Power

Hi Glacialis,

This machine is 2458.00 after the buy now option.

I went with 3gig ram because from newegg you can get 3gig more for around 86.00 instead of 200 plus. This machine will easily handle resolutions up to 1920x1200 and play Crysis perfectly. This is pretty much the same machine I have so there is experience there when it comes to gaming. The case is big but has a lot of room to upgrade and it runs very cool inside. You may consider upgrading to a faster Hard Drive and possibly a second or even third Video Card now or later down the road. That's the beauty of the HAF case. You may or may not need the two optical drive, your choice.

Ticket Number: 253889

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: 3GB DDR3 1333MHz Mushkin (Highly Recommended) (Digital Storm Certified)
Power Supply: 1000W PC Power & Cooling (Turbo-Cool Edition) (Dual/Triple/Quad SLI Compatible)
Card Reader: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 1: Operating System: 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-ROM/CD-ROM (DVD Reader 16x / CD Reader 40x)
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 295 1.792GB (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 Warran


Edited by Sodius - 01 Mar 2009 at 1:16pm

Just to add a point or two. I dual monitor myself, one a 24" and the other a 19". Also the 295gtx video card has two cores in it. Each core is slightly better than the 260 video card. So basically you are getting two 260 pluses with the 295 card.

Yeah I have 2 writers myself.

Thanks for the builds everyone. I'd like to know why some of the choices were made, but I've got enough to chew on for now.

What say you to a monitor with 1920x1200 native? The Acer P243W caught my eye due to the large number of reviews on Newegg, but the gloss concerns me a bit. The monitor needs to fit in my price range, which I'd like to keep around $2000 but I won't be overly concerned if it goes a bit over.

Why is everyone suggesting the GTX295? This thing is awesome, no doubt about it, but at $500 I have to wonder if it's really worth it to me. I have no doubt it will play Crysis and such at excellent framerates but I don't play Crysis and, if I did, I'd settle for middle of the road if would save me a couple hundred dollars. I've typically gone for the $100-$150 video cards, so this may be me showing my discomfort with high-end cards. I just don't care for bleeding edge if the last few inches cost $$$. The GTX285 is $140 less and I know it's less capable, but how much?

Ignore all of the above if it's not recommended to run native 1920x1200 with anything less.

Yes the 285 can handle that resolution very well. You may have to turn down some details for smooth performance in some high end games.

Edited by Sodius - 01 Mar 2009 at 3:42pm

Combining games that I play, games that I would like to play, and games that I have played but make my computer cry:

Company of Heroes
Dawn of War
Dawn of War 2
Demigod
Diablo III
Homeworld 3 (I can hope, right?)
Left 4 Dead
Sins of a Solar Empire
Starcraft 2
Supreme Commander
Sword of the Stars

There are more but those are off the top of my head. You see why I want the i7 now? ;)


Edited by Glacialis - 01 Mar 2009 at 4:06pm

Do you know if any of those don't support sli?

Left 4 Dead =sli

but I'm not sure diablo does

that being the case you will benefit more from a single 295, I would say go with 295 it will handle what ever you throw at it even at 1900 x 1200

1 x 295 is just about 10-15fps less then 2 x 285, but it cost over $300 less

1 x 295 is about 40fps more then 1 x 285, but it cost $100 more.

for example in Left 4 Dead at 1900 x 1200, the 1 x 295 has 50fps more then 1 x 285

Edited by DST4ME - 01 Mar 2009 at 4:58pm

If all support sli then 295 is best, if there is sli problem then 285 is better IMO

Originally posted by DST4ME that being the case you will benefit more from a single 295, I would say go with 295 it will handle what ever you throw at it even at 1900 x 1200 1 x 295 is just about 10-15fps less then 2 x 285, but it cost over $300 less 1 x 295 is about 40fps more then 1 x 285, but it cost $100 more. for example in Left 4 Dead at 1900 x 1200, the 1 x 295 has 50fps more then 1 x 285

actully two 285s onlyy cost 200 more
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150334

If I have 6gb of memory and the card has ~1.8gb, how much system memory will I have left over? A friend I was discussing this build with pointed out the MMIO issue to me. I have to admit I'm not too familiar with it as I deal with server hardware and have never owned a 64-bit OS.

I realize this is probably something taken into account a long time ago and I'm behind the ball, but a little enlightenment never hurt anyone. :D Thanks!

PS: Saving up for the ~$3k system but I still need monitor recommendations.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929605/EN-US/

http://www.digitmemo.com/articles/10/windows-and-4gb-ram-the-frustration-confusion-and-solutionpart-1/

http://www.digitmemo.com/articles/25/windows-and-4gb-ram-the-frustration-confusion-and-solutionpart-2/

http://www.digitmemo.com/articles/30/windows-and-4gb-ram-the-frustration-confusion-and-solutionpart-3/

http://www.digitmemo.com/articles/31/windows-and-4gb-ram-the-frustration-confusion-and-solutionpart-4/

6GB of ram + 1.8GB of gpu ram = 7.8GB of ram.

with a 32bit os you will only use 4GB of that, 1.8GB for the gpu and 2.2GB for os/apps/games.

a 64bit OS will use all of that. 1.8GB for gpu and 6GB for os/apps/games

Edited by DST4ME - 03 Mar 2009 at 1:05am

I'm not following what you are saying, even for remapping to work you still have to use a 64bit os.

you can't remap a 32bit vista to go pass 4GB limit.

Edited by DST4ME - 03 Mar 2009 at 6:50am

64 bit OS's support up to 128GB RAM. I am not aware that there will be a change to Windows 7 that will make it go up more. Other than a server board, i have yet to see a PC that holds more then 24GB. that will change as memory technology improves.

What you are talking about is the issue that 32bit OS's have.  they can only use up to 3GB of RAM, which includes Video cards.

Clearest example I've found yet:

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showpost.php?p=3539870&postcount=5