Yet Another Computer Build Thread

[Freckle Daddy]

Hi Everyone,

Looking to build my first comp since about 2003. It's been awhile, currently rocking an athlon 2800xp with a half gig of ram. So anything is gonna be a huge improvement.

Currently I have, or is on it's way:

WD 1TB Caviar Black
Antec 300 case
650W Seasonic PSU

Looking to go with:

phenom II x3 720 BE
gigabyte 790x/790fx
4gb DDR3 ram (whatever is on sale at the time)
radeon 4770 crossfired

I've noticed a lot of AMD love on these boards lately and figured it was a good place to ask. So I have the following questions.

1) Should I cannabalize my 36gb raptor that's in my current comp? Or should I just stick with the Caviar black, with the potential of raid'n it in the future. I'm tryin to keep the noise level down, and the raptor can get loud.

2) Any input on the X vs. FX version of the mobos. I know it's a difference in pci-e lanes or something. But I'm assuming it's not worth the extra dough for now.

3) For ram should I go with ddr3 1600 or 1033? And on the same note, if a 3x2gb tri channel pack is on sale, can I use 2 sticks in dual channel and have a back up incase i cook one oc'ing it. Sorry if this is a dumb question. But sometimes I see the 6gb tri packs on sale for the same as 2x2gb packs.

4) I will be trying my hand at oc'ing for the first time. Any recommendations on a cooler that will work with the above specs. Keeping in mind that apparently the ram on the gigabyte boards is close to the cpu.......

That's all for now. Hoping I get some responses from the usual suspects. Thanks in advance.

FD

[mr_raider]

COngrats on getting a high quality PSU. Your parts choice is good. I would favor the 790x board, as it is cheaper and stil does 2 card crossfire.

As for ddr3 vs. ddr2, take a long hard look at the prices. If it is cheaper to witha ddr2 setup, I would do that, since you keep your rigs for a long time, and upgrade potential is not an issue. DDr2 will still be sold on the market for at least another year or 2.

I would keep the Raptor and use it as my c: drive for the OS, and use teh 1tb drive for documents, downloads and videos.

Do you really need a crossfire setup? WHat games do you play? WHat resolution?

[UberN00b]

Hi Everyone,

Looking to build my first comp since about 2003. It's been awhile, currently rocking an athlon 2800xp with a half gig of ram. So anything is gonna be a huge improvement.

Currently I have, or is on it's way:

WD 1TB Caviar Black
Antec 300 case
650W Seasonic PSU

Looking to go with:

phenom II x3 720 BE
gigabyte 790x/790fx
4gb DDR3 ram (whatever is on sale at the time)
radeon 4770 crossfired

I've noticed a lot of AMD love on these boards lately and figured it was a good place to ask. So I have the following questions.

1) Should I cannabalize my 36gb raptor that's in my current comp? Or should I just stick with the Caviar black, with the potential of raid'n it in the future. I'm tryin to keep the noise level down, and the raptor can get loud.

2) Any input on the X vs. FX version of the mobos. I know it's a difference in pci-e lanes or something. But I'm assuming it's not worth the extra dough for now.

3) For ram should I go with ddr3 1600 or 1033? And on the same note, if a 3x2gb tri channel pack is on sale, can I use 2 sticks in dual channel and have a back up incase i cook one oc'ing it. Sorry if this is a dumb question. But sometimes I see the 6gb tri packs on sale for the same as 2x2gb packs.

4) I will be trying my hand at oc'ing for the first time. Any recommendations on a cooler that will work with the above specs. Keeping in mind that apparently the ram on the gigabyte boards is close to the cpu.......

That's all for now. Hoping I get some responses from the usual suspects. Thanks in advance.

FD

1. Use your raptor to boot up all operating systems, its on average about 5 seconds faster.. or you can just get another TB and run raid 0, it would be faster than a raptor.

3. It depends on what speeds the ram kits are. id get the one that can get as tight on timings as possible, as well as OC potential. (well the ddr2 1066 is pretty good, lots of headroom for your phenom.)

4. Thermalright Ultra Extreme 120 w/ a 120mm fan. i put on a silverstone on mine, but switched out for a 120x32mm delta w/ a fan controller.

[bahasad]

1. I would use the raptor still. (p.s. if you decide not to use it, I would be interested in buying it ).

3. Agree with ubern00b. You need tight timings for good oc'ing. I don't know why you wouldn't be able to use two of the tri-channel kits.

4. http://www.frostytech.com/top5heatsinks.cfm List of the best heatsinks. I recommend the Scythe Katana 3 for a good budget heatsink. It is weirdly shaped an all, but it dropped my old Phenom II X4 920 temps by maybe 5C on idle and >7 on load.

Lol don't get the huge corsair rams or the kingston hyperx because I think the K3 will block them.

[Freckle Daddy]

COngrats on getting a high quality PSU. Your parts choice is good. I would favor the 790x board, as it is cheaper and stil does 2 card crossfire.

As for ddr3 vs. ddr2, take a long hard look at the prices. If it is cheaper to witha ddr2 setup, I would do that, since you keep your rigs for a long time, and upgrade potential is not an issue. DDr2 will still be sold on the market for at least another year or 2.

I would keep the Raptor and use it as my c: drive for the OS, and use teh 1tb drive for documents, downloads and videos.

Do you really need a crossfire setup? WHat games do you play? WHat resolution?

Thanks a lot for the advice.

I'm really trying to keep a viable upgrade path in the future open. I got hosed last time with the agp/pci-e video card switch. That's why I'm thinkink of paying the extra for the ddr3. But again it's always a gamble trying future proof a pc. I think the mobo price difference is neglible, around 20 bucks I think. It's the ram that costs around double. I'll put some thought into that.

My only worry about using the raptor again is that is noise levels. Maybe I'll open up my current pc and figure out if it's what's making the noise, it probably doesn't matter that my current case is cheaply made.

Currently I game on my 360 only. I'll probably start with some older titles to get back into it. Maybe it's better to pick up a single 4770 for now. And pick up another later, or see what else is out then.

[Zero1]

Thanks a lot for the advice.

I'm really trying to keep a viable upgrade path in the future open. I got hosed last time with the agp/pci-e video card switch. That's why I'm thinkink of paying the extra for the ddr3. But again it's always a gamble trying future proof a pc. I think the mobo price difference is neglible, around 20 bucks I think. It's the ram that costs around double. I'll put some thought into that.

My only worry about using the raptor again is that is noise levels. Maybe I'll open up my current pc and figure out if it's what's making the noise, it probably doesn't matter that my current case is cheaply made.

Currently I game on my 360 only. I'll probably start with some older titles to get back into it. Maybe it's better to pick up a single 4770 for now. And pick up another later, or see what else is out then.

Well, based on an article for DDR3 vs DDR2 on anandtech, there isnt much benefit right now.

If you decide to upgrade later on you are really only changing two things:

1) Mobo
2) Memory

CPU will be able to be carried over to the next board because its compatible with both sockets.

AS far as the raptor goes, carry it over and do what mr. raider suggested. And get a 4770 or a 4850 if you got the extra money.

[terrybear]

I just posted this yesterday for a AMD AM3 DDR3 build in the line of what your looking to do & comes in around $1000

http://www.redflagdeals.com/forums/s...d.php?t=742880

36 gig raptor is kinda small to put your os & programs on a 640 cavier black will be more efficient there.

[elton5354]

when will the i7 prices drop?

[Freckle Daddy]

Thanks again for all the input. It's really appreciated.

Definitely going to rethink my ddr3 decision. It may me worth while for me to save the money now since there isn't too much improvement over going with ddr2. So what kind of timings should I be aiming for? I don't know too much about that.

You've talked me into using the raptor. Might as well use it for now since I've got it.

I'm pretty sold on the 4770s. I think they're the perfect card(s) for my type of gaming. All the reviews seem to go over very well, maybe I'm just buying into the hype. Not sure if I'll pick up one now, with a possible 2nd for xfiring in the future. Or if I should just take the plunge now and grab 2. That is if ncix gets some stock.

ANy other comments or advice?

[mr_raider]

Since you don't even know what games you will be playing, there is no point in going with crossfire right off the bat.

If you would like a single GPU option that has more horsepower, you can get a gtx 260 core 216 for around 250$, or 9800gtx+ for around 150$.

[flyz]

when will the i7 prices drop?

What is coming in the near future that will threaten its performance crown?
There's no reason to cut prices just because Intel is feeling nice.

The 940 and 965 is being phased out for the 950 and 975 but those will only slot back into their old price brackets....
920 doesn't even cost that much compared to their closest rivals (PII X4) considering the performance jump.

You'd be better off waiting for i5 to be released than a price drop on i7 imo

Edit: With our exchange rate being 90c, you could say that's a 'price drop' compared to launch times in November when it was 80c....