Good build for game design

[realdrx]

I'm going in to game design. So I will need to run game engines which my dinosaur of a PC wont handle.(2003 dell) I would like to keep it under $2,000. I'm not to interested in OC because I would like this new one to last another 7 years. So what would you guys sagest?

 

[realdrx]

After going thought the build guides this is what I came up with
Cpu:Intel Core i7-860 $289.99
MOBO:ASUS P7P55D-E Pro
HSF:COOLER MASTER Hyper 212
RAM: (2) G.SKILL ECO Series 4GB
HDD:Hitachi deskstar 2tb
PSU:CORSAIR CMPSU-850TX
GPU:XFX HD-587X-ZNFC Radeon
Cases:COOLER MASTER HAF 932 RC
Monitor:ASUS VW246H Glossy Black 24"

This is a stupid Question but its a lot of money not to ask. The GPU will run with only one monitor hooked up right?

 

[shovenose]

you can run 1 monitor at a time of course! thats what many/most people do. if you arent going to oc, i guess you would use the stock cooler, even though its a little noisier than the cooler master (which afaik is a great one btw).
i would recommend either a WD or a SAMSUNG hard drive.

 

[beerhelmet]

I would suggest reading the sticky section "how to ask for a new build" and filling it out and then posting it here, as it will give us most if not all the necessary information to be able to provide you with sound advice.

Don't take this the wrong way, people want to help, it is just a huge pain when we're trying to help but don't have all the pieces for the puzzle.

 

[realdrx]

I read all that section but that part. I don't know how I missed it. here goes:

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: next couple of months(A.K.A when my student loans come thought)
BUDGET RANGE: Under 2,000

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Running game engines such as Unreal and simulators. Run 3D generators. Gaming, Downloading.

PARTS NOT REQUIRED:keyboard, mouse
I have a RAIDMAX VOLCANO RX-630A 630W PSU (If I can use it cool. If not no big deal. Just means I don't have to put the old psu back in this machine)

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: Doesn't mater, were ever the best deal is.

OVERCLOCKING:No / Maybe, SLI OR CROSSFIRE:Maybe

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1920x1080 ASUS VW246H

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Don't want to have to update for a long time.

 

[shovenose]

that raidmax is a terrible psu. along with coolmax, deer, and most rosewill units.

this was a raidmax (someone figured that out at some point)
http://www.corsair.com/cinema/movie.aspx?id=622747

 

[realdrx]

It was the only one that the screw holes kinda matched up to this piece of crap dell case(at lest at fyes were I bought it) Its been in my pc for 3-4 years now

 

[shovenose]

meh yes i actually do use crappy psus- and it hasnt ruined any of my computers yet!

 

[realdrx]

I would defiantly get a good PSU sense I will be putting this much money in to it.

 

[realdrx]

Why dose the Bord have PS/2 ports I thought those became extinct and all was USB? USB mouse and keyboard will work with this right?

 

[shovenose]

yes usb will work-well some boards keep them for backwards compatibility. for examplse i still use a ps2 mouse and keyboard. the only advantage to usb kbd/mouse is that you can press more keys at once and theyre "hot-swappable" if u know w i mean

 

[realdrx]

will windows 7 Professional 64 bit run well on this set up?

 

[batuchka]

After going thought the build guides this is what I came up with
Cpu:Intel Core i7-860 $289.99
MOBO:ASUS P7P55D-E Pro
HSF:COOLER MASTER Hyper 212
RAM: (2) G.SKILL ECO Series 4GB
HDD:Hitachi deskstar 2tb
PSU:CORSAIR CMPSU-850TX
GPU:XFX HD-587X-ZNFC Radeon
Cases:COOLER MASTER HAF 932 RC
Monitor:ASUS VW246H Glossy Black 24"

This is a stupid Question but its a lot of money not to ask. The GPU will run with only one monitor hooked up right?

1. HT does not help in games FYI
2. 4GB RAM for this sort of rig would so
3. A few things u should know about SATA/USB 3.0 tech and mobos as shown by our very own forums here
USB 3.0, SATA 6Gb/s, Motherboards, And Overcoming Bottlenecks
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/usb-3.0-sata-6gb,2583.html
Also note that LGA 1156 shall be usurped by LGA 1155 as soon as end of this year/possible Q1 next year if u intending to sink a wee bit on chip + board FYI...
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cpus/2010/04/21/intel-sandy-bridge-details-of-the-next-gen/
4. P7P55D-E PRO is 8/8 for mult GPU and with Point #3 and if u willing to burn $2k are u sure it's worth it?

 

[Emperus]

I'm going in to game design. So I will need to run game engines which my dinosaur of a PC wont handle.(2003 dell) I would like to keep it under $2,000. I'm not to interested in OC because I would like this new one to last another 7 years. So what would you guys sagest?

Game designing has many aspects.. What you are quoting though relates to game programming.. You do not need a uber high end pc for that.. Have you tried with your old pc.? That will give you a fair bit of idea as to what you should be getting exactly..

 

[realdrx]

1. HT does not help in games FYI
2. 4GB RAM for this sort of rig would so
3. A few things u should know about SATA/USB 3.0 tech and mobos as shown by our very own forums here
USB 3.0, SATA 6Gb/s, Motherboards, And Overcoming Bottlenecks
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/usb-3.0-sata-6gb,2583.html
Also note that LGA 1156 shall be usurped by LGA 1155 as soon as end of this year/possible Q1 next year if u intending to sink a wee bit on chip + board FYI...
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cpus/2010/04/21/intel-sandy-bridge-details-of-the-next-gen/
4. P7P55D-E PRO is 8/8 for mult GPU and with Point #3 and if u willing to burn $2k are u sure it's worth it?

I'm not to worried about upgraded ability, seeing as this will be my 2nd PC in 7 years, and before that it was 4 years.
I wont be using 2 GPU but it is bad that it drops to 8/8 just in case I do by a second GPU some time.
Is there a different board that you would suggest in the same price rang? I'm just going with one of the suggested builds from the sticky at the top. More as the starting point then anything else, because a lots changed in the 7 years.
What did you mean by HT?

this is what I could find for system requirements for unreal engine
* Windows Vista 64-bit SP2 or Windows 7 64-bit
* 2.0+ GHz multi-core processor
* 8 GB System RAM
* NVIDIA 8000 series or higher graphics card
* Plenty of HDD space
Emperus
on my pc right now I have 1g ram and an on bored gpu. So my pc wont even think about opening this. I want an uber high end(max $2,000) because I don't want to have to update any time soon

 

[Emperus]

It seems like you are through with your research.. From the list, as provided by you, of the requirements for unreal engine, we can draw few conclusions as -

1. 8 GB RAM is minimum requirement so it might as well help you to get double the amount of keep the system responsive for other tasks.. Since 16 gigs is the maximum an AM3 and a LGA 1156 system can accomodate, your only route is to get your rig built on a LGA 1366 platform..

2. Intel is supposed to drop prices massively by august so better wait till then.. You may get all the other components now except the CPU..

3. Getting a Nvidia card seems a more sensible option.. The GTX 460 is very sweetly priced.. Your budget anyway would allow you to get a GTX 480 also (depends on the kind of games you wish to play)..

 

[batuchka]

I'm not to worried about upgraded ability, seeing as this will be my 2nd PC in 7 years, and before that it was 4 years.
I wont be using 2 GPU but it is bad that it drops to 8/8 just in case I do by a second GPU some time.
Is there a different board that you would suggest in the same price rang? I'm just going with one of the suggested builds from the sticky at the top. More as the starting point then anything else, because a lots changed in the 7 years.
What did you mean by HT?

this is what I could find for system requirements for unreal engine
* Windows Vista 64-bit SP2 or Windows 7 64-bit
* 2.0+ GHz multi-core processor
* 8 GB System RAM
* NVIDIA 8000 series or higher graphics card
* Plenty of HDD space

HT = Hyper Threading
http://www.udk.com/documentation

Minimum:

Windows XP SP2 or Windows Vista
2.0+ GHz processor
2 GB system RAM
SM3-compatible video card
3 GB free hard drive space


Recommended for Content Development:

Windows Vista 64 SP2
2.0+ GHz multi-core processor
8 GB System RAM
NVIDIA 8000 series or higher graphics card
Plenty of HDD space

I would go 4GB still ..or if u worried about DIMM slots getting full hit a 4GB (single) DDR3 RAM module as these have dramatically become just as cheap as 2 x 2 @@
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231310

Like the previous poster:

$$ no object : LGA 1366/Nehalem
alternative: 890FX or 870 (no CF/SLI needed)/Deneb or Thuban

 

[realdrx]

Why Nvidia over ati? With the ati it has a full sized hdmi not mini. I mostly play shooters or if not rpgs.

 

[Emperus]

Why Nvidia over ati? With the ati it has a full sized hdmi not mini. I mostly play shooters or if not rpgs.

No compelling reasons.. Its just that i find Nvidia cards better with productivity apps compared to ATI.. In terms of gaming, both are equally matched though..

 

[realdrx]

Should I get the i7 860 or 870? there the same price dose it really make a difference?

 

[Emperus]

Get the cheaper model.. There is no difference between the two except a minor clock bump on the i7 870.. If you would like to overclock, then consider getting the i7 875k..

 

[realdrx]

PhysX wont work on radeon? Unreal game engine uses physx so I might need to rethink my gpu or get a PhysX card. If so what card would you sujest thats in the price range.

 

[Emperus]

A single card dedicated for physx is not a wise investment IMO.. Unless of course one already has an ATI card and offer to add physx support also.. You however are building a new rig so might as well go for an Nvidia card.. May be you can put a couple of GTX 460's in SLI.. You get performance almost equal to GTX480/HD5970, physx and may be you can study SLI effects in games also.. For a single card setup, get a GTX 470..

 

[realdrx]

Didn't want to SLI because it drops to an 8x8 in less I find another mobo. Is the 470 equal to to the radeon 5870. because I can pick up a physx card for $22. instead if the 480 is equal.

 

[Emperus]

X8-X8 setup is not a big bottleneck.. But anyways, a 470 will perform equal to the 5870 in most cases.. The GTX 480 will perform better but at considerably higher power draw and heat levels.. I'll personally suggest getting a single GTX 470..