Game Addicts' Gaming PC specifications
- Thread starter Grindspine
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I've messed around with so much hardware in the past two years, I should probably update my setup.
i7 930 @ 3.685GHz
ASUS Sabertooth X58 motherboard
24GB 1600MHz DDR3
2x 5870 2GB Eyefinity Edition 1000/1300 MHz (GPU/VRAM)
CPU and both GPUs are liquid cooled, almost a gallon of water throughout the system. All that plus the Corsair 800D means this computer weighs an uncomfortable amount. Cool and quiet though.
Depending on how prices go I'm looking at another 2x 24" monitors, an SSD and a real sound card to replace what I had.
i7 930 @ 3.685GHz
ASUS Sabertooth X58 motherboard
24GB 1600MHz DDR3
2x 5870 2GB Eyefinity Edition 1000/1300 MHz (GPU/VRAM)
CPU and both GPUs are liquid cooled, almost a gallon of water throughout the system. All that plus the Corsair 800D means this computer weighs an uncomfortable amount. Cool and quiet though.
Depending on how prices go I'm looking at another 2x 24" monitors, an SSD and a real sound card to replace what I had.
If you go SSD buy newest most expensive SSD you can afford, When they first came out I bought a 60gb ocz agility and two recertified 1 tb wd caviar blue drives and after a year all three are worthless. The SSD actually gets 7.4 on windows 7 experience index but at some point or another a windows update screws up (not the same one every time) and I'll have a truckload of problems and I'll end up reinstalling windows just to have the problem again within a week. I actually downgraded to a 7200 rpm barracuda (which gets 5.9 on windoes experience index) but it stupid stable and for the money I can deal. if you really want price / performance get smaller ssd for your os and raid a couple of 10000 rpm barracudas for apps and games. If theres something you play all the time you can install it on ssd if you've got room but the only noticable difference in a fast striped raid set up vs ssd is windows booting up, and it's just barely enough to notice.
I'm waiting for a 120GB SATA3 SSD at <$100 for my OS and content creation apps - Adobe Suite, Blender, Visual Studio, FL Studio, etc.
I've run RAID for ages, so I know all about that. Might have to get some larger drives and hit up a RAID 5 though, either that or build a backup NAS somewhere in my house for game development stuff. I'd really prefer not to lose hundreds of hours of work in case of hardware malfunction.
I've run RAID for ages, so I know all about that. Might have to get some larger drives and hit up a RAID 5 though, either that or build a backup NAS somewhere in my house for game development stuff. I'd really prefer not to lose hundreds of hours of work in case of hardware malfunction.
Upgraded my Video Card once again. Went to a single Nvidia GTX 560Ti. My rig runs much better with a single more powerful card than two running in Crossfire.
CreepinDeth said:
Man, I finally get a PSU worthy of overclocking my Sandy Bridge i5 and what do I find out? That Intel broke any possible overclocking with their latest BIOS updates on their Motherboard. Of course I updated before I even knew about this and now I'm stuck with an unlocked Core i5 that is unable to be Overclocked. :hh
Screw you Intel!!!
Screw you Intel!!!
Pin mods ftw... heh, I don't think there are any pin mods for the newer i5 procs though.
Either way, doesn't the Sandy Bridge i5 have turbo boost enabled?
Either way, doesn't the Sandy Bridge i5 have turbo boost enabled?
They broke that too. Upping the Turbo Boost is actually the only way to overclock on Sandy Bridge/Ivy Bridge.
I was on their official forums and it says they're aware and are trying to fix it. Hopefully they do.
I was on their official forums and it says they're aware and are trying to fix it. Hopefully they do.
Right now my current PC specs:
Processor: AMD Phenom II X6 1055t 2.8Ghz
Motherboard: Asrock 890GX Extreme 3
Harddisk: 640GB Seagate Barracuda SATA 16mb External
Hard Disk: 1TB Seagate Expansion Go
Memory: 12 GB G. Skill Ripjaws DDR3 1600 CL9
Videocard: Asus HD6950 Direct Cu II 2GB GDDR5 (planning to change it for a green team GTX 670)
Optical Disc 1: LG 22x Lightscribe DVDR SATA
Optical Disc 2: Lite-On iHos104 4x Blu-Ray Reader Drive SATA
Power Supply: Corsair HX650
Case: HAF 922 mid-tower case
HSF: Tuniq Tower Extreme 120
Additional Peripherals
Fan Controllers: NZXT Sentry 2
Multimedia Station: Antec Veris Multimedia Station Premiere
Keyboard: Logitech G110
Mouse: Microsoft Sidewinder X5 Mouse
Monitor #1: 27" Chimei 27VH LED
Processor: AMD Phenom II X6 1055t 2.8Ghz
Motherboard: Asrock 890GX Extreme 3
Harddisk: 640GB Seagate Barracuda SATA 16mb External
Hard Disk: 1TB Seagate Expansion Go
Memory: 12 GB G. Skill Ripjaws DDR3 1600 CL9
Videocard: Asus HD6950 Direct Cu II 2GB GDDR5 (planning to change it for a green team GTX 670)
Optical Disc 1: LG 22x Lightscribe DVDR SATA
Optical Disc 2: Lite-On iHos104 4x Blu-Ray Reader Drive SATA
Power Supply: Corsair HX650
Case: HAF 922 mid-tower case
HSF: Tuniq Tower Extreme 120
Additional Peripherals
Fan Controllers: NZXT Sentry 2
Multimedia Station: Antec Veris Multimedia Station Premiere
Keyboard: Logitech G110
Mouse: Microsoft Sidewinder X5 Mouse
Monitor #1: 27" Chimei 27VH LED
In the process of building an entirely new rig, pretty much from scratch. My stuff is so outdated that not much can carry over except the power supply. This is gonna be my digital art/3D rig so it's gonna be pretty beefy. I bought the new-ish Antec One gaming case which is a freakin steal for 50 bucks. Gonna get a 40-60 gig SSD drive for my boot drive. No idea on CPU and motherboard, though. Been out of the game too long to know what's good these days! lol
In regards to CPUs, there really isn't much of a contest right now. You're going to want a core i7, preferably an unlocked version so that you can easily overclock it for more power. AMD has some 8-core units, but they're still not as efficient as Intel.
The core i7 is multithreaded, so you get 8 virtual cores, which is going to come in really handy for when it's time for rendering. In regards to motherboards, it depends on what features you want. For Intel, you want one that is going to require a discrete graphics card as well. Some Intel chips come with their own graphics on board and you don't want that. I'll explain a little more later.
The core i7 is multithreaded, so you get 8 virtual cores, which is going to come in really handy for when it's time for rendering. In regards to motherboards, it depends on what features you want. For Intel, you want one that is going to require a discrete graphics card as well. Some Intel chips come with their own graphics on board and you don't want that. I'll explain a little more later.
No problem. Do you have a budget or an idea of what programs you're going to use? I can better help you out with this information.
So far I know of Windows 7 64 bit, Photoshop and/or Painter, and some free 3D stuff like Blender. I do also game a bit, but I'm not concerned with running ultra high. Ultimately I'd like a rig that is very efficient power wise, so it's gonna be a single GPU, 3 case fans, 2 hard drives, 8-12 gigs RAM, and one dvd drive.
Well my budget is sort of what I can afford at the time. This is why I love building my own! But I'll give you a rough idea-
GPU- $120-180
Mobo- $100-160ish
CPU- $100-200ish
RAM- $40-80
Edit: Doing some research now the current stuff. I'm definitely going with an Intel system this time. I hate to spend more than $200 on a CPU...but it might be worth it in the long run.
Well my budget is sort of what I can afford at the time. This is why I love building my own! But I'll give you a rough idea-
GPU- $120-180
Mobo- $100-160ish
CPU- $100-200ish
RAM- $40-80
Edit: Doing some research now the current stuff. I'm definitely going with an Intel system this time. I hate to spend more than $200 on a CPU...but it might be worth it in the long run.
The Core i7 will definitely last you a long time, especially if you overclock. If you want to save some money, then you can go with an i5. It's still a great CPU (It's what I have at the moment), but it's just a straight 4 core chip. No multithreading on that one.
Here are some quick recommendations your prices -
GPU: EVGA GTX 550Ti - $130 Link
Mobo: Gigabyte GA-Z77 - $130 Link
CPU: Core i5 2500k - $220 Link
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws 8GB Kit - $46.99 Link
I'll chime in with more details in a bit.
Here are some quick recommendations your prices -
GPU: EVGA GTX 550Ti - $130 Link
Mobo: Gigabyte GA-Z77 - $130 Link
CPU: Core i5 2500k - $220 Link
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws 8GB Kit - $46.99 Link
I'll chime in with more details in a bit.
Wow that CPU sounds awesome! I love to overclock and it looks like it's a champ. I think it would be worth the money because I don't plan to upgrade for a looooong time after this build {but we all know how that goes lol}. GPU and RAM looks great, too. The downside to the mobo is no PCI slots...I still have a few things that are PCI like my soundcard.
Do you go full 5.1 with your sound card? Or just 2 channel stereo? PCI is dead my friend. But if you really want it, you can go with another mobo. I recommend either ASUS or Gigabyte. EVGA has some decent ones too. Here is some more info for you.
Motherboard: You want to stick with either a Z68 or Z77. These will allow you to OC your CPU. If you get an H77, you'll be stuck with a locked CPU, even if your chip can be overclocked. Z77 motherboards are compatible with both Sandy Bridge and Ivy Bridge processors. So if that 2500K isn't cutting it a few years down the line, you can upgrade to an Ivy Bridge i5 or i7. The 2500K that I recommended is a Sandy Bridge proc.
CPU: Stick with the CPUs that have the "K" designator. This mean they are fully unlocked and can be overclocked. All other Intel chips are locked and won't go any higher than their rated Turbo Boost speeds.
GPU: Blender is awesome because you don't need a high end video card to do some decent work. Nvidia tends to be the one that works best with Blender as well, so a 550Ti should be good enough. If you ever decide to run something like Maya or 3DS Max, then it's time to look into a workstation graphics card.
RAM: Blender and Photoshop love RAM, and 8GB should be plenty. But if it starts to get sluggish on you, just add another 8GBs.
OS: Windows 7 64-bit is your best bet. It might not matter to you, but Home Premium is locked to 16GBs of RAM. If you ever want to go above that for whatever reason, you're going to need W7 Professional.
Let me know if you have any questions.
Motherboard: You want to stick with either a Z68 or Z77. These will allow you to OC your CPU. If you get an H77, you'll be stuck with a locked CPU, even if your chip can be overclocked. Z77 motherboards are compatible with both Sandy Bridge and Ivy Bridge processors. So if that 2500K isn't cutting it a few years down the line, you can upgrade to an Ivy Bridge i5 or i7. The 2500K that I recommended is a Sandy Bridge proc.
CPU: Stick with the CPUs that have the "K" designator. This mean they are fully unlocked and can be overclocked. All other Intel chips are locked and won't go any higher than their rated Turbo Boost speeds.
GPU: Blender is awesome because you don't need a high end video card to do some decent work. Nvidia tends to be the one that works best with Blender as well, so a 550Ti should be good enough. If you ever decide to run something like Maya or 3DS Max, then it's time to look into a workstation graphics card.
RAM: Blender and Photoshop love RAM, and 8GB should be plenty. But if it starts to get sluggish on you, just add another 8GBs.
OS: Windows 7 64-bit is your best bet. It might not matter to you, but Home Premium is locked to 16GBs of RAM. If you ever want to go above that for whatever reason, you're going to need W7 Professional.
Let me know if you have any questions.
Such great info man, thank you! You have a point about the PCI thing...I do only use stereo and don't really plan to do surround anytime soon. I can't think of any other reason to have a PCI slot.
The info on the motherboard was exactly what I was looking for. I need something that will last a good few years and leave some room to upgrade if I choose to. I may end up spending a bit more on the motherboard than initially planned, because I'd rather spend en extra $60-80 now than another $150-200 in just a few years.
No plans for anything like Maya at this point. I mostly work in 2D, but it seems a lot of jobs I look at want guys who can at least do some low poly 3D...So I figured I better learn the basics at least. I dabbled in Blender a few years ago and I did enjoy it. Looks like the interface is much better these days!
Did not know that about the Home version!...I can't imagine needing more than 16GB...but again it might pay off to spend a little extra now instead of later.
So is AMD pretty much dead or what?
The info on the motherboard was exactly what I was looking for. I need something that will last a good few years and leave some room to upgrade if I choose to. I may end up spending a bit more on the motherboard than initially planned, because I'd rather spend en extra $60-80 now than another $150-200 in just a few years.
No plans for anything like Maya at this point. I mostly work in 2D, but it seems a lot of jobs I look at want guys who can at least do some low poly 3D...So I figured I better learn the basics at least. I dabbled in Blender a few years ago and I did enjoy it. Looks like the interface is much better these days!
Did not know that about the Home version!...I can't imagine needing more than 16GB...but again it might pay off to spend a little extra now instead of later.
So is AMD pretty much dead or what?
My pleasure to help. As you might've noticed in this thread, I tinkered with my PC a lot and I think I finally got it to where I don't need to upgrade any further for at least a year (Mostly because I want to upgrade, not because I need to, lol). So I've come across all this info. I'm currently working on a project with Blender and so far so good with this current rig. Still haven't rendered yet. I'll let you know how that goes when it's time.
As for AMD, they lost some focus since they've acquired ATI. Now both divisions are suffering a bit. If they don't come out with a CPU that can go toe-to-toe with Intel's i5/i7 line, then that division might be dead. Their graphics card division is still doing decent. They just need to get their drivers up to snuff. It's the reason why I switched to Nvidia.
And yeah, if you raise your budget to around $800, you can get a really great rig. You're still under $1K for a machine that will last you quite a few years.
As for AMD, they lost some focus since they've acquired ATI. Now both divisions are suffering a bit. If they don't come out with a CPU that can go toe-to-toe with Intel's i5/i7 line, then that division might be dead. Their graphics card division is still doing decent. They just need to get their drivers up to snuff. It's the reason why I switched to Nvidia.
And yeah, if you raise your budget to around $800, you can get a really great rig. You're still under $1K for a machine that will last you quite a few years.
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