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Config recommendations

Post Date: 2008-05-09
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Awk View Drop Down
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Posts: 15 		  Quote Awk Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Topic: Config recommendations
    Posted: 09 May 2008 at 3:36pm

Hi,

Below is what I'm thinking of getting right now. I'm planning on using it mostly for FPS and MMORPG gaming. I'm aware that its not going to use the full 4GB of RAM since its a 32-bit OS. Any other issues that anyone might see or things that anyone might recommend that aren't too pricey?

Since I want to overclock the processor, I'm wondering if I need a stage 3 cooling system vs the stage 2 I have in my current configuration.
 
I'm also wondering if it might be worth it to move from the GeForce 8800GT to the 8800GTS or possibly just have the 8800GT video card overclocked. Any recommendations either way?
 
Any input would be appreciated!
 
Specifications:
Case: Digital Storm 750Si (Black Anodized Aluminum Finish)
Power Supply: 620W Corsair HX (Dual SLI Compatible) (Silent Edition)
Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 2.4GHz (1066MHz FSB) (8MB Cache)
Motherboard: nVidia 650i Core 2 Quad (nForce 650i Ultra)
Memory: 4GB DDR2 Corsair at 800MHz XMS2
Floppy / Card: - No Thanks
Hard Drive 1: 160GB Western Digital (16MB Cache) (7200 RPM) (SATA) Hard Drive 2: 320GB Western Digital (16MB Cache) (7200 RPM) (SATA) Raid Option: - No Thanks
Hard Drive 3: - No Thanks
Optical Drive 1: DVD±R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 20x / CD-Writer 48x)
Optical Drive 2: - No Thanks
Network Card: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections)
Video Card: nVidia GeForce 8800GT 512MB
TV Tuner: - No Thanks
Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster Audigy SE
Physics Card: - No Thanks
Cooling: Air Cooled Stage 2 (Silent Artic Cooling Heat-sink Upgrade (Copper Heatpipes)
Case Lighting: - No Thanks
Round Cables: - No Thanks
User Manual: Personalized Platinum Digital Storm Binder (Includes Paperwork/Benchmarks/CDs/Manuals)
Overclock Processor: Yes, Overclock the processor as much as possible with complete stability
Overclock Video Card: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s)
Overclock Memory: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my memory
Tweak Windows: - No Thanks, Please do not tweak the services on the operating system
Windows OS: Microsoft Windows XP Professional (Includes Service Pack 2)
Restore Kit: Digital Storm Specialized Recovery System (DVD Image Based)
Protection: - No Thanks
Office: - No Thanks
Benchmarking: - No Thanks
Pre-Install Game: - No Thanks
LCD Display: - No Thanks
Surge Shield: - No Thanks
Speakers: - No Thanks
Keyboard: Microsoft Multimedia Desktop 2.0 (Multimedia Keyboard + Optical Wheel Mouse)
Mouse: - No Thanks my keyboard comes with a mouse
Warranty: 3 Year Platinum Care Extended Parts & Labor Warranty
Support: Lifetime Toll-Free Platinum Care Technical Support
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Drakul View Drop Down
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Posts: 55 		  Quote Drakul Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 09 May 2008 at 4:30pm
IF you are planning to OC in the 750 I think stage 3 cooling is a must have.
 
I would say go with the 8800GTS, it gives you a bit of a performance gain as well as putting less heat into the case due to the fact that the fan on the GTS exhausts the hot air outside the case.
 
As far as the sound card goes, I would either step up to one of the X-fi models, or just stick with the onboard sound. The Audigy does not give you anything the onboard can't do.
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!ender_ View Drop Down
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Posts: 4219 		  Quote !ender_ Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 09 May 2008 at 7:12pm
Crycould you please link the config
 
its so much easier to look over everything and shuffle things that way
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Awk View Drop Down
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Posts: 15 		  Quote Awk Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 09 May 2008 at 9:40pm
Sure -

http://www.digitalstormonline.com/comploadsaved.asp?id=148078






Edited by Awk - 09 May 2008 at 9:40pm
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Tyler Lowe View Drop Down
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Posts: 0 		  Quote Tyler Lowe Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 10 May 2008 at 12:36am
The motherboard you've picked out isn't the best for overclocking, just a fair warning. If you are going to OC, you need stage 3 cooling in that case, trust me.

This is what I would do:

-2GB of RAM. Buy it later if you absolutely must. It won't make any difference in XP. Seriously. XP *screams* with an overclocked Q6600 and 2GB of RAM. Did I mention it *screams*?

Go with a 780i motherboard. You'll see a dramatically better overclocking situation with the 780i over the 650i. This is a much better investment in performance than the extra 2GB of RAM.

Drop the sound card. The 780i onboard sound is very good. About as good as that audigy you have selected in your build. The audigy also has no dedicated audio processing unit so it relies on the CPU, which means no increase in FPS for having it installed.

Drop the keyboard from your build to save a little more if you don't absolutely need another standard microsoft keyboard and mouse.

Revised build:
http://www.digitalstormonline.com/comploadsaved.asp?id=148091

I know I bumped the cost up $100, but it couldn't be helped if stage 3 cooling was to be added without losing anything important from your build selections. The power supply should be able to handle a second 8800GT down the road if you ever wanted to try SLI.
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!ender_ View Drop Down
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Posts: 4219 		  Quote !ender_ Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 10 May 2008 at 7:24am

http://www.digitalstormonline.com/comploadsaved.asp?id=148111

 
sort of agree with tyler on some things, heres what i changed and why
-i hate the pro case, i changed to mine because i can speak for things that i know work, either case will need some effort put it to get real performance cooling, i feel that the LITE case is just a better design(450)
 
-780, same reasons as tyler
 
-down to 2 @ 1066 instead of 4, you'll see little to no change in the performance, and you simply dont need 4gigs with a less than $2600-$3000 system, it wont be used.
 
1 500gb hard drive is less cash than 2 seperate ones, less power draw on the system and less space taken up, a simple partition would accomplish the same end AND you still have more total space for less money
 
-cd/dvd, id go for lightscribe, hey, its $9 for a sweet toySmile
 
-the 8800 gt is prone to heating and noise problems, not to mention its just out dated by now, for $96 youll see a COMPLETELY HUGE jump in performance, and, in my opinion, GPU is the weakest link these days, it will be 90 bucks very well spent.
 
- same with the sound card, just not needed
 
- air, i disagree with tyler here, in the low range cases, stage 3 makes little sense to me, its the same heatsink and they swap out 2 fans... if you upgraded them individually, it would be 15 bucks each (at least it was when i ordered) so you're looking at 15x2 > $80 *see note below
 
- picked up the ram tweak becuase if you get the processor OC you will get a considerable amount more out of your system tweaking the ram to match, and you get the fans included!
 
- up to vista becuase xp is getting to be so dead that it acually costs more than vista prem... i was scared to make the swap too, but realistically its the better choice.
 
-i dropped the keyboard too becuase those generic deals are silly, either grab the designer peices or head over to best buy and see what you like
 
i feel that for a small increase in price here you will see a ton more power.
 
 
*as for the subnote. neither the pro case you chose or the LITE case i chose have wonderful cooling, i would suggest you upgrade -ONLY- the exhaust fan to a scythe 120mm and then get the front fan intake mounts, either 5.25x3 = 120mm fan   or  5.25x2 = 2 80mm fans, something to discuss with DSO
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Tyler Lowe View Drop Down
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Posts: 0 		  Quote Tyler Lowe Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 10 May 2008 at 8:46am
Just to clarify on stage 3 cooling, if you are purchasing a 750i, that is 3x120mm high cfm fans and a 5.25" bay conversion, not 2 fans. This will grant decent airflow and performance at a lower price than any of the case upgrades offered.
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!ender_ View Drop Down
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Posts: 4219 		  Quote !ender_ Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 10 May 2008 at 10:12am
is there a link to that on paper because ive never seen it mentioned that stage 3 will have them add 2 case modifications to cut in a 120mm fan and to mod the bay intake on the 750 case
 
*edit* unless you meant 3 fans total, not 3 fans and a mount(w/120mm fan inside)
either way, youre looking at $80 more than stage 2 for 3 $15 dollar fans and a $20 bay mount, so how is it a better value?
 
in fact, if i knew that i could have gotten those when i ordered, i would have done it myself.
the only information from stage 3 that ive seen from a DSO member or the site is alex saying
"Stage 3 Cooling: Upgraded heat-sink (Stage 2) with an additional upgrade in case fans. We populate all fan slots with fans to create a nice wind tunnel inside your system."
Since the 450, and 750 only hold 2 120mm fan slots each... it seemed to me that the upgrade would be 2 120mm zalman / scythe fans instead of the stock ones.
 
 
*edit part 2* this is based off the assumption that fan upgrades are the same they were when i got my scythe sflex fans over my stock ones, which was $15 each when i ordered in november. a great deal considering this x2 is the fan i got


Edited by !ender_ - 10 May 2008 at 10:21am
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David View Drop Down
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  Quote David Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 10 May 2008 at 3:11pm

Wait, are you guys saying that the on-board sound is as good or better than Audigy sound!?
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!ender_ View Drop Down
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Posts: 4219 		  Quote !ender_ Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 10 May 2008 at 3:56pm

pretty much, possibly better. unless you are getting a sound card with an onboard APU then theres little point with mobos of this class.

please note, i only use asus, in this buy i picked up the asus maximus board. i can not speak for nvidia boards
 
*edit* its not so much "on board" sound any more, the maximus comes with its own card, supreme fx


Edited by !ender_ - 10 May 2008 at 4:00pm
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Tyler Lowe View Drop Down
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Posts: 0 		  Quote Tyler Lowe Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 10 May 2008 at 6:59pm
Actually !ender, the modification I listed was noted by Sundowner when he received his rig, which I believe was the very first (official) stage 3 modification of a 750i.

This is the same mod pictured in the configuration page by default for the 750i system, although that picture should probably have a disclaimer noting that the bay conversion is part of stage 3 cooling and the paint job is not standard.

The 750i already has one 120mm fan mounted in the front of the case, just forward of the HDD cage, and one 120mm exhaust by default. The bay conversion assumes 1x DVD drive naturally. If two drive bays are occupied, I believe DSO installs a single 80mm fan in that space instead as part of the stage 3 cooling package.

As to value, some people prefer to have something that works right out of the box, with no further effort required.


David:

Yes, I am saying that onboard sound has come a very long way if you haven't purchased a system in a while. I think you will be very pleasantly surprised by the increase in quality. In my opinion, I would not install a sound card unless it were of an X-Fi grade or better, and I had speakers capable of taking advantage of the increased fidelity.

Awk:

If you have questions regarding any of the options on the configuration page, I suggest calling DSO's toll free number and asking one of the sales representatives for further information. If anyone is going to have 100% accurate information, that would be your best source.

Edited by Tyler Lowe - 10 May 2008 at 7:05pm
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!ender_ View Drop Down
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Posts: 4219 		  Quote !ender_ Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 10 May 2008 at 9:20pm
Originally posted by Tyler Lowe


As to value, some people prefer to have something that works right out of the box, with no further effort required.
 
I think you misunderstand me. My point is that in a lower end case, the flat cost of stage 3 cooling is much less of a value, as compared to something like the cooler master stacker case. In a low end case, which by default, harbors 2 120mm bays, choosing stage 2 cooling, and asking for 2 120mm scythe/zalman fans (additional $15 each) is cheaper than chosing stage 3 for exact same pieces.
 
in the circumstance, which i did not know, where the stage 3 in a 750i case is chosen, with the 5.25 x 3 or x 2 front fan mount, it MAY be cheaper still to ask for stage 2 and then upgrade the other peices individually (still in DSO's hands) because, as i mentioned:
$15 per fan x 3
+5.25x3 bay mount(~$20)
still less than the additional $80 for stage 3.
 
I never meant for the customer to install parts after the fact, simply that the customer ask for peices individually to save some cash on a low end build(since they are likely pinching pennies as is.)
 
Furthermore, while I do not own a 750i case, I can most certainly tell anyone looking into a 450i case that you are wasting your time and money swapping anything but a stock fan in as a lower front intake fan, in the 450i and many other cases, this intake fan is mostly blocked from both sides (some cool yet foolishly design door or "intake cuts" block the intake while the typical right-to-left facing HDD cages completely block any air that does get through from reaching the guts with any speed)
 
this is exactly why i would suggest that anyone looking for performance cooling in the lower-end cases grabs an upgraded 120mm exhaust and the 5.25x3 120mm intake fan upgrades without even addressing the stock front lower intake fan.
 
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SunfighterLC View Drop Down
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Posts: 1527 		  Quote SunfighterLC Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 10 May 2008 at 9:39pm
Ender does have a point there. Hed basically be paying 80 bucks extra for just that case mod i believe, which if im correct, if you request it DS does it for 30 something dollars....so he should probably do that instead.
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Tyler Lowe View Drop Down
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Posts: 0 		  Quote Tyler Lowe Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 10 May 2008 at 10:31pm
Here's how it breaks down:

$49 stage two cooling, which is the Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro.

$35 for the case mod to convert 3 5.25" drive bays to a 120mm fan, as per Alex's response to Cronedog's inquiry on the price. This was for the parts needed for the mod only, and assumed customer installation.

$30 for two high cfm 120mm case fans.

This comes to $114 for the options presented a-la-cart, provided DSO does not value their time in installing the bay conversion.

While this does represent at least *some* savings, we are now within $15 of simply asking for stage 3 cooling, again, assuming that DSO does not charge to install that bay conversion.

I believe the final pricing will come to about the break even point vs. a-la-carte. If someone were looking for the best "bang-for-the-buck" they could probably save $15 by opting not to upgrade the stock intake fan.





Edited by Tyler Lowe - 10 May 2008 at 10:39pm
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!ender_ View Drop Down
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Posts: 4219 		  Quote !ender_ Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 10 May 2008 at 11:02pm
im very curious/irritated that all of this damn information isnt posted instead of the endless broken links on the website
$35 for a $20 piece is an odd move, even for DSO
 
EITHER WAY
 
all of this junk needs to be outlined somewhere on the config page becuase it wasnt until today, near 6 months after i ordered, did i find out that the bay mount was included in some cases stage 3, or that it was $35 along with plenty of other questions
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SunfighterLC View Drop Down
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Posts: 1527 		  Quote SunfighterLC Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 10 May 2008 at 11:06pm
yea their broken link info thing definally needs fixed...almost 2/3s of their info is either out of date/wrong or missing. Thats pretty damn annoying. Luckly ive had 2-3 months to research everything myself.
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Awk View Drop Down
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Posts: 15 		  Quote Awk Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 11 May 2008 at 1:40am
Thanks guys. Lotsa good info here.
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