I7 build ~$1000, to be ordered by Friday (5/1/09)

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Kyle B

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Oct 12, 2008
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Here is the current build:


Antec Sonata Designer 500 Silver Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 500W Power Supply

$139.99

1 RAIDMAX SMILODON ATX-612WBP Black 1.0mm SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Foldout MB Computer Case With 500W Power Supply
$89.99


I haven't decided on which case/power supply combo to use, any opinions?





1 DFI LANPARTY JR X58-T3H6 LGA 1366 Intel X58 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard

$219.99



1 EVGA 512-P3-N863-TR GeForce 9600 GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card

$104.99


1 Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80601920

$279.99


1 Rosewill RCR-102 52-in-1 USB 2.0 3.5" Internal Card Reader w/ USB port

$16.99


1 G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL9T-6GBNQ

$79.99

Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Hard Drive

$74.99


1 Acer X223Wbd Black 22" 5ms Widescreen LCD Monitor

$159.99


1 LG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model GH22LS30

$25.99

Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit for System Builders

$99.99



Subtotal: $1,292.89 - the cost of one of the cases


.
Price is important, and I'd like to keep it as low as possible, about $1200 is the limit. Preferably closer to $1000 The build must include the OS and monitor.
 
Is this build for gaming? If it is, you are doing yourself a big disservice by going with an i7 on this budget. Crippling your GPU power to squeeze in a top-end processor is not a good idea. If you're a gamer, let us know and we can help you reorganize this build.

I would go with neither of those case/PSU combos. The PSU is the most important component in protecting your new build, and it is NOT something you want to skimp on. If you're looking to save some money, you can look at some standalone case deals and buying a quality PSU from corsair, antec etc.

Your GPU is outdated and really not a good use of money unless this is a pure encoding/editing machine. It's hard to advise further without some more info.
 


I disagree, but to each his own. Having a budget under a MINIMUM of $1500 will produce bottlenecks in an i7 system that will throttle the entire PC.
 
Running a 4850 + cheap 1333mhz ocz ram(3x2gb), a 640gb wd hdd, possibly a asus p6t, rc-690 casing, heatsink(stock or aftermarket wouldnt matter) and a lg 22x optical drive on a i7 920.

whats bottle necking?

as long as the gpu is upgraded down the road, the build would be just fine.
 
Sure, that would be great...but fit that in with a monitor and OS and you're going to struggle keeping it below $1200. Also, if you're looking to OC the i7 past 3.4, the RAM is going to stop you.

The 4850 will struggle with the latest games at high settings. Again, if gaming is not the OP's primary use for this PC, then maybe I could see your build Fullmetall.
 
That's one thing i didn't even notice, needing os and monitor.

It would come out to be around $1400 with a 22"

@ OP best thing for you to do since your buying monitor and OS aswell is go x4 940 AMD or raise your budget.

 
The computer will not be used for gaming at all. It will be used for photoshop 90% of the time.

My reasoning for going with the i7 is future upgradability. I want the life span of the computer to be several years, so my thinking is that if I go with the i7 platform, I can easily upgrade the processor in a couple of years when new i7's have come out, whereupon if I go with a Core 2, I'm basically buying in at the end of it's lifespan, and in a couple of years there won't be much in the way of upgrading the processor.

I can always add more ram later, and upgrade the GPU at a later date. I chose the GPU based on price, and a list of GPU's that go well with photoshop on Adobe's website. But if there are better ones that could fit into the budget, I'm all ears.

I will not be OC'ing the processor.

I'm perfectly fine using a TN panel monitor for photoshop, again if I choose to upgrade it later, that can be easily done. I've been using a plane jane laptop screen for the past 4 years with no problems.

I do want reliability obviously, so do ya'll have suggestions for relativly inexpensive psu's that could power this system? There will of course be no need for SLI or crossfire at any time.

-Kyle
 
x4 940 is what you need then, i7 would be way to much.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136152
lg 22x

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319
wd black 640gb

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137
RC-690

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236052
Asus 23.6"

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102801
4870 1gb sapphire, could lower it to a 4850 if needed, dont need much of a card.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005
650tx, lower if needed, 500w Pc power cooling mabye or 520w corsair.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231166
g.skills 1066

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116488
vista 64-bit

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.182239
x4 940 + UD4P combo

comes out to be $1130 without the rebates.

lowering the things i pointed out would bring you in the 1000 range.



 
How much of a performance loss am I looking at by switching to the AMD system? A lot? None? What about upgradability? (i.e. which system am I going to wish I had 2 years from now?)
 
Doing what your doing, you wont lose anything switching. Both i7 and amd x4 940 chips are future proofing.

The reason the cpu is am3 and the motherboard is am2+ is to help customers on budgets. The cpu is compatable to run on am2+ motherboards and cheap ddr2 memory.

You can upgrade to am3 motherboard and ddr3 memory later on and keep everything else.

 



AMD X4 940 is not AM3... its AM2+, if he goes with X4 940, its same thing as going with LGA 775. No way to upgrade in future.
 
hmm, it could be possible lowering the monitor to a 22" for $160. Acer has a nice 22" for that range in price

then get this

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128378
ud4p am3 $139.99


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227293
ocz hpc reapers DDR3 1333

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146868
Mushkin DDR3 1333


@ peanut i got confused wth the triple core and quad, my bad.

X out the full AM3 quad, guess getting the 955 is the only way your getting a quad to get full potential on am3 unless you get the triple core, which i dont see why not.







 
Ok, I just put together a build using the AM3 MB, and an 810 cpu, the ATI 4850, and a 22" monitor, it comes to $1072

I could upgrade to the 955, and the 4870, and still be under 1200. Would it be worth it to make those two upgrades?
 
If its your liking and its under your Budget, i dont see why not, the 955 is a sploof for what they did to it but, it is a am3 quad instead of am2+ quad.

Basically, if you dont mind getting a full am3 build and you would like a quad and it's reaching your budget, then go ahead otherwise, you can get other good components on a triple core thats only $130 and is AM3 socket type aswell.
 
Well DXrick, if you would like to build a descent i7920 build with a $200+ monitor and a $100 OS go ahead.

What i got out of a descent i7 and those 2 was $1400 otherwise, it would be a really low end i7 with a triple channel 1gb each channel only on a 4770/4830 and other low end components ... the x3 720 am3 can do just fine, yea its mainly for gaming but, doesnt mean it can't do anything else.
 
Ok, I switched to a cheaper cooler master case (39.99), and a cheaper (smaller, I don't need a lot of space right now) hard drive, changed the processor to a phenom II X3 720, and the HD4870 gpu.

My total comes to $1007.90, which sounds pretty good.

If I keep everything else the same, but change to an X58 mb, a i7 920, and a g.skill 6GB kit, the total comes to $1261.90


I'd obviously like to save the ~$250, but the i7 certainly outperforms the phenom in all of the photoshop test I've read.

Now it's just decision time I guess....
 
 
Well you could get a better components...

CPU + Mobo
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.181245

RAM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231247

Hdd + OS Combo 640GB WD Black
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.186064

CASE - Better than the CM- Antec 300 and has free shipping too...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129042

PSU - Same 650W power but little cheaper...Though this is not recommended over the Corsair but it is also on of the Top PSUs...Antec EA650
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371015

DVD - Same
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136152

Graphics card - Well how about a GTX 260...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130434

Monitor - Same...

Total - $1281 without rebates and many items have free shipping...
 



Whoah!!!

Why are you letting people talk you into buying a HD 4850 / 4870 if you are not gaming?

Keep the 9600GT you originally planned on getting or drop down to a HD 4670 if there is a cost savings. Both are considered mainstream video cards and are capable of handling Photoshop.
 
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