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Thread ID: 82362 2007-08-24 21:39:00 Help: Not sure about this setup. SS227 (12721) Press F1
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584356 2007-08-24 21:39:00 Im building a "budget" gaming machine.

This is the current set up Im thinking about, but before I actually purchase anything, I´d like an experienced persons advice.

AMD Athlon 64 x2 6000+ 3.0ghz
Corsair Twin 2x 6400 DDR2 total 2048mb CL5 kit
Asus M2M32-SLi Delux, NForce 590 SLi
Samsung Spinpoint T166 500gb SATA2 16mb 7200rpm
NorthQ 400watt psu
Gainward GeForce 8600GTS (will upgrade to SLi within a month or so)

Then of course Im adding a cabinet and DVD burner to the mix plus two 120mm fans.

So is there any forseable problems with this set up? Any potential bottle necks? I´m hoping to be able to play Crysis on at least medium, can I expect that with this setup?

Thanks for all the help. :) 		SS227 (12721)
584357 2007-08-24 22:49:00 you'll possibly be well advised to get a more grunty psu....400w is about minimum now-a-days drcspy (146)
584358 2007-08-24 23:51:00 HDD should be Seagate IMO.

Why SLI with 2 mid cards? For the same cost you can get an 8800GTS 640MB and this will still be faster and then you can still go SLI...

Get a decent brand PSU, I recommend Enermax, at least 550W. 		The_End_Of_Reality (334)
584359 2007-08-25 01:19:00 Why go SLi with 2 mid cards? Because I can´t really affored one expensive card. (Whereas, I can buy one 8600 now, and next paycheck, but another.)

But if it´s going to make a big difference, I´ll just wait and save. So more input about that would be appreciated.

Also, Seagate (my favorite brand out there) is a tad more expensive, so if I can live (safely) with a Samsung, I´ll do that. (Noise isn´t a problem.)

So 400watts won´t really suffice? I´ll take a look at the Enermax 550w then.

I just wanted to build a machine that isn´t going to break the bank but also was capable.

Thanks for the input, greatly appreciated.

And End Of Reality, could you go a little deeper in regards to the performance of the 8600 vs 8800?

Again, thanks! :) 		SS227 (12721)
584360 2007-08-25 02:18:00 OK, I know the cost issue, but if you end up getting another 8600GTS in like a month I just think it would be better to wait another month and be able to afford a single 8800GTS 640MB, or even a 320MB version which is about $100 cheaper. But two 8600GTSs is about the same cost as one 8800GTS 640MB.

Have a look here (www.digital-daily.com) for a review of 8600GTS SLI Vs 8800GTS.

Here is the conclusion

All in all, the test results are self-evident. Nevertheless, let's recap it all up. In none of the tests the combination of two 8600GTS in the SLI mode was able to surpass the single 8800GTS at performance. This is unlikely an acceptable result in view of the same price of these solutions (regardless of the price of the motherboard with support for the SLI, which may cost somehow more than "simpler" analogs). Lack of the matching SLI profile in the drivers may bring all the efforts at building a powerful SLI system to nought. The last point to note is that top-end video cards are normally equipped with greater video memory capacity whose lack in the demanding modes may prove to be critical for middle-end video cards.
As regards the comparison of platforms, the urgent migration to quad-core processors in today's conditions is not really vital. However, we can't notice the moves which are being made towards this direction. If the game Call of Juarez is able demonstrating a performance boost with migration to the quad-core performance, we may hope that future games will also follow the similar suit. Actually, who knows may be by that time the quad-core processors will "get a residential registration" in desktop computers.

Looking at www.ascent.co.nz the prices for Samsung and Seagate are actually quite large... funily enough... It is really up to you if you are happy with a Samsung, but Seagates are the most reliable...

IMO it is important for the PSU to be a decent brand as it is what powers the whole PC and can potentially damage the other components...

EDIT: I will just add my HDD experiences... I have had 2 Hitachis die, a Samsung, 2 Maxtors and 1 Seagate.
Note I am currently running 5 Seagates and a Western Digital. all other brands I will not touch... and the Seagate that died was knocked off the table by my cat... So yeah... expected that... All HDDs I have had from anyone but Seagate have failed... 		The_End_Of_Reality (334)
584361 2007-08-25 02:29:00 Now that I know that, I´ll be waiting that extra month to purchase the 8800GTS. I had no clue there was that huge of a difference!

I know it´s important to purchase a good PSU, but I thought NorthQ products were some what decent? Never the less, no use in purchasing a shoddy psu to have it fry my other componants.

I´ll be looking for a new one then.

So, with these changes made, overall what would you rate the setup? (Remember, I´ll be running an 8800GTS, not 8600)

1-10 (1 being lowest of course, 10 being best.)

Are the components decent?

Thanks for the help, this is really a life saver. (Especially the part about the dual 8600 vs the single 8800!)

Cheers 		SS227 (12721)
584362 2007-08-25 02:38:00 As the article posted by EOR suggests, you can also save on the motherboard cost.

Why pay $340+ for an M2N32 Sli Deluxe board (with a 590 chipset) when you can pay $218+ for an M2N Sli Deluxe (with 570 chipset), a saving of $120+ when the only difference is 2x 16x (full speed) PCI Ex slots as opposed to one 1x 16x slot in the cheaper board. The 570 board should use less power and run a bit cooler too, regardless of whether you have SLI'ed cards on board. Well there are some other differences, but not that relevant IMO.

I'm extremely pleased with my, just purchased, Asus M2N-SLI Delux (570) board with an Asus 8800GTS 640MB. Then again, I could be biased.

As above, don't skimp on a PSU. Enermax, Silverstone and Thermalright are good brands, plus I read that the new (re-badged) Corsair PSUs are very good too. 		Murray P (44)
584363 2007-08-25 02:40:00 Hard to say, but it is better than my PC which is over a year and a half :p (Athlon X2 4400+ 2.7GHz, 2GB DDR500 and XFX 8800GTS XXX Edition) well depending on which brand of 8800 you get anyway :p ASUS is recommended.

I have not really heard of NorthQ in PSUs... do you have a link?

But I am running everything out there at decent settings, Bioshock I can run 1600x1200 everything MAXED on DX9 very well.

And you can always get another 8800 GTS in the future where as you would be buggered with already 2 8600 GTSs :)

Have you got a full price up of that? 		The_End_Of_Reality (334)
584364 2007-08-25 13:49:00 www.northq.com Theres a link to NorthQ, and the 400w I was thinking of getting.

Asus M2N-SLI Delux? I would have no problem going with that, as long as it fits the processers I want. :)

Thanks for the help, I´m going to tinker a little bit with the set up, and I´ll post a little later with a complete list.

Cheers mate! 		SS227 (12721)
584365 2007-08-25 20:32:00 It doesn't look as though you can get NorthQ in NZ... (assuming you are in NZ)

Yes, that motherboard will be fine. Though Murray has a point... if you go the 8800GTS and decide not to go SLI you could save money and not get an SLI motherboard, but then if you do want SLI a little later you won't be able to... 		The_End_Of_Reality (334)
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