Chozart

True.. PC Power & Cooling is great... but then we'd better re-title this thread to "Best 2,500USD Build?"

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Namrac

I dunno, I got to 3.1 with a big typhoon, vCore of 1.575. It's not really stable yet, but I'm sure it would be very doable under water.

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V-Dub Appreciation Thread

Quote:

Originally Posted by phospholipid on AIM I wish I could hate you to death

OpTioN

We'll i'm not going to do a HUGE upgrade for a few years... that's why i'm thinking of going Crossfire..

Atleast I'll play at dx9 other then dx6

Chozart

Crossfire is definately affordable within your price range, and here is a list of my suggestions, which is in part a summary of other's suggestions in this thread:

- CPU: get the 3700+; great OC ability
- Hard drive: get a 250MB drive with 16MB cache... nearly as fast as the Raptors, and much cheaper. Maybe get two for RAID0
- PSU: get the FSP 700W. You'll need it. PC Power & Cooling is unbeatable in power...but also in price (nearly $500... ugh)
- Video: I would get one X1900XT now; more than enough for current games, and you can add the second one when prices drop (if you want it now..by all means, go ahead)
- Cooling: only H2O for CPU? Maybe spend a little more on a more sophisticated water cooling system.

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selectodude

Start with one card, then upgrade to another. And remember, the X1900 sucks down *a lot* of power. You need a *very* high end PSU for two. I just don't think your budget allows for CrossFire/SLI.

Chozart

Budget is fine:

CPU: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16819103622
MoBo: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16813131004
RAM: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16820231021
Hard Drive: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16822136010
Video (x2): http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16814125018
Case: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16811133154
PSU: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16817104015
DVD: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16827136063
Sound: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16829102188
Cooling (Air): http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16835106061

Total $2,079.92. The FSP PSU is powerful enough (certified Crossfire for double 1900 series and certified SLI for 7800GTX512MB and 7900 series; I think one of the few PSUs besides the PC P&C that has these certifications)

There are ways to cut cost to replace air cooling with water if desired: Skip the BT (obviously), lay off on the sound for now (until onboard really drives you nuts), and save $50 on the case. Then you'll have just over $200 for a decent water cooling solution.

I do agree that you should start out with one X1900XT, and if you want to you can add the second one once prices drop (mmmm isn't that what I am doing myself???)

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0rion

Nice List, I approve. I see that you left out watercooling, I agree with this also. I CURRENTLY HAVE watercooling, and im finding it to be too much of a hassle. Running cool is nice, but not for the amount of difficulty it adds to the system. My suggestion would be to go with air cooling at least for now, get the crossfire and all the great parts, then move to watercooling later, if ever.