New AMD build

[busydude]

Hi guys, I have been waiting for 6 months to build a gaming rig.

As a grad student living on scholarships I have finally saved some money to afford a build $900 USD(Not including monitor, speakers, OS, keyboard,mouse). I will be building this by the end of this month.

This will be used for gaming(90% of the time) and running MATLAB simulations.

I have done fair bit of research and selected few components and I need some help regarding others.(options open on all)

Preferred vendors: Amazon, Newegg (free shipping would be better).

These are the things I have selected:
Case: Cooler Master 690 II Advanced http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-...5430875&sr=8-1 (open to suggestions)

PSU: Corsair 650 TX http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-CMPSU-...5415868&sr=1-1 (I have chosen this because seasonic is the OEM)

Memory: Corsair 4GB 1600Mhz DDR3 http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-CMX4GX...ref=pd_sim_e_4

CPU: Will wait for a couple of weeks until AMD Phenom II X2 555 is available or will go for X2 550

MoBo: MSI-GD70 http://www.amazon.com/MSI-790FX-GD70...5429557&sr=8-1
I know MSI is a good board but DFI LanParty 790FX is cheaper than this but I am kinda skeptical regarding DFI. Any suggestions regarding this?

Video Card:ATI 5770 http://www.amazon.com/Sapphire-Radeon-PCI-Express-Graphics-100283-2L/dp/B002XDQ8IU/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1265429608&sr=1-5 will go for crossfire when I receive my next paycheck

HDD: Samsung Spinpoint F3 http://www.newegg.com/Product/NewPro...-181-_-Producthttp://detonator.dynamitedata.com/c...t_shr?_encoding=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&v=glance

DVD drive: Sony optiarc http://www.amazon.com/Sony-Optiarc-D...429916&sr=1-16

Total: 760 W/O CPU.

Games: All kinda games except MMORPG's

overclocking: Yes, but will not increase core voltage even a bit.(Need suggestions for aftermarket cooler)

Also It would be a lot of help to me if anyone suggested a 22 inch 1920 x 1080 monitor around $160-$180.



Thanks in advance!

 

[Vaulter]

May i reccomend the
http://www.newegg.com/Product/NewPro...-181-_-Product
for a harddrive?
Also, if this is a gaming computer, for that much money i would say go quad core for a bit of future proofing? Im going for a AMD 955 quad core black ed. for a much faster processor.
If your going to do SLI or Crossfire with that card you might need a larger PSU. You should check on the antec power usage calculator thing.

 

[busydude]

May i reccomend the
http://www.newegg.com/Product/NewPro...-181-_-Product
for a harddrive?

Thanks for the suggestion!.. This samsung F3 seems like a better drive.. and its cheaper too. I have changed my hard drive to F3.

Also, if this is a gaming computer, for that much money i would say go quad core for a bit of future proofing? Im going for a AMD 955 quad core black ed. for a much faster processor.

It is a compromise I am willing to make.

I selected a dual core cos its used mostly for gaming and i have read countless articles regarding this. I don't find games(games of 2009) that make use of cores efficiently. This processor does not create a major bottle neck. When it comes to future proofing.. I am not that concerned as Ill be using this setup for 1(may be 2) years before I upgrade to Thuban or may be Bulldozer.

The single most imp reason is I selected this cos I can buy 2nd 5770 instead of a 955 for the funds I have, and the performance improvement between the two options is no-brainer.

If your going to do SLI or Crossfire with that card you might need a larger PSU. You should check on the antec power usage calculator thing.

The max power this rig consumes is ~420(65% of 650W) watts at full load, which is like less that 10% of the time. I guess this PSU should suffice.

 

[WaitingForNehalem]

That PSU has very high ripple and isn't worth $100. Have you considered the Athlon II 630 for $102? That motherboard is very high-end, are you going to be doing extreme overclocks?

 

[busydude]

That PSU has very high ripple and isn't worth $100.

Thanks for the tip, I did not weigh in that factor. What about this PSU?

Antec True Power New 650w - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371021

Have you considered the Athlon II 630 for $102?

In fact I did consider that but Phenom 555(even 550) beats 630 when it comes to gaming performance and I rarely use heavily threaded apps.

http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=3726&p=6

That motherboard is very high-end, are you going to be doing extreme overclocks?

Overclocking? Yes, but I wont even bother changing the core voltages.

I guess only 790 FX chipset support full bandwidth for crossfire.
wont there be a bottleneck if i consider, say, 790X which supports x8/x8?
If there is no significant difference I'll go for it in a heartbeat.

 

[Axon]

Silverstone makes a severely underrated PSU. I would recommend looking into their lines. I have a 700w Silverstone strider and it's the best I've ever owned (and I have a Corsair HX620 as well).

 

[busydude]

The reviews suggest otherwise, the antec true power new is better than silverstone PSU's. I do not have any hand's on experience with PSU's so I am in no position to comment which makes me even more confused.

Edit: Silverstone strider 700w looks good but just a little expensive when compared.

 

[Axon]

Antec makes a fine PSU, and I've had only success with the Truepower 550w. However, I only trust one guy with PSU reviews - Johnnyguru. I just happen to be extremely impressed with the Silverstone Strider, I've never seen cleaner power. So I'm biased.

For what you're doing, you want a solid amount of power on your 12v+s, (always look at the sticker; the amps the 12v+ circuit puts out are as important/more important than the wattage, which can be manipulated) which the True Power has. Hopefully your rebate will come in smoothly.

 

[Tsavo]

That PSU has very high ripple and isn't worth $100.

Only at full load, and even then not a problem.

 

[busydude]

But, Antec True Power New 650w - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371021 is better and almost the same price as 650TX
whats your take on this?

 

[WaitingForNehalem]

I'd go with the 750W, the model that I have, for $10 more: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371025

I'd go with this board: http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Produc...tCode=10010097

Apply the extra $67 to a a Phenom II 955 C3 stepping.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-808-_-Product

Then I'd use the IGP until I could afford a 5850 or 5870.

 

[busydude]

I'd go with the 750W, the model that I have, for $10 more: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371025

I'd go with this board: http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Produc...tCode=10010097

Apply the extra $67 to a a Phenom II 955 C3 stepping.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-808-_-Product

Then I'd use the IGP until I could afford a 5850 or 5870.

You have added a new dimension to my build
I'd love to build a system with 5850.

Sorry If I sound like a broken record but it took me 6 month to get here.

I missed out on some good games for so long that I cannot wait any more. For the funds available right now, I can only afford 5770.

I understand you are trying to help me but this setup goes way overboard.

 

[WaitingForNehalem]

Well, in the end it's up to you but there are plenty of places where you could save money and end up with a quad core and a 5850. Getting a $30-$50 case, an OCZMXSP 700W, $95 4GB DDR3, and a 790gx motherboard would really save you a lot of money. BTW, that Sony Opitarc is a rip-off, it isn't even a DVD burner.

 

[busydude]

Well, in the end it's up to you but there are plenty of places where you could save money and end up with a quad core and a 5850. Getting a $30-$50 case, an OCZMXSP 700W, $95 4GB DDR3, and a 790gx motherboard would really save you a lot of money. BTW, that Sony Opitarc is a rip-off, it isn't even a DVD burner.

You have made valid point... let me redo the build and see what I can squeeze in.

and reg that sony don't worry that was just a fill in.. Ill go for a samsung drive.

 

[busydude]

How does this setup look like?

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 955 C3 - $160
Video:Sapphire ATI 5850 -$300
PSU: Antec 750w- $125 (100 after MIR)
RAM: Patriot gaming series 4GB- $95
Case: Antec 300/NZXT Gamma- $50
HDD : Samsung spinpoint f3 500 GB- $55
DVD: LG DVD burner -$25
MoBo: ASUS M4A79XTD EVO - $120 (110 after MIR)

Total: $895 after MIR

 

[WaitingForNehalem]

It looks great. You could go with a cheaper PSU if you want. I'm not sure if I'd actually buy an ATI 5xxx card right now. Read this thread: http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2046540

Also, take a look at these combos too:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboB...t=Combo.328587

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboB...t=Combo.328465

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboB...t=Combo.328310

 

[busydude]

Nice finds. Ill look into it!.. I am not comfortable running the rig on cheaper PSU.. this antec looks fine and fits my budget.. and yeah I am aware of those gray screens, anyway I will have to wait for a couple of weeks before I start buying these components. Hope they release a permanent fix for that problem.

Thanks for your help. Will finalize the build in a week after I am done with exams:hmm:.

 

[Dasda]

Nice finds. Ill look into it!.. I am not comfortable running the rig on cheaper PSU.. this antec looks fine and fits my budget.. and yeah I am aware of those gray screens, anyway I will have to wait for a couple of weeks before I start buying these components. Hope they release a permanent fix for that problem.

Thanks for your help. Will finalize the build in a week after I am done with exams:hmm:.

I hate exams, I have mid-terms too right now lol. This is my break from studying .

Anyways looks like you got a great build and I love that case.

 

[Tsavo]

Sparkle....power supplies by Sparkle.

What a great name for a company that makes electronic components.

 

[busydude]

I hate exams, I have mid-terms too right now lol. This is my break from studying .

Anyways looks like you got a great build and I love that case.

Its feels good to know that I have some company .

Sparkle....power supplies by Sparkle.

What a great name for a company that makes electronic components.

ROFL.You just made my day.