new pc spec comments

thergador

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Apr 20, 2006
Messages
1,216
gunna buy me a new system here what i'm getting comments/reviews on any parts would be cool
and before peeps start with sli being better and intel etc i wanna use ati crossfire and AMD San Diego chip

case and psu
Antec Nine Hundred Gamer Case with Window
OCZ GameXStream 1kw Silent
drives
sony DVDRW sony
blueray
2x 160gb Seagate Barracuda 7200rpm raid
2x gigabyte iram 16gig raid (for os and game)
Floppy with 7-in-1 card reader
memory
4x1gig OCZ DDR2 PC2-8500 Reaper HPC CrossFire Certified Edition
FX
1x GeCube X1950 Crossfire Edition 512MB PCI-E (GC-CX1950XT-E2)
1x GeCube X1950 XTX 512MB PCI-E (GC-X1950XTXD-VIE3)
cpu
AMD Athlon 64 FX60 San Diego 2MB cache 64 bit
mobo
ASUS A8R32-MVP DLX 939
sound card
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Elite Pro 7.1 Soundcard
video editing
Studio Plus 700-USB version 10
nic
Intel PRO/1000 PT PCI-Express Desktop Adapter

any feed back is great as its a bit costly in some places but hoping it will do me for a while
 

Ballard

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Oct 6, 2004
Messages
1,711
Great PSU.

Average/good case. But for a high end PC I would personally be looking at either a 'Lian li' or 'silverstone' case. Both have great thermal dynamics.

crossfire is slower than one 8800GTX. But Im not suggesting SLI is better because its not, Sli is crap aswell. One good card is the best choice. Personally I would wait a bit for the new version of the ati 2900 which should be out soon or put a single 1950XTX or 8800GTX. And yeah I have actually tried two 1950's in crossfire before and pefer ATI cards in general.

Great ram. Very good choice. OCZ or Gskill are the two best cost/performance sticks out there at the moment.

If you dont want to overclock then its a reasonble CPU choice but for any sort of OC its disapointing at best.

Still all that said its still going to be a lightning fast PC :) just not as fast as it could be..
 

Twist

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Dec 31, 2003
Messages
243
If you dont want to overclock then its a reasonble CPU choice but for any sort of OC its disapointing at best.

Similar thoughts here - I've not looked up the components but you're clearly spending a shed load so a high-end Conroe would seem like the obvious choice?
 

thergador

Fledgling Freddie
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Apr 20, 2006
Messages
1,216
mobo = ASUS p5k-deluxe

cpu = Intel Core 2 Duo Extreme X6800, Socket 775, 2.93 GHz, 1066MHz FSB, Conroe Core, 2x 2MB Cache, Retail

what do you think of the other stuff but with that cpu and mobo?

the fx cards i have already and maybe when the 2900 stuff comes out i might swith one or both cards in the crossfire of them thats the main reason i like crossfire over sli the card dont have to be a matching pair the system can use most combos :)
 

cHodAX

I am a FH squatter
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Jan 7, 2004
Messages
19,742
I wouldn't touch AMD at the moment and I am an AMD fanboy.
 

thergador

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Apr 20, 2006
Messages
1,216
I wouldn't touch AMD at the moment and I am an AMD fanboy.

not using the AMD now going the for
Core 2 Duo Extreme X6800, Socket 775, 2.93 GHz, 1066MHz FSB, Conroe Core, 2x 2MB Cache, Retail
should be able to OC to 3.8GHz from what i have read so it should be blistering fast
 

Ballard

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Oct 6, 2004
Messages
1,711
the fx cards i have already and maybe when the 2900 stuff comes out i might swith one or both cards in the crossfire of them thats the main reason i like crossfire over sli the card dont have to be a matching pair the system can use most combos :)

- Crossfire does not work across multiple card families. You can crossfire a 1950XTX and a 1950XT together but not a 2900XT and a 1950XTX. The computer will still turn on and both cards will amke sounds but only one will be doing the work.
- The 2900 family has been released but so far only the XT variant. Which has performance in the ballpark of the slower 8800GTS family of cards. A single 8800GTX is the fastest card at the moment. The 2900XTX when it gets released should have significantly better performance that the 2900XT.
- You are better off running one 1950XTX than two in alot of cases. The power and heat output is way to high for the extra performance it gives.


Core 2 Duo Extreme X6800, Socket 775, 2.93 GHz, 1066MHz FSB, Conroe Core, 2x 2MB Cache, Retail
should be able to OC to 3.8GHz from what i have read so it should be blistering fast
:)

I should hope so, you can get much better OC's than that on the cheaper conroes, something is majorly wrong if you can get better performance on a more expensive chip. 3.8 should be an easy OC on that chip but you should still have some sort of cooling system, the stock fan is good but not as good as a good aftermarket cooler.
 

thergador

Fledgling Freddie
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Apr 20, 2006
Messages
1,216
- Crossfire does not work across multiple card families. You can crossfire a 1950XTX and a 1950XT together but not a 2900XT and a 1950XTX. The computer will still turn on and both cards will amke sounds but only one will be doing the work.
- The 2900 family has been released but so far only the XT variant. Which has performance in the ballpark of the slower 8800GTS family of cards. A single 8800GTX is the fastest card at the moment. The 2900XTX when it gets released should have significantly better performance that the 2900XT.
- You are better off running one 1950XTX than two in alot of cases. The power and heat output is way to high for the extra performance it gives.

I should hope so, you can get much better OC's than that on the cheaper conroes, something is majorly wrong if you can get better performance on a more expensive chip. 3.8 should be an easy OC on that chip but you should still have some sort of cooling system, the stock fan is good but not as good as a good aftermarket cooler.

you can mix them as long as they are the same chip ie the 1900 and the 1950 will work together and unlick sli if you have 512mb card you can use a 256mb card of the same chip which was what i ment reffering to the flexabiltity
Compatibility Charts

when i said matching pair i ment two top spec 2900 and by replace 1 or both i mean by a 2900 see what is like and i need the crossfire power then put in another 2900 and like i said before i have the 1950's already

have seen peeps oc the 6800 to 4.6ghz but the stock fan will be fine up to 3.8 (and in some case the stock fan is better than the aftermarket, not including zal etc )and the extreme of the core 2 duo version is better as it has less waste heat and use less power
but ill be using water cooling for the cpu anyway

but thanks any way for feed back
 

thergador

Fledgling Freddie
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1,216
just thought id update you guys have just order the system but have ordered two MSI hd2900xt 512mb as well ill take some pic when i get all the bits in 7 to 10 working days for some of the bits

/cry i want it now :(
 

Ballard

Fledgling Freddie
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Oct 6, 2004
Messages
1,711
I had a copy of the MSI version of the 2900XT a few weeks back. It looks very nice and has a good quality finish (semi transparent red finish all over the cooling sink). Very similar in design to their dual slot 1950 offerings, which as the case may be, is very lucky because the 2900 cards run extremely hot so really need the back vent cooling otherwise the case would get very hot.

The only negative is its alot slower than a 8800 GTX :)
 

thergador

Fledgling Freddie
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Apr 20, 2006
Messages
1,216
I had a copy of the MSI version of the 2900XT a few weeks back. It looks very nice and has a good quality finish (semi transparent red finish all over the cooling sink). Very similar in design to their dual slot 1950 offerings, which as the case may be, is very lucky because the 2900 cards run extremely hot so really need the back vent cooling otherwise the case would get very hot.

The only negative is its alot slower than a 8800 GTX :)

got an out off stock reply on the msi cards so i thought id check OCuk and guess what they got in :( bad times
yep u get it they have the hd2900xt 1024mb guess what i just order now mummy 2gig of memory just for the FX the reviews are coming in good in some case they beat the 88ultra with the new 7.6 cat drivers and they are only £60 more than the msi 512mb good times

just need to find a uk supplier for the vigor monsoon II cpu cooler then ill be a happy chappy
 

Ballard

Fledgling Freddie
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got an out off stock reply on the msi cards so i thought id check OCuk and guess what they got in :( bad times
yep u get it they have the hd2900xt 1024mb guess what i just order now mummy 2gig of memory just for the FX the reviews are coming in good in some case they beat the 88ultra with the new 7.6 cat drivers and they are only £60 more than the msi 512mb good times

just need to find a uk supplier for the vigor monsoon II cpu cooler then ill be a happy chappy

Jesus youre gonna need your own thermo-nuclear PSU to power those puppies :worthy:

Sounds like a fun system, wait for UT2007 its gonna look glorious :)
 

thergador

Fledgling Freddie
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Jesus youre gonna need your own thermo-nuclear PSU to power those puppies :worthy:

Sounds like a fun system, wait for UT2007 its gonna look glorious :)
PSU is costing £229:99
enermax galaxcy DXX 1kw

but need to find some cool CPU at mo or there a chance ill have over heating problems as that quad core runs very hot
 

noaim

Fledgling Freddie
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Jan 29, 2004
Messages
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Love these forums, in first post he says he is gonna buy a 939 mobo and DDR2 ram and people point out how good the PSU is but nothing about that he cant even use the ram with the mobo. :D

That PSU is big as hell so make sure it fits, doubt it will be a problem but if the case has a fan in the top u will prolly have to remove that.
 

thergador

Fledgling Freddie
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Apr 20, 2006
Messages
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Love these forums, in first post he says he is gonna buy a 939 mobo and DDR2 ram and people point out how good the PSU is but nothing about that he cant even use the ram with the mobo. :D

That PSU is big as hell so make sure it fits, doubt it will be a problem but if the case has a fan in the top u will prolly have to remove that.
changed the mobo to p5k deluxe anyway and the psu goes in the bottom of the case too
 

Flintlock

Banned
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Apr 27, 2007
Messages
248
System looks incredible. Funny thing is I haven't needed to upgrade my puter for at least 4 years. DAoC runs fine on my 2.4 gig athlon and 700 something ram. I would really love to have the unit you are putting together though. Awesome :). Might think about scsi hard drives though as mine are rock solid 10,000 rpm ones. Then again ide is probably so much improved now. Still I have always liked scsi hard drives. Makes the computer seem more robust and reliable.
 

Raven

Happy Shopper Ray Mears
FH Subscriber
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Dec 27, 2003
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44,617
not ewveryone wants a pc that can only handle daoc though :p
 

thergador

Fledgling Freddie
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Apr 20, 2006
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there not a scsi drive on earth that will come close to the IRAM HHD yes they only small but its not a disk its all memory

and the system use for more than just gaming m8 i do a lot off forensics research on it too as well as some media stuff ie editted video, a load of stuff with midi sound banks and re-sampling audio

and i do play other games as well but am hope the system will last me a good 18 months before i have to change any of it to play most game's on ultra high rez should have some pics soon just waiting for a few bits to get here then im all set to put it all together
 

Wazkyr

One of Freddy's beloved
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Jun 26, 2004
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may i ask what you payed for all that? After 4 years with almost same comp im totally lost in whats what, since they all got fancy names not stating anything of how good they are, to me atleast :p
 

Litmus

Resident Freddy
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Dec 30, 2003
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i havnt read the rest of the posts from the main thread starter, so if anything has changed please excuse me. But if i was you and it seems you have a huge budget, i would deffo change the cpu to atleast a inter duo or something.

I would also drop the cross-fire and go SLi, maybe 2x 8800 ultra.
 

thergador

Fledgling Freddie
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Apr 20, 2006
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may i ask what you payed for all that? After 4 years with almost same comp im totally lost in whats what, since they all got fancy names not stating anything of how good they are, to me atleast :p

spent £3179.43 but i did get my self a 22"widescreen tft

i havnt read the rest of the posts from the main thread starter, so if anything has changed please excuse me. But if i was you and it seems you have a huge budget, i would deffo change the cpu to atleast a inter duo or something.

I would also drop the cross-fire and go SLi, maybe 2x 8800 ultra.

i changed a lot have got
cpu and cooler
Intel Quad Core QX6800 2.93GHz Socket 775
Noctua NF-S12 1200RPM 120mm Silent Case Fan
Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme (Socket AM2/LGA775) Heatsink

memory
2xOCZ 2GB (2 x 1GB) PC2-8500 1066MHz Reaper HPC Edition Dual Channel DDR2 (so 4gig hence the 64 bit os's)

mobe case and psu
ASUS P5K Deluxe WiFi P35 DDR2
antec nine hundered
Enermax Galaxy 1000W EGX1000EWL ATX2.2 Modular PSU

FX cards
OcUK ATI Radeon HD 2900 XT SILENT Heatpipe 1024MB GDDR4 VIVO TV-Out/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail

soundcard
Creative SoundBlaster X-Fi Elite Pro 7.1 Soundcard - PCI Card With I/O Console and Remote

drives
2xSeagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB SATA300
Hitachi Deskstar 7K160 160GB ATA-133 8MB Cache
Seagate FreeAgent Desktop 250GB USB2.0 External Hard Drive (ST302504FDC1E1-RK)
2x Optiarc DVD+-R/RW 18x RAM 12x SATA Black
Sony 1.44MB Internal 3.5" Black

monitor
LG L226WTQ 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Black/Silver

os
Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate 64-bit OEM DVD
Microsoft Windows XP Professional 64bit OEM
FC5
also brought high quality cabling and case fans etc

also have 2 times IRAM drives and a sony blue ray/dvd-r/rw which i already had

will post some pics when i get it all done and find some where to host the pics

as for swapping to 8800ultra's both cards have had good reviews and bad reviews depends on the site tbh but ati are still saying that there drivers will improve there cards (which with cata 7.6 i beating the nvida cards by as much as 3 times) but i wanted the cards as they are fully HD compatable with 7.1 sound builtin for watching blueray stuff
 

Wazkyr

One of Freddy's beloved
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spent £3179.43 but i did get my self a 22"widescreen tft
holy mother of god. You cant be all broke, i buying a computer for like 1/10 that :p

Concerning the pics, you need an account to see them :m00:
 

thergador

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Apr 20, 2006
Messages
1,216
as promised a few shots of the system still waiting on the cpu but heres some shot's
part install
partinstall.jpg

my memory r8500 reaper
memory.jpg

case
case.jpg

few of the bits still in box
boxs.jpg
 

thergador

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Apr 20, 2006
Messages
1,216
finally got it up and running
screen capturer running xp 64bit
xpcpu.jpg

my work area
Picture005.jpg

insides
Picture004.jpg


and all i can say is mmm its nice i get 178fps in daoc(only one of the cards and one of the core's ) full FX running at 1680x1050 and with second monitor running firefox and wmp11
 

Ballard

Fledgling Freddie
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Oct 6, 2004
Messages
1,711
Might pay to try and sort some of those cables out, looks a bit like spagheti in there! You can buy plastic cable ties for about $1.50 from most local hardware stores. With a combination of tie downs and your cases cable space (most high end cases should have a reserved space behind the mobo for running cables) you can really minimize the amount of cabling for both visibility and airflow performance.

Ive still got a lot of work todo but I have started to clean my cables up. Green circles are where the cables are run behind, yellows are some examples of tie down opportunities.

1840619732a4966674243l.jpg


Excuse the dust :p well overdue for a clean. Oh and the terrible quality of the photo (its a mobile shot)
 

thergador

Fledgling Freddie
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Apr 20, 2006
Messages
1,216
yeah i know the cables are messing order some UV reflective wrapping got the cable ties on the back panel doing some of the cable at mo normally have the cables running behind the mobo panel but could not do that with this case :( its running cool at mo which is main this got it OC to 3.9mhz at idle cpu temp is 25 load (using 4 instances of prime95 ) is 47 to 50
 

thergador

Fledgling Freddie
Joined
Apr 20, 2006
Messages
1,216
did a bit of tiding in there
tidiedcableswide.jpg


not perfect but with the cable wrapping thats inc it should finish it off well as good as that case is going to get
 

Overdriven

Dumpster Fire of The South
Joined
Jan 23, 2004
Messages
12,630
Fucking hell. o_O Nice machine.

EDIT: Saying that, surprised you didn't wait for DDR3... Machine will deffo last a while ;D
 

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