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PC configuration

Post Date: 2010-10-25
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serbor View Drop Down
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Posts: 9 		  Quote serbor Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Topic: PC configuration
    Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 12:32pm
Hello PC Experts!
I would greatly appreciate your advice on my configuration.
Thanks very much!

Budget:
around $3000

Expectations:
I need a powerful machine at home (not necessarily a workstation!), to replace my 7-year old PC.

Usage:
70%- work-related (Internet, Office, Adobe Photoshop, Acrobat, CorelDraw, etc. GPU/CPU-intensive applications, such as Molecular visualization and 3D-modeling, biological database/structure analysis)
30%- music, movies and gaming (Starcraft II, CoD4 BioShock)

Special Needs:
Plan to run two monitors: one-24" IPS Samsung 244t and another 23" 3D-capable Asus with NVIDIA 3D kit in 3D stereo view (if possible).
The case has to be aesthetically pleasing and quiet. Don't want to waste too much money on electricity bill either!

Additional questions:
1. What it better: two video cards GTX 475 in SLI or one GTX 480? (two GTX 480 is an overkill, I think)
2. What is better: Intel's 80GB SSD X25-M MLC or Corsair's 120GB SSD Drive Force Series?
3. Does it make sense to have Seagate's new 500GB hybrid HD as a data drive?
4. Do I need an ASUS P6X58D Premium mobo (with USB 3.0/SATA 6GB) or EVGA X58 LE will suffice?
5. Is the Cooler Master CM 690 II Advanced case a good chose here or it's better to spend money on Assassin case?

Thanks!

Saved Ticket #: 450518

Specifications (the key components):
Chassis Model: Special Deal Hot Seller - Cooler Master CM 690 II Advanced
Processor: Intel Core i7 950 3.06GHz (Quad Core)
Motherboard: ASUS P6X58D Premium SLI (Intel X58 Chipset) (Features USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gb/s)
System Memory: 6GB DDR3 1600MHz Digital Storm Certified Performance Series
Power Supply: 1000W Digital Storm Certified (Dual/Triple/Quad SLI Compatible)
Expansion Bay: Internal Digital Media Card Reader (Black) (NOTE: Disables 2 Front USB Ports)
Hard Drive Set 1: Operating System: 1x (80GB Solid State (By: Intel) (Model: X25-M MLC Edition)
Hard Drive Set 2: Multimedia\Data: 1x (500GB Solid State Hybrid (By: Seagate) (7200 RPM) (Model: ST95005620AS)
Hard Drive Set 3: Backup\Misc.: 1x (1TB Western Digital Caviar (7200 RPM) (64MB Cache) (Model: Black Edition WD1002FAEX)
Optical Drive 1: Blu-Ray Player/DVD Writer (Play Blu-Ray and Burn DVDs)
Optical Drive 2: DVD-R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 24x / CD-Writer 48x)
Video Card: !PROMOTION: 2x SLI Dual (NVIDIA GeForce GTX 275 1.2GB EVGA CO-OP (2 GPUs for Gaming & PhysX)
Add-on Card: EVGA 2 Port SuperSpeed USB 3.0 Host Card (PCI-E Slot)
Sound Card: Integrated Motherboard Audio
Extreme Cooling: AIR: Stage 1: Noctua NH-U12P SE Dual 120mm Fans High Performance Cooler (i7 Processors Only)
Chassis Airflow: Upgrade Chassis With LED Performance Fans (Blue) (Up to 6 Fans)
Internal Lighting: Internal Chassis Lighting System (Blue)
Noise Reduction: Noise Suppression Package Stage 2 (Optimized Airflow & Fan Speeds with Noise Dampening Material)
Boost Processor: FREE: Stage 1: Overclock the processor between 3.3GHz to 3.9GHz (Cooling Upgrade Recommended)
Windows OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional (64-Bit Edition)
Recovery Tools: Windows Recovery Toolkit (Bundled with Windows 7 CD)
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MagiK View Drop Down
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Posts: 1074 		  Quote MagiK Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 3:13pm
Some of your questions call for opinions, but here are a couple of my thoughts.

1 Go with a single 480 for your video
2 Intel, Intel, Intel  according to our resident SSD expert.
3. No, not for a storage drive, use a Hybrid for applications/Games, use a cheaper drive large drive for storage.
4. The P6X board is a bit overkill I think, go with the EVGA
5. Everyone here seems to be in love with the HAF 932 or 922 case.
Ancalagon, My Syndicate SubZero Build Review
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!ender_ View Drop Down
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Posts: 4219 		  Quote !ender_ Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 3:41pm
check out the guide in my signature for additional information/explinations
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venom View Drop Down
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Posts: 0 		  Quote venom Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 10:19pm
Corsair Force 120GB is working great for me, just as fast if not faster than Intel.

I'd highly recommend the 1000w Corsair for long term reliability and stability.

I would not recommend the Hybrid drive for storage.  Get a 1TB or 2TB drive.

I agree the P6X58D is overkill for what you are looking for, I would recommend the ASUS x58 Sabertooth.
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serbor View Drop Down
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Posts: 9 		  Quote serbor Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 11:03pm
Will follow your suggestions, thanks! Big%20Smile
Just few more questions:
Do you think that one GTX480 will be enough to run both monitors simultaneously (one - 24" 1900x1200, and another - 23" in 3D stereo mode)?
Should I get Assassin case instead of Cooler Master CM 690 II?
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serbor View Drop Down
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Posts: 9 		  Quote serbor Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 11:23pm
I read the guide, thank you.
 Any comments on my build?
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serbor View Drop Down
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Posts: 9 		  Quote serbor Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 25 Oct 2010 at 11:27pm
Thanks. I'm not too crasy about HAF cases. Is there anything wrong with CM 690 II or with Assassin case?
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venom View Drop Down
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Posts: 0 		  Quote venom Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 2:35am
Assassin case is a really good case, I would recommend it over the 690.

Can't say for sure if one GTX 480 will be enough for both monitors, it will definitely be enough for one though.  Maybe someone else has a definite answer to that.
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!ender_ View Drop Down
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Posts: 4219 		  Quote !ender_ Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 8:37am
a single 480 wouldnt be enough for 2 monitors rendering 3d at 1920x1080, but, to my knowledge, there is no support for such thing anyway
you either game on a single monitor, and have a secondary non 3d monitor
or you go stereoscopic and get 3 monitors with 3d rendering
 
(and im not talking about 3d with glasses, im talking about 3d rendering for game enviornments)
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MagiK View Drop Down
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Posts: 1074 		  Quote MagiK Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 9:17am
If you game on one monitor and surf on the other one card is plenty, I game at 2560x1600 and have a second monitor at 1920x1600 for surfing with no problems...and I am using a GTX285 card....
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!ender_ View Drop Down
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Posts: 4219 		  Quote !ender_ Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 9:23am
yea even older cards like the 8000 series could do dual monitors at 1920x res i think
fermis would easily do up to 3 desktops worth of monitor space without a problem, gaming is a very different story
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serbor View Drop Down
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Posts: 9 		  Quote serbor Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 11:57am
Originally posted by !ender_

a single 480 wouldnt be enough for 2 monitors rendering 3d at 1920x1080, but, to my knowledge, there is no support for such thing anyway
you either game on a single monitor, and have a secondary non 3d monitor
or you go stereoscopic and get 3 monitors with 3d rendering
 
(and im not talking about 3d with glasses, im talking about 3d rendering for game enviornments)
 
Thanks. Just wanted to know your opinion on what's better in my case: a single 480 or double GTX475 in SLI?
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MagiK View Drop Down
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Posts: 1074 		  Quote MagiK Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 12:04pm
The 475 is only a rumor and from what I have read it is a scaled back 470.

So technically no one can answer your question about 475's in SLI because noone has one.


Edited by MagiK - 26 Oct 2010 at 12:06pm
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serbor View Drop Down
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Posts: 9 		  Quote serbor Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 12:12pm
The double GTX475 in SLI was offered by DS as a promotion, but now it disapears... Confused
I guess, now the question is whether 2x470 is better for my setting than a single 480?
 
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!ender_ View Drop Down
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Posts: 4219 		  Quote !ender_ Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 12:15pm
i think its a mistype, im sure he meant 470
 
470 sli is stronger, no question, stronger by a whole lot
but keep in mind the price difference you will want a 1000w psu for 470 SLI
 
so if its about power, dual 470s
price... its up to the person
 
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MagiK View Drop Down
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Posts: 1074 		  Quote MagiK Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 12:32pm
I still think Id go for a single 480 until you see if it works for you, if not pop in a second 480 later for SLI goodness.....but then you didnt mention anything that really needed 2 GTX470's or 480's
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serbor View Drop Down
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Posts: 9 		  Quote serbor Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 12:42pm
Aren't molecular visualization and 3D-modeling programs running on two 1900x1200 monitors demanding enough?? Then what about gaming (Crysis, CoD4, BioShock)? Aren't they asking for a more powerful GPU?
 
Will then a 1000w PSU be sufficient to run 2x480 cards (if I add a second card in the future)?
 
Thanks
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MagiK View Drop Down
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Posts: 1074 		  Quote MagiK Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 12:55pm
I didnt see that he was doing the Visualization on both monitors I assumed one and surfing with the other. on two monitors and if he is using a CUDA coding for the modeling  Id go with the dual 480's.
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MagiK View Drop Down
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Posts: 1074 		  Quote MagiK Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 12:57pm
the power curve here is lowest to highest:

single 470
single 480
dual 470
dual 480

so there it is, decide on your power level  :)
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!ender_ View Drop Down
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Posts: 4219 		  Quote !ender_ Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 12:58pm
Originally posted by serbor

Aren't molecular visualization and 3D-modeling programs running on two 1900x1200 monitors demanding enough??
 
not unless you are using cuda-enabled realtime rendering, which is highly unlikely, granted im no expert on molecular visualization. this would be CPU based.
 
 Then what about gaming (Crysis, CoD4, BioShock)? Aren't they asking for a more powerful GPU?
 
it just depends on what you are looking to spend...
financially, dual 470s are notably close to dual 480s, and for single monitor gaming (since we discussed there is no dual monitor gaming) is plenty
if you want the best possible, its dual 480s
 
 Will then a 1000w PSU be sufficient to run 2x480 cards (if I add a second card in the future)?
 
technically yes, though i wouldnt reccomend it, especially if you want to overclock your video.. or have the option to
 


Edited by !ender_ - 26 Oct 2010 at 1:02pm
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serbor View Drop Down
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Posts: 9 		  Quote serbor Quote  Post ReplyReply bullet Posted: 26 Oct 2010 at 1:07pm
Ok, I got it. Thanks everybody!
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