$1,500 ... but upgradeable!

You already have the i5 chip in your configuration.  There is no lower chipset to go to in order to save cash on that front. 

ok i already know your budget 1500....

whats your resolution?

what is the use of this computer? if gaming what games do you play and what games do you want to play?



cpu: you do not want the i5 it runs off of a x55 platform which is obsolete adn the i5 is fastest you can run on it. the i7 runs off a x58 platform which is current gen and has room to grow gulftown the new cpu which comes out in june will also use that platform.

motherboard: if you can squeeze a evga le in your budget it is better board. you can run 2x sli and a another pci-e card like a soundcard, or vid eding card if you so choose. evga has a much better warranty (you can fry a board putting it in and they will give you a new one as logn as u registered it no questions asked), evga has a upgrade program, and they have better products.

ram: go with muskin it is the ram that comes standard although they don't list the name till silverline. it is hand tested by both mushkin and ds, and comes with a lifetime warranty so if by chance it does go your covered. the corsair ram is very temperamental and will go on you eventually, so it is not worth the extra money and you wont notice the difference. if you can squeeze 6gb you will be better off or you can just buy a 2gb dim later and install it your self it is very simple.

psu: perfect could not have choose better

hdd: good starting choice! when you upgrade add a 120+ gb ssd and push the 500gb to hdd2 and use the ssd as your os. the speed is multiples and it allows for much better multitasking faster load times ect.

gpu (vid card): with out your resolution we can't be accurate with this and we can majorly undershoot or give you massive overkill. so let us know what you plan to use so we can give you the best bang for your buck. nvidia is better for 3d mainly animation and such right now they run off of dx 10 and are out of date. although choosing one of these and upgrade later is still a solid move. by doing this your wasting a little bit of money but it may allow you to get something that is out of your reach now that may give you better overall performance. the ati cards are current gen (5xxx series) they run dx11 but do not have dedicated physx.

sound card: the x-fi cards have driver problems but this area is not my forte i can't recommend one for you. if you on a budget i recommend you do this when you upgrade. the motherboard i chose has 8 channel sound (7.1) so you will be fine for now. lets focus on performace

extreme cooling: use noctua if you can afford it it is the best one for air. if not the cooler master v8. this keeps your system cool for overclocking.

processor boost: absolutely necessary it is a cheap way to max the performance of your pc. for a extra what $45 i think or free with promotion you get a minimum power increase of a i7 975( i think around another $1000 extra for this chip). the range is 3.3ghz to 3.9ghz and you will gain a definate advantage in speed. not bad for 45 bucks :). you will need stage 1 air cooling though. a non overclocked cpu will last on avg 10 yrs before it dies. a oc pcu last on avg 8 years. so no worries. also oc voids intel warranty BUT don't worry ds covers it in their warranty so you have nothing to worry about.

os: if you need xp support pro is the choice if not then go with home basic

@dragoonseal

if he chose the micro he would have space for 1 gpu and the soundcard, or just 2x gpu there is no more room to upgrade period. the evga LE gives 2x sli plus add on pci-e card. much better bang for the buck for $30 it is worth it.

750 watt psu can run most cards 2x but not all so he can shoot him self int he foot like that. which is why we most usually recommend the 1000 watt. the larger more powerful cards will eat it up like candy ie 295 and 5870/5970 and you would not be able to run a second. again resolution is needed we know what cards we are choosing so we don't over or undershoot the psu.

Originally posted by Raif @dragoonseal if he chose the micro he would have space for 1 gpu and the soundcard, or just 2x gpu there is no more room to upgrade period. the evga LE gives 2x sli plus add on pci-e card. much better bang for the buck for $30 it is worth it.

Oooh good call, I did not realize the LE had another PCI lane. I was wondering what the difference between the LE and Micro boards was. Definitely worth the $30.

Originally posted by Raif 750 watt psu can run most cards 2x but not all so he can shoot him self int he foot like that. which is why we most usually recommend the 1000 watt. the larger more powerful cards will eat it up like candy ie 295 and 5870/5970 and you would not be able to run a second. again resolution is needed we know what cards we are choosing so we don't over or undershoot the psu.

I most definitely recommend a 1000w, but he is on such an extreme budget there wasn't really any getting around it to be able to squeeze him into an i7 rig instead of an i5 rig.

I probably didn't emphasize it enough before, but I would really suggest he take the time to save up a few hundred more deniro to get a minimum of the HAF932, LE motherboard, i7 920 (with free overclock 3.3 - 3.9ghz), and a 1000w power supply. You'll be rock solid for years with that, and can add to or upgrade things freely with little restrictions, dinero allowing. Later you can slap in more ram, slap in an SSD, slap in a sound card, swap out to an i9, slap in big monster SLI or Crossfire video card setups, etc etc.

According to EVGA's site the Micro has 2x PCIe x4/x8/x16 slots, 1x PCIe x1 slot, and 1x PCI slot, supporting up to 2-way SLI or Crossfire.

The LE has 4x PCIe x4/x8/x16 slots, 1x PCIe x1 slot, and 1x PCI slot, supporting up to 3-way SLI or Crossfire.

Am I missing something? I'm looking at the wrong brand maybe?

Yes but what about the LE board? You said it has 1 x 16x pci lane, but the EVGA site says it has more, unless I'm reading it wrong?

It says 4 x PCIe x4/x8/x16. Do they all run at x16, or is that being kind of misleading and some run at x8 or less?

WOW!!!!!!!

Edited by broken - 01 Feb 2010 at 9:04pm

1)  yeah I need to trim some fat  ... can go as high as $1,500

thanks DST4ME.....

Edited by broken - 01 Feb 2010 at 10:40pm