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Bought 2 Video Cards for SLI Setup, Need Help w/System Build

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XyberZ

Registered
Joined
Oct 26, 2006
Even though these cards are not new, the price I got them at was a great deal. I paid $70 plus tax for each of my PNY GeForce 9800GT XLR8 Performance Edition cards that are power efficient.

I plan to run them in the dual SLI setup for boost in performance since the price was right.

I'm looking for a budget of about $500 or so and need suggestions on a possible setup please. Been a while since I've built a computer. Was also planning on watercooling it with a complete setup that I already have to overclock.

So my main things are:

1. Most water cooled overclockable setup for the money
2. Something to work well with my 2 already purchased graphics card
3. I have a 750GB SATA HDD but might want a 30GB SSD drive for the OS
4. Hopefully will be a quad core system as I plan to keep this one for a while and upgrade parts down the line if needed.

I plan to use it for video and picture processing and editing, some gaming, internet, word processing, and all the other norm stuff. I will probably do a lot of video encoding and hooking it up to the big screen TV to watch movies in 1080P.

I guess the parts needed will be:

1. CPU
2. Mobo
3. RAM
4. PSU
5. Sound card (unless if it's already decent on the mobo)
6. HD suggestion maybe SSD if possible for now. May stick with 750GB SATA already have at the moment.

I'll pick up a case that will be decent and probably modify it to some extent.
 
you will not get the list of things you want PLUS water cooling PLUS an ssd for 500.. not even in the ballpark..

for 500 you're looking at a low budget amd build, which can be a quad core:
GIGABYTE GA-MA785GM-US2H AM3/AM2+/AM2 mobo (micro ATX) @ $80
AMD Phenom II x4 955BE @ $165
G.Skill 4GB (2x2gb) DDR2 1066 @ $91
Corsair 650TX @ $100 - 10MiR
Soundcard is your call.. onboards are getting better and better though
And HDD is another your call.. theres a sale on newegg for the OCZ vertex ssd @ $190, but its not the best ssd

Total $436 before S&H or MiR
 
you will not get the list of things you want PLUS water cooling PLUS an ssd for 500.. not even in the ballpark..

for 500 you're looking at a low budget amd build, which can be a quad core:
GIGABYTE GA-MA785GM-US2H AM3/AM2+/AM2 mobo (micro ATX) @ $80
AMD Phenom II x4 955BE @ $165
G.Skill 4GB (2x2gb) DDR2 1066 @ $91
Corsair 650TX @ $100 - 10MiR
Soundcard is your call.. onboards are getting better and better though
And HDD is another your call.. theres a sale on newegg for the OCZ vertex ssd @ $190, but its not the best ssd

Total $436 before S&H or MiR

Cool, thanks for the setup. Would you happen to know how fast I can possibly o/c this system? Also wondered why you decide to go with DDR2 ram instead of DDR3?

I also have the water cooling kit already and the video cards. So those won't need to be purchased.
 
What water cooling stuff do you already have?


Not a great one but the Thermaltake Bigwater kit or something like that. I also have an older yet never used copper Danger Den cpu waterblock that I'll have to make a custom mounting bracket for the different type of chip but that's no biggie.

I'm planning on getting the OCZ phase change cooler that's listed for $379 shortly so I'll overclock the crap of my CPU with that.
 
Just found this deal for PSU, not sure if it's decent enough compared to the one you listed.

Thermaltake Purepower W0121RU 600W ATX12V V2.0 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Power Supply $29.99 @ Frys B&M or $39.99 Shipped @ Fry's.com after MIR

But it could help me save $60 upfront and spend that towards better RAM maybe?

If I plan to use a phase change system to o/c, I might as well make sure that there are as few bottle necks as possible right?
 
Can someone tell me the difference between the processor listed and this one?

AMD HDZ955FBGIBOX Phenom II x4, Black Edition 3.2Ghz,8MB Cache,125W,45nm 3.20 GHz AM3 4 x 512KB Desktop Processor Retail

Seems like this one has 2mb more cache but has the same model number.

Kinda poking around the internet found some savings.

Went to ZipZoomFly.com

AMD HDZ955FBGIBOX Phenom II x4, Black Edition 3.2Ghz,8MB Cache,125W,45nm 3.20 GHz AM3 4 x 512KB Desktop Processor Retail $145.99

OCZ OCZ700MXSP 700W SLI/CrossFire Active PFC Power Supply Retail $79.99 / $56.99 AR

Plus I can save an additional $15.00 for signing up and using EBillMe for the first time and shipping is also free from them to me with no tax.

So total when checking these two items out before rebate $210.98 / 180.98 after rebate. Back to the memory issue. Shouldn't I just get DD3 PC3 12800 or something???

Happened to check the mobo and it seems to have 1 PCI-E 2.0 X16 slot and 1 PCI-E which should allow me to run my cards in SLI setup right? (Sorry haven't built a computer with multiple video card before so please go easy on me)
Also saw that this mobo is only rated for DDR2 memory max and was hoping for DDR3. I guess a different mobo would suit what I'm looking for in order to take DDR3 memory.
 
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Is this a good deal?

OCZ Platinum Edition OCZ3P20004GK 4GB (2 x 2GB) PC3-16000 (DDR3-2000) CL9 Memory Retail $47.90
 
Cool, looks like I will be adding on an OCZ 30GB Vertex SSD for $110 AR!

Now wondering if I should go with a full modular PSU like the one from Ultra X4 or the one i listed should be ok.

Calculated my power usage and it seems like even with 4 HDDs, a Blu-Ray drive and a DVD-DL Burner and 4 120mm fans I'd only be using a little over 400W with a dual SLI setup.

Why do people even buy 1000W PSUs?
 
Cool, looks like I will be adding on an OCZ 30GB Vertex SSD for $110 AR!

Now wondering if I should go with a full modular PSU like the one from Ultra X4 or the one i listed should be ok.

Calculated my power usage and it seems like even with 4 HDDs, a Blu-Ray drive and a DVD-DL Burner and 4 120mm fans I'd only be using a little over 400W with a dual SLI setup.

Why do people even buy 1000W PSUs?

High end cards and cpus require alot more power... a single gtx 295 will most likely use more power then your sli setup.
 
That MB doesn't support SLI. If you are going AMD you need a nVidia chipset. Any of these will prob be the best choice vs a 750a or 780a http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...PA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&Description=980a&x=0&y=0

Damn, people are probably laughing at my post but sad that no one mentioned that to me in the first place since I said I had 2 cards I wanted to run in SLI setup but still got suggested an AMD setup which I don't mind. My first built system ever was AMD. Was planning on jumping over to the Intel bandwagon but seems like before, more expensive for a comparable AMD system.

Guess I'll be selling these and getting nVidia chipset cards instead. So sad as I got a really good deal on my cards too. Shows how long I've been out of the game.

Also what's the BEST mobo you can buy for the recommended AMD CPU?
 
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Ok after researching the system I want some more, seems like I'll be putting a little more money into it than I wanted but it should keep me good for quite a while and worth the investment.

I'll be getting:


ASUS Crosshair III Formula AM3 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard

AMD Phenom II x4 955BE

RAM (Please help suggest some good or decent DDR3 RAM to O/C) Possibly G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBNQ?

PSU (Modular or regular?) If modular I was looking for 600-750W Ultra X4 or something similar, even if regular I may stick with Ultra brand.

Video - Not sure which one is better. Suggestions?

2 cards of XFX Radeon HD 5750 Video Card - 1GB GDDR5, PCI-Express 2.0, CrossFireX Ready, Dual DVI, Dipslay Port, HDMI

or

Single card Sapphire Radeon HD 5850 Video Card - 1GB GDDR5, PCI-Express 2.0, CrossFireX Ready, Dual DVI, Display Port, HDMI

HDD #1 - OCZ Technology Vertex 2.5" 30GB SATA II Solid State Drive
HDD #2 - 750GB 7200RPM SATA II
 
Guess I'll be selling these and getting nVidia chipset cards instead. So sad as I got a really good deal on my cards too. Shows how long I've been out of the game.
You already have Nvidia cards.
9800 gt= Nvidia=SLI
Radeon 58xx cards = ATI=CrossFire X

If you are on a tight budget then I would look at an AMD SLI set up. You'll set for a good while.
This board.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128387
This CPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103727
As for memory you can go DDR2 1066 or DDR2 800
I'm using DDR2 800 in my system and have had 1066 running.
The DDR2 800 seams to give me a better stable OC.:shrug:

Your looking at around $310 for the 3 parts.

If you want a DDR3 board I wqould get this one for $119
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128378
Here is memory tested to run with "Black addition CPUs"
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227496
 
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You don't have to sell your 9800s. But to use them both you will need a MB with a nVidia chipset like a 750a, 780a, or 980a. An AMD chipset doesn't support SLI. Here is a good setup for you

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103674 Phenom 955 $165
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005 Corsair 650W $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130236 MSI 980a DDR3 $150
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130236 Gskill 4gb DDR3 $95

Total is $510 but you can save a little $$ by using DDR2 and a different board or a board with a 750a chipset.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130235 MSI 750a ddr3 $90

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131367 ASUS 750a DDR2 $115
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131367 Gskill 4gb DDR2 $91

Setup with the DDR3 750a board $450
Setup with the DDR2 750a board $471
 
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