New PC Build - Need Your Opinions Please!

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axion

Senior member
Oct 24, 2004
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I build my current PC about 5 years ago, and it includes about 1tb of storage, a p4 3.2, 2gb ram, 6600gt oc gfx, 36gb raptor, and a 550 psu, abit mobo, and extra junk here and there. Now I know some of you think I should have upgraded long ago, and I think so too.. just didn't have the time or money to do so! But, the time is here, and I have been doing tons of research on the new stuff out since I last was looking into this stuff!

So, on to my parts list I have picked out for the time being. This will probably change as I get better info and opinions so bare with me..



Case - Thermaltake ElementS

Motherboard - MSI X58 Pro

CPU - Intel Core i7 920

Memory - X2 CORSAIR XMS3 6GB (3 x 2GB)

Video - BFG Tech GeForce 9800 GTX+

System Drive - Western Digital Raptor 74GB

Additional Storage - Might use what I have or upgrade to say, 3x 750gb or something, not sure yet.

Optical Drives - 2x DVDRW's - I know theres a ton out there, not sure what to go with really but I want them to be SATA this time around.

Mouse / Keyboard - Currently have a G15 keyboard and G7 mouse - Will probably go to a G5 mouse.

Monitor - Currently using a 22'' WS Samsung and plan on keeping it for now.



Now, The case I am set on for sure. I love the way it looks, and love the amount of storage it has. The CPU I went for since I read everywhere that it's a beast and outperforms chips that are better then it? Someone please clarify!

As for the memory, I was talking with my wife and we both decided to make the jump to Vista instead of the current XP Pro we use now. By switching to Vista, from what I read I can have alot more than just 4gb of ram, and actually have the system recognize it too?

The Vid card isn't TOO important, I do moderate photo editing and gaming, nothing too hardcore or fansy. I use Photoshop CS4 and play games like Call Of Duty 4 when I have free time.

About the SATA dvdrw, I tried one with my current system and would make it to the post screen and then it would hang, so im using ide for now, should this worry me about the new build or should a sata burner plug and play with the new rig?

I guess thats about it for now, I really need opinions from more experienced folks, since this will probably be the last PC I build for another few years it needs to last! Thanks!
 
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axion

Senior member
Oct 24, 2004
494
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What would the benefits be? i7 is BRAND NEW to me and I have no clue about it! It's better than a quad I take it?
 
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axion

Senior member
Oct 24, 2004
494
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76
I see, for an extra $80 it does seem worth the upgrade. I will update that, and also I would have to look for a new motherboard.. I was looking at the one you list in your sig, would you recommend it? A quick look on newegg lists it as the cheapest one for the i7, but it looks like its packed with features!
 
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axion

Senior member
Oct 24, 2004
494
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I see it also has 6 memory slots compared to the 4 on the gigabyte board thats $10 more.. thats a nice feature. Now my question is, upgrading to Vista will allow me to use and see more ram in the system compared to XP right? For what I mentioned I will be doing with this new PC, how much Ram would you think I need to make Vista run flawlessly as well as my programs and games?
 
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axion

Senior member
Oct 24, 2004
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Yeah I just saw the 12gb kit on the egg, corsair xms3 like you have.. where did you manage to find a 6gb kit?
 
WaitingForNehalem

WaitingForNehalem

Platinum Member
Aug 24, 2008
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I got it around launch at MicroCenter. I paid way too much for it and will never purchase on launch again.

It is on sale at newegg for $69 AR. Two kits are cheaper than 1 12gb kit.

Corsair 6gb DDR3
 
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axion

Senior member
Oct 24, 2004
494
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Wow how did I miss that, lol.. Thanks for all your help. Now, on your i7, your using the stock cooler it came with, or should I start looking for aftermarket cooling for it as well. I don't plan, or even know how to OC so that won't be happening..
 
WaitingForNehalem

WaitingForNehalem

Platinum Member
Aug 24, 2008
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Originally posted by: LostPassword
amazon got a nice rebate deal right now, ends tomorrow though (march 31s)
ocz
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, it's 1.65v which is at the limit. I know it's fine but it would bother me.
 
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axion

Senior member
Oct 24, 2004
494
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76
That is a nice deal, but I will not be buying any of this until mid. April at the soonest!
 
In2Photos

In2Photos

Platinum Member
Mar 21, 2007
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Originally posted by: axion
are you talking about this one here?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16822136319
Click to expand...

Yes, that is one of the preferred HDs.

As to cooling, you can go stock if not overclocking but I chose a Xigmatek Dark Knight rather than stock. $40 and my cpu idles at about 25C. Well worth the money.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16835233029

You'll also need a PSU. Go with something nice like the Corsair 650TX.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...9005&Tpk=corsair%20650
 
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axion

Senior member
Oct 24, 2004
494
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76
I want something that I will not have to worry about upgrading for at least a few years or so as well so I think going with an i7 is the best bet, and will save me money in the long run
 
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axion

Senior member
Oct 24, 2004
494
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76
A 650 PSU was something I was thinking about upgrading to as well, do you guys think I should and that my antec 550 wouldn't have enough juice for the new build, or lack the connections needed since it IS about 5 years old? lol
 
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rob25

Member
Apr 1, 2009
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I was talking with my wife and we both decided to make the jump to Vista instead of the current XP Pro we use now. By switching to Vista, from what I read I can have alot more than just 4gb of ram, and actually have the system recognize it too?
Click to expand...

FOOD FOR THOUGHT:

I would recomend a temporary(ehem,ehem) 64 bit vista.Around Sept, I think windows 7 will be out & every specialist I know who is using the Beta version is ranting & raving about it. Actualy you could dowload the Beta version at Microsoft & then buy it in September when the beta runs out.

As far as Moderate photo editing goes for now most 2 year old machines are more than suffice, so anythig you get will be perfect.

From the stand point of getting a comuter today for tommorrow it is very tricky, with the new intel i7s and ddr3 ram coming in as new technology you will probably see prices comming down drasticaly in about 6 months.Look alt the phenom IIs , 920,940, they have just come out & will be obsolete in a couple of months because amd is changing these processorsto ddr3.
If you do want to go that way then the i7 is the best choice.
If not your other option would be to take "heyheyboobos advice" & buy like a 8400 or a Phenom11 940 & save a lot of money, flog it in 6 months tthen buy a decent i7 with ddr3 ram ,faster drives etc, etc, for a lot cheaper.

I hope this information might help ;)
 
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axion

Senior member
Oct 24, 2004
494
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76
It did help, thank you for your info! I have an i7 on the way already, as well as the MSI mobo and case I had picked out last week. :) I will go vista 64 for now like you said, and if this windows 7 is what everyone is making it out to be, then an upgrade in the future might be in mind, but vista will work for now I guess! my main question is, will vista 64 see and use all 12GB of ram i am going to buy?
 
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rob25

Member
Apr 1, 2009
48
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Vista:

" On a system running x64 Vista Home Basic, you can add as much as 8 GB of RAM. x64 Vista Home Premium supports as far as 16 GB of RAM.

But it will take no less than 128 GB of RAM in order to satiate x64 Vista Business, Enterprise and Ultimate. 128 GB of RAM is the maximum supported physical limit in the case of these three operating systems. "

P. cs4 & Vista:

"64-Bit Hardware
When running on 64-bit hardware with a 32-bit operating system, in theory Photoshop CS4 can use up to 3.5GB of RAM directly (in practice, it uses 3072MB directly). If you're working on huge images, you may see benefits from even more RAM. When more than 4GB of RAM is installed, Photoshop lets the operating system buffer scratch data into RAM instead of writing it directly to disk. (We talked about 64-bit operating systems in the earlier section "64-Bit Processing.")

Photoshop normally doesn't use those buffers because doing so can be slower than using a scratch file on disk; the way operating systems use virtual memory is not optimal for the way Photoshop needs to use virtual memory. But if you have enough RAM to hold most or all of your scratch data, it becomes faster to let Windows or Mac OS X use extra RAM above 4GB as a cache for scratch data. As you add RAM to your computer, you should see corresponding improvements in performance up to about 8GB, which is the point of diminishing returns. You have to be working with files large enough to make good use of all that RAM?if you're editing 300 × 200-pixel web images with no layers, adding another 4GB of RAM won't make Photoshop run any faster."

 
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axion

Senior member
Oct 24, 2004
494
0
76
x64 Vista Home Premium it is then :) Thanks rob25!

Now to just find the cheapest place to buy it, hehe :)
 
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