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Final review before I buy.

R

rjop455

n00b
Joined
Nov 22, 2005
Messages
31
CPU:: AMD Athlon 64 X2 6400+ Windsor 3.2GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Processor = $209.99.
Memory: G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel X 2 = $131.98.
Video Card: POWERCOLOR 2900 XT 1GB Radeon HD 2900XT 1GB 512-bit GDDR4 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported = $499.99.
Case: RAIDMAX Sagitta ATX-921WBP Black/Silver = $79.99.
Power Supply: XION Supernova XON-600F14R-201 ATX12V 600W = $109.99.
Hard Drive: Western Digital Raptor X WD1500AHFD 150GB 10,000 RPM 16MB Cache Serial ATA150 Hard Drive X 2 = $369.98.
MotherBoard: ASUS M2R32-MVP AM2 AMD 580X CrossFire ATX AMD Motherboard = $119.99.

Total: $1,521.91.

The only I wasn't sure of is if that motherboard is good enough. If anyone else knows off any really good Crossfire motherboards let me know.
 
I would go Intel with that budget,

Q6600/e6850
Gigabyte DS3R
Corsair 520w
Either a GTS 320mb or 640mb.

Also, drop one or both of those Raptors, they just aren't worth the price premium.
 
+1 to Robo, espcially about the Raptors. No reason to waste money on them when you can get nearly the same perfomance out of Seagate .10's
 
i dont understand why you would drop $500 on 2900xt over 8800 gtx
 
clock for clock 939 vs am2 there's not much difference besides ddr2 memory, with that budget go for what robo advised.

intel e6750 $200 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115029
giga DS3R $130 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128050
gskill 2g ddr2800 set $70 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16820231098
evga 8800gts 640mb $345 AR http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150204
seagate 320gb (OS) + seagate 750gb 7200.10 sataII drives $200
case + ps - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129024 - $100 AR
samsung sata burner http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151153 - $35

total for kickass system approx $1100 versus your $1500 am2 system. If i had reason to build another, my exact components.
 
2x500GB WD's or Seagate .10's..Over 3x the space for about 1/2 the price. Seagate's have the warranty edge for sure, but TBH I find my 7200.10 far louder (seeks, alot since my main rig is a folder and does other tasks 24/7 as well) than my WD 250GB AAKS, or either of my old 80GB SE's - easily identifiable over my fans, and can't hear my other drives. If you *insist* on a Raptor, I'd get 1 for boot drive, and a large capacity WD/Seagate for storage/etc.

Ditch the PSU, it's a POS (likely). I have a HARD time trusting any PSU that doesn't have a UL # listed. Ditto on the Corsair recommendation, it's not the only good PSU out there, but they seem to be very reliable, good support (Corsair reps post here).... 5 year warranty to boot, not much more expensive (AR ~$80-90 if you look around) than that one you chose.

I would also go Intel, unless you want to wait for Phenom - AM2 just can't match Intel in power draw or overclockabilty. And I like my abit IP35 Pro, but that's a decent clip more expensive than the AM2 board you quoted @ $150 (AR) -180ish. There are less expensive models ranging from $80-110 (AR, IP35-e and IP35 'vanilla' respectively). Only real differences between the 3, different heatsink arrangements, no eSATA on lower 2, no RAID on the ip35-e, nor second x16 pci-e slot (x4 in usage tho, can apparently be used for a RAID card from what I hear) for either lower model.

I don't understand dropping $500 on that slow power hog known as R600 either, unless maybe you *must* do GPU folding or something. Personally, I'd save $100+ and go w/ a GTS640 (or 320 even depending on your eye candy reqs and resolution used), and see what rolls around springtime (in either side)..Or wait a couple weeks and see if the rumors of what's happening for ATI/NVIDIA are true.

And lastly, that case is fugly IMO. Check out the Coolermaster RC-690 for about the same price (cheaper if you find it w/ a MIR - performance-pc's has it @ $80 w a $20MIR ($60) thru the 31st)). Comes w/ 3x120s (1 or 2 blue LED), max of 7 fans (4 of which (I think) up to 140mm, 2x120, 1x80 mounted to the rear of the motherboard tray. If you must have blue bling-ification, just grab some LED fans from jab-tech, petra's, p-pcs, etc. And there's apparently a windowed version of the CM 690 available for ~$5 more, but I can't seem to find it.

[edit] Oh, and not my cup of tea, but the Antec combo is a decent setup - Seasonic OEM PSU (like the Corsair) I believe, but not as good of a heritage as it were....And it's $80 AR, not $100 :). Overall, given the budget, I'd spend a bit more and go for the CM/Corsair case/psu..Better bang for the buck case IMO, and overall better PSU (features, warranty and so on).
 
Alright thanks for the tips, even so I really like AMD, but as I want performance I'll take into consideration everything you guys have said. :D
 
crashthenet44 said:
+1 to Robo, espcially about the Raptors. No reason to waste money on them when you can get practically the same perfomance out of Seagate .10's
Click to expand...

I have yet to see "practically the same performance" from a 7200 RPM drive versus the Raptor in single user applications (gaming, which I assume is the intended use here considering graphics card). Hitachi's 1TB drive is one exception, but that's not really apples to apples in cost now is it? Care to share these benches? From what I have seen of 7200.10's, WD 7200 RPM drives run faster in single user apps.
 
Get a 8800gtx....going the other way would just be retarded, yeah it does have the g memory but the 8800 serious is ten times better and more effective
 
Yeah, if you strap a big block V8 to a Pinto, you still have a piece of shit Pinto. The 1GB memory does squat for R600's performance.
 
CPU: Intel E6750 - $200
MOTHERBOARD: ABIT IP35 Pro - $160
RAM: 2GB Patriot Extreme Performance or G.Skill PC2-6400 - $60
VIDEO: eVGA 8800GTS 640mb - $450
CASE: Antec P182/180 - $130
HDD: Seagate 320GB + WD 500 - $205
DVD-RW: Lite-On or Samsung 20X - $35
PSU: Corsair 620HX - $170

Done.
Total (before tax + shipping) = $1410
 
CPU: QR6600 - $275
MOTHERBOARD: ABIT IP35 Pro - $160
RAM: 2GB Patriot Extreme Performance or G.Skill PC2-6400 - $60
VIDEO: eVGA 8800GTX 768mb - $525
CASE: Antec P182/180 - $130
HDD: Seagate 320GB + WD 500 - $205
DVD-RW: Lite-On or Samsung 20X - $35
PSU: Corsair 620HX - $170

Total - $1560

$40 more than your original post, but a badass system indeed.
 
78MB/s: WD Raptor WD1500ADFD 150GB, $160AR
65MB/s: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS 320GB, $80
65MB/s: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3300620AS 300GB, $60
52MB/s: WD Caviar SE16 WD2500KS 250GB, $70
112MB/s: RAID0 'cuda's, 600GB total, $120 (ICH9R on P35-DS3R)

As you can see, the 'cuda is twice the size and half the cost, for nearly the same performance. Stick them in RAID0, and you've got an even more cost effective solution. Though, the seek time of the Raptor can't be beat. If you have cash to burn, do so on a Raptor if you really want it. Otherwise, there are better cost effective solutions. Just know that when buying a Raptor, you're paying double the price for less space and more speed, which will only shave seconds off your load times.

SLI > Crossfire, but what size monitor do you have?
 
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