Need advice about building for Photoshop

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   Hi, 

A few days ago my beloved custom built, four and a half year old PC died. Time for a new one. 

I've researched around the net and found two sites that meets my expectations of a company that builds PC's. This is one of them. 

My main use for my PC is Adobe Photoshop and the rest of the Creative Suite. I also do a lot of internet and MS Office stuff. Sometime in the future I plan to do some light video editing (Adobe Premiere) and Flash. 
I would also like to put Fallout 3 into the machine and gasp in awe at the graphics. 

I would like my new PC to last for five years before I replace it, thus the investment in this system.

Does anyone have advice or an opinion regarding my current config?
Below are my current selections for it and the requirements I personally have for each component. I haven't included obvious requirements such as "the chassis needs a good air flow and easy access"  or "the RAM must be able to run Vista".

Chassis: Antec 902
Reqs: The quieter the better. Is the HAF 932 worth the extra $70? 

Processor: Intel Core i7 920

Motherboard: ASUS Rampage II Extreme
Reqs: Stable. My old board had troubles with the BIOS and did not support the USB ports on the front of my chassis. 

System memory: 6GB DDR3 1600 Mhz Mushkin 
Thoughts: I'm under the impression 12 GB won't do much for me, thought I might be wrong? Is "recommended by Digital Storm" a way of saying "We've got good markup on these" or "these rock!"? 

Power Supply: 650W
Req: Will it be enough? Will I be able to expand later?

Hard Drives: 3x 500 WD disks (One for each purpose.)
I have two external drives of approx 200GB and I still haven't been able to use all their space. Hence why I'm not going for the Terrabyte. Should I? 

Optical Drive: DVD RW with Lightscribe
Heck, why not, right? 

Internet: High Speed Network Port
I have a wireless USB thingy already. 

Graphics: Radeon 4870 512MB
Reqs: HDMI output. Ability for two screens at once. Is the 2GB version worth it? I'm tempted.

Sound Card: Integrated
I only use headphones anyways. 

All my other options are set to the default. 

Any thoughts will be highly appreciated! Thanks for just bothering reading through this!

J.
Soon-to-be-owner-of-new-system

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dustdown Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 14 Apr 2009 Online Status: Offline Posts: 4	Quote Reply Topic: Need advice about building for Photoshop Posted: 15 Apr 2009 at 12:09am
	Hi, A few days ago my beloved custom built, four and a half year old PC died. Time for a new one. I've researched around the net and found two sites that meets my expectations of a company that builds PC's. This is one of them. My main use for my PC is Adobe Photoshop and the rest of the Creative Suite. I also do a lot of internet and MS Office stuff. Sometime in the future I plan to do some light video editing (Adobe Premiere) and Flash. I would also like to put Fallout 3 into the machine and gasp in awe at the graphics. I would like my new PC to last for five years before I replace it, thus the investment in this system. Does anyone have advice or an opinion regarding my current config? Below are my current selections for it and the requirements I personally have for each component. I haven't included obvious requirements such as "the chassis needs a good air flow and easy access" or "the RAM must be able to run Vista". Chassis: Antec 902 Reqs: The quieter the better. Is the HAF 932 worth the extra $70? Processor: Intel Core i7 920 Motherboard: ASUS Rampage II Extreme Reqs: Stable. My old board had troubles with the BIOS and did not support the USB ports on the front of my chassis. System memory: 6GB DDR3 1600 Mhz Mushkin Thoughts: I'm under the impression 12 GB won't do much for me, thought I might be wrong? Is "recommended by Digital Storm" a way of saying "We've got good markup on these" or "these rock!"? Power Supply: 650W Req: Will it be enough? Will I be able to expand later? Hard Drives: 3x 500 WD disks (One for each purpose.) I have two external drives of approx 200GB and I still haven't been able to use all their space. Hence why I'm not going for the Terrabyte. Should I? Optical Drive: DVD RW with Lightscribe Heck, why not, right? Internet: High Speed Network Port I have a wireless USB thingy already. Graphics: Radeon 4870 512MB Reqs: HDMI output. Ability for two screens at once. Is the 2GB version worth it? I'm tempted. Sound Card: Integrated I only use headphones anyways. All my other options are set to the default. Any thoughts will be highly appreciated! Thanks for just bothering reading through this! J. Soon-to-be-owner-of-new-system

DST4ME Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS ELITE Joined: 14 Apr 2008 Online Status: Offline Posts: 36758	Quote Reply Posted: 15 Apr 2009 at 1:25am
	Chassis: you can't compare 902 and HAF, HAF is a full tower, more space for airflow, more space to grow, HAF wins hands down. Motherboard: go with EVGA x58, better board, classified is even better. System memory: wasting your money on 1600MHz you can 't tell the difference between 1600MHz and 1333MHz, Mushkin is recommended cause it has good timings and its tested before it goes to DS so they have a less chance of failing, you are right just like 1600MHz the 12GB would be a waste also. Power Supply: must be a good brand name, don't except just any PSU, 1000w for future proofing the system so that later upgrades have no problems when it comes to needing power. 1200w if you plan on going tri sli at some point. Hard Drives: stop and think how long it would take you to scan or search or back up a 1TB HDD when its say 750GB full, horrible idea, if you have 2 HDDs already and none are getting used to the full extent then why spend more money on more HDDs? the way you want to do your HDD is to get a fast drive for OS/apps/games and another 500GB for storage, there are some really fast SSDs coming out soon, some of us are going with a 500GB HDD now and then when the new SSDs come out we will upgrade the HDD1 to one of those and push the current 500GB to HDD2. Internet: an EVGA x58 comes with LAN port already and remember LAN is always faster then wireless. Graphics: this depends on your resolution, I would recommend dual sli 275, its a great price and performance is great, if your resolution is below 1600 x 1200 then you only need one 275 GTX, get the EVGA brand. now having said all that, I want you to know many of us know of other sites that look like they have the same system on paper, its important that you know that we trust DS with our money over others because we trust they parts they use are new and come with all the things they are suppose to come with, and we know they bent over back wards when things go wrong to make us happy, I dare you to find a builder as good as DS with DS prices and customer service and warranty. why don't you tell me your resolution and budget and let me config a system for you see what you think BTW I'm just a customer who has been here for a year now, I don't work for DS
	Nvidia Drivers----AMD Drivers

Perlife Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Groupie Joined: 08 Feb 2009 Online Status: Offline Posts: 134	Quote Reply Posted: 15 Apr 2009 at 2:10am
	Ticket Number: 270392 http://www.digitalstormonline.com/comploadsaved.asp?id=270392 Copy of Specifications: Chassis Model: Cooler Master HAF 932 Exterior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish Interior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish Trim Accents: - Standard Factory Finish Processor: Intel Core i7 920 2.66GHz (Quad Core) Motherboard: EVGA X58 3X SLI (Intel X58 Chipset) (Supports Triple SLI or CrossFire) System Memory: 6GB DDR3 1333MHz Mushkin (Highly Recommended) (Digital Storm Certified) Power Supply: 1000W Corsair HX (Dual/Triple/Quad SLI Compatible) (Silent Edition) Card Reader: - No Thanks Hard Drive Set 1: Operating System: 1x (500GB Western Digital (16MB Cache) (7200 RPM) (SATA) Set 1 Raid Options: - No Thanks Hard Drive Set 2: Multimedia\Data: - No Thanks Hard Drive Set 3: Backup\Misc.: - No Thanks Optical Drive 1: DVD±R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 20x / CD-Writer 48x) (LightScribe Edition) Optical Drive 2: - No Thanks Internet Access: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections) Video Card: 1x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 275 896MB (Includes PhysX Technology) Add-on Card: - No Thanks Sound Card: Integrated Motherboard Audio Extreme Cooling: AIR: Stage 2: Cooler Master V8 (Compatible With i7 Processors) Liquid Color:- Not Applicable, I do not have a H20: Stage 3 Cooling System Selected Chassis Airflow: Standard Factory Chassis Fans Internal Lighting: Internal Chassis Lighting System (Blue) Enhancements: - No Thanks Chassis Mods: - No Thanks Boost Processor: Yes, Overclock the processor as much as possible with complete stability Boost Video Card: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s) Boost 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 Vista Home Premium (64-Bit Edition) (For Enthusiasts) Restore Kit: Digital Storm Specialized Recovery System (DVD Image Based) Virus Protection: - No Thanks Office: - No Thanks Benchmarking: - No Thanks Install/Test Game: - No Thanks LCD Display: - No Thanks Surge Shield: - No Thanks Speakers: - No Thanks Keyboard: - No Thanks Mouse: - No Thanks External Storage: - No Thanks Exclusive T-Shirt: - No Thanks Priority Build: - No Thanks, Ship Within 5-10 Business Days After Order Is Successfully Processed Warranty: 3 Year Platinum Care Extended Parts & Labor Warranty

dustdown Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 14 Apr 2009 Online Status: Offline Posts: 4	Quote Reply Posted: 15 Apr 2009 at 8:20am
	Hi again! Thanks for the quick reply! My budget is around 2500. I'm currently using a Sony SDM HS95P. I believe the resolution I used there was 1600x1200. Does the proposed card have a HDMI output? I liked the Radeon 4870 for its HDMI and good pricing. Plus I've had a Radeon card in my old PC and it never, ever failed me or dissapointed. :-) Thanks for making me rethink my harddrive situation. I'm very fascinated by the SSD disks, but find them a bit pricey. I mainly use my two external drives as backups.

DST4ME Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS ELITE Joined: 14 Apr 2008 Online Status: Offline Posts: 36758	Quote Reply Posted: 15 Apr 2009 at 2:00pm
	dustdown looking the monitor you mentioned its a 19", has resolution of 1200 x 1050 and no HDMI input so how are you using the HDMI input? you can change any DVI out/in put to an HDMI via a $2 adaptor, the 4870x2 will be pretty loud also but its up to, you have to understand that the only difference between HDMI and DVI is sound, HDMI has sound but if your monitor does not have an HDMI input itself then you won't get any sound. also for 1200 x 1050 resolution you don't need a dual card or dual sli, it will be a waste to you, so here is my recommendation: here you go Ticket# 270519 --- Price: $2417 (To see this build click here) Price after current promotion $2267 Copy of Specifications: Chassis Model: Cooler Master HAF 932 Exterior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish Interior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish Trim Accents: - Standard Factory Finish Processor: Intel Core i7 920 2.66GHz (Quad Core) Motherboard: EVGA X58 3X SLI (Intel X58 Chipset) (Supports Triple SLI or CrossFire) System Memory: 6GB DDR3 1333MHz Mushkin (Highly Recommended) (Digital Storm Certified) Power Supply: 1000W Corsair HX (Dual/Triple/Quad SLI Compatible) Card Reader: - No Thanks Hard Drive Set 1: Operating System: 1x (500GB Western Digital (16MB Cache) (7200 RPM) (SATA) Set 1 Raid Options: - No Thanks Hard Drive Set 2: Multimedia\Data: - No Thanks Hard Drive Set 3: Backup\Misc.: - No Thanks Optical Drive 1: DVD±R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 20x / CD-Writer 48x) Optical Drive 2: DVD±R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 20x / CD-Writer 48x) Internet Access: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections) Video Card: 1x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 275 896MB (Includes PhysX Technology) Add-on Card: - No Thanks Sound Card: Integrated Motherboard Audio Extreme Cooling: AIR: Stage 2: Cooler Master V8 (Compatible With i7 Processors) Liquid Color:- Not Applicable, I do not have a H20: Stage 3 Cooling System Selected Chassis Airflow: Standard Factory Chassis Fans Internal Lighting: Internal Chassis Lighting System (Blue) Enhancements: - No Thanks Chassis Mods: - No Thanks Boost Processor: Yes, Overclock the processor as much as possible with complete stability Boost Video Card: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s) Boost 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 Vista Home Premium (64-Bit Edition) (For Enthusiasts) Restore Kit: Digital Storm Specialized Recovery System (DVD Image Based) Virus Protection: - No Thanks Office: - No Thanks Benchmarking: - No Thanks Install/Test Game: - No Thanks LCD Display: - No Thanks Surge Shield: - No Thanks Speakers: - No Thanks Keyboard: - No Thanks Mouse: - No Thanks External Storage: - No Thanks Exclusive T-Shirt: - No Thanks Priority Build: - No Thanks, Ship Within 5-10 Business Days After Order Is Successfully Processed Warranty: 3 Year Platinum Care Extended Parts & Labor Warranty Edited by DST4ME - 15 Apr 2009 at 2:01pm
	Nvidia Drivers----AMD Drivers

dustdown Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 14 Apr 2009 Online Status: Offline Posts: 4	Quote Reply Posted: 15 Apr 2009 at 8:59pm
	We've got a TV I want to connect the PC to so that I can watch stuff directly there without messing around with sound cables etc. I'll look into the above config and get back with my thoughts. Thanks for the advice :-)

DST4ME Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS ELITE Joined: 14 Apr 2008 Online Status: Offline Posts: 36758	Quote Reply Posted: 15 Apr 2009 at 9:15pm
	I see, fair enough, looks like the 295 gtx is the only one of the 3 that has hdmi, its upto you, I would go with the 295 in that case.
	Nvidia Drivers----AMD Drivers

Onkel_Ken Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS Veteran Joined: 17 Dec 2008 Online Status: Offline Posts: 2961	Quote Reply Posted: 15 Apr 2009 at 9:30pm
	Good call DST4ME!!! Looks like you got this guy covered!
	Velox X/AMD 5900X/MSI X570 Pro Carbon MB/32GB DDDR 3600 DSPS/850W PS/500GB Samsung 980 Pro/1TB Samsung 970 EVO Plus/500 GB HDD/Sound Blaster AE-7/EVGA FTW3 Ultra RTX 3080 10GB/Liquid CPU cooler AIO/

aias49 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 26 Mar 2009 Online Status: Offline Posts: 108	Quote Reply Posted: 16 Apr 2009 at 6:40am
	i love my gtx 295 card and no problems either. but i paid alittle more for this card also. IMO it was worth the extra cash. You may want to go a head and get the gtx295. especially if you are going to use a tv as a monitor.

Need advice about building for Photoshop

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