My Final build! yay or nay?

[jakesnake]

In a nut shell i use my pc for gaming. i want to run my games max settings for 10 hours a day if i wanted to. futureproof is wot im looking for and i dont want to be looking at another upgrade for at least 2/3 years after this new build, except maybe adding a 2nd GPU a bit down the line.

My budget was around 6/700£ but ive decided to take an extra hit to £1k to try and get the 3 years i want. the only thing i will salvage frm my current rig is my Case its a "Thermaltake Tsunami Dream" it came out about 5 years ago but i think it could still do a job and would like you cooling guys to have a look for me and see if its still capable of good cooling/holding the new hardware. heres a link

http://www.thermaltakeusa.com/Product.aspx?C=1327&ID=1461


Rig ive decided to go for. all from OcUK

- Intel Core i7 930 2.80GHz (Bloomfield) (Socket LGA1366)
- Asus P6X58D-E Intel X58 (Socket 1366) DDR3 Motherboard
- XFX ATI Radeon HD 5870 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express
- Patriot Viper 6GB DDR3 12800C8 1600MHz Triple Channel Memory
- BeQuiet Dark Power Pro P8 750W Modular Power Supply
- Intel X25-V Value 40GB 2.5" SATA-II Solid State Hard Drive
- Samsung SpinPoint F3 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache
- Akasa AK-CCX-4002HP Venom CPU Cooler


If anyone can beat this or more or less match it for less money im all ears lol. feel free to suggest ur own builds, AMD welcome. Running current demanding games and future releases at Max settings is the core of wot i want so keep that in mind

Looking forward to your responces


Jake

 

[Jony27]

im not so sure about this but i know people will point out my mistakes

-XFX ATI Radeon HD 5870 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
-Asus Crosshair IV Formula AMD 890FX (Socket AM3) DDR3 Motherboard
-AMD Phenom II X6 Six Core 1055T 2.80GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail
-Corsair Dominator GT 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 16000C8 (2000MHz) Dual-Channel Kit
-Intel X25-V Value 40GB 2.5" SATA-II Solid State Hard Drive (SSDSA2MP040G2R5) - Retail
-Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ)
-Corsair HX 750W ATX Modular SLI Compliant Power Supply (CMPSU-750HXUK)
-Akasa AK-CCX-4002HP Venom CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775/LGA1156/LGA1366/AM2/AM3)
comes to around £1,050

 

[Nemesis379]

Tbh that i7 build is perfect.

 

[honosuseri]

As a gaming rig, the intel cpu isnt going to be far ahead of a AMD build, just more expensive. It's the gpu that will make the biggest difference. As you've spec'd an ati card not having sli on an AMD chipset isnt going to matter.

You could easily save money by using a X4 955 (up the multiplier by 1 to get a 965). Quad cores are rarely fully used by games so a hex core is OTT. You could opt for the ROG asus crosshair IV mobo (comes with x-fi soundcard) and still be coming out with change in your pocket (many people would say the crosshairs are on the dear side).

Im sure i read the new ati cards are due soon (october i think) so it may pay to wait a few weeks. As far as futureproofing is concerned it's a question of how well the gfx card will run with directx11. The 5870 is good but you may kick yourself for paying over the odds or for not picking up a 6000 series, which in theory should be better.

The case looks good. You opted for a modular psu so airflow should be good if you're tidy with the cables. If heat is a real concern then get a corsair h-50/70 heatsink. The rad will be mounted at the back of the case and the heat promptly pumped out the rear, so the inside temps should drop over aircooling.

Good luck with the build

 

[jakesnake]

thanks guys for posting the AMD option and info, its actually turned my head. i have done a basket going the AMD route and with the money ive saved from switching the i7 to a 955 + an extra £20 has allowed me to buff my GPU and get wot seems to be a better board. will this make all the more difference for gaming performance? heres the AMD rig

- AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 955 Black Edition "125W Edition" 3.20GHz
- Asus Crosshair IV Formula AMD 890FX (Socket AM3) DDR3 Motherboard
- Powercolor ATI Radeon HD 5870 2048MB "Eyefinity 6 Edition" GDDR5 PCI
- Corsair Dominator GT 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 16000C8 (2000MHz) Dual-Channel Kit
- BeQuiet Dark Power Pro P8 750W Modular Power Supply
- Intel X25-V Value 40GB 2.5" SATA-II Solid State Hard Drive
- Samsung SpinPoint F3 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache
- Akasa AK-CCX-4002HP Venom CPU Cooler


that 5870 is a 2gig card compared to the 1gig in the i7 build. how much of a difference does this make?

also is it bad that ive dropped to 4gb dual channel memory as apposed to the 6gb triple channel memory in the i7 build.

in 3 years time which rig would be the better to have?

head to head wot do you guys think?

 

[VonScar]

Hi mate,

If you are going for a new build and have managed to save money, I would suggest you should get a new case. Basically because the new equipment can get toasty in an inefficient case. You could get get an Antec 300 case for about £46.00, which has one 120 mil fan at rear and one 140 mil up top, and with space for more. Or if you can stratch your budget, a Silverstone Raven RV02 would also have great cooling.

Here are the links

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-101-AN

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-065-SV&groupid=701&catid=7&subcat=1092

A lot of cases (even from a mere five years ago) do not cut it with hot running boards like an X58 Asus, and your graphics card might also heat up. Though in this case your components are reputed to run reasonably cool.

On a different tack the 5870 GPU is reasonably long, have you measured your current case to see if that long card will fit it?

Regards

Von

 

[honosuseri]

That 5870 is a "niche" card. It basically is to allow upto 6 displays to be run at once using 6 display ports (no DVI/ d-sub ones!) for eyefinity gaming. More memory is good but im sure you could find a 2gig card which has more common display connectors for less cash.

That said if your monitor has a display port on the back then there's nothing stopping you going with this card. 3x1 eyefinity gaming does look the dogs balerics ;p

On the memory front it does kinda depend on the OS. If you dont have a 64bit version then you wont be able to use more than 4gig anyway.

 

[Big.Wayne]

You could opt for the ROG asus crosshair IV mobo (comes with x-fi soundcard) and still be coming out with change in your pocket (many people would say the crosshairs are on the dear side)

honosuseri, you are suggesting that jakesnake saves some money by buying an AMD® Phenom™ II X4 instead of a AMD® Phenom™ II X6 and then go on to suggest he spends £169.99 on a flashy red motherboard that comes with a "emulated" Intel HD Audio via Via VT2020 with SupremeFX X-Fi sound card?

jakesnake, the crosshair IV motherboard is ridiculously expensive for the features it offers and you could save £65 and not lose any "meaningful" functionality by opting for this board if going the AMD® route . . .

Gigabyte GA-890GPA-UD3H

£104.99 inc

You could also save another £118.01 by dropping the £289.99 XFX ATI Radeon HD 5870 and instead opting for a new £171.98 GeForce GTX 460 . .

By choosing the less expensive motherboard and the less expensive GPU you have slashed a tidy £183.01 from your build costs £££ and still get a totally kick ass computer . . . your money, your choice . . . spend wisely!

 

[honosuseri]

Hello again wayne. Picking on me again i see ;p

My point was he could save money by switching to AMD from Intel and still have decent performance. I stated in brackets that some people think the crosshair mobos are dear....yet still he would have money left over despite choosing the most expensive AMD chipset mobo.

For the record he doesn't need a 890 chipset mobo for a nvidia card. You are in a way wasting money suggesting a mobo that supports proper crossfire when a lower chipset would suffice. The mobo you suggested would be great with the 5870, i still think he should wait and see wether the "new" ati cards will be released in october.

*edit* I have found the crosshair for £156 (i can't list competitors) which is near as damn it to what the intel x58 mobo would have cost, so coupled with the phenom X4 it's still quite a saving making the switch

 

[Big.Wayne]

Hello again wayne. Picking on me again i see ;p

Hello again honosuseri . . no I'm absolutely not picking on you in anyway but rather "examining" the reasoning behind the hardware advice you are kindly giving . . . you may well have plenty of "justification" for the different hardware you recommend to people but I've not yet seen you explain your ideas in a way that I can understand . . .

My point was he could save money by switching to AMD from Intel and still have decent performance. I stated in brackets that some people think the crosshair mobos are dear....yet still he would have money left over despite choosing the most expensive AMD chipset mobo

Yup I kinda understand where you are going with the cost saving ideology of using AMD hardware over Intel hardware, and then going on to suggest an X4 instead of an X6, I get it . . . but then recommending one of the most costly AMD motherboards kinda "contradicts" all of this? . . . I know it's a nice racing car red and all which is something that obviously appeals to you personally but "Vroom Vroom" aside I fail to see why jakesnake would want to pay a hefty 62% premium for it?

For the record he doesn't need a 890 chipset mobo for a nvidia card.

I'm not sure if anyone has suggested anything to the contrary?

You are in a way wasting money suggesting a mobo that supports proper crossfire when a lower chipset would suffice.

It's not often that I get accused of "wasting money" . . . The Gigabyte mobo was suggested "if" jakesnake was considering the AMD route and wanted a modern "futureproof" chipset that comes with SATA 6Gb/s & USB3.0 . . . if the latter features are in no way important then there is scope to pick up an even more affordable motherboard and shave a further £25-£30 of the costs . . .

The mobo you suggested would be great with the [£289.99] 5870, i still think he should wait and see wether the "new" ati cards will be released in october

The Radeon HD 5870 is so damn expensive, granted it's a nice card but as you say it's likely to be outmoded as soon as the newer Radeons are released, it's value will depreciate loads, money down the plughole if you ask me . . .

I have found the crosshair for £XYZ (i can't list competitors) which is near as damn it to what the intel x58 mobo would have cost, so coupled with the phenom X4 it's still quite a saving making the switch

So we come full circle . . . on the AMD side of things for a gamer wanting a "futureproof" system I can't say it's an easy choice between the X4 and the X6, sure the X4 955 has a stock speed of 3.2GHz but then the X6 1055T has TurboCore that boosts a 1-3 thread load from 2.8GHz to 3.3GHz which should be faster for those games which are lightly threaded and then offers an extra two processing cores for games of the future . . . deffo not an easy choice but one made easier by choosing price-effective components carefully!

 

[jakesnake]

thanks guys for your input, i wouldnt no which way was up without yas.

ive decided to go the AMD route, also decided to play it safe and get a new case to go with the new hardware. heres the rig

- AMD Phenom II X6 Six Core 1055T 2.80GHz (Socket AM3)
- Gigabyte GA-890GPA-UD3H AMD 890GX (Socket AM3)
- Powercolor ATI Radeon HD 5870 2048MB "Eyefinity 6 Edition" GDDR5 PCI
- Corsair Dominator GT 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 16000C8 (2000MHz) Dual-Channel Kit
- BeQuiet Dark Power Pro P8 750W Modular Power Supply
- Intel X25-V Value 40GB 2.5" SATA-II Solid State Hard Drive
- Samsung SpinPoint F3 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache
- Corsair H50-1 High-Performance CPU Watercooler
- Coolermaster CM-690 II Advanced Window Edition Dominator Case


im hoping to add a further 5870 and another 4gb of GT ram a bit down the line to give it an extra boost.

final thoughs guys wot do you think? i want to get this right and need convincing its a solid build

 

[Grimley]

Was there any reason for the Eyefinity 6 Edition over a bog standard 5870. The extra 1gig ram & the ability to connect up to 6 monitors doesn't seem worth the extra hundred quid or so to me, especially with Ati's 6000 refresh on the horizon.

 

[Randomface74]

That's basically my system, except I didn't get an SSD. I think 40GB capacity will be an annoyance - so perhaps forget the SSD entirely for this build. The system has been totally pro, except for problems with ATI drivers - so I'd advise you to go with a GTX 460 instead for now.

 

[mattjd]

- Powercolor ATI Radeon HD 5870 2048MB "Eyefinity 6 Edition" GDDR5 PCI
- Corsair Dominator GT 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 16000C8 (2000MHz) Dual-Channel Kit

Hey money waster

1gb compared to 2gb makes no real difference unless your using 3+ monitors or using a hell a lot of AA or using a monitor with a high resolution such as the Dell U2711/U3008.

1gb will be sufficient unless you do use/have the things above.

Get this one:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-002-HS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=1502

Whoever suggested the Corsair Dominator GT is... well lets just say not thinking right.

The normal Corsair Dominator RAM is just as good (has lower clock speeds and tiny bit higher timings) but you wont notice any difference between the 2 because once DDR3 RAM is set higher than 1600MHz you wont notice any real world differences.

Get this RAM instead:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-288-CS&groupid=701&catid=8&subcat=1517

Guess what?

I just saved you 154 pound and you wont notice any speed differences

 

[Jony27]

maybe stick with a integrated gpu for the meantime and pick up the 6000 series when they come out?

 

[Kosmiche]

The only problem you might run into with the case is, as you know the hdd's are sideways mounted...with multiple hdd's a long graphics card might cause a conflict.

 

[Big.Wayne]

BeQuiet Dark Power Pro P8 750W Modular PSU

£127.99 inc

OCZ ModXStream Pro 500w Modular PSU

£56.99 inc (Single Radeon HD 5870)

Corsair HX 650W ATX Modular

£99.99 inc (CrossFire Radeon HD 5870)

RADEON HD 5870 crossfire power

• 350watts for single card (Total System)
• 600watts for Crossfire (Total System)

i want to run my games max settings for 10 hours a day if i wanted to

im hoping to add a further 5870

A single [£289.99 inc] Radeon HD 5870 is like a "godly" and very expensive graphics card, having two in Crossfire is like somewhat OTT! . . . if your sure you don't want a real life and instead "want" to run benchmarks all day & night in a darkened room then your gonna need to pay extra for a meatier PSU just in case . . . I really don't know anyone that wouldn't be happy with a single nVidia Geforce GTX 460 for playing HD games let alone a Radeon HD 5870 . . let alone "two" Radeon HD 5870's!

Have fun jakesnake, don't mind us bringing you back down to earth a bit and trying to save you some money!

 

[Jony27]

you could always buy a £100 gpu and sell it when the 6000series comes out

 

[w1llyg]

I wouldn't get the 2GB Graphics card unless i was running 3+screens.
The 2000MHz Ram is soooo OTT get some 1600MHz.

 

[jakesnake]

the "gaming 10 hours" is exaggerated, but it could get close, as ive broke my leg and not be able to do cartwheels anytime soon lol


thanks guys this knowledge is priceless

ill tinker with the build