about to pull the trigger on a new $3k+ system

[trenchfoot]

i'm going to set up a fairly fast system. i got zipzoomfly on another webpage with the shopping basket filled with the following:

cpu - intelQX6850 $1042
mobo - asus striker extreme nForce 680i 1333MHz $299
ram - corsair XMS2 4GB PC2-6400 $248
video card - evga GeForce 8800GTX 2 ea. $1000
PS - thermaltake W0131RU ToughPower 850W $242
OS - WINXP Pro 64 bit $140

will use existing coolermaster case, raptor HDD's, plex burners

before i pull the trigger on it, i'd very much like to hear your opinions on the setup.

thanx

 

[AVP]

I might consider a different psu, vista, shrug. looks good though. What kind of monitor are you powering? Also would not sli the 8800gtx, would get one and wait for the next batch of cards. Sweet setup though.

 

[gtsing]

Hahah. I don't know about you guys but to me that's complete overkill. I know you have 3k+ plus to spend but that doesn't mean spending 1000+ premium on a CPU just because it's the "best." You got to spend smart. Okay well I think you should get a Q6600, an EVGA 680i motherboard (ASUS is fine too I suppose), the RAM is a good choice, the two GTX's is a good choice (at least you didn't pick Ultra's...), and I think you should get a PC Power and Cooling 750 Quad for a power supply. It's SLI certified if that makes you feel better.

 

[nick1985]

Wanna paypal a poor kid some money?

 

[trenchfoot]

I might consider a different psu, vista, shrug. looks good though. What kind of monitor are you powering? Also would not sli the 8800gtx, would get one and wait for the next batch of cards. Sweet setup though.

avp, don't mind my asking as i haven't kept up with all the latest news in PC buildups - how's vista with the latest games compatibility-wise? also, i don't mind getting it, but i worry about how my other expensive programs, especially for photo-editing, slide show production etc. will shake hands with vista.

on the 8800gtx issue, yeah, i heard about the problems with the earliest batches, but i read that all the lemons got pulled out of the production pipeline so they all should be ok. not so?

i'm still in the dark ages on monitor - i use a sony f500. i've had it for ages and it keeps running and runnig without a hitch so i figured no use replacing what ain't broke.

Hahah. I don't know about you guys but to me that's complete overkill. I know you have 3k+ plus to spend but that doesn't mean spending 1000+ premium on a CPU just because it's the "best." You got to spend smart. Okay well I think you should get a Q6600, an EVGA 680i motherboard (ASUS is fine too I suppose), the RAM is a good choice, the two GTX's is a good choice (at least you didn't pick Ultra's...), and I think you should get a PC Power and Cooling 750 Quad for a power supply. It's SLI certified if that makes you feel better.

gtsing, well, i usually subscribe to the same philosophy you're describing, but i ran into some good fortune and i'm going to expense and depreciate this new rig for business purposes to help offset the "overkill" on it. but mostly, i always wanted to build a kind'a "money no object rig" and this is the first opportunity for me to do it without feeling the pain that usually comes with it.

on the PS, i did look at the PC Power and Cooling PS you've mentioned but chose the thermaltake out of brand loyalty. i'll look further into this because you've mentioned the SLI certification.

Wanna paypal a poor kid some money?

i know you're joking, but i know exactly how that feels having been in that position for many long years suffering from penis-envy PC build-wise.

 

[gtsing]

Okay. Well, It's not like I can force you to follow my advice. Have fun with your new rig.

 

[trenchfoot]

Originally posted by: gtsing
Okay. Well, It's not like I can force you to follow my advice. Have fun with your new rig.

quite the contrary. i just pulled up the specs on the PC Power and Cooling PS you mentioned. it looks really good. i will probably "force" myself to get that as avp also mentioned getting something different from what i initially chose. i'm still looking at other SLI certified PS's to make sure. thanks for that tip.:thumbsup:

 

[lamere]

I'm curious as to why you would want to go with XP pro 64 bit, nothing works with it and is generally a pain in the ass to work with. Hence no one really uses it.
XP 32 bit is still you're best bet until vista matures, and that wouls take at least a year like XP did.
I would take the PC&C PSU over the thermaltake, they are just more rugged and can handle heavy loads very well.

 

[gtsing]

32 bit OS's will not read the full 4GB of RAM he's ordering. That means he either has to go with XP X64 or Vista X64 to the OS to read the full 4GB.

 

[trenchfoot]

ok, i did it and now i gotta suffer the wait for the delivery guy to show up.

i opted for vista ultimate 32 bit and a pc power and cooling silencer 750 quad (blk)

the rest of the build list remains unchanged. i'm keeping the RAM as is with the thought in mind that sooner or later i'll need the extra horses.

i checked with adobe as i mainly work with their app's and they recommended that i not use 64 bit OS's with their current versions. one of the support guys asked how come i'm not using a MAC to work their app's on. geez louise. i told'um i play alot of games too and that sort'a got him off my back.

my slideshow tech support also does not recommend use of 64bit apps, but both say vista will not cause issues with their latest versions.

games? well, i just gotta load'um up and see what's up with'um.

thanks all for your advice. it's much appreciated.

edit - content

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: AVP
I might consider a different psu, vista, shrug. looks good though. What kind of monitor are you powering? Also would not sli the 8800gtx, would get one and wait for the next batch of cards. Sweet setup though.

The newer thermaltakes are getting rave reviews that PSU is one killer of a PSU!! Nice choice!!
Even though my preference would be the PC Power & Cooling 750!!

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: gtsing
Hahah. I don't know about you guys but to me that's complete overkill. I know you have 3k+ plus to spend but that doesn't mean spending 1000+ premium on a CPU just because it's the "best." You got to spend smart. Okay well I think you should get a Q6600, an EVGA 680i motherboard (ASUS is fine too I suppose), the RAM is a good choice, the two GTX's is a good choice (at least you didn't pick Ultra's...), and I think you should get a PC Power and Cooling 750 Quad for a power supply. It's SLI certified if that makes you feel better.

SLI certification means nothing!
All it means is a company paid NVidia some money to certify the PSU!!
Trust me the Thermaltake can handle 2 cards without breaking a sweat!!

 

[gtsing]

Originally posted by: JEDIYoda

Originally posted by: gtsing
Hahah. I don't know about you guys but to me that's complete overkill. I know you have 3k+ plus to spend but that doesn't mean spending 1000+ premium on a CPU just because it's the "best." You got to spend smart. Okay well I think you should get a Q6600, an EVGA 680i motherboard (ASUS is fine too I suppose), the RAM is a good choice, the two GTX's is a good choice (at least you didn't pick Ultra's...), and I think you should get a PC Power and Cooling 750 Quad for a power supply. It's SLI certified if that makes you feel better.

SLI certification means nothing!
All it means is a company paid NVidia some money to certify the PSU!!
Trust me the Thermaltake can handle 2 cards without breaking a sweat!!

Haha I know. It was a bit of a joke.

 

[coldmeat]

Originally posted by: tweaker2
i'm still in the dark ages on monitor - i use a sony f500. i've had it for ages and it keeps running and runnig without a hitch so i figured no use replacing what ain't broke.

your using a 21" monitor, and you just bought SLI gtx's?

 

[trenchfoot]

Originally posted by: coldmeat

Originally posted by: tweaker2
i'm still in the dark ages on monitor - i use a sony f500. i've had it for ages and it keeps running and runnig without a hitch so i figured no use replacing what ain't broke.

your using a 21" monitor, and you just bought SLI gtx's?

yeah, i know. i have four rigs in one room of the house to double up as mini LAN party setup and kid's/wife's setups for homework, home business etc. all the others have at least a 19" flat panel with good response times. mine is the only rig in the house with a crt. i just can't seem to migrate over to lcd's well.

i guess another reason i'm kind'a fond of my crt is i have it very well color calibrated and matched with my epson printer for graphics/photography work. plus, i'm still a little bothered playing games on a flat panel.

i went so far as to pick up a really good 19" eizo display over a year ago for graphics work due to its many adjustment functions and color rendering but here i am still stuck on my crt. eh, old habits hard to break i guess. not to mention i went wayyyy out on a limb with the wife casting the 'ol evil eye at me when i got the eizo and now it sits on my son's desk for him to game and do homework with. meh, at least i know i have a decent backup ready when (not if) the 'ol trinitron tube goes belly up.

 

[trenchfoot]

i've decided i'm gonna OC this setup. what do you all consider to be a really good match in the way of cooling for this build? i'm thinking about going water cooled for cpu using the zalman reserator. is this worth the bucks and hassle to install? if not, the cnps9500a's kind'a caught my eye. i'm also replacing all the case fans (5 ea. x 80mm) with zalmans as they're now at least a couple of years old. i installed them from a previous build.

also, i'm pulling the plex drives out and replacing them with black asus drives. one burner and a dvd rom, along with a bay-mounted multicard reader and get this: a black faced floppy drive just for nostalgia's sake.

 

[DyslexicHobo]

Water cooling for this system?! I was hoping for at least some sort of peltier, if not cooled by a constant flow of liquid nitrogen.

 

[crimson117]

Originally posted by: tweaker2
i've decided i'm gonna OC this setup.

If you're gonna OC it, you should go back in time, spend less money on the processor, and more money on the ram

is [water cooling] worth the bucks and hassle to install? if not, the cnps9500a's kind'a caught my eye.

No, it's not. If you're going for the best, and it sounds like you are , then check out an anandtech cooling review.

 

[trenchfoot]

Water cooling for this system?! I was hoping for at least some sort of peltier, if not cooled by a constant flow of liquid nitrogen.

point well taken. lol

No, it's not. If you're going for the best, and it sounds like you are , then check out an anandtech cooling review.

thanks for the advice and the link crimson117. i slapped myself up side of my head for not checking that out while doing the research. good review. looks like the thermalright ultima90 fits right in with the program, what with good efficiency rating, bigger bang for the buck and smaller size, which is what i was really worried about. thanks.:thumbsup:

 

[trenchfoot]

*Update*

well, i figured so as not to interrupt the workflow i have going on my present rig, i decided to pick up a new case and just build a whole new setup.

i'm looking at the coolermaster stacker rc-832-kkn1-gp as a decent match for the parts i just bought (see above). if any of you have this case and/or know about it, would you do me the favor of letting me know if there is a clearance problem between the ultima90 cpu cooler and the Pc Power and Cooling Silencer 750 when installed in this case?

also, when considering the parts i've already picked up, is it worth to upgrade from the ram i just picked up? i'm still able to exchange it is why i'm asking.

thanx all.

 

[boglwe]

Yea, I Totally believe you should get the Q6600 (darn nice chip) and save some money for the new chips coming out in the upcoming months, THEN DROP YOUR LOAD OF CASH. Also, SLI is jsut plain Overkill, yea, decent FPS, but nothing you would ever see with your eye. Yea, you can oogle friends and say look at these Frame rates, and probably have the best amongst your community, but you still will not see any difference with the naked eye. Save the cash and send it to a nice charity. Or, spend the money on better hard drives. Raptors, the 15k spped ones, or high volume drives. Your case is important too. Don't get a crappy case to run all that.

 

[trenchfoot]

Originally posted by: boglwe
Yea, I Totally believe you should get the Q6600 (darn nice chip) and save some money for the new chips coming out in the upcoming months, THEN DROP YOUR LOAD OF CASH. Also, SLI is jsut plain Overkill, yea, decent FPS, but nothing you would ever see with your eye. Yea, you can oogle friends and say look at these Frame rates, and probably have the best amongst your community, but you still will not see any difference with the naked eye. Save the cash and send it to a nice charity. Or, spend the money on better hard drives. Raptors, the 15k spped ones, or high volume drives. Your case is important too. Don't get a crappy case to run all that.

too late. they're in the house.

all i have left in shipping is another raptor x, the ultima90 cpu cooler and when/if i find out it's ok, this coolermaster rc-832-kkn1-gp stacker case..

the timing of doing the build now rather than later was i had to make a choice between either buying the stuff now or feeding the kids for the next few months and paying this month's mortgage on the house. j/k

 

[rodrigu3]

want to pay my rent for the next few months?

 

[boglwe]

congrats, I just spent very similar amount you did, but I needed a series box and new monitor. Good luck with the build, that would be fun as hell to build.

 

[trenchfoot]

Originally posted by: rodrigu3
want to pay my rent for the next few months?

only if you'll have my mother-in-law and her doo-doo factory of a pooch over for that time

*update* - the thermalright optima90 just showed up this afternoon. some fins were bent but were easy to bend back and the contact surface looks like it needs some lapping with some very fine compound. the finish from the factory looks as if they used a powered medium grit scothbrite belt for finishing. considering the price i thought it would have a better finish than that.

and i went ahead and ordered the coolermaster stacker case. i hope everything fits ok.

so, while i'm waiting for the case to come, i'd like to know what your ideas are as far as where a good OC settings starting point would be for this setup? looks like this box will be about the easiest and most fun (technical-wise) config that i've had the pleasure to OC with yet.

edit -

congrats, I just spent very similar amount you did, but I needed a series box and new monitor. Good luck with the build, that would be fun as hell to build.

boglwe, i wish you the same for yours. enjoy.:thumbsup: