Gaming PC

[GenerationX]

Thinking of picking up a new gaming pc. Not very good with building computers or anything, but I'm thinking of a quad core / i7 with an ATi HD 48xx. Wondering if anyone on these forums could build a computer on the MemEx site between 1000-1500. Thanks!

[Wraith]

I'll show you the one I'm building, same price range... One sec :)

[GenerationX]

Alright, thanks :D

[Wraith]

Intel Core™ i7 Processor 920 2.66GHz w/ 8MB Cache
$359.99

Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme 1366 RT CPU Cooler w/ 120mm Fan
$79.99

Asus P6T X58 w/ TripleDDR3 2000, 7.1 Audio, Gigabit Lan, 1394, PCI-E, 3-way CrossFireX/ SLI
$319.99

Corsair 6GB XMS3-1600 PC3-12800 Core™ i7 Triple Channel DDR3 Kit (3 x 2GB) w/ Intel XMP
$139.99

LG Super Multi Security DVD Writer 22x DVD+/-RW Dual-Layer, Black (OEM)
$29.99

eVGA e-GeForce GTX 285 1GB PCI-E w/ Dual DVI, HDTV-Out
$409.99

Corsair HX 850W Power Supply w/ 140mm Fan
$199.99

Western Digital 1TB Caviar Black 7200rpm SATA II w/ 32MB Cache
$109.99

Silverstone KL01 Performance Tower, Black w/ Window
$149.99

Sub Total $1,799.91


It's not quite on budget nor is it the same one I'm planning on building as I'm personally looking at NCIX (Canada Day sale soon). You can find a lot of this cheaper online or you could try to price match through Memex (NCIX price match is more flexible imo)

Anyways, anything associated with i7 is pricey at the moment (ddr3, motherboards etc.), if you want the latest and greatest then i7 is the way to go but a more affordable and comparable core 2 quad setup is just as good (I like new stuff)

Video card(s) are/is up in the air, I'll probably just grab whatever is on sale or do more research...

You can also reuse some parts from your old rig to save a couple bucks (case, dvd drive, etc.)




Comparable C2Q build

Silverstone KL01 Performance Tower, Black w/ Window
$149.99

Intel Core™2 Quad Processor Q9550 2.83GHz w/ 12MB Cache
$269.99

Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme 775 RT CPU Cooler w/ 120 mm Fan
$74.99

Asus P5N-T Deluxe w/ DualDDR2 1200, 7.1 Audio, Gigabit Lan, 1394, PCI-E 2.0, 3-Way SLI
$249.99

2x OCZ 4GB PC2-6400 SLI-Ready Edition Dual Channel DDR2 Kit (2 x 2GB) = (8GB)
$159.98

Western Digital 1TB Caviar Black 7200rpm SATA II w/ 32MB Cache
$109.99

Sapphire Radeon HD 4890 OverClocked 1GB GDDR5 PCI-E w/ Dual DVI, HDTV-Out
$269.99

Corsair HX 850W Power Supply w/ 140mm Fan
$199.99

LG Super Multi Security DVD Writer 22x DVD+/-RW Dual-Layer, Black (OEM)
$29.99

Sub Total $1,514.90

You could even get a cheaper mobo, and/or get one less set of memory to save a little more.

[GenerationX]

I was looking at the Velocity system with
* Intel Core i7 920
* 6GB PC3-12800 (3x2GB)
* 500G SATA2 Hard Drive
* 22x DVD+/-RW Drive
* nVidia GTX260 SC 896MB
* Onboard GB Lan
* Vista Ultimate 64bit
* Intel X58 Chipset

Looks like your i7 build is better, and is only more expensive by 70$. Thanks!

[Xaroxantu Zero]

Instead of 1 x 1TB hard drive, I recommend 2x500GB or 750GB via RAID 0. Loading times for games dramatically decreases with it, including copying files and whatnot.

[GenerationX]

I wouldn't even need 1TB. I have 500 gb, used about 120?

[Wraith]

Then yea, cut back on the hard drive or reuse your current one. The GTX260 is poop and my build doesn't include an operating system so don't forget about that!

Search for prices on http://www.pricecanada.com/c.php/Desktop-Components-14/ and try to price match. The i7 920 is 300 at ncix

[FurryFragile]

Originally posted by Xaroxantu Zero
Instead of 1 x 1TB hard drive, I recommend 2x500GB or 750GB via RAID 0. Loading times for games dramatically decreases with it, including copying files and whatnot.

ya thats pretty nice stuff. good information. I was thinking those same lines.

[natejj]

Monitor is critical. Dont skimp on that.

http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/PID-MX19572(ME).aspx


Acer X243WBd 24in Widescreen LCD, 5ms, Black - Only $339.99

[Wraith]

Isn't raid 0 unreliable and somewhat risky? I don't really know much about raid in general

[punky]

i think its quite the opposite, if i'm not mistaking its using two drive to store information, so if one fails, the other still has it. This also increase speed.

[Xaroxantu Zero]

You're thinking of RAID 1.

RAID 0 = RAID stripe. It takes two HDDs and stores parts of a file on either one hard drive. That way, when a user accesses that file, it's reading off two drives at the same time, thus decreasing load times. Windows will see it as one big hard drive.

RAID 1 = RAID mirror. It stores the same information on both drives. Load times are the same as using one hard drive. Think of it as an automatic backup system.

I wouldn't say RAID 0 is unreliable. It's just more risky, since if either hard drive dies, then most - if not all - data will be lost.

Then again, you should be backing up your data onto another drive anyway. If you really want to be elaborate, you can do a RAID 0+1, which uses four HDDs, or two pairs of RAID 0, then set on RAID 1 for automatic backup.

More info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAID

[GenerationX]

Originally posted by natejj
Monitor is critical. Dont skimp on that.

http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/PID-MX19572(ME).aspx


Acer X243WBd 24in Widescreen LCD, 5ms, Black - Only $339.99
I have a LG 22in widescreen 5 ms response also.