Hey all,
Been planning my new rig for months now...changing...changing again...etc...etc... Finally close to pulling the plug, but should I? I want to note first...this'll be my first new machine (my very first complete build too) in 6 years. I build 'em top of the line and try to get a long life out of them. So I'm not using budget parts here and I understand it's expensive. I'm mostly looking for future-upgradability and as much future-proofing as I can.
Also please note I am planning to use stock air cooling over. I do not overclock (aside from buying pre-OC parts such as video cards). I'm looking for something that runs cool and stable at stock. I want both stability and performance, but emphasis on stability.
I've been waiting and waiting and waiting and am finally at the realization that I can wait forever with something new around the corner or I can just do it. And where it's at right now seems pretty good...or as good as it gets at least.
This rig will be used for work, games, lot of multitasking online, lil multimedia...etc.
Here are the specs I'm thinking about. Criticism/alternatives definitely appreciated, especially about incompatibilities, etc.
Intel Core 2 Extreme Quad QX9650 3.00 GHz 1333 12 MB Cache CPU
- I'm so tempted to wait for the 1600 FSB QX9750, but as I understand it, that's next year, and this looks like a kicker of a processor. Comes with a new stock cooler that looks like it should be decent too.
Gigabyte GA-X38T-DQ6 Motherboard
- Ditto - part of me wants to wait for X48, BUT, since nobody really knows when that is and this supports 1600 FSB, won't that mean it will have full support for 1600 FSB Penryn's later? So essentially, this should be about as good as X48 for my purposes? This thing looks like a serious mobo that supports just about anything, present and future. Any bugs/serious issues/flaws I should be aware of? I know BIOS updates are frequent already - any hardware problems that a BIOS won't be able to fix?
Corsair 4GB (2 x 2GB) XMS3 DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) w/ XMP
- A bit confused about this, but this looks to be my best bet as far as memory right now. FSB 1600 support, Intel XMP technology, heat spreader, and 2GB per chip so I'll leave slots free in the future if I wish to upgrade. Any better fit for me out there? Anyt compatibility issues?
2X Western Digital Raptor X 150 GB SATA 10,000 RPM HDD OEM in RAID 0
- Yes, I know RAID 0 is risky, but this will give me a 300 GB drive, and with frequent sheduled backups, should give me about the best performance I can find on one of this machine's biggest limiting factors.
Western Digital My Book Studio 320GB External HDD
- For said backups. Plan to schedule them automatically for all my important stuff.
Mitsumi Black Floppy/Media Reader
- Might as well. I work with PC's and fixing 'em on the side so might still have to read floppy disks once in a blue moon (even though I can't recall the last time that happened). A built in memory card reader would be nice too.
ASUS Black SATA 20X DVD+/-R DVD Burner
- May as well go SATA, and this supports Lightscribe as well. Plus trust ASUS.
ASUS Black SATA DVD-ROM E616A3T OEM
- Ditto on the SATA as secondary read-only drive.
eVGA GeForce 8800 Ultra Superclocked
- This one is an especially hard choice given the new GT, and I want to wait for the refresh of the GTX/Ultra, but there's no indication of how long that'll be. The GT is just not top of the line (how I wish for a new G92-based killer). At least with eVGA, should a new G92-based monster happen within the next three months, I should be able to step-up. GTS rumors are great, but they're just rumors so far. Also, I was originally going to go SLI. The 680i boards pretty much rule that out (with the stability problems I've read about, simply not comfortable for a long-term machine based on this platform). And frankly I'm getting sick of seeing news stories about 4X (and more) SLI/Xfire. I think I'm firmly in the "Let's stick with one video card and upgrade more frequently" camp at the moment. Even if I wasn't, just not sure X-Fire makes sense right now, plus I don't like the power requirements/heat output of a multi-card solution. So I'm thinking this is my best option.
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty Pro
- I see they have a PCI-e version now with optical, but I think this PCI version probably fits me better because of the X-RAM and performance whistles. I know Vista has had some compatibility with the X-Fi in the past, but I'm hoping that's getting better now.
Logitech Z-5500 5.1 Speakers
- Seems like a quite good first 5.1 PC system for me. Though figuring out how exactly I'm gonna do 5.1 in my room is going to be a pip, but I think it can be done. =oP
SilverStone TJ09-SW Case
- I keep trying to convince myself to go with a smaller TARDIS-like case that's roomly enough (perhaps a Lian-Li), but people keep convincing me this is one of the ultimate cases out there. So, it may be big, but it looks beauuuutiful. And I think it should keep everything cool. I just may have to put it beside my desk instead of under it... Hah.
3X SilverStone FN121 Fan
- Additional fans for the extra slots my case offers. I may not be overclocking, but I'm a big fan of ample cooling. This should give the case alone five fans plus all the component fans, so I think I should be running nice and cool.
PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Crossfire
- Alright, I'll be perfectly blunt. I like the red, and it's one of the best reviewed PSU's to boot. (Actually, I adored the copper, but I'm not seeing that around anymore). I should think 750 watts will be plenty for this system and hopefully future processor, RAM, and single video card upgrades. I'd probably want more if I went SLI (not an option) or CrossFire, but I don't really anticipate doing that. Also, this PSU seems to have a really good reputation. The only thing I don't like about it is that it's not modular, which might mean messier cables. For that reason, I'd consider the Silverstone Modular 750W offering, but I'm thinking the PC&P really is the way to go, and supposedly non-modular's are more solid anyhow (if you believe PCP&P's claims).
APC Back-UPS RS BR1500 LCD
- Love the LCD on this, and I think it should have sufficient power for my needs, hopefully with upgrades in the future as well.
BenQ FP241WZ 24" Monitor
- I wanna go 24" and this really looks like my best option. I was going to go with the Dell WFP2407-HC, but it has bad ghosting issues apparently that haven't been fixed, and I do want to game, so this looks like my best option. HP apparently has one too, but...neh...haven't had good experiences with HP in the past.
Saitek Eclipse II Keyboard
- Looks like my best bet. I want backlit and gaming but still compact. Considered the G15, and it looks very nice, but I think it would just take up too much space. I have one of those desks with a pullout drawer and want to keep the keyboard and mouse on that (29" wide). The new G15 is more compact, but unfortunately it seems impossible to get accurate dimensions on this compared to the Saitek Eclipse II, and I would think from the pics the G15 would STILL have to be larger.
Microsoft Habu Laser Mouse
- I want a mouse that's simple enough (some of these new gaming look too complex), wired, preferably backlit, and comfy. I've always used Microsoft mice, and I like the looks of the Habu, so I'm thinking it may be perfect for me. Other suggestions welcome. Probably Ratpadz XT mousepad to go with it.
Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate 64-Bit OEM
- May as well go 64-bit, especially with the extra RAM. I know XP is still popular, but the fact is, Vista is maturing, I want to be able to run DX10, and it just seems like this is the only logical choice. I'd love to wait for SP1, but that's going to be a bit yet, and at least a lot of the initial problems are starting to get resolved.
Thanks again all for any/all advice/recommendations!
Been planning my new rig for months now...changing...changing again...etc...etc... Finally close to pulling the plug, but should I? I want to note first...this'll be my first new machine (my very first complete build too) in 6 years. I build 'em top of the line and try to get a long life out of them. So I'm not using budget parts here and I understand it's expensive. I'm mostly looking for future-upgradability and as much future-proofing as I can.
Also please note I am planning to use stock air cooling over. I do not overclock (aside from buying pre-OC parts such as video cards). I'm looking for something that runs cool and stable at stock. I want both stability and performance, but emphasis on stability.
I've been waiting and waiting and waiting and am finally at the realization that I can wait forever with something new around the corner or I can just do it. And where it's at right now seems pretty good...or as good as it gets at least.
This rig will be used for work, games, lot of multitasking online, lil multimedia...etc.
Here are the specs I'm thinking about. Criticism/alternatives definitely appreciated, especially about incompatibilities, etc.
Intel Core 2 Extreme Quad QX9650 3.00 GHz 1333 12 MB Cache CPU
- I'm so tempted to wait for the 1600 FSB QX9750, but as I understand it, that's next year, and this looks like a kicker of a processor. Comes with a new stock cooler that looks like it should be decent too.
Gigabyte GA-X38T-DQ6 Motherboard
- Ditto - part of me wants to wait for X48, BUT, since nobody really knows when that is and this supports 1600 FSB, won't that mean it will have full support for 1600 FSB Penryn's later? So essentially, this should be about as good as X48 for my purposes? This thing looks like a serious mobo that supports just about anything, present and future. Any bugs/serious issues/flaws I should be aware of? I know BIOS updates are frequent already - any hardware problems that a BIOS won't be able to fix?
Corsair 4GB (2 x 2GB) XMS3 DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) w/ XMP
- A bit confused about this, but this looks to be my best bet as far as memory right now. FSB 1600 support, Intel XMP technology, heat spreader, and 2GB per chip so I'll leave slots free in the future if I wish to upgrade. Any better fit for me out there? Anyt compatibility issues?
2X Western Digital Raptor X 150 GB SATA 10,000 RPM HDD OEM in RAID 0
- Yes, I know RAID 0 is risky, but this will give me a 300 GB drive, and with frequent sheduled backups, should give me about the best performance I can find on one of this machine's biggest limiting factors.
Western Digital My Book Studio 320GB External HDD
- For said backups. Plan to schedule them automatically for all my important stuff.
Mitsumi Black Floppy/Media Reader
- Might as well. I work with PC's and fixing 'em on the side so might still have to read floppy disks once in a blue moon (even though I can't recall the last time that happened). A built in memory card reader would be nice too.
ASUS Black SATA 20X DVD+/-R DVD Burner
- May as well go SATA, and this supports Lightscribe as well. Plus trust ASUS.
ASUS Black SATA DVD-ROM E616A3T OEM
- Ditto on the SATA as secondary read-only drive.
eVGA GeForce 8800 Ultra Superclocked
- This one is an especially hard choice given the new GT, and I want to wait for the refresh of the GTX/Ultra, but there's no indication of how long that'll be. The GT is just not top of the line (how I wish for a new G92-based killer). At least with eVGA, should a new G92-based monster happen within the next three months, I should be able to step-up. GTS rumors are great, but they're just rumors so far. Also, I was originally going to go SLI. The 680i boards pretty much rule that out (with the stability problems I've read about, simply not comfortable for a long-term machine based on this platform). And frankly I'm getting sick of seeing news stories about 4X (and more) SLI/Xfire. I think I'm firmly in the "Let's stick with one video card and upgrade more frequently" camp at the moment. Even if I wasn't, just not sure X-Fire makes sense right now, plus I don't like the power requirements/heat output of a multi-card solution. So I'm thinking this is my best option.
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty Pro
- I see they have a PCI-e version now with optical, but I think this PCI version probably fits me better because of the X-RAM and performance whistles. I know Vista has had some compatibility with the X-Fi in the past, but I'm hoping that's getting better now.
Logitech Z-5500 5.1 Speakers
- Seems like a quite good first 5.1 PC system for me. Though figuring out how exactly I'm gonna do 5.1 in my room is going to be a pip, but I think it can be done. =oP
SilverStone TJ09-SW Case
- I keep trying to convince myself to go with a smaller TARDIS-like case that's roomly enough (perhaps a Lian-Li), but people keep convincing me this is one of the ultimate cases out there. So, it may be big, but it looks beauuuutiful. And I think it should keep everything cool. I just may have to put it beside my desk instead of under it... Hah.
3X SilverStone FN121 Fan
- Additional fans for the extra slots my case offers. I may not be overclocking, but I'm a big fan of ample cooling. This should give the case alone five fans plus all the component fans, so I think I should be running nice and cool.
PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Crossfire
- Alright, I'll be perfectly blunt. I like the red, and it's one of the best reviewed PSU's to boot. (Actually, I adored the copper, but I'm not seeing that around anymore). I should think 750 watts will be plenty for this system and hopefully future processor, RAM, and single video card upgrades. I'd probably want more if I went SLI (not an option) or CrossFire, but I don't really anticipate doing that. Also, this PSU seems to have a really good reputation. The only thing I don't like about it is that it's not modular, which might mean messier cables. For that reason, I'd consider the Silverstone Modular 750W offering, but I'm thinking the PC&P really is the way to go, and supposedly non-modular's are more solid anyhow (if you believe PCP&P's claims).
APC Back-UPS RS BR1500 LCD
- Love the LCD on this, and I think it should have sufficient power for my needs, hopefully with upgrades in the future as well.
BenQ FP241WZ 24" Monitor
- I wanna go 24" and this really looks like my best option. I was going to go with the Dell WFP2407-HC, but it has bad ghosting issues apparently that haven't been fixed, and I do want to game, so this looks like my best option. HP apparently has one too, but...neh...haven't had good experiences with HP in the past.
Saitek Eclipse II Keyboard
- Looks like my best bet. I want backlit and gaming but still compact. Considered the G15, and it looks very nice, but I think it would just take up too much space. I have one of those desks with a pullout drawer and want to keep the keyboard and mouse on that (29" wide). The new G15 is more compact, but unfortunately it seems impossible to get accurate dimensions on this compared to the Saitek Eclipse II, and I would think from the pics the G15 would STILL have to be larger.
Microsoft Habu Laser Mouse
- I want a mouse that's simple enough (some of these new gaming look too complex), wired, preferably backlit, and comfy. I've always used Microsoft mice, and I like the looks of the Habu, so I'm thinking it may be perfect for me. Other suggestions welcome. Probably Ratpadz XT mousepad to go with it.
Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate 64-Bit OEM
- May as well go 64-bit, especially with the extra RAM. I know XP is still popular, but the fact is, Vista is maturing, I want to be able to run DX10, and it just seems like this is the only logical choice. I'd love to wait for SP1, but that's going to be a bit yet, and at least a lot of the initial problems are starting to get resolved.
Thanks again all for any/all advice/recommendations!
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