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1K to blow on a build

  • 20-10-2010 8:28pm
    #1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭


    As the title says I`ve got 1k to spend on a build(well thats what the Mrs will allow me)
    Now im a newbie to this so take it handy on me..
    My needs for this build is: gaming,multimedia.
    The rig needs to be very quiet as it will be in the sitting room.
    I was talking to the lads in IT at work today and they will do the assembly work if I supply the parts, so happy days

    Any advice on components would be greatly appreciated and I can stretch the budget a small bit,just dont let the wife know;)

    Many thanks
    Dwighet


Comments

  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,333 ✭✭✭the untitled user


    What does that budget cover? Do you need everything from the ground up? i.e. monitor, keyboard & mouse, speakers, OS?

    Btw, building is easy, well worth having a go at it yourself so you can learn the ins and outs.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 274 ✭✭kfish2oo2


    I would recommend you wait a few weeks, as ATI has just teased some shots of their new lineup of graphics cards and they should be in reviewers hands by Friday. Inevitably over the next few weeks there'll be a price reshuffle.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,647 ✭✭✭thenightrider


    As it is going to be in your sitting room are you going to use your tv as a monitor ?

    Are you looking for something that will sit under your TV or are you going to have the computer at a desk ?


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭dwighet


    What does that budget cover? Do you need everything from the ground up? i.e. monitor, keyboard & mouse, speakers, OS?

    Btw, building is easy, well worth having a go at it yourself so you can learn the ins and outs.

    I have everythg ie.monitor,keyboard,speakers. The budget is for simply the case and components and os...

    I think I will tackle the build myself....Under the close eye of a buddy thats done it before.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭dwighet


    As it is going to be in your sitting room are you going to use your tv as a monitor ?

    Are you looking for something that will sit under your TV or are you going to have the computer at a desk ?

    I have a small desk in the corner of the room with a monitor but would like the option of using the 42" flatscreen as well via a hdmi cable....

    A tower would be fine for the sitting room..As long as its reasonably quiet..


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,274 ✭✭✭Curry Addict


    id go for something like this

    Article-No. Article Availability Delivery price HV20IB95DE Intel Core i7-950 Box 8192Kb, LGA1366
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-10-25 255,26 € HV1132IGDE Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R, Intel X58, ATX, PCI-Express
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-10-26 186,24 € HV20G2G6DE 6GB-KIT G-Skill DDR3 PC1333, CL 7
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    one article available 110,81 € HV203NZXDE NZXT LeXa S Midi-Tower - black, ohne Netzteil
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 57,22 € HVR700XDE Xilence Power 700 Watt / SPS-XP700.(135)R
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 72,82 € HV1022PGDE Point of View GeForce GTX460, 768MB DDR5
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-10-22 144,79 € HV1310F3DE Samsung SpinPoint F3 1000GB, SATA II (HD103SJ)
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 50,28 € HV207SC3DE Samsung SH-223C bare schwarz SATA
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 17,03 € Sum: 894,45 €


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭dwighet


    id go for something like this

    Article-No. Article Availability Delivery price HV20IB95DE Intel Core i7-950 Box 8192Kb, LGA1366
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-10-25 255,26 € HV1132IGDE Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R, Intel X58, ATX, PCI-Express
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-10-26 186,24 € HV20G2G6DE 6GB-KIT G-Skill DDR3 PC1333, CL 7
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    one article available 110,81 € HV203NZXDE NZXT LeXa S Midi-Tower - black, ohne Netzteil
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 57,22 € HVR700XDE Xilence Power 700 Watt / SPS-XP700.(135)R
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 72,82 € HV1022PGDE Point of View GeForce GTX460, 768MB DDR5
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-10-22 144,79 € HV1310F3DE Samsung SpinPoint F3 1000GB, SATA II (HD103SJ)
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 50,28 € HV207SC3DE Samsung SH-223C bare schwarz SATA
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 17,03 € Sum: 894,45 €

    I like it...I like it a lot....
    Would the 2 fans be enough of should i invest in a few more?
    Or should I go one of these
    with the appopriate fan either side of the rad?


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,418 ✭✭✭Icyseanfitz


    id up that gtx 460 to the 1 gig card which costs about 200 euro and is a very good card


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,274 ✭✭✭Curry Addict


    dwighet wrote: »
    I like it...I like it a lot....
    Would the 2 fans be enough of should i invest in a few more?
    Or should I go one of these
    with the appopriate fan either side of the rad?

    the case has 4 fans already installed, that should be plenty.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,333 ✭✭✭the untitled user


    Everyone has forgotten the bit about it being low noise...

    You'll want a different case tbh, one with a layer of sound insulation. I've heard decent things about the fractal R3, or the Antec P183.

    In terms of coolers, the Corsair Hydro series is good, if you couple it with some high pressure, low RPM fans. Other options to look at would be some of the Noctua line (the likes of the D14 or U12P will allow for a healthy overclock while remaining pretty quiet, but are massive). Generally speaking, you'll want a big heatsink for the likes of an i7, coupled with some high pressure, low RPM fans.

    In terms of the fans, more intakes will mean you can still get good airflow while running them at a lower RPM (it'll still make noise, but less likely to hear a whine or hum this way). Noctua NF-S12B ULN and Scythe S-FLEX are some of the better options to my knowledge... just beware that sometimes the pressure waves of different fans can interact strangely and produce resonance and thus annoying vibrations. If noise is a primary concern you may have to experiment with different configurations.

    Might be worth too looking at getting a GPU with a non reference cooler. When high end graphics cards are creating heat and the fans kick in higher they can create a huge amount of noise.


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭dwighet


    id up that gtx 460 to the 1 gig card which costs about 200 euro and is a very good card
    Would that be this one?


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,418 ✭✭✭Icyseanfitz


    i got this when it was 200 right now its at 170 which is brilliant value :eek: brilliant card btw quite as well


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭dwighet


    i got this when it was 200 right now its at 170 which is brilliant value :eek: brilliant card btw quite as well

    What would the differance be between the 2?
    My head is spinning:eek: so many dissisions


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,333 ✭✭✭the untitled user


    Point of View is a reference card I think i.e. standard cooler and standard clocks.

    Gigabyte is non reference, has a custom dual fan cooler and comes higher clocked out of the box, meaning there should be a little performance boost. But it also runs a little hotter and noisier than the reference seemingy URL="http://www.tweaktown.com/reviews/3393/gigabyte_geforce_gtx_460_1gb_oc_video_card/index17.html"]link[/URL.

    Another non reference 460 to consider is the Gainward Golden Sample URL="http://www1.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=36566&agid=707"]link[/URL. It's not clocked as high as the Gigabyte, however, in my own experience the Golden Samples have pretty good overclocking capability and good coolers, but I know nothing about this specific model.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,274 ✭✭✭Curry Addict


    they dont have some of that stuff, its better to chose what they have in stock :)


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,418 ✭✭✭Icyseanfitz


    id hold off buying a gtx 460 now as im after reading some reviews on the new AMD HD 6850 and 6870 cards and they seem to be great cards (2 6850's out power a 5970 :eek:) dont mean to confuse you but id hold off building for a couple of weeks as things might get interesting in the gpu market


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭dwighet


    id hold off buying a gtx 460 now as im after reading some reviews on the new AMD HD 6850 and 6870 cards and they seem to be great cards (2 6850's out power a 5970 :eek:) dont mean to confuse you but id hold off building for a couple of weeks as things might get interesting in the gpu market

    I hear ya...thanks for the heads up;)


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 264 ✭✭tc2010


    just buy 2 x 6870s, a Phenom quad core with 4 gb ram and 750w power supply

    youll easily get that for a grand

    go to ebuyer.com and save on delivery


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,072 ✭✭✭clivej


    dwighet wrote: »
    I have everythg ie.monitor,keyboard,speakers. The budget is for simply the case and components and os...

    I think I will tackle the build myself....Under the close eye of a buddy thats done it before.
    Everyone has forgotten the bit about it being low noise...

    You'll want a different case tbh, one with a layer of sound insulation. I've heard decent things about the fractal R3, or the Antec P183.

    In terms of coolers, the Corsair Hydro series is good, if you couple it with some high pressure, low RPM fans. Other options to look at would be some of the Noctua line (the likes of the D14 or U12P will allow for a healthy overclock while remaining pretty quiet, but are massive). Generally speaking, you'll want a big heatsink for the likes of an i7, coupled with some high pressure, low RPM fans.

    In terms of the fans, more intakes will mean you can still get good airflow while running them at a lower RPM (it'll still make noise, but less likely to hear a whine or hum this way). Noctua NF-S12B ULN and Scythe S-FLEX are some of the better options to my knowledge... just beware that sometimes the pressure waves of different fans can interact strangely and produce resonance and thus annoying vibrations. If noise is a primary concern you may have to experiment with different configurations.

    Might be worth too looking at getting a GPU with a non reference cooler. When high end graphics cards are creating heat and the fans kick in higher they can create a huge amount of noise.

    Go get yourself a Dell PC it will do whatever you need it to do and your have a guarantee for the year, for what its worth. I have been out of the PC building loop for too long to know whats what now.
    BUT go with the ANTEC 183 case, son uses one and it's quite, and the low rev fans to keep the noise down.
    Look for onboard HDMI output for your TV.
    I'll keep looking for bits as I think of them for ya.

    ATB
    cj from KK


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭dwighet


    clivej wrote: »
    Go get yourself a Dell PC it will do whatever you need it to do and your have a guarantee for the year, for what its worth. I have been out of the PC building loop for too long to know whats what now.
    BUT go with the ANTEC 183 case, son uses one and it's quite, and the low rev fans to keep the noise down.
    Look for onboard HDMI output for your TV.
    I'll keep looking for bits as I think of them for ya.

    ATB
    cj from KK
    Im going to build one Clive....
    I have all the ingredients sorted...
    Its going to be a rocket of a yoke..
    you know me...I dont do things by halves...


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,627 ✭✭✭Sgt Pepper 64


    If its gonna be used for multimedia, your going to need a NAS. (Synology Disk Station DS210J NAS for example) Its something people always forget - you've got to feed the beast and back it up
    Allow approx 3-400 for 2 x 1TB one. Then you can stream your media to anywhere and have a useful backup as well.
    (You can access it secure from over the net, and your PC doesnt need to be on)


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭dwighet




  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,274 ✭✭✭Curry Addict


    the power supply is very expensive, u could probably save 100e there
    the mobo is very expensive u could possibly save 75e there
    u could save 200e there and put in another graphics card or go for a top of the line card.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭dwighet


    the power supply is very expensive, u could probably save 100e there
    the mobo is very expensive u could possibly save 75e there
    u could save 200e there and put in another graphics card or go for a top of the line card.

    ok Curry Adidict....
    What mobo and psu would you go for to save a few (200e?)
    Also what top line gfx would you do for the savings I make?

    Your comments are well appreciated


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,216 ✭✭✭Kur4mA


    Hi, I'm not sure you saw my own thread. I also had a 1000 Euro budget and after some tinkering and tips came up with the following. It's just 1 Euro over budget when you factor in the delivey and includes a really great 24" monitor which my house mate just bought and it's an amazing piece of kit.

    file.php?id=5199&mode=view


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,274 ✭✭✭Curry Addict


    dwighet wrote: »
    ok Curry Adidict....
    What mobo and psu would you go for to save a few (200e?)
    Also what top line gfx would you do for the savings I make?

    Your comments are well appreciated

    id try this

    HV1131ILDE Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD3, Intel P55, ATX, DDR3, PCI-Express
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 114,88 € HVR800XDE Xilence Power 800 Watt / SPS-XP800.(135)R
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-11-05 82,29 € HV1029FPDE XFX RADEON HD 6850 775M 1GB DDR5 DP HDMI DUAL DVI PCI-E
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-11-05 152,66 € Sum: 349,83 €
    2x6850 for total of 502.49e as opposed to 567e so 65e saved and a better gaming system overall.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,274 ✭✭✭Curry Addict


    so your full build would be....

    HV20I576DE Intel Core i5-760 Box 8192Kb, LGA1156
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 165,83 € HV1131ILDE Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD3, Intel P55, ATX, DDR3, PCI-Express
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 114,88 € HV20CO10DE 4GB-Kit Corsair DDR3 PC1600 C8 Classic
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 71,11 € HV203FD1DE FRACTAL DESIGN Gehäuse DEFINE R3 Black Pearl
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-11-05 89,41 € HVR800XDE Xilence Power 800 Watt / SPS-XP800.(135)R
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-11-05 82,29 € HV1029FPDE XFX RADEON HD 6850 775M 1GB DDR5 DP HDMI DUAL DVI PCI-E
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-11-05 152,66 € HV1029FPDE XFX RADEON HD 6850 775M 1GB DDR5 DP HDMI DUAL DVI PCI-E
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-11-05 152,66 € HV1310F3DE Samsung SpinPoint F3 1000GB, SATA II (HD103SJ)
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 48,98 € HV207S34DE Samsung SH-223L bare Lightscribe schwarz
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 18,82 € HV33E7P6DE MS Windows 7 Pro 64bit SB-Version Englisch
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 121,54 € Sum: 1.018,18 €


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭dwighet


    so your full build would be....

    HV20I576DE Intel Core i5-760 Box 8192Kb, LGA1156
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 165,83 € HV1131ILDE Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD3, Intel P55, ATX, DDR3, PCI-Express
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 114,88 € HV20CO10DE 4GB-Kit Corsair DDR3 PC1600 C8 Classic
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 71,11 € HV203FD1DE FRACTAL DESIGN Gehäuse DEFINE R3 Black Pearl
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-11-05 89,41 € HVR800XDE Xilence Power 800 Watt / SPS-XP800.(135)R
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-11-05 82,29 € HV1029FPDE XFX RADEON HD 6850 775M 1GB DDR5 DP HDMI DUAL DVI PCI-E
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-11-05 152,66 € HV1029FPDE XFX RADEON HD 6850 775M 1GB DDR5 DP HDMI DUAL DVI PCI-E
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    expected on 2010-11-05 152,66 € HV1310F3DE Samsung SpinPoint F3 1000GB, SATA II (HD103SJ)
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 48,98 € HV207S34DE Samsung SH-223L bare Lightscribe schwarz
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 18,82 € HV33E7P6DE MS Windows 7 Pro 64bit SB-Version Englisch
    incl. VAT and excl. shipping costs
    immediately available 121,54 € Sum: 1.018,18 €

    Thats perfect.....
    Thanks for your help...


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,274 ✭✭✭Curry Addict


    no bother. if u want to overclock your processor ill send u on a guide. u should be able to run at, at least, 3.4ghz on stock cooler if not 3.6ghz.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭dwighet


    no bother. if u want to overclock your processor ill send u on a guide. u should be able to run at, at least, 3.4ghz on stock cooler if not 3.6ghz.

    your a good man;)
    Will i be able to fit quieter cooling on both gpu`s or will they be too close together for after market coolers to fit?

    This rig will be in the sitting room and the Mrs will throw a wobbly if its making noise while her soaps are on:eek:


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,418 ✭✭✭Icyseanfitz


    can you overclock on a stock cooler with an i7 930? sorry for hijacking :D just didnt think it was good idea, still havnt saved up for my D-14


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,274 ✭✭✭Curry Addict


    dwighet wrote: »
    your a good man;)
    Will i be able to fit quieter cooling on both gpu`s or will they be too close together for after market coolers to fit?

    This rig will be in the sitting room and the Mrs will throw a wobbly if its making noise while her soaps are on:eek:

    hard question to answer, i dont know the case and the gpu cards are quite new to the market so hard to know how it is when it all fits together in your case. id try it the way it is and see how it goes with the missus.
    ive a similar build to yours but with no soundproofing, also in the livingroom. i have it pushed under a desk in the corner and there is a low humm off it but its not annoying or invasive.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,333 ✭✭✭the untitled user


    dwighet wrote: »
    your a good manwink.gif
    Will i be able to fit quieter cooling on both gpu`s or will they be too close together for after market coolers to fit?

    This rig will be in the sitting room and the Mrs will throw a wobbly if its making noise while her soaps are oneek.gif

    You might want to lose the AMDs then... noise is an issue with them from what I hear, especially the 6870. You could put aftermarket coolers on them, but compatible ones probably wont be around for a bit.
    can you overclock on a stock cooler with an i7 930? sorry for hijacking :D just didnt think it was good idea, still havnt saved up for my D-14

    If you disabled hyperthreading you could possibly eek out a small overclock.
    The i7s are hotter though than the i5s, I wouldn't recommend it.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,274 ✭✭✭Curry Addict


    can you overclock on a stock cooler with an i7 930? sorry for hijacking :D just didnt think it was good idea, still havnt saved up for my D-14

    u can usually do a modest overclock. the key things are to keep your core voltage below 1.375 and your core temps below 72.7 and u should be ok.
    u can monitor these with programs like "core temp" and cpu-z.
    there are plenty of guides out there u can google. no need to turn off hyper treading just keep a close eye on you temps at full load


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,512 ✭✭✭runawaybishop


    Using 2 6870s wouldn't be my number one choice. Those cards run pretty loud + hot and crossfire performance is so sporadic and lacklustre that it usually just disappoints you. You'd be better off buying a single card (i.e a more expensive single card), rather than using 2 in sli or crossfire. The newer drivers being released seem to have improved crossfire support but its still very much hit and miss. But you said you needed a quiet card for your system right?

    For about 150 euro you can get a MSI gtx460 768 pre-overclocked card delivered to your door. At the moment they are the best price per performance cards i am aware of on the market. The MSI model uses an excellent cooler and its pretty much silent. The overclock is modest enough so you can tweak it a fair bit more if you want to. After spending 2 weeks researching for a new card after my beloved 8800 gts 640 died i picked one up myself and I'm very impressed with its noise and performance.

    Of course, the thing with PC building is that there is always an upgrade for just a little bit more cash - for me i like to buy the best performance per price components and then overclock to extend their life - there are apps (like nvidias ntune) that will automatically OC your system for you if overclocking isn't something you've done before, but you cant beat doing it yourself really and there are loads of places to get advice.

    Hope i haven't muddied the waters too much, best of luck with your new build :)


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,274 ✭✭✭Curry Addict


    Using 2 6870s wouldn't be my number one choice. Those cards run pretty loud + hot and crossfire performance is so sporadic and lacklustre that it usually just disappoints you. You'd be better off buying a single card (i.e a more expensive single card), rather than using 2 in sli or crossfire. The newer drivers being released seem to have improved crossfire support but its still very much hit and miss. But you said you needed a quiet card for your system right?

    For about 150 euro you can get a MSI gtx460 768 pre-overclocked card delivered to your door. At the moment they are the best price per performance cards i am aware of on the market. The MSI model uses an excellent cooler and its pretty much silent. The overclock is modest enough so you can tweak it a fair bit more if you want to. After spending 2 weeks researching for a new card after my beloved 8800 gts 640 died i picked one up myself and I'm very impressed with its noise and performance.

    Of course, the thing with PC building is that there is always an upgrade for just a little bit more cash - for me i like to buy the best performance per price components and then overclock to extend their life - there are apps (like nvidias ntune) that will automatically OC your system for you if overclocking isn't something you've done before, but you cant beat doing it yourself really and there are loads of places to get advice.

    Hope i haven't muddied the waters too much, best of luck with your new build :)

    the cards are 6850s not 6870s. the 6850 is 2 weeks on the market so i think its unlikely u know how they sound :) . they are low power consumption cards with max load of only 229w and are designed to run hotter rather than louder. the performance is a shade better than the gtx 460 1gig. 2 of these in crossfire will give about double fps over a gtx460 768 so they will give amazing gaming performance for the price and probably the quietest of crossfire/sli configurations. see here for comparisons.... http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2010/10/22/ati-radeon-hd-6850-review/8


  • Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 10,088 Mod ✭✭✭✭marco_polo


    dwighet wrote: »
    your a good man;)
    Will i be able to fit quieter cooling on both gpu`s or will they be too close together for after market coolers to fit?

    This rig will be in the sitting room and the Mrs will throw a wobbly if its making noise while her soaps are on:eek:


    Did you get this Gigabyte in the end? Because the PCIe slots are well spaced apart so it will be easily possible to get two aftermaket coolers in there.

    The one issue is that depending on the cooler you select you could end up with few or no usable PCI slots if you got big 2.5/3slot coolers (which most of the decent ones are).

    There is an interesting discussion here about aftermarket coolers that are working with 6800 cards. Seems pretty well anything that worked with a 5800 is still good.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,512 ✭✭✭runawaybishop


    the cards are 6850s not 6870s. the 6850 is 2 weeks on the market so i think its unlikely u know how they sound :) . they are low power consumption cards with max load of only 229w and are designed to run hotter rather than louder. the performance is a shade better than the gtx 460 1gig. 2 of these in crossfire will give about double fps over a gtx460 768 so they will give amazing gaming performance for the price and probably the quietest of crossfire/sli configurations. see here for comparisons.... http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2010/10/22/ati-radeon-hd-6850-review/8

    You're right, i was looking at the wrong model :( Correct me if I'm wrong though but those 6850 cards run really hot. The review you linked shows them running at a pretty high temp, which means you are going to need to be careful that the cooling required isn't going to cause a lot extra noise. I may not have one in setup right now but i do have a 460 and they are whisper quiet. That card, despite being a lot lower specced compared to the 6850 seems to have more than acceptable minimum frame rates on the base model - the MSI i linked is pre-overclocked (and supposedly you can run them from 650(base) to 725(msi version) to 800mhz) so that is also something to consider. I'm not saying the 460 is a higher performing card as such, more that it might be butter suited to the ops requirements.

    Has crossfire improved to the point now that you get an 80% performance increase? All the reviews i see seem to indicate that its very hit and miss and that your money is still best spent on a single higher rated card.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,418 ✭✭✭Icyseanfitz


    Using 2 6870s wouldn't be my number one choice. Those cards run pretty loud + hot and crossfire performance is so sporadic and lacklustre that it usually just disappoints you. You'd be better off buying a single card (i.e a more expensive single card), rather than using 2 in sli or crossfire. The newer drivers being released seem to have improved crossfire support but its still very much hit and miss. But you said you needed a quiet card for your system right?

    For about 150 euro you can get a MSI gtx460 768 pre-overclocked card delivered to your door. At the moment they are the best price per performance cards i am aware of on the market. The MSI model uses an excellent cooler and its pretty much silent. The overclock is modest enough so you can tweak it a fair bit more if you want to. After spending 2 weeks researching for a new card after my beloved 8800 gts 640 died i picked one up myself and I'm very impressed with its noise and performance.

    Of course, the thing with PC building is that there is always an upgrade for just a little bit more cash - for me i like to buy the best performance per price components and then overclock to extend their life - there are apps (like nvidias ntune) that will automatically OC your system for you if overclocking isn't something you've done before, but you cant beat doing it yourself really and there are loads of places to get advice.

    Hope i haven't muddied the waters too much, best of luck with your new build :)

    actually the crossfire performance in the 6850's and 6870's are amazing from what ive read even better than the 460's


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,512 ✭✭✭runawaybishop


    actually the crossfire performance in the 6850's and 6870's are amazing from what ive read even better than the 460's

    Its certainly not twice the performance though more like 20-30% increase - and again it really depends on the games you play. Euro for euro crossfire is not a winner - look at this comparison here.

    http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ATI/Radeon_HD_6850_CrossFire/24.html


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭dwighet


    marco_polo wrote: »
    Did you get this Gigabyte in the end? Because the PCIe slots are well spaced apart so it will be easily possible to get two aftermaket coolers in there.

    The one issue is that depending on the cooler you select you could end up with few or no usable PCI slots if you got big 2.5/3slot coolers (which most of the decent ones are).

    There is an interesting discussion here about aftermarket coolers that are working with 6800 cards. Seems pretty well anything that worked with a 5800 is still good.

    I did (will at the end of the month/pay day) go for that mobo....
    Im thinking I will stick with a single 6870 and see how I get on with it...
    This is what I had in mind....


  • Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 10,088 Mod ✭✭✭✭marco_polo


    dwighet wrote: »
    I did (will at the end of the month/pay day) go for that mobo....
    Im thinking I will stick with a single 6870 and see how I get on with it...
    This is what I had in mind....

    A good call I think, there is really no need for more that a one 6870 if you are running a single monitor setup. That is unless you consider your 1K budget to be a target rather than a limit :)


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭dwighet


    marco_polo wrote: »
    A good call I think, there is really no need for more that a one 6870 if you are running a single monitor setup. That is unless you consider your 1K budget to be a target rather than a limit :)
    The 1k was more of a target for the build...A few hundy xtra wont break me..Just dont tell her that;)

    I was in touch with the lads at Scythe and they say that there new setsugen 2 vga cooler will be compatable with the 6870....Its just trying to find one is the problem. Will wait and see once its all together and running before I hand out anymore cabbage... The dampening in the case might just do the trick...time will tell..

    I will be just running the single monitor(24") so as you say the 1x 6870 should be just fine....

    Appreciate your help Marco and the rest of the lads...
    Cheers
    Dwighet


  • Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 10,088 Mod ✭✭✭✭marco_polo


    dwighet wrote: »
    The 1k was more of a target for the build...A few hundy xtra wont break me..Just dont tell her that;)

    I was in touch with the lads at Scythe and they say that there new setsugen 2 vga cooler will be compatable with the 6870....Its just trying to find one is the problem. Will wait and see once its all together and running before I hand out anymore cabbage... The dampening in the case might just do the trick...time will tell..

    I will be just running the single monitor(24") so as you say the 1x 6870 should be just fine....

    Appreciate your help Marco and the rest of the lads...
    Cheers
    Dwighet

    Came across the Rev 1 last week while researching coolers for myself, it is a class looking cooler very clever design, dual-slot too unlike other tri-slot monsters. I couldn't find anyone that stocks it though. :(


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,399 ✭✭✭dwighet


    marco_polo wrote: »
    Came across the Rev 1 last week while researching coolers for myself, it is a class looking cooler very clever design, dual-slot too unlike other tri-slot monsters. I couldn't find anyone that stocks it though. :(

    they look the biz alright....
    Some temp differences to the stock coolers..


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,274 ✭✭✭Curry Addict


    Its certainly not twice the performance though more like 20-30% increase - and again it really depends on the games you play. Euro for euro crossfire is not a winner - look at this comparison here.

    http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ATI/Radeon_HD_6850_CrossFire/24.html


    wrong graph mate. from the same review u can see here that 6850 is the top performer and gives 100% performance increase in crossfire.
    http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ATI/Radeon_HD_6850_CrossFire/23.html


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,498 ✭✭✭Lu Tze


    wrong graph mate. from the same review u can see here that 6850 is the top performer and gives 100% performance increase in crossfire.
    http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ATI/Radeon_HD_6850_CrossFire/23.html

    Did you even look at the link you just gave? They rated everything else to the 6850 crossfire config (100%). It averaged an increase over a single 6850 of about 45%, not 100%


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,274 ✭✭✭Curry Addict


    well he did give a dollar/performance graph which is ambiguous at best. considering the single conif 6850 graphs on this site and the toms hardware CF fps stats for the 5850, which the 6850 replaces which are very impressive 90%approx .considering the comparisons between the 5850 and the 6850, the power draws and quietness and the bang for buck delivered its all good imho.


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