Long vacation from PC gaming, building new rig, need opinions

Hey all! I've been away from the PC gaming world for about 4+ years, haven't built one in about 6. What little pc gaming I've done the past several has been on my laptop. With swtor approaching and a couple other games I'd like to check out, I figured it's time for a new, mid range build. While I'll be using it a lot for gaming, I'll also be encoding video and music, so I'm looking for something that can handle that as well. I've heard mixed things about what cpu to get when it comes to tackling encoding as well as multi tasking, mainly that the i7 is better suited for it. I've chosen to go with AMD (which I plan on oc'ing), because I've alwaysgone withthem in the past and hear that AM3 will be sticking around for a decent while...but am interested in hearing what others have to say. Anyways...my build...

Case - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129043

Mobo - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131633

CPU - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103727

RAM - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148263

GPU - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127490

HDD - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148451

PSU - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817709023

Haven't decided on a sound card yet, can't seem to find a decent one with good reviews in the$75-$125 price range. I'm also debating whether to stick with XP or go with Windows 7.

You will want a 4GB (2 X 2GB) Dual Channel DDR3 RAM kit. The one you selected is a triple channel,3GB (3 X 1GB), kit and only Intel's i7 9xx socket 1366 cpu's use triple channel kits. You will want to look for a HDD with 32MB cache or more. And get a PSU from a reputable company like Antec, Corsair, etc. The i7's are better for encoding but it isn't like the AMD PII's can't do it at all. It looks like a good setup once you have changed a few parts as already stated. Might as well go for Win 7.

My intial impression of your build is that everything will work together.. but maybe not the best allocation of the funds available. What budget are you working within (if any)?

Good case, but for what you're getting, it's highly unneccessary for what you need. A good mid-tower like the HAF 922 would more than satisfy what your build requires.

Motherboard is good, but the price is not neccessary if you're 1) not looking to go into SATAIII drives, and/or 2) not looking to crossfire your 5770. There are other motherboards that you could get that would still support the newer hexa-core processors, such as the M4A78T-E.

The CPU is good, but you could save an easy 20 dollars just by going with the X4 955. Since they're both Black Editions, all you need to do for the X4 955 is up the multiplier by 1, and you'll have an X4 965 just like that.

As the above poster has said, AMD processors work better with dual memory kits. It would be better to just get a dual-channel 4GB kit.

Video card is good.

The HDD is a little small, and for about 8 dollars more, you could get a really good 500GB HDD, like the Samsung F3.

The power supply is a little iffy for my taste. Something like the Antec Earthwatts 650w would be good enough for your build, and would easily support dual 5770's should you decide to get another.

Good case, but for what you're getting, it's highly unneccessary for what you need. A good mid-tower like the HAF 922 would more than satisfy what your build requires.

Motherboard is good, but the price is not neccessary if you're 1) not looking to go into SATAIII drives, and/or 2) not looking to crossfire your 5770. There are other motherboards that you could get that would still support the newer hexa-core processors, such as the M4A78T-E.

The CPU is good, but you could save an easy 20 dollars just by going with the X4 955. Since they're both Black Editions, all you need to do for the X4 955 is up the multiplier by 1, and you'll have an X4 965 just like that.

As the above poster has said, AMD processors work better with dual memory kits. It would be better to just get a dual-channel 4GB kit.

Video card is good.

The HDD is a little small, and for about 8 dollars more, you could get a really good 500GB HDD, like the Samsung F3.

The power supply is a little iffy for my taste. Something like the Antec Earthwatts 650w would be good enough for your build, and would easily support dual 5770's should you decide to get another.

ravenguard90

http://comquestcomputers.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=4409

:twisted:

http://comquestcomputers.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=4409

:twisted:

redneckdouglas

Nicccccccce. For $220 too, wow. Makes the i7 Expensive Edition look a little bit silly for most.

Everything else looks good , but the case and hdd can be changed, but the psu and ram needs to be changed.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148395&cm_re=500gb_sata-_-22-148-395-_-Product - 500gb $55 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119160&cm_re=haf_932-_-11-119-160-_-Product - HAF 932 case. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341017&cm_re=ocz_600w-_-17-341-017-_-Product - OCZ 600w psu http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145285&cm_re=4gb_ddr_3-_-20-145-285-_-Product - 4gb ddr3

you won't need a sound card unless you are going to be editing music or you are going to get top of the line speakersdylanzzz

http://comquestcomputers.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=4409

:twisted:

redneckdouglas

[QUOTE="dylanzzz"]you won't need a sound card unless you are going to be editing music or you are going to get top of the line speakersLegadia

I've had a really good experience with my X-Fi Xtremegamer. Massive upgrade in sound quality for music and movies, as well as positional sound in games.

offtopic

i like your sig, Lain is watching you :P

offtopic

i like your sig, Lain is watching you :P

SLI_Gamer

Not enough ram, 6gb or 4gb.

[QUOTE="redneckdouglas"]

http://comquestcomputers.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=4409

:twisted:

gmaster456

Made some changes...

PSU -http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005

RAM -http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220435

HDD -http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136320

May change -

GPU -http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102879&cm_re=ati_5830-_-14-102-879-_-Product

I also may change to 955, but not sure just yet.

The case I listed before was wrong...was thinking about getting the Antec 900, which is a mid. But I'm so indecisive when it comes to cases because none of them have ALL the features I want and I simply have to settle for what I like the best out of my narrowed down choices...

Yeah, ditch the 955 and wait for the upcoming AMD X6 models.

>http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=23027

Yeah, ditch the 955 and wait for the upcoming AMD X6 models.

>http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=23027

Mr_BillGates

Any solid news on when it's coming? Legadia

The updated parts look good. If you are willing to wait a little bit for the retail release of Nvidia's GTX 470/480 (I believe April 12) then the ATI 5800 cards could drop in price. It isn't certain but it is likely to happen. The 5850 could drop down into your price range. According to the above article the AMD 6-core cpu's should be out towards the end of April. They will most likely give you a significant performance boost over a quad core for the video and audio encoding that you are planning on doing. Don't know that they give more performance in gaming but you are planning on using your PC for other tasks. I would suggest waitiing to the end of April or first of May just to see if there are price drops for video cards and to see how well AMD's hexa-cores perform.jtcraft

Bad move changing the 5770 for the 5830. The 5830 isn't much faster for a lot more money. In short it sucks.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/EAH_5830_DirectCu/28.html

Wait for the 5850 to drop in price or go back with the 5770.

Thanks for all the great advice! I'm not in a huge rush, but would probably like to get it done by early May at the very latest. So I'll listen to what most of you said and wait for the gpu price drop and the release of theAMD 6-core.

What's the best graphics card for about $50-$150. I've been out of the loop for a while and need something that doesn't cost too much. I don't care touse full AA or full AF. Are there any games out or in the works that warrant the expensive models?

It's not like it was ten years ago. There was no such thing as surplus of power when it came to GPUs. And don't even recomend BFG because the only reason I bought their 6800 years ago was because they suckered me into buying their brand with their bogus warranty.

What's the best graphics card for about $50-$150. I've been out of the loop for a while and need something that doesn't cost too much. I don't care touse full AA or full AF. Are there any games out or in the works that warrant the expensive models?

It's not like it was ten years ago. There was no such thing as surplus of power when it came to GPUs. And don't even recomend BFG because the only reason I bought their 6800 years ago was because they suckered me into buying their brand with their bogus warranty.

MagnumPI

First of all, don't hijack other people's threads.

Second of all, this would be the best card for your budget.

Made some changes...

PSU -http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005

RAM -http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220435

HDD -http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136320

May change -

GPU -http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102879&cm_re=ati_5830-_-14-102-879-_-Product

I also may change to 955, but not sure just yet.

The case I listed before was wrong...was thinking about getting the Antec 900, which is a mid. But I'm so indecisive when it comes to cases because none of them have ALL the features I want and I simply have to settle for what I like the best out of my narrowed down choices...

Legadia

That RAM is a little overpriced for its specs. You can get some decent DDR3-1600 memory for quite a bit cheaper, like these G.Skills.

That HDD is good, but this Samsung F3 500GB has been proven to be faster than the Caviar Black, albeit only at a 3-year warranty compared to WD's 5 year warranty. Imho, most hard drives would die way before 5 years if it was going to die at some point, so I would recommend going with the Samsung.

Since you're looking to get a 5830, you may be more interested in waiting for the 5850 to drop in price, which is what most people here have been saying. However, if you do not wish to wait to see what happens on April 12, this combination of a 5850 and some RAM is a pretty good deal as well.

Lastly, the Antec 900 is considered to be a little dated for a case, since it lacks a heatsink cutout on the motherboard tray and proper cable management features. Another user recommended the NZXT Tempest EVO, which is known to be an Antec 900 spinoff, albeit cheaper and providing the previously listed features. I would recommend it as well.

And as for your predicament with the X4 955, I assure you that you will not see any difference between the X4 955 and the X4 965 as soon as you bump up that multiplier. It is a very minimal overclock, and it can easily be done on the stock clocks of the X4 955 (I've done 3.6 on mine, so there's that for proof :P), so you will not need to worry about losing a substantial chunk of your processor's lifespan. And since you're interested in multiple video cards, this combination of the X4 955 and the M4A78T-E motherboard could save you a bit of money as well.

[QUOTE="MagnumPI"]

What's the best graphics card for about $50-$150. I've been out of the loop for a while and need something that doesn't cost too much. I don't care touse full AA or full AF. Are there any games out or in the works that warrant the expensive models?

It's not like it was ten years ago. There was no such thing as surplus of power when it came to GPUs. And don't even recomend BFG because the only reason I bought their 6800 years ago was because they suckered me into buying their brand with their bogus warranty.

ravenguard90

First of all, don't hijack other people's threads.

Second of all, this would be the best card for your budget.

I Didin't Hijack this thread. I asked here because we're on the subject.

[QUOTE="Mr_BillGates"]

Yeah, ditch the 955 and wait for the upcoming AMD X6 models.

>http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=23027

imprezawrx500

Any solid news on when it's coming? Legadia

[QUOTE="imprezawrx500"][QUOTE="Mr_BillGates"] for gaming they are pointless, down clocked = less performance but for video or multitasking then they are well work it. [QUOTE="Legadia"]Any solid news on when it's coming? redneckdouglas

http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/1600240/amd-plans-underclock-phenom-ii-x6-chips

Ooook, now I'm confused. Would getting a X6 be taking a step backwards?

[QUOTE="redneckdouglas"][QUOTE="imprezawrx500"] sometime in q2 ie by late june at the latest, probably sometime in early may. Legadia

http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/1600240/amd-plans-underclock-phenom-ii-x6-chips

Ooook, now I'm confused. Would getting a X6 be taking a step backwards?

[QUOTE="Legadia"]

[QUOTE="redneckdouglas"] The X6 uses Turbo-mode for 2 threaded games.gmaster456

http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/1600240/amd-plans-underclock-phenom-ii-x6-chips

Ooook, now I'm confused. Would getting a X6 be taking a step backwards?

[QUOTE="gmaster456"][QUOTE="Legadia"]

http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/1600240/amd-plans-underclock-phenom-ii-x6-chips

Ooook, now I'm confused. Would getting a X6 be taking a step backwards?

Legadia

[QUOTE="Legadia"][QUOTE="gmaster456"] No but no really a step forward at this point either unless you edit videos and stuff like thatgmaster456

For those uses, yes, you should go Intel. They have a very significant lead in terms of processing power in those areas. The ones you should look into are the i5 750 (LGA1156) or the i7 920/930 (LGA1366).