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Help tweak my AVA build?

B

Bobathan

n00b
Joined
May 26, 2007
Messages
13
Hi, I'm going to be ordering a computer from AVA soon, and I'm looking for some advice on what I have selected so far, and what might be a better fit for what I'm looking for.

The PC will be used for heavy gaming (most every genre), I have a 37" Westy so it'll be gaming at 1920x1080. I also do a bit of photography on the side, but that's hardly nothing. This is the build I've come up with, so far.


# INTEL, Core™ 2 Quad Q9550 Quad-Core 2.83GHz, 1333MHz FSB, 12MB (2 x 6MB) L2 Cache, 45nm, 95W, EM64T EIST VT XD, OEM
# ULTRA PRODUCTS, ChillTec Thermal Electric CPU Cooler, Socket 775//939/940/AM2, Retail
# ARCTIC COOLING, MX-2 High-Performance Thermal Compound, Non-Electrical Conductive
# SERVICE, Overclocking, Quad-Core CPU, 10-20% Performance Increase
# eVGA, nForce 780i SLI 775 A1, LGA775, nForce 780i SLI, 1333MHz FSB, DDR2-1200 8GB /4, PCIe x16 SLI /3, SATA 3.0 Gbit/s RAID 5 /6, HDA, Gb LAN /2, FW /2, ATX, Retail
# OCZ, 4GB (4 x 1GB) Reaper HPC Edition PC2-8500 DDR2 1066MHz CL 5-5-5-15 SDRAM DIMM, Non-ECC
# BFG TECH, GeForce® 9800 GX2 600MHz, 1GB (2 x 512MB) GDDR3 2000MHz, PCIe x16 SLI, DVI /2, HDMI, Retail
# AUZENTECH, Auzen X-Fi Prelude 7.1, 7.1 channels, 24-bit 96KHz, S/PDIF In/Out, PCI 2.1
# SEAGATE, 500GB Barracuda 7200.11, SATA NCQ 3 GB/s, 7200 RPM, 32MB cache
# SEAGATE, 500GB Barracuda 7200.11, SATA NCQ 3 GB/s, 7200 RPM, 32MB cache
# SEAGATE, 500GB Barracuda 7200.11, SATA NCQ 3 GB/s, 7200 RPM, 32MB cache
# RAID, No RAID, Independent HDD Drives
# MITSUMI, Black Internal 1.44MB 3.5" Floppy Drive
# SAMSUNG, Super-WriteMaster™ SH-S203N Black 20x DVD±R/RW Dual-Layer Burner w/ LightScribe, SATA, w/ Software, OEM
# SAMSUNG, Super-WriteMaster™ SH-S203N Black 20x DVD±R/RW Dual-Layer Burner w/ LightScribe, SATA, w/ Software, OEM
# LIAN LI, ARMORSUIT Black Mid-Tower Case, ATX, No PSU, Aluminum
# CASE FAN, LED Fans Maximum Package, Blue
# CUSTOM WIRING, Standard Wiring with Round Cables
# ENERMAX, Galaxy DXX Modular Power Supply, 80 PLUS®, 850W, 24-pin ATX EPS12V, Five +12V Rails, SLI Support
# MICROSOFT, Windows Vista Ultimate Edition 64-bit, OEM
# SERVICE, OEM System Recovery (bootable CD/DVD only)
# SERVICE, System Binder
# GAMING PC, Platinum Warranty Package (5 Year Limited Parts & Lifetime Labor Warranty, Express/Priority Service)
# SERVICE, Freight Courier Delivery (Package is double-boxed and shipped on a pallet)


This brings me up to about $4300, my budget for the system is up to $5000.

A few of the things I'm worried about. The sound card. I have an Onkyo TX-SR705 receiver I want to plug the PC into, and I don't want it to sound bad. Is the Auzen card decent? Am I better off going with one of Creative's card? Something different all together?

The Video card, I heard the 9800 GX2 is pretty impressive, but would I get more use out of 2 SLI'd 8800 GTXs?

I have enough of a budget for wiggle room, so don't be afraid to recommend something else completely.

Thanks.
 
Ok, are you planning on doing SLI?? If not get an darn intel chipset, for the love of god if you don't do SLI its not worth your time using an nvidia chipset.
 
I was planning on 2 8800 GTX 768's, then heard about how good the GX2s were...I guess that's not very well thought out...the board was meant for the SLI'd cards.
 
thats true, I just get mad when people get the 680/780/790i chipsets and don't get 2 cards to start out with.
 
Yea athlon... im thinkin in mine about extending my systems video power later on.. so i went with an SLI and 1 card... figuring that late next year may have a good deal on another 9800gx2 and put em in SLI then.. with all the new drivers and bios versions out for my board...thus i only got one...
 
Like other have said, unless you're actually doing SLI go for an intel chipset (X38 would fit well). Also, I wouldn't recommend a TEC cooler. They're overpriced for their effectiveness and add more heat generation to the system overall. I'd say for for the best air cooling you can or go watercooled. But considering how cool 45nm run, you're probably going to limited by FSB before temperature even on a good air cooled setup. In conclusion: Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme + Fan. I also don't know about how good that power supply is, so that may be worth looking into some more as well.

The Auzen card is very nice, you should have no problems with it. I doubt you would have problems with a Creative card either, though as I run my creative X-fi trough my Onkyo receiver, and have excellent quality sound.

Good luck!
 
I originally wanted the thermalright ultra 120, so that's a compromise I'm more than happy to make.

AVA's site offers a BFGR800WPSU, is that the same 800 watt PSU that [H] did a review on a few days back? If so, I could defiantly go for that.

How do you have the Creative card connected to your receiver? All the pictures I've seen of it show the card with just 3.5mm jacks on the back, no digital outputs at all. That's the only reason I chose the Azune card.

Also, I think I've decided to ditch the 9800GX2, and go with the 2 8800GTX's.
 
Well, pulled the trigger and placed the order. This is what I went with:

# INTEL, Core™ 2 Quad Q9550 Quad-Core 2.83GHz, 1333MHz FSB, 12MB (2 x 6MB) L2 Cache, 45nm, 95W, EM64T EIST VT XD, OEM
# THERMALRIGHT, Ultra-120 eXtreme CPU Heatsink, Socket 775/AM2, Aluminum
# ARCTIC COOLING, MX-2 High-Performance Thermal Compound, Non-Electrical Conductive
# SERVICE, Overclocking, Quad-Core CPU, 10-20% Performance Increase
# ASUS, Striker II Formula, LGA775, nForce 780i SLI, 1333MHz FSB, DDR2-1066 8GB /4, PCIe x16 SLI /3, SATA 3.0 Gbit/s RAID 5 /6, HDA, GbLAN /2, FW /2, ATX, Retail
# OCZ, 4GB (4 x 1GB) Reaper HPC Edition PC2-8500 DDR2 1066MHz CL 5-5-5-15 SDRAM DIMM, Non-ECC
# BFG TECH, GeForce™ 8800 GTX OC 600MHz, 768MB GDDR3 1400MHz, PCIe x16 SLI, 2x DVI, HDTV-Out, Retail
# BFG TECH, GeForce™ 8800 GTX OC 600MHz, 768MB GDDR3 1400MHz, PCIe x16 SLI, 2x DVI, HDTV-Out, Retail
# AUZENTECH, Auzen X-Fi Prelude 7.1, 7.1 channels, 24-bit 96KHz, S/PDIF In/Out, PCI 2.1
# SEAGATE, 500GB Barracuda 7200.11, SATA NCQ 3 GB/s, 7200 RPM, 32MB cache
# SEAGATE, 500GB Barracuda 7200.11, SATA NCQ 3 GB/s, 7200 RPM, 32MB cache
# SEAGATE, 500GB Barracuda 7200.11, SATA NCQ 3 GB/s, 7200 RPM, 32MB cache
# SEAGATE, 500GB Barracuda 7200.11, SATA NCQ 3 GB/s, 7200 RPM, 32MB cache
# RAID, No RAID, Independent HDD Drives
# MITSUMI, Black Internal 1.44MB 3.5" Floppy Drive
# SAMSUNG, Super-WriteMaster™ SH-S203N Black 20x DVD±R/RW Dual-Layer Burner w/ LightScribe, SATA, w/ Software, OEM
# SAMSUNG, Super-WriteMaster™ SH-S203N Black 20x DVD±R/RW Dual-Layer Burner w/ LightScribe, SATA, w/ Software, OEM
# COOLERMASTER, CM Stacker 830 Evolution (RC-830) Black Tower Case, EATX, No PSU, Aluminum, SLI Certified
# CASE FAN, LED Fans Maximum Package, Blue
# SCYTHE, Kama-Meter Fan Control Panel, 4 Channels, 5.25" Bay, Silver/Black/White
# CUSTOM WIRING, Standard Wiring with Round Cables
# BFG TECH, BFGR800WPSU 800W Power Supply, 24-pin ATX12V EPS12V, Quad +12V, Retail
# MICROSOFT, Windows Vista Ultimate Edition 64-bit, OEM
# SERVICE, OEM System Recovery (bootable CD/DVD only)
# SERVICE, System Binder
# GAMING PC, Platinum Warranty Package (5 Year Limited Parts & Lifetime Labor Warranty, Express/Priority Service)
# SERVICE, Freight Courier Delivery (Package is double-boxed and shipped on a pallet)

Now the wait begins...:D
 
Bobathan said:
I originally wanted the thermalright ultra 120, so that's a compromise I'm more than happy to make.

AVA's site offers a BFGR800WPSU, is that the same 800 watt PSU that [H] did a review on a few days back? If so, I could defiantly go for that.

How do you have the Creative card connected to your receiver? All the pictures I've seen of it show the card with just 3.5mm jacks on the back, no digital outputs at all. That's the only reason I chose the Azune card.

Also, I think I've decided to ditch the 9800GX2, and go with the 2 8800GTX's.
Click to expand...

Yeah, it's just a 3.5mm out, which sucks, but my receiver also isn't quite as nice as yours. The Auzen is definitely a good choice for audiophiles (which I probably wouldn't classify myself as, well maybe a really cheap one). Congrats on the new rig, make sure to give us a full review when you get it!!
 
Sweeeeeettttt :) Be sure to let us know what they get the overclock up to. I'm looking at buying a new computer in Q3 this year, and the Q9550 is currently at the top of my list for CPUs (the Q9550 is supposed to hit the $316 price point some time in Q3).
 
Holy mama :eek:

Now my new computer seems like a POS :mad:

ha ha ha ha CONGRATS please post some pics when it arrives.
 
Yea, I'll definitely be taking pictures and write up about how it all goes. I stepped into this pretty nervous, as this is going to be my first PC that I didn't build, myself. I have really high hopes though, I'm sure AVA won't let me down.
 
Way to go, we all need to keep plugging cash into the economy to keep the engine from cutting off.

Take a pic of the pallet it comes on too, that intrigues me how they strap it to the pallet.
 
I'd like to see how they package a system using priority overnight.
 
Bobathan said:
...
AVA's site offers a BFGR800WPSU, is that the same 800 watt PSU that [H] did a review on a few days back? If so, I could defiantly go for that.

...

Also, I think I've decided to ditch the 9800GX2, and go with the 2 8800GTX's.
Click to expand...

Not the same PSU, but if it makes you feel better, I use the same thing and it's solid. Also, good choice on the cards.
 
It makes me feel quite a bit better. I've had some bad luck in the past with HDDs dying on me, and finally got an APC UPS to correct my crappy city-power. Last thing I want to do is lose a drive to a bad PSU, especially a 500GB drive :p

Just got my speakers and sub ordered, should arrive in about a week, and I'll be set for one serious upgrade :D

FYI, my current "gaming" rig: AMD Athlon 64 3400+, 1GB RAM, 75GB 10k Western Digital HDD, 240GB 7200 Hitachi HDD, Nvidia GeForce 6800 GT, M-audio 5.1 Revolution, and a set of Klipsch 4.1s, minus the 2 rears, they blew out a year ago :(
 
Just wanted to give an update. Got a note from Misha a few days back that the motherboard failed and was replaced. Before that, it was possibly going to be shipped sometime last week, now I don't know when it'll be sent.

The wait is driving me crazy.
 
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