Potential DS Customer - Questions

My last system was from Alienware but I was really disappointed with their Customer Service and my damaged PC the first time it arrived. It's been a few years but I am looking to try someone new and DS appears to be well recommended.

 

My ticket# is 277474 and it is a rough build as I am trying to determine what would best suit my needs. I run a 24" monitor at 1920X1200 and I like to run games at max settings. My budget is around $3K - can go higher if needed. I don't like to upgrade all that much - I generally hand down my used systems to my less fortunate friend and buy a new one, so I really want a system that will kick ass for 2-3 years without upgrades if possible.

 

As I am looking at the options, can the 920 be oc'd to 4.0 or would you need to go with at least the 940? Is it worth the extra money in either case - going 940 and oc'ng 4.0+? Paying for the LC is no issue and I really want max performance.

 

For HD I have always ran a single 7200 - but i've heard good things about the 300GB 10K raptor. Would 1 be sufficient or would getting 2 at raid 0 provide a noticeable difference? I'm ok to spend the extra money if it is worth it.

 

For GPU, I'm fine with spending a little more for the newest, but people seem to be torn - opting on the gtx 275 & 285 over the 295. Would 2 X 275 or 285 be the best bet over a 295? What setup would still be providing the best output a year from now?

 

Any advice is appreciated.

 

 

920 can reach 4.0 or even higher depends on your cooling, but at 3.8 or 3.9GHz for gaming you got all you need.

instead of raiding, wait till the end of the year and upgrade to a SSD, the prices should be better and SSDs have no seektime, something raid can't do nothing about, to be honest right now you can raid 3 x OCZ vertex 30GB together for 90GB of space and read and write speed of over 300MB/s for total cost of $360, which is less then the price of 2 raptors or a 160GB version of vertex but tripe the speed of the 160GB vertex and more then double the speed of raided veloci raptors.

295 system:

here you go Ticket# 277503 --- Price: $2938 (To see this build click here) Price after current promotion $2813

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: Linksys Wireless-N 300Mbps (Supports 802.11n/g/b)
Video Card: 1x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 295 1.792GB (Includes PhysX Technology)
Add-on Card: - No Thanks
Sound Card: Razer Barracuda AC-1 (Recommended)
Extreme Cooling: H20: Stage 3: High-Performance Liquid Chilled FrostBite System For CPU
Liquid Color:UV Blue: Medium Glowing Non-conductive Fluid (Requires H20: Stage 3 & UV Lighting)
Chassis Airflow: Standard Factory Chassis Fans
Internal Lighting: Internal Chassis Lighting System (Blue)
Enhancements: - No Thanks
Chassis Mods: - No Thanks
Boost Processor: Stage 1: Overclock the processor between 3.3GHz to 3.9GHz (Requires Air Cooling Upgrade)
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

---------------------------------------------------------

dual sli 275 system:

here you go Ticket# 277505 --- Price: $2918 (To see this build click here) Price after current promotion $2793

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: Linksys Wireless-N 300Mbps (Supports 802.11n/g/b)
Video Card: 2x SLI Dual (NVIDIA GeForce GTX 275 896MB (Includes PhysX Technology)
Add-on Card: - No Thanks
Sound Card: Razer Barracuda AC-1 (Recommended)
Extreme Cooling: H20: Stage 3: High-Performance Liquid Chilled FrostBite System For CPU
Liquid Color:UV Blue: Medium Glowing Non-conductive Fluid (Requires H20: Stage 3 & UV Lighting)
Chassis Airflow: Standard Factory Chassis Fans
Internal Lighting: Internal Chassis Lighting System (Blue)
Enhancements: - No Thanks
Chassis Mods: - No Thanks
Boost Processor: Stage 1: Overclock the processor between 3.3GHz to 3.9GHz (Requires Air Cooling Upgrade)
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

---------------------------------------------------------


the 2 x 275 system might yield 2 to 4 fps higher, but I doubt you will notice it.

Edited by DST4ME - 05 May 2009 at 1:27am

Originally posted by steelerpenguin Good info, thanks. Does anyone know how long the bonus discount promotion is going to last? I am waiting for a refund check that should be arriving any time - wanted to get an order in before it expires.

right now SSDs are priced too high. a 60GB SSD would do but is it going to have enough room for your games?

remember HDD1 is for OS/apps/games.

with stage 1 OC, they will push you as high as they can but if its stable at 3.3GHz then that is where you will be, if you want to ensure 4.0GHz then you need to pick stage 2 OC.

if most games you play use sli then 295 is fine.

remember LAN connection is always faster and better then wireless connection.

other then the points above, your system looks fine.