My new Setup

[Dom1105]

So this is gonna be my new Setup so any one tell me any improvements or any changes that should be made.

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 Conroe 1.86GHz
MOBO: GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3
HD: Western Digital Raptor 10,000 RPM 74gb / with an 80 GB 7400 RPM for music and pics.
RAM: CORSAIR XMS2 1GB (2 x 512MB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800Dual Channel.
GPU: XFX PV-T71G-UDF7 Geforce 7900GT 256MB.
PSU: ENERMAX Liberty ELT500AWT ATX12V 500W.
SOUND CARD: Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 4 SB0610 7.1.
SOUND SYSTEM: Logitech Z-2300 200 watts RMS 2.1 Speakers.
CASE: RAIDMAX SIRIUS Black Aluminum case.
CD/DVD/RW COMBO DRIVE: LG Combo Drive Black IDE.

 

[PurdueRy]

I would like to see you drop the Raptor, Drop the Audigy 4(for an audigy 2 ZS) and get a better Video card.

 

[Dom1105]

If u could justify your reasons i would consider doing what u say but you know it is personal preference.

 

[PurdueRy]

Originally posted by: Dom1105
If u could justify your reasons i would consider doing what u say but you know it is personal preference.

Your speakers will not use the benefit of the Audigy 4 over the Audigy 2 ZS. Although I just looked at the prices on the egg and the 2 ZS is actually more over there right now. So maybe that's ok

However, you are spending $160 for a hard drive you could spend $60 for. With $100 you can get a higher end gfx card such as the ATI 1900XTX. Where the raptor will only help a few seconds here and there with load times the graphics card change will be much more noticeable.

 

[Dom1105]

Ok i see your reason for the Audio change but i like the remote this one comes with and as you said it is less then the Audigy 2 ZS, and the reason I am getting the Raptor is becasue i play LOTS of games, and i HATE loading times. On my current comp the loading times in WOW are like 30 seconds for a map. on my friends raptor they are about 4 to 12 seconds depending upon which map it is. and the GP card choice was becasue of 2 issues, the first being Noise becasue of the fact that i am right next to my parents room i want a fairly quiet system, the second reason is becasue of heat issues, i am in a very very small "Dorm Room" size room that lacs any windows that go to the outside for fresh air so i have alot to worry about when it comes to heat and temperatue related issues.

so this is why i planned this system the way i did.

but thanks for the insightful input, i will consider all of those things when ever i build a system again THX.

 

[PurdueRy]

Originally posted by: Dom1105
Ok i see your reason for the Audio change but i like the remote this one comes with and as you said it is less then the Audigy 2 ZS, and the reason I am getting the Raptor is becasue i play LOTS of games, and i HATE loading times. On my current comp the loading times in WOW are like 30 seconds for a map. on my friends raptor they are about 4 to 12 seconds depending upon which map it is. and the GP card choice was becasue of 2 issues, the first being Noise becasue of the fact that i am right next to my parents room i want a fairly quiet system, the second reason is becasue of heat issues, i am in a very very small "Dorm Room" size room that lacs any windows that go to the outside for fresh air so i have alot to worry about when it comes to heat and temperatue related issues.

so this is why i planned this system the way i did.

but thanks for the insightful input, i will consider all of those things when ever i build a system again THX.

If loading times are THAT different there is either something wrong with your computer or there are major differences in the hardware. You can expect the raptor to load a few seconds faster...but not that much

 

[Dom1105]

well this is true, this system is about to crap out, it was built in 1995 and then rebuilt in 1999 os it is still 7 years old and just barely plays WOW on lowest possable settings but it does play it nicely due to an eithernet connection.

soo ya, his total load times are like 12 seconds on a regular basis, from what he was jsut telling me, but remember these are not exact results, this is a couple of crackpots doing a bang-up job on this stuff.

 

[PurdueRy]

Originally posted by: Dom1105
well this is true, this system is about to crap out, it was built in 1995 and then rebuilt in 1999 os it is still 7 years old and just barely plays WOW on lowest possable settings but it does play it nicely due to an eithernet connection.

soo ya, his total load times are like 12 seconds on a regular basis, from what he was jsut telling me, but remember these are not exact results, this is a couple of crackpots doing a bang-up job on this stuff.

Well I still think you would be better served with a near top of the line video card rather than a raptor. The New hard drives from Seagate and WD are right on the heels of the raptor in some tests.

 

[Dom1105]

But my question to you now is what better Video card would i get that dosent throw TONS of heat like any ATI card or the 7950 and what Hd would i replace that with, becasue 80 gigs is not enough space for me.

i have about 30 gigs of music and pictures on my computer right now. thats why i sugessted my current HD be used for STRICTLY my music and pics and videos, and the Raptor for everything else(IE Games and any software im gonna run).

 

[PurdueRy]

Originally posted by: Dom1105
But my question to you now is what better Video card would i get that dosent throw TONS of heat like any ATI card or the 7950 and what Hd would i replace that with, becasue 80 gigs is not enough space for me.

i have about 30 gigs of music and pictures on my computer right now. thats why i sugessted my current HD be used for STRICTLY my music and pics and videos, and the Raptor for everything else(IE Games and any software im gonna run).

If heat and noise is that big of a concern then why the raptor? They also get quite hot and are noisier than normal hard drives?

 

[Evilhomer99]

Sounds like you have your mind made up on all the parts already anyway Dom.......Purdue what a good alt to the raptor? I'm looking to trim some fat off a new build.

 

[PurdueRy]

Originally posted by: Evilhomer99
Sounds like you have your mind made up on all the parts already anyway Dom.......Purdue what a good alt to the raptor? I'm looking to trim some fat off a new build.

Seagate 7200.10 16 meg cache or the WD 7200 WD3200KS

 

[Dom1105]

Well i do Kinda have my mind made up on this stuff, but really all i did was do my research and read up on everything to justify my reason for getting the parts i did, I am still totally open to getting different stuff, The olny thing that HAS to stay is some type of NV GPX card and a WD Raptor, everything else is completely changeable if any one knows of anything that works better for the same price range.

 

[NuAlphaMan]

Well, you don't really sound "open". Ry gave you some valid points and you retorted to everything he suggested. As Homer said, you really do sound like you have your mind made up.

 

[Dom1105]

No i am open to comments I was simply justifying my reasons for buying what i did, after i read all your posts i did take into consideration what was said to me and then i looked up some things, i even went out on the net and found some temp guides and the raptor dosent really heat up that much more then a normal 7200 RPM HD.

 

[Pabster]

Originally posted by: PurdueRy
If heat and noise is that big of a concern then why the raptor? They also get quite hot and are noisier than normal hard drives?

Bah, Raptor's don't get that hot.

They aren't spectacular from a price/performance standpoint, but the newest models do come very close to 15K SCSI desktop performance, without the extra cost.

Remember, not everyone buys parts strictly from a P/P standpoint.

 

[dBTelos]

Replace the Audigy 4 w/ a Audigy 2 ZS or Chaintech AV710, IMO.

 

[Dom1105]

Ummm why would i do that when the Audgiy 4 costs Less then the 2 ZS ?....

 

[dBTelos]

Because the 2 ZS is better and worth the money?

 

[Dom1105]

Ok well from the looks of it the 2ZS is about the same as the 4 pro but the 4 pro coems with that nifty remote.

but my question is, is the sound quality noticably better from the 2ZS to teh 4pro cause if it is then i might get that one.

 

[Caldenfor]

No windows, next to parents room... size of a dorm room... do they have you living in their closet? =/ Evil evil parents.

X-fi sound cards rock if you can afford them. I have heard Enhance PSUs are good and they can be purchased at eWiz.com. For the hard drive cost I would get a larger seagate barracuda drive, 7200-10 or whatever they are, perpendicular recording 320gb is nice size. If you can afford it 2gb RAM is nice to have, can drop down the mhz if you need to lower price from 800mhz to like a 533 or 600 something. I myself went with the less expensive, nice quality and decent sized Seagate to save money and have more space because the Raptor is a bit pricey for the little enhancement it will give compared to more RAM, CPU speed and such. Also, if you can afford it, the E6400 can overclock pretty well and even pass the E6600 in speed (non overclocked).

Dave

 

[jcmuse]

yeah im wondering the same thing. lol, what are you in some sort of side room of the master bedroom?

 

[Dom1105]

well no, my house is actually quite SMALL, my room was actually meant as an office/ storage room when the house was first bought and me and my brother lived in the same room but that wasen't working out soo I moved into the little tiny TINY office room.

the thing is like 12'X14' so it isn't SUPER small but i have a TON of stuff in myr room. ui got a bed, a dresser 2 bookshelves and a desk.

 

[kenji4life]

tests on spcr showed the raptor to be among the best in quietness against other hard drives, with only the seeks being mildly louder. the faster rotational speed of the raptor did create more of a whine than a 7200rpm hard drive but overall the drive scored very highly. this was all minimized by properly soft-mounting the hard drive via various methods.

so before you say the raptor is 'louder than other drives' make sure you know what you are talking about, it's really one of the best, especially for it's speed

that being said, i still wouldn't choose the raptor over the seagate 7200.10, simply because of the price premium (it's really not worth it to me)

 

[Dom1105]

See but thats the thing, i had planned a Raptor into the my budget from the time i had started thinking about buying my own machine. but i dunno, im getting confused now because people are bomarding me with so many different things about what to get. but i suppose i brought that On myself becasue I posted it asking.

im probably going to end up re desgining the whole machine by the time i actually buy it