Hi All,

I've been reading up some and plan on building my new gaming pc sometime this week. My budget will be maxed at 2K, but would be great to stay below it. Also, my build is going more towards Gaming with future Crossfire. I'm not to much of an overclocker however, I would like to try it out. Also, I already had my LCD screen I will ge using.

Build so far:

MB: Asus Rampage Extreme
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131334

CPU: Q9550 Yorkfield 2.83
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819115041

It will cost 674.98 for the MB/CPU combo...

GPU: ASUS Radeon HD 4870 X2 2GB 512-bit GDDR5
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814121269

Memory: OCZ Reaper HPC 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820227356

PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready

Still need to select case, HD, cooling solution, and DVD/CD Burner Right now I'm at 1528.95.

I think youre better off with ddr2 for the price/performace ratio

I assume vista 64

Agreed...DDR3 is awfully expensive for no better (if not worse) performance. Looks like you've got plenty of money to invest in the system. Enjoy it.

Agree'd I just read some info on DDR3..think i'll pass on it. So now with that said my new mobo will be

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/forum-31-322.html
Rampage Formula plus its 100 bucks cheaper.

Are you planning to crossfire later?

That PSU will not power two 4870X2s.

Fortunately, Antec has a good combo deal going on the 1200 with a 1K PSU:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811129043
It's a decent PSU, and the combo is good at 300 bucks.

In all honesty the crossfire/SLI later when I "need it" is generaly a bad idea.

by the time you "need it", technology has mooved on.

Thats probably true for people waiting 6+ months, but I'm only waiting a 2-3 months. Plus let technology go on since its so far ahead of games and applications already.

What CPU do you prefer E8600 or the Q9550? Price difference is only 55$

What is your screen size? <24" need 4870. >24", high resolution, 4870X2. For Xfire, <24" P45 and 2x 4870 will be fine, >24" X48. You will loose up to 5% performance if you Xfire on a P45 board at 19x12 compared with an X48 board.

For a HDD a WD 640GB ($85) good value. Given you have a reasonable budget take a look into SSD's for a boot disk.

In terms of the processor for raw gaming potential dual is optimum as developers haven't made use of threading programs across 4 cores. Best value bet is an E8500 ($190). Difference to Q9550 $140

If you are planning a small OC use DDR2-800. For cooling on overclocks try an Xigmatek S1283 or OCZ vendetta, both give best results when paired with the Xigmatek retention bracket.

Hope that is useful for a start.
Jeremy

+1

I will add however that the push-pin system on stock coolers and most after market coolers sucks. Get a cooler that bolts down securely.

For the Xigmatek should I use the stock fan that comes with it? I really dont want my rig being extremely loud. As well, I plan on doing a crossfire setup later on do you recommend more case fans? I'm looking at the Cosmos S, but it seems a bit pricey. Also, is the price difference justifiable for the E8500 to the E8600?

Dan2510

1.Try antec 1200 instead of Cosmos - lighter, same size (perhaps a bit smaller), beastly cooling and quiet.
2. It seems like you have a bit of cash - i'd go for the q9550 if you're using the computer for other things at the same time - many ppl reckon Quad cores will be more useful in the future (although in 2 yrs you'll probably be thinking of buying a new one anyway). Oxerclock the Q9550, or even better, save cash and get a q6600 and an arctic freezer pro 7 and get 3.4Ghz easily....

+1 for DDR2 - when (if ever) it's price is justifiable and it has a proven track record, go for it in a year or so - DDR2 is so cheap that if you want performance, spend less on a DDR2 board and 8gig and some overclocking. Then your case will really perform...

The Xig is not loud as these things go. You could throw a Noctua on it if you liked.