Ahh, lets try this build.

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Artonox
Posts: 39
Joined: Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:21 am
Location: London, UK

Ahh, lets try this build.

Post by Artonox » Tue Jun 17, 2008 3:28 am

Hi there people,

just wanna ask for some opinions on my build. Just the base, no harddrives or cd/dvd drive/roms required.

625 Enermax Mod82+ as reviewed on SPCR
Intel Quad 6600 G0 stepping
Crucial 2x1gb Ballistix Tracer PC2-8500
Asus P5Q Pro
Antec P182
Gecube HD3870XT OC 512mb GDDR4

Total price £580.04 (wants to aim about the £500 - £550 mark though price is still payable)

Is this a good build? I hear that there the P183 is coming out and it looks sweet. Also the new gpus by ATI and Nvidia are in just a few days time? Is it worth holding back and see then?

Thanks for looking and double thanks for your opinions :D

EDIT: this is for gaming and uni work at the same time btw :D

Shadout
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Location: Denmark

Post by Shadout » Tue Jun 17, 2008 4:05 am

Might be worth it to wait for AMD's 4850 card, coming in a week.
Nvidias cost way too much currently.

Ash
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Joined: Tue Apr 15, 2008 12:36 pm
Location: London

Post by Ash » Tue Jun 17, 2008 4:17 am

hello mate

the components you've listed are fine, i dont know a lot about quad core, since i got my c2d i havent really looked at the cpu market, so i dont know where that cpu ranks but i know its popular so must be good.

i have the enermax 525 and im more than happy, you wont be disappointed.
i dont really know when the new gpu's are coming out but that just personal preference if your a gamer or if you dont need that much gpu power.

as for the case, i dont like the look of the p183 at all, again not sure how long until it is released but all they have done is try to improve the air intake by making vents in the front door (which look like the mini) and improved the design of the fan doors and grill.

i have a p182, its very good and my temps are good, i was waiting to see what the new p183 would look like aswell and i didnt even consider it when i saw it. but if you like it then go for it.

other than that, what about your cpu cooler and case fans?
Last edited by Ash on Tue Jun 17, 2008 4:18 am, edited 1 time in total.

Modo
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Location: Poland

Post by Modo » Tue Jun 17, 2008 4:18 am

Unless you do serious graphics/sound/scientific processing, an E8400 or X3110 would probably be a better CPU choice. It will generate less heat and have more GHz, and will fare better in all except specialized applications.

Artonox
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Joined: Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:21 am
Location: London, UK

Post by Artonox » Tue Jun 17, 2008 5:44 am

Yeah it might be a good idea to swap the Q6600 to the E8400. Its exactly the same price range (difference of about £8 )
Will definately wait for the new AMD graphic cards - been hearing that it will turn the tide on the market.
I think the 625 is for dual gpus specifically (I don't want to use 2 graphics cards as a) too much money for the performance b) inefficient compared to a single powerhouse). I think its best to switch down to 525, saving me £25, though it reduces the rails to 3.
I might keep my original case for a while as my local dealers raised the price of the p182 by about £7-£20!!

andyb
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Post by andyb » Tue Jun 17, 2008 7:00 am

You could save a few quid if you got the next PSU down (525W, it will still give you 200W more than your PC would use), consider a cheaper Dual-Core that has the same clock speed.

The Antec Solo, is also an excelent case that is worth considering.

I would strongly suggest getting 4GB of RAM, there is an excelent deal in the link below, its only (only HA HA) 1,000 MHz, and runs at exactly that speed on my motherboard (Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3), which I also reccomend because it is good and is NOT made by ASUS (also linked although not checked to be a good price).

http://www.microdirect.co.uk/(32155)OCZ ... -DDR2.aspx
http://www.microdirect.co.uk/(31544)Gig ... l-P35.aspx


Andy

CA_Steve
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Post by CA_Steve » Tue Jun 17, 2008 7:12 am

CPU: For gaming, like others have said, get the e8400. Higher clock, less power, better for fps.

GPU: What's your screen resolution? That'll determine the gpu requirement.

PSU: overkill for your current build.

SebRad
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Post by SebRad » Tue Jun 17, 2008 7:48 am

Hi, if you go with the E8400 or aren't intending to overclock (too much) then you might look at the 425w Enermax PSU, its ~£60 vs ~£100 for the 625w. A while back I built an E8400 based system. Basic Gigabyte P35 board, single HDD (WD6400AAKS) and very low end ATI HD3450 graphics. It was powered by a Seasonic S12II 330, at full CPU load (SMP folding) it pulled nearly 100w from the wall! This indicates at most 80w DC load on the PSU so 425w PSU would have some head room for big video card(s). I believe the ATI 3870 is <100w so there still be room for overclocking the CPU if you wanted to. If you're set on quad core the Q9300 is worth a look, 2.5GHz and performs similar to the Q6700 (2.66) despite having 6MB vs. 8MB of cache and is built on the 45nm process so will use less electric, produce less heat and over-clock easier / further.
Regards, Seb

Artonox
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Joined: Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:21 am
Location: London, UK

Post by Artonox » Tue Jun 17, 2008 10:08 am

£60 for the 425 Enermax
about £80 for the 525 Enermax
Will try some light overclocking and I won't go sli or crossfire.
Im only going for the P45 boards because it is more or less in the same price range as the P35 (and it is more updated).
My resolution is 1220x880 something like that anyway (currently on 1024x728). 512mb for the gpu is probably the max I should be buying (i.e. not 1 gb or more), though 256mb may suffice.
The quad cores look great, but lets be honest here, it is £175 alone for the Q9300 :O. If I had the money I would definately buy it, but my budget doesn't stretch that far :( unless cuts were made

andyb
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Post by andyb » Tue Jun 17, 2008 12:10 pm

Hi, if you go with the E8400 or aren't intending to overclock (too much) then you might look at the 425w Enermax PSU, its ~£60 vs ~£100 for the 625w.
I forgot about the 425W, get that, its plenty even if your planning a 4GHz OC.

In reality, your CPU is not an issue when you are talking about gaming at that resolution, unless you are planning a monitor upgrade to a 22" or 24" you might as well get a mid range CPU. You could get an E7200 and overclock it by 25%, its the best bang for the buck in the midrange at the moment and gives the E8200 a run for its money.


Andy

CA_Steve
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Post by CA_Steve » Tue Jun 17, 2008 12:23 pm

Given the relatively low resolution, I'd go for a Nvidia 9600GT 512MB card. It will more than meet your needs and provide upgrade path to 1600 x 1050. There are a number of passive versions, if you want silent....
Tech Report article

If you want to lower the cpu cost, get an e8200 and overclock.

With these two, you probably will draw 200W from the wall. Get a 400W supply, have it operate in near silence at 50% load.

Artonox
Posts: 39
Joined: Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:21 am
Location: London, UK

Post by Artonox » Tue Jun 17, 2008 1:06 pm

kk, will drop down to 425W enermax mod82+. That saves me £40 (£540 total)
That report pulled out some interesting observations - focusing more on bang-for-buck rather then im-the-most-powerful-one. Im hoping that the release of the ATI cards will take down some more quids of the 9600GT.
I would definately prefer silent (otherwise I wouldn't be here :D).
As for the processor, it probably is best to go mid range and spend the savings on a HR-01 + Nexus fan to silent it up. Still, thanks guys for the advice and I will keep trying to outsource the products.

Artonox
Posts: 39
Joined: Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:21 am
Location: London, UK

Post by Artonox » Fri Jul 04, 2008 2:06 am

Ok slight change of plan now since my last wanted build. I sort of managed a bargain deal with someone (now have it) and now I have this:

AMD 9500 Phenom Quad Core
AsRockLive 1394 Sli AM2 board
A quainted Centurian 532 case
4x1gb Ultra low frequency Geil PC6400
1tb Western Digital Sata igreen drive
Asus 8800GT 256mb graphics card
600w igreen Coolermaster PSU
2 dvd drives (1 being RW)
A 20" Samsung SyncMaster 2032 (2ms and contrast of 3000:1!!!)
and 2.0 Creative Speakers to boot!

All for £465 delivered.

When I recieved it. I thought it was quite powerful, but this being a website about silence, I figured that it was too loud for me. Something must be done....

The loudest being the PSU, I checked that the 120mm fan was a coolermaster branded one. It ticks as it slows and speeds and was easily annoying. I therefore bought a Noctua NF-S12 120mm fan to replace it and my god that was the last time I heard the 600w coolermaster. Just wished that it was modular as well, but anyway managed to store the unwanted adapters in a mini chamber above the dvd drives

The 2nd loudest (now the loudest at this time scale) is the reference AMD stock cooler. I managed to secure another deal where I managed to get a zalman fan on a Thermalright XP-90 with the bracket for £10 delivered. Now waiting for it to arrive.

Now a question for you :D how else can I make it more quiet? Should I take the fan out of the 8800gt and give it something else? should I remove some of the cases' fans (it has a 120mm at the front by default which is quiet and a 80mm Antec at the back which is audible if you are 1 foot away).

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