26 replies to this topic

[ShadowLink64]

Intel Core™ i5 Processor 760 2.8GHz w/ 8MB Cache (Quad-Core)
Asus P7P55 LX w/ Dual DDR3 1600, 7.1 Audio, Gigabit Lan, PCI-E, CrossFireX (Memory upgradeable to 16 GB total)
HIS Radeon HD 5750 iCooler 1GB GDDR5 PCI-E w/ DVI, HDMI, DisplayPort (DX11 support)
Corsair 4 GB PC3-12800 Dual Channel DDR3 Kit (2 x 2GB)
Western Digital 500GB Caviar Black 7200rpm SATA II w/ 32MB Cache
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus CPU Cooler
Corsair VX 550W Power Supply
Antec Six Hundred Gaming Case

End Cost: Approx. $950 CAD (~$925 USD)
----------------
Trying to reduce the expense, which is why I chose the i5 vs. the i7 processor. I'm fine with not having HyperThreading since I probably won't be running anything that needs 8 cores. I plan to overclock it to around the 3.5 GHz range, but not pushing it to extremes (~4 GHz and up has been seen with the processor). Also, triple channel memory (with an i7 setup) is something that I don't really need, given that I'm trying to cut costs.

As to avoid having shit graphics (I'll be running two monitors from the DVI and HDMI ports in 1920x1080 resolution), I opted for an ATI Radeon 5750 GPU. I don't play games too often though, I just want something that can play games on a moderate level without sucking, and run both my monitors excellently.
---------------
Let me know what you think.

[luvsmyncis]

Is it shiny? That's usually how I judge electronics.

Sorry I couldn't offer more insight.

[ShadowLink64]

Is it shiny? That's usually how I judge electronics.

Sorry I couldn't offer more insight.

The case has pretty blue lights on the fans. That good?

[redlion]

The case has pretty blue lights on the fans. That good?

Not enough lens flare.

Honestly I haven't games'd in forever. I mean religiously played a game. I'd rather play most games with joysticks as well. But not Starcraft. RTS is definitely a PC genre.

What will you be using it for? Primarily of course.

[ShadowLink64]

On second thought... I think I'm going to stay with my old clunker for another little while. I don't need another computer right now.

[iargue]

Case = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16811208027 = $36
Power Supply = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16817339024 = 51
Hard Drive = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16822152227 = 58.49
Video Card = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16814187107 = 91.99
Memory = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16820144281 = 122.99
MotherBoard = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16813153148 = 129.99
Cpu = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16819115225 = 303.97
Heatsink = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16835207006 = 32.99

Sub Total 828.40

Shipping (I used Brule, Alberta... I dunno where you live)

Total is 911.78 CA.

Better. Cheaper. Can play Crysis on Highest Graphics.


EDIT: Wow. Jerk. I spent my precious time building you a computer, and you just go and change your mind while your in the middle of it .


Next time make up your mind first

[ShadowLink64]

Case = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16811208027 = $36
Power Supply = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16817339024 = 51
Hard Drive = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16822152227 = 58.49
Video Card = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16814187107 = 91.99
Memory = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16820144281 = 122.99
MotherBoard = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16813153148 = 129.99
Cpu = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16819115225 = 303.97
Heatsink = http://www.newegg.ca...N82E16835207006 = 32.99

Sub Total 828.40

Shipping (I used Brule, Alberta... I dunno where you live)

Total is 911.78 CA.

Better. Cheaper. Can play Crysis on Highest Graphics.


EDIT: Wow. Jerk. I spent my precious time building you a computer, and you just go and change your mind while your in the middle of it .

Next time make up your mind first

Nice, I'll take a look. Maybe this will change my mind.

EDIT: Wow. How did you turn it into 6 GB RAM with i7 technology and it's the same price? I obviously suck.
EDIT2: Needs a DVD+RW drive, but I can find out really cheap (like 25 bucks).

[iargue]

Nice, I'll take a look. Maybe this will change my mind.

I could have gone cheaper. But I figured you should get something that you will wont have to replace for a long time. .

Besides. If you have a fast computer, you will have one less excuse as to why you have not released any new programs (I'm one to talk. Totally slacking right now. I hate work).

The I7 is more then worth it man. I can encode 1080p movies in 12 minutes... You can overclock it to 4ghz easy. I do it on stock cooler.

And my friend has that video card in his system. He can play Cyrsis on maximum settings, and Wow on ultra at the same time without lag. Pretty nice if you ask me. . I should have him try two copies of Crysis (He was botting wow... I dont think he could bot wow, so it would be a still scene. Less gpu work).

EDIT: Wow. How did you turn it into 6 GB RAM with i7 technology and it's the same price? I obviously suck.
EDIT2: Needs a DVD+RW drive, but I can find out really cheap (like 25 bucks).

EDIT1: Newegg owns?
EDIT2: Just take it out of your clunker silly?

[ShadowLink64]

The Hard Drive you picked is a hunk of junk according to people, but I can swap that out.

And the clunker is a laptop. Might be a little difficult.

[iargue]

The Hard Drive you picked is a hunk of junk according to people, but I can swap that out.

And the clunker is a laptop. Might be a little difficult.

Rule number 1. Never. Ever. Ever. Listen to reviews online. Unless everyone who purchases it does the review.

I work in a call center. No one has ever called in to tell me. "OMG. THIS TV WORKED PERFECTLY FOR 16 YEARS. VIZIO RULES". But I know that the 5 people who do call in that day. Do not represent the 22 million other people with one that works fine.

I must have overestimated your tech skills....

[ShadowLink64]

I'm not a computer tech person. I don't buy computers often and keep up with hardware.

Anyways, to recap:

I picked the Antec Six Hundred Gaming Case, which is $81.99. The one you picked is $46.49 and looks just as good. WIN
The PSU you picked is 650W and less money than the 550W I picked and seems great. WIN
6 GB of RAM for the same price as the 4 GB I had before, except it runs at a slower speed (1066 vs. 1333). But, triple channel instead of dual channel? WIN
The video card you found for me has DOUBLE the video ram, and has better support for Linux drivers from what I can see. I'm unsure how the GPU performs vs. the 5750 but I'm not that fussy. Half the price of mine. WIN
i7 = Multithreading and Triple Channel Memory. Same clock speed and cache size as the chip I picked, can be overclocked a lot. Sure, that's a win
Motherboard: Why under RAM does it say "Memory Standard DDR3 1600/1333". Does it not take 1066?

[iargue]

The memory standard specifies its highest acceptable speed. (Can handle DDR 1800/DDR1600 speeds). It will still take your DDR3 1066. But if you dont feel safe getting one not on the list, for 10 dollars more you can get http://www.newegg.ca...82E16820144287.

I picked out your memory because its cas latency is 7-7-7-20. Which is the fastest possible speed for DDR3 memory. Cas Latency is the refresh time on writing memory. Prevents a bottle neck when using lots of memory at high speeds.

[ShadowLink64]

EDIT: NVM, yes, I see now. Awesome. The latency is more on this one though.

[iargue]

EDIT: NVM, yes, I see now. Awesome. The latency is more on this one though.

Ja.

Not something big. Gamers usually worry about that. Not normal people. Like I said. The first ram will work with the motherboard (I command it so). But the choice is yours, so get what you feel safe with.

[ShadowLink64]

Hopefully this motherboard doesn't die on me... looks a little too cheap, but I guess if Newegg is still selling it after this long there mustn't be any serious issues with it. From what I can see, the overclocking settings are limited but overall it serves the purpose of a basic motherboard well.

[iargue]

Hopefully this motherboard doesn't die on me... looks a little too cheap, but I guess if Newegg is still selling it after this long there mustn't be any serious issues with it. From what I can see, the overclocking settings are limited but overall it serves the purpose of a basic motherboard well.

The people posting reviews do not understand that as you overclock, you have to increase the voltage.

[Fatal]

The motherboard, hard drive, and video card all look bad compared to what I originally recommended Shadow.



Nvidia GT220?? That's fuckin garbage! There goes your gaming performance out the window. Overall the build will perform better in multitasking / non gaming though.

Also, Intel i7 920 is a better choice, 930 is the same exact thing for more money. For some reason the 920 is not on Newegg right now though... (is it getting discontinued or something? )

I believe Power Supplys to be one of the most important components in the computer, and the HEC that was selected is not high quality, but will get the job done.

[Blazin]

The motherboard, hard drive, and video card all look bad compared to what I originally recommended Shadow.



Nvidia GT220?? That's fuckin garbage! There goes your gaming performance out the window. Overall the build will perform better in multitasking / non gaming though.

That is exactly what I came here to post...you were wondering how he managed to budget in more ram for a higher tier of cpu (Ok, as if hyperthreading makes any substantial difference at this point in the software demographic) -- because the graphics card is about 9 billion tiers lower than the 5750. If anything that's your bottleneck, and the latency of the ram...well...has funs w/ timing ?

Yeah Fatal, I'm wondering the same thing about the 920 as well...I remember it being 30-40 dollars cheaper, and from what I've read the 930 is slightly higher clocked with a single multiplier lead in headroom (21x vs. the 920's 20x from what I gather). Why you do me so Newegg!?

[Fatal]

That is exactly what I came here to post...you were wondering how he managed to budget in more ram for a higher tier of cpu (Ok, as if hyperthreading makes any substantial difference at this point in the software demographic) -- because the graphics card is about 9 billion tiers lower than the 5750. If anything that's your bottleneck, and the latency of the ram...well...has funs w/ timing ?

Yeah Fatal, I'm wondering the same thing about the 920 as well...I remember it being 30-40 dollars cheaper, and from what I've read the 930 is slightly higher clocked with a single multiplier lead in headroom (21x vs. the 920's 20x from what I gather). Why you do me so Newegg!?

Exactly, and yea 930 is virtually the same as the 920. 920 is clocked slightly lower but they both clock up the same anyways. Getting lucky with the chip you receive is more important than the difference between 920 and 930.

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16819115202

There is the 920, but it is Unavailable right now . Hopefully the 920 isn't gone forever and lives on!

[ShadowLink64]

Haha, ok guys, I'll keep on thinking about this. I really don't do much gaming so am I really going to give a crap that the 220 isn't as good as the 5750?

I think we can agree that both are better than the nVIDIA GeForce Go 7600 I'm using right now.
------------------------------
Replaced the motherboard, used faster clock speed RAM (1600MHz), replaced GPU with GT 240, and got it down to $963.87 CAD with NCIX.com and mail-in rebates (saving a bit on shipping by buying domestic). They're basically the Canadian-based version of Newegg, albeit a lot smaller.

MSI X58M X58 mATX LGA1366 DDR3 2PCI-E16 1PCI-E1 1PCI-E4 CrossFire SLI SATA2 GBLAN Motherboard
Intel Core i7 930 Quad Core Processor LGA1366 2.8GHZ 8MB L3 Cache 130W 45NM Retail Box
OCZ Gold OCZ3G1600LV6GK 6GB DDR3 3X2GB DDR3-1600 PC3-12800 CL 8-8-8-24 Triple Channel Memory Kit
EVGA GeForce GT 240 550MHZ 1GB 1.58GHZ DDR3 PCI-E VGA DVI-I HDMI Video Card
Western Digital Caviar Blue SE16 640GB SATA2 7200RPM 16MB 3.5IN Hard Drive OEM 3YR MFR Warranty
OCZ FATAL1TY 550W ATX12V 20/24PIN Active PFC ATX Modular Power Supply 120MM Fan 80PLUS Black
LG GH24LS50 24X Super Multi Lightscribe SATA DVD Writer OEM Black
Azza Orion 202 Black ATX Mid Tower Case 4X5.25 2X3.5 5X3.5INT 90MM/120MM Red LED Fans Window No PSU
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro REV.2 CPU Heatsink Cooler LGA1366 LGA1156 LGA775 AM2 AM3 W/ 92MM Fan

[MsRose]

I'm on a ASUS right now and let me tell you sir, they are the fucking shit.

Mine was only 600$ from best buy. You really don't need an i7 processor unless you plan on using the most complex 3D photo shop on the market, while having several other heavy programs up at well. The i5 is a great.

My only issue is that I don't have a dedicated graphics card, but I can easily just buy one. I probably won't though since I have an Xbox 360 and all my gaming goes on there.

Summary: you will be pleased with this computer.

Edited by MsRose, 10 August 2010 - 07:30 PM.

[ShadowLink64]

Well, I might be using this computer for computer simulations/number crunching also, so I am looking for a pretty good processor. As for the gaming, I've seen the benchmarks and reviews on the GT 240 and I'm comfortable with its capabilities and limitations.

[MsRose]

Well, I might be using this computer for computer simulations/number crunching also, so I am looking for a pretty good processor.

I can almost guarantee the i5 will be able to handle it. i7 are really overpriced, simply because they are the best on the market. Check this site out:

http://www.cpubenchmark.net/

[ShadowLink64]

I can almost guarantee the i5 will be able to handle it. i7 are really overpriced, simply because they are the best on the market. Check this site out:

http://www.cpubenchmark.net/

You may have a point, but it's not extremely overpriced:

i7 930 (Stock): 5,817
i5 760 (Stock): 4,490

The i7 shows a 29.6% increase over the i5 in performance, but with a 35.9% increase in price (approx.). So the i5 does provide the best dollar/performance, but it's pretty close. At least I'm not contemplating the i7 980X which has a terrible dollar/performance ratio.

It depends though, the i7 does allow me to run the memory in triple channel mode whereas I'd only be running dual channel with the i5, and the memory is more affordable if I get them in the kits (so 4GB vs. 6GB). Using the 1366 socket also gives me the option of expanding later down the road if I need to (which I admit I probably won't, lol).

[iargue]

Bah. I tried to help you with this. But you started listening to the misinformed. So I give up.

Enjoy your computer. Let me know if you want any help.