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thud
June 20th, 2009, 13:38
Hey there guys - greetings from NC.

I have been a lurker for a number of years, but this is my first post. I have always been impressed with the amount of knowledge within the forum and the willingness of the members to help out those of us with less technical knowledge. And I do need some advice, for I am overwhelmed.......

When I read the system reviewers, I read glowing reports about all the components, but when I look at the buyer satisfaction reviews (at Newegg for example) I find 12 to 20 % of the respondents reporting DOA components or short lived time-spans on even the very highly rated parts. I know I could build a new computer for less than I can purchase one - I built my last "high end" (at least at that time) computer. There were no problems for about 6 yrs until the motherboard died - it had certainly given me my $ worth and outlived it's technical lifespan. However, the thought of having to troubleshoot potential multiple problems, plus the software integration is more than I want to go through at this stage in my life. I am therefore willing to pay for the peace of mind provided by the three year warranty and lifetime free tech support offered by a couple of the major build houses.

Here are the major components I'm considering (this is offered @ about $2000):


CASE: Thermaltake Spedo Advance Full Tower Case w/ Side-panel Window
POWER SUPPLY: 850 Watts Power Supplies (Thermaltake W0131RU ToughPower 850 Watts- NVIDIA GTX 8800 Certified)
CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-920 2.66 GHz 8M L3 Cache LGA1366
COOLING FAN : Asetek Liquid CPU Cooling System (Extreme Cooling Performance + Extreme Silent at 20dBA)
MOTHERBOARD: Asus P6T Deluxe V2 Intel X58 Chipset SLI/CrossFireX Mainboard SAS Triple-Channel DDR3/1600 SATA w/ eSATA, Dual GbLAN, USB2.0, IEEE1394a, & 7.1Audio
MEMORY: 6GB (2GBx3) DDR3/1600MHz Triple Channel Memory Module (Corsair Dominator)
OS: Microsoft® Windows Vista™ Home Premium w/ Service Pack 1 (64-bit Edition)
VIDEO CARD: NVIDIA GeForce GTX295 1.7GB 16X PCIe Video Card (EVGA Powered by NVIDIA)
HARD DRIVE: Single Hard Drive (1.5TB (1.5TBx1) SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 32MB Cache 7200RPM HDD)
Optical Drive: LG 20X DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW DRIVE DUAL LAYER
Optical Drive 2: SONY 16X DVD-ROM
SOUND: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO
NETWORK: Onboard Gigabit LAN Network
Extra Thermal Display : THERMAL TEMPERATURE LCD DISPLAY WITH 3X FAN CONTROLLER
Flash Media Reader/Writer: INTERNAL 12in1 Flash Media Reader/Writer
IEEE CARD: NONE
USB PORT: Built-in USB 2.0 Ports
FLOPPY: NONE
SERVICE: STANDARD WARRANTY: 3-YEAR LIMITED WARRANTY PLUS LIFE-TIME TECHNICAL SUPPORT



My primary uses for the computer will be for FSX/fs9, CFS2/3, photo editing, limited gaming and CAD. Now here are my questions/whatifs:




I certainly respect the advice of HeyMo and others who espouse that if you don't know what you're doing, to leave it alone! In that regard, is there tutorial advice to the willing/nubee types on overclocking the i7 or would I be better served to upgrade to a 3.06 GHz i7-950 with the hefty price hit of + $290?
An NVIDIA GeForce GTX275 1792MB 2 card SLI can be had for +$58. Compared to the single GTX295??
An EVGA x58 E785-A1 motherboard, with a 2 card GTX280 1GB (or GTX275 1792MB) SLI can be had for the same price as the considered setup. Recommendations????
I'm not particularly enamored with the HDD options. The 1.5TB (probably a WD Caviar Green or Seagate Barracuda) is the only 32MB cache drive offered. An additional WD VelociRaptor can be added for 300GB (+$275) or 150GB (+$170). Recommendations – (go with one of the Raptors/wait and install a Black Caviar myself/stay with a single HDD and wait for the SSD-MLC to mature)?????
Overall system comments (to include wait a few weeks/months for Win7)????



Thanks in advance for your consideration – in the future I promise not to be so wordy:applause:!!


Cheers - Thud

2Low
June 21st, 2009, 04:32
Unfortunately I'm out of the loop on the latest gear but I would recomend you post this as you have written it over at HardwareCanucks dot com. Very helpfull, knowledgable people there.

Sorry I could not help more,
Rob

harleyman
June 21st, 2009, 07:25
Hi and Welcome...


First off FSX will never use SLI...So that is a choice you have to make..some rigs will run FSX in SLI fine, others will not for some reason...


The 920 is all you need if you can get it OCed to say like 3.4 -3.6....I have a guide for the i7 I can send you...

Why not get a rig built locally...

Thats what I do...I'm in NC too! (shameless plug)

In my opinion the i7 is no magic cure for FSX..many with high OCed i7 systems are having mucho trouble setting it up...

I would leave the WD 150 alone unless you just put your OS on it as its not big enough for FSX once its got all your addons installed over time..It gets crowded..


FSX , expecially with Acceleration likes its own drive...So a good set up is any 32mb cache drive for OS and apps..Then a V-Raptor(300G) for FSX..Thats my set up with an extra 650 drive for storage and back-ups...



The water cooling on the CPU is not needed, and is probably just a resoviour system and pump..(not sure on that)

They are offering 16X and 20X DVD drices...I suggest at least 22X..Now there is a 24X out that I have and love....




Go with Vista...You get a disk...

Upgrade to Win 7 later..

Then you own a Vista copy too...

harleyman
June 21st, 2009, 07:32
OK...One more shameless plug....

This is what can be done with FSX....

http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforums/showthread.php?t=15975&highlight=harleyman

thud
June 24th, 2009, 14:05
Hey guys – Thanks for the replys. I guess there is no “second opinion”, so my selection must have been a bummer.


Harleyman, I know that FSX doesn't fully utilize i7 and quad-core. Some even question if duo-core is fully utilized. However, I do have a use for some of the added capabilities in other things I do – at least on a limited basis and who knows what future games will utilize. I also hate to step back a generation to an earlier pin configuration with limited upgradeability on a computer I intend to keep for five years or so (I have trouble convincing “you-know-who” I need a new one in less time, even if it is “only” a $400 beauty like you show).


That being said, if i7 isn't such a good selection, I noticed in some of the other threads you mentioned that there are some quad-core/gpu combinations that play well together with FSX. Would you mind sharing some of those combinations – I'm partial to Nvidia, but not set against ATI?




Thanks - Thud

harleyman
June 24th, 2009, 14:22
Lets see.. If you have use for a i7 920 thats great..Just not really needed for FSx IMO.....

But its killer for other games, although most to none now really use its cores efficently too..


The Q 9650 or the cheaper Q9550 are good for FSX and all apps / games..

I am out the loop for Nvidia , but the old 8800 Ultra is still running FSX very well..but as long as you stay away from any X2 card you are fine... many use the 260 and have success...but remember FSX really likes your CPU, not that intrested in your display that much....


ATI has out now a 4890 that I am dying to get my hands on..Its a gig card ...

Still love the ATI 3850 and 4850 fopr FSX


For my money gigabyte Mobos rule for FSX