Potential new compy

[MrPink]

Antec 1100
ASUS P8Z77-V Premium
2x EVGA GTX 670s
Seasonic Platinum-860watt PSU
Core i7-3770K
2x Samsung 830 Series 256GB SSD
HGST Desktar 2TB HDD
G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 2x8GB
Noctua NH-D14
LG blu-ray burner

What say you? The build is a little over 3k for where I live (USA), and the most expensive item is the mobo, which is almost $450. I'm a little out of the loop hardware wise, so this is just something I put together after a couple nights research. My last build was Almost four years ago, and so far the only original parts from it are the cpu, mobo, and ram (Q9650, ASUS P5Q-Pro, 4 gigs of g.skill). My current video card is an HD5870 1 gig, which is now almost 2 years old I guess.

On this wishlist build, I plan on putting windows and programs on one ssd, games on another, and media on the hdd. One 670 would be more than enough, but I've never run sli before, and from the benchmarks I've seen, adding another 670 almost doubles performance in a lot of cases, and allow me to upgrade to a higher res monitor in the future (currently at 1080p). The PSU is overkill I know, but I've read that it's super high quality, fully modular, and gets over 90% efficiency. Ram is just really cheap now, so 16 gigs for 100 bucks seems like a deal to me, and I know from experience g.skill is good stuff. The processor might also be a little overkill, but I paid almost 300 when I got my Q9650 at the time 4 years ago. I like the case, but I'm a little worried about airflow and space with two video cards in a mid tower.

The things I'd consider cutting out are a gtx 670, an ssd, and getting a cheaper mobo. That would drop me to just a little over 2k I think.

My current PC runs most of what I play just fine, I just haven't built a whole new rig in a while, and I need to scratch the itch.

[Princess Garnet]

There's no reason spending that much on a motherboard in my opinion. You can get something for well under half the price. There's no reason to waste that much on motherboards when they're less relevant for overclocking.

SLI (and Crossfire) aren't my thing because of Microstutter and hit or miss incompatibility. I know someone's going to come in and say "it works fine for me", and that's nice, but I'm speaking for myself here. I'd rather have one more powerful card and be done with it and know it'll work at that level across the board and without microstutter. The current GPUs are largely overkill given the demand level of games anyway, so to me, it's an entire waste for the cost.

If you won't be burning (or playing) Blu-rays, get a DVD player. Physical media is becoming more redundant, and for you do need physical media for, DVD players work 99.9% of the time.

For the processor, if you are just gaming, get a Core i5 and save yourself more. Too few games take enough of of an advantage of a Core i7 to make it worth it. Only if you are using software often enough that warrants it should you do so.

You can cut out an SSD, yes, but I'd probably recommend you to do any (or all) of the above first. You won't lose much having games on an HDD though. Only a few really benefit, and one that does (The Sims 3) is one I tried on a RAM Disk, something that makes SSDs look slow, and the difference wasn't quite as big as I'd have figured with all the hype, so actually, yeah, just get one. 256GB will likely still take Windows, your programs, and the few games that might really be worth it anyway.

If it's just an itch to scratch, don't waste so much on redundancy. There is zero reason to waste $3,000 when you're current configuration satisfies you. I wouldn't spend much over half that myself.

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"The heart has it's reasons that reason knows nothing of."

[MrPink]

Yeah all of those suggestions make sense, damn you for being logical.

[SCHUMI_4EVER]

Well it all would depend on how easy $3000 is to get for you.

As for the motherboard, yeah you can probably get something cheaper, but just keep an eye out for power sharing between the 2nd PCI-e X16 slot and the other slots on the board. Many of the cheaper boards share the power like that and then one or the other is disabled when either option is in use.
I stick to 8GB RAM, it's easy to add more later.
I'd just get one 680 now (so you have a little more than a 670). You can always add in more later.
And then I agree with Garnet's point about the DVD drive.
Other than that though depending on how easy it is to obtain the necessary budget I'd say the build is pretty much perfect.

Ideally I wouldn't go i5. You tend to keep your systems for quite a while just like me. Also you want the biggest jump possible over the Q9550 and that's where the hyperthreading comes in.

__________________

Intel Core2Quad Q9550 (2.83Ghz stock) | ASUS P5Q | 2x2GB Transcend JetRam DDR2-800 | ASUS ENGTX260\HDTP\896M | Windows Vista Home Premium 64bit SP1

The Champ has retired but may his Legacy live on FOREVER !!!!

No$GBA DS FAQ 2.0

Get it right fools! The glass is HALF-EMPTY, not half-full!!!

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[Princess Garnet]

Originally Posted by MrPink

Yeah all of those suggestions make sense, damn you for being logical.

Just wait until you see the emotional side of me.

Originally Posted by SCHUMI_4EVER

Ideally I wouldn't go i5. You tend to keep your systems for quite a while just like me. Also you want the biggest jump possible over the Q9550 and that's where the hyperthreading comes in.

If he isn't using stuff that takes advantage of the extra threads, it's the same jump but cheaper.

For most people, IPC is more important than core count, especially when you have at least four. Even in my example (as a person with some degree of enthusiasm/gaming), I hardly needed four cores. Moving from a 4GHz Wolfdale (dual core) to a 4GHz Sandy Bridge (quad core) left the IPC as the biggest thing I'd see, and... I didn't really see it do much. To better yet ambiguously put it, I did, but I didn't. I know, that doesn't say much, but I probably don't use stuff/games to justify/need it since I don't play all the latest stuff. It's the same way with Hyper-threading. If you don't need it, it won't do anything for you but giver you more cost/heat.

Get a Core i7 if you need Hyper-threading. Get a Core i5 if you don't need Hyper-threading. They're otherwise 99% the same. That's the rule of thumb.

As for longevity, if you really wanted to pitch that as a reason, you shouldn't suggest wasting more on what he doesn't need, but instead suggest that he save money when what he has now works fine and upgrade later.

__________________
"The heart has it's reasons that reason knows nothing of."

[SCHUMI_4EVER]

If not a fan of the buy only what you need now so you can save the rest of money to do the same again in 2 years way of building systems. I'd rather get too much now so I end up with just enough down the line.
Hence budget permitting I'd definitely get the i7.

You're arguing now, whereas I'm arguing the picture in 2-3 years time. By then we may have stuff that can take advantage of more cores and this way he'll have them even if they're fake. Nothing will CPU limit him for a while whereas with a simple four core there's already stuff that can make full use of it.

If I was really going overboard I'd tell him to get Sandybridge E but I honestly don't think an i7 is that unreasonable especially given that his current system (not in his sig anymore but I pretty much remember what it is, and it's quite similar to mine just with more premium parts) isn't a i'll-jut-get-enough-for-now-and-upgrade-again-in-a-year's-or-so-time system but rather one destined to be kept for a while.

__________________

Intel Core2Quad Q9550 (2.83Ghz stock) | ASUS P5Q | 2x2GB Transcend JetRam DDR2-800 | ASUS ENGTX260\HDTP\896M | Windows Vista Home Premium 64bit SP1

The Champ has retired but may his Legacy live on FOREVER !!!!

No$GBA DS FAQ 2.0

Get it right fools! The glass is HALF-EMPTY, not half-full!!!

!!! WARNING: Emulation requires a brain !!! WARNING: Emulation =/= Piracy !!!

[MrPink]

As for the budget, this build is theoretically within it depending on your views on spending/saving money. I have a fortunate living situation where I don't pay for rent, utilities, or food, so pretty much everything I make is mine to do with as I please. Obviously some would think spending so much on a system is a waste, but it's something I'm passionate about, and in the long run a several hundred more or less on a system isn't a big deal to me if I know I'll be able to fully enjoy all the new stuff that comes out.

I don't spend a lot on clothes, cars, eating out, or any number of other things that people do for hobbies; almost 100% of my entertainment comes from my pc, which is my justification for spending so much.

I thought about using a 680, but in most benchmarks, the difference between the 670 and 680 is usually less than 10fps...which might mean more a few years from now, but even then I'd have a second 670 if it got that bad. And honestly ram is just so cheap, that g.skill kit is 2 sticks of 8gb for around a hundred bucks, that I see no reason not to quadruple what I have now, however overkill it is. Same with the proc, that i7 is only a little more than what I paid for my Q9650, and I won't have to worry about being processor limited for a while.

Honestly I haven't kept up on motherboard chipsets; z77 seems to be the newest, but I don't know what else is out there yet, I think mine is a p68 or p67, which were pretty good at the time.

[SCHUMI_4EVER]

Yeah Z77 is definitely the one to go for.

__________________

Intel Core2Quad Q9550 (2.83Ghz stock) | ASUS P5Q | 2x2GB Transcend JetRam DDR2-800 | ASUS ENGTX260\HDTP\896M | Windows Vista Home Premium 64bit SP1

The Champ has retired but may his Legacy live on FOREVER !!!!

No$GBA DS FAQ 2.0

Get it right fools! The glass is HALF-EMPTY, not half-full!!!

!!! WARNING: Emulation requires a brain !!! WARNING: Emulation =/= Piracy !!!

[maurocds]

wow, why that mobo?

get a gigabye z77x ud3 or ud3h, 145$ 160$, world OC record was done on those, they OC the same as the more expensive

your oc limit is the cpu/cooling

and please, get an SSD, is a must

really what game needs a sli of 670? even a 8800gt maxxes almost all games since they are all console ports, only one 670 is more than overkill even on crazy msaa

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amd 965be@3917, gtx460 768mb 850/2100, 4gb ram, win7 32

[SCHUMI_4EVER]

Originally Posted by maurocds

really what game needs a sli of 670? even a 8800gt maxxes almost all games since they are all console ports, only one 670 is more than overkill even on crazy msaa

No. Hell No. No way in hell.

Even if they're console ports they still need monster cards. That's horrible advice.

__________________

Intel Core2Quad Q9550 (2.83Ghz stock) | ASUS P5Q | 2x2GB Transcend JetRam DDR2-800 | ASUS ENGTX260\HDTP\896M | Windows Vista Home Premium 64bit SP1

The Champ has retired but may his Legacy live on FOREVER !!!!

No$GBA DS FAQ 2.0

Get it right fools! The glass is HALF-EMPTY, not half-full!!!

!!! WARNING: Emulation requires a brain !!! WARNING: Emulation =/= Piracy !!!

[maurocds]

unless he wants to use mega antialiasing options, a 6850 6950 460 560 can do 60fps on almost any game even with 4x msaa

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amd 965be@3917, gtx460 768mb 850/2100, 4gb ram, win7 32

[Princess Garnet]

Originally Posted by SCHUMI_4EVER

No. Hell No. No way in hell.

Even if they're console ports they still need monster cards. That's horrible advice.

Not entirely. There's a point there and I agree with it. The extra cost and drawbacks of multi-card setups as it is, especially with the relatively lower power most games need, makes getting more than one modest card, let alone a powerful one, a bigger waste than ever.

__________________
"The heart has it's reasons that reason knows nothing of."

[SCHUMI_4EVER]

Originally Posted by Princess Garnet

Not entirely. There's a point there and I agree with it. The extra cost and drawbacks of multi-card setups as it is, especially with the relatively lower power most games need, makes getting more than one modest card, let alone a powerful one, a bigger waste than ever.

Multiple cards perhaps. But a 670 is a hell of a lot more viable than an 8800GT.

__________________

Intel Core2Quad Q9550 (2.83Ghz stock) | ASUS P5Q | 2x2GB Transcend JetRam DDR2-800 | ASUS ENGTX260\HDTP\896M | Windows Vista Home Premium 64bit SP1

The Champ has retired but may his Legacy live on FOREVER !!!!

No$GBA DS FAQ 2.0

Get it right fools! The glass is HALF-EMPTY, not half-full!!!

!!! WARNING: Emulation requires a brain !!! WARNING: Emulation =/= Piracy !!!

[Princess Garnet]

Well, yeah, a GeForce 8800 GT will struggle at higher settings/resolutions with modern/future games, but I meant GeForce GTX 670s/680s. To me, there's little reason to have two with the drawbacks, especially considering how quickly GPUs are outpacing games/software (which is a good thing, mind you, but it still makes two less necessary in my opinion). Even with a theoretical unlimited budget, a build I'd do would still have one video card in it. One better GPU is better than two lesser ones. Even if the two are a bit cheaper and a bit faster, you still have more space (potentially more heat and noise but high end cards are generally hotter and noiser too, so...), and microstutter, and it's not an across the board increase like one better GPU would be. Less is more here. The same goes for Hyper-threading. If he does not need it, he's spending an extra $100 for nothing. Even with his priorities/budget, that'd be called stupidity.

__________________
"The heart has it's reasons that reason knows nothing of."

[SCHUMI_4EVER]

I agree with you there on the GPU. As for Hyperthreading there's no way to tell whether he'll need it or not so I say why not budget permitting get it. Rather have it and not need it than want it and not have it with no easy way to get it.

__________________

Intel Core2Quad Q9550 (2.83Ghz stock) | ASUS P5Q | 2x2GB Transcend JetRam DDR2-800 | ASUS ENGTX260\HDTP\896M | Windows Vista Home Premium 64bit SP1

The Champ has retired but may his Legacy live on FOREVER !!!!

No$GBA DS FAQ 2.0

Get it right fools! The glass is HALF-EMPTY, not half-full!!!

!!! WARNING: Emulation requires a brain !!! WARNING: Emulation =/= Piracy !!!

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Last edited by SCHUMI_4EVER; June 18th, 2012 at 22:00..

[Princess Garnet]

The answer is to look at what he does/needs. If he doesn't need it now, chances are he suddenly won't to a dire extent anytime soon. These aren't the older days of getting the higher end model and it lasting a bit longer. With multiple cores/threads, that doesn't apply unless the software uses it. Five years from now, you still won't need eight threads (I know predicting the future of tech is a wager of stupidity but that's honestly how I see it). As it is, you still don't need four unless you want the best performance in a handful of games. At best, new consoles come out changing stuff, but by then, he'll have an itch for Haswell/Broadwell anyway. He didn't even ride his current one out so there's little use getting it unless he needs it now. For gaming, a Core i7 won't last much, if any, longer than a similar Core i5 will. A Core i7 is for more than gaming.

__________________
"The heart has it's reasons that reason knows nothing of."

[SCHUMI_4EVER]

Perhaps you won't need it for the application or game itself but for the sake of multi-tasking it'll be useful. What I mean is if there's already stuff that can stress 4 cores to their limit (including some games) then the extra cores will help if for no other reason than to prevent system lag in such a situation. Also those games and applications that already use near the limit will inevitably start looking for more threads/cores once they notice IPC increases aren't going to come to their rescue.

__________________

Intel Core2Quad Q9550 (2.83Ghz stock) | ASUS P5Q | 2x2GB Transcend JetRam DDR2-800 | ASUS ENGTX260\HDTP\896M | Windows Vista Home Premium 64bit SP1

The Champ has retired but may his Legacy live on FOREVER !!!!

No$GBA DS FAQ 2.0

Get it right fools! The glass is HALF-EMPTY, not half-full!!!

!!! WARNING: Emulation requires a brain !!! WARNING: Emulation =/= Piracy !!!

[Princess Garnet]

Right, but in practice, unless he needs the extra threads now, a Core i5 will go just as far.

Getting a Core i7 for gaming or, in a broad sense, "multitasking" is just buying into the big toy mentality when it won't go as much further as it costs. I've seen threads on OCN that were eye openers; there's plenty of cases where first generation Core i3s are keeping up with Core i7s in many games, and when the Core i7 has the advantage, it's not as often or by as much as you'd think. As it is, many games are content with two cores, and some need four, but beyond that? Few, if any, need them, even if they see a small bump. Take it from someone who went from a Core 2 who barely needed more cores to a Core i5, as I've done the equivalent. Going from four to more if you don't need them is useless.

My Core 2 Duo multi-tasked between gaming and other stuff just as well (with 8GB, it was always instant), so no, you don't need the eight threads for multitasking unless you're very, very heavily doing so.

If he needs the threads now, the recommendation is a Core i7 Ivy Bridge, and if not, a Core i5 Ivy Bridge. If he's set with the "I don't mind blowing it on something I'll never see return on" as he says, then yeah, get whatever.

__________________
"The heart has it's reasons that reason knows nothing of."

[maurocds]

yep totally he must get the i5 3570k and oc the crap out to 4.5ghz minimum, for that he needs at least an hyper212+, but since he is saving 100$ with the cpu, i would get a better cooling or water to try to get 5ghz

also those 100$ would get him a bigger ssd or even moar ram

for games forget the i7,

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amd 965be@3917, gtx460 768mb 850/2100, 4gb ram, win7 32

[Phil]

I too vote for the 3570. If you want extreme, don't go with kiddie stuff. Get a 3960. Otherwise go cheapie and OC.

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