New game machine

[Caladin2]

Since Im building a WHS I thought I might as well buidl a new game box too. Here is what I have so far. I want to go with 8GB Ram but not sure what brand or model yet. I want to be able to overclock this a bit... Is that possible?

Windows Vista Premium will be the os

AMD Phenom II X4 940 Deneb 3.0GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM2+ 125W Quad-Core Black Edition Processor - Retail $200

XIGMATEK Dark Knight-S1283V 120mm Long Life Bearing CPU Cooler - Retail $40

GIGABYTE GA-MA790X-UD4 AM2+/AM2 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail $115

Ram ?

CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Retail $95

XFX GX260NADFF GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail $200

LG Black 22X (CAV) DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X (CAV) DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 22X DVD±R DVD Burner - OEM $25

LIAN LI PC-V1000B-PLUSII V COOL (BLACK) ALUMINUM MID TOWER PC CASE "Free since Im using my old one"

Hardrive ? Not sure just yet? I have some laying around.. but may get a new one?

 

[mentalcrisis00]

Hey mate

That looks like some nice tech but if I may suggest if it's overclocking you want you might want to go with intel core duo or quad. They are a tad more expensive but well worth it. I went with AMD for years until well.... yesterday! I just bought myself the cpu, mobo, and ram that is in my sig and man vista really flies for me now. The combo was only $250 shipped after rebates at newegg and that's a great deal for me cause I had all the other hardware. Just from your listed budget I will link you a few parts that I think you might like.

Intel Core Quad Q9400 $229.99

Gigabyte GA-EP45T-UD3P crossfire $139

OR

EVGA 750i SLI - $159.99

G Skill 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2 1066 - $42.99

I tried not to go to far from the prices you stated but I think those are all quality products for the price. I can personally vouch for the G skill ram I've been going with that company for 2 years now and they haven't let me down. Awesome customer service and high grade ram for the money. I was afraid to go with DDR2 1066 speed at first cause I heard it's hard to get a compatible board and you have to mess with settings. I just popped it into my gigabyte board and it detected everything but the voltage which I upped to 2.0V. I have another 4GB set on order.

You can get a super cheap AMD setup now but most of the cpu's are hard to overclock and I've seen some people complain about compatibility. I have no experience with the new ones but I know this new build of mine is WAY faster than my poor old X2 4400 with 2GB of Ram.:laugh: Good luck with your new build.

All the best

-Ray

 

[Blain]

Is it a server or a gaming machine?
The requirements of each are different.


"Focus" will save you money! :thumbsup::laugh:

 

[Caladin2]

sorry Im sure that was confusing. Its a gaming box. I had a prior post in which I discussed making a WHS.

 

[Comdrpopnfresh]

drop the 260 core 216 and get an ati 4870 1gb version- should be cheaper, and perform about the same.
++ for going intel for gaming + overclocking. Depending on your budget, stick with s775 though.

 

[Caladin2]

Well overclocking is an option. What is most important is performance for the right about of $.

 

[batuchka]

Hmm you can OC a 940BE on stock volts on stock HSF (fool with that multi) and for the $$ and just reading thru the reviews of real owners it offers awesome performance for the $$ if you ask me hehe. I'd go with a 790GX/FX and after Anand's multi GPU analysis here:
http://anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=3517&p=6
My Suggestion

 

[mentalcrisis00]

out of the box performance for intel generally rivals most AMD chips now. Intel has a higher cache speed generally which is a key thing, also if you ever do feel so inclined the overclocking ability is amazing. My e7400 is the lowest end cpu intel offers at 2.8GHZ but i've read about people getting it to 3.5-3.8GHZ without overvolting it and 4.0-4.5GHZ with overvolting and proper cooling. Thats nearly a 50% overclock, not bad for a $119 chip. See what you can afford from both companies, compare the specs for core clock, FSB, and cache and look at some benchmark comparisons. Make the decision that you can live with based on that, either way you'll get a computer that has quiet a bit of power.

 

[zerocool84]

The Phenom 2's are good chips that overclock well and are competitive. What you have is a good chip so just stick with that.

 

[Caladin2]

CPU INTEL CORE 2 DUO E8500 WOLFDALE 3.16GHZ 6MB L2 CACHE LGA 775 65W DUAL-CORE PROCESSOR - RETAIL
HEATSINK XIGMATEK DARK KNIGHT-S1283V 120MM LONG LIFE BEARING CPU COOLER - RETAIL
MEMORY (2) G.SKILL 4GB (2 X 2GB) 240-PIN DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) DUAL CHANNEL KIT DESKTOP MEMORY
DVD±R/RW LG 22X DVD±R DVD BURNER BLACK SATA MODEL GH22NS30 - OEM
MOTHERBOARD GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P LGA 775 INTEL P45 ATX INTEL MOTHERBOARD - RETAIL
VIDEO CARD XFX GX260NADFF GEFORCE GTX 260 CORE 216 896MB 448-BIT GDDR3 PCI EXPRESS 2.0 X16 - RETAIL
HARDDRIVE #1 OS = OCZ VERTEX SERIES OCZSSD2-1VTX30G 2.5" 30GB SATA II MLC (SSD) - RETAIL
HARDDRIVE #2 STORAGE = SEAGATE BARRACUDA 7200.11 ST31000340AS 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0GB/S HARD DRIVE - OEM
MONITOR HANNS?G HG-281DJB BLACK 27.5"
CASE LIAN LI PC-V1000B-PLUSII V COOL
POWERSUPPLY CORSAIR CMPSU-400CX 400W ATX12V V2.2 80 PLUS CERTIFIED POWER SUPPLY - RETAIL