Towlieee

Friend is finally ready to upgrade for gaming

He is looking to build a pc based around gaming. He wants to play games like AoC and new FPS games.

He's not looking to spend a WHOLE LOT, but wants to get a FAST computer that wont hold him back.

Right now were thinking about the possibility of upgrading video to a second SLI card later, and/or buying a cheap dual core now, to upgrade to a quad core later when they are cheap. Also looking at getting 4gigs of ram now, and upgrading to possibly 6 or 8 gigs later.

He has Dual 22" lcd wide screen montiors, so he needs a video card capable of handling them. He also already has keyboard/mouse/cdrom/hard drive/windows

CPU: Right now were torn between either going cheap with like a 4400+, or going with a black edition 5000+... Will a 4400+ reach a black editions speed? Or would it be better to just go with a 5000+ from the jump?
Btw we do plan on overclocking a good deal, maybe even purchasing an aftermarket cooler... Looking at about $60 for a 4400+ or around $87ish for a 5000+ black edition
Also might possibly upgrade to a quad core in the far future, like a year from now...

Motherboard: We have no idea here.. He wants something with 4 slots for ram, and possibly something with SLI incase he decides to upgrade to a second card...

Ram: He wants 4gigs from the get go.. And will probably upgrade to at least 6gigs, if not 8gigs within the next few months..
How does something like this look for ram?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231119

Video: Not sure what route to take here.. Can't decide weather or not to splurg and spend $300 at the jump for like a 9800gtx (would hurt him money wise though to blow $300 from the get go) or to buy like a 8800gt now for $160, and upgrade to a second one in a few months???
Would two 8800gt's be faster then a 9800gtx?

Power supply: Completely lost here.. Whatever it would take to run the build and is cheapish.. Looking for something halfway stable for overclocking, but not looking to break world records, so don't want to dump a ton of money..

Case: Well find a cheap case.. Will probably end up spending $30-$45 on a case.



Price isn't really set. He just wants a GOOD computer, and doesn't want to break the bank..
I've been out of the building PC loop for so long I don't know whats good to get..

xHassassin

GPU: 8800GT
CPU: Intel Q6600
Mobo: Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L or Asus 750i. I would rather go with the gigabyte though.
RAM: G Skill PC8500 2x2GB Kit
PSU: Corsair 550VX or 650TX, depends on how much you wanna spend
Case: Any 50-USD case you like
Total: ~650ish

Grafixs

Can't use it on any higher than 1440x900 otherwise it gets raped on medium or high settings.

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xHassassin

Age of Conan?
Serious?
I thought it was just some easy to run game...

Anyways, I guess you could wait for GTS G92 prices to drop then.
Or spend more money on one of those new GPUs coming out.

NrGx

On which game

I can run most new games at max settings at 1680x1050 with my system!

And 8800GT is more than enough for anything upto 1680x1050. If you want to run 1900x1200 then look at a 9800GTX or a HD3870X2.

Edit: In regards to AoC, if a computer could run Oblivion, it could run AoC fine. So an 8800GT is really overkill.

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"You may clip our wings, but never will we forget how it was to fly..."

Towlieee

nah AoC is pretty bad

MINIMUM requirements is a 3ghz intel, 1gig of ram, and a 6600gt (as you can see, I just barley meet that on my personal pc lol)


recommended requirements are core duo 2.4ghz or better, 2gigs of ram, and a GeForce 7950GX2 or better..

Although I've heard everyone in chat channels say, realistically, minimum requirements for no lag are, 2 gigs of ram, dual core 2.0 or better, and a 8600gt or better
And even with THAT build, it still lags BAD on anything above medium settings.. (friend runs a 4400+ amd with 2 gigs of ram and a 8600gt, and he lags bad with high settings, but plays decent at medium)


edit: oh ya my friend runs 1680x1050

xHassassin

Eh whatever. Stick with the 8800GT for now though, since everything else is too expensive for the build.
Oh, wait I forgot, get the 550VX and use the excess to get either the Xigmatek S1283 or S1284, depending on how much you have left.

c00lkatz

Well, based on what you described:

1) CPU - 5000+ BE has an unlocked multi making it easier to overclock, but that's about it. Pretty much any other X2 chip will overclock almost the same, depending on whether or not you get a good board.

2) If he wants dual monitor and multi GPU's he MUST go ATI Crossfire. Nvidia SLI does NOT support multiple monitors when SLI is enabled.

3) Ram - 8GB is WAAAAYYY overkill. Most people don't even need more than 2GB, and 4GB is PLENTY. Also, if you're using a 32-bit operating system, such as Win XP or Vista 32-bit, it will only recognize 3.25GB. You must use a 64-bit operating system to utilize more than 3.25GB of ram, and again, this is mostly not necessary. A 2x1GB kit will probably suit you just fine, and a 2x2GB kit will be plenty. Remember, most boards will have 4-slots, and you must use pairs of ram for dual channel mode, so no odd number of ram sticks. Also, if you're looking to overclock, using up all 4 slots is a bad idea, as it puts an excessive amount of stress on the chip, and will limit your overcloking ability.

A nice gaming rig for $600 should definitely be doable.

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My Other Toy: Sony Playstation 3 (PS3) 40GB - 40GB USB 2.0 External HDD - Running YellowDog Linux 6.0 w/ Microsoft Wireless Desktop 1000 - DualShock 3 - Hooked up via HDMI to a 1080p 47" Westinghouse HDTV - Guitar Hero 3, Devil May Cry 4, Assassin's Creed, Madden 2008, Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection Online, GTA IV, Soul Calibur IV, Dragonball Z Burst Limit, TimeShift, Mortal Kombat II, Twisted Metal 2

PS3 pwns 360 !!!

xHassassin

Single GPUs still work.
SLI is overrated.
It's at max 1.8x when using two cards, I would rather just save up the cash and upgrade to a better card.

Towlieee

We plan on using a 64 bit OS

Only reason we want more then 4gig, is because all the people we play with on AoC, that has 4gigs of ram, all say the same thing "the game takes 3-3.5gigs if ram ITSELF to play, plus whatever windows uses"

Were just looking for whatever it the best setup for the money, that wont lag.

Were not BIG gamers, so we don't plan on building a new pc in a year.. Would like this one to last a few years, just like every other pc we have had, has lasted (current pc, he has had for almost 4 years, and has played everything fine until he got AoC)

And on the video card, he doesn't necessarily want SLI, just looking for whatever is the best performance, with the fact he'll run dual monitors daily.
I had no idea about the whole fact SLI can't run dual monitors.. Sounds a little rediculouse you can't run dual monitors with two video cards! lol

He just wants to end up with a good build, and isn't affraid to overclock. Doesn't want to spend an incredible amount of money, and doesn't want to have to build a new PC in 1 year...