Building A Custom PC Question v2

[b0bby]

As similar to jono 0101 I'm in need of hardware recommendations on a new system. I can build, config, troubleshoot everything just fine but I've been out of the loop as far as hardware is concerned. My last build was an htpc when bluray drives were the new hotness. Now it seems the new hotness is SSD's and unlocking cores.

What I need is a pc that can play world of warcraft really well. Immediately one would think oh thats easy the game doesn't require much. I'll go ahead and put an end to that and say it does need quite the juice to run well. There is quite a difference when soloing and getting 60fps to when you are in a 25 person raid with sprites flying everywhere and shadows galore at 15fps. I would love something to be at +100fps normally and atleast 60fps in 25 man raids. Also when the new expansion coming out and gfx engine being upgraded things will look better and be more gfx intensive.

What I have already:
monitors (1680x1050)
keyboard
mouse
speakers
OS
bd drive
plenty of storage, i dont need a 1TB system drive, only plan on installing OS + core apps (MS suite, Photoshop, powerdvd, etc) + WoW + 1-2 other games

What I need:
processor
mobo
ram
video card(s) - open to sli/xfire
system hdd/ssd
psu

i'm open to all brands and any suggestions. i've given myself a 1k budget but would like to go as low as possible considering its just the tower and guts. thanks in advance!

[kpkelley]

You say monitors. Does the video card need to support multiple monitors with a technology like ATI's Eyefinity or NVIDIA's Vision Surround?

[bad_code]

How similar are the graphics and the requirements compared to Lord Of the Rings Online? I built a computer for my brother to play LOR Online last year. He kept telling me the graphics were more intense than UT3 but he was wrong.

Raids with lots of people has a greater effect or is more greatly effected by your internet bandwidth as well as all the others participating.

[b0bby]

Originally Posted by kpkelley

You say monitors. Does the video card need to support multiple monitors with a technology like ATI's Eyefinity or NVIDIA's Vision Surround?

I said monitors out of instinct because I have several and didn't think of the hidden meaning. I don't need multiple monitor support.

Originally Posted by bad_code

How similar are the graphics and the requirements compared to Lord Of the Rings Online? I built a computer for my brother to play LOR Online last year. He kept telling me the graphics were more intense than UT3 but he was wrong.

Raids with lots of people has a greater effect or is more greatly effected by your internet bandwidth as well as all the others participating.

Does he play LOTRO on max settings? My current specs are 2.2ghz duo core, 4gb ram, ati hd2600xt passive cooled (I play on the htpc I mentioned in the OP). I have settings at the medium, vsync off. I can get like 120fps with vsync off in certain areas of the game where theres not alot going on naturally yielding the high fps. In high populated areas and raids it drops dramatically down to 20-25fps due to tons of players around me, tons of animations, bandwidth probably.

Whatever the reason is I'd like to get rid of it. It's alot harder than it sounds I think. Right now I'm gimping details and such in order to get better fps. What I want is to run max detail settings and be at a good fps range when in a high populated situation. My idea of good fps range with vsync off is 60-100fps.

[supersix4]

Originally Posted by b0bby

Does he play LOTRO on max settings? My current specs are 2.2ghz duo core, 4gb ram, ati hd2600xt passive cooled (I play on the htpc I mentioned in the OP). I have settings at the medium, vsync off. I can get like 120fps with vsync off in certain areas of the game where theres not alot going on naturally yielding the high fps. In high populated areas and raids it drops dramatically down to 20-25fps due to tons of players around me, tons of animations, bandwidth probably.

I just did a quick google and if you want to play that game a 5770 will smoke it.

[BLindsay]

i happen to play wow myself and one thing ive learned is that its not very gpu dependant. My Ati 4870 went out for RMA and i was stuck using a 9500GS and in very few situations there was a noticeable difference. untill i got the cash for my dual 5850's im using a 5670 which is plenty for the game. Noticed faar more difference getting a better cpu/more ram and SSD for uber load times

[vveksuvarna]

AMD is coming up with a 64bit 6 core processor which was built to outperform Intel's i7,

and the added advantage with AMD's processor is it will be priced at $300 compared to Intel's $1000 processor.

The processor may bbe branded in the Opteron or Phenom series.

[supersix4]

Originally Posted by vveksuvarna

AMD is coming up with a 64bit 6 core processor which was built to outperform Intel's i7,

and the added advantage with AMD's processor is it will be priced at $300 compared to Intel's $1000 processor.

The processor may bbe branded in the Opteron or Phenom series.

I think butters has it already and from what I've read on it, it still can't beat the i7 but it does give it a run for the money and at $300 it makes you wonder just how much you really need that little extra speed for $700 more dollars.

I personally would consider the chip over the extreme simply because I would love to see the Ocing potential but here's what maximumpc wrote

The Phenom II X6’s most disappointing performance came in our gaming tests. Although it pulls out OK numbers in 3DMark Vantage, the Intel parts are still ahead. In Far Cry 2, Dirt 2, and Resident Evil 5, the Intel quad-cores lead the way. Even in Valve’s Particle Test benchmark the Phenom is only able to squirt past the Core i5-750 chip.

I am amazed by the price but I didn't expect it to run laps around that 980...

Butters can give you better insight actually having used it.

[BLindsay]

Originally Posted by vveksuvarna

AMD is coming up with a 64bit 6 core processor which was built to outperform Intel's i7,

and the added advantage with AMD's processor is it will be priced at $300 compared to Intel's $1000 processor.

The processor may bbe branded in the Opteron or Phenom series.

its already out, and its competition for intels 4 core i7s not a chance against their 6 core.

Intel owns the high end

[supersix4]

Originally Posted by BLindsay

its already out, and its competition for intels 4 core i7s not a chance against their 6 core.

Intel owns the high end

That post juts put it to bed lol

[b0bby]

Any of you guys got lucky with getting a processor with an unlockable core? I've read some on it and it sounds very interesting. I can definitely live without it.

I guess my new refined needs for recommendations are:

quad core or higher processor
quality mobo
4-6GB of quality ram
SSD
quality quiet PSU
5770 or higher video card

The new WoW expansion is going into beta within the month so i'll wait for more details on the graphical demands of it. My main area of concern is finding a processor that is rated well in bang for the money. There's so many quad cores, duo unlocked to quads, quads unlocked to 6, and 6 cores these days its hard to narrow it down with so many choices. Along with picking the right processor please recommend a good mobo to with it. Thanks!

EDIT: oh I forgot to mention I would like the video card or mobo to support 7.1 DTS MA/TrueHD if possible. I have a BD drive I'll use with this as a backup bluray player. Does this vastly limit my choices?

[BLindsay]

Originally Posted by b0bby

Any of you guys got lucky with getting a processor with an unlockable core? I've read some on it and it sounds very interesting. I can definitely live without it.

I guess my new refined needs for recommendations are:

quad core or higher processor
quality mobo
4-6GB of quality ram
SSD
quality quiet PSU
5770 or higher video card

The new WoW expansion is going into beta within the month so i'll wait for more details on the graphical demands of it. My main area of concern is finding a processor that is rated well in bang for the money. There's so many quad cores, duo unlocked to quads, quads unlocked to 6, and 6 cores these days its hard to narrow it down with so many choices. Along with picking the right processor please recommend a good mobo to with it. Thanks!

EDIT: oh I forgot to mention I would like the video card or mobo to support 7.1 DTS MA/TrueHD if possible. I have a BD drive I'll use with this as a backup bluray player. Does this vastly limit my choices?

Could so something along the lines of
Core i7 920
Asus P6T
6GB DDR3 (triple channel)
Intel X25-M (80 or 160GB)
Corsair 750W PSU
And the 5770 would meet your audio requirement.

I build a computer for a friend a little bit ago for wow actually which ended up being
Core i5 750 (Quad)
4GB RAM
Asus board (dont remember which exactly offhand)
and the 5770

and that runs wow great so if you went with the above setup it would be pretty awesome

[tootall82103]

Originally Posted by b0bby

As similar to jono 0101 I'm in need of hardware recommendations on a new system. I can build, config, troubleshoot everything just fine but I've been out of the loop as far as hardware is concerned. My last build was an htpc when bluray drives were the new hotness. Now it seems the new hotness is SSD's and unlocking cores.

What I need is a pc that can play world of warcraft really well. Immediately one would think oh thats easy the game doesn't require much. I'll go ahead and put an end to that and say it does need quite the juice to run well. There is quite a difference when soloing and getting 60fps to when you are in a 25 person raid with sprites flying everywhere and shadows galore at 15fps. I would love something to be at +100fps normally and atleast 60fps in 25 man raids. Also when the new expansion coming out and gfx engine being upgraded things will look better and be more gfx intensive.

What I have already:
monitors (1680x1050)
keyboard
mouse
speakers
OS
bd drive
plenty of storage, i dont need a 1TB system drive, only plan on installing OS + core apps (MS suite, Photoshop, powerdvd, etc) + WoW + 1-2 other games

What I need:
processor
mobo
ram
video card(s) - open to sli/xfire
system hdd/ssd
psu

i'm open to all brands and any suggestions. i've given myself a 1k budget but would like to go as low as possible considering its just the tower and guts. thanks in advance!

I love building computers. I have pictures of mine in my gallery I built in 2007. Only had a CPU and GPU upgrade since.

CPU- (Will last you a good while)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-225-_-Product

Mobo- (important you get sata3 and usb3 for the future)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-641-_-Product

Ram- (I love Mushkin)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820226028

GPU- (ATI 5770 will destroy WoW, nice cooler!)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-490-_-Product

HDD- (I'd personally hold off on an SSD until the prices drop more)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820167016
**This will put you over 1k, I'd use what you have already and save up.

PSU- (Corsair is the best IMO)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139012


Without an SSD you're at $980 in the newegg cart with a badass rig of quality components! I don't see an SSD being worth the prices to have a bit skimpier load times. If you want a good hard drive get a Western Digital Black or Samsung Spinpoint and give the SSDs another year to drop in prices.

[b0bby]

Originally Posted by tootall82103

I love building computers. I have pictures of mine in my gallery I built in 2007. Only had a CPU and GPU upgrade since.

CPU- (Will last you a good while)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-225-_-Product

Mobo- (important you get sata3 and usb3 for the future)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-641-_-Product

Ram- (I love Mushkin)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820226028

GPU- (ATI 5770 will destroy WoW, nice cooler!)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-490-_-Product

HDD- (I'd personally hold off on an SSD until the prices drop more)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820167016
**This will put you over 1k, I'd use what you have already and save up.

PSU- (Corsair is the best IMO)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139012


Without an SSD you're at $980 in the newegg cart with a badass rig of quality components! I don't see an SSD being worth the prices to have a bit skimpier load times. If you want a good hard drive get a Western Digital Black or Samsung Spinpoint and give the SSDs another year to drop in prices.

If I hold off on SSD because of prices, would my other option be those fast Raptor drives? I only need 40-80GB because again I don't plan on installing anything other than core apps.

[supersix4]

Originally Posted by b0bby

If I hold off on SSD because of prices, would my other option be those fast Raptor drives? I only need 40-80GB because again I don't plan on installing anything other than core apps.

Then Buy the 40gb ssd but make sure you only want to do core items. The intel version is like 129.99-150 and the 150gb Raptor is 149 (on amazon).

[b0bby]

Originally Posted by supersix4

Then Buy the 40gb ssd but make sure you only want to do core items. The intel version is like 129.99-150 and the 150gb Raptor is 149 (on amazon).

i think wow takes up 16gb, then ms suite, adobe reader, flash plugins, google chrome, photoshop, powerdvd, burning programs, antivirus/ccleaner are all i have on my current pc. i hope 40gb is big enough. is there an affordable 80gb version?

[supersix4]

Originally Posted by b0bby

i think wow takes up 16gb, then ms suite, adobe reader, flash plugins, google chrome, photoshop, powerdvd, burning programs, antivirus/ccleaner are all i have on my current pc. i hope 40gb is big enough. is there an affordable 80gb version?

I mean the Intel 80 GB X25M is 214.99 on amazon, and the same on newegg (they do have OEM versions for 204, but I wouldn't get that since you need the 3.5'' adaptor.)

225 on tigerdirect

That looks like the best you can do for the intel is the 214.99 on amazon.


There are some 60's that aren't intel brand that are sub 170 (I'd buy from amazon if it was possible I'll list them below)
- Corsair Reactor Series CSSD-R60GB2-BRKT 2.5" 60GB USB 2.0 & SATAII Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) $164.99 newegg

-OCZ Agility Series OCZSSD2-1AGT60G 2.5" 60GB SATA II MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) $159.00 newegg

I've had personal experience with the intel x25 series so I would always recommend that, but I'm not the one spending money am I

[BDestroyer8418]

I would go with

atleast a 5770 or 260 - Do you play any other games besides WOW because you don't need much for that game.

The 5770 has dX11 and can Bit stream HD audio (all 5XXX card has this)

Next how long are you planning to keep this setup.

And do you have Frys or Micro Center close by.

AMD x6 is a nice chip for $200 with 6 real cores but I would still buy a 860,920,930 over it unless you have a MB already that will work with the x6 or if you can get your hands on a good combo online which there are a few. Plus there is no game out there that needs 6 cores.

Originally Posted by b0bby

If I hold off on SSD because of prices, would my other option be those fast Raptor drives? I only need 40-80GB because again I don't plan on installing anything other than core apps.

I bought a 60GB which was plenty for what I needed it for Win7 install and all my Apps. Game install go on another HDD. You can disable Hibernate in Windows and you will get back 4GB of space. I have a ton of apps and I'm only sitting at 50% filled right. After the install and the tweaks I was only looking at like 10GB of space used.

You don't need a top of the line SSD right now. You can find a 60GB OCZ on Slickdeals for about $100 AR.

Also Since it doesn't seems like your going to be pushing your system (encoding files etc)and you have a 1K limit you can get a nice AMD build that would be plenty for what you do.

@tootall82103

That is a nice Card but the OP needs to understand all the heat will be blown into the computer case so you need to have good Air Flow in the case plus those cards are not as good for Crossfire since it would blow the air onto the bottom card.

I would go with this one (it goes on sale you just need to watch for it) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150464
Also has Double Lifetime Warranty as long as you Register within 30 days I believe it is. Means you can sell that card and the 2nd owner can register and get a lifetime warranty on it also.

[BLindsay]

Originally Posted by supersix4

I mean the Intel 80 GB X25M is 214.99 on amazon, and the same on newegg (they do have OEM versions for 204, but I wouldn't get that since you need the 3.5'' adaptor.)

225 on tigerdirect

That looks like the best you can do for the intel is the 214.99 on amazon.


There are some 60's that aren't intel brand that are sub 170 (I'd buy from amazon if it was possible I'll list them below)
- Corsair Reactor Series CSSD-R60GB2-BRKT 2.5" 60GB USB 2.0 & SATAII Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) $164.99 newegg

-OCZ Agility Series OCZSSD2-1AGT60G 2.5" 60GB SATA II MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) $159.00 newegg

I've had personal experience with the intel x25 series so I would always recommend that, but I'm not the one spending money am I

u dont need the 3.5 adapter haha. I just double sided taped mine to the backside of my computer case. Stealth, cant even tell they are there

[supersix4]

Originally Posted by BLindsay

u dont need the 3.5 adapter haha. I just double sided taped mine to the backside of my computer case. Stealth, cant even tell they are there

lol that would look amazing in my HD bay area
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...-/4998e095.jpg