Final Build $1100 gaming pc advice

[Minonovo]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Two Weeks (July 16th, about)
BUDGET RANGE: $1100 before rebate

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, Movies, Folding(when not gaming)

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Keyboard, Mouse, Speakers, OS, Monitor

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: Newegg COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA

PARTS PREFERENCES: AMD Motherboard/CPU, mid-tower case

OVERCLOCKING: Down the line, Maybe
SLI OR CROSSFIRE: No

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1920x1080

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Doesn't have to be absolutely cool, no need for aftermarket cooling until I decide to OC

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Here's my planned build:

Samsung 24x DVD Burner
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151216

Samsung F3 Spinpoint 1TB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

EVGA GTX 470 Fermi
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130550

ASUS M4A89TD PRO AM3 AMD 890FX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131645

Antec 902
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129058

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

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277

AMD Phenom II X4 955
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808

COMBO DEALS:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.433099

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.432112

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.415635

Comes out to $1,055.87

$1,072.75 with shipping.


Any improvements and suggestions welcome, but I need to stay near or below the current price if I want to purchase it by the date I plan to.

 

[Hereisphilly]

Looks top notch mate.
A few suggestions: i would buy an aftermarket cooler, it lowers the cpu temps inside the case (which you will need if you are running a gtx 470), it makes the system quieter, and it will improve the life of the CPU.

A great cheap one is this Scythe Mugen2 for $35
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185142&cm_re=scythe_sleeve-_-35-185-142-_-Product

Other than that the only thing i could say is 5870? Runs a hell of alot cooler, uses less power, but if you like Nvidia, then thats cool

Check the conclusion on this review to see what i mean
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2010/03/28/nvidia-geforce-gtx-470-1-1280mb-review/12

 

[Minonovo]

Honestly, the only reason I picked the 470 over the 5870 was because at my resolution, they run near the same, and it's cheaper If you can find a way to work both into my budget, I'll definitely revise that. I'm working on doing that right now.

 

[Hereisphilly]

Upon further looking into the Mobo, you can save a fair bit by dropping to the
ASUS M4A89GTD PRO/USB3 AM3 AMD for $139
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131631

If you want to go further (and i would reccomend this) so as you can get the 5870, then go for a
ASRock 870 EXTREME3 AM3 AMD 870 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 - $109.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157198

This would then save you $70, allowing you to get the 5870

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150490&cm_re=5870-_-14-150-490-_-Product

If you throw in the cooler, it still comes to less than $1100, so i think you are set

 

[Hereisphilly]

Reviews for the Asroc board are great, so i would defo get that, just to save money for starters

http://www.legionhardware.com/articles_pages/asrock_870_extreme3,10.html

 

[Minonovo]

Would dropping the PSU to a 650w be a terrible idea? Or would it limit my future upgrade ability?

 

[Hereisphilly]

It wouldnt be a terrible idea, i just wouldnt run two 5870s on one.
650w is fine a single 5870, but i think you need 750w if you want to run a single gtx 470, and more again if you want dual 470s

 

[skora]

For a single GPU, 650w is more than enough. 600w min if you are thinking you might do some OCing later. The 470 recommends 550w.

Might be a good idea to scan the deals for the next 2 weeks, combo's will change and other rebates might pop making other parts choices more cost effective.

 

[Minonovo]

Well, I decided to go with the 5870, and I'm gonna hope the next card I get will be able to run on the 650w, otherwise I'll probably just wait 4 years to grab a new system after college.

I personally don't like the idea of Crossfire because of scaling issues. I like the single powerful approach more.

Dropping it down to a 650w, and with your suggestions (different 5870 though), the price went to 1094 with shipping costs.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125316

Card I was looking at.


I will be checking newegg every day almost for deals and such. I spend most of my free time playing with ideas there.

 

[Hereisphilly]

Well, I decided to go with the 5870, and I'm gonna hope the next card I get will be able to run on the 650w, otherwise I'll probably just wait 4 years to grab a new system after college.

I personally don't like the idea of Crossfire because of scaling issues. I like the single powerful approach more.

Dropping it down to a 650w, and with your suggestions (different 5870 though), the price went to 1094 with shipping costs.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125316

Card I was looking at.


I will be checking newegg every day almost for deals and such. I spend most of my free time playing with ideas there.

Great! I agree with you on the sinlge card setup

I would personally go with the XFX card i said before, as XFXs warranty is second to none (double lifetime), and the customer service is top notch.

 

[cory1234]

If your going AMD I would really recommend the 1055T, no point in getting an older processor.
http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=HDT55TFBBX&title=AMD-Phenom-II-X6-Six-Core-Processor-1055T-2-8GHz-AM3-Retail
There is some really good combo deals on that site.

The 5870 is a good choice, and so is the 5850. On newegg yesterday they had several versions open box for $320 and $220 respectfully.

For a good cheap heatsink get the hyper 212+ for $25-30. It's the best bang for buck heatsink right now.

 

[Minonovo]

I'm a bit wary of XFX, because from what I've heard their quality of service is starting to slip.

Also, is there any difference with the effective memory clock being 1200Mhz and 4800Mhz? Or is the negligible at best?

 

[Hereisphilly]

If your going AMD I would really recommend the 1055T, no point in getting an older processor.
http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=HDT55TFBBX&title=AMD-Phenom-II-X6-Six-Core-Processor-1055T-2-8GHz-AM3-Retail
There is some really good combo deals on that site.

The 5870 is a good choice, and so is the 5850. On newegg yesterday they had several versions open box for $320 and $220 respectfully.

For a good cheap heatsink get the hyper 212+ for $25-30. It's the best bang for buck heatsink right now.

The 955 does better in gaming, and can be overclocked nicely, the 1055t is only good for multitasking

The hyper 212 is a good cooler, its cheaper than the scythe by about $5, but is not on the same performance level. The scythe will allow for some seriously high OCs

 

[Hereisphilly]

I'm a bit wary of XFX, because from what I've heard their quality of service is starting to slip.

Also, is there any difference with the effective memory clock being 1200Mhz and 4800Mhz? Or is the negligible at best?

I've got a feeling that from my limited knowledge the 4800Mhz is a typo or something, there is no way that a 400% OC is done with pretty much the same hardware.
Maybe someone more experienced can shed some light on this?

 

[Minonovo]

I've got a feeling that from my limited knowledge the 4800Mhz is a typo or something, there is no way that a 400% OC is done with pretty much the same hardware.
Maybe someone more experienced can shed some light on this?

 

[Minonovo]

Something happened there, dunno what. Anyway, XFX is starting to look better, but I dunno how much I trust the warranty. Lifetime always seems too good to be true. And these rumors are disturbing. I mostly heard them on overclock.net.

 

[skora]

XFX is a quality product with excellent CS. You won't be disappointed if you need their service.

As to the mem question, DDR5 does quad pump for effective speed. The mem itself is only 1200mhz, but because its sending 4 packets of data per cycle, that's where the 4800mhz comes in. Its used to compare DDR5 vs older DDR levels.

Drivers for scaling of CF/SLI have closed the scaling gap tremendously lately. While you'll never see 100% increase, they are closing in on 90%. (normally I link in where I found the info, but for the life of me can't remember right now.) Not all games will get that level of scaling, but its encouraging for the future.

A 650w PSU should be enough to run any GPU with a single chip on it. You'll be fine there.

For a 1920x1080 monitor, a 5850 is more than enough power, so if you're needing to trim some fat from the budget, that is an option.

Not to re-open this discussion, but even though I love the value of pure FPS ATI can offer, nVidia has a better product in end user experience. Its a shame PhysX isn't open source, but until Havok takes hold, team green and TWIMTBP offers a better experience even though it cost a little more. Their driver support and relationship with software developers really does make a difference. I'm running a 4850 and wouldn't trade it away, but buying new, I'd go nVidia.