Build to tide me over, and perhaps build apon... - Page 2

Thanks Buck...

I found the OCZ stuff at ZZF, and I found an e8400 for $209 somewhere else... I was going to go with the Corsair Ballistic 4G package with the fan, but nobody has it in stock... I think the config is bringing itself down to this... Quite different from where I started...

E8400
X48 (either rampage or DFI, can't decide)
eVGA 8800gtx ($289!)
4G 1066 OCZ
PC power and cooling 750W ($90 off ends today 4/5)
Raptor 150G

Any advice on buying Vista? There's the OEM builders dvd that's only $100, retail is $220 or so...

Just ordered...

ASUS RAMPAGE FORMULA LGA 775 Intel X48 ATX Intel Motherboard
Intel core 2 duo E8400
eVGA 768-P2-N831-AR GeForce 8800gtx 768
OCZ 4GB (2x2048) PC2-8500 (DDR2-1066)
PC Power & Cooling S75QB EPS12V 750W Power Supply (black version of the quad)
Western Digital Raptor X WD1500AHFDRTL 150GB 10,000 RPM SATA 1.5Gb/s Hard Drive
SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-S203B
Microsoft Windows Vista 32-Bit Home Premium for System Builders Single Pack DVD (didn't see a reason for ultimate... almost ordered the 64 bit by mistake)
EVERCOOL CL8035/LD2 80mm Blue LED Case Fan x4
ZALMAN MFC1 Plus-B Black 6 Channel Multi Fan Controller

Total came to $1506.88, $34.69 shipping, and $75.00 worth of mail in rebates.

I'll be building it into an Alienware predator 2.0 case I got from their eBay outlet. Hope everything fits...

I'll be transferring my old 7200 sata drives from my last desktop, probably will RAID0 them for the heck of it. I also have a Zalman CNPS9500 from my old setup that may work fine for my uses. I intend on OC'ing the processor up to 3.6-4.0, so if the Zalman I have doesn't cut it, I'll get something better.

I'm not sure yet what I'm going to do about sound. I was going to buy a fatality X-Fi gamer, but Creative have been such buttmunches lately I really don't want to give them any more money. I got screwed on my last creative desktop card, an Audigy 2, as they stopped supporting the features I bought it for. I understand they're resisting bringing their cards up with full Vista drivers to make people buy new cards, so screw them.

This setup will be coupled with a set of Alienware ALX 5.1 speakers by Klipsch, and a 2408 Dell monitor.

Now comes the hard part, waiting for UPS...

The version I got was $99. I doubt I'll need to move it, but if I can't, it's not really that big a loss. The retail box version is over $200.

I'll be changing the vid card and processor in the future, we'll see if that causes a problem with the validation when it happens.

Yep, black and blue like the rest of the kids, only this one will be a bastard child...

When I started this, SLI was a priority... Then I remembered I'm a cheap bastard and I wait forever to replace vid cards due to the cost. If I had two cards to replace, I'd wait forever... My last desktop has a 6800 ultra in it...

I know though, that I'll want a new AW when Nehalem processors come out, along with DDR3 and the latest vid card(s). This started out as a quick cheap build for something to do. Everything is still pretty cheap here except the mobo.

I had intended in going cheap but SLI, but I wasn't happy with the 750i, or 780i reviews I read, so I just punted. The X48 sounds like an excellent base to learn about overclocking, something I don't know much about, and I might follow your lead and add liquid cooling later just to learn. It'll be easier on a single vid card setup. And you never know, the 9900GX2 might be awesome...?

When the Nehalems are out, I'll pass this one on to my wife, I'm sure it'll be a nice boost over her 3200+Athlon/5900 ultra system. Come to think of it, I'll put the 6800 Ultra in her computer when I get this one up and running... I've got a box full of old GeForce cards upstairs...

Oh yeah, and thanks for the 2G hint. I saw that a few times in mobo reviews, so apparently it's a wide spread problem.

As for the cpu fan, I have a Zalman CNPS9500. It's an older version of the 9700 that Buch47 used, so it's smaller. If it's not sufficient for a decent overclock, I'll move up. I think you had one of these models in your first build, didn't you?

I'm sure it's much better than the stock heatsink, and people are getting good results from that...

I ordered the fan controller so I can adjust the noise levels if need be from the front bay. The air flow isn't the best through this case, so I'm adding fans in front, so I wanted to be able to control the noise. I'll be able to control the Zalman with it too, and I think there's a speed controller that came with the Zalman too... There's slots on the side and front, and I'm not going to use all the hd slots, so I might as well fill them. We'll see how it works out...

I was also thinking... If I wanna play with SLI, a decent 750i board is only another $140...

Holy moly... I was about to buy a Dell 2408 monitor, but luckily I looked around a bit. Apparently it's got a major input lag issue that makes it crap for gaming...

I just ordered a DoubleSight DS-263N - 26" from Buy.com for $670 delivered. It's got an LG-Phillips S-ISP panel in it, which is the best for color reproduction and continuity at different viewing angles. If you have an lcd monitor, and you move your head from side to side, and colors change slightly depending on your view angle, this is virtually eliminated with ISP panels. It's got a lower contrast ratio than the latest VA or TN panels though, so there is a trade off. It's also got a .2 frame input lag (as compared to more than 2 full frames for the Dell), and a phenominal 5ms response time GTG. The Dell lists 8ms.

The 26" monitors I've seen with this lcd panel are mostly over $1200, like the NEC 2690, and it's the same monitor (except for the stand) as a planar 26" that is $900+ everywhere I found it.

There's a huge string on this monitor over at HardOCP. There is some issue with early models not having a polarizer which can cause a white "glow" at high angles of view, but people that have received these monitors over the past two weeks report they have a panel with a polarizer. The polarizer is a thin film in the lcd sandwich that effectively removes the white glow effect at high viewing angles.

This was a bit of an impulse buy, so this will also be a wait and see how good it is deal. This monitor was less than half the cost of the Dell 2707, and outperforms it handily... I hope...