Building new system, higher than normal requirements

J

JeanPaul

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Oct 21, 2007
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Okay so I have about $2000 and I want to go with AMD so when they release the new Phenom early in 2008, I am good to go, as it uses the AM2 socket. The catch is that I need (yes, NEED :p ) Crysis running with maxed settings at 2560 x 1600 (Dell 30") will this system do just that?

AMD Athlon 64 X2 6400+ Windsor 3.2GHz Socket AM2 x1 ($209.99)

ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe AM2 NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI MCP ATX AMD x1 ($129.99)

EVGA 768-P2-N831-AR GeForce 8800GTX 768MB 384-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 x2 ($1,099.98)

CORSAIR XMS2 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) x1 ($259.00)

PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad (Crossfire Edition) EPS12V 750W x1 ($179.99)

Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme CPU Cooler x1 ($64.99)

Scythe S-FLEX SFF21F 120mm Case Fan x1 ($24.99)

Arctic Silver Ceramique Thermal Compound x1 ($4.99)
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Shipping: $23.99

Grand Total: $1,997.91

I would be using my pre-existing harddrives (unless you think thats a bad idea) and I have everything else I need, as in tower, keyboard, mouse, monitor, ect ect.

With all that said, is this a good idea to get an AMD and wait for the Phenom? Or should I just go all out right now with current processors? INFORM ME
 
You'll want an NForce 590 SLI instead of the 570, with 32 PCI-E lanes.

See if you can find one thats AM2+, since the new CPUs should be AM2+. While they will be compatible with AM2, some things won't be available to AM2 boards... its just common sense.
 
there are no am2+ boards available yet, only the amd 700 series chipsets and the nvidia nforce 700 series chipsets will support am2+.
am2+ basically adds support for split power lanes, hyper transport 3, and pci-e 2. Nothing you need to worry about.
but yeah, get a 590sli board if you want to buy an amd based computer before the new amd or nvidia chipsets come out.

edit: just to be clear, i think it would be better to WAIT for the new chipsets, as then you can be sure the board will work with your phenom. (I currently have the foxconn 590sli board, and if they don't release a bios update to be compatible with phenoms, i might be screwed)

p.s.s.- I really would go with 2 of the Foxconn 8800gtx OCs ...cheaper, faster, just as dependable. :)
 
shuffle2 said:
there are no am2+ boards available yet, only the amd 700 series chipsets and the nvidia nforce 700 series chipsets will support am2+.
am2+ basically adds support for split power lanes, hyper transport 3, and pci-e 2. Nothing you need to worry about.
but yeah, get a 590sli board if you want to buy an amd based computer before the new amd or nvidia chipsets come out.

edit: just to be clear, i think it would be better to WAIT for the new chipsets, as then you can be sure the board will work with your phenom. (I currently have the foxconn 590sli board, and if they don't release a bios update to be compatible with phenoms, i might be screwed)

p.s.s.- I really would go with 2 of the Foxconn 8800gtx OCs ...cheaper, faster, just as dependable. :)
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I am not sure about Foxconn and I am more inclined to go with the EVGA just because they get rave reviews everywhere I check.

But as for what you said about the Bios update, are you saying that you arent sure if your current hardware will be compatible with the new Phenoms?
enginurd said:
You'll want an NForce 590 SLI instead of the 570, with 32 PCI-E lanes.
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Oh thanks for that, I didnt notice.

And as for the overall system, will it be powerful enough to meet my requirements?
 
shuffle2 said:
there are no am2+ boards available yet, only the amd 700 series chipsets and the nvidia nforce 700 series chipsets will support am2+.
am2+ basically adds support for split power lanes, hyper transport 3, and pci-e 2. Nothing you need to worry about.
Click to expand...

Then what this then?
Biostar TF560+ Nvidia nForce 560 Motherboard - $80

Anyway, JeanPaul, I know your requirements are steep but seriously ditch the 6400+. It's not a good buy in terms of price to performance. I recommend dropping down to the 6000+ instead:
AMD Athlon64 X2 6000+ CPU - $157

Also, I recommend waiting till the benchmarks for Crysis comes out before deciding on GTX SLI. Also remember that, according to rumors so do take it with a grain of salt, the 8800GTX/Ultras replacements are due in January or Q1 08 meaning that probably after two months, you could have the the option of getting a single card that could potentially outperforms 8800GTX SLI or even 8800Ultra SLI. Just food for though. But remember that its just a possibility and the new cards could be slower than the older high-end cards.

I can't comment on whether or not that system can run Crysis at 2560 x 1600 because
A) It hasn't come out yet, so no official/real benchmarks with the actual released game yet
B) Conflicting or incomplete posts/reports on what hardware one needs for Crysis at certain resolutions and settings. (Then again, those posts/reports were for the MP beta so connection speeds does play a factor in that as well as optimization and driver issues )
C) No info about whether or not it can actually support 2560 x 1600 (well at least in the Beta it can't)
 
IMO, this would be the best CPU to buy. It's without an HSF but since you're buying one anyways, it's irrelevant. Speaking of which, here you can get the HSF for cheaper. Also, this PSU will run all of that stuff fine so you don't need to get the 750W Silencer.
And that Biostar board, while supporting AM2 processors, doesn't have support for separate power planes or HT3, let alone PCI-E 2.0. It's got an nForce 560 chipset, so it doesn't even support SLI. If you do want AM2+ support with SLI, then get an ASUS board from this list. All of them will support AM2+ processors with a simple BIOS update.
 
Danny Bui said:
Huh? AM2+ is a socket type and the Biostar is a socket AM2+ CPU. Also, AM2 CPUs can be used with socket AM2+ mobos.
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AM2+ CPU's are going to have some new features that can't be used by AM2 mobos. Same physical socket, so of course they'll work. Source.

The Biostar just has the necessary BIOS for AM2+ procs already, but none of the new AM2+ features
 
PhantomFelix said:
AM2+ CPU's are going to have some new features that can't be used by AM2 mobos. Same physical socket, so of course they'll work. Source.

The Biostar just has the necessary BIOS for AM2+ procs already, but none of the new AM2+ features
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Ahh kk. Where did you find this out about the Biostar? Just curious. Always thought that Biostar board was an actual AM2+ mobo.
 
Anandtech article:"Don't let the name confuse you: while the board supports AM2+ CPUs - like many AM2 boards will after a BIOS update - it is still a standard AM2 platform.)"

so, yeah...i didn't notice you still had the corsair ram in there....i'd get these g.skill pieces instead...i have 1 of those sticks in my case, so i vouch for it. i also vouch for foxconn!

if you got that ram and 2 foxconn video cards, you'd be saving around $350.

p.s.- i'd also replace the artic silver ceramique with artic silver 5, just because 5 is easier to apply and still awesome.
 
Aren't all 8800's cards built by one supplier that nVidia picked out. Something about controlling quality easier. All the others companies just choose to attach the nVidia OEM HSF combo or a custom one + their own company's branding.

$25 for a case fan? WTF LOL
 
I'd get some Yate Loon DS12SL-12 fans instead of the S-Flex. If you want maximum airflow, the Panaflo FBA12G12L is the best option. But the Yate Loon is the best regarding price vs performance.
 
shuffle2 said:
he's only getting the fan to put on the thermalright heatsink

in other news, here is a review of the brisbane core x2 i was talking about, jean-paul: http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/10/22/budget_overclocker/index.html
it's pretty much simply awesome: will run cooler than the 6400+, has better price/performance, and about as fast.
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Oh damn, hot stuff.

Thanks for all the advice about the video cards and other points. But what about processors? Is waiting for the Phenom a good idea? Or should I just splurge on a top of the line Intel Quad core now? Or what?
 
Now that is entirely up to you. Both Phenom and Penryn are up for release in the upcoming months. Google for a couple of early comparisons between the two. In any case, if you're considering to go C2D, get a P35-based motherboard since it'll allow you to upgrade to Penryn and DDR3. As for the fan, I just suggested the Yate Loon as a cheaper option, since it'd be at the same noise level as the Scythe fan for a much lesser price. This Yate Loon gives 71CFM of airflow with a slightly higher decibel rating of 33dBA compared to the S-Flex's 28dBA. It's much lower in price though.
 
Actually, the same way the Conroe is a desktop update of the Yonah mobile processor family, the Wolfdale and Yorkfield are carry-over desktop versions of the Penryn. Note that the wikipedia page says that Yorkfield & Wolfdale are the desktop versions of Penryn, not vice-versa. And I believe Wolfdale is the dual-core version, with Yorkfield being the quad-core one. So he really needs to watch out for Wolfdale. :)
 
also check out the "extreme" version of that heatsink: here same size as the normal one, just uses more heatpipes. check out newegg buyer's reviews here i'm thinking about getting it when i upgrade to phenom.
 
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