# Parts advice



## vampyres (May 25, 2008)

Having maintained the same systems since 2000 on just upgrades I decided to quit looking to a new place to buy a custom system and just build one. Well that and I got this card as a gift XFX GeForce 8600 GTS 256MB DDR3 DUAL DVI HDCP Extreme. 

Sunbeam Transformer Case w/five fans 

Thermaltake ToughPower 700w Modular SLI Certified Power Supply 

XFX nForce 780i 3-Way SLI Motherboard CPU Bundle - Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Processor 3.0GHz Retail 

Western Digital Caviar SE 400GB Hard Drive - 7200, 8MB, SATA-300, OEM 

Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Extreme PCIe 

O261-7054 :: OCZ SLI-Ready Edition Dual Channel 2048MB PC6400 DDR2 800MHz Memory (2 x 1024MB)  

So far picked out, I am trying to stay around 1400 to 1500 and want it something that I can upgrade easy enough.


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## NeoCrisis (May 26, 2008)

Are you planning to use that 8600gts? Its going to be a HUGE bottle neck on that set up.


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## JC316 (May 26, 2008)

If you are a gamer, then the 8600GTS is a bad choice unless you want to pick up another one and SLI it. Personally, I would go with an 8800GS, 8800GT, 8800GTS, HD3850, or HD3870. Everything else looks pretty sweet.


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## blkhogan (May 26, 2008)

1400 to 1500 bucks gives you lots of options. I agree with Neo though... the 8600 is going to bog you down. I guess you could SLI it and gain a bit back. With the budget you are giving I would look at a 9000 series card to go with that SLI board. Let that new E8400 go wild with an up to date gpu.


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## NeoCrisis (May 26, 2008)

even if you SLI the 8600 a single 8800gt would out perform them. Also if you dont plan to SLI, or RAID 2 raptors and have 5 other HDD, and power a small 3rd world country theres no point in gettin a 700w psu.


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## BarbaricSoul (May 26, 2008)

here's acouple of ideas for build you can do with your budget of $1400


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## CrAsHnBuRnXp (May 26, 2008)

Is this in US money?


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## freaksavior (May 26, 2008)

assuming you have monitor, speakers, keyboard and mouse. i think a good build would be something like this






edit: that was suppose to be 64bit. its same price though


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## vampyres (May 26, 2008)

Sorry but no vista, Yeah I know I can't as of yet tri SLI XP Pro 64 bit, but no hurry here, as I got a rather large over all budget.  I intend on spending around 1400 1500 just to get it up and running I intend on turning it into a running project, leads to my next sorry but thanks but no. Antec 900 and the rest are all to small for my needs,  my current case is a 10 bay server case that I adore the room. The sunbeam is only on my list as a maybe because reviews say its a large full tower unlike the antec which reviewers say its a mid tower claiming its a full tower. 

Think I will however go with Duel 8800GTS, might go over budget to start but when you got no budget all is good.


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## freaksavior (May 27, 2008)

vampyres said:


> Sorry but no vista, Yeah I know I can't as of yet tri SLI XP Pro 64 bit, but no hurry here, as I got a rather large over all budget.  I intend on spending around 1400 1500 just to get it up and running I intend on turning it into a running project, leads to my next sorry but thanks but no. Antec 900 and the rest are all to small for my needs,  my current case is a 10 bay server case that I adore the room. The sunbeam is only on my list as a maybe because reviews say its a large full tower unlike the antec which reviewers say its a mid tower claiming its a full tower.
> 
> Think I will however go with Duel 8800GTS, might go over budget to start but when you got no budget all is good.



Not to be rude but are you one of the people who are "not going to go to vista because its not fully developed." ??


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## CrAsHnBuRnXp (May 27, 2008)

freaksavior said:


> Not to be rude but are you one of the people who are "not going to go to vista because its not fully developed." ??



That line is a load of bull if thats the case. Might as well say the same for XP too. I guess technically, no OS is fully developed so long as they are getting patches.


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## CrAsHnBuRnXp (May 27, 2008)

It always amazes me the amount of people who use "duel" and "dual" incorrectly. 

Duel means to fight.

Dual means too. 

I have the Sunbeam Transformer. Very big case. Its no mid tower. Has plenty of room and then some.


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## KBD (May 27, 2008)

I like freaksavior's build, i would just swap the mobo for eVGA 750i:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188026


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## freaksavior (May 27, 2008)

CrAsHnBuRnXp said:


> That line is a load of bull if thats the case. Might as well say the same for XP too. I guess technically, no OS is fully developed so long as they are getting patches.



thats why i asked 

vista 64bit with sp1 is actually really nice and pretty fast. i like it. i use xp mostly because of the fact i used it longer and have more installed on it. if your starting over get vista 64


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## vampyres (May 27, 2008)

freaksavior said:


> Not to be rude but are you one of the people who are "not going to go to vista because its not fully developed." ??



My husband uses Vista at work, XP Pro at home, he doesn't like Vista. Since I am dealing with any form of windows so he can use my computer I'm sticking with a version he likes.. Simple Wife logic.


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## freaksavior (May 27, 2008)

vampyres said:


> My husband uses Vista at work, XP Pro at home, he doesn't like Vista. Since I am dealing with any form of windows so he can use my computer I'm sticking with a version he likes.. Simple Wife logic.



ok. thats a good reason not to use vista. 

From what i have been told/heard (may be wrong) xp 64 is iffy. so go with xp 32 then and still get the 4gb of ram.


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## CrAsHnBuRnXp (May 27, 2008)

Last time i tried XPx64 (well over a year ago) it was incompatible with quite a few things. Namely drivers and some games. 

Didnt know you were a woman. From your reasoning, i can understand why your not going Vista. Did he use it over a year ago by chance? If so, Id tell him to play around with it again see if he doesnt change his mind.


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## vampyres (May 27, 2008)

CrAsHnBuRnXp said:


> Last time i tried XPx64 (well over a year ago) it was incompatible with quite a few things. Namely drivers and some games.
> 
> Didnt know you were a woman. From your reasoning, i can understand why your not going Vista. Did he use it over a year ago by chance? If so, Id tell him to play around with it again see if he doesnt change his mind.



He uses it right now, not sure if its just a new OS, or the OS in general that ticks him off. My only choices though are stick with an OS he likes, or kick him off my Computer. Since hes paying for my parts, I don't think the later is a great plan.


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## vampyres (May 27, 2008)

XFX nForce 780i 3-Way SLI Motherboard - Intel Core 2 Quad Q6700 Processor 2.66GHz  VS my original choice? Both are easy within my price range


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## CrAsHnBuRnXp (May 27, 2008)

vampyres said:


> He uses it right now, not sure if its just a new OS, or the OS in general that ticks him off. My only choices though are stick with an OS he likes, or kick him off my Computer. Since hes paying for my parts, I don't think the later is a great plan.



Def not. 

Lemme re-read some of your posts and provide my insights for a computer build.


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## CrAsHnBuRnXp (May 27, 2008)

Look at this one. Its assuming you already have XPx64.


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## vampyres (May 27, 2008)

Looks pretty good, think Ill double up on the GPUs, and pick up vista, just got off the phone with the hubby and he says this is my baby  I can do what I want with it.  Honestly would rather go with Linux but even with Wine running MMO's can be troublesome.  Think Ill up the  start up Budget to 2 k USD, also if you guys have ideas, my parts allowance is 1000 every 2 weeks, and this is a running project. So drop me ideas.  Right now I play WoW, Ragnarok and L2, but bored and want to Beta Requiem : bloodymare. I also play with Adobe CS2 web premium. Yeah I said play with, I bought it to build guild websites.


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## PaulieG (May 27, 2008)

freaksavior said:


> thats why i asked
> 
> vista 64bit with sp1 is actually really nice and pretty fast. i like it. i use xp mostly because of the fact i used it longer and have more installed on it. if your starting over get vista 64



I have to agree here. I've been running Vista 64bit for the last 3 weeks. No problems at all, and everything seems faster than XP. Not to mention it's better to look at.


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## NeoCrisis (May 27, 2008)

if you want a full tower case get either any Silverstone full tower case or Lian-Li V2000B/ Tagan Black Pearl


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## freaksavior (May 27, 2008)

or a cooler master stacker.

and i got a legit copy of vista ultimate for sale.

see my fs/ft thread.


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## KBD (May 27, 2008)

second the stacker 830, i still regret not getting it instead of my TJ-09BW.


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## freaksavior (May 27, 2008)

if you are a neat freak with your computer like i am then just cut some holes in the back and buy a fan controller for it. those 2 things help the cable management so much.


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## razaron (May 27, 2008)

lian li pc-a71 ftw


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## KBD (May 27, 2008)

freaksavior said:


> if you are a neat freak with your computer like i am then just cut some holes in the back and buy a fan controller for it. those 2 things help the cable management so much.



I'm a neat freak alright, but my cable management is not as great as i want it to be though, the freaking PSU at the bottom makes it more difficult. I just swapped it for a modular Ultra X3 and that makes things easier but it is still a work in progress.

I already have 2 holes in the back predrilled for water cooling, care to elaborate how can i utilize them?

Already got a 5.25" TT fan cotroller, but use for temp monitoring only since my fans are single speed.


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## vampyres (May 27, 2008)

I'm stuck choosing between Lian Li PC-V2100B Case or Lian Li PC-71 Full Tower. Honestly I like the exterior on the 71 better, but inside the 2100b seems better laid out. Is coin flipping a good way to pick a case anyways? 

And freek, I'm definitly interested in the Vista, going to start buying the 4th of June so if you haven't sold by then Ill hit you up


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## vampyres (May 28, 2008)

After all the advice, reading reviews and hanging out I think I have come to a conclusion on the main build. Thank you and tell me what you think

Lian Li PC-V2100B Case 

Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80570E8400 

ASUS Striker II Formula LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 780i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard 

COOLER MASTER Real Power Pro1000 RS-A00-EMBA 1000W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply - Retail 

CORSAIR DOMINATOR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory 

Western Digital VelociRaptor WD3000GLFS 300GB 10000 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive  

XFX PVT98FYDBU GeForce 9800 GTX Black Edition 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card – Retail (X 2)

ZALMAN CNPS9700 LED 110mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler

 LITE-ON Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 20X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD Burner with LightScribe

Windows Vista Ultimate. 

I decided to spend more


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## BarbaricSoul (May 28, 2008)

Personally, I'd get a EVGA 750i ftw motherboard for about $180 before I bought a $299 780 chipset board, both are really good boards though.

I'm not sure if you need a 1000 watt power supply, I think the 850 watt model will do you good with the twin 9800 GTX's. I'm running the CM Real Power Pro 750 PSU with a single gx2, works great for me

Also, while I have no expereice with the velociraptor HD, I do have a RaptorX HD, it's the loudest piece of hardware in my tower(I hear it loud and clear over all my fans), you might want a different HD

There are several CPU heatsinks/fans that do a better job than the Zalman 9700 and cost about half the price

Even if you don't take my advise, your system is gonna kick. Make sure you do alittle OC'ing with that 8400, 9800GTX's and RAM and you'll be scoring in the 20,000 point range on 3dmark06


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## KBD (May 28, 2008)

+1 on the eVGA 750i, a solid board from what i've read. I'm not familiar with Asus Striker II, do your own reserach on that one, may be it is better. i think the difference betwen 750i & 780i is that with 780i you get full-fledged SLI with both PCI-e slots being X16, with 750i both are x8. From what i've read the diffence is not that big, i'm not sure if you'll be able to tell the diffrence.

If gonna get a 1000W PSU go with Corsair, Ultra X3, Silverstone DA or something like that. 

Definately get a better cooler, get this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233003

I think you can swap the fan if you want to put a LED one in there.

As far as Raptors, i own the regular non-X 150GB Raptor and i honestly i can't hear at all behind the low hum of my fans. May be Raptor X is louder, i don't know. But Veloci are awesome, prolly the best SATA HDD money could buy.


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## vampyres (May 28, 2008)

Ok grabbing the Cooler suggested instead of the other, think Ill stick with 780i board, reviews are good and I got a good deal on one local. Paying 200 total nib, no shipping most it will cost is a random side trip when I go into town, will check out the PSUs reviews, but I definitely want some extra power as this is a work in progress, I plan on upgrading the hell out of this system over the next 6 months, and might even wind up having to upgrade the PSU by the time I am done with this. 

As with the Veloci, If louds the only issue I think Ill stick with it. If I can hear my comp over everything else I got running in my office something is soon to be toastie, I can rarely even hear my cell phone. Everything I have read on it that is what I want.


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## spearman914 (May 28, 2008)

vampyres said:


> Sorry but no vista, Yeah I know I can't as of yet tri SLI XP Pro 64 bit, but no hurry here, as I got a rather large over all budget.  I intend on spending around 1400 1500 just to get it up and running I intend on turning it into a running project, leads to my next sorry but thanks but no. Antec 900 and the rest are all to small for my needs,  my current case is a 10 bay server case that I adore the room. The sunbeam is only on my list as a maybe because reviews say its a large full tower unlike the antec which reviewers say its a mid tower claiming its a full tower.
> 
> Think I will however go with Duel 8800GTS, might go over budget to start but when you got no budget all is good.



No vista? Then get one 8800 GS instead. XP DX9 games don't require a lot of graphics attention. Even intergrated graphics is fine for getting 20 FPS 1280 x 800 but don't take that as an advantage, you will regret.....


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## vampyres (May 29, 2008)

Grr, I am going with you guy's suggestion, glad I check things turns out my brother in law, who set up the deal was feeding me a line. The  Asus motherboard has some pretty annoying known flaws. Guess its the EVGA 750i.


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## BarbaricSoul (May 29, 2008)

KBD said:


> +1 on the eVGA 750i, a solid board from what i've read. I'm not familiar with Asus Striker II, do your own reserach on that one, may be it is better. i think the difference betwen 750i & 780i is that with 780i you get full-fledged SLI with both PCI-e slots being X16, with 750i both are x8. From what i've read the diffence is not that big, i'm not sure if you'll be able to tell the diffrence.



The 750's pci slots are both 16x, the manual that comes with the board is a mis-print. This was said by the moderators on EVGA.com


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## KBD (May 29, 2008)

BarbaricSoul said:


> The 750's pci slots are both 16x, the manual that comes with the board is a mis-print. This was said by the moderators on EVGA.com



My mistake. I thought 750i was the same as 750a where you can only run 2 cards in SLI in   x8 mode.


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