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Opinons on a new build?

Eureka

Eureka

Diamond Member
I'm hoping to do a cheap system here... everything should come out to under $800:

Intel Q8200 $150 ($120 on sale) http://www.microcenter.com/sin...tml?product_id=0309580
Asus P5Q $100 http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813131299
OCZ 4GB DDR2 1066 $50 http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820227362
Sapphire HD4830 $80 http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814102822
Sapphire HD4830 $80 <bought>
Antec EW500W $70 <bought>
CM RC-690 $80 http://www.compsource.com/ttec...90KKN1GP&vid=110&src=F

Total: $610

Optional:
WD 640GB $70 http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16822136319
Samsung DVDRW $25 http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16827151175
CM 120mm Fan x4 $13 http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16835103052
Thermaltake Fan Controller $15 http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16811999137

Total: $120

----

Does everything look good? Any recommendations on what to swap out? I already have one 4830, so I figured I might get another for XFire. To return the one I already have might be a pain in the ass.

On the other hand, how does an AMD system sound? The Phenom II X3s are in the same price range as the Q8200: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16819103648

It's 2.6ghz x3 vs. 2.33ghz Quad.

Also, I do plan on OCing my CPU conservatively (nothing beyond what stock cooling can handle), if that matters.

Hmm, also the E5300 has caught my eye.. $80 with the ability to overclock to mid-high 3.x ghz.
 
Looks solid to me. I love my CM 690!

I hope the 4830 will be good for you in Crossfire. I've always been a little put off by dual-GPUs, because it seems like everyone I talk to has an issue with some game they play constantly. I'm sure it will be fine, though.

Otherwise, it's a quality build.
 
Originally posted by: Axon
Looks solid to me. I love my CM 690!

I hope the 4830 will be good for you in Crossfire. I've always been a little put off by dual-GPUs, because it seems like everyone I talk to has an issue with some game they play constantly. I'm sure it will be fine, though.

Otherwise, it's a quality build.
Click to expand...

Yeah.. xfire does seem kinda risky. Also, I noticed that this (and most other) boards downclock the PCI-e to x8. What kind of difference would this make (and would it warrant the $60 upgrade to an equivalent x48 board)?
 
it's not crossfire.

i would maybe try and sell your 4830 and just buy a quicker card, the cost of the mobo plus another card might make it more cost effective to just get a 4870.
 
Originally posted by: brblx
it's not crossfire.

i would maybe try and sell your 4830 and just buy a quicker card, the cost of the mobo plus another card might make it more cost effective to just get a 4870.
Click to expand...

Which board are you talking about? The reviews of the 790x has comments saying they're using xfire on it.

Right now I'm swaying towards that X3 720/790x combo.
 
Originally posted by: cevilgenius
Originally posted by: brblx
it's not crossfire.

i would maybe try and sell your 4830 and just buy a quicker card, the cost of the mobo plus another card might make it more cost effective to just get a 4870.
Click to expand...

Which board are you talking about? The reviews of the 790x has comments saying they're using xfire on it.

Right now I'm swaying towards that X3 720/790x combo.
Click to expand...

For the most part (depending upon your resolution and games) 2 x Radeon HD4830s in CrossFire will top an HD4870.

Anandtech on 720BE CrossFire.

Check out the CPU thread on OC'ing the 720BE with the stock cooler - I think most folks were comfortable at 3.2-3.4GHz with good temps at stock volts. It ain't much of a high-flying cooler, though ...

To reach 3.6-3.8GHz you will need a new HSF.
 
yeah i'm retarded i took a quick look at that board and only saw one x16 slot and no mention of xfire in the heading. it is indeed a crossfire board.

for that price i guess you might as well do the 2x4830 setup.
 
Originally posted by: heyheybooboo
Originally posted by: cevilgenius
Originally posted by: brblx
it's not crossfire.

i would maybe try and sell your 4830 and just buy a quicker card, the cost of the mobo plus another card might make it more cost effective to just get a 4870.
Click to expand...

Which board are you talking about? The reviews of the 790x has comments saying they're using xfire on it.

Right now I'm swaying towards that X3 720/790x combo.
Click to expand...

For the most part (depending upon your resolution and games) 2 x Radeon HD4830s in CrossFire will top an HD4870.

Anandtech on 720BE CrossFire.

Check out the CPU thread on OC'ing the 720BE with the stock cooler - I think most folks were comfortable at 3.2-3.4GHz with good temps at stock volts. It ain't much of a high-flying cooler, though ...

To reach 3.6-3.8GHz you will need a new HSF.
Click to expand...

I might just do that... a new HSF runs like $20 anyway.

However, I've gotten a recommendation to get a 790xt board for DDR3 support. Of course, that invalidates the combo pricing, which puts the 720BE at $140 and the 790xt at $140 - $15 rebate. (Total $265, vs $220 combo pricing). Worth the difference?

At the same time, will a X3 710 perform as well as a 720BE? They should be the same core, right?

Also, can someone clarify me on how the xfire works with x8? Are two 4830s on x8 better than 1 4870 on x16?
 
If you are gaming at 16x10 and below don't worry about it.

PCIe Gen2 has a theoretical data rate of 500 MB/s per lane. A single PCIe x16 slot with 16 lanes therefore has a data rate of 8 GB/s - the same total data rate as 2 PCIe x16 slots each with 8 lanes.

1920x1200 has about 31% more pixels than 1680x1050. In highly textured games at max detail the video card has a lot more work to do. At 19x12 1Gb cards are preferred and the additional bandwidth from x16x16 may give you a boost of 5-10% in some games at max detail.

There is very little if anything to be gained from DDR3 in your gaming exploits. In certain applications where memory usage is critical to performance from what I have seen you may gain 3-5% at this time.

Otherwise, save your money. In a year or two you may consider moving the 720BE to an AM# ,obo with DDR3.

To really confuse you - you may purchase an HD4870 and CrossFire with the HD4830 (AFAIK) but it will run at the speed of the HD 4830.

The advantage to this is 'down the road' you may sell the HD 4830 and purchase another HD4870 for your Crossfire
 
Originally posted by: heyheybooboo
If you are gaming at 16x10 and below don't worry about it.

PCIe Gen2 has a theoretical data rate of 500 MB/s per lane. A single PCIe x16 slot with 16 lanes therefore has a data rate of 8 GB/s - the same total data rate as 2 PCIe x16 slots each with 8 lanes.

1920x1200 has about 31% more pixels than 1680x1050. In highly textured games at max detail the video card has a lot more work to do. At 19x12 1Gb cards are preferred and the additional bandwidth from x16x16 may give you a boost of 5-10% in some games at max detail.

There is very little if anything to be gained from DDR3 in your gaming exploits. In certain applications where memory usage is critical to performance from what I have seen you may gain 3-5% at this time.

Otherwise, save your money. In a year or two you may consider moving the 720BE to an AM# ,obo with DDR3.

To really confuse you - you may purchase an HD4870 and CrossFire with the HD4830 (AFAIK) but it will run at the speed of the HD 4830.

The advantage to this is 'down the road' you may sell the HD 4830 and purchase another HD4870 for your Crossfire
Click to expand...

I don't think I like the idea of playing video card tag. If I replace it I'm going to replace one/both cards at once.

Same thing with the motherboard, it maybe a $50 premium now, but wouldn't that also be how much I would pay to swap out the motherboard down the line anyway? If I resell it then its probably going to lose a good $30 at the very least.

The only thing I am worrying about is that these mobos all do 8x for xfire. At the same time, I'm still using a 1680x1050 monitor, and probably will be for a good few more years.
 
For the most part, in the overwhelmingly large majority of cases whether in gaming or applications, you are chasing phantom benefits from DDR3 and x16x16 CrossFire especially at 16x10.

Sorry I can't explain it to you any better. Maybe some of the video gurus may better explain it to you.
 
Originally posted by: heyheybooboo
For the most part, in the overwhelmingly large majority of cases whether in gaming or applications, you are chasing phantom benefits from DDR3 and x16x16 CrossFire especially at 16x10.

Sorry I can't explain it to you any better. Maybe some of the video gurus may better explain it to you.
Click to expand...

I understand that, which is why I'm not pushing for a board with x16/x16.

But I noticed that you said that I may want to change to DDR3 later on. Is it likely that I will want to upgrade/will AM3 still be a worthwhile chipset down the line? If so, I may as well go for DDR3 now instead of dealing with an upgrade later, simply because any upgrade later would still incur the same premium.
 
Originally posted by: cevilgenius
If so, I may as well go for DDR3 now instead of dealing with an upgrade later, simply because any upgrade later would still incur the same premium.
Click to expand...

The premium is likely to be less in the near future, as DDR3 prices continue to fall as volumes increase (and it replaces DDR2 as the major seller).
 
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