New gaming rig, advice?

RD77

Hi guys,

I have recently come into a bit of money so I am looking to get a new pc. I will be using the pc for very heavy gaming, HD video, some CAD and want it to last me a good few years. Am I better off buying something like an Alienware machine or building myself? I need to get everything eg. screen keyboard drives. I am concerned basically on performance and not on budget as I will be using the PC for a lot of work also. Oh and one last thing I would like is a high quality surround sound system as I will be using it for movies. Any suggestions?

Solitaire

Budget? Any prerequisites for the system? (i.e. using Photoshop, must be a 1080p monitor, must be a gaming keyboard, needs to fit into x space, I really want y for SnG...) And yes, self-build is vastly superior to pre-built gaming rigs; you can tailor the build to your own whims specifications and it invariably ends up a helluva lot cheaper!

RD77

Okay 1080p screen is important, gaming keyboard and mouse too. Was looking at logitech ones are they any use? As for budget there isn't really one as I hope it will last me years and it is very important for my job. Ideally I would like a machine that could handle anything if you get me

Venom

Here's my suggestion, its based on build Im working on at moment.


Coolermaster HAF 932
Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5, X58 - Socket-1366
Intel Core™ i7 Quad Processor i7-920 D0
Prolimatech Megahalems Mega Shadow CPU Heatsink
Yate Loon D12SH-12 120mm 2200RPM Fan x2
Corsair HX 850W PSU - ATX 12V V2.2, 80 Plus Gold, Modular
Corsair Dominator DHX+ DDR3 1600MHz 6GB
Corsair SSD Extreme X64 2,5" 64GB
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA2 - 32MB 7200RPM
ATI 5870
Samsung DVD±RW burner, SH-S223B
Asus Xonar Essence ST Soundcard
Logitech Z5500 THX Digital speakers
Samsung 24" LCD P2470HD monitor

Should last you a while
As for the SSD drive make sure to get a 2nd gen for the TWIN boost in Win7

Keyboard+ mouse really is up to the individual imho butI do love my Razor Lachesis

leninbenjamin

Venom wrote: »

Here's my suggestion, its based on build Im working on at moment.


Coolermaster HAF 932
Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD5, X58 - Socket-1366
Intel Core™ i7 Quad Processor i7-920 D0
Prolimatech Megahalems Mega Shadow CPU Heatsink
Yate Loon D12SH-12 120mm 2200RPM Fan x2
Corsair HX 850W PSU - ATX 12V V2.2, 80 Plus Gold, Modular
Corsair Dominator DHX+ DDR3 1600MHz 6GB
Corsair SSD Extreme X64 2,5" 64GB
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA2 - 32MB 7200RPM
ATI 5870
Samsung DVD±RW burner, SH-S223B
Asus Xonar Essence ST Soundcard
Logitech Z5500 THX Digital speakers
Samsung 24" LCD P2470HD monitor

Should last you a while
As for the SSD drive make sure to get a 2nd gen for the TWIN boost in Win7

Keyboard+ mouse really is up to the individual imho butI do love my Razor Lachesis

That's a pretty good spec. Get rid of the Megahalem though, there's a new kid on the block No need for the fans or paste either, it's all in the box.

Leman_Russ

Omg a gaming rig? Better stay away from those nasty intels and their P55s and i5's and Great performance!

Solitaire

Stop being a twit. No question about LGA1366 being the weapon of choice in this skirmish

Blazher

Do not i repeat DO NOT buy a 5870.

The get two 5850s,


One single 5850 can be overclocked to run better then a 5870, And the money you save from buying the 5870 thats half the money of a second 5850, So two 5850s is the way to go.


Also. I am using

X58-UD5 ( Super mobo)
Corsair Dom 1600Mhz ( Super ram - I am running 7-7-7-20 (Dom GT speeds)


However i would get a OCZ vertex SSD and try get a 128 GB one they are faster then the 60GB. ( leninbenjamin ment TIM command and its not a boost. Its memory/file management, Its a must)

The PSU is great,

Everything else is personal preference.

Leman_Russ

AD3298 called, they want their 1600 GIGAHertz Ram back :P

Blazher

Leman_Russ wrote: »

AD3298 called, they want their 1600 GIGAHertz Ram back :P

LoL!!! Sorry typo mate

1600 Mhz :P

leninbenjamin

Blazher wrote: »

Do not i repeat DO NOT buy a 5870.

The get two 5850s,


One single 5850 can be overclocked to run better then a 5870, And the money you save from buying the 5870 thats half the money of a second 5850, So two 5850s is the way to go.

This is not good advice imo. ATI have upped the prices on the 5850 by $50 apparently. Compared with the 5870, they aren't as good value as they were at launch. According to the RRPs at least two 5850s are as expensive as a single 5970, and the 5970 seems just as capable for over-clocking as the 5850.

tomshardware.co.uk wrote:

Nevertheless, given ATI’s recent Radeon HD 5850 price increase, buying one super-overclockable Radeon HD 5970 is smarter than buying two 5850s since they have fewer shader processors each.

Leman_Russ

Prices will drop after xmas. I'm waiting till then

leninbenjamin

Leman_Russ wrote: »

Prices will drop after xmas. I'm waiting till then

yeah, that's a cert. Although at the rate suppliers are getting in new stock it will be after Xmas anyway before anyone sees any

Effluo

Leman_Russ wrote: »

Prices will drop after xmas. I'm waiting till then

Until demand subsides ATI will keep on increasing the price(they will that's economics trust me) So if people just decide on mass to see what Nvidia have to offer then the price of the 58xx might go down, after crimbo. Otherwise we'll just have to wait and see where Nvidia's new cards end up!

leninbenjamin

Effluo wrote: »

Until demand subsides ATI will keep on increasing the price(they will that's economics trust me) So if people just decide on mass to see what Nvidia have to offer then the price of the 58xx might go down, after crimbo. Otherwise we'll just have to wait and see where Nvidia's new cards end up!

Not sure. By the sounds of it they are preparing to flood the market just before Christmas (they keep saying they have loads of cypress ready and that the initial supply issue is over with, but they haven't hit suppliers yet afaik). I think once the seasonal demand has peaked they'll probably have to lower prices to keep shifting them. Maybe not as cheap as they were originally, but I'd be very surprised if they didn't come down.

Effluo

leninbenjamin wrote: »

I think once the seasonal demand has peaked they'll probably have to lower prices to keep shifting them. Maybe not as cheap as they were originally, but I'd be very surprised if they didn't come down.

I dunno...
right now they seem to have so much time b4 Nvidia get their act together. Shifting the cards will be a since, they might reduce the prices by like a tener, but b4 Nvidia come out with theirs i'd say ATI's prices will remain firm enough

Blazher

leninbenjamin wrote: »

Not sure. By the sounds of it they are preparing to flood the market just before Christmas (they keep saying they have loads of cypress ready and that the initial supply issue is over with, but they haven't hit suppliers yet afaik). I think once the seasonal demand has peaked they'll probably have to lower prices to keep shifting them. Maybe not as cheap as they were originally, but I'd be very surprised if they didn't come down.

They have been playing a very very smart game,

The released a few cards to show people how good they are, Then they hold all the cards. And release them for Xmas. I have been waiting 5 weeks now for my cards. Its a joke. But from what i have seen and been told. No where has had cards since the last batch sold out.

leninbenjamin

Effluo wrote: »

I dunno...
right now they seem to have so much time b4 Nvidia get their act together. Shifting the cards will be a since, they might reduce the prices by like a tener, but b4 Nvidia come out with theirs i'd say ATI's prices will remain firm enough

The amount of people though who will go out and buy a new card just for the sake of buying a new card are actually quite low though. Seeing as there are very few DX11 games coming out in the near future (are any even going to be any good?) DX11 wont sell the cards. And imo multiple monitors are a luxury many cannot afford (not necessarily for financial reasons either, I know i had to give up my own 2nd monitor due to lack of space), so even though eyefinity looks great, i think it will be confined to a fairly small enthusiasts market, at least for the short term future. So i'm not sure Eyefinity is a major selling point either.

So then factor in the proposed price increases (i.e. 5850 could go to near €300 by the time they reappear in stockists), and look at the 5xxx as opposed to the 4xxx, a lot of people aren't going to be able to justify upgrading.

That's my own personal take anyway, we'll see how it plays out.

Venom

Blazher wrote: »

They have been playing a very very smart game,

The released a few cards to show people how good they are, Then they hold all the cards. And release them for Xmas. I have been waiting 5 weeks now for my cards. Its a joke. But from what i have seen and been told. No where has had cards since the last batch sold out.

ATI are getting screwed by the delay in cards hitting the shelves because as the time frame before the next nVidia cards hit the market decreases, potentional buyers are more likely to wait to see how the next Geforce series turns out. The 5850 was a awesome product at a golden price but delays and now a price rise are killing alot of peoples interest in this card.

Blazher 5850's are in much greater demand than 5870's so getting 2 of them is gonna be pretty hard and when you take into account the rather large price increase we in Europe are gonna end up getting stung with on a 5850 so the extra 50 quid for a 5870 and the better chance of getting one is the reason I suggested it.

Venom

Effluo wrote: »

Until demand subsides ATI will keep on increasing the price(they will that's economics trust me) So if people just decide on mass to see what Nvidia have to offer then the price of the 58xx might go down, after crimbo. Otherwise we'll just have to wait and see where Nvidia's new cards end up!

Its going to be a good 4 months into 2010 before the next nvidia cards come out, thats a damm long time to be waiting if you want to upgrade.

leninbenjamin

Venom wrote: »

ATI are getting screwed by the delay in cards hitting the shelves because as the time frame before the next nVidia cards hit the market decreases, potentional buyers are more likely to wait to see how the next Geforce series turns out.

As you said yourself, it'll be 4 months into 2010 before Fermi hit's the shelves. Some places even think it'll be June before we see the GT300s. Plenty of time for ATI to do as much market manipulation as they want and still put themselves back in the competitive front in time for Fermi.

Venom

Agreed but Nvidia just have to drop hints, the odd picture of a card or some game deal and it will string alot of people on who would of had a 58xx but weren't able to buy one.

Solitaire

Argh! Its Vista-rape all over again, only this time its ATI that are raping away :mad: €280+ for a gaming-grade next-gen/next-OS card... why does "8800GTS" keep popping into my head? :rolleyes:

I definitely sense an air of (profitable) revenge... why did nVidia have to go and make this personal?!

Blazher

Solitaire wrote: »

Argh! Its Vista-rape all over again, only this time its ATI that are raping away :mad: €280+ for a gaming-grade next-gen/next-OS card... why does "8800GTS" keep popping into my head? :rolleyes:

I definitely sense an air of (profitable) revenge... why did nVidia have to go and make this personal?!

Couldn't agree more, You got to remember, The 5970 is out now, And by the time we start to see any GT300s ATI will have the data and room to counter it.

But in the long run its good for us, Price WAR

leninbenjamin

Blaz her wrote: »

But in the long run its good for us, Price WAR

Not necessarily. I think Nvidia are slowly turning their back on the enthusiasts/gamer market. I read an article the other day that mentioned in passing that Nvidia's Tesla sales are picking up big time (apparently they landed major contracts recently with the Australian and/or Chinese Govts.) and that Tesla production has been ramped up at the cost of the GT200s, which is why we haven't seen any price drops (like you would have expected with the launch of the 5xxx). Fermi's efforts seem more about getting more GPGPU generality (i.e. native C++ support) and visual debugging tools (i.e. Visual Studio) to work with it as opposed to all out performance gains.

roberthurley14

if your looking for a great gaming system and have no budget you can get what i haves:

MoBo: EVGA X58 Classified 4-Way SLI

CPU: Intel Core i7 Quad Processor (i7-940)

RAM: 3GB Cosair Dominator DHX+ DDR3 1600MHz (I Have 32bit Windows7)

GPU: 2x EVGA Nvidia GTX295 CO-OP Edition (Still have 1, need more cash for the second:P )

Case: Antec 1200 Gaming Case

Cooling: Zalman....Just get Zalman everything (watercool if ya have €€€€)

HD: Velociraptor 10000RPM 320GB (ull need externals too,1.5TB or so)

Screen: LG 24" Wide W2453V-PF Full HD

Keyboard: G19 Gaming Board

Mouse: G15/17/19 Mouse

Speakers: Z-5500 THX 5.1 Logitech

noodletop

roberthurley14 wrote: »

if your looking for a great gaming system and have no budget you can get what i haves:

MoBo: EVGA X58 Classified 4-Way SLI

CPU: Intel Core i7 Quad Processor (i7-940)

RAM: 3GB Cosair Dominator DHX+ DDR3 1600MHz (I Have 32bit Windows7)

GPU: 2x EVGA Nvidia GTX295 CO-OP Edition (Still have 1, need more cash for the second:P )

Case: Antec 1200 Gaming Case

Cooling: Zalman....Just get Zalman everything (watercool if ya have €€€€)

HD: Velociraptor 10000RPM 320GB (ull need externals too,1.5TB or so)

Screen: LG 24" Wide W2453V-PF Full HD

Keyboard: G19 Gaming Board

Mouse: G15/17/19 Mouse

Speakers: Z-5500 THX 5.1 Logitech

question how did you get the board to fit into that case the 4 way sli EVGA X58 Classified needs 10 or more expansion slots on the rear of the case the antec 1200 only has 7 and the psu is in the base of the case so it wont accept the over sized atx boards , i was looking at gettin that board but having trouble gettin a case to fit it into any help greatly appreciated:D

swirlser

noodletop wrote: »

question how did you get the board to fit into that case the 4 way sli EVGA X58 Classified needs 10 or more expansion slots on the rear of the case the antec 1200 only has 7 and the psu is in the base of the case so it wont accept the over sized atx boards , i was looking at gettin that board but having trouble gettin a case to fit it into any help greatly appreciated:D

My main issue with that is that it ties you into nV only.

Plus since their current line-up is old, but hasnt gone down in price for a number of reasons, are u really going to buy 4 half year+ old cards at brand new prices

Not that I see any reason to buy so many gpu's, but then im not one to talk I guess lol But at the very least, wait til next year, board will be cheaper and when nV finally puts Fermi out, the GT200's will come down in price

noodletop

swirlser wrote: »

My main issue with that is that it ties you into nV only.

Plus since their current line-up is old, but hasnt gone down in price for a number of reasons, are u really going to buy 4 half year+ old cards at brand new prices

Not that I see any reason to buy so many gpu's, but then im not one to talk I guess lol But at the very least, wait til next year, board will be cheaper and when nV finally puts Fermi out, the GT200's will come down in price

no way was i gettin the 4 cards:eek: i have 2 oc gtx 260's and was going to get a 3rd so to fit sound card into case with 3 cards thats the only board i could think about otherwise i couldnt do 3 way sli and still have the soundcard , bit much but if i could find a way of gettin it to fit into the antec 1200 i might just do it

swirlser

noodletop wrote: »

no way was i gettin the 4 cards:eek: i have 2 oc gtx 260's and was going to get a 3rd so to fit sound card into case with 3 cards thats the only board i could think about otherwise i couldnt do 3 way sli and still have the soundcard , bit much but if i could find a way of gettin it to fit into the antec 1200 i might just do it

I have an antec 1200, a P6T6 WS Rev mobo and tri-fire 5870's, that board doesnt cost the earth either... even if some people arent fans of Asus ^_^

Venom

swirlser wrote: »

My main issue with that is that it ties you into nV only.

Plus since their current line-up is old, but hasnt gone down in price for a number of reasons, are u really going to buy 4 half year+ old cards at brand new prices

Not that I see any reason to buy so many gpu's, but then im not one to talk I guess lol But at the very least, wait til next year, board will be cheaper and when nV finally puts Fermi out, the GT200's will come down in price

Evga X58 boards do support ATI Crossfire but because EVGA are in Nvidia's pocket they dont mention the fact.

Also the suggestion of MoBo: EVGA X58 Classified 4-Way SLI and Intel Core i7-940 is just a total waste of money due to the insane cost of both board and cpu and unless you plan to use the system for serious 5GHZ+ phase cooling benchmark chasing OCing you wont see any benifet over a i7 920 DO and €250 max mobo.

Zalman used to be the king for cooling but its been a very long time since that was the case as now there products are middle of the road at best. 3GB of ram in a X58 system is silly as 6GB is just the way to do it. Hell roberthurley14 the only thing right in your suggestions are the Z5500 speakers lol

Anti

Venom wrote: »

Evga X58 boards do support ATI Crossfire but because EVGA are in Nvidia's pocket they dont mention the fact.

Also the suggestion of MoBo: EVGA X58 Classified 4-Way SLI and Intel Core i7-940 is just a total waste of money due to the insane cost of both board and cpu with unless you use for serious 5GHZ+ phase cooling you wont see any benifet over a i7 920 and €250 max mobo.

Zalman used to be the king for cooling but its been a very long time since that was the case as now there products are middle of the road at best. 3GB of ram in a X58 system is silly as 6GB is just the way to do it. Hell roberthurley14 the only thing right in your suggestions are the Z5500 speakers lol

QFT!

swirlser

Venom wrote: »

Evga X58 boards do support ATI Crossfire but because EVGA are in Nvidia's pocket they dont mention the fact.

Ah, I was thinking its a lot of money only to lock you into 1 company >_<' Was reading a little while ago someone who I believe was using a classified board flashed it, but perhaps that was to get his mix and match to work - not specifically to allow ATI.

Anti

Well i can confirm on a formula III a 5970 and a 8800 GTS work together Ill have ot wait till my second card comes back from rma to tri crossfire/physx.

Venom

swirlser wrote: »

Ah, I was thinking its a lot of money only to lock you into 1 company >_<' Was reading a little while ago someone who I believe was using a classified board flashed it, but perhaps that was to get his mix and match to work - not specifically to allow ATI.

Took me ages sorting though various sites to find out about it and put me right off the company as there gonna hide info about what there products can do what else will would they hinder to keep Nvidia happy. Not to mention how much more expensive the EVGA boards are for such crap results in testing compaired to the likes of Gigabyte and Asus.

Venom

Anti wrote: »

Well i can confirm on a formula III a 5970 and a 8800 GTS work together Ill have ot wait till my second card comes back from rma to tri crossfire/physx.

What drivers do I need for running 8800GT with my 5870?

Anti

Venom wrote: »

What drivers do I need for running 8800GT with my 5870?

I just followed the guides on XT Vr-zone and http://www.mymobile88.com/enable-activate-physx-run-on-ati-radeon-alternatives-patching-installation-guide-2/ for the patch.

roberthurley14

noodletop wrote: »

question how did you get the board to fit into that case the 4 way sli EVGA X58 Classified needs 10 or more expansion slots on the rear of the case the antec 1200 only has 7 and the psu is in the base of the case so it wont accept the over sized atx boards , i was looking at gettin that board but having trouble gettin a case to fit it into any help greatly appreciated:D

One word...."Ingenuiety" i just "edited" the case with the help of a friend and its all fitting nice and tidy...but if you dont want the hassle get an e-atx case such as:

http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.aspx?sku=369755

roberthurley14

Venom wrote: »

Evga X58 boards do support ATI Crossfire but because EVGA are in Nvidia's pocket they dont mention the fact.

Also the suggestion of MoBo: EVGA X58 Classified 4-Way SLI and Intel Core i7-940 is just a total waste of money due to the insane cost of both board and cpu and unless you plan to use the system for serious 5GHZ+ phase cooling benchmark chasing OCing you wont see any benifet over a i7 920 DO and €250 max mobo.

Zalman used to be the king for cooling but its been a very long time since that was the case as now there products are middle of the road at best. 3GB of ram in a X58 system is silly as 6GB is just the way to do it. Hell roberthurley14 the only thing right in your suggestions are the Z5500 speakers lol

Firstly i get EVGA cause they have good customer support which some companies just plain dont have! on my old 790i SLI board i had issues with the CMOS and they helped me get it fixed in a hour. And as for the system i need it to do serious PS work for posters etc, BIG ASS POSTERS so need all the GPU power i can get so its worth it. Zalman are still great although to be fair corsair do have some great alternatives these days. and theres no point of me having 6Gigs on a 32-bit win7 OS as it only uses 2.5 anyways so it would be pointless. and yes, the z5500s are awesome, very much recommended, theyre better than most 7.1s in my experience

leninbenjamin

roberthurley14 wrote: »

http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.aspx?sku=369755

you do realise that case has only 7 expansion slots?

noodletop

roberthurley14 wrote: »

One word...."Ingenuiety" i just "edited" the case with the help of a friend and its all fitting nice and tidy...but if you dont want the hassle get an e-atx case such as:

http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.aspx?sku=369755

well a pic or something pls as i have the case and want to see how you got it to fit , might try it myself:D

have been looking at a lot of cases and only found one but the price is way too much to go for it

Anti

leninbenjamin wrote: »

you do realise that case has only 7 expansion slots?

Clearly that will not do in this day and age. OP i sugest you buy 3 more of this case just to house the hard drives, a gerbil cage and soem shoes.

noodletop

leninbenjamin wrote: »

you do realise that case has only 7 expansion slots?

this is the case you need for the board mind you it ant the best lookin:rolleyes:

LIAN LI PC-P80 Black Aluminum ATX Full Tower Computer Case

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Lian-Li-PC-P80B-Black-Full-Tower-Aluminum-Case-w-o-PSU

leninbenjamin

wait... what?

roberthurley14

noodletop wrote: »

well a pic or something pls as i have the case and want to see how you got it to fit , might try it myself:D

have been looking at a lot of cases and only found one but the price is way too much to go for it

i would but its all neat and tidyily in a corner with all the wires hidden which took a day to do! GIYF (google is your friend) i found it on a site, dont remember where tho