Thoughts on this system?

[dragonbeat]

Hey folks,

I've been doing lots of research in trying to customize my own PC. It's been like 5 years since I last upgraded my PC. I'm currently running an AMD Mobile 3400+, Abit NF7-S, 2 GB DDR PC3200 Corsair XMS, 250 GB Samsung, Antec Sonata, Antec TruePower 450 W. Yea, I know its like ancient and outdated. I was waiting for the release of the Phenom II AM3 socket before I decided to go for the much needed upgrade. Since i'm gonna be giving away my old PC to a family friend, i decided to get a new PC that would last me for quite some time. Since I'm graduating from college and I have some money saved up for quite a while (over 5 years since my last PC build lol), I decided to go for a great system. What do you guys think of my current PC setup? i'm going for the 1 TB storage because i record some videos for family functions, do some photoshop editing on the side. I was looking on Newegg to try to get as many good deals/discounts as possible when putting together this PC.

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APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Within the next week

BUDGET RANGE: $950-$1200

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, surfing the internet, watching movies, multi-tasking

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Keyboard, Mice (gonna reuse my Logitech Desktop Keyboard+mouse), Speakers, Monitor (got a recent SAMSUNG Toc T220HD Rose Black 22 off Newegg), DVD Drive (Got an old Samsung DVD-RW drive lying around), OS (thinking of going Windows 7 64 bit beta here)

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: newegg.com (generally get stuff from there)

PARTS PREFERENCES: AMD Phenom II AM3 socket, 4 GB DDR3 RAM, Antec for cases/PSU, Corsair generally for RAM

OVERCLOCKING: Yes

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Maybe

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1680x1050

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Would like a good sturdy system that will last me for quite a while (lookin to keep the PC for roughly 4-5 years and would like it to be stable, don't mind the noise as long as it isn't SUPER loud that I could hear in my sleep (i don't plan on leaving the PC on 24/7 like my other PC))

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List of Parts I'm considering:

CPU:
AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor Model HDZ955FBGIBOX - Retail

RAM:
CORSAIR XMS3 DHX 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TW3X4G1600C9DHX - Retail

Original Price: $342.00
Discount: -$50.00, $10 mail-in rebate
Combo Price + rebate: $282.00

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.192694



Motherboard:
GIGABYTE GA-MA790XT-UD4P AM3 DDR3 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail

Original Price: $139.99
Rebate: $15 mail-in
Final Price: $129.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128378


Heatsink for CPU:
Sunbeam CR-CCTF 120 mm Core-Contact Freezer CPU Cooler W/TX-2 - Retail


Original Price: $39.99
Rebate: $25 mail-in
Final Price: $14.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835207004


Hard Drive:
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F1 HD102UJ 1TB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM

Price: $79.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152101

Case:
Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

Power Supply:
Antec TruePower New TP-750 Blue 750W Continuous Power ATX12V V2.3 / EPS12V V2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE ... - Retail

Original price: $239.94
Discount: -$40.00
Combo Price: $199.94

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.193715


Video Card:
HIS Hightech H487QT1GP Radeon HD 4870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported IceQ 4+ Turbo Video Card - Retail


Original price: $259.99
Rebate: $20 mail in
Final price: $239.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161265

Internal Floppy/Memory Card Reader:
SABRENT CRW-FLP2 All-in-one USB 2.0 Floppy Drive and 68in1 Internal Memory Card Reader & Writer - SDHC/VISTA - Retail

Original price: $22.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820300009


Initial Total Cost: $1,034.89
Tax $95.73
UPS 3 DAYS $30.65
Order Total $1,161.27

After rebates: ($70 worth)
$1091.27

About the OS, I was wondering if I could just use Windows 7 beta release 64 bit?

-Thanks guys!!!
DragonBeat

 

[Outlander_04]

Looks good to me .

If theres anything I'd improve it would be to either use a single 4890 video card or a pair of 4770's in crossfire . Either is over kill right now , but in the next few years will probably pay off at your resolution .
IMO its not a good plan to think you will crossfire the 4870 in a few years since their will be no 4870's by then .....

 

[Cpt Deadboots]

I'd also get the Phenom II x4 940 over the 955 - it'll clock just as high, and costs a good deal less.

 

[Cpt Deadboots]

On second thought, the 955/memory is a great combo deal. I'd only change your motherboard to a 790FX and the video card to a cheaper 4870.

 

[Outlander_04]

I'd also get the Phenom II x4 940 over the 955 - it'll clock just as high, and costs a good deal less.

the 940 is an AM2+ processor and needs an AM2+ mb . It is not compatible with am3 systems with DDR3

BUT

the 945BE is a 3.0 GHz AM3 cpu and better value than the 955 for the reasons you mention

 

[dragonbeat]

Thanks for the responses guys! Does the 945 come in a BE? I got the 955 cuz the combo w/ the Corsair memory was $50 off and the corsair memory has a $10 rebate for a total of $60 off. I thought the savings on the combo alone justified getting a 955BE over the 945 (its only a $20 difference).

what would be a suitable replacement video card? (im not that familar w/ video cards)

Thanks!

 

[yoyojam55]

For the price your paying on the 4870 (about $50 too much) you could get a pair of these 4850s for cheaper that will destroy it. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102824

 

[Outlander_04]

For the price your paying on the 4870 (about $50 too much) you could get a pair of these 4850s for cheaper that will destroy it. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102824

good point

4890's are cheaper than that too , and the performance is also higher

or 2 x 4770's in crossfire [ rather than the 4850's ]

 

[dragonbeat]

would it be better to crossfire 2 low end cards or to just get 1 great video card.

2 x 4770/4850s vs. 1 4890

and if i do crossfire 2 cards do they have to be the exact type of card or does it jsut have to have the same chipset?

 

[yoyojam55]

They both have their advantages. Crossfiring 4850s will be faster than 1 4890, but if you just get one card then you can add another one later for even more performance. It's up to you.

 

[Outlander_04]

Theres an article in the section of this site about gfx cards . They crossfire two 4770's andcompare to a 4890 .
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-4770-crossfire,2288.html

The 4770 is preferred to the 4850 IMO . The chip is burned in a finer process and it uses less power and performs just as well

 

[dragonbeat]

Thanks for the help guys!

I was looking for some 4770s but they're out of stock (i guess they must be very popular lol).

would this video card suffice for crossfire?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102822

thanks alot guys!

 

[Outlander_04]

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/4830-radeon-crossfire,2098.html

The 4770 is similar in specs to the 4830 , but the 4770 is a definite improvement .

 

[dragonbeat]

I decided to revamp the system... This is my updated list:

Motherboard:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131363
ASUS M4A79T Deluxe AM3 DDR3 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
Original Price: $199.99
You Save: $10.00
$189.99


CPU:
AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor Model HDZ955FBGIBOX - Retail

RAM:
CORSAIR XMS3 DHX 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TW3X4G1600C9DHX - Retail

Original Price: $342.00
Discount: -$50.00, $10 mail-in rebate
Combo Price + rebate: $282.00

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.192694

Heatsink for CPU:
Sunbeam CR-CCTF 120 mm Core-Contact Freezer CPU Cooler W/TX-2 - Retail


Original Price: $39.99
Rebate: $25 mail-in
Final Price: $14.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6835207004


Hard Drive:
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F1 HD102UJ 1TB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM

Price: $79.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822152101

Internal Floppy/Memory Card Reader:
SABRENT CRW-FLP2 All-in-one USB 2.0 Floppy Drive and 68in1 Internal Memory Card Reader & Writer - SDHC/VISTA - Retail

Original price: $22.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820300009

Video Card:
SAPPHIRE 100265HDMI Radeon HD 4830 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102822


Original Price: $99.99
You Save: $10.00
$89.99
($79.99 after $10.00 Mail-In
Rebate)

i'll prob get 2 and crossfire them)

Case + PSU:

Antec P182 Gun Metal Black 0.8mm cold rolled steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
Item #: N82E16811129025

Antec TruePower New TP-750 Blue 750W Continuous Power ATX12V V2.3 / EPS12V V2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE ... - Retail
Item #: N82E16817371022

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.193757

1. Antec P182: $144.99

2. Antec TP-750 Blue: $139.95

Combo Discount: -$40.00
Combo Price: $244.94


I just changed the case, mobo, and video cards.

total costs now:
$1,064.99 (newegg)
+ $106.98 (tigerdirect)
$1171.97

after savings/rebates

$1111.97

 

[dragonbeat]

i was thinking of getting 2 separate sapphire graphics cards (1 from newegg and 1 from tigerdirect) of the ati radeon hd 4830s...

Sapphire Radeon HD 4830 Video Card - 512MB GDDR3, PCI Express 2.0 x16
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102822

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4259630&SRCCODE=GOOGLEBASE&cm_mmc_o=VRqCjC7BBTkwCjCECjCE

only difference is that one has 2 DVI ports and the other has 1 DVI and 1 VGA. THese should work fine as a crossfire right?

 

[yoyojam55]

Two 4830s in Crossfire perform similar to 1 4870 512MB. It's just not worth it. Either bump up to Crossfired 4850 (or 4770s, if for some reason you want less performance for more money) or get a 4870 1GB. If you just get 1 4870 you can add another one in the future if you want, but CF'd 4850s will outperform it.

 

[dragonbeat]

yea i see where you're coming from. i decided to go w/ crossfired 4850s on newegg (it was only $15 more). Plus, it came w/ 2 hdmI cables which come in pretty handy.

i wish that there wasn't any CA taxes on Newegg... im paying my local state government over $100 in taxes -_-'.

 

[dragonbeat]

Thanks guys! I put together my order and sent it in on newegg.

$1127.67 total cost

but after $50 rebates it'll be $1077.67.

its a bummer w/ CA taxes -_-'.

 

[Cpt Deadboots]

Nice build, really. So sweet!

 

[x_2fast4u_x]

Did you buy it yet?

 

[dragonbeat]

yea. im waiting for it to ship. i can't wait to put this rig together. i'm gonna recycle some old hard drives (250 GB, 2x200 GB, 1x 120 GB) and my Samsung IDE 12xDvD-RW.

it should go nicely w/ the samsung td220HD. i love the 2 free HDMI cables that came w/ the order (will be nice to have cuz i plan on getting a ps3 down the line). im looking forward to the transition from 32bit to 64bit.

 

[dragonbeat]

good news guys! i just finished putting together this entire PC. im installing windows 7 right now! even tho its been 5 years since i last built a PC, the instructions were pretty straightforward . I'm loving the antec 900 case . the sunbeam core contact freezer is HUGE... i mean.. holy smokes that heat sink is taking a good chunk of my board space. its a bit tricky w/ the cable arrangement but im workin on tidying things up. will have pics soon

 

[dragonbeat]

Here are the images as promised:

Comp setup pics...

Side Views:

Diag tests:

Final specs for PC:

-AMD Phenom II 955 BE
-MSI 790FX-GD70
-8GB RAM (4 GB Patriot DDR 9-9-9-24 and 4 GB Corsair DDR 9-9-9-24)
- i originally got the corsair ram but the heatspread got in the way of mounting the 120mm fan for the sunbeam core contact cooler so i got the patriot ram which allowed room for the sunbeam heatsink
-Sapphire 4850 x 2 (xfire setup)
-500GB WD SATA, 250 GB Samsung SATA, 200 GB WD PATA100
-2 DVD+RW drives (i had em lying around)
-Antec 900 Case
-Antec 750 W blue LED PSU
-Windows 7 64bit OS

its been a solid PC so far. im loving it. havent had time yet but will test it w/ crysis soon

 

[dragonbeat]

here are some more pics of the inside of the build.