New computer (again)

[kirennia]

Okay, I've got quite a few things to ask so will have to section them up. After receiving a £3000 scholarship for my course, the criteria of my final year project may well change to include exploration of multi-threading. As such, I'm now looking into purchasing a quad-core processor as well as a decent system to allow for easier debugging in what is going to turn out to be a very resource heavy while the project is under construction. I'm aiming to keep around a £600 budget but of course, I'm not wanting to waste money and am flexible to a degree as to how far to push the limit:

Processor:
Intel Core i7 920 2.66Ghz (Nehalem) (Socket LGA1366) - OEM
£230 - Intel Core i7 920 2.66Ghz (Nehalem)

Motherboard:
???

Gfx card:
PowerColor HD 4870 1GB GDDR5 Dual DVI HDTV Out PCI-E Graphics Card - Ebuyer
£211 - PowerColor HD 4870 1GB GDDR5 Dual DVI HDTV Out PCI-E Graphics Card

Case+PSU:
???

RAM:
Corsair 4GB Kit (2x2GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 XMS2 Memory Non-ECC Unbuffered CL5 Lifetime Warranty - Ebuyer
£41 - Corsair 4GB Kit (2x2GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400

HD:
Western Digital WD5000AAKS 500GB SATA II 7200RPM 16MB Cache - OEM - Ebuyer
£51 - 500GB SATA II 7200RPM 16MB Cache

OS:
Windows Vista 32bit or 64bit...both avaliable for free

1)In the information part of the processor description, it details the ability to use 8 'threads'. Would I be correct in assuming that while programming, I can as a result make use of 8 threads. I know this sounds silly but until today I was always under the impression 1 core = 1 thread. Am programming in c++ if that'll make any difference.

2)The motherboard. Am I going to need to buy an expensive motherboard? This is one area I've always been weak on, knowing which processor will work with each motherboard and the implications of going cheaper. I realise it's an i7 chipset which is my main worry; would I be better off going for the core2 technologies instead to stay within budget? Is there really much difference between the two?

3)Gfx card. Would I be better off waiting for prices to drop? Is the difference between a 4850 and 4870 really that much?

4)Also, with 1gb on the card, my worries also rise with regards to the ram usage in vista 32bit. What issues are there still arising for vista 64bit? I will be using this as a programming system but also play games quite regularly including older ones...will vista 64bit bring around any issues with this?

5)Case+PSU. What kind of power am I going to require with regards to the PSU and is any addition cooling going to be required while running the system at full load (no overclocking)

6)Any other glaring issues with the system I've detailed above? I've already got a monitor/keyboard/mouse and all that jazz, it's just the system I'm after


Thanks in advance; my apologies for a long post, I'm just trying to make sure the system doesn't fall flat because of some silly error I've made along the way, heh.

 

[kirennia]

5b)Could you recommend any PSU/Case bundles or seperates which would do the job well (above what would be actually required would be preferable as a precaution). I'm not after anything snazzy, just something to hold the bits in!

e.g.

Case:
XION Solaris Black (Blue LED) Mid Tower Case - No PSU - Ebuyer
£29 - XION Solaris Black (Blue LED) Mid Tower Case - No PSU

PSU:
Extra Value 550W ATX Silent Neon PSU - 12cm Fan/PPFC (no power cord) - Ebuyer
£21 - Extra Value 550W ATX Silent Neon PSU - 12cm Fan/PPFC (no power cord)

And by no power cord I would presume they mean no kettle lead...

 

[inactionman]

First problem, if you want i7, you'll need a X58 mobo, which means you need DDR3, altogether it's not cheap! TBH you'll go over your budget just on these three components.

Get a Q8200, with a P45 mobo (maybe one of these) and 4Gb maybe 8Gb of DDR2. It will work out much cheaper!

As for the rest, 4850 is a good graphics card, the drive is fine, although you may want more space. Don't skimp on the psu, a lot of weird PC problems/failures are due to crappy underpowered cheap PSU's! Get one of these, preferably the next one up if you can afford it.

As for hyperthreading, forget about it, stick to physical cores, it's a bit of a bodge at best really. Make sure to go for 64-bit Vista, although to get best use out of it your IDE/compiler will need to be 64-bit as well.

This is a pretty good case. You might also want to get a SATA DVD burner.

 

[kirennia]

Thanks a lot for the info inactionman (repped ofc), much appreciated... was wondering about the i7 kits; I realise by the time I'm looking for another pc upgrade times will have moved onto them so this system is working on the basis of future mid-range upgrades (potential for dual cards/more ram), quad core requirements, a good graphics card and all round huggability in applications and games.

Novatech -

motherboard - Asus P5Q-E - Intel P45 Chipset - Socket 775 - PCI Express - DDR2 - Firewire Motherboard : : ASU-P5QE
£120 : Asus P5Q-E - Intel P45 Chipset - Socket 775 - PCI Express - DDR2 - Firewire Motherboard

processor - Intel Quad Core Q8200 4 x 2.33Ghz 4Mb Cache 1333 FSB Quad Core Processor - Retail : novat : IL-Q8200
£147 : Intel Quad Core Q8200 4 x 2.33Ghz 4Mb Cache 1333 FSB Quad Core Processor - Retail

gfx card - HIS Radeon HD 4870 1GB GDDR5 TV-Out/Dual DVI/HDMI PCI-Express - Retail : novatech.co.uk : HIS-48701
£194 : HIS ATI Radeon HD 4870 1GB GDDR5 TV-Out/Dual DVI/HDMI PCI-Express

RAM - Corsair XMS2 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2 PC2-6400C5 800MHz Dual Channel Kit : novatech.co.uk : CSR-X644G5
£42 : Corsair XMS6400 4GB DDR2 (2x2GB) 800Mhz

HD - Western Digital Caviar Blue 500Gb 16Mb Cache Hard Drive SATAII 300MB/s <8.9ms 7200rpm - O : WD-5AAKS
£52 : Western Digital Caviar Blue 500Gb 16Mb Cache Hard Drive SATAII 300MB/s <8.9ms 7200rpm - OEM

Case - Antec Three Hundred Case - Black - No Psu : novatech.co.uk : ANT-300B
£50 : Antec Three Hundred Case

PSU - Thermaltake W0103 Toughpower 600Watt ATX Power Supply : novatech.co.uk : TT-W0103
£59 : Thermaltake W0103 Toughpower 600Watt ATX Power Supply

DVD/RW - Samsung S223F - 22x DVD+/-/RW - 8x Dual Layer - Sata - Black - OEM : novatech.co.uk : SAM-S223F
£17 : Samsung S223F - 22x DVD+/-/RW - 8x Dual Layer - Sata - Black - OEM

P&P - £5


Total - £681


It's pushed the budget a little bit but for a little future proofing, the extra on things such as the motherboard, graphics card etc is worth it I think. My first potential mid-high range computer so will be quite happy if it performs as I'm hoping, just making a post to once again ask for any comments/critisisms on the above build...hope I haven't missed anything.

Any comments, even to just say 'ok/good/bad' would be appreciated.

Thanks

 

[kirennia]

The other thing I forgot to add, I noticed the 4850 512mb version is some £80 cheaper then the 4870... what sort of difference could I expect from them both? £80 worth? Putting it into perspective, I could get 2x4850 for only £30 more then the 4870 (not going to, just pointing it out) so is the difference really that large an amount?

 

[inactionman]

Looks fine. 2x 4850's in crossfire works, and would perform better than a single 4870, as long as the game has to support it. It depends on what resolution you are running at on your monitor, but you can probably just get one for now. You can get the second later, when you need it and prices will have almost certainly dropped. The other plus for crossfire is that you can mix and match cards, so you could get say a 5850 later, and crossfire that with your 4850.

 

[Hawkwind]

Be careful about the Asus Mobo's. Last two I've had would not run with 4Gb depsite being advertised to. One of them P5N32 Sli Delux still has not had the BIOS updated to allow it. Plenty of threads on the web about them. Just make sure your Mobo/RAM combo will work.

The Corsair site is very good for this as it will state if there are known issues.

Welcome to Corsair :: Memory Configurator

Some issues with the P5Q-E Mobo and Corsair Ram in the above forum links.

 

[inactionman]

I have an Asus P45 based mobo (although it is the premium Maximus II Formula) and it works fine with 4Gb. The P45 chipset supports up to 16Gb of Ram, but good luck finding 4Gb sticks of DDR2!