New AMD build - *budget* high performance gamer for 19x12

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: taltamir
ok wait... lemme see if i get it right... you want:
1. AMD only, no shopping around

You got me thinking

well, i'll be damned
[anyway; but that is beside any point]



IS there ANY Intel *budget* equivalent to this proposed build of mine?
--a $102 shot at a Quadcore? and a $110 MB [or less]
- for this kind of performance ?

i know it is a stretch to say i will even get 4 cores .. but .. what could i do for a similar price with intel ?

What has arrived so far:

1. Cooler Master Silent Pro M 600w - certified for 4870-X2
2. Gladiator 600 case, also by Cooler Master

i am looking forward to this build. And i am thinking, i can swap RAM between PCs if one is finicky

 

[Stoneburner]

You of course will share specific details about your phenom II x2 and let us know how the unlocking goes?

Have you decided on a board yet?

I keep restraining myself from ordering the 550 from newegg I don't need it... i just want to see how it'll work.

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: Stoneburner
You of course will share specific details about your phenom II x2 and let us know how the unlocking goes?

Have you decided on a board yet?

I keep restraining myself from ordering the 550 from newegg I don't need it... i just want to see how it'll work.

of course, good news or bad news; dual/tri core failure, - or quad success !

i am waiting for money
.. tomorrow i should order from NewEgg; i will decide by then - that Gigabyte looks good for $110 shipped

i don't need it either - i just *really* want to see if/how it'll work

Damn, that Gladiator600 is a nice case; i am not used to something nicer than my ancient aspire x-gamer

 

[Stoneburner]

BTW, newegg has some promotion where if you use BIll me Later or NE preferred account for a sale of $100 or more, they will credit you $20 dollars. YOu might be able to use it to get $20 off on the 550.

 

[apoppin]

where is that?

i am a subscriber and i don't see it

[bill me later is probably the only way i can afford it ]

 

[Stoneburner]

http://promotions.newegg.com/BML/061509/index.html

I actually called them and they said if you have an existing account it will not ask those two questions. So it should work...

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: Stoneburner
http://promotions.newegg.com/BML/061509/index.html

I actually called them and they said if you have an existing account it will not ask those two questions. So it should work...

thanks .. i will call them

heck .. one purchase on Bill me later and the other on my NewEgg preferred account could save $40
- this could work - or not .. i will let you know.


- i might have to order as late as Monday to work both credits [if possible] but i should still get to build it next weekend

 

[deimos3428]

If you're looking for a budget mobo that will unlock cores, try Asrock's AOD790GX/128M.

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: deimos3428
If you're looking for a budget mobo that will unlock cores, try Asrock's AOD790GX/128M.

thanks

i am waiting until Monday to order the Mobo .. i am still taking advice

- i got the $20 off on the x550; i should have it this Tuesday or Wednesday
- so i am billed thru bill-me-later for $82.99 (plus tax) Shipped
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16819103680

and i didn't forget to add Arctic Silver
- i am SO proud of myself

thanks for all of your help. i am really looking forward to this

 

[MegaWorks]

If you're going to CF I think 16x on both PCI-Express slots is a better option.

GIGABYTE GA-MA790FX-UD5P

Or

DFI LP DK 790FXB-M2RSH

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: MegaWorks
If you're going to CF I think 16x on both PCI-Express slots is a better option.

GIGABYTE GA-MA790FX-UD5P

Or

DFI LP DK 790FXB-M2RSH

thanks for the suggestions, but those are too pricey for a *budget* build
--i am going to "solve" my CF problems by going with a 4870-X2 that i already have; or alternately use my GTX-280

- i will compare this new budget PC to the quad core that i have in my sig - using 4870-X2 and GTX-280 as the video cards.

i guess i should clock my Q9550s to 3.1 GHz to compare them clock for clock - then at each CPU's highest OC .. i can get 4.0 GHz from my Q9550s

Of course, i don't even know if i can even successfully unlock 4 stable cores of my 550 X2
-soon

 

[ZanatosFox]

Oooooh, this is so exciting!!! You're making me want to buy a bunch of new parts and try things out!! For now I'll just follow your progress

*Pulls up a seat and grabs a bag of popcorn & a beer* :beer: :thumbsup:

 

[Rhoxed]

get the Gigabyte MA790X-UD4P
the newst bios (F5A) has hybrid option which has been unlocking an incredible amount of processors.

I bought a 720BE a few months ago, had it running in a foxconn a79a-s, good chip even with only 3 cores, ran up to 3.9ghz

when i put the chip in the UD4P i was able to unlock the 4th core and continue overclocking to 4ghz.

i REALLY reccomend getting the gigabyte UD4P for unlocking a chip, and i would also suggest trying the 720BE over the 550BE because even if you dont get the unlock its only ~20$ more for another core.

 

[apoppin]

well, i already ordered the 550 - $82.99 *shipped* with the NewEgg $20 off $100 promo - so that is already done and i will have it Tuesday.

i am still trying to decide on the MB; budget suddenly became more important ... i just realized that i need a couple of HDs :Q
[i am going to use it as an AMD bencher; just like my intel penryn bencher - and compare them to each other - first, at clock for clock 3.1GHz and then at each one's max OC]

Since i have one HD dedicated to Nvidia and one to ATi graphics in my current PC [it is easy to just switch in & out the video cards and change hard drives], i would need two to compare with my 2 x Seagate 250 GB'ers

i am thinking .. since NewEgg is offering 10% off HDs thru Mon ...

which two identical HDs would you choose?
- my seagate 250s are getting too small - is it such a big deal that i do not use the Seagate 7200.10s in BOTH PCs - so as to *directly* compare performance between AMD and intel PCs ???

The Deathstar 500GB or WD 320GB for $50 ea?


http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16822136098
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16822145215

decisions decisions; and it it is, i may still not buy ANY HDs and swap them back and forth for my benchmarking [after drive imaging them for ease of archiving and resetting it back up again]

thanks for all your help and suggestions !!

 

[SickBeast]

Originally posted by: apoppin
which two identical HDs would you choose?
- my seagate 250s are getting too small - is it such a big deal that i do not use the Seagate 7200.10s in BOTH PCs - so as to *directly* compare performance between AMD and intel PCs ???

The Deathstar 500GB or WD 320GB for $50 ea?


http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16822136098
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16822145215

decisions decisions; and it it is, i may still not buy ANY HDs and swap them back and forth for my benchmarking [after drive imaging them for ease of archiving and resetting it back up again]

thanks for all your help and suggestions !!

Well, I have the 3200AAKS and really like it.

I would stay away from the Hitachi.

Have you checked out the Seagate 500GB .12 model? It's around $50 as well, and has a single 500GB platter which AFAIK is the highest platter density available.

I have heard about reliability issues on the new bigger Seagates that use those 500GB platters though, so it's a bit of a risk (with the reward being 130mb/sec reads vs. 95mb/sec reads on the WD drive IIRC).

 

[Sylvanas]

Have a look in the memory forums, there are alot of complaints about Seagate recently, I'd steer clear and get something else- WD is fine.

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: Sylvanas
Have a look in the memory forums, there are alot of complaints about Seagate recently, I'd steer clear and get something else- WD is fine.

thank-you

i already have a pair of 250GB Seagate Barracuda 7200.10s which i have been running in my current PC for over a year [each one is separately dedicated for comparing AMD and Nvidia graphics]

My problem is that i want to compare the AMD i am building - the performance as *closely* as possible - with the Intel PC that i already have

How much difference would there be if i use different HDs on each PC ??
- ideally, i should use the same 250 GB Seagates that i have in order to make the comparison as fair as possible, right?

[i am going to clock my Q9550s at 3.1 GHz to compare with the Phenom II, clock for clock; then OC them both as far as they will go for each of their Max OC'd comparison
since it is a high-performance gamer PC, i will use GTX280 (to represent the $200 class of cards including GTX275 and HD4890) and HD4870-X2 (to represent the $300 class of cards - GTX285/4870CF)]

 

[SickBeast]

I think that the hard drive actually can affect the benchmarks a great deal in games like Crysis and GTA4. You should try to keep it consistent. The WD3200AAKS seems pretty bulletproof. It's a nice fast and quiet drive, and seems very reliable by all accounts. It's just getting smallish in terms of capacity, and it has pretty bad seek times.

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: SickBeast
I think that the hard drive actually can affect the benchmarks a great deal in games like Crysis and GTA4. You should try to keep it consistent. The WD3200AAKS seems pretty bulletproof. It's a nice fast and quiet drive, and seems very reliable by all accounts. It's just getting smallish in terms of capacity, and it has pretty bad seek times.

then i am screwed; i would need to get a pair of HDs identical to what i have
- and they are too damn small

nope .. i am going to test with the same HDs i now have in my PC
[image and copy them; physically put them into the new Athlon Build and reformat
.. install everything and image and copy them for the benchmarking]

AFTER that comparison, i will decided on a HD/HDs .. i am sure they are not going to get any more expensive


thanks for making up my mind for me [and i can keep $100 in my account - for now]

 

[SickBeast]

Why don't you just partition the drives? Create an AMD partition and an NV partition for each drive. Create them at the beginning of the drive, and make them say 5-10gb each, just big enough to install Windows. If you want to get *really* fussy, create a swap file partition at the very beginning of the drive, say 2gb in size.

Then, create a great big 'games' partition with the remaining space at the end of the drive. That way, the games will always be in the same place on the drives, and will always give the same performance, regardless of whether you're using an AMD or NV graphics card. The performance difference between the AMD and NV 'Windows' partitions will be negligible.

I think I just saved you $100. What do I get?

 

[apoppin]

i don't know .. that is what i am planning except i will physically swap them so there is not even a negligible performance difference. It will be a little more work for me but the results will not be disputable by pointing to partition order on the same HD.
- This way we have 2 *identical* HDs - being swapped from one PC to the other - one for the GTX 280 and the other for the 4870-X2, as it is now on my intel PC.

Obviously, - in preparation for building my AMD PC this week - i have upgraded to Cat 9-6 and Geforce 186.18 and i am running my 15 gaming benchmark suite *Right Now* on my intel PC [at 3.1 and 4.0GHz] and i will probably add PCMark's Vantage and SiSoft Sandra's suites - to pinpoint where the performance differences are, perhaps.

When all the intel PC benching is completely done in a few days, i can just image the hard drives to Backup and reformat them and swap them into the AMD build.

Rinse and repeat .. final complete comparison results in about ten days

edit: That projection is SO optimistic

 

[SickBeast]

If you go with SSDs, then you don't need to worry about the partitions. You could probably get by with a 32gb one, especially if you just use it for the OS'es, then just install all the games on the same regular HDD.

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: SickBeast
If you go with SSDs, then you don't need to worry about the partitions. You could probably get by with a 32gb one, especially if you just use it for the OS'es, then just install all the games on the same regular HDD.

if i go with SSDs [damn that sounds like something you get from not being careful ]
- then it is not a budget build

i figure i need at least 100GB - just to store my [at least 20] games - Age of Conan takes nearly 15GB by itself
:Q

Naw .. to do a real comparison - clock for clock and at each one's max OC, i will really *cheap* out and use the SAME hard drives. Later on, after benches are established - then i can pick up some SSDs - later - or figure it out then ,, for now i just want to get it built and tested

My 550 X2 is coming tomorrow - and i will have the MoBo Wed [i think i will toss a coin today] so i will be able to build it by the weekend.

OK, now i am benching with my Q9550s in preparation for my new AMD Quad.

i am running 15 gaming benchmarks - at 3.1 GHz and at 4.0 Ghz [my q9550s' max OC]

what ELSE should i test with? I am guessing *also* at 3.1 and 4.0 GHz, right?

i have available:

1. Everest Ultimate
2. PC Mark Vantage [if i can find my key]
3. SiSoft Sandra [engineer version]

i also have HDtech; but i am now using the same HDs .. so unnecessary
- let me know now if there is something you want to see me test

if i didn't already get a good solid 600w PS for 4870-X2, i might consider this for a lesser videocard:

OCZ Fatal1ty OCZ400FTY 400W ATX12V / EPS12V Active PFC Power Supply - Retail
---Here is a great deal on a budget 400w PS - $24.99 after $15 MiR; free shipping from the 'egg
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817341021

 

[apoppin]

i went with the Gigabyte MB for $102.99, shipped
- that's the heavy one with the copper pennies glued to the bottom, right?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813128387

it should be here on Wednesday ... with *luck* i might ALSO get the Promo $20 off $100 - the way i read it, it could apply - once for Bill me later and once for Preferred Customer; i got the free rush order also
- the $39 after MiR 2x2GB OCZ got here today and i am tempted to toss it into my intel PC at PC8500 speeds to see how it does

 

[apoppin]

i got the CPU; NewEgg packed the Arctic Silver very carefully in bubble wrap [like it needed it :roll:] - then they TOSSED in the CPU box, right on the bottom and then poured peanuts over it; it survived somehow it appeared

.. is there any 'stepping' that is better than another for O/C'ing - like with Intel?
- mine is from Malaysia and i have zero clue about the numbers


and what is with that cruddy little HS/Fan that comes with the retail 550 x2 ?
- is it good for ANY overclock

my gigabyte MB and hyper n212 should be here tomorrow - and i can put it together

Any tests you want to see me run?