Workhorse & Gaming PC Build

[John Duders]

Awesome, but it's really worth considering an 875K build if you can get it from one of your friends near microcenter for 200$. The 875K is a better price/performance (as well as flat out performance) part than any AMD chip if you can get it for that price.

The "friends" that told me about it are more of my online-only buddies. I don't really know them well enough to pick up something that expensive.

I took your advice and mixed it with a bit of mine. This is what I came up with:

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=19516408

Notice any bottlenecking or problems?

It looks pretty solid to me. I'll probably end up with that Dell IPS monitor you were speaking so highly of and I'll need a decent HSF. Do you think I'll be okay with just one 5850 (since that board doesn't support CrossFire)? I probably won't pick up a Southern Islands until probably late next year and don't want to be trailing really far behind when it comes to upgrading. I wouldn't mind spending a bit extra on a motherboard that supports CrossFire if it means I don't have to replace it in a year.

 

[Sp12]

I took your advice and mixed it with a bit of mine. This is what I came up with:

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=19516408

Notice any bottlenecking or problems?

Make sure you use the applicable coupon codes! Only issue is that the PSU is non-modular, which can be a hassle with cable-management and airflow, but isn't a huge issue. The modular version costs 130$, at which point the Seasonic is only 14$ more and makes more sense, so I think either the 750 non-modular or the 650 Seasonic are the best options.

It looks pretty solid to me. I'll probably end up with that Dell IPS monitor you were speaking so highly of and I'll need a decent HSF. Do you think I'll be okay with just one 5850 (since that board doesn't support CrossFire)? I probably won't pick up a Southern Islands until probably late next year and don't want to be trailing really far behind when it comes to upgrading. I wouldn't mind spending a bit extra on a motherboard that supports CrossFire if it means I don't have to replace it in a year.

Late next year is Northern Islands territory (next-next-gen architecture) The two best times to buy components are after initial release and when you need it. If you want Crossfire, then this is the x8/x8 version of that board.

I think you'll be fine with a single 5850, especially overclocked. I don't think you'll be able to turn on 24x AA, but I don't think you'll have issues with high-quality settings at 1920*1080 for a while. However, I still think the best upgrade path is a single GPU as you avoid the issues of a multi-GPU setup, namely increased power consumption, limited and game-dependant scaling, and microstutter.

And the 23in Dell IPS is nice because you can get two for the price of a single 24 However, it is by 1080 (gaming/media aspect ratio), not 1200 (productivity), not that that's exclusive or even always applicable.

The overclocking forum has a good list of quality HSFs.

And just a look into the future for a potential SSD upgrade, Q3/4 this year is when all the major SSD players are scheduled to release a refresh, with a 160GB drive expected to cost ~200$. They will also saturate a Sata2 bus, so Sata3 becomes relevant.

 

[mfenn]

The best bang/buck in the highend GPU segment right now is the 5850, I would not go with the 5870 as it's only ~4% faster per clock than a 5850. A 5850 at the same clockspeeds as a 5870 will be within 4% in game, but for at least 100$ less. I would also hold off buying a 5870 as Southern Islands are so close to launch, and it makes little sense to buy an enthusiast card when a higher-performance series is so close. I would grab a 5850 now, and probably sell it when SI comes out (assuming SI lives up to the claimed specs).

Two notes:
1. Overclocking is never guaranteed
2. There is always something better around the corner