 2010

I REALLY appreciate any help and/or opinions, so before we even get started I'd like to thank anyone that takes the time to offer advice.

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: ~ 4/15/10

BUDGET RANGE: +/- $1200 (before rebates, any rebates are a bonus)

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, Writing, Surfing

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: keyboard, mouse, monitor (have 19" crt max res. 1600x1200, that i'm happy w/ but if can fit a nicer monitor in budget...cool beans), speakers (always wear headphones), possibly OS (have a student copy of XP, not sure if I can upgrade it to W7 or not so I may need)

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: NewEgg COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: US of A

PARTS PREFERENCES: None really (have had best experience w/ AMD, nVidia, Antec PSU's and Corsair memory, but am very much open to change if others are better and/or cheaper, so whatever gives me the best bang-for-the-buck is what I prefer

)

OVERCLOCKING: No

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Maybe (again, if it fits within budget and is worth it, absolutely)

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1600x1200 (max my 19" CRT can support, but if can fit a nice new monitor in budget...)

CASE: would like a window, and temp readouts on case, but most important thing is that it keeps components cool

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: doesn't need to be super quiet, or flashy, just want everything to run smooth... My general plan is to build a rig that is fairly nice and will run my games decently for now, that I can possibly upgrade in the future (more RAM, an additional VPU etc.)

Hi all, I'm a longtime lurker on these forums but haven't ever felt the need to register...until now. I am getting ready to build myself a new machine, and could really use some advice of those "in the know" on the current hardware options so I have an idea of what's in my range. Just a little background first so everyone knows where I'm coming from and what I'm looking for...I have built my own comps in the past so I'm not a total newb at this, that being said the last rig I built back in late '05/early '06 I wasn't really looking ahead enough, and although everything was pretty much top o' the line back then, I got burdened w/ parts that weren't really upgradable (939 socket MB and such), so that's something I'd like to avoid if possible.

Thanks again for everyone's anticipated assistance, it is very much appreciated.

MadAdmiral · Mar 30, 2010

Here's one of the best towers you can get for $1,200. It's overkill for your monitor, so there's a build below that fits a good monitor in the budget.

CPU/Mobo: i5-750 and Asus P7P55D-E Pro $375
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws 2x2 GB 1600 mhz CAS Latency 7 $120
GPU: HD 5870 $420. Overkill for the current resolution, but if you upgrade soon, it would be good.
HDD: Seagate 7200.12 500 GB $55
PSU: Corsair 750W 80+ $100 after rebate
Case: HAF 922 $90 after rebate
Optical: Cheap SATA DVD burner $24

Total: $1,184

CPU/Mobo: X3 440 and Gigabyte GA-790XTA-UD4 $195 after rebate
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws 2x2 GB 1600 mhz CAS Latency 7 $120
GPU: HD 5870 $420
HDD: Seagate 7200.12 500 GB $55
PSU: Corsair 750W 80+ $100 after rebate
Case: HAF 922 $90 after rebate
Optical: Cheap SATA DVD burner $24
Monitor: Asus 23.6" 1080p $190 after rebate

Total: $1,194

Lord_Foortwenti · Mar 31, 2010

MadAdmiral :

Lookin good, thanks much for taking the time to give me some ideas. I have a couple questions though...

First, from what I understand, if I go Intel I want the Lynnfield core over the others correct? I only ask this b/c I noticed a i7-930 (bloomfield) for roughly the same price as the i5-750 alone. Now, I understand it's a different socket and would need a different mobo, but I'll deal w/ that later. Also, how important is "Hyper-Threading" in this generation of CPU's? From what I've read only the i7's have HTing, and would it (HT) really even make a noticeable difference?

Also, will the i5 cause a bottleneck w/ that GPU? I'm assuming that if I stick w/ my current monitor, and thus my current max-resolution, that it won't bottleneck b/c the card + cpu would be able to handle what's thrown at it, but if I did upgrade my monitor for a higher resolution that there might be the potential for a bottleneck. Is that the case? Not that it really matters unless you tell me that the i7-930 I mentioned above is a better option when considering budget and such.

In regards to the ATi 5780, how does it stack up, price/power wise to a comparable nVidia model? You don't need to give examples or anything, I'm just curious b/c I've only ever had one ATi GPU and it was a PITA, the drivers were cumbersome and not very easy to use, and the card itself was ***. Now, I guess I should mention this is going back awhile....the GPU I'm talking about was a RAGE, lol, but that should give you an idea of how much I disliked it. It pretty much caused me to go nVidia in my next 3 rigs after. This is actually the first time I've even considered going w/ an ATi since, and that's only b/c I hear they've made many improvements in all areas.

Lastly, from what I've read (and remember I haven't really done too much research as of yet) Intel CPUs are pretty much blowing AMD out the water in this generation. So how much better performance wise is the first build then the second? Are we talking like 2 FPS or 20 FPS?

Thanks again for taking the time out to help me out, I can't tell you how much I appreciate it.

MadAdmiral · Mar 31, 2010

I'm not sure where you saw a 930 for $200 (other then Microcenter, where the i5 would also be really cheap). Hyperthreading makes no difference in gaming. Games just don't use it. HT is definitely useful when encoding and doing heavy CPU work (which gaming is not).

The i5-750 will not cause a gaming bottleneck. It's almost impossible to have a modern CPU that is the bottleneck instead of the GPU. All of the gaming benchmarks you see for CPUs are created using artificial handicapping so they can actually show a difference.

Read the Fermi review. The 480 is more powerful, but it's $500. It also could burn a whole through a space shuttle with the heat it puts out. Of course, that's after it causes you to go bankrupt trying to pay for the electricity it requires...

ATI is a completely different company since AMD bought them several years ago. If you take a look at the "Best Gaming Video Cards for the Money" article Tom's posts every month, it's basically an ATI catalog.

You're talking less than 2 FPS in the real world. Intel CPUs are nice, but they're super expensive. To go from the X4 955 to the i5-750, it costs you the $40 CPU difference AND a $50 motherboard premium. To get to the i7-930 from the X4 955, it takes $130 for the CPU, $200 for the board and $60-80 for the third stick of RAM. That's a lot of money taken away from the GPU to get practically nothing in game.

ares1214 · Mar 31, 2010

i mostly agree with madadmiral, however i suggest taking the amd path. an i7 build is just too expensive, and it sounds just a bit overkill for your uses anyway. the i5 is a viable option, however, if you wanna upgrade in 3 years, you can just put in an 8-core am3+ amd cpu, with intel, the 1156 socket is on a long path to nowhere. i also dont think the small, but noticable price difference makes up for the lack of future proof, and tbh, a relatively small boost in performance. also, a 5870 might be a bit overkill at any rate, so it might be wiser to get a 5850, but ill put in a 5870 anyway. in that case, heres a build:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.353110

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.357791

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226122

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102883

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151188

after rebates and such, the final price is 1056.92. this is the complete build, and if you want, it leaves plenty of room for a good monitor, like this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824254045

hope this helped

Lord_Foortwenti · Mar 31, 2010

I found the i7-930 for $294 @ Newegg.... Which, now that I look closer, isn't close to the price of the i5 by itself, I mistakenly took the price comparison from the combo you linked earlier when comparing it to the i7-930. After an even closer look, I'm guessing it's not really that great of a deal, as comparable i7's on the Lynnfield core are a few hundred dollars more then the one I linked on the Bloomfield. Not to mention that for the price I'm not getting a mobo either

I've done a bit of research into the different sockets and cpu's since reading ares1214's, and it seems that the AM3+ socket might be the slightly better choice? I'm not sure I fully trust the future of the 1156, it seems to be Intel's "2nd string" as it were, relegating their middle and lower tier CPU's to this socket, while keeping the good stuff on 1366, while AMD seems to be using the AM3+ for mid-range and top-shelf. Am I off with this?

Keeping in mind that I would like some kick now, and at least some flexibility in the future, would an AMD and the AM3 socket be the better choice?

ares1214 · Mar 31, 2010

in my opinion yes. also, if you look at benchmarks (go to hardware canucks, but links from them dont show up here) and you will see that the 955 actually beats the i5 750 in quite a few things, and equals it in gaming. im not saying the i5 750 is slower, as it isnt, but the mild performance difference isnt enough to notice for a gamer/surfer. i also own a C1 955 (got it in the first week they came out) and this thing is amazing. i however also got it when it cost $245, produced more heat, and didnt oc as well, so now they are even bettter with the C3 revisions. also, intel and amd have very different views on sockets. dont worry, im no amd fanboy, but intel sucks, and amd rocks when it comes to this. for the intel path, it was "buy a 775 mobo, ddr2 ram, and a 775 cpu...have to get rid of it all, buy a 1156 mobo, dual channel ddr3 ram, 1156 cpu...get rid of it all, buy a 1366 mobo, triple channel ddr3 ram, and i7" and i dont see them changing that anytime soon. with amd its "buy am2+ mobo, ddr2 ram, am2+ or am2 cpu...upgrade the cpu to a way faster am3 cpu...upgrade mobo and ram to am3+ after 3 years, repeat the process" amd progresses, make better mobo, and MAKING THEM BACKWARDS, FOWRWARDS, AND SIDEWAY( :lol: ) compatible with the cpus, where as intel just gets rid of it after 2 years, and starts a new one, screwing everybody who just bought it, as they no cant upgrade. lastly, the 955 is about $40 cheaper, and the mobo is about $20-80 cheaper, so you will probs save about $100. so yeas, in my opinion, amd is the better choice.

Lord_Foortwenti · Apr 10, 2010

It looks like I'm going to be doing the build over the next week, and a lot of the really good combo's you guys found for me have sadly expired, so I took some time and put together a list and I would like some honest opinions. I didn't really delve the depths for better deals, or combo's, nor can I say with certainty that the parts I'm going to list here will give me the best bang for the buck...so please, by all means critique away, I am very open to suggestions and recommendations.

So, I managed to stay just within my $1200 budget...without shipping...and without a monitor. So if anyone sees a way to get either of those things below the cap, well, it'd make me happy

CPU - $185.99 - AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb 3.4GHz (this really looks to be my best choice for the price, but the 955 might be a better/cheaper choice? the 965 is only 20 beans more so that's why I went with it, but is it worth it?)

mobo - $199.99 - ASUS Crosshair III Formula AM3 AMD 790FX ATX (I choose this mobo b/c it had a lot of + reviews, and has a really nice sound chip built in, but I have a feeling there may be better choices w/ faster RAM speeds and such that overlooked)

mem - $133.99 - OCZ Platinum 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (memory is where I had the most trouble finding something that works well w/ AMD. I had originally picked out a set of G.Skill Ripjaws, but read that they won't run at advertised speeds on an AMD platform and have be turned down to be stable, I ended up w/ these b/c I read good reviews from AMD users)

GPU - $419.99 - SAPPHIRE 100281-3SR Radeon HD 5870 (Cypress XT) 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX (There seem to be at least 2 different versions of this exact card listed on NewEgg, from what I can tell the only difference is a slightly higher clock speed on this one, and this ones model number ends in 3SR, while the other ends in 2SR...whatever the hell that means, but I assume that higher = better? )

HDD - $55 - Seagate 7200.12 500 GB

PSU - $100 - Corsair 750W 80+

Case - ~ $100 +/- totally undecided on a case

SATA DVD burner - $24

-------------------------------------------------------------

Total - $1200.96 (this is before shipping and any rebates)

So, any opinions on this build? Other components that might be a better choice, or combos I overlooked, and if it's possible I'd like some suggestions on squeezing a nice new monitor in the budget somehow as I'm currently stuck w/ my old 19" CRT w/ a max resolution of 1600x1200 @ 85 Hz. Thanks guys, I really appreciate any, and all of the help you can give.

zaknafiend · Apr 11, 2010

cool, im making a build similar to this. in my opinion go with the HAF 922 case, $90 after rebate, and the MSI 790fx-gd70 mobo, higher ram support, great overclocking and save $35, however notice it doesnt have the fancy sound stuff if u want that. you could also save some dough on the RAM if u wanted, but if u're going for quality looks like what u picked is good. you've done ur homework, nice build. oh and u also might want to look into a cheap aftermarket cooler, ur choice, here's a combo with an excellent one with the cpu u selected:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.374201

in terms of a monitor, depends on the size/resolution ur going for, but a good large 1080p in order to put ur 5870 to good use and ur looking at $190+, here's an awesome deal:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824254040

hope this helps

Userremoved · Apr 11, 2010

MadAdmiral :

Excuse me but why is there a low end CPU with a high end GPU?

Lord_Foortwenti · Apr 11, 2010

thanks for replying Zaknafiend, that is an awesome monitor, I'll have a hell of a time trying to cut down prices of other components to fit such a nice monitor within my budget, but I still appreciate it. Also, I've never bought a CPU cooler, do you think it's worth it? I mean, I can totally understand how it helps, I'm just wondering how necessary it is if I'm not going to OC'ing, or OC'ing very little.

I'm diggin that keyboard you mentioned, the MSI 790fx-gd70. It looks pretty good, has better memory capability, can support CrossFire w/ 2 cards @ 16/16 (instead of 8/8 like a lot of mobos), and 4 @ 8/8/8/8...although I HIGHLY doubt I'll ever get more then 2 GPU's, it's nice to know the option is there if I wanted it. Not to mention it's included in some nice deals w/ the X4 965 that I want....

Check this out, it's the Phenom II X4 955 3.4ghz + MSI 790fx-gd70 + HIS 5870 1GB for $697, yeah it's the 955 instead of the 965, but from comparing specs it looks like the 965 is nothing more then the 955 w/ a higher clock speed so that's a non-factor I guess. The only thing about this combo that I hesitate on is the GPU, I've never dealt w/ HIS, and know even less about them in general...while on the flip side, I know Sapphire is to ATi, kinda like what BFG is to nVidia, they just flat out put out a better product then the competition, kinda like the "top tier" manufacturer of their chip-sets.

Then there is this one, which is just the X4 965 + MSI 790fx-gd70 w/ a free copy of MW2 for the PC for $351. There is also a version of the combo w/ the 955 instead for $20 less.

In any case, thanks for pointing out that mobo, it's looking like that's going to be what I am going to get unless someone suggests something better.

zaknafiend · Apr 12, 2010

no prob, yeah its going to be tough to fit a good monitor into that budget, i am facing the same problem. one more thing to consider is if you are into being up to date with support of next-gen stuff, the 790fx will do fine, and as you noticed it is very expandable and has insane RAM maximums, but depending on when you are planning to buy, you could opt to wait for the mid-range nvidia fermi cards that will be coming out (cheaper than a gtx 470 lol) or for the current card prices to drop. also, MSI is releasing the 890fx-gd70 some point in the near future, i am not sure exactly when, but it will have usb 3.0 and all the goodies that come from the latest and greatest. however this is an awesome build, and i always say u cant just wait and wait for prices to drop and new stuff to come out, cause u'll never get anything. anyways, hope i helped and good luck with the build, you wont be disappointed.

EDIT: Plus the Thuban hexacore AMD Cpus due out soon are gonna kick butt if u want to invest in one, and the great thing about AMD is everything works together, with Intel at the moment there are a million sockets and processor types. With AMD however, their next-gen stuff will all be reverse compatible with these sockets, so ur not gonna have to buy a new MoBo etc. for a looong while.

brennon7 · Apr 12, 2010

i7 920s can be had all day long on ebay NEW for 235 or less http://cgi.ebay.com/New-and-Sealed-Intel-Core-i7-920-Processor-Boxed_W0QQitemZ170471764513QQcmdZViewItemQQptZCPUs?hash=item27b0e8b221#ht_1119wt_1165

Just a thought.

zaknafiend · Apr 12, 2010

so can BE 965's for $180 from a reputable retailer and be OC'd to like 3.7 Ghz on a stock cooler, and 4.0 on aftermarket, go look at some comparisons of both processors hooked up to a 5970, there is no intel domination even though it's +$60

terr281 · Apr 12, 2010

PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006
$110 - $20 (Free shipping)

MB: GIGABYTE GA-890GPA-UD3H
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128435
$140 (Free shipping)

Reason: Sata 3.0, USB 3.0 (2 ports, rear panel). Remember to disable the onboard MB graphics in the Bios.

Ram: Crucial 4GB (2 x 2GB)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148262
$100 (Free shipping)

Reason: This is the ram of choice for its ability to be overclocked (or, since you are not overclocking, undertimed, at default voltages) in several reviews here at Toms.

CPU: AMD Athlon II X4 635 Propus 2.9GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103702
$120 (Free shipping)

Reason: You said no overclocking, and that is the reason to buy a Black Edition AMD CPU. Further, the Phenom's are negligibly faster than the Athlon's at the same clock speed. Therefore, save some money and buy the fastest Athlon.

CPU Cooler: Sunbeam CR-CCTF 120 mm Core-Contact Freezer
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835207004
$40 - $15 (Free shipping)

Reason: This is still one of the best CPU coolers on the market for its price, and they easily install on AM2-3 CPUs.

DVD: HP Black (with Lightscribe, Retail)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827140041
$30 (Free shipping)

Reason: Buy a retail drive as one of your drives and get a legal copy of DVD burning software as part of the purchase. (Nero in this case.) Further, if you choose to make Lightscribe disks, you'll already have a drive for it. If you want a 2nd drive, like I do with all of my builds, pick up an OEM drive and add $25 to total build drive.

Video Card: XFX HD-585X-ZAFC Radeon HD 5850
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150477
$310 + $8 shipping

Reason: I almost always buy XFX graphics cards due to the extra $10-$20 being worth the lifetime warranty XFX provides. (As opposed to the 2-3 years other manufacturers provide.)

Case: ? (My traditional "go to" case is the Antec 300, but I build machines in the $1k and under range. You need to pick a slightly larger one for your price range that will enable you to keep the same case as you add a 2nd video card for Crossfire in a year or 2, as well as upgrade your entire system in a few years.)
Price: For this build, plus the cost of additional quality fans for additional slots, I am allocating $125.

Sound card: Integrated into MB.
Network card: Single 1Gb port integrated into MB.

Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284
$100 (Free shipping)

Reason: You seemingly don't have a lot of data/music files (no larger capacity or separate data drive vs. operational drive), and money would be better spent on a new monitor versus a SSD boot drive. (Where you can upgrade from your 19" CRT.)

OS: Win 7 Home Premium 64 bit OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116754
$100 (Free shipping)

Note: If you qualify for a student version, buy a student copy of the same software and save quite a bit of money. I am including this version in the total build price.

Total: $1175 - $35 (rebates) + $8 shipping

Other info for this build:

1. $125 maxium of case and fans needed for the build, pre-calculated.
2. Look at a student version of Win 7 Home Premium 64 bit to save ~$60.
3. Find yourself a nice ~22" WS LCD monitor with a refresh rate of 5ms or 2ms for ~$150 and move away from the CRT monitor as your next "upgrade." (Or, use the new widescreen as your primary, and the CRT as a secondary monitor.) I personally like Asus 22" (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236050&cm_re=asus_22_lcd-_-24-236-050-_-Product) for $170 - $20 + $9 myself.

zaknafiend · Apr 14, 2010

/\ that guy knows what's up if ur lookin for bottom line price with a monitor in there,
/ \the build wont have the performance of the others above but definitely won't thin ur wallet as much.

Shadow703793 · Apr 14, 2010

Userremoved :

Because this is a gaming build and the X3 is more than enough for games at 1600*1200. At that resolution, CPU really isn't a bottleneck. You need a "good" CPU only if your playing games like GTAIV, FSX,etc.

terr281 · Apr 14, 2010

+1 to Shadow's comment regarding the cpu. However, if you are buying/building a new system today in this price range, I am of the opinion that it should, at least, be capable of 4 simultaneous threads. (Whether that is a 4 physical core cpu or 2 physical and 2 Hyperthreaded.)

The last build I purchased parts for (and am nearly finished building) used an AMD Phenom 2 720 (OEM, since retail chips are hard to come by these days). Further, I included a mainstream SSD 40 GB drive as a boot drive. (An Intel V series) The system, however, reused a 9800 GT 512 MB video card that was still completely functional... so no video card purchase.

The 3 core chips are good for today, and possibly the next year or 2. However, I believe in 2-3 years, software will have caught on to the prospect that users typically have at least 2, most probably 4, cores in mainstream systems. As such, the X3s will be at a disadvantage to the 4 core system. And, in this price range, you should plan ahead for this.

Shadow703793 · Apr 14, 2010

^ The AMD AM3 X2/X3 are a good choice right now due to the fact that AMD will release 6 core COUs starting at $200-300 (for BE version). So you can upgrade later imo for a better CPU. ETA on the X6s are Q2 2010.

Lord_Foortwenti · Apr 14, 2010

Yeah, I did some research into the Athlon II X4 635, and I have to say that when I came to some side by side comparisons with the Phenom II X4 955 (or 965), I was underwhelmed. I mean, yeah the Athlon is a good bit cheaper and would allow me to fit a monitor into the budget, and the "artificial" gaming and task oriented benchmarks had the Athlon standing up very well to the Phenom, but looking at the numbers in the actual in-game benchmarks, the Athlon 635 is destroyed by the 955...by a good margin. From the results I saw in the other non-gaming benchmarks if I only wanted this rig for surfing and other daily tasks then the Athlon would be ideal, especially at that price, but the last thing I want is disappointment when I load up a new game. Don't get me wrong, I'm not expecting my fps to be in the hundreds in newer games for what I'm paying, but I would like at least respectable numbers and the ability to stand up to new releases for at least awhile.

So, all that being said, and unless I'm missing something, I think I'll stick w/ the Phenom.

Let me also drop a question on you guys...

When I picked out my parts in my most recent post listing the parts I was looking at, I had picked the 140w version of the 965. Well after looking at my choices again I noticed that there is also a 125w version of the 965, that seems to be newer. As I understand it they are identical except for the power draw, it's just a newer version of the same CPU that has a lower power requirement, but the performance remains the same correct?

Also, if I got the 125w version, I wouldn't need to choose a different mobo right? The MSI 790fx-gd70 supports CPU's w/ a power requirement of 140w...so I assume that includes everything below 140w right? Logically I would think so, but you never know so I just ask to be safe.

terr281 · Apr 14, 2010

On a "single thread vs. single thread" run, a Phenom will typically be 5-15% faster than an Athlon. However, it is like I said in the last statement of my 2nd post, the problem right now is software... not the hardware. In the references you posted, the tested games truly only scale to 2 threads... maybe 3. Game testing is done with only the single game (and the OS) running on a minimal install in most circumstances. With that said, it really depends on what type of computer user you are.

When I use an application (game), I make sure it is the only application that is ACTIVELY using system resources. (Meaning, I make sure Antivirus isn't running a scan, I don't have 20 tabs open in a browser or 2, etc.) My mate, on the other hand, leaves all of this open/running...

As a result, even in the sub-$1k range, there refurbished system got a 3 core (Since I got a good deal on it... and it was a Phenom over Athlon because of the same deal. Otherwise, a 4 core Athlon would have been purchased.)

For me, I will find the fastest clock speed and cache available... so, if I was building myself a new system today, I would end up with a 2 or 3 core Phenom.

To each their own, based upon their computer usage style.
------------------------
As for the 125w versus 140w CPU, as well as the MB:

1. The 125w CPU should use less power, have the capability to overclock higher (if you change your mind on overclocking), and generally be a better CPU than a 140w.
2. If you check the motherboard's CPU compatibility list, you'll be able to confirm whether the change is ok. (It should be.) Further, it should be even better with the 125w... especially if not overclocking... because you will have less chance of blowing out the MB's power phases in the long term. (This is because the 140w CPU taxes the system more.)
------------------------------
Also, think about what Shadow is saying on the X2/X3 right now versus buying a X4. Naturally, when the X6's are released, the X4s will drop in price... and the X6 will be top of the line. The X6s will probably not be clocked as high as the X4s, so you will still run into the software threading issue I am talking about. But, you could easily purchase a X2 now... and at the end of the year buy a X4 upgrade.

whitefang · Apr 14, 2010

The 965 is just a overclocked 955.

OCZ ram isn't that great, I'd stay away from it.

Here's with a monitor

And without a monitor.

Shadow703793 · Apr 15, 2010

Lord_Foortwenti :

Your looking at benchmarks at 1024*768?!?!?! This is kind of a pointless thing to do considering your planning to game at 1680*1050. At this resolution, the differences between CPUs are negligible.

See the carts here for benches:
UT3 (1680*1050)
http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/desktop-cpu-charts-q3-2008/Unreal-Tournament-3-1680x1050,819.html

World in Conflict @ 1920*1080:
http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1199/9/
Pay attention to this bench. As you can see, there is only about 4 fps difference between the Athlon and the Phenom. Also see the lower resolution bench. Notice anything?

DIRT2 benches: http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1199/10/

Same game 1680*1050:
http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/desktop-cpu-charts-q3-2008/World-in-Conflict-1680x1050,820.html

Supreme Commander @ 1680*1050:
http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/desktop-cpu-charts-q3-2008/Supreme-Commander-Forged-Alliance-1680x1050,821.html

Crysis @ 1680*1050:
http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/desktop-cpu-charts-q3-2008/Crysis-1680x1050,818.html

As you can see, at higher resolutions, the CPU really doesn't matter. Above 1280*1024, the GPU matters SIGNIFICANTLY MORE than the CPU.

So, I HIGHLY recommend you save the money and get a better GPU. Or you can upgrade to a X4/X6 when the X6 CPUs come out for quite a bit cheaper than current prices and sell the X2/X3.

Lord_Foortwenti · Apr 15, 2010

Ok, so after reading all the posts in this thread, and taking all the advice into consideration, I think I've got a pretty damned good build worked out here, please feel free to point out flaws, faults, or (especially) incompatibilities. I have everything in a cart and saved but I'm not ready to hit the button yet, I wanted one last opinion...

Cpu: AMD Phenom II X4 955 BE 3.2GHz 125w = $159.99

Mobo: Gigabyte GA-890GPA-UD3H AM3 AMD 890GX = 139.99

Memory: G.Skill 4Gb (2x2GB) DDR3 1600 1.35v 8-8-8-24-2N = $119.99

GPU: XFX 5870 1GB = 419.99

HDD: WD Caviar Green 500GB = 54.99

Optical: HP Black Multiformat DVD Burner LightScribe Support = 29.99 (I actually am going to also recycle one of the Samsung DVD/CD-RW drives from my current system and throw it into the new build)

PSU: Corsair 750W ATX 12V SLi Ready = 109.99

Monitor: ASUS Black 22" 2ms Widescreen LCD = 169.99

Case: Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid-Tower = $99.99

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Total: $1304.91 including shipping and before rebates (after rebates it's $1254.91)

So....I'm going to go about 50 bucks over budget as it stands now after all is said and done, and my wife will take every cent of it out of my hide, but for what I am getting I think it's worth it :sol:

I went w/ the Phenom over the Athlon simply b/c I didn't mind spending the extra few bucks for it, and really the only reason I did is b/c I probably won't have the opportunity to upgrade the CPU within the next year, and for that time I may as well have the all-around better choice, no?

My biggest concerns are the memory, and the case. I have absolutely zero experience w/ G.Skill, and their memory seemed more focused on Intel, w/ a lot of it underclocking on AMD platforms, but to be fair nearly all of the AMD users that posted reviews said that they simply had to manually set the timings to advertised speeds and it was perfectly stable. They have a lot of good reviews all around, and that particular set I linked above looked pretty good w/ decent timings, and a low voltage requirement. And if it does underclock on first boot I can change the settings to bring it up to advertised speeds.

As for the case, it actually looks like a pretty solid case for the price (getting it on sale from $139). It looks to have great air flow, hell w/ 3 120mm and 1 200mm it damned well better, lol. That being said I'm wondering if I won't be listening to a minor squall whipping up every time I start playing a game though. I've also never had a case w/ a bottom mounted PSU, but I don't think it should be an issue if this case moves air like I think it will.

Shadow703793 · Apr 15, 2010

1. Drop the WD Green and get a Samsung F3 or WD Black. The Green is too slow.

2. Imo, grab the X2 now and upgrade to an X6 later. Like I said above, an X2/X3 is more than enough.

$1200 Gaming Rig opinions wanted

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