So there's this comp that I've been wanting for a while now. This comp would be dual purpose. One for gaming and another for photo editing. With that being said, I'm looking to have a system built but I'm still not sure what sort of cpu I should grab. I was considering either of the hex cpus but I'm open to suggestions. I am semi wanting to go "future proof" but as long as it will run great for two years or more.. I'm game. ~Drag. Thanks in advance!
I think what you really should be looking at is a quad core with muti drives the master being SSD or both SSD and packing around 6gigs of RAM. I'll help you out just let me know what you do, what kind of games you want played, ect, ect and I can help you make something quality A 2-year computer is easy to build exactly around what you want to do with it that is why I ask. The more specific you are about it the more money you can save.
Thanks in advance for the replies.. well ultimately, the games that I have been known to play (albeit on and off atm) are RF Online and Star Trek Online.. at least those are the ones that I have played. I've also dabbled with Bad Company 2 and I am EAGER to start playing Starcraft 2 and Diablo 3 when they come out. Truth be told, I don't mind saving up the cash to get a monster system. BUT I'm starting to feel that this whole hex core stuff is really just because it just came out. From what I've heard, even with the programs out right now, even a quad core is enough. I'm pretty much sold with going with a retailer in Cali that is somewhat near me. The reason for this is that I've been burned by "friends" a few times too many and basically this is the reason that I'm running my comp on my laptop cause my desktop friend in January. The site I'm looking at is cyberpowerpc.com. Seems a good place. I'm actually sold on getting an SSD at the moment, I was actually considering get the black duet external hard drive system as well so I can have more hard drive space for my.. uh... movies.. (Disney movies of course.. ^^) Also was looking at getting a single 5970 because I feel that it's a great card albeit expensive currently. This site also has a promotion where if I get a 960, I get upgraded to a 975 for free.. BUT... if that's too much, please let me know. Thanks a lot for this.. I mean it. And apologies for the wall o text.. I'm a bit wordy. ~Drag.
I don't know much of anything about SSD really, but I know that the 5970, heck even the 5850 (which I'm eyeing currently) will do just fine, especially for a single card right now. What did you mean by the 960 and 975? If you can, search around for some bare bones kits to get you started. I did that with my first 2 builds and it worked out decently. Buying retailer isn't always a bad thing, just gotta be careful and make sure you analyze the specs, which I'm pretty sure you would do anyway ;] Vhex, Van, and a few others will help out I'm sure, and I'll try to do what I can to help.
Thanks secks... the 960 and the 975 comment is from cyberpowerpc.com. They have a promotion where if you get the 960, it'll automatically be upgraded to a 975 (which is what I was looking at initially before the hex came out) ~Drag.
Oh cool, gotcha. Unfortunately I do not think I can check their website here at work. Will check it out tonight when I get home. Hopefully ;]
Something like this? Kinda bored and was playing around on the site up to you what you like and don't like. OH and btw I diden't even look at the case since that is totally up to you. And also btw I was looking totally at the promotion deal and working from there. Started with a base CyberPower Gamer Infinity 8800 Pro SE (free upgrade deal) AND came out with.... •CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-975 Extreme Edition 3.33 GHz 8M Intel Smart Cache LGA1366 •HDD: * 30 GB Kingston 2.5 inch SATA Gaming MLC Solid State Disk [+18] (Single Hard Drive) •MOTHERBOARD: * Asus P6T SE Intel X58 Chipset CrossFireX Mainboard Triple-Channel DDR3/1600 SATA RAID w/ eSATA [+12] •MEMORY: 6GB (2GBx3) DDR3/1600MHz Triple Channel Memory Module (Corsair or Major Brand) •SOUND: Creative Labs SB Audigy SE [+30] •VIDEO: ATI Radeon HD 5850 1GB GDDR5 16X PCIe Video Card [DirectX 11 Support] [-60] (Major Brand Powered by ATI) Total: $1,658.00 (Idk mail in rebate? Some parts came with it and I think they are doing Free shipping now too) FREE AVATAR GAME WITH IT WOOOHOOHH (I'll admit I still never watched the movie)!!! Also not sure if comp noise bothers you but there is options to deaden the noise as well but I really would not worry about it (if you decide you want to go with the quiet and strong fan Thermaltake > venom IMO . No Monitor /w Windows 7 Ultimate /w keyboard/mouse (not overclocked) Also traded the watercooling for installed fan cooling. Also added a SC but that is because I've never used P6T onboard Sogetsu might know more about that. Also the OS is complety your descresion. Of course it would be an overkill on any game you want to play on it and be able to use it for your Disney movies without worries.
Even though I love music and play a lot of instruments - I've always used on-board sound and its fine. Plus, most sound cards have smack dab in the middle or run right next to your cards (if you SLI or Xfire). Might be able to omit that if you don't really need it.
At least as far as "starting points" go, this is great! I chose the same system.. but was considering upgrading the vid card to a single 5970, the asus premium mobo and was actually considering going with 12 gigs. Then I saw the phenomII as a hex cpu and I kinda wondered if I should go that route, pick up 8 gigs of ram. I am planning on getting another monitor.. prolly a 24 inch. They're close by and I could pick up the comp if I wanted to and that's one of the deciding factors of me going with this company. ~Drag. Thanks again for the help! Much appreciated.
I'd say stick with quad because it will be some time before the use of multi threading is really advanced enough to make use of 6 cores. 6-8 gigs is all very considerable but remember if your looking for speed out of it the RAM speed is what speeds your memory not how much RAM you actually have. The one I choose was 1600 again your choice I know the P6T can support 1800. Getting that card is fine but having an SSD will give you flexibility with it as well don't feel like you HAVE to get a 5970 to have top performance.
thanks much! I think I'm too easily "oohed and ahhhed" as far as all this tech. Now as far as the cooler, what would you recommend? Air cooling that is.. ~Drag.
Air cooling is fine. If you go with the on board SC you should be able to pick up a Thermaltake SpinQ Gaming CPU Cooling Fan and you will be good with that for anything you get or got and will let you OC if you decide you want to do it yourself. For the rest stick with the normal stock case fans and you'll be alright.
I made a thread about after market coolers in the Tech forums, should be a few posts down the list. I got a CM 212+ because most reviews I read and graphs I reviewed had the best bang for MY buck (although if you want to spend a lot, there are others I and other Xoobies mentioned in my thread). Check that out first. Another thing is, most x58 I have been interested in use triple channel kits. Now, I guess you could use 8g kit and use the last 2g stick in the next appropriate slot, but I've read that there have been certain issues if you do this. Second, You don't really need 12gig unless you are making videos or SUPER multitasking. I use a 6gig triple channel (obviously) kit and it is just fine for me. No need in getting TWICE that amount (unless, again, you are into video editing and what-not, but even then I think 12gig is a little bit overkill), plus you "technically" have more probability of getting bad RAM (even though that's with anything). Edit: Thread here: http://www.xoohq.com/forums/showthread.php?t=15242 Aftermarket CPU Cooler Heatsink/Fan Suggestions Good luck.
woo! thanks a lot for the info! At first glance, ya'll have saved me at least 600 bucks. Too bad that ya'll are far.. else I'd take ya out. Still have a month or so before I have enough to make a rig.. maybe even two if I wanna get everything at one time but the help is appreciated. ~Drag.
What are you doing with the rig you have currently? I ask this because, you seem to come off as someone that has little/no experience with building a PC in the past, and would suggest that for fun, when you do order or before you order your new box; try taking apart and rebuilding your current rig. Then try your hand at overclocking it (if you're using stock fans obviously be very careful) just to get a bit of exp under your belt. When you have a rig that you don't need it is quite a bit of fun to see how far you can push it and maintain stability or in my case see how far you can push it before it pops. If you'd like some help or tips on disassembling/reassembling I'd be more than happy to help.
My current rig is dead. I am using my laptop atm while at home but you are correct that I am an utter nub when it comes to building pcs. ~Drag.
hmm... I thought I replied. Anyway.. the mobo is bad, the vid card started to overheat and I really should have just gotten a pc. Note to self: NEVER buy a dell in any form :/ ~Drag.