My First Build Looking for Advice

[Bamanen]

This is my first build and I just wanted to make sure I had everything covered, i have about 1200 to spend and was wondering. Here are specs. Im not ordering until October but still...

LITE-ON CD/DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model iHAS124-04 - OEM
Item #: N82E16827106289

Antec Three Hundred Illusion Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Item #: N82E16811129066

2 x Western Digital Caviar Blue WD3200AAKS 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

MSI 790X-G45 AM3 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard

2 x GIGABYTE GV-R577SO-1GD Radeon HD 5770 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card

CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 ...
Item #: N82E16817139005

A-DATA Gaming Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model AX3U1600GB2G9-2G
Item #: N82E16820211409

AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb 3.4GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor HDZ965FBGMBOX
Item #: N82E16819103727

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders - OEM
Item #: N82E16832116754


Cooler Master Intel Core i5 compatible Hyper TX3 Socket 775/1156/AMD 130W 92mm "heatpipe direct contact" CPU Cooler RR-910-HTX3-G1
Item #: N82E16835103064

All comes out to 1082$. Input plz

 

[MadAdmiral]

That's not a great gaming build. Here's a much better one:

CPU/Mobo: X4 955 and Gigabyte GA-790XTA-UD4 $285 after rebate (with free game). The 965 is an overclocked 955. You can do it yourself and save a good $20. The Gigaybte is a higher quality board.
GPU/PSU: HD 5870 and XFX 750W $440 after rebate. The 5870 will perform like the dual 5770, yet leave an upgrade path open. Also, not every game recognizes Crossfire.
RAM: G.Skill Eco 2x2 GB 1600 mhz CAS Latency 7 $105. Higher quality, faster sticks of RAM.
HDD: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1 TB $75. Faster drive. It's also bigger and cheaper.
Case/OS: Antec 900 and Windows 7 $170 after rebate
HSF: Sycthe SCMG-2100 $35. A much better cooler.
Optical: Cheap SATA DVD burner $18

Total: $1,128

 

[Bamanen]

If I was going to go one vid card, Don't you think it would be more wise to get GTX 460 1GB, Heard its better then 5870 and cheaper? BTW thx for input

 

[blindmanwithskill]

Uhm no. A GTX 460 in SLI is faster than the 5870 but not alone. Get a GTX 480. As for the CPU cooler get a Cooler Master Hyper 212+. Also I would recommend a better PSU like a Corsair.

 

[MadAdmiral]

blind's right. The 460 1 GB falls somewhere in between the 5830 and the 5850. It doesn't even get close to touching the 5870. Dual 460 do massive outclass a single 5870 though.

As for the 480, it's a horrible choice. It's expensive ($500), underperforming (it's like the 5870), runs extremely hot and uses a lot of power. The last two factors make it virtually inoperable in SLI.

As for the Hyper 212+, it's a good cooler. The Scythe one is better though.

Corsair PSUs are good, but Antec's are just as good. You can't go wrong with a unit from Antec, Corsair, SeaSonic, Silverstone or XFX.

 

[Bamanen]

I just want the most bang for my buck, im a college student, and dont want to upgrade until i graduate. So you guys think that the 1 5870 will beat two 5770's, i play MMo's, most of which support sli/crossfire?

 

[MadAdmiral]

No, the 5870 and dual 5770s will be basically the same. However, after 3-5 years, you could add a second 5870 for very little and get a massive performance boost. You'd be looking at spending a lot to replace the dual 5770s then.

I have no idea if the games you play support Crossfire. You'd have to look that up.

 

[CtrlAltDefeat]

I just want the most bang for my buck, im a college student, and dont want to upgrade until i graduate. So you guys think that the 1 5870 will beat two 5770's, i play MMo's, most of which support sli/crossfire?

Depending on your resolution, you could get 2 GTX 460 768MB in SLI, which would cost around the same as a 5870 but would be considerably more powerful. Most games support SLI (and indeed with the new GPUs it scales better than Crossfire), and if not you can manually create a profile for it.

Of course, then you'd need to switch to a decent SLI capable AMD mobo (one which can run x16/x16), like this combo with the X4 955:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.444798

Unless you feel comfortable with applying this trick with the mobo you selected and buying a cheap SLI bridge on ebay.

 

[MadAdmiral]

The problem with dual 460s is that you lose an upgrade path. It's not worth it to start a build with two GPUs because there simply isn't any where to go with it down the road.

Consider it this way. Buying two 460s now costs roughly $400 (which is a little more than a 5870 in a good combo, which usually is around $360). In 3-4 years, that will need to be upgrade, which would likely cost $400-500 and would likely be a 50% power increase. The total cost would be $800-900 over time.

If you bought a single 5870 ($360 as explained above), you could add a second 5870 in 3-4 years, which would likely only cost $150-200, probably less. You'd see a good 65-75% performance increase, possibly more depending on the drivers. The total cost would be $510-560.

It's likely that the ending performance would be about equal. However, going with the 5870 would save a lot of money.

 

[CtrlAltDefeat]

The problem with dual 460s is that you lose an upgrade path. It's not worth it to start a build with two GPUs because there simply isn't any where to go with it down the road.

Consider it this way. Buying two 460s now costs roughly $400 (which is a little more than a 5870 in a good combo, which usually is around $360). In 3-4 years, that will need to be upgrade, which would likely cost $400-500 and would likely be a 50% power increase. The total cost would be $800-900 over time.

If you bought a single 5870 ($360 as explained above), you could add a second 5870 in 3-4 years, which would likely only cost $150-200, probably less. You'd see a good 65-75% performance increase, possibly more depending on the drivers. The total cost would be $510-560.

It's likely that the ending performance would be about equal. However, going with the 5870 would save a lot of money.

Why not get nothing at all? Then you could wait 500 years and grab 100 quantum computers.

EDIT: not to mention the x8/x8 of the mobo would reduce the performance by a few %. And anyway, in 4 years I don't think it will be worth it to get another for Xfire. If someone was looking to upgrade an 8600GT today, would you recommend he grab another for SLI? I wouldn't...

 

[Bamanen]

As of know I have,

LITE-ON CD/DVD Burner - Bulk Black SATA Model iHAS124-04 - OEM

Antec Three Hundred Illusion Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Item #: N82E16811129066

SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Item #: N82E16822152185

MSI 790X-G45 AM3 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard
Item #: N82E16813130249

G.SKILL ECO Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL7D-4GBECO
Item #: N82E16820231321

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor HDZ955FBGMBOX
Item #: N82E16819103808

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders - OEM
Item #: N82E16832116754

Scythe SCMG-2100 Sleeve CPU Cooler
Item #: N82E16835185142

XFX HD-587X-ZNFV Radeon HD 5870 (Cypress XT) 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card
Item #: N82E16814150490

XFX Black Edition P1-750B-CAG9 750W ATX12V v2.2 / ESP12V v2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS SILVER Certified Modular ...
Item #: N82E16817207003

$1109.00

How is that lookin everyone, thoughts included plz. Also, will this gfx card and HS fit into the case, just want someone to check and make sure all the fans and cables are included, and if i can just order this cart and be good to go. Thx Forum members for all your help building this computer

 

[MadAdmiral]

I don't know for certain that the 5870 will fit, but I think it should. It will be tight though. I'd highly consider getting a slightly larger case (check out the Antec 900, Coolermaster 690 or HAF 922).

I'm not a fan of that board. It's MSI, so it's a bit lower quality. It's also not that great for future proofing as it doesn't have USB 3/SATA III support.

 

[Bamanen]

ill go with that Antec deal. Everthing i need cable wise, will be included? Also, think ill pick up a viel of artic silver. Plz let me know if i need to pick up additional case fans etc. Thx alot again for help Mad) youve doubled my comp specs for like 30$ lol

 

[MadAdmiral]

Everything you need is included.