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So I'm getting an E8400 tomorrow...

Y

Yamaki

Gawd
Joined
Dec 27, 2002
Messages
741
Hey there [H]. Long long long time member here...haven't posted in years. I hope this is in the right section.

So I've decided to head out to micro center tomorrow and get an E8400 for a new (theoretically) sub-1k gaming system. I'm going for an OC too...hopefully 4GHz.

Anyway, the last build I did was a 2x AthlonMP 2400+, which was ages ago, so I'm a bit rusty. I've been doing my research though, and these seem like really great choices for the system I'm aiming for. I was just wondering if you guys think this hardware is good enough to suit the 8400, especially with the OC.

Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 - $200 (after tax)
Some cheap 4GB RAM kit...*drool* ~$60
ABIT IP35 Pro Mobo - $180
2x Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 250GB in RAID 0 - $140
eVGA GeForce 8800GTS 320MB - $200
ZEROtherm Nirvana NV120 120mm HSF - $50
Thermaltake 12V 2.0 500W Power Supply - $80
DVD+RW - $20
Case (haven't decided) - $40

Comes to ~$1000.

So I have a few questions in particular:

1. Am I making a big mistake by using RAID 0? I don't have anything particularly important that'll be stored on these drives, but at the same time I don't want something that'll fail within the first year of operation. And I definitely would like the performance boost.

2. Is there anything I forgot? I've been reviewing the list for over a day, but I have this feeling there's something really important I forgot.I've already got a monitor/keybd/mouse.

3. Is there a mobo as good as the one I listed that's much cheaper? I'm talking a $50 difference.

I copied the motherboard from the thread in the OC forum where someone got 4GHz on an 8400, since I figured it would make a good match.

Thanks a lot guys :)

-Yamaki

EDIT: WOW! I forgot to list the ram! >.<
 
Well I don't know if everything will be bought from microcenter but I would replace the following.

250gbx2 = 500gb ( save money )
8800gts = 8800gt 512mb ( use the saved money on this upgrade )
ZEROtherm Nirvana = Thermalright Ultra or Tuniq Tower

all you can get from newegg.
 
aZn_plyR said:
Well I don't know if everything will be bought from microcenter but I would replace the following.

250gbx2 = 500gb ( save money )
8800gts = 8800gt 512mb ( use the saved money on this upgrade )
ZEROtherm Nirvana = Thermalright Ultra or Tuniq Tower

all you can get from newegg.
Click to expand...

The reason for 2 drives is RAID 0. I realize I could save a few bucks with one drive, but I wanted to go for performance :).

Also...I couldn't find an 8800GT on newegg..only GTS and GTX and Ultra. If you could point me to the GTs on newegg that'd be great.

I chose the zerotherm for reduced cost and size.
 
Thanks for linking me to the GT. I was under the impression that it was going to save me money haha...but that's fine. I'm not planning on playing anything like Crysis (okay, I lied, I at least want to try the demo).

Having an 8800GT without a 15,000rpm or RAID0 array seems like a waste to me...almost like a bottleneck. I know it's crazy, but it bugs me.
 
The Zerotherm Nirvana is just as good as the Tuniq, it's a coin flip decision at best.

Yamaki, I'm assuming you're going to the Microcenter by Villanova, so this is my advice:

- Get a single 500GB WD drive, for $99.

- Microcenter has the Tuniq there if you choose to go that route, but from what I've seen, the Nirvana is perfectly fine for your needs.

- AVOID the thermaltake PSU, go with a Corsair HX520. If you're not adverse to ordering online, there are PLENTY of better power supplies online for a lot less. Though, if you drive an extra 40 minutes and hit up the CompUSA in deleware, you can get the Corsair HX620 for $100 and it'll be tax free. Thermaltake's ToughPower is a very good PSU, their other lines are iffy at best. Corsair, Seasonic, some Ultra.. I'd research it more at www.jonnyguru.com before you buy that thermaltake. Heck, the 750w Coolermaster Real Power Pro for $50 after rebate is a decent PSU as well, if you don't care about modular cables.

- The Best Buy in Conshohocken has the BFG 8800GTs for $279.99, check the forum for a 12% off coupon.

- The Coolermaster CM690 case at Microcenter, should be $40 after rebate, VERY good case. If you dont like that look, the CoolerMaster Centurion5 has been a budget case staple for years. Love that look, too.
 
also, a hd 3850 512 card beats that 320mb 8800gts everytime. $200 on the egg for the gigabyte one with the zalman fan on it already. I scored over 17k on 3dmark06 with 2 of them on my quadcore at 3.4GHz.
 
Ack, one last thing...

If you decide to do the 8800GT from Best Buy, there's one in Delaware right next to the CompUSA, so tax free on that one as well.
 
Yamaki said:
I chose the zerotherm for reduced cost and size.
Click to expand...
In the first post, you said you wanted to hit 4GHz. That's less likely to happen with the Zerotherm.

Yamaki said:
The reason for 2 drives is RAID 0. I realize I could save a few bucks with one drive, but I wanted to go for performance :).
Click to expand...
Performance in what? In typical desktop usage scenarios and most games, the gains with RAID are trivial to non-existent. In many cases, a RAID using two smaller drives provides less performance than a single, larger and faster drive.

Anandtech's RAID vs Non-RAID Benchmarks in Games

Anandtech said:
If it is not obvious by now, RAID 0 will provide outstanding results in synthetic benchmarks but really does nothing in actual applications.
Click to expand...
 
Thanks a lot for the advice guys. I just got back from Microcenter by Villanova and they were out...although I was informed that newegg will have the E8400 for the same price as Microcenter had them, which is great news.

As for the video card, as I said, I'm trying to go for value more than performance. I'm trying to keep the whole thing sub-1k, and an 8800GT is overkill for me since I don't play any high-end games. In the end I decided to settle on a Powercolor X1950Pro since I won't be using Vista, plus the extra folding power should be really nice.

I read the PSU reviews on johnnyguru (which were very very helpful) and have decided on the Corsair CMPSU-550VX. The CM690 case is perfect, and I'll definitely be picking up one of those.

Again, unless there's an issue other than money, I'd like to keep the 2x250 drives for the RAID 0 performance boost.

Thanks again.
 
KenF said:
In the first post, you said you wanted to hit 4GHz. That's less likely to happen with the Zerotherm.

Performance in what? In typical desktop usage scenarios and most games, the gains with RAID are trivial to non-existent. In many cases, a RAID using two smaller drives provides less performance than a single, larger and faster drive.

Anandtech's RAID vs Non-RAID Benchmarks in Games
Click to expand...

Ah, I started my previous post before you posted this.

Thanks for pointing me to that Anandtech review...I was only going to change my mind about RAID 0 if there really was no benefit, and that seems to be the case, so I'm going to stick with one drive.

Hitting 4GHz is just a hope that I had. It's not necessary and I'd be completely satisfied with 3.7.

With all these savings I'm going to see if I can push it under 900.
 
get the new 7200.11 drives with the 32mb cache for the same price : )

Good luck trying to get an e8400 as well.
 
Yamaki said:
I read the PSU reviews on johnnyguru (which were very very helpful) and have decided on the Corsair CMPSU-550VX. The CM690 case is perfect, and I'll definitely be picking up one of those.
Click to expand...
Youc an get the 550VX from Buy.com for $57.99 shipped after Google Checkout and mail-in rebate. The 450VX is about $10 less.

Vendors such as Clubit and Mwave offer the Abit IP35 Pro with a $25 mail-in rebate.
 
Heck, if you just want to have a cheap video card, I have a spare EVGA 7900GS laying around that I'd be wiling to sell. It just needs a cooler on it (Accelero S1 for $20) and it'll give you comparable performance to the x1950 Pro
 
KenF said:
Youc an get the 550VX from Buy.com for $57.99 shipped after Google Checkout and mail-in rebate. The 450VX is about $10 less.

Vendors such as Clubit and Mwave offer the Abit IP35 Pro with a $25 mail-in rebate.
Click to expand...

Thanks! I haven't checked for the best prices yet, but this helps a lot.

AMD_RULES said:
I see u didn't choose a case yet. Newegg is having a great deal with the Coolermaster Centurion 5. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119068
Click to expand...

I actually did decide on a case earlier, however this deal is much better so I'm getting this case instead.

entropism said:
Heck, if you just want to have a cheap video card, I have a spare EVGA 7900GS laying around that I'd be wiling to sell. It just needs a cooler on it (Accelero S1 for $20) and it'll give you comparable performance to the x1950 Pro
Click to expand...

Thanks for the offer, but I decided on ATI for the extra folding power (I'm usually an nVidia guy).


This is going along very smoothly. If there's anything else I can improve, please let me know.
 
You aren't going to want to run F@H on your cpu and the X1950PRO at the same time. I thought the same thing you did; since I had one why not boost my PPD in F@H. I tried it with my Q6600, and actually saw a decrease in performance since my cpu was fighting with the GPU client. I posted this in the Distributed Computing forum and was told to just use the SMP cpu client.

Yamaki said:
Thanks! I haven't checked for the best prices yet, but this helps a lot.



I actually did decide on a case earlier, however this deal is much better so I'm getting this case instead.



Thanks for the offer, but I decided on ATI for the extra folding power (I'm usually an nVidia guy).


This is going along very smoothly. If there's anything else I can improve, please let me know.
Click to expand...
 
ccityinstaller said:
You aren't going to want to run F@H on your cpu and the X1950PRO at the same time. I thought the same thing you did; since I had one why not boost my PPD in F@H. I tried it with my Q6600, and actually saw a decrease in performance since my cpu was fighting with the GPU client. I posted this in the Distributed Computing forum and was told to just use the SMP cpu client.
Click to expand...

I see...that's unfortunate. I think I'll stick with the 1950pro though. I've always wanted to try the GPU client, plus the card is a great value.
 
aZn_plyR said:
Well I don't know if everything will be bought from microcenter but I would replace the following.

250gbx2 = 500gb ( save money )
8800gts = 8800gt 512mb ( use the saved money on this upgrade )
ZEROtherm Nirvana = Thermalright Ultra or Tuniq Tower

all you can get from newegg.
Click to expand...

I agree on the video card. The GT 512 is the way to go. I also agree on the HSF change. Those 2 are generally accepted as the best choices.

As for the motherboard, you could downgrade from the IP35 Pro to Vanilla.
 
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