Looking for advice on a build

[multocco]

Alright I'm sure you guys get a bunch of people asking for building advice, and that's pretty much what I'm here for I've been out of the computer loop for a while, and my NF7, AMD 2400+M is starting to give me signs of age, haha. I'm looking to get back into gaming now and I'm interested in building a new computer.

I understand that there is a thread designated to hardware building, but it does not address the Phenom II's, which, if I understand correctly, out perform the I7's (at least that's what my friend insists). If this is the case, what would be a a good Phenom II, mobo, and RAM combination? I'm looking for high end and am probably willing to spend 600 dollars (need the rest of the budget to cover a graphics card, haha).

Thanks in advance I appreciate your help.

 

[F1N3ST]

Well if I were you I would go on newegg and look up an i7 920, a decent Motherboard, 3x2gb RAM, and a PSU, case, and 'stuff' and post it and we comment ^_^. Speed wise the i7 is faster than the Phenom II, price wise the i7 loses, i7 boards and chips are more expensive.

 

[multocco]

I7's are really faster? Price isn't really that much of a factor, but see, I've been out of the loop for like four years so all my knowledge of RAM, motherboards, etc is all mush because my perception of "fast" is based on old knowledge. So I wouldn't know where to start on mobos and RAM. But I am looking into overclocking again, I would like to get stuff that would give me that headroom to do so.

 

[F1N3ST]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16819115202
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814130442 or http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814130453
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813138136
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16811129042
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817703009
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820227417

Something like that. Idk much about DDR3, because I don't have any

Vista x64, a monitor, a keyboard, mouse, maybe a soundcard and speakers.

Also, not sure if that case can fit a big video card.

 

[somethingsketchy]

Originally posted by: multocco
I7's are really faster? Price isn't really that much of a factor, but see, I've been out of the loop for like four years so all my knowledge of RAM, motherboards, etc is all mush because my perception of "fast" is based on old knowledge.

The Core i7 processor is capable of processing 8 threads at once (essentially a quad core with hyper-threading enabled). That in turn makes it "faster" only because it can process more information faster than the Phenom II processor.

If you have other demands that require a beefy processor (video editing, folding clients, Virtual Machines, etc.), the Core i7 would be a very popular recommendation. However if you value a best-bang-for-the-buck mentality, then you should make a careful consideration for either processor.

EDIT: Noticed you did actually post a budget of $600. My mistake

 

[Lunyone]

The i7's are a bit faster, but when budget constraints come into play the PhII's are a better buy, IMHO. It sucks that most i7 combo's (CPU/mobo) are about $500!! To me this really pushes alot of budgets.
Lets look at a few price comparisons:

Intel build:
i7 920 CPU - $289
Mobo - ~$200-300
DDR3 (3x1gb) - ~$40-75
DDR3 (3x2gb) - $80-125

AMD build:
PhII x4 920 - $164
Mobo - ~$100-150
DDR2 (2x2gb) - ~$45-70
DDR2 (2x4gb) - $90-130

Totals:
Intel - ~$530-715 (i7 920 w/3gb's DDR3: low end, i7 920 w/6gb's of DDR3: higher end)
AMD - ~$310-445 (x4 920 w/4gb's DDR2: low end, x4 920 w/8 gb's DDR2: higher end)

Now this doesn't factor in PSU, Case, DVD's, HD's, Keyboard, Mouse, GPU, & OS. Now the AMD system will be about 90-100 percent of an i7 system in most tasks, so right now your paying for the Intel setup more than the AMD setup. Mind you the AMD right now might have a few upgrade limitations that the i7 might not, but you will have to keep that in mind when buying.
Personally if I was buying right now, I'd seriously consider sticking with AMD for budget reasons. I'd personally rather have a good CPU and a GREAT GPU for gaming reasons. Under your $600 budget, I don't think you can afford the i7 build right now. Another thing to consider is if you want to trim some of the budget, you can still get an AMD PhII x3 720 BE (Black Edition, unlocked multiplier for easy OC'ing w/out too much fuss) for $135! This will allow you to buy it and about 4 gb's of DDR2 for about the price of the PhII x4 920!!! I think this is the best budget setup that you can get! Yes you could also get an Intel p45 based mobo and CPU for similiar prices, but for the $ I think the AMD PhII x3 720 BE is the way to go.

 

[multocco]

Actually, my budget is like 1500 dollars overall. I just want to designate 600 for a CPU, MOBO, and RAM. Thanks for the recommendations so far!


Oh, and while we are at it. I'm thinking about getting a Radeon DX 4870 X2 because I have a lot of money to spend Any arguments against that?

 

[polarbear6]

Well
here is my preferences with prices for CPU+MOBO+RAM

Asus p6t : Text 289$

(or)

Gigabyte UD3R : Text 209$
It received some good reviews on new egg, Personally i have not seen many people use it as i am not in touch with the tock of the 45 nm.

Core i7:Text 288$

And ram:
DDR3 1333mhz : Text(I don't know whiether they are the best or not they we simply on the top of the list.)

Around 613$

The gpu you want is around 430$.

Case i like Antec 900 its around 120$
And psu I'm unable to decide..
A caviar black 500 TB(thats what I'm using)
some 25$ for DVD writer...
And some 200$ for 22" monitor. But you have to get yourself a pirated version of vista as i cant fit another 100 dollars in here as its already 1600$(120$ for PSU since your going Xfire)

 

[heyheybooboo]

Anand: Phenom II X3 720BE & CrossFire X Performance - Does it Compete?

PhII 720BE / Gigabyte 790FX AM3: $300

G.Skill 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3 1600: $65 (x2?)


I imagine you would be more interested in 2 x HD 4890s in the $460-$500 range but a Radeon HD 4870x2 2Gb plus a single HD 4870 1Gb in 3-way CF might be worth consideration (at around $600 or so).

Adding a third card would probably boost yah around 30% over 2-way CF.

And if you really feel like you have to spend the money the PhII 955 should arrive at any moment ...

 

[multocco]

Alright, after considering what you guys have all had to say, I've gone with the following choices:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817703009 Power Supply

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16811129025 Case

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814102768 GPU

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820227365 RAM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813136063 MOBO

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16819115202 CPU

Only thing I am worried about is maybe the psu being not enough power. Any suggestions?

 

[Lunyone]

Trust me when I tell you 60 amps on the single 12v rail is PLENTY for what you might ever need for this build. It is one of the better PSU's that you can get, so I wouldn't fret one bit in buying it!!

 

[multocco]

Yeah, I learned the hard way a while ago that wattage is kind of a gimmick for power supplies. I currently have a OCZ Powerstream 500 watt, and the thing is pretty much the most solid power supply I have ever encountered (of course it's about three years old, haha). So if everything looks good then, I'll probably be buying this later this week. I can't wait.

 

[Lunyone]

Remember to look for combo deals when your buying from Newegg. You can get some pretty good deals with their combo deals. You can check Slickdeals.net for some good deals too, so keep that in mind. I also check Buy.com for some better prices on most parts from Newegg. Amazon also has some good deals too.