- Joined
- Sep 2, 2008
REVIEW: After a WHOLE YEAR of RMA's and EXCHANGES... I have found the PERFECT BUILD!
I am so very proud of my newest computer - It finally does what I want - FLAWLESS HD GAMING at a reasonable price and "noise level". I can sleep with this thing on, with no problems. I guarantee this build is 100% satisfactory and would please almost anyone - I went though MONTHS of waiting for UPS, sending parts back, and spent a little more than I intended, but my IDEAL GAMING RIG is DONE! I hope this list will help any prospective PC builder come up with a decent build!
HERE IS MY BUILD!
CASE: Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail (N82E16811129021)
PRO: Good wire management (leave leftover cables on the bottom); SET all fans to LOW excet 200mm top exchaust which at no sacrifice in volume can be set to MED: Plenty of room for CrossFireX with some wire management skills!
CPU COOLER: XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler - Retail (N82E16835233003) and XIGMATEK ACK-I7751 Retention Bracket - Retail (N82E16835233019)
PRO: HDT is a technology that really helps keep temperatures down, almost as good as water cooling at a fraction of the cost.
CON: Applying TIM tot his HS takes lots of practice, and you will end up having to re-do it a couple times, as it spreads very unpredictably! There are instructions for this on the forum somewhere.
OPTICAL: ASUS 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model DRW-2014L1T - Retail (N82E16827135156)
PRO: Aesthetically it looks amazing on the top bay of the ANtec 900. It has lightscribe, and SATA helps keep your PC clutter-free.
CON: It is a little off-color more blue than black, a minor inconvenience.
MOBO: ASUS RAMPAGE FORMULA LGA 775 Intel X48 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail (N82E16813131284)
PRO: Excellent, full bandwith NB, PLENTY of OC options with AMI BIOS, GOES TO 400FSB on all AUTO, LOOKS GREAT, COMES with 3DMArk06 Advanced Edition and STALKER game. EXCELLENT pre-cut I/O panel (I hate those bendy things, I never know wether to pull them off or leave them be, plus they're ugly!).
CON: Be sure to disable startup LOGO as it gets annoying, DO NOT install the LCD POSTER, it is useless, does not display anything usefull like temps, only current time. Also it is a B-word to remove, and is annoying to transport your tower when attatched.
TIM: Arctic Silver ACN-60ML (2-PC-SET) Thermal material Remover & Surface Purifier - OEM and Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound - OEM
PRO: Excellent heat transfer, and the ArctiClean is 1000% easier to use than high purity alcohol, and with the HDT trial & error process, it came in very handy, along with coffe filters and q-tips.
RAM: CORSAIR DOMINATOR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X4096-8500C5DF - Retail
PRO: Runs very cool. At my 400 FSB, 1066 was not necessary but I upgraded from an E8400 where I needed that headroom for 4.0 GHz.
CON: FAN attatchment is USELESS as air passes straight from front 120mm to CPU cooler, cooling the RAM. FAN is also NOISY as HELL! Toss it out or eBay it!
PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply - Retail (N82E16817139006)
PRO: Looks, Wattage, Stability, Connectivity, and runs silent. This thing screams quality. At first I settled on an OCZ power supply, but it had an annoying humming noise from the coils not being properly silenced. THis thing screams quality and powers everything I have without hesitation!
HDD's: 2x Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250310AS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM (N82E16822148261)
PRO: Not in RAID, but that's preference. Main thing is form factor as they are skinnier than WD drives and therefore let more air intake through the front 120mm fans. So far, so good.
GPU's: SAPPHIRE 100259-1GL Radeon HD 4870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail (N82E16814102801)
PRO: I went through SO MANY GPUs You would not beleive. I finally found the ones that are both QUIET and POWERFUL. I urge people to go 4870 over 4850 because there is a HUGE difference. 1GB or VRAM is obviously helpful with AA but the biggest reason why this is a winner in my book is the cooling system. It uses a VERY QUIET 80mm fan and the heatpipes are very effective. An excellent card, quite possibly the best choice (and I have cone throug MANY brands)!
CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 Yorkfield 2.83GHz LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80569Q9550 - Retail (N82E16819115041)
PRO: Want a good computer? Want to run BitTorrent while playing games? Want to decode and encode audio at blazing speeds? Want fast boot times in Vista? Want SERIOUS multi- tasking? PUT THAT CORE DUO AWAY! GET A QUAD! It pretty much automaticcally OC'd to 400FSB, giving me 3400Mhz and a 5.9 Vista Score. If you want a 5.9 Vista Score an a E8400, you'll need 4000Mhz and you'll have to mess with voltages an stuff I don't want to waste time on. This is plug an play... and play, and play, and play...
I'm still looking for a good monitor since both Acer Ferrari F-22 Black-Red 22" 2ms HDMI Widescreen LCD Monitor - Retail (N82E16824009156) I have ordered were defective - it sucks becaue I love the way it looks.
Hope this helps some people make up their minds!
I am so very proud of my newest computer - It finally does what I want - FLAWLESS HD GAMING at a reasonable price and "noise level". I can sleep with this thing on, with no problems. I guarantee this build is 100% satisfactory and would please almost anyone - I went though MONTHS of waiting for UPS, sending parts back, and spent a little more than I intended, but my IDEAL GAMING RIG is DONE! I hope this list will help any prospective PC builder come up with a decent build!
HERE IS MY BUILD!
CASE: Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail (N82E16811129021)
PRO: Good wire management (leave leftover cables on the bottom); SET all fans to LOW excet 200mm top exchaust which at no sacrifice in volume can be set to MED: Plenty of room for CrossFireX with some wire management skills!
CPU COOLER: XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler - Retail (N82E16835233003) and XIGMATEK ACK-I7751 Retention Bracket - Retail (N82E16835233019)
PRO: HDT is a technology that really helps keep temperatures down, almost as good as water cooling at a fraction of the cost.
CON: Applying TIM tot his HS takes lots of practice, and you will end up having to re-do it a couple times, as it spreads very unpredictably! There are instructions for this on the forum somewhere.
OPTICAL: ASUS 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model DRW-2014L1T - Retail (N82E16827135156)
PRO: Aesthetically it looks amazing on the top bay of the ANtec 900. It has lightscribe, and SATA helps keep your PC clutter-free.
CON: It is a little off-color more blue than black, a minor inconvenience.
MOBO: ASUS RAMPAGE FORMULA LGA 775 Intel X48 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail (N82E16813131284)
PRO: Excellent, full bandwith NB, PLENTY of OC options with AMI BIOS, GOES TO 400FSB on all AUTO, LOOKS GREAT, COMES with 3DMArk06 Advanced Edition and STALKER game. EXCELLENT pre-cut I/O panel (I hate those bendy things, I never know wether to pull them off or leave them be, plus they're ugly!).
CON: Be sure to disable startup LOGO as it gets annoying, DO NOT install the LCD POSTER, it is useless, does not display anything usefull like temps, only current time. Also it is a B-word to remove, and is annoying to transport your tower when attatched.
TIM: Arctic Silver ACN-60ML (2-PC-SET) Thermal material Remover & Surface Purifier - OEM and Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound - OEM
PRO: Excellent heat transfer, and the ArctiClean is 1000% easier to use than high purity alcohol, and with the HDT trial & error process, it came in very handy, along with coffe filters and q-tips.
RAM: CORSAIR DOMINATOR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X4096-8500C5DF - Retail
PRO: Runs very cool. At my 400 FSB, 1066 was not necessary but I upgraded from an E8400 where I needed that headroom for 4.0 GHz.
CON: FAN attatchment is USELESS as air passes straight from front 120mm to CPU cooler, cooling the RAM. FAN is also NOISY as HELL! Toss it out or eBay it!
PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply - Retail (N82E16817139006)
PRO: Looks, Wattage, Stability, Connectivity, and runs silent. This thing screams quality. At first I settled on an OCZ power supply, but it had an annoying humming noise from the coils not being properly silenced. THis thing screams quality and powers everything I have without hesitation!
HDD's: 2x Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250310AS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM (N82E16822148261)
PRO: Not in RAID, but that's preference. Main thing is form factor as they are skinnier than WD drives and therefore let more air intake through the front 120mm fans. So far, so good.
GPU's: SAPPHIRE 100259-1GL Radeon HD 4870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail (N82E16814102801)
PRO: I went through SO MANY GPUs You would not beleive. I finally found the ones that are both QUIET and POWERFUL. I urge people to go 4870 over 4850 because there is a HUGE difference. 1GB or VRAM is obviously helpful with AA but the biggest reason why this is a winner in my book is the cooling system. It uses a VERY QUIET 80mm fan and the heatpipes are very effective. An excellent card, quite possibly the best choice (and I have cone throug MANY brands)!
CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 Yorkfield 2.83GHz LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80569Q9550 - Retail (N82E16819115041)
PRO: Want a good computer? Want to run BitTorrent while playing games? Want to decode and encode audio at blazing speeds? Want fast boot times in Vista? Want SERIOUS multi- tasking? PUT THAT CORE DUO AWAY! GET A QUAD! It pretty much automaticcally OC'd to 400FSB, giving me 3400Mhz and a 5.9 Vista Score. If you want a 5.9 Vista Score an a E8400, you'll need 4000Mhz and you'll have to mess with voltages an stuff I don't want to waste time on. This is plug an play... and play, and play, and play...
I'm still looking for a good monitor since both Acer Ferrari F-22 Black-Red 22" 2ms HDMI Widescreen LCD Monitor - Retail (N82E16824009156) I have ordered were defective - it sucks becaue I love the way it looks.
Hope this helps some people make up their minds!
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