Machine burnt out. New machine needed

[Neutronium]

Well my machine is now officially dead. I desperatly need a new one now. I had http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/forum/new-builds/13650-need-advice-parts-selection-purchasing.html]planned[/URL] a $1200+ build, but now I can`t go above $1000. I've decided that the i7 simply isn't worth it, so that should shave a bit of money off the price.

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.

Adobe Illustrator, AutoCAD, gaming (current games, PS2 emulation), MATLAB, programming, surfing the net, watching TV shows and movies.


2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread

No more $1000 before GST.


3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.

Canada, most likely out of province and definitely NOT from TigerDirect.


4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc, etc, etc, you get the picture.

I'm a bit peeved with AMD/ATI concerning their poor fglrx drivers. I've used WD since my first build. I'll give EVGA a shot.


5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.

The floppy disk, DVD drives might get cannibalized. I'll be using my 19" CRT. Still love that thing.


6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads.

Not really


7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.

Not likely to overclock for the meantime.


8. WHEN do you plan to build it?

ASAP


I'm still going for the Tempest case due to it's excellent ventillation, and the GTX 260 video card.

PC 2009

NZXT Tempest Black Case $ 130.00
? PSU $100.00 (something silent and that can handle two GTX 260/280 SLI cards)
? Motherboard (EVGA SLI?)
? CPU $200 (E8400 or Quad?)
GPU $256 (EVGA GTX 260)
? RAM 125 (1333 Mhz FSB)
Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB SATA2 Hard drive $ 135.00
TAXES (GST) 5%
TOTAL $1 100

In the future I may add a dedicated sound card.
Any help in the configuration would be appreciated

Thank you.

[ImmaPC]

The Corsair TX750W for $109 after $24 MIR is a fairly cheap 750W PSU with great power, efficiency, and reliability. It will most likely run a GTX 260 setup, but the chances of a successful build decrease greatly when you start talking about a GTX 280 SLI setup. If you really, really want a 280 SLI setup, you'd be MUCH better off with an 850W PSU; the lowest price for which is $140.

For the MB and RAM, There's an NCIX sale now, and there's a eVGA 790i FTW + 4GB DDR3-1600 bundle for $270 if you buy it before they sell out. Unfortunately the RAM is some cheap Aeneon stuff, the quality of which I cannot comment on; however some reviews I read are positive and others...not-so-positive. They should last you for a fair amount of time, at which point you may have the funds to invest in some faster, higher-quality stuff.

The e8400 for $200 is a good price. It's hella-overclockable (should you decide to later) and comes with an already-fast clock speed. Unfortunately it is only 2-cores, and it might age quickly depending on when more games start coming out that better support quad-core over dual-core. For now, I would futureproof your build by spending $40 more and getting a Q6600, which is also hella-overclockable (should you decide to later) and is quad-core, but unfortunately has a slightly slower clock speed. If you do decide to OC, I would get the Q6600 because not only is it quad-core but you can easily bump it up to 3.2ghz, maybe 3.4ghz with sufficient cooling.

The GTX 260 is just the regular 65nm one, same as when it first came out, but the lowest price I could find is $200 after $20 MIR at NCIX. But then, for the price you originally stipulated ($256), for $14 more you can get the GTX260 Core 216 which uses a bit less power, and has more performance for the price you pay (performance is similar to that of a full-on 280). In effect, if you are completely ready to pay $256 for a GPU you may as well spend $14 more and get the 260 Core 216, but if you want to save that $56 and get a regular GTX260, then the choice is yours.

For the RAM, if you decide to go with the combo then all your bases are covered. However, if the RAM breaks or you don't like it, then I think that you could do just as well with GSkill 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3-1600 for $100. If you look on Newegg they got a bunch of nice, fairly cheap DDR3 kits, and if you want DDR3-1333 or DDR3-1066 to save a bit of cash.

If you decide not to go with the bundle, then you should think about just getting a regular S775, DDR2 board with SLI. Two such boards are the 750i SLI, for $137 after $20 MIR and the 750i FTW for $165 after $30 MIR. Both will suit you just fine for this build, and as far as I know they're in a small group of LGA775 boards that can actually do x16 x16 SLI and not Crossfire. Ask me if you change your mind and want a Crossfire board and setup, because then there's the 4870 which is on sale all over the place, and yeah...

Anyway, if you get the FTW or a comparable LGA775,DDR2,SLI board, then of course you're going to need DDR2 RAM. There's a 4GB OCZ DDR2-1066 kit for $45 after $25MIR right now, you could pricematch it at NCIX and then buy it from there. Then there's some GSkill's at the same speed for $62 flat, and then of course there's a whole bunch of kits in between and past the GSkill's, but $40 to $70 is the best price range for a 4GB DDR2-1066 kit.

EDIT: I forgot to add that if all you'll be gaming on is a 19" CRT, you won't need a GTX260 for awhile, the GTX260 is waay overkill, especially for just a regular 19" CRT. You'd be far better off getting a 4850, 4830, 9800GT, 9800GTX the most you would need for 19" resolutions, unless that thing can do 1680x1050....

Also, you shoud consider getting a HSF. Theres two cheap approximately $40 ones, the OCZ Vendetta II, and the Xigmatek HDT-S1283. The Vendetta II performs better and I think if you look is slightly cheaper than the Xigmatek, but I'm not sure.

[JD]

I don't think SLI is really worth the trouble. I know I have Crossfire but I wouldn't really do it again as the gains overall go un-noticed most of the time. Also not every single game supports SLI/Crossfire. Also as some will agree that NVIDIA chipsets aren't exactly known for being the most stable LGA775 platform. A decent P45 motherboard runs about $150 and offers rock-solid stability and awesome overclocking.

At this point in time, I'd seriously considering buying a 45nm Quad-Core but that's up to you and your budget. Things are moving to multithreading a bit faster now so the benefit will be seen more and more.

So here's my shot at it:
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9400
Gigabyte EP45-UD3P
EVGA 512-P3-N884-AR GeForce 9800 GTX+ Superclocked Edition 512MB
G.SKILL F2-8000CL5D-4GBPQ PC2-8000 4GB 2X2GB DDR2-1000
Western Digital Caviar Black 640GB
Corsair TX750W
3x Zalman ZM-F3 120MM Sleeve Bearing Case Fan
Antec Three Hundred

That comes to $998.49 before shipping/tax. There are some mail-in-rebates in there too but I won't count them since you have to wait so long to get them back.

I know, I've basically changed everything you had in mind. However I think my changes are for the better. A quad-core will definitely help in Illustrator, AutoCAD, MATLAB, Programming and possibly PS2 Emulation. A 9800GTX+ will still be able to play all the latest games on high settings (or close to it) at 1280x1024. Also with a CRT, you can run lower resolution without worrying. The 3 case fans are for the front and side of the Antec 300. Should provide the same amount of cooling as the Tempest for less money.

[LCB001]

Those zalman fans work really well combined with the antec 300, helps keep my quad below 55* and 9800GTX below 60* easy Folding 24/7. And you only need two as the 300 comes with one in the front already, it is good to have a spare though...

[JD]

Originally Posted by LCB001

Those zalman fans work really well combined with the antec 300, helps keep my quad below 55* and 9800GTX below 60* easy Folding 24/7. And you only need two as the 300 comes with one in the front already, it is good to have a spare though...

Oh I thought it didn't come with any front fans. Good to know.

[ipaine]

Originally Posted by jdrom17

I don't think SLI is really worth the trouble. I know I have Crossfire but I wouldn't really do it again as the gains overall go un-noticed most of the time. Also not every single game supports SLI/Crossfire. Also as some will agree that NVIDIA chipsets aren't exactly known for being the most stable LGA775 platform. A decent P45 motherboard runs about $150 and offers rock-solid stability and awesome overclocking.

At this point in time, I'd seriously considering buying a 45nm Quad-Core but that's up to you and your budget. Things are moving to multithreading a bit faster now so the benefit will be seen more and more.

So here's my shot at it:
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9400
Gigabyte EP45-UD3P
EVGA 512-P3-N884-AR GeForce 9800 GTX+ Superclocked Edition 512MB
G.SKILL F2-8000CL5D-4GBPQ PC2-8000 4GB 2X2GB DDR2-1000
Western Digital Caviar Black 640GB
Corsair TX750W
3x Zalman ZM-F3 120MM Sleeve Bearing Case Fan
Antec Three Hundred...

I agree with jdrom17 on almost everything. I also have to agree that in general the SLI is not worth it, it restricts your choices of motherboards too much.

That said I would have to second the Gigabyte EP45-UD3P board, I just switched to that board from my Asus P5N-E SLI board and couldn't be happier.

I think the only thing I would change is the choice of CPU. Well maybe, I guess it comes down to the money. I would go with either the Q9400 or the Q6600. You are looking at about $40 difference in price so it is pretty close. Either way stick with the quad and do not go with a dual core. With what you listed as using it for, autocad, illustrator, etc, you will benefit from the quad over the dual.

[Neutronium]

I've made an order on NCIX.com for the EVGA 780i FTW Motherboard, but the price match was rejected since they consider it a discontinued item, they did offer me the 790i FTW at $255, but that requires DDR3. What about DDR2 v.s DDR3? I heard that it wasn't really worth switching to triple channel.

Ok, I'll consider the Q9400, although it seems more pricey.

Is the GTX260 really that overkill if all options are switched on in games like Crysis I and II? My resolution is 1280x960, but it is also possible that I might get an additional screen in a year or so.

This is what was in the stalled order:

• EVGA nForce 780i SLI Ftw LGA775 ATX 3PCI-E16 1PCI-E1 2PCI SATA2 RAID Sound GBLAN 1394 Motherboard $364.07 (must be changed)
• G.SKILL F2-8500CL5D-4GBPK PC2-8500 4GB 2X2GB DDR2-1066 CL5-5-5-15 240PIN Dual Channel Memory Kit $71.99 (only changed if DDR3 mobo selected)
• EVGA E-GEFORCE GTX 260 576MHZ 896MB 2GHZ GDDR3 PCI-E Dual DVI-I HDCP HDTV Out Video Card $219.99 (uncertain)
• PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad 750W ATX V2.2 EPS12V 24PIN SLI Active PFC Power Supply Black $149.99 (seems decent enough)
• Western Digital Caviar Black 640GB 7200RPM 32MB Dual Proc 3.5IN SATA Hard Drive OEM 5YR Mfg Warranty $105.11 (no changes)
• Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Dual Core Processor LGA775 3.0GHZ Wolfdale 1333FSB 6MB Retai $199.99 (seriously considering change to Q9400)
• NZXT Tempest $132 (no changes)

[ImmaPC]

DDR3 isn't that much better than DDR2 except for a few applications/games, or when OCing because of the higher speeds. Triple channel is only for i7 platforms, DDR3 is dual-channel for all LGA775 platforms. DDR3 isn't that much more expensive than DDR2, this 4GB GSkill DDR3-1600 at newegg is only $100 (not to say that $100 is cheap, but it's not bad for DDR3). Of course, there's other options avaliable, like DDR3-1333 for $85 after $15 MIR at NCIX, or even 1066, but then again why get DDR3-1066 if you can get DDR2-1066

Personally, I would get the 790i (as in NOT the FTW version), but not for $255, you can get the 790i brand new for $205 if you pricematch at NCIX, plus $100 for the DDR3-1600 kit and then the cost before taxes is $305, cheaper than your current setup and slightly better! :)

[Neutronium]

Originally Posted by ImmaPC

DDR3 isn't that much better than DDR2 except for a few applications/games, or when OCing because of the higher speeds. Triple channel is only for i7 platforms, DDR3 is dual-channel for all LGA775 platforms. DDR3 isn't that much more expensive than DDR2, this 4GB GSkill DDR3-1600 at newegg is only $100 (not to say that $100 is cheap, but it's not bad for DDR3). Of course, there's other options avaliable, like DDR3-1333 for $85 after $15 MIR at NCIX, or even 1066, but then again why get DDR3-1066 if you can get DDR2-1066

Personally, I would get the 790i (as in NOT the FTW version), but not for $255, you can get the 790i brand new for $205 if you pricematch at NCIX, plus $100 for the DDR3-1600 kit and then the cost before taxes is $305, cheaper than your current setup and slightly better! :)

Ok I'll make the switch, but why not the FTW version? are the any issues with it?

[ImmaPC]

No, no issues, but it would be significantly more expensive for something that is essentially the same product with a few extra tweals. Did I convince you? =D