New to overclocking. Getting a New PC.. Cant decide.

[Hazzy]

Hey, i'm new to this world of overclocking, i want a pc mainly for gaming, multitasking and encoding video.

The pc i'm looking at is the following specification:

· case: Thermaltake Tai Chi
· mobo: ASUS A8R32-MVP Deluxe 939pin Socket AMD Athlon64FX/Athlon64/Sempron ATX
· cpu: AMD Athlon x2 4800+
· ram: Corsair 2x1GB DDR400 C2 Pro series Kit (TWINX2048-3200C2PRO)
· gfx: ASUS Radeon Extreme X1900XT - 512DDR3, PCI-E, HDTV, DVI (EAX1900XT/2DHTV/512M)
· hdd: Seagate Barracuda 250GB SATA2 - 7200.9rpm, 8MB Cache (ST3250824AS
· cdrom: LiteOn 52X32X52 Internal CD writer Black
· DVDrw: ASUS 1608P 16X Dual layer DVD writer Black
· sound: Creative Soundblaster X-Fi XTREME

It's a little pricey so i'm thinking about either going for a AMD 4400+ or a Opteron 170. I want stable speeds of around 2.6-2.8

Also i'm really keen on that tai chi case so dont talk me out of it

 

[ps2cho]

What is you're price range?

 

[Hazzy]

What is you're price range?

I'm from New Zealand so the prices differ greatly as the exchange rate is about 1NZD = 0.61 USD.

i got quoted 4.1k NZD for that spec with a 4800+ that equals about 2.5k USD

I'm aiming for about 3.5k to 3.8k NZD which is 2.1k to 2.3k USD

 

[ps2cho]

I would say your setup looks good Make sure you get a good PSU! I recommend Fortron's, make sure it's over 500w

 

[Hazzy]

oh yeh i forgot to add im getting a Thermaltake 680W Silent Pure Power PSU.

So Opteron 170 u reckon?

 

[Know Nuttin]

Why the dual optical drives? The asus will do everything the Lite-On will do.

What CPU cooler will you use to overclock with?

The Opteron 170 will be sufficient.

 

[jivetrky]

oh yeh i forgot to add im getting a Thermaltake 680W Silent Pure Power PSU.

So Opteron 170 u reckon?

I would recommend the 170 over a 4400+ or 4800+ (try to get a good stepping if you can for max overclocks on that 170)

as far as your PSU...are you getting that PSU because it comes with your case? If not I'd highly recommend getting another PSU. I have no personal experience with Thermaltake as a PSU manufacturer...but I've seen MANY ppl on this forum say they are "junk"

I would recommend going with an OCZ Powerstream 520W or one of their new series' Gamer PSU's or maybe a Fortron, Enermax, or Silverstone Zeus

These are the most popular around here (I may have fogotten one or two) and they are the most popular because they are reliable, powerful and stable.

I use the POwerstream 520W and my system is very power hungry (see sig) and it handles it without a problem! (And you can get it for around $120 or so)


Also, if you are looking for high overclocking RAM...I don't know how much luck you'll have with that corsair RAM

And if you are looking to save a little money you might look into G.Skill F1-4000USU2-2GBHZ It's becoming very popular because it is pretty inexpensive and overclocks QUITE well....I've tested mine up to 285Mhz It may even go higher, but I stopped there because I didn't even need higher than 280Mhz for my setup. It'll save you some money versus that Corsair and will overclock much better.
I'm guessing you chose it because of it's low timings...but that G.Skill will hit FAR higher clockspeeds and with that much of a difference in clockspeeds, you will see more performance from the higher clock with lower timings than the reverse.

And I agree with Know Nuttin, I'd recommend JUST getting the Asus drive and save some money there.

 

[Hazzy]

Why the dual optical drives? The asus will do everything the Lite-On will do.

What CPU cooler will you use to overclock with?

The Opteron 170 will be sufficient.

I don't know - what is a good one i can use with the tai chis inbuilt water cooling?

 

[Hazzy]

I would recommend the 170 over a 4400+ or 4800+ (try to get a good stepping if you can for max overclocks on that 170)

as far as your PSU...are you getting that PSU because it comes with your case? If not I'd highly recommend getting another PSU. I have no personal experience with Thermaltake as a PSU manufacturer...but I've seen MANY ppl on this forum say they are "junk"

I would recommend going with an OCZ Powerstream 520W or one of their new series' Gamer PSU's or maybe a Fortron, Enermax, or Silverstone Zeus

These are the most popular around here (I may have fogotten one or two) and they are the most popular because they are reliable, powerful and stable.

I use the POwerstream 520W and my system is very power hungry (see sig) and it handles it without a problem! (And you can get it for around $120 or so)


Also, if you are looking for high overclocking RAM...I don't know how much luck you'll have with that corsair RAM

And if you are looking to save a little money you might look into G.Skill F1-4000USU2-2GBHZ It's becoming very popular because it is pretty inexpensive and overclocks QUITE well....I've tested mine up to 285Mhz It may even go higher, but I stopped there because I didn't even need higher than 280Mhz for my setup. It'll save you some money versus that Corsair and will overclock much better.
I'm guessing you chose it because of it's low timings...but that G.Skill will hit FAR higher clockspeeds and with that much of a difference in clockspeeds, you will see more performance from the higher clock with lower timings than the reverse.

And I agree with Know Nuttin, I'd recommend JUST getting the Asus drive and save some money there.

Thanks man, you just saved me a hundy bux!!

 

[jivetrky]

I don't know - what is a good one i can use with the tai chis inbuilt water cooling?

Yikes, I wish I could sway you from buying this case

The case itself seems pretty nice, but the price is deadly.
And as for the one that comes with the watercooling system...In my opinion is isn't going to be that great as far as watercooling systems go. You could put together a FAR better system for probably the same price. If you think you would be able to do it, you'd be way better off.


You could certainly save youself some cash and get a Coolermaster Stacker...they are cheaper and have as much or more room. But i guess if you are set then so be it.


Oh...and to answer your question about the CPU cooler....if you bought the Tai Chi with the water system, it comes with a CPU waterblock.

 

[Hazzy]

Yikes, I wish I could sway you from buying this case

The case itself seems pretty nice, but the price is deadly.
And as for the one that comes with the watercooling system...In my opinion is isn't going to be that great as far as watercooling systems go. You could put together a FAR better system for probably the same price. If you think you would be able to do it, you'd be way better off.


You could certainly save youself some cash and get a Coolermaster Stacker...they are cheaper and have as much or more room. But i guess if you are set then so be it.


Oh...and to answer your question about the CPU cooler....if you bought the Tai Chi with the water system, it comes with a CPU waterblock.

Hey thanks for your help,

The place i'm buying from has the Cooler Master Stacker 830 Aluminum Full Tower Case but its the same price.

I guess you can sway me from the tai chi, if you offer a better cheaper alternative!

Thanks

 

[Hazzy]

If i got that coolermaster case, what cooling would you reckonmend?

Oh heres an update to what the systems looking like

· Case: Cooler Master CM Stacker No PSU Silver
· PSU: OCZ520ADJ "OCZ" PowerStream 520W Adjustable PSU
· mobo: ASUS A8R32-MVP Deluxe 939pin Socket AMD Athlon64FX/Athlon64/Sempron ATX
· cpu: AMD Opteron 170
· ram: G.Skill F1-4000USU2-2GBHZ
· gfx: ASUS Radeon Extreme X1900XT - 512DDR3, PCI-E, HDTV, DVI
· hdd: Seagate Barracuda 250GB SATA2 - 7200.9rpm, 8MB Cache
· cdrw: ASUS 1608P 16X Dual layer DVD writer Black
· sound: Creative Soundblaster X-Fi XTREME


Need cooling, recomendations?

 

[jivetrky]

oh yeah...the Stacker 830 is pretty expensive...but the 810 is far less.....on newegg.com there is almost a $100 difference. And the 810 is still a really great case...and actually has more room on the inside for water setups and stuff.

But i chose the 830 because I was all about getting a door on my case. I didn't want everything to be exposed. Now I think that I might like NOT having a door better (with my desk it's not really easy to just keep the door open (not to mention the fact that it doesn't open more than maybe 125 degrees or so....so I always have it closed. if I'm burning CD's or something...I'm always opening and closing and opening and closing. With that Tai Chi case...you'd have TWO doors to deal with!
Now I'mnot knocking the Tai Chi...it looks pretty cool....but I would steer away from that built in water setup, even if it may cost you a little bit more.

 

[jivetrky]

Need cooling, recomendations?

Well in my Stacker 830, I have a Black Ice Pro II Radiator in the front (Under the Optical and Hard Drives.) For it to fit, you have to use the included 3.5" to 5.25" hard drive rails...as with a single optical and the hard drive cage, the BIPII won't fit. You could mount it on the bottom of the case if you can mod it with 2 holes for the 120mm intakes. I ALMOST wish i had done it that way...but I'm still satisfied with how mines setup. I wish I could get some pics for you....I've really got to find a camera.

Oh so anyway back to the cooling system...there's the BIPII, which I got for like $35 at DangerDen....A Swiftech Apogee Waterblock...which Was $49, and a DangerDen D5 pump (aka Swiftech MCP655 or Laing D5) which I think was like $75. And then a few feet of Clearflex 60 - 1/2" tubing which you can get like 10 feet for $11-$12 at Dangerden
And then I also got a Danger Den Fillport (cut a hole in the top of the case for it) ...but that isn't nessecary, you can just use a t-line and plug the top of it and leave it inside the case. Which is also something I wish i did....cause that makes it possible to remove the whole loop without having to open it.

And then to cool it I am using 2 Scythe S-Flex SFF21-F 120mm Fans...which I HIGHLY recommend. They are very quiet for the air they push! I'm so happy with them.

Did I forget anything? oh...if you wanted to save yourself some money right now you could just get a really good air cooler and then in the future you could sell that and upgrade to water.

You could get a Scythe Ninja or Maybe the Zalman CNPS9500...or a Thermalright XP-90 (or Xp-120 if it'll fit your motherboard and clear everything)

 

[Hazzy]

Thanks, i think i will go with the 810 and get a scythe ninja, and 2 or 3 of the s-flex fans.

will i hit 2.8 stable with this setup?

Cheers

 

[jivetrky]

That sounds like a great combo!

And if you can get the right stepping (check out This Thread)

To see a list of proven Steppings. Your best bet would be either to try to find one used that is proven, or to goto a website that lets you choose the steppings. I know tankguys.biz is one of them...I have heard of another, but ban't remember what it is. Anyone?

 

[Hazzy]

Can't seem to source those Scythe fans in New Zealand yet... is there any other fans you would reconmend, can you give me a couple cheers.

 

[Hazzy]

Thinking about dropping the Xi-Fi and just using onboard sound to save.

I can always buy the Xi-Fi later on..

 

[Hazzy]

They have the Vantec 120x120x25mm 3 wires, 1500rpm,53cfm,28dBA

Would i be set if i got 3 of those?

 

[jivetrky]

True about X-fi (even tho i highly recommend getting one when you can better swing the cash!)

As for fans.....I'm not sure...you'd have to get an idea of those from someone else...i did ask this before getting the Scythe fans...there were a few other suggestions...here's a link to that thread:
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=457352