Hey guys, I have 3 builds, but I don't know what I should really get...

[feerof]

Ideally I'd like to keep the cost down... but obviously if i want performance... cost goes up. I would like to wait for the i5s to come out, but i know the mobos are going to be expensive... and i'm probably going to have to wait a couple months before i can even think about buying an i5 since it's going to be expensive. With that being said, I'm not buying this computer just yet, I am just speculating the market, and seeing whether i do need this computer just yet.

My needs:

- occasional work on solidworks
- occasional work on matlab
- occasional work on C++
- occasional gaming (not anything like crysis... nothing too graphically heavy)
- writing reports (the stuff you do in univ. (loser) school)
- viewing large PDF files
- occasional 720p movies/trailers/shows.

I am not into OCing, but I know that i am probably going to OC since both processors are capable of good OCing. But otherwise, I would not spend 100+ on a water cooling system, I'm probably just going to air cool it.

Judging by the looks of my needs, this computer will really be an all rounder.

I also want a computer that will last. Currently I'm using my tx2500 tablet laptop as my main computer... but i don't like the fact that i'm using it for my main computer. Also my second computer is a P3 1Ghz 786?mb ram... so this computer will be a huge upgrade.

Any suggestions will be great! thanks a lot =) i've been hooked on this forum... thanks to NCIX's contest... i just fell for marketting.. LOL

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

Budget build 1

Antec Three Hundred Mini Tower Gaming Case 300 ATX 3X5.25 6X3.5INT No PS Front USB & Audio
$78.98
NCIX.com - Buy Antec Three Hundred Mini Tower Gaming Case 300 ATX 3X5.25 6X3.5INT No PS Front USB & Audio - THREE HUNDRED In Canada.

Gigabyte GA-MA770-UD3 ATX AM2+/AM3 AMD770 PCI-E16 2PCI SATA2 RAID 1394 HD Sound GBLAN Motherboard
$87.47
NCIX.com - Buy Gigabyte GA-MA770-UD3 ATX AM2+/AM3 AMD770 PCI-E16 2PCI SATA2 RAID 1394 HD Sound GBLAN Motherboard - GA-MA770-UD3 In Canada.

AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition Quad Core Processor AM2+ 3.0GHZ 8MB Cache 125W 45NM Retail Box
$239.52
NCIX.com - Buy AMD Phenom II X4 940 Black Edition Quad Core Processor AM2+ 3.0GHZ 8MB Cache 125W 45NM Retail Box - HDZ940XCGIBOX In Canada.

Corsair XMS2 TWIN2X4096-6400C5 4GB DDR2 2X2GB PC2-6400 DDR2-800 CL 5-5-5-18 240PIN Memory Kit
$57.29
NCIX.com - Buy Corsair XMS2 TWIN2X4096-6400C5 4GB DDR2 2X2GB PC2-6400 DDR2-800 CL 5-5-5-18 240PIN Memory Kit - TWIN2X4096-6400C5 In Canada.

XFX Radeon HD 4850 625MHZ 512MB 1.99GHZ DDR3 PCI-E Dual DVI-I HDCP HDTV Out Video Card
$134.99
NCIX.com - Buy XFX Radeon HD 4850 625MHZ 512MB 1.99GHZ DDR3 PCI-E Dual DVI-I HDCP HDTV Out Video Card - HD485XYDFC In Canada.

Western Digital WD1001FALS Caviar Black 1TB SATA2 7200RPM 4.2MS 32MB 3.5IN Dual Proc Hard Drive OEM $129.97 NCIX.com - Buy Western Digital WD1001FALS Caviar Black 1TB SATA2 7200RPM 4.2MS 32MB 3.5IN Dual Proc Hard Drive OEM - WD1001FALS In Canada.

Corsair TX750W 750W ATX 12V 60A 24PIN ATX Power Supply Active PFC 140MM Fan
$144.99
NCIX.com - Buy Corsair TX750W 750W ATX 12V 60A 24PIN ATX Power Supply Active PFC 140MM Fan - CMPSU-750TX In Canada. monitor $200.00

monitor $200.00


total: $1,073.21

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

Budget Build 2

Antec Three Hundred Mini Tower Gaming Case 300 ATX 3X5.25 6X3.5INT No PS Front USB & Audio
$78.98
NCIX.com - Buy Antec Three Hundred Mini Tower Gaming Case 300 ATX 3X5.25 6X3.5INT No PS Front USB & Audio - THREE HUNDRED In Canada.

Gigabyte EP43-UD3L ATX LGA775 P43 FSB 1600 OC 1PCI-E 2PCI DDR2 SATA2 HD Sound GBLAN Motherboard
$95.56
NCIX.com - Buy Gigabyte EP43-UD3L ATX LGA775 P43 FSB 1600 OC 1PCI-E 2PCI DDR2 SATA2 HD Sound GBLAN Motherboard - GA-EP43-UD3L In Canada.

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 Quad Core Processor LGA775 2.83GHZ Yorkfield 1333FSB 12MB Retail Box
$289.45
NCIX.com - Buy Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 Quad Core Processor LGA775 2.83GHZ Yorkfield 1333FSB 12MB Retail Box - BX80569Q9550 In Canada.

Corsair XMS2 TWIN2X2048-6400C4 2GB 2X1GB PC2-6400 DDR2-800 CL 4-4-4-12 240PIN Dual Channel Memory
$46.12
NCIX.com - Buy Corsair XMS2 TWIN2X2048-6400C4 2GB 2X1GB PC2-6400 DDR2-800 CL 4-4-4-12 240PIN Dual Channel Memory - TWIN2X2048-6400C4 In Canada.

XFX Radeon HD 4850 625MHZ 512MB 1.99GHZ DDR3 PCI-E Dual DVI-I HDCP HDTV Out Video Card
$134.99
NCIX.com - Buy EVGA E-GEFORCE GTX 260 Core 216 55NM 576MHZ 896MB 1.998GHZ GDDR3 PCI-E 2XDVI-I HDTV Out Video Card - 896-P3-1255-AR In Canada.

Western Digital WD1001FALS Caviar Black 1TB SATA2 7200RPM 4.2MS 32MB 3.5IN Dual Proc Hard Drive OEM
$129.97
NCIX.com - Buy Western Digital WD1001FALS Caviar Black 1TB SATA2 7200RPM 4.2MS 32MB 3.5IN Dual Proc Hard Drive OEM - WD1001FALS In Canada.

Corsair TX750W 750W ATX 12V 60A 24PIN ATX Power Supply Active PFC 140MM Fan $144.99
NCIX.com - Buy Corsair TX750W 750W ATX 12V 60A 24PIN ATX Power Supply Active PFC 140MM Fan - CMPSU-750TX In Canada.

monitor $200.00



total: $1,120.06


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Just for comparison sake... i'll add in my most ambitious build.

Not-so-much budget in mind Build 3


Antec Three Hundred Mini Tower Gaming Case 300 ATX 3X5.25 6X3.5INT No PS Front USB & Audio
$78.98
NCIX.com - Buy Antec Three Hundred Mini Tower Gaming Case 300 ATX 3X5.25 6X3.5INT No PS Front USB & Audio - THREE HUNDRED In Canada.

Gigabyte EX58-UD4P ATX LGA1366 X58 DDR3 3PCI-E SATA2 Sound GLAN 3-WAY CrossFireX SLI Motherboard
$272.06
NCIX.com - Buy Gigabyte EX58-UD4P ATX LGA1366 X58 DDR3 3PCI-E SATA2 Sound GLAN 3-WAY CrossFireX SLI Motherboard - GA-EX58-UD4P In Canada.

Intel Core I7 920 D0 Stepping Quad Core Processor LGA1366 2.66GHZ Bloomfield 8MB LGA1366 -SLBEJ-
$351.30
NCIX.com - Buy Intel Core I7 920 D0 Stepping Quad Core Processor LGA1366 2.66GHZ Bloomfield 8MB LGA1366 -SLBEJ- - BX80601920 - D0 In Canada.

G.SKILL F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ 6GB DDR3 3X2GB DDR3-1600 CL 9-9-9-24 Triple Channel Memory Kit
$142.66
NCIX.com - Buy G.SKILL F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ 6GB DDR3 3X2GB DDR3-1600 CL 9-9-9-24 Triple Channel Memory Kit - F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ In Canada.

XFX Radeon HD 4890 XT 1GB 875MHZ 1GB 3.9GHZ GDDR5 PCI-E 2XDVI HDTV Video Card
$249.99
NCIX.com - Buy XFX Radeon HD 4890 XT 1GB 875MHZ 1GB 3.9GHZ GDDR5 PCI-E 2XDVI HDTV Video Card - HD489AZDEC In Canada.

Western Digital WD1001FALS Caviar Black 1TB SATA2 7200RPM 4.2MS 32MB 3.5IN Dual Proc Hard Drive OEM
$129.97
NCIX.com - Buy Western Digital WD1001FALS Caviar Black 1TB SATA2 7200RPM 4.2MS 32MB 3.5IN Dual Proc Hard Drive OEM - WD1001FALS In Canada.

Corsair TX750W 750W ATX 12V 60A 24PIN ATX Power Supply Active PFC 140MM Fan
$144.99
NCIX.com - Buy Corsair TX750W 750W ATX 12V 60A 24PIN ATX Power Supply Active PFC 140MM Fan - CMPSU-750TX In Canada. monitor $200.00



total: $1,569.95

[bkh2]

Where's the third build?

[feerof]

My bad, my math is horrible

[shayan288]

Your second build looks awesome! Though I would personally get a gtx 260 core 216 or a gts 250 sc instead of a 4850.

[curtispan]

Definitely for almost the exact same price, go for the Intel build. Just do yourself a favour and get the Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB. It will be faster than the hitachi you're looking at. You might as well get the P45 version of that motherboard too, basically the same price.

What resolution is your monitor?

Also, do not forget to price match! You can save plenty on that case, processor, graphics card and power supply.

[feerof]

Originally Posted by shayan288

Your second build looks awesome! Though I would personally get a gtx 260 core 216 or a gts 250 sc instead of a 4850.

thanks shayan288 for your input, judging by the reviews on the gtx 260 core 216, it looks like that would be justifiable to spend an extra 50$ to get a graphics card that can play games at max settings. I will definitely consider that.

Originally Posted by curtispan

Definitely for almost the exact same price, go for the Intel build. Just do yourself a favour and get the Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB. It will be faster than the hitachi you're looking at. You might as well get the P45 version of that motherboard too, basically the same price.

What resolution is your monitor?

Also, do not forget to price match! You can save plenty on that case, processor, graphics card and power supply.

yeah, my friend was also suggesting to change the HD also. I will change that on my build tomorrow

and as for the monitor, i'm not too sure. i haven't really looked into that, but the monitor really isn't a big concern to me atm, but am i missing something here? like is there a problem with the graphics card and the monitor resolution?

excuse my noobiness =P

thanks for your input also! =)

[curtispan]

At 1680x1050, 4850 will be perfect for anything casual. TF2, L4D, COD4/WAW, any of those should be fine for a 22in. If it's more like 1920x1200, you might want to check out the 4870 1GB or the gtx260.

[feerof]

hmm... interesting, i think i fit under the casual gamer category. also, changing graphic cards means that the computer will become $1205.22... which is getting into my i7 build money range... i will also post that up just for comparison sake. so i think the 4850 is good enough for myself, but thanks for the suggestion!

also, one big question, should i wait for the core i5s to come out? because i'm not getting this computer now, i'm really waiting until boxing comes up =P

[shayan288]

Well just keep in mind that if you want to buy the 4850, keep in mind that the 4870 1gb can be for $150 if you keep an eye out (it was $150 last time at an NCIX sale), but I still recomend the 260 as it would still do quite the amount better than a 4850 even when gaming on a 22inch. Also, dont be afraid to buy from fellow HWC'ers I saw a couple going for about 160 (gtx 260 core 216).
s288

[crazyhorsejohnny]

Last year Boxing Day didn't have great deals like past years.