Best $1k desktop

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crazjayz

2[H]4U
Joined
Jul 31, 2005
Messages
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1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Everything. Obviously basic computing (Word, email, watching movies) and some gaming. Doesn't need to be cutting edge or whatever.

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
Budget is around $1k USD. Can go up to $1.2k. $1.5 MAX including tax and shipping.

3) Where do you live?
Los Angeles, CA. And yes, I'm willing to drive to microcenter =D

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
CPU, RAM, mobo, video card, sound card, hard drive. Basically the whole 9 yards.

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
I have a Lian Li A05B, Samsung Spinpoint F1 750GB and a Corsair 520HX. None of them have to be used for this build, but I do have them.

6) Will you be overclocking?
Of course.

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
Dell 3007WFP-HC. Yes, 30" of glory.

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
ASAP.

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
RAID and SLI are what I'm mostly concerned with. Will I SLI? Maybe, but who knows.

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license?
Yesm.

So after answering that, he's the deal. My current desktop is old, very old. I was thinking of just going balls out and getting an i7 920. On top of that, I was thinking of going with 2x Vertex 60GB in RAID 0 with my current Samsung as a data drive. Now, it's to my knowledge that the dual Vertex's will perform better than a single Intel X25-M, but everyone's input is always nice. Ideally, I want to have a SOLID desktop that will last at least the next 2 years without upgrading.

Secondly, I'm also thinking of shrinking. So microATX, while not necessarily a plus, would be nice. I'm also looking to buy mostly from Amazon, due to the free tax and shipping on most of their items.

Thanks in advance for everyone's help. Any questions will be answered promptly =D
 
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Reuse the HDD and PSU:
$200 - Core i7 920 from MC
$250 - Asus P6T Intel X58 ATX Motherboard
$120 - G.Skill F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ 3 x 2GB DDR3 1600 RAM
$198 - XFX HD-489A-ZDFC Radeon HD 4890 1GB PCI-E Video Card
$40 - Thermalright Cogage TRUE Spirit HSF
-----
Total: $808 plus tax and shipping.

Case wise, up to you. Some recommendations:
$40 - Cooler Master Elite 335 RC-335-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$44 - Cooler Master Elite 331 RC-331-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$50 - Cooler Master Elite 332 RC-332-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$50 - Thermaltake WingRS 201 VJ60001N2Z ATX Case
$55 - Cooler Master Sileo 500 RC-500-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$60 - Antec 300 ATX Case
$60 - Cooler Master RC-590-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$70 - Cooler Master RC-690-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$86 - Lian Li Lancool PC-K7B ATX Case
$86 - Lian Li PC-7B Plus II ATX Case
$105 - Thermaltake ElementS VK60001N2Z ATX Case
$140 - Antec P183 ATX Case
$150 - Cooler Master HAF 932 RC-932-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$200 - Cooler Master Cosmos S 1000 RC-1100-KSN1-GP Full Tower ATX Case
$200 - Cooler Master ATCS 840 RC-840-KKN1-GP Full Tower ATX Case
$200 - Lian Li PC-V1100A Plus II ATX Case
$220 - Silverstone FT01-B ATX Case
$250 - Lian Li PC-V1200B Plus II ATX Case
$240 - Lian Li PC-A71B ATX Case
$285 - Silverstone TJ09-B Full Tower ATX Case
$320 - Silverstone TJ10-B Full Tower ATX Case
$330 - Silverstone Temjin SST-TJ07B Full Tower ATX Case
Cases (ATX w/PSU):
 
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Ouch, DDR3 prices went up... wth. :(

mATX wouldn't be recommended for i7, since they get hot, but its do-able.

Intel's still have faster random write/read, just lower sequential write speeds (top out at 80MB/s). A single vertex will outperform the x25-m's sequential read/write, but gets murdered in small writes. So yes, two vertex in RAID0 help boost the small write speeds, but do nothing for random access -- still, two is better than one. ;) http://www.alphaq.org/enginurd/hdd/ocz_vertex.html oh... and the new fw for indilinx controlled SSDs... awesomeness.
 
Thanks Danny Bui and enginurd for the replies. So far I think I'm going to be using the same case, PSU, and harddrive (as a backup drive). These are the parts I'm looking to get:

CPU - Intel Core i7 920 - purchased from Microcenter - $200
Motherboard - EVGA 132-BL-E758-A1 X58 3-Way SLI - purchased from Amazon - $272.46
RAM - Corsair TR3X6G1600C7D Dominator 6Gb PC3-12800 - purchased from Amazon - $169.99
Video card - EVGA 017-P3-1175-AR GTX275 1792MB RAM - purchased from Amazon - $269.99
CPU cooler - Corsair Cooling Hydro Series H50 - purchased from Amazon - $79.99
Hard drive - Intel X-25M 80GB SSD - purchased from Amazon - $269.00

The total comes to around $1250, which I'm okay with. My only concern right now is if the 1792MB GTX275 will make that much of a difference compared to the 896MB version. As mentioned, I do run a 30" monitor, so I think that the extra V-RAM will help out in gaming, but is it worth the $40 premium? Furthermore, will my 520HX be able to run both the 920 and the GTX275 overclocked with stable voltages, or will I have to upgrade my PSU as well?
 
Danny Bui said:
The 520HX will be able to handle the CPU OC but not an OC of the video card.

I recommend reading these two reviews of the eVGA GTX 275 1792MB to get a good idea of it:
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/evga-gf-gtx275-1792mb.html
http://www.guru3d.com/article/evga-geforce-gtx-275-1792mb-review/
Click to expand...

Hmm, seems like the extra ram isn't worth it, and I'm not willing to pony up to a 285 since i'll have to upgrade the PSU. Looks like I'll just get the 896MB superclock, dropping the system price to around $1221. Thanks Danny!
 
Dominators are overpriced. Go with regular Corsairs/OCZ/G.Skill instead, should be able to save you at least $50 -- the uber heatspreaders are not worth that much.

Hm... I guess the lower SSD prices haven't gone into effect yet. Those Intels should be $225 each.

Post pics of the build plz... would like to see the H50 in action. :)
 
enginurd said:
Dominators are overpriced. Go with regular Corsairs/OCZ/G.Skill instead, should be able to save you at least $50 -- the uber heatspreaders are not worth that much.

Hm... I guess the lower SSD prices haven't gone into effect yet. Those Intels should be $225 each.

Post pics of the build plz... would like to see the H50 in action. :)
Click to expand...

Dominators may be overpriced, but they seem to be the "gold standard" when it come to solid stable ram that OCs relatively well. I'll pay $50 bucks extra for that and their warranty alone. As far as the Intel SSD price goes, do you know when the lower prices actually go into effect? If it's soon, I may hold off until then.

Will definitely post pics of the build, and probably make a worklog thread. I'm trying out the H50 over buying a TRUE Black, partly because my ambient temp is pretty low (around 70-72F) and word is that it performs better. I'm willing to try it out.
 
How high do you plan on OC'ing? Even with $95 G.Skills, I OC'd my friends D0 to 4.2Ghz/DDR3-1680 without a sweat. If you plan on going higher, you're better off with higher speed RAM. With the H50, I'm thinking you could probably reach 4.5Ghz/DDR3-1866. You can get DDR3-1866 for $145. Kingston Hyper-X, G.Skill Tridents, and OCZ Reapers -- all great brands/models and they're already rated to run at such high speeds. I see no point in paying $170 for DDR3-1600 when you can get DDR3-1833 for even less money.

$130 - OCZ3P1866C9LV6GK
$145 - OCZ3RPR1866C9LV6GK
 
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enginurd said:
How high do you plan on OC'ing? Even with $95 G.Skills, I OC'd my friends D0 to 4.2Ghz/DDR3-1680 without a sweat. If you plan on going higher, you're better off with higher speed RAM. With the H50, I'm thinking you could probably reach 4.5Ghz/DDR3-1866. You can get DDR3-1866 for $145. Kingston Hyper-X, G.Skill Tridents, and OCZ Reapers -- all great brands/models and they're already rated to run at such high speeds. I see no point in paying $170 for DDR3-1600 when you can get DDR3-1833 for even less money.

$130 - OCZ3P1866C9LV6GK
$145 - OCZ3RPR1866C9LV6GK
Click to expand...

You make a very good point here. Hmm, I suppose I'm shooting for a 3.8-4.0. I would love to hit something like 4.5, and if the Dominators are going to hold me back, then I shall switch them out of the list. Thanks for the speedy reply enginurd!
 
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If I were you, I'd strongly consider upgrading the PSU. That will ensure that you can run everything overclocked, and also leave room for crossfire or SLI down the road. The motherboard you're buying should support a 2nd video card.

Consider a quality power supply in the 750-1000 watt range.

If you plan on gaming, then 2 video cards really helps performance on a 2560x1600 display.

Here is the cheapest 1000 watt psu at amazon. Free super saver shipping. Antec 1000 watts. They do offer a triple combo with i920, memory, and psu if that interests you.
http://www.amazon.com/Antec-TPQ-100...1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1250371656&sr=1-1

Antec TPQ-1000 TruePower Quattro 1000W Power Supply
+
Intel Core i7 920 2.66GHz 8M L3 Cache 4.8GT/sec QPI Hyper-Threading Turbo Boost LGA1366 Processor
+
Corsair TR3X6G1600C8D Dominator 6 GB 3 x 2 GB PC3-12800 1600MHz 240-Pin DDR3 Core i7 Memory Kit
=
$648 combo price vs their list price of 782.

Here's a review of the PSU.
http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/antec_quattro_1000/

The PSU is the power plant of the computer system, so I wouldn't skimp on it imo.
 
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vjcsmoke said:
If I were you, I'd strongly consider upgrading the PSU. That will ensure that you can run everything overclocked, and also leave room for crossfire or SLI down the road. The motherboard you're buying should support a 2nd video card.

Consider a quality power supply in the 750-1000 watt range.

If you plan on gaming, then 2 video cards really helps performance on a 2560x1600 display.

Here is the cheapest 1000 watt psu at amazon. Free super saver shipping. Antec 1000 watts. They do offer a triple combo with i920, memory, and psu if that interests you.
http://www.amazon.com/Antec-TPQ-100...1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1250371656&sr=1-1
Click to expand...

While this is a solid suggestion, I don't see it happening unless my current PSU can't handle the CPU OC and stock video card. The plan for this computer is to have something relatively mainstream to use for 2 years with good warranty (hence EVGA parts), then passing it onto my dad. I really don't need anything with SLI as I don't mind playing at a lower res. I suppose I'm just kicking myself right now for not buying the 620HX when I had the chance. Oh well. :eek:
 
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If you aren't using the 520hx, sell it and grab a 800+ watt PSU thats capable for future builds, its always something that you can reuse and I regreat only getting the 620hx :) 4.5 would be lovely, but even with your H50, I think temps are going to be high. 4.0ghz should be plenty tbh! Have you thought about used parts? I bought my CPU, mobo, RAM used and saved nearly 150$ on just those 3. some great sellers out there who take great care of their stuff(and guaranteed not DOA) :D
 
I've gotten my 920 up to 3.6 on the stock cooler (undervolted) without even trying as I've only had it up and running for a day. You should be able to hit 4Ghz on a good aircooler, I've seen that corsair watercooler before corsair rebranded it and it's performance was lacking. Use the stock heatsink and put together a real watercooling system, or stick with a solid performing cooler like the TRUE; even the cogage spirit looks good.

Anyway these D0 stepping chips are solid, they are crazy easy to OC...
 
Duxx said:
If you aren't using the 520hx, sell it and grab a 800+ watt PSU thats capable for future builds, its always something that you can reuse and I regreat only getting the 620hx :) 4.5 would be lovely, but even with your H50, I think temps are going to be high. 4.0ghz should be plenty tbh! Have you thought about used parts? I bought my CPU, mobo, RAM used and saved nearly 150$ on just those 3. some great sellers out there who take great care of their stuff(and guaranteed not DOA) :D
Click to expand...

Sorry, I'm just one of those people that don't like buying used parts, but I'll looking into something like the 850HX or the 1000 and see how that may affect my upgrade path and cost.

WarlordOne said:
I've gotten my 920 up to 3.6 on the stock cooler (undervolted) without even trying as I've only had it up and running for a day. You should be able to hit 4Ghz on a good aircooler, I've seen that corsair watercooler before corsair rebranded it and it's performance was lacking. Use the stock heatsink and put together a real watercooling system, or stick with a solid performing cooler like the TRUE; even the cogage spirit looks good.

Anyway these D0 stepping chips are solid, they are crazy easy to OC...
Click to expand...

I'm willing to believe that with good ambient temps, the H50 will outperform something like the TRUE. If not, well, I can always return it and get the Cogage TRUE Spirit.
 
I second Enginurd's recommendation on the RAM. You don't need Dominators to OC -- they're really just a waste of money. The thing about RAM is that it's a true commodity product, and that all decent name-brand vendors all use the same ICs from the same companies. What you get with pricey Corsair RAM is maybe a bit more testing done, and that fancy heat sink that's totally not needed (especially since you won't be going much over 1.65v on vDIMM with an i7 either.) My usual advice is to shop around (these days Amazon seems to have better pricing than newegg,) and get the best deal at the moment for 1600mhz RAM from a name-brand vendor (Corsair, Crucial, OCZ, Mushkin, G.Skill, etc.)
 
You don't need a 1000+ watt behemoth unless you're planning on an SLI setup with three GTX 285 or dual GTX 295 cards. If you really want to CYA, a good 650-750 watt PSU with at least 45A on its (combined) 12V rail and 80+ certification should cost you less than $150.
 
I agree, the HX 520W should be fine. Slightly more wouldn't hurt, but it isn't really an issue right now if you're only planning on OC'ing just the CPU. Your planned i7 system with a single GTX275, at stock speeds (both GPU and CPU), won't be pulling more than 350W at full load, so you have some headroom to OC your CPU or GPU (but as Danny pointed out earlier, not both).
 
Don't pinch pennies on hardware, go for a bang for the buck build, best price/performance parts, not just price or you will have a major bottleneck somewhere.
 
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