raging_clue

OK here are the components that would be common in both builds. Both builds will also have a CPU-only cooling loop I've budgeted around $400 for, so it should be nice for oc'ing and such:


Case: Cooler Master HAF
$160

DVD Burner: LG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner Black SATA Model GH22NS30 - OEM
$25

Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
$75

Monitor: Acer P243WAid Black-Silver 24" 2ms(GTG) HDMI Widescreen LCD Monitor with HDCP Support - Retail
$340

Power supply: ZALMAN ZM850-HP 850W Continuous @ 45°C (Maximum Continuous Peak: 1050W) ATX12V V2.2 / EPS12V V2.91 SLI NVIDIA SLI Certified NVIDIA HYBRID-SLI Certified - 9800 GX2 NVIDIA QUAD-SLI Certified - Dual 9 - Retail
$160

Speakers+Keyboard+mouse
$180-ish

So, that's about $940 for the common components.
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Phenom II Specific Components:

Proc/mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboD...t=Combo.153681
AMD Phenom II X4 940 Deneb 3.0GHz Socket AM2+ 125W Quad-Core Black Edition Processor Model HDZ940XCGIBOX - Retail
and
BIOSTAR TFORCE TA790GX A2+ AM2+/AM2 AMD 790GX HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
$335

Video card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814121291
ASUS EAH4870 DK/HTDI/1GD5 Radeon HD 4870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
$250

Video card cooler: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835185081
Scythe USA SCVMS-1000 Sleeve VGA Cooler
$50

RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820227289
OCZ Reaper HPC 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
$71

Phenom-specific components total: $706
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Intel-specific list:

Processor: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115202
Intel i7 920
$295

Motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131352
Asus Rampage II Extreme
$398

Video Card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130442
EVGA GTX 285
$390

RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820227388
OCZ XMP Ready Series 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800)
$196

Intel-specific total: $1279, but if I decide to go with the EVGA X58, it would drop to $1155
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So, total for the Phenom II build would be: $1646 + W/C
Total for the i7 build: $2219 + W/C ($2095 EVGA X58)

The difference is $400-$600 approximately

I know the Intel build is more powerful, and it's not really fair to compare DDR3 to DDR2, especially with the price/feature discrepancy between the builds, but it's all AMD has to offer now, so I decided to throw in that board to help build the gap in price, to maybe justify it. I would like to be as future-proof as possible.

I am trying to justify the increase in price to go the Intel route, but I also want to make the best decision possible. The wife has given the green light for a $3k total budget, but I see no point in going beyond the i7 build above. Any more than that just seems like overkill. Any input would be appreciated. I put these build sheets on both the Intel and AMD build log subforums because I know in each spot, I'm going to get fanboys and biased opinions, but I also would like to see if there are some good points that can sway me one way or another.

Auld

You can save ALOT of cash by lowering some components on the i7 build. the GTX285 is not worth the money at all, it is barely faster then a GTX280 which can be had for $300 AR. just because its an i7 build doesnt mean you have to go all out and buy the best, suprisingly there is such a thing as a budget i7 920 build. If you have a microcenter nearby you can also pick the i7 920 up for $230.

here is a cheap i7 build for $845 AR:

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