yet another vet

gizz

Junior Member
Jul 28, 2007
3
0
0
Alright, I've never built a PC before, so bear with any novice mistakes I might have made. I've done a ton of research over the past few days and I think I've finally settled on the following build. When the prices on the 8800GTX drop a bunch I'm going to pick up another, hopefully tiding me over until the next PC I'm able to put together (in 3 or so years). Mostly going to be used for gaming, movies, and graphic work.

Motherboard
Asus P5N32-E SLI Plus

Processor
E6750 (Budget caps at 1800, otherwise I'd fork out the extra 100 for the Q6600)

Memory
G.Skill 2GB (2 x1GB) DDR2800

Video
EVGA GeForce 8800GTX

Power Supply
OCZ GameXStream 600W (SLI certified)

Sound
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Gamer (Don't really know about this one yet, might opt for a cheaper but comparable card)

Case
CoolerMaster Stacker 830 Evo

Hard Drive
Western Digital 120GB 7200 SATA

Optical Drive
Samsung 18x DVD/R w/LightScribe

Monitor
Chimei 22"

XP SP2 is my OS of choice.

Thoughts? Ideas? Blatant issues? Input is greatly appreciated, planning on purchasing all this stuff tomorrow.
 

xitshsif

Senior member
Dec 6, 2004
245
0
0
I was going to say the 8800GTX was overkill, and a source of money to get the Q6600. Then you mentioned getting a second 8800GTX. Completely unnecessary if you ask me. Especially at the resolution you're running.


Edit: Q6600 is only $70 more by the way Link
 

gizz

Junior Member
Jul 28, 2007
3
0
0
Really? I've read in a few places that SLI was kind of pointless, but considering I won't be able to purchase another top end card for quite awhile it made sense to at least give myself the option of SLI for when the 8800 GTX is much much cheaper and will help keep my framerates high on more demanding games.

Though I'm certainly not unwilling to going with the ABIT IP35 Pro, getting a cheaper PSU, purchasing the Q6600 (thanks for the link!) and forgetting all about SLI.
 

xitshsif

Senior member
Dec 6, 2004
245
0
0
Having the option isn't a bad idea. But planning now to upgrade something that specific in the future doesn't always work out. Everyone I've known who planned the "1 video card now, 1 video card later" strategy ended up just replacing their old card with a single next gen one because it made sense price/performance-wise. I can't predict prices or performance for the future, but I can say what I know from experience.
If anyone else has thoughts on this, I'd definitely be interested in hearing.
 

lxskllr

No Lifer
Nov 30, 2004
58,060
8,288
126
Originally posted by: gizz
Really? I've read in a few places that SLI was kind of pointless, but considering I won't be able to purchase another top end card for quite awhile it made sense to at least give myself the option of SLI for when the 8800 GTX is much much cheaper and will help keep my framerates high on more demanding games.

Though I'm certainly not unwilling to going with the ABIT IP35 Pro, getting a cheaper PSU, purchasing the Q6600 (thanks for the link!) and forgetting all about SLI.

I like these changes better, Also, I'd go for the GTS, or even keep your current card awhile if that's possible. The 8x series will only get cheaper over time, so if your current card is keeping up you may be able to get a 9x(or whatever) card for the same price.

I've become completely disenchanted with the idea of SLI. I think 1 good card is better, and you can always recover some of the replacement cost by selling your old card.
 

gizz

Junior Member
Jul 28, 2007
3
0
0
My current card is abysmal (and I'm upgrading from a laptop..so..yeah), and while a 9800 GTX is enticing I'd miss out on all my summer gaming opportunities.

So far I've at least decided to ditch the X-Fi XtremeGamer for a much cheaper card (Audigy, maybe?) and use the savings for a Q6600.

I'm still torn on giving up SLI, the more I think about it the less useful it seems to be, but maybe I'm just being stubborn.
 

lxskllr

No Lifer
Nov 30, 2004
58,060
8,288
126
Originally posted by: gizz
My current card is abysmal (and I'm upgrading from a laptop..so..yeah), and while a 9800 GTX is enticing I'd miss out on all my summer gaming opportunities.

So far I've at least decided to ditch the X-Fi XtremeGamer for a much cheaper card (Audigy, maybe?) and use the savings for a Q6600.

I'm still torn on giving up SLI, the more I think about it the less useful it seems to be, but maybe I'm just being stubborn.

I'd drop the sound card altogether. Devs aren't going to develop with EAX in mind anymore, so there's little reason to go with a add on card. I'd at least give onboard a try. If you really don't like it, it's easy enough to get one later.

I really like Intel chipsets for Intel cpus. They're more stable, and have fewer problems than some of the other solutions out there. I toyed with the idea of getting a SLI capable board, but having a Intel chipset was the deciding factor in my purchase. I couldn't be happier with my setup.


Edit: If you have to buy a new O/S I would strongly encourage you to get Vista. If you'll be reusing an older copy of XP, then I'd still recommend Vista, just not as strongly :p