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Need build compat. check, and revisions/critique/suggestions

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Title says it all.

Also, which one?:
a) get this build
b) sandy bridge?

Specs:

-Case: NZXT Lexa S
-Mobo: ASUS M4A89GTD
-CPU: Phenom 955
-GPU: XFX 6870 Black edition (Get a 5870? Should I really consider xfire with these specs?)
-PSU: Corsair TX750W
-RAM: G.SKILL F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL Ripjaws PC3-12800 4GB 2X2GB DDR3-1600 CL9-9-9-24 Core i5 1.5V Memory Kit
-OS: Windows 7 Pro 64bit
-Heatsink: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus
-OD: Samsung 24X dvd writer (or 22x? what's the difference besides speed?)

Total: $1078~ + 12%tax = $1207

Revision:

-Mobo: ASUS M4A89GTD ASROCK 870 Extreme3
-GPU: 6950 (or two 6850 ?) Which brand for these?
What I need is an affordable, but with good performance, gaming rig. This one is a little over my budget because of the stupidass tax here in BC =_=; but I can pick ALL of these up in NCIX so no shipping charges.

ALSO, what is the difference between G.SKILL ripjaws 4GBRL and 4GBXL?

Edit: I'll be using my HDD from my current rig. :) 

More about : build compat check revisions critique suggestions

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The higher your chosen resolution, the more impact the gpu has...; which still makes the X4 gaming rigs reasonable alternatives, as the savings over $400+ cpu/mb combos can instead be put into the gpu for great 1920x1200 framerates..

Review gpu benchmarks for your favorite titles....

http://www.anandtech.com/show/3987/amds-radeon-6870-685...

Of note is that the 5870 is about 10-12% faster than the 6870; the 5870 is on sale at Newegg for $239 after rebates....(I'm not sure what the 6870 sells for, but, you can do the cost/performance ratio analysis yourself)

I will tell you, are you very much inclined on USB 3.0? It wont be atleast a year before usb3 drives become affordable. I would say, instead save 40$ on this ASUS mobo with same 8x CF lanes:
ASUS M4A79XTD EVO AM3 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard.
Or if you really want usb3, you better go with this Asrock motherboard:ASRock 870 EXTREME3 AM3 AMD 870 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard(90$)
Asrock are a very good company and Asus is indeed the best but you wont notice a difference unless you will try OC the hell out of it(like above 4ghz). You will be fine with Asrock. Choice is yours really.
And put those 40$ to yous graphics card and get a 6950. Will serve you very well. Then, get a second one down the road. GL!! Your PSU will be enough for it aswell.
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@ wrazor: Genius idea. I have an external HDD with usb3.0 so I'm leaning on a usb3.0 mobo.

I've heard good things about asrock. That 870 says 1600(OC) <- is that fine with my ripjaws?

Also, I'm hearing I should just get two 6850 xfire instead of a 6950. And also, what brand should I get for those?

In all honesty, I dont know how that OC indicates the compatibility of the ram. But I looked for reviews off it, and ppl who have used same ram as yours, have had problems when put in the first 2 slots. But, when they put the rams in 3rd and 4th, everything worked fine(I suspect theres a difference between voltage supply to these slots?). So, yeah it will work fine, however, you wont be able to add rams of same speed in the future. So, if are fine with 4gb ram ever, then its no problem atall. But if you intend to add ram in future, I say you are better off with 1333 speed ram. In real life, the speed difference will make zero difference to your system performance. However, it should make a difference to your OC of your phenom II 955. Are you intending to heavily OC your CPU? (let me see on the 6850s meanwhile).Also, what is\going to be your monitor resolution?

For that resolution 6950s are an overkill. Hell, you would be well served with just a single 6850 in todays games. So, I say get the asrock mobo, ddr3 1333 ram and a single 6850 will be enough for you. That should get your budget to 880$+tax. :)  GL!!
On the which 6850? My personal choice would be sapphire because i find it much quitter than asus cards. Even HIS card is more silent. XFX cards come with lifetime warranty, so its worthit to pay 10$ more.

Agree, you likely won't ever need to contemplate X-fire at 16x10 res.....; at 1920x1200, the Xfire route is nice.....; the 5870 is nearly $60 more as of today, about $259 after rebate, but, perhaps the $200 card will do at your res....

If contemplating a 1920x1200 24" monitor 2 months down the road, I'd get the stronger 5870 today....; your call

I don't think I'll be getting a 1920x1200 monitor any time soon/later. I have a samsung 23" ledbacklit monitor and the LG 120hz monitor. Both max 1080p

I guess I don't need the xfire then.

So, I guess for GPU, my questions are:

- 5870 or xfx 6870? or 6850? First 2 are same price only after mail in rebate for the 5
- What are the advantages of a 6series over the 5870?
- What brand do you suggest?

+ 6850 or gtx460 1gb?

the 5870 is always about 10-12% faster than the 6870....

http://www.anandtech.com/show/4061/amds-radeon-hd-6970-...

If both are the same price, I'd opt for the 5870 at $250-ish...

the 6850 is a full 10% slower than even the 6870...(I'd cross it from the list unless only a $100 card perhaps...)

The GTX460 a tad slower still, 2-4% behind the 6850....

Of the bunch, the 5870 is a deal at $250-ish.....(most are clocked similarly anyway)

The 6950, is VERY impressive, rivaling a GTX570 in Crysis.....

Choose what card seems best for you, or is near your perfect 'price/performance' ratio....

The 6950, however, is a $299 card, currently....and many folks have reflashed them as 6970s successfully, with no solder pens, resoldering, etc., required....

Tempting, to say the least!

I would suggest against reflashing attempts as you are not very informed about these things. Apart from that, mdd is correct on all things. If you do not plan on a 2nd card then get the 5870. But if you do think you will get another in the future, get the 6850 I say. For your resolution, it will do a great job.

1111111111111 Well, in all honesty SB is out of your budget. For around 800$, the AMD rig is the BEST you can get. Seriously, if you tried a SB build, you would have to downgrade to 5770 to keep in the same budget. Not only are SB cpus costlier, so are there motherboards. Dont think too much. If you really wanna wait, well the current i5 760s may(or may not) go down in price. Seeing the current prices of C2Ds, it seems unlikely though. So, your choice of your build is still and will be best, atleast untill we get a look at Bulldozer which is still a good 2 months away.

Hmm. I'm thinking ab out reusing my raidmax smilodon case so i save optical drive. I won't be getting another HDD and don't need to get new OS oem so that'll be:

CPU: Sandy Bridge i5 2500k
Mobo: ASUS P8P67
RAM: G.skill ripjaw ddr3 1600 4gb
PSU: Silverstone Strider Plus 850w
GPU: Asus DirectCU 6850
Heatsink: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus

:p  that's like a total of 820 without tax.
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