Building A New Pc

[Kevnvek]

I can't see any specs on the first sound option, "3D Premium Surround Sound Onboard". Do you think that would support my Trittons?

[Skylark95]

I just want this to say shipped so badly... lol

[Dateranoth]

I can't see any specs on the first sound option, "3D Premium Surround Sound Onboard". Do you think that would support my Trittons?

It's some form of onboard sound which should be fine. It will likely have either an optical or coax digital output and then analog output for 5.1 . Shouldn't be an issue. I doubt I'll be on tonight. I'm having a pretty bad day, and I have to take care of some things.

[Kevnvek]

Sorry to hear you're having a bad day. It was alright though, I kind of did some googling, looked at the specs, talked to Skylark a bit, and figured out which options to change. Went with the 1000w power supply to be on the safe side, and got a little bit better motherboard that supports SATA 3's 6Gbps to get the full advantage of the hard drive, which was upgraded to a SATA 3 version for free.

It was kinda pricy, tax and shipping added 250 freaking dollars on top of what would have been a $1433 unit (damn California), but I ordered it, and it's going to be epic. Still probably a good deal for what I'm getting. I am now 99% bankrupt, and 100% excited for my new supercomputer that I probably won't see until near the end of December. lol

At least I'll get a $72 rebate on the Solid State Drive... sometime around the beginning of next year. lol

Also, I looked it up and for about $70 I can get another 1GB of RAM and a new hard drive to fix up this laptop to keep it around for internet browsing and mobility. With a 1000w power supply, I'd say I should only use the new one for when I want to play games, and keep this laptop on for internet browsing, to save energy. Most of the time I can put the new one in standby or hibernation so I can play on a whim.

[Kevnvek]

So here's the final build that I ordered.

Case: NZXT Lexa-S Gaming Case - Black w/ Blue Light

Processor: [= Six Core =] AMD Phenom™ II X6 1090T Black Edition Six-Core CPU

Processor Cooling: Liquid CPU Cooling System [AMD] - [Free Upgrade] Standard 120mm Fan

Memory: 8 GB [2 GB X4] DDR3-1600 Memory Module - Corsair or Major Brand

Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 - 2GB - Single Card

Motherboard: [CrossFire] ASUS M4A87TD EVO -- AMD 870 w/ 2x PCI-E 2.0 x16

Primary Hard Drive: 30 GB Kingston SSDNow V Series MLC SSD - Single Drive

Full system specs

[Dateranoth]

Looks like a pretty good build Kevin. I've looked into the Phenom X6's and they're great cpus. There's not enough info as to what GPU that is, but it should be just fine. The 1000watt psu will be more than enough and should give you ample room to upgrade. I see you have water cooling so you should pay attention to that. It should be a closed loop system that requires no maintenance, but it's worth making sure. Will give you the ability to overclock should you choose to.

[Dateranoth]

Well, I have me a fancy SSD that should be here tomorrow! Can't very well recommend you guys get them and not have one of my own

[Kevnvek]

Well, I have me a fancy SSD that should be here tomorrow! Can't very well recommend you guys get them and not have one of my own

lol

So what will the capacity on your new SSD be?

[Dateranoth]

120GB Same model as the one Sky ordered. Just more space.

[Kevnvek]

So after some googling and research, I'm starting to think I picked the wrong graphics card. The ATI Radeon 6870 appears to be the same price atm, but I hear that it's better than the NVidia GTX 460. Also, it looks like SLI is meant for the GTX 460, and Crossfire is for the 6870, and the motherboard I picked was crossfire. Will I not be able to use dual cards later on if I ever get another?

I know the system will still be great, but in terms of which card I could have gotten, and potential future expansion, I think the 6870 might have been better. I wonder if it's possible to change it, assuming the price is the same, since it doesn't say it's being built yet?

[Dateranoth]

So after some googling and research, I'm starting to think I picked the wrong graphics card. The ATI Radeon 6870 appears to be the same price atm, but I hear that it's better than the NVidia GTX 460. Also, it looks like SLI is meant for the GTX 460, and Crossfire is for the 6870, and the motherboard I picked was crossfire. Will I not be able to use dual cards later on if I ever get another?

I know the system will still be great, but in terms of which card I could have gotten, and potential future expansion, I think the 6870 might have been better. I wonder if it's possible to change it, assuming the price is the same, since it doesn't say it's being built yet?

The motherboard should be able to do SLI just as well as Crossfire. Only real requirement is the extra pci express slot. Compared to a stock 460 the 6870 is probably better.

[Kevnvek]

Compared to a stock 460 the 6870 is probably better.

Alright thanks. But does that apply to the 2GB 460 as well? All the comparisons I've found were comparing the 6870 to the 1GB 460. Supposedly the extra VRAM will only add a couple frames per second in most games, but will come to the most use for large image/rendering files in photoshop and the like.

Either way, I think the insane 6 core processor will pick up the slack if the GPU is a little weak for certain games at high resolutions.

I'm not sure if the 6870 is more or not, from the looks of it it might actually add $40, which I couldn't really afford, and I hear the improvement isn't that big, somewhere like 20% at most?

I think the main thing is that the 6870 is newer. Would there also maybe be a benefit for having both an AMD processor and GPU?

[Dateranoth]

Alright thanks. But does that apply to the 2GB 460 as well? All the comparisons I've found were comparing the 6870 to the 1GB 460. Supposedly the extra VRAM will only add a couple frames per second in most games, but will come to the most use for large image/rendering files in photoshop and the like.

Either way, I think the insane 6 core processor will pick up the slack if the GPU is a little weak for certain games at high resolutions.

I'm not sure if the 6870 is more or not, from the looks of it it might actually add $40, which I couldn't really afford, and I hear the improvement isn't that big, somewhere like 20% at most?

I think the main thing is that the 6870 is newer. Would there also maybe be a benefit for having both an AMD processor and GPU?

The only real advantage the extra GB of ram will add as far as gaming is when you're using really high resolutions or very large textures. Like Oblivion for PC has some major texture overhalls and they require a lot of VRAM. You'll be fine with the 460 and shouldn't have a problem putting them in SLI in the future, except maybe finding another 2gb one when the time comes.

There wouldn't be any advantage to having matching cpu and gpu manufacturers. I suggest that you stop worrying and leave it be. Welcome to the world of high performance pc gaming. It's always changing. You'll be happy with what you got.

[Kevnvek]

lol it's what I do. Thanks for the answers though.

Games like Oblivion running on max texture settings are exactly what I intend to do with the system, so the 2GB 460 will be fine for me. I think my Xbox is going to be jealous of this thing either way lol.

[Dateranoth]

lol it's what I do. Thanks for the answers though.

Games like Oblivion running on max texture settings are exactly what I intend to do with the system, so the 2GB 460 will be fine for me. I think my Xbox is going to be jealous of this thing either way lol.

Graphics wise most certainly. I reread what I wrote and it seemed snappy. lol, I was just stating the sad truth that you can never be caught up with all this changing hardware.

[Kevnvek]

Graphics wise most certainly. I reread what I wrote and it seemed snappy. lol, I was just stating the sad truth that you can never be caught up with all this changing hardware.

That's fine.

I do ask

of questions. lol

[Skylark95]

Posting from a new pc.... will post pics later

[Kevnvek]

Posting from a new pc.... will post pics later

Good stuff. You'll have to let us know how it runs for you.

I have a suspicion I might not be seeing mine until close to the beginning of January since the status hasn't been updated in days, and probably a lot of people ordered from iBP on Black Friday. And that's if I don't decide to change the graphics card lol.

[Kevnvek]

Well... I couldn't leave well enough alone and ended up changing the GPU to the Radeon 6870. It will probably be here around the beginning of January now instead of the end of December.

I was hoping it wouldn't add as much, but it added $90. Although the tax was recalculated and the order came out to $20 less than on the confirmation, so it will really only add 70, and I've worked a bit in the past week, and will be some more this week, so I can afford it.

Looking at the stats, it's pretty much all around better. The extra gig of VRAM on the 460 won't be useful at all since the card isn't really powerful enough to handle it anyways, unless I do multiple monitors. The only thing that's lower is the shader clock, but the 6870 seems to have 3x the shaders anyways, compared to a 1GB 460.

http://www.hardwares...ard-Review/1128

The Palit 460 2GB had too many reviews saying it overheats, whereas the 6870 doesn't, and one of the main benefits is that this card will be newer. I want to make sure I'm getting a great system, so I don't really want an off-brand GPU. It was kind of a rush decision to get the order in on Black Friday, but now it should be all set since I've changed it.

[Dateranoth]

Well... I couldn't leave well enough alone and ended up changing the GPU to the Radeon 6870. It will probably be here around the beginning of January now instead of the end of December.

I was hoping it wouldn't add as much, but it added $90. Although the tax was recalculated and the order came out to $20 less than on the confirmation, so it will really only add 70, and I've worked a bit in the past week, and will be some more this week, so I can afford it.

Looking at the stats, it's pretty much all around better. The extra gig of VRAM on the 460 won't be useful at all since the card isn't really powerful enough to handle it anyways, unless I do multiple monitors. The only thing that's lower is the shader clock, but the 6870 seems to have 3x the shaders anyways, compared to a 1GB 460.

http://www.hardwares...ard-Review/1128

The Palit 460 2GB had too many reviews saying it overheats, whereas the 6870 doesn't, and one of the main benefits is that this card will be newer. I want to make sure I'm getting a great system, so I don't really want an off-brand GPU. It was kind of a rush decision to get the order in on Black Friday, but now it should be all set since I've changed it.

lol, I knew you wouldn't be able to leave it be.

[Kevnvek]

lol, I knew you wouldn't be able to leave it be.

Well I'm glad I did. From all that I've heard, it will be a better card. The mere fact that the 6870 is a very new unit, and the 460 came out a couple years ago, should give it an edge. Newer doesn't always equal better, but in terms of technology it can make a difference.

If I don't get the system in a couple weeks and you start your giveaway, I'll probably end up streaming something like Torchlight.

[Dateranoth]

Well I'm glad I did. From all that I've heard, it will be a better card. The mere fact that the 6870 is a very new unit, and the 460 came out a couple years ago, should give it an edge. Newer doesn't always equal better, but in terms of technology it can make a difference.

If I don't get the system in a couple weeks and you start your giveaway, I'll probably end up streaming something like Torchlight.

460 a couple of years ago? A few months you mean. It released around July. The 6870 is about 8% faster than the stock 460 though. Probably on par with the Overclocked editions.

As far as the giveaway. You may make it yet. I'm working 70 hours a week or more until Christmas so I haven't had the time to really put it together.

[Kevnvek]

460 a couple of years ago? A few months you mean. It released around July. The 6870 is about 8% faster than the stock 460 though. Probably on par with the Overclocked editions.

As far as the giveaway. You may make it yet. I'm working 70 hours a week or more until Christmas so I haven't had the time to really put it together.

I must've been looking at the wrong dates. I saw a forum with 2007 on it talking about the 460s, but maybe I was looking at the join dates lol.

I did a crapton of googling so some skimming may have been involved.

[Kevnvek]

The system has been packaged and is waiting to be shipped! Since it's only two days after I called and asked to change the GPU, I'm not sure if it actually got changed because there should have been more of a delay, but either way I can't wait to get my new system.

EDIT: Just got the tracking info, and it says it's actually estimated to be here by Friday! So it's nice that the shipping is fast since I live in the same state, but California tax was still a b****.

EDIT2: And I just called to confirm, and they say they did change the GPU. I don't think they charged for it yet either. I hear sometimes they upgrade your parts for free, which would be awesome, but I think most of those cases are for compatibility and things like a PSU without enough power, that they upgrade so they don't have to deal with the user having problems with the system and shipping it back.

[Kevnvek]

This is why I wanted to change the GPU: I keep seeing benchmark tests showing significant improvements in framerate of the 6870 versus the standard 1GB GTX 460 (which actually has slightly higher clock speeds than the 2GB Palit). I'd say a difference of 10 fps is very nice.

http://www.techspot.com/review/325-amd-radeon-6870/page6.html