Proposed hot rod 3/14/09

[aspiege]

Hi, I'm not an expert in all this but I've done some research and came up with the following build. I don't do any high-end gaming or graphical stuff. I just want a machine that will last a long time and be able to multitask lots of basic programs (bit torrent, itunes, firefox, etc.) without slowdown. My budget is big but I don't need, for example, to spend an extra $300 just to get the next highest ghz Core i7 CPU. Any advice on cutting the cost (without too much performance sacrificed) or other improvements would be greatly appreciated.

CPU: Intel Core i7 920 2.66 GHz (64-bit windows, quad-core seems to be the future, and price is low and may go down after new chips come out). $289

MOBO: Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD3R (can run DDR3 1600 Triple Channel RAM got a $25-off combo deal with the video card)

VIDEO CARD: Gigabyte Radeon HD 4870 GV-R487D5-1GD ($25 off with the mobo, it's 1GB, and I've heard Radeon HD 4870 is better value than Geforce). $300 for pair post-rebates plus a free Gigabyte mouse.

MEMORY: OCZ Flex Ex 6GB DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel (I read that 1600 is one of the optimum speeds for the Core i7, though one needs to tell the computer to run it at that speed instead of the 1066 standard). $120 post-rebates

HDD: WD Caviar 640GB SATA 3 Gb/s 32MB cache, 7200 RPM (want a fast HDD but don't need giant amounts of space. 10,000 RPM is reportedly noisy and SSDs reportedly stutter a lot, plus this one is cheap). $80

PSU: Cooler Master UCP RS700-AAAAA3 700W (Don't know much about PSUs so I figure the energy efficient certified ones were good. This is lowest wattage I found that was 80 plus Silver energy efficient, though still probably more power than I need). $160

OPTICAL: LG Black Blu-ray/HD DVD Burner SATA Model GGC-H-20L (blu-ray seems to be wave of the future. Not sure if I need a blu-ray burner though since they are $100 more). $110

CASE: Raidmax Iceberg ATX-012WB (all I know is that I want a good quality case with good air flow and cooling). $105 post-rebates

MONITOR: Acer P243WAid Black-Silver 24" 2ms(GTG) Widescreen LCD (don't know much about monitors but heard that low response times were good. I just want a nice one that isn't preposterously expensive). $260

KEYBOARD: MS Comfort Curve 2000 (ergonomic and cheap) $15

Total post-rebates: $1,480 or so plus $30-$40 shipping

 

[aspiege]

1) I don't plan on overclocking, 2) I will build this in summer of 2009, 3) my budget is around $2,000 but I can go up or down

 

[aspiege]

Finally, I'm in the US, I have no particular brand preferences but I like known quality brands, and I'm not using any parts I have now

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

Save your money and wait. An i7 for the stuff you are talking about isn't worth it even 5yrs down the road. What ever you end up with, make sure you have a good hard drive - a Vraptor would be a good choice.

 

[heyheybooboo]

**Multitasking** is more dependent upon RAMs and disk I/O. Snag a Raptor for your OS/Apps, use the 640Gb for data/storage and install 8Gb of RAMs (DDR2 should be fine).

An e8400 or a PhII 720BE is the current sweet spot. And come back in the summer when you are ready to boogie.

 

[Blain]

You'll need a quad core and fast HDs if you're using bit torrent.
Not for BT itself, but all the security apps you'll need to keep your system "clean".

 

[EndGame]

Don't allow naysayers to sway you. If you have the money the i7 IS the way to go. I'd wager to say most whom talk them down are going exclusively on synthetic benchmarks which will not always show the total benefits and not on personal expierience using an i7 system in daily use. They flat out fly in everything and even people with other "high end" systems which come over and try mine out agree. Have fun and build what you can afford!🙂

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

By all means, go for it!