New Build vs Ankermann

Waltons

Hi all,

Having finally gotten a job for the summer and having a bit of cash I've been eying up a new build as my current system is aging somewhat.
I've looked over these forums for a bit and I've decided that it'd probably be wiser to go with a higher spec dual core rather than a quad core processor, as they seem to perform better with games - mentioned here, and with online benchmarks - and overclocking.

I've built a few computers before, so I'm not really a beginner, but I've not done much recently, and I've never attempted to overclock a system before, so I'll be more than willing to accept any advice on parts or methods.
In another recent thread 8T8 outlined a system quite similar to what I was looking at myself partswise, especially the ram and processor.

I have a slight quandry in regards to buying individual parts or buying from Ankermann, however. I can build a very similar system to the one above on Ankermann for roughly €1300 with a default case (I'd probably change this), E6850, Asus P5K-E, 2900XT, 2GB of Mushkin PC1066, HDD, etc.
A similar setup from Overclockers (2GB Ballistix rather than Mushkin, 650W PSU rather than the 550W) is already looking to be around €1250 plus whatever I spend on a case - (as an aside I would like something that would support quad core processors, is this wise or just a silly attempt to futureproof?)
I'd be inclined to go with Ankermann due to the fact that it's nearly the same computer, cheaper, but they only offer a maximum PSU of 550W. I'd imagine this would be somewhat pushing it if I was overclocking and running a 2900XT? Obviously the last thing I'd want is to buy a new system and to have the whole thing collapse on me.

I could get the system 8T8 outlined in the above linked post from overclockers obviously, or something near enough, but I'm really wondering:
A: Is 550W pushing it too much? and
B: Are the selected parts suitable enough for overclocking? Obviously I'd need to invest in a new CPU cooler, but after all's said and done might it be better to just order the Ankermann PC, crack it open and fiddle with the configuration?

Thanks for any help guys, this is a great forum and has helped me a lot over the past while

uberpixie

Waltons wrote:

Hi all,
I could get the system 8T8 outlined in the above linked post from overclockers obviously, or something near enough, but I'm really wondering:
A: Is 550W pushing it too much? and
B: Are the selected parts suitable enough for overclocking? Obviously I'd need to invest in a new CPU cooler, but after all's said and done might it be better to just order the Ankermann PC, crack it open and fiddle with the configuration?

A: As long as you get a good quality power supply, 550W is plenty I would say.

B: Mobo and CPU should be fine for overclocking, what exact models of ram were you looking at?

Also this months CustomPc has a large review of various brands of DDR2 PC8500-PC9200 with the nod towards overclocking, if you wanted to pick it up and have a look though your options in ram.

Regarding your order, what do you feel more comfortable with? What PSU is shipping with the Ankermann system?

Do you get the kick out of building from scratch or do you just want a box to come in the post and plug in?

Case:what case are you thinking of? What cases do ankermann offer?

Mountjoy Mugger

Ankermann sell a 600W Enermax Coolergiant. If you're getting s syatem from them, you can get it installed.

Check it under PC accessories - Power Supply Units

Headshot

lads im looking at at system on ankermann

the mega gaming system

never used ankermann before
are they good and reliable

how good are the systems they bulid

Waltons

uberpixie wrote:

A: As long as you get a good quality power supply, 550W is plenty I would say.

B: Mobo and CPU should be fine for overclocking, what exact models of ram were you looking at?

Also this months CustomPc has a large review of various brands of DDR2 PC8500-PC9200 with the nod towards overclocking, if you wanted to pick it up and have a look though your options in ram.

Regarding your order, what do you feel more comfortable with? What PSU is shipping with the Ankermann system?

Do you get the kick out of building from scratch or do you just want a box to come in the post and plug in?

Case:what case are you thinking of? What cases do ankermann offer?

Cheers for the reply!
If I was buying from overclockers I was looking at either something like 2Gb of Crucial Ballistix, or 2Gb of Geil Black Dragon. These are really from just looking around though, I think I'll take your advice and pick up CustomPc and check their reviews.

As for comfort, I'm not too sure about Ankermann. I've read good things, sure, but I've never actually ordered from them. I ordered an entire system worth of parts from Overclockers last summer though, so obviously I feel safe enough dealing with them. I'm not sure how I'd feel getting an entire whole computer shipped either, without a previous customer allaying my fears...

I do enjoy making a computer up from scratch but it'd be no big thing if it arrived all made up, really. I might have some lack of excitement when it arrives though, and pangs of jealousy from someone touching the insides of my computer

As far as cases are concerned I haven't actually looked too hard. Something simple looking but stylish would do me, maybe something like a Lian Li; nothing too gaudy anyway.
Ankermann are offering a few Apevia cases but they're a bit big and bright for me. Unfortunately, though, their default cases don't give much information...

Mountjoy Mugger wrote:

Ankermann sell a 600W Enermax Coolergiant. If you're getting s syatem from them, you can get it installed.

Check it under PC accessories - Power Supply Units

Cheers for that, I hadn't actually noticed it!


edit: Forgot to mention the PSU that's shipping with the Ankermann, for what it's worth: it's an LC-Power 550W LC6550 Ver.2.0 ROHS
As Mugger mentioned above, there are others available including an Enermax Coolergiant 600W, and a XILENCE 600W PFC ATX 2.3

Toolbag

No doubt it would be handier to receive the PC ready assembled, but the noname high wattage PSUs ankermann offer with their assembled PCs aren't beefy enough for a 2900XT. As mugger said you can select a better brand, but they charge quite a bit for it. And you might have to pay for the crappy PSU anyway.

If you feel confident that you can assemble the PC and install the OS and drivers then you should build yourself. also the 8500 ram mightn't be completely necessary unless you plan on blowing the roof off that 6850. Money you save downgrading to cheaper 6400 could be put towards your case/cooling.

Toolbag

Or the expensive overclockers delivery! :eek:

Waltons

Toolbag wrote:

No doubt it would be handier to receive the PC ready assembled, but the noname high wattage PSUs ankermann offer with their assembled PCs aren't beefy enough for a 2900XT. As mugger said you can select a better brand, but they charge quite a bit for it. And you might have to pay for the crappy PSU anyway.

If you feel confident that you can assemble the PC and install the OS and drivers then you should build yourself. also the 8500 ram mightn't be completely necessary unless you plan on blowing the roof off that 6850. Money you save downgrading to cheaper 6400 could be put towards your case/cooling.

There'll be no problem with putting the computer together or installing stuff, I've been doing it since I was a wee'un. I could also downgrade to the 6400 and get 2 2Gb sticks

Waltons

Well, I've decided I'm not going with Ankermann, anyway. The more I look at parts and accessories the more I want to get into it and actually build it myself.

From looking at both OC and Komplett, they appear to have pretty much the same prices; obviously Komplett shipping will be cheaper so, if they have all my gear, I'll likely be going with them.

I had a bit of a read online about some gear, still not too sure about RAM (instincts are telling me to go for quantity over quality - 4GB 6400 vs 2Gb 8500?). I'll have to pick up CustomPC.

Specs are looking like so:

Corsair 620W PSU
(Got a thumbs up from jonnyguru, and seems to be fairly quiet)
€134

Asus P5K-E
€153

4GB Corsair 6400 or 2GB Crucial Ballistix
(As I said above, not really sure on this front)
€204 and €129 respectively

Sapphire 2900XT
€304

Intel C2D E6850
€213

Hitachi Deskstar 500GB
€87


That's around €1095 so far. Was thinking of something like this for a case, but I really have to do some more research first. Should I be looking for something with a lot of fan slots? I'll also have to think about a CPU cooler too.

Any comments on what I've picked out so far, positive or negative, are thoroughly welcome

Toolbag

Some nice VAT-free prices there A quick look revealed this case - it's a cheap one with a few fans, but the big 25cm one is just a gimmick that breaks quickly i'd say. Also this comes with 3 fans preinstalled, but is a bit more expensive. Whatever case you go with, just make sure that the 2900 XT can fit in there.

Waltons

Toolbag wrote:

Some nice VAT-free prices there A quick look revealed this case - it's a cheap one with a few fans, but the big 25cm one is just a gimmick that breaks quickly i'd say. Also this comes with 3 fans preinstalled, but is a bit more expensive. Whatever case you go with, just make sure that the 2900 XT can fit in there.

Oops, VAT free indeed...
Yeah, I was having a look at that gigabyte case before; might have a read up about it. I'm not too bothered about pre-installed fans as I've a bit more cash to splash out now and will probably try install a few quieter ones. As you said though, I'd better make sure it has space for the 2900XT, and also the cpu cooler I've been looking at; it looks monstrous.

I'm flip flopping between picking a Quad 6600 now and the e6850 now, as well. Decisions, decisions....Since I won't be upgrading for a while probably, would the quad give me more longevity?

Toolbag

That CPU cooler is big, but supposed to be very good. There's a few trade offs - Q6600 runs hotter then the 6850, quads offer no current advantage for games and duals are clocked higher (I'm assuming that's mostly what you're going to be using it for). But it seems that most people are going to the quads to be future proof. If your not upgrading for say 2-3 years, maybe a quad is a good idea. It's rumoured Crysis will show performace boosts on quad over dual.

Waltons

After a think, I've realised that if I CAN upgrade the components and have money then I'm not going to leave the computer stagnant for a few years - big problem with my current setup is that it's at the peak of what it can take, equipment wise.
Given that, I'll probably go for a dual core at the moment, and wait and see how things pan out with the quads.

So, based on that, I'm going for (from Overclockers):

ASUS P5K Deluxe
C2D E6850
HIS 2900XT
Noctua NH-U12F
Samsung Spinpoint 500Gb
Ballistix 2GB PC8500
Corsair 620W PSU

£965 with shipping.

Shipping is an extra £22 with a case, so I'll probably just pick that up here; looking like an Antec p180 at the moment, apparently the Gigabyte isn't too quiet according to another thread.

Still nearly in two minds about 6400 vs 8500 RAM, but given that the e6850 is 1333fsb, it would probably be easier to overclock the CPU now, and in the future, if I'm running on 1066mhz RAM. This is from what I've been reading about overclocking, hopefully I don't have it arseways.
With cpu:ram at 1:1, the RAM would be running 666mhz without any overclocking at all, from my understanding? Obviously saves a bit of cash buying 2gb as opposed to 4, anyway.

Probably go ahead with the purchase tomorrow. As always, any comments appreciated