What to choose? opinions on new build please..Intel or AMD?

[Pederv]

I just built my mom a system with the following components:
Athlon II X4 620
Gigabyte 770 (AM3)
G.Skill 4GB DDR3
WD Black 640GB
Liteon Blue-ray player/DVD Burner
Sapphire 4670 1GB
Antec 500W PS

With tax and shipping it came up to just over $600

Though I have plenty of "older" power supplies around the AM3 motherboard has an 8 pin connector on it that isn't available on any of the PS's I have.

Once I had the basics I started adding the extras:
20ft HDMI cable
Wireless Keyboard with long distance range
3.5 inch floppy (yes my mom still saves data to floppies)
19 inch monitor (was going to go wide screen but it won't fit in her hutch)

As her system stands now, it's better than my system and may even out do it in gaming.

Hope this helps.

 

[Munky]

Originally posted by: Pederv
As her system stands now, it's better than my system and may even out do it in gaming.

Looking at your sig, the X2 is a serious bottleneck for a 4890, even at 1920x1200 rez. I could hardly believe it when I tested this myself and saw the difference a new cpu made.

 

[nyker96]

for video+audio editing - most important, need a quad core cpu with a RAID (i.e. double) HD configuration. video card acceleration is negligible right now.
for virtual machine work - need quad core cpu + 6-8Gb of Ram, 4 isn't enough.
if you overclock get Intel, if not AMD is acceptable.

my pick is a new i5-720 system or AMD 955BE system with 6-8gb DDR3s. If you game a little get the new HD5770 which runs about 4870 but is DX11 compatible. rest is up to you.

 

[Pederv]

Originally posted by: munky
Looking at your sig, the X2 is a serious bottleneck for a 4890, even at 1920x1200 rez. I could hardly believe it when I tested this myself and saw the difference a new cpu made.

Going from an X1900 to the 4890 helped smooth out Need for Speed Shift but the system I did for my mom is still about 25% better in the benchmarks. I've already picked out what I'm going to upgrade to, it's just a matter of finding the time. I was going to upgrade my video last December, that took me 10 months to do.

 

[MindProbe]

Thank you Anandtech, lopri, and other mods!!!

ok.....so I originally thought I was going the 775 route before I started reading reviews on here.

My budget of 600.00 to 700.00 was soon a thing of the past. Trust me....I would love to save some money here, but I do want to future proof this for several years. I am the type to build and probably not put another rig together for at least 3 to 4 years. I will do some upgrades, but I plan on having my future build for a few years.

What do you think about the following builds?

i7 build:

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ... - Retail
Instant $129.99

OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3G1600LV6GK - Retail
Instant $131.99

ASUS P6T Deluxe V2 LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
$289.99

Intel Core i7-920 Bloomfield 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80601920 - Retail
$288.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long ... - Retail
$29.99
Subtotal: $870.95


AM3 build:

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ... - Retail
Instant $129.99

Kingston HyperX 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model KHX1600C8D3K4/8GX - Retail
Out Of Stock
ETA: 10/28/2009 12:00:00 AM
$239.99

ASUS M4A79T Deluxe AM3 DDR3 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
$188.99

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor Model HDZ955FBGIBOX - Retail
$179.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long ... - Retail
$29.99
Subtotal: $768.95

i5 build:

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ... - Retail
$129.99

Kingston HyperX 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model KHX1600C8D3K4/8GX - Retail
Out Of Stock
ETA: 10/28/2009 12:00:00 AM
$239.99

XFX HD-577A-ZNFC Radeon HD 5770 (Juniper XT) 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
$174.99

ASUS P7P55D Premium LGA 1156 Intel P55 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
$279.99

Intel Core i5-750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80605I5750 - Retail
$199.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long ... - Retail
$29.99
Subtotal: $1,054.94


Please help......i value all opinions and suggestions and they are greatly appreciated!!

 

[RussianSensation]

Core i7 860 = $290
ASUS P7P55D PRO - $170
* If you don't need SLI/CF, step down to Gigabyte UD3R for $140 or Asus P7P55D for $150.
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333
1.5V @ CL7-7-7-24. This wipes the floor with that OCZ kit. You want low voltage and tight timings for Core i7. Bandwidth is secondary.
5850 $259-$279 - when in stock
Corsair 620 HX - $90 after MIR
Your cpu cooler is good but if you want 4.0ghz overclock, I suggest Megahalems, TRUE.

You can also go for 920 D0 but spending $280 on a motherboard? and $130 for 6GBs of ram you likely won't utilize for a while over 4GBs? ...Seems like poor value to me.

I know you said you upgrade every 3-4 years. You may want to reconsider this strategy.

Think about this option:

Get Core i5 750 for $200 (save $90 over 860)
Get $150 board like P7P55D vs. $290 1366 board (save $140)
Get $90 ram vs. $130 1366 ram (save $40)

In total you could put aside $270! In other words it's almost always better to upgrade more often than buy top of the line and let it age for 3-4 years.

Now in 2 years you could sell your Core i7 + mobo + ram for $150 and you will have $420. This will get you Sandy Bridge + Mobo with SATA 3 and USB 3 and PCIe 3 (maybe?). If you don't want to take this path, you can get the 860 but I strongly advise against expensive motherboards. Those motherboards cater to enthusiasts with exotic or water cooling going for 4.3-4.4ghz. Otherwise any good $150 board will do 4.0ghz-4.2ghz.

Alternatively there may not be a point in going CF or SLI. Just take $270 in savings now and buy a brand new videocard in 2 years from now for guaranteed 2x speed increase.

If you go for AM3 system, you'll save even more which will let you buy Sandy Bridge + Mobo + ram in 2 years with the savings realized.

 

[veri745]

Originally posted by: MindProbe
Thank you Anandtech, lopri, and other mods!!!

ok.....so I originally thought I was going the 775 route before I started reading reviews on here.

My budget of 600.00 to 700.00 was soon a thing of the past. Trust me....I would love to save some money here, but I do want to future proof this for several years. I am the type to build and probably not put another rig together for at least 3 to 4 years. I will do some upgrades, but I plan on having my future build for a few years.

What do you think about the following builds?

i7 build:

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ... - Retail
Instant $129.99

OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3G1600LV6GK - Retail
Instant $131.99

ASUS P6T Deluxe V2 LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
$289.99

Intel Core i7-920 Bloomfield 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80601920 - Retail
$288.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long ... - Retail
$29.99
Subtotal: $870.95


AM3 build:

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ... - Retail
Instant $129.99

Kingston HyperX 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model KHX1600C8D3K4/8GX - Retail
Out Of Stock
ETA: 10/28/2009 12:00:00 AM
$239.99

ASUS M4A79T Deluxe AM3 DDR3 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
$188.99

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor Model HDZ955FBGIBOX - Retail
$179.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long ... - Retail
$29.99
Subtotal: $768.95

i5 build:

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ... - Retail
$129.99

Kingston HyperX 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model KHX1600C8D3K4/8GX - Retail
Out Of Stock
ETA: 10/28/2009 12:00:00 AM
$239.99

XFX HD-577A-ZNFC Radeon HD 5770 (Juniper XT) 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
$174.99

ASUS P7P55D Premium LGA 1156 Intel P55 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
$279.99

Intel Core i5-750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80605I5750 - Retail
$199.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long ... - Retail
$29.99
Subtotal: $1,054.94


Please help......i value all opinions and suggestions and they are greatly appreciated!!

It looks like you're missing a video cards in your PHII and i7 systems

 

[Markfw]

Originally posted by: RussianSensation
Core i7 860 = $290
ASUS P7P55D PRO - $170
* If you don't need SLI/CF, step down to Gigabyte UD3R for $140 or Asus P7P55D for $150.
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333
1.5V @ CL7-7-7-24. This wipes the floor with that OCZ kit. You want low voltage and tight timings for Core i7. Bandwidth is secondary.
5850 $259-$279 - when in stock
Corsair 620 HX - $90 after MIR
Your cpu cooler is good but if you want 4.0ghz overclock, I suggest Megahalems, TRUE.

You can also go for 920 D0 but spending $280 on a motherboard? and $130 for 6GBs of ram you likely won't utilize for a while over 4GBs? ...Seems like poor value to me.

I know you said you upgrade every 3-4 years. You may want to reconsider this strategy.

Think about this option:

Get Core i5 750 for $200 (save $90 over 860)
Get $150 board like P7P55D vs. $290 1366 board (save $140)
Get $90 ram vs. $130 1366 ram (save $40)

In total you could put aside $270! In other words it's almost always better to upgrade more often than buy top of the line and let it age for 3-4 years.

Now in 2 years you could sell your Core i7 + mobo + ram for $150 and you will have $420. This will get you Sandy Bridge + Mobo with SATA 3 and USB 3 and PCIe 3 (maybe?). If you don't want to take this path, you can get the 860 but I strongly advise against expensive motherboards. Those motherboards cater to enthusiasts with exotic or water cooling going for 4.3-4.4ghz. Otherwise any good $150 board will do 4.0ghz-4.2ghz.

Alternatively there may not be a point in going CF or SLI. Just take $270 in savings now and buy a brand new videocard in 2 years from now for guaranteed 2x speed increase.

If you go for AM3 system, you'll save even more which will let you buy Sandy Bridge + Mobo + ram in 2 years with the savings realized.

This 700 watt OCZ is $50 AR
I have 3 of them. A rebadged Fortron, great PSU.

 

[MindProbe]

Originally posted by: veri745

Originally posted by: MindProbe
Thank you Anandtech, lopri, and other mods!!!

ok.....so I originally thought I was going the 775 route before I started reading reviews on here.

My budget of 600.00 to 700.00 was soon a thing of the past. Trust me....I would love to save some money here, but I do want to future proof this for several years. I am the type to build and probably not put another rig together for at least 3 to 4 years. I will do some upgrades, but I plan on having my future build for a few years.

What do you think about the following builds?

i7 build:

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ... - Retail
Instant $129.99

XFX HD-577A-ZNFC Radeon HD 5770 (Juniper XT) 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
$174.99

OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3G1600LV6GK - Retail
Instant $131.99

ASUS P6T Deluxe V2 LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
$289.99

Intel Core i7-920 Bloomfield 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80601920 - Retail
$288.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long ... - Retail
$29.99
Subtotal: $870.95


AM3 build:

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ... - Retail
Instant $129.99

XFX HD-577A-ZNFC Radeon HD 5770 (Juniper XT) 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
$174.99

Kingston HyperX 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model KHX1600C8D3K4/8GX - Retail
Out Of Stock
ETA: 10/28/2009 12:00:00 AM
$239.99

ASUS M4A79T Deluxe AM3 DDR3 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
$188.99

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor Model HDZ955FBGIBOX - Retail
$179.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long ... - Retail
$29.99


i5 build:

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ... - Retail
$129.99

Kingston HyperX 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model KHX1600C8D3K4/8GX - Retail
Out Of Stock
ETA: 10/28/2009 12:00:00 AM
$239.99

XFX HD-577A-ZNFC Radeon HD 5770 (Juniper XT) 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
$174.99

ASUS P7P55D Premium LGA 1156 Intel P55 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
$279.99

Intel Core i5-750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80605I5750 - Retail
$199.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long ... - Retail
$29.99



Please help......i value all opinions and suggestions and they are greatly appreciated!!

It looks like you're missing a video cards in your PHII and i7 systems

ohhh....wow. Thank you for pointing that out. Updating now

 

[daw123]

Originally posted by: veri745

Originally posted by: MindProbe
Thank you Anandtech, lopri, and other mods!!!

ok.....so I originally thought I was going the 775 route before I started reading reviews on here.

My budget of 600.00 to 700.00 was soon a thing of the past. Trust me....I would love to save some money here, but I do want to future proof this for several years. I am the type to build and probably not put another rig together for at least 3 to 4 years. I will do some upgrades, but I plan on having my future build for a few years.

What do you think about the following builds?

i7 build:

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ... - Retail
Instant $129.99

OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3G1600LV6GK - Retail
Instant $131.99

ASUS P6T Deluxe V2 LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
$289.99

Intel Core i7-920 Bloomfield 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80601920 - Retail
$288.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long ... - Retail
$29.99
Subtotal: $870.95


AM3 build:

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ... - Retail
Instant $129.99

Kingston HyperX 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model KHX1600C8D3K4/8GX - Retail
Out Of Stock
ETA: 10/28/2009 12:00:00 AM
$239.99

ASUS M4A79T Deluxe AM3 DDR3 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
$188.99

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor Model HDZ955FBGIBOX - Retail
$179.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long ... - Retail
$29.99
Subtotal: $768.95

i5 build:

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ... - Retail
$129.99

Kingston HyperX 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model KHX1600C8D3K4/8GX - Retail
Out Of Stock
ETA: 10/28/2009 12:00:00 AM
$239.99

XFX HD-577A-ZNFC Radeon HD 5770 (Juniper XT) 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
$174.99

ASUS P7P55D Premium LGA 1156 Intel P55 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
$279.99

Intel Core i5-750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80605I5750 - Retail
$199.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long ... - Retail
$29.99
Subtotal: $1,054.94


Please help......i value all opinions and suggestions and they are greatly appreciated!!

It looks like you're missing a video cards in your PHII and i7 systems

Yes, he has.

If you add in the video card (XFX Radeon HD 5770) his sub-totals are amended to (in the order of cheapest first):
AM3 = $943.94
I7 = $1,045.94
I5 = $1,054.94

Between the three builds you listed, I would personally go with the I7 build, especially if you add a second GPU in the future.

Edit: Why does 8GB of RAM cost more $/GB than 6GB of RAM? I thought it would be the other way round (it gets cheaper per unit, the more you buy).

One random comparable example:
6GB = $160 = $26.67/GB
8GB = $240 = $30/GB
Both have free shipping.

 

[fearrun]

Originally posted by: MindProbe

i5 build:

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Compatible ... - Retail
$129.99

Kingston HyperX 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model KHX1600C8D3K4/8GX - Retail
Out Of Stock
ETA: 10/28/2009 12:00:00 AM
$239.99

XFX HD-577A-ZNFC Radeon HD 5770 (Juniper XT) 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
$174.99

ASUS P7P55D Premium LGA 1156 Intel P55 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
$279.99

Intel Core i5-750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80605I5750 - Retail
$199.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long ... - Retail
$29.99
Subtotal: $1,054.94

For this i5 build, you can definately cut some unnecessary costs in the motherboard and memory.

Generaly if going for a mid-range budget, your most expensive components would likely be your processor or video card. Its not very useful for any of your other components to exceed the price of your processor.

You will probably find a decent socket 1156 motherboard around $150, that will cover most of your needs. You really do not need to exceed $200 dollars to support an i5.

Since you did mention interest in USB 3.0, take a look at the PCI-e slot layout of the board and see if it has atleast a few available, atleast past the next two slots away from the primary x16 (Video card). If the motherboard has and you end up using the second PCI-e x16 slot, it will drop both to X8. This should have little to no affect on the 5770 for 19x12 gaming, you have listed.

For memory, I would recommend getting two sets of the DDR3-1333 G.Skill Ripjaw kits for your 8GB. They are around $90 each and seem to be highly compatible. It would be best to test each stick individually before you get too far into your build.

I have achieved a stable 3.33GHz overclock with that memory, which by your description of use, would likely match your needs later on if you decide to overclock. I used a 166 BCLK and lowered the memory divider to keep it in specifications.

 

[v8envy]

A $280-300 motherboard is a terrible value for you. You're spending an extra $100+ for overclocking headroom and features you won't use. Save the $100 for a video or storage upgrade.

You do not need blinged out factory OC RAM. That stuff will give you headaches and won't do much outside of very synthetic benchmarks. Seconding the lower latency lower voltage RAM recommendation. Get PC1333 or PC1066 RAM and save some money for a video or storage upgrade.

As far as a PSU, an Antec TruePower 750 at the egg for $95 AR is a better choice to save $30 and still get a PSU that's overkill by at least 400 watts. But if you're not planning to OC to over 4 ghz while running dual highest end video cards the $50 "700 watt" OCZ is a perfectly fine PSU. Antec EarthWatts 500 is another to consider. Save $30-80 for a video or storage upgrade.

TL;DR - follow RussianSensation's recommendations for the i5 parts, downgrade the PSU to something reasonable. Use the money for a video upgrade to a 5850 and/or a SSD. That will give you FAR *FAR* more computer for the money than "enthusiast" targeted motherboard, PSU and RAM with a low end CPU and lower midrange video. It's like buying Z-rated tires for a Prius -- sure, it's nice to know you could drive it over 150 mph without the tires limiting you, but utterly pointless.

If you were targeting a 4.2+ ghz OC with crossfired 5870 cards I'd say go 920, premium X58 board, Corsair 850TX PSU and the bling RAM. That level of performance automatically disqualifies all the other choices. Better to stay sane with mainstream gear and put the money where it matters -- video and storage.

 

[MindProbe]

This is alllll great information guys. I am trying to absorb it and take it all in to help make a decision on this.

One quick note...... I do really plan on running several virtual machines in the OS. I do a lot of testing and I will be editing a lot of video coming up in the next few months.

I don't really game on my PC much ( i usually use the xbox for that these days).

If i do OC...it will prob be minor. I am not looking to push it to the edge. I am trying to make it stable and work 24/7 pretty much.

After these notes......do you still think i5 is the route to go? I have read several reviews and it does look great, but seriously........i will prob only do a major upgrade every 3 years.

This is not due to me....this is due to my wife asking me why i need a new or additional PC every year. It gets old hearing that.

I like opinions about saving some money for a SSD, but mannnn....I looked at the Intel drives and they are 600+ bucks. I will have to wait on the SSD purchase for now.

 

[v8envy]

I chose the i7 for virtualization ability. Google what virtualization features are available in various CPUs and decide. For me, the i7 offered some very compelling virtualization features (supported by VirtualBox at the moment).

Why didn't you mention video editing being a priority earlier? For general purpose non-gaming computing (especially video editing) the i7 will outperform all the other chioces by a wide, wide, WIDE margin. We would have been able to eliminate the AMD as a viable choice immediately and caveat the i5 as possibly being less worthy.

With a 920 you can get a board with 6 ram sockets for about $200. There are several non-matx choices at that price range. This lets you get 6 gigs now, and another 6 gigs later if you find 6G lacking. I've been fine with 6G, but YMMV. My CPU and board were cheaper than the socket 1156 equivalents, not sure I'd have paid a premium for the ability to run as much as 24G.

You do not need the highest end Intel drives. There are several choices in the under $300 category that will rip things up.

Go ahead and skimp on the heatsink for now if you're not going to crank the OC. Once you can't take it any more get a Megahalems or Ultra-120.

New recommendation: socket 1156, non-crossfire, i7 860, quality 500 watt psu (including the $50 OCZ), 9800GTX+ video card if it's still at the egg for $90 or 4890 for $160.

 

[RussianSensation]

Originally posted by: MindProbe
This is alllll great information guys. I am trying to absorb it and take it all in to help make a decision on this.

One quick note...... I do really plan on running several virtual machines in the OS. I do a lot of testing and I will be editing a lot of video coming up in the next few months.

I don't really game on my PC much ( i usually use the xbox for that these days).

If i do OC...it will prob be minor. I am not looking to push it to the edge. I am trying to make it stable and work 24/7 pretty much.

In this case, Core i7 860 is what I would get because it has HT which will help in video work and it has more aggressive turbo mode than 920, making it faster at stock speeds. Since you don't play games, then just get a 9600GSO or something for $40. 4650 can be found for $50. I would still get a $20 aftermarket cooler though since stock 1156 coolers suck! Also without overclocking, you can downgrade your PSU even further to Corsair VX550 or the OCZ linked above.

Since you will not be overclocking, you can even get Gigabyte UD2 for $110. There is little benefit at all for non-overclock to spend more than $150 on a motherboard.

It will be more than enough. If you are going with a Mechanical Drive, Samsung F3 or Seagate 7200.12 for storage and OCZ Vertex 60GB/ Intel Gen 2 80GB for OS for $200-$240.

So:

Gskill GBRH 4GB - $80
Core i7 860 - $290
UD2 - $110
9600GSO = $40
OCZ 700 Watt = $50
Aftermarket cooler = $20-30

1TB drive? SSD?

 

[MindProbe]

oops...wrong sections

 

[MindProbe]

Wrong section

 

[MindProbe]

Hey guys,

Can you take a look at this edited version over here and tell me what you think?

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2022016

Thanks so much

 

[djdube]

This may be late, but FWIW, ZZF has a pretty good price ($160) for the 955BE if bought as a combo deal.

Dave

 

[MindProbe]

This may be late, but FWIW, ZZF has a pretty good price ($160) for the 955BE if bought as a combo deal.

Dave

ahhh..yea, a little late. I decided Intel over AMD.

I'm not much of a gamer on the PC. I like the direction Intel is going.

 

[MindProbe]

I appreciate the advice guys. I am really looking to get something pretty soon and i noticed the forum was going through maintenance this weekend. Sighhh.

Any other input?

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2022016

I am thinking about changing the Gigabyte board to the 55a which has USB 3 support, Lotes, Sata 6gb

What do you think? Does everything look compatable?

 

[Arkaign]

OP doesn't care about gaming but does want extreme multitasking and audio/video editing.

i7 all the way for this, and OP, if you haven't already bought a 4870, DON'T DO IT. It's hardcore overkill unless you're interested in 3d rendering. Put more $ into ram and better drive performance.

Your only real question is socket 1156 8xx or socket 1366 9xx i7 series.

 

[MindProbe]

OP doesn't care about gaming but does want extreme multitasking and audio/video editing.

i7 all the way for this, and OP, if you haven't already bought a 4870, DON'T DO IT. It's hardcore overkill unless you're interested in 3d rendering. Put more $ into ram and better drive performance.

Your only real question is socket 1156 8xx or socket 1366 9xx i7 series.

I haven't bought anything yet, but I am very close. Still weighing the options and yes....1156 vs 1366 is still killing me as i try to decide on these.

Here is what I am currently thinking about:

XFX HD-577A-ZNFC Radeon HD 5770 (Juniper XT) 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
$174.99

CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 ... - Retail
$99.99

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL7D-4GBRH - Retail
$229.98 - 8 GB total - I am wondering if this is compatable w/this board and aftermarket heatsink/fan. Will they fit?
($114.99 each)

Intel Core i7-860 Lynnfield 2.8GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80605I7860 - Retail
Model #:BX80605I7860
$289.99

GIGABYTE GA-P55A-UD4P LGA 1156 Intel P55 ATX Intel Motherboard w/ USB 3.0 & SATA 6 Gb/s - Retail
Model #:GA-P55A-UD4P
$184.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long ... - Retail , but out of stock
$29.98

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

Heh....i keep hearing about a Microcenter, but the city i live in does not have one. I WISH bc it sounds like this place is very cool.

you're right about that. MC's rock.
unbeatable CPU prices, especially for a B&M.
competitive pricing for the other components.
and excellent return policy.

 

[Meghan54]

As for your power supply choice, the Corsair 650TX, while it's a nice unit, there are better for same price out there.

Case in point: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371025


The Antec TruePower line is built by Seasonic on a newer platform (a hybrid of the M12D platform) than the CWT built 650TX, which is built on CWT's older PSH platform. The Antec has better ripple/noise suppression, better efficiency, and and is an overall better buy for the $5 higher price than the Corsair unit.