AMD Build Advice

[samuelspark]

Approximate Purchase Date: Hopefully soon

Budget Range: $500 After Rebates

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, Watching Videos

Parts Not Required: Keyboard, Mouse, Monitor, OS, Optical Drive

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: microcenter.com newegg.com tigerdirect.com

Country of Origin: USA

Parts Preferences: I want a case with LEDS and a window but I don't think I can afford it.

Overclocking: Just +1 to the CPU multiplier with stock cooler/fan

SLI or Crossfire: Crossfire 6850 when I get afford a second one

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080

Comments: I plan on upgrading to crossfire 6850's and bulldozer later.

Phenom II x4 965 BE w/ 890GX AM3+ 890GX ATX ($180)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0325874
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0367875

Spinpoint F3 500GB 7,200RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s ($45)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0340804

Corsair XMS3 8GB DDR3-1600 ($45)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0347306

700 Watt ModXStream Series Modular ATX Power Supply ($60)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0301550

Asus ATi Radeon HD 6850 1024MB GDDR5 ($140)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121419

Thermaltake Commander Mid Tower ATX Computer Case ($35)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0365239

Total: $505

Will the components be able to support 1.65v RAM? Or do I have to get another type of RAM. Please tell me if there are any issues with this build and help me fix it. Thanks.

 

[battlemarz]

Overall looks like a pretty solid budget machine.

You WILL want 1.5v RAM not 1.65 volts. The 1.65 volt ram is meant for i5 and i7 I believe.

I also generally only recommend Corsair or Seasonic power supplies as I believe the PSU to be the most important part of the system. You should be able to get a 600 Watt corsair for about the same price, 700 watt for slightly more. If you don't Crossfire 600 will be plenty, if you plan to the 700 is probably a good idea.

You can get a 1TB Seagate for $55 on Newegg, much better deal than the 500GB Samsung.

 

[Phyrexiancure]

Your better of with the phenom ii x4 955. All you have to do is increase its multiplier and you will get a 965. This save you money to buy other components. Last time I checked newegg had a deal on the 955 for 105 dollars, its usually 120. Do they have the combo with a 955 at microcenter?

 

[cliffro]

I am using 1.65v RAM with an AMD processor just fine, as well as a friend with the PII 965BE, actually my friend is using the other half of the 8GB I bought for my system(4x2gb)

And if anything the 1.5v stuff would be better for the i5/i7 with their MAX voltage being 1.65v

Edit:

I should also say that it appears that Microcenter is out of most AM3 CPUs, with stock being limited to what is available in local stores. If you have one near you, you should check to see if it's in stock on their website.

 

[Onus]

Take a look at the September $500 SBM machine. Since you don't need an optical drive, you should be able to afford a mobo upgrade to a socket AM3+ board that will support Bulldozer. That build has a HD6870 in it, and stepping back to a HD6850 will provide money either for a nicer case or for a larger PSU able to handle the second HD6850 later.

 

[FinneousPJ]

I recommend the ASRock 970 Extreme4 for a full featured AM3+ board, that's including SLi. Yours for less than $110! :lol:

 

[samuelspark]

Take a look at the September $500 SBM machine. Since you don't need an optical drive, you should be able to afford a mobo upgrade to a socket AM3+ board that will support Bulldozer. That build has a HD6870 in it, and stepping back to a HD6850 will provide money either for a nicer case or for a larger PSU able to handle the second HD6850 later.

I did do that. I have a SLI certified PSU, the mobo is AM3+ and the 6850 is only 20 bucks less than 6870.

 

[samuelspark]

Your better of with the phenom ii x4 955. All you have to do is increase its multiplier and you will get a 965. This save you money to buy other components. Last time I checked newegg had a deal on the 955 for 105 dollars, its usually 120. Do they have the combo with a 955 at microcenter?

The $40 off is only with a 965 minimum and 965 is $120 at microcenter. But thanks.

 

[Outlander_04]

I am using 1.65v RAM with an AMD processor just fine, as well as a friend with the PII 965BE, actually my friend is using the other half of the 8GB I bought for my system(4x2gb)

And if anything the 1.5v stuff would be better for the i5/i7 with their MAX voltage being 1.65v

Edit:

I should also say that it appears that Microcenter is out of most AM3 CPUs, with stock being limited to what is available in local stores. If you have one near you, you should check to see if it's in stock on their website.

1.65 volt is fine for a phenom
but the memory controller on Bulldozer is rated for lower voltages.

Maybe they can take more voltage , and maybe they cant so anyone planning a cpu upgrade would be smart to buy 1.5 volt


I second the idea of using a 970 series chipset board like the Asrock thats been mentioned , even though it looks like the board the OP has chosen is AM3+

 

[samuelspark]

Wait so BD won't support 1.65v?

 

[FinneousPJ]

I'm under the impression you will not get full AM3+ features with an 8-series chipset.

 

[Outlander_04]

Wait so BD won't support 1.65v?

all the 970 and 990 chip set motherboards have memory slots rated at 1.5 volt .

The memory controller is on the cpu , the cpu is lower voltage than phenom
and just like sandy bridge the idea of running part of the cpu at 1.65 volt is risky ..... maybe fatal

Yeah , I know people are doing it to SB and they say its fine . But will it be fine next week? Or next month ?

 

[buzznut]

I'm under the impression you will not get full AM3+ features with an 8-series chipset.

This is true, I wouldn't go with an 800 series chipset. If you already had one then fine, drop in the BD chip but since this is a new build-no reason to not go with 900 series. I think the HT link is faster with BD.

 

[buzznut]

regarding the memory, BD is supposed to run fastest with DDR3 1866. I would check into that, even though its sure to be pricier.

 

[samuelspark]

9XX chipsets won't support 1.65v RAM? But Phenom does?

 

[Outlander_04]

9XX chipsets won't support 1.65v RAM? But Phenom does?

nothing to do with the chip set .

The memory controller is on the cpu . Its on phenom and its on bulldozer

Put a phenom in an AM3+ mb with 1.5 volt RAM slots and BIOS will give it more juice
Put a BD in an AM3+ board with 1.65 volt RAM and either the BIOS will overvolt the RAM to 1.65 volt which puts stress on the memory controller on the CPU , or its going to try and run it at 1.5 volt meaning you will have to slacken timings and maybe drop speed to get it to run .

If you are building with the intention of upgrading to BD anyone with an actual brain
will use a 9xx series chipset mb , and 1.5 volt RAM

 

[samuelspark]

It's not in my budget though.

 

[iam2thecrowe]

why cant you just wait a week and a half and bulldozer will be here??? If it turns out to be a flop (which it looks like it will, at least for gaming) then at least it will force the price of the old phenom chips down as they try to clear out stock.

 

[RetiredChief]

Not sure about BD, but for SB Intels spec is for a max Ram voltage of 1.575 and as other stated it is becuse of the memory controller. Granted I'm am using 1.60 for my I5-2500k - But that is because I already had it ant is only .025 above specs.

Therefore I recommend the 1.5V Dram.

as to speed, I know that the SB builds will handle above 1600, But there is little practical advantage foing above 1600 (the sweet spot for SB). In fact there was very little performance gain going from 1333 -> 1600. How much of that applies to BD, NOT sure.

 

[samuelspark]

No one said BD was coming out in a week and a half. There are no official dates. But if they do come out by the end of the month, I can probably get a 970 mobo with phenom ii price drops.

 

[Outlander_04]

No one said BD was coming out in a week and a half. There are no official dates. But if they do come out by the end of the month, I can probably get a 970 mobo with phenom ii price drops.

AMD are already shipping BD server chips and have been for about a month . There is a good chance that retail BD will be available on Monday next week .
I notice things have gone very quiet on date speculation recently. That could mean that everyone on the tech sites KNOWS but there is an embargo on publication till launch .

As for retiredchief's speculation that gaming performance is bad ...well he should make sure hes reading benchmarks that arent just made up by people seeking attention on the web . There are a couple of those .

There are no benchmarks yet .

The cheapest mb that can crossfire is the Asrock 970 gen 4 . It runs its slots at 8x/8x [ the same as sandybridge does] but its a decent product and a very good price . I'd wait till monday .

 

[samuelspark]

If I waited til Black Friday, could I get better components for the same price then?

 

[samuelspark]

Is the Asus M5A97 good? It's the only 970 mobo on microcenter. http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0366622

 

[Outlander_04]

Is the Asus M5A97 good? It's the only 970 mobo on microcenter. http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0366622

That is the best single graphics card AM3+ motherboard IMO
Its the M5A97 evo
I am getting one for my new computer when BD is confirmed
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/ASUS/M5A97_EVO/

There is another cheaper version called the M5A97 that is out of stock on newegg that sells for about $20 less . The major difference that most people would notice is that the cheaper version does not have ports for front USB 3

 

[RetiredChief]

Outlander_04 Please read my post again I made NO claim what so ever in regards to BD's performance, My comment only dealt with memory speed as it pertains to performance specifically to SandyBridge and then I said "How much of that applies to BD, NOT sure"

I have absolutely no Idea as to BD's performance, so please do not stick my foot in my mouth!!