Here goes... Spec Me a Rig

Roxsoxbox

Roxsoxbox

Roxsoxbox

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Joined
3 Oct 2010
Posts
11
So I currently have the following;

Asus P5Q Pro
Intel Q6600
2 x OCZ 2GB DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 Memory REAPER EDITION CL4
Ati Raedon 4850
64GB Crucial C300 SSD
Random HDs
Antec Piano Black Case /w 500w EarthWatts PSU.

I use my PC for everything, coding, video editing and encoding, photoshop, gaming etc etc.

Now, it's gotten to the point where my PC is now just over 2 years old, no problems, no issues it's been great, it cost £750 including a screen so I think it has served me well.

But now I seek something bigger and better...

Current resolution I play with is dual 23" monitors @ 1920x1080 each, as for games anything from WoW, SC2, CS:S to DiRT (New MoH when I buy it) Fifa, MW:2 etcc (So everything and anything)

So budget, £1500 I can go higher but it has to be worth it..

Ideally I wouldn't use anything from my old PC other than the SSD as it'd be great to give to a family member but if anything is worth keeping then so be it.

I was looking through builds and such and this is a rough.. rough.. idea;

iaUdC.png


As you can see, sound is an issue... My current rig tends to be kinda noisey at least in my opinion, that's partly due to the graphics card whining a little.

But here's some questions;

  • GFX - Would dual 470's outperform a 480? Should I wait for the 69xx or even x-fire dual 6870's?
  • CPU - Good OC'er? Bang for buck? Futureproof-ability?
  • Cooler - I've seen some monster ones in the build log threads, I used a very similar cooler to this (4/5 years ago) is it still "alright"
  • RAM - Really got no idea what's the so called best

So, any input would be greatly appreciated. I've been a long time lurker here but as for most people I've kind of fallen out of the "loop" when it comes to components.
 
yes two GTX470 beat a GTX480.

CPU will get too 4ghz easily, futureproof? not really, next year Intel release Sandy bridge.

that ram and cooler is fine,

but im not sure how well that artic cooler will cope with a i7 at 4ghz? how about a bigger cooler? Titan fenrir or Akasa Venom.
 
Don't think about 'futureproofing' with PCs. It's not a sensible term. And it doesn't really make sense.

Your CPU will be outperformed in the future, this is undeniable. Therefore by buying the best that exists at the moment, you are doing the best you can. There is no futureproofing available, as everything will be bested.

I'm running a Q8300 - a 2 year old processor - and don't see myself needing to upgrade for at least 2 years. Future games *should* be better optimised for multi-core CPUs and needing to buy and clock the hell out of the latest and greatest processors should become more of a hobbyist/enthusiast thing.

I'm not saying go 775, obviosuly - but don't go mental on a CPU if you don't need to. You really just want to get your processor above the point of bottlenecking so the game performance is handed off solely to the GPU.

As titles become more multi-core/HT optimised, the need for a monster processor will diminish somewhat and graphics hardware will become paramount. Get a CPU that won't bottleneck you, and spend as much as you can on graphics.
 
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I'd second Thrifles. Get your CPU up over 3.5ghz and it won't affect your games at all. Except maybe GTA4 and FSX. Then you're free to ramp up your graphics and will see 60fps for years to come!

It's always a toss up: upgrade your current and get another 12-24 months, or go all out and gain 3-4 years.

But don't think 'Oh, I should wait because bla bla is just around the corner!' as you'll be thinking that forever and will never buy anything.

Personally I'm sticking with 775 until the processors become the bottleneck, even at 3.5ghz+ - probably about 2 years from now.
 
Well, to take into considerating when I bought this system over 2 years ago nothing in it was top-end except maybe the mobo, there's a few reasons wanting to buy a whole set up.

One being I can put this (as you said) quite decent PC to use with another family member, the second is well I've got the money to burn so why not. It's not like it's a waste of money as I use my PC every damn day.

I do have a question about water cooling as well though, I've never actually seen the final results... how're the sound levels? What's the average cost for the rads and blocks etc for a single GPU setup?
 
It depends on how you set up your WC, you can either go for low temps, in which case its only marginally better than top end air cooling (noise wise) or you can go for low noise, though this restricts OCs etc
 
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