Home Built Computers

[Saulbadguy]

120hz

[loochy]

Yeah, you might want to look at something with 120hz refresh and 5ms or less response...although mine is 60 hz and it is just fine.

[Pants]

These threads always make want to build a new rig for myself! Just gotta wait for Bulldozer and then go to town (unless it blows ass).

[Fish]

A six core Phenom is really overkill. There's only a handful of applications that will actually take advantage of that many cores. Most games only use 2-4 cores at most, so you're not gaining anything there. Unless you're running some specific expensive video encoding software, you're really wasting money. The motherboard you're getting has a core unlocker anyway. You'd be much better off just getting the X3, and unlocking the extra core. The X6 is mainly a marketing ploy aimed at those who think more is better.

That video card is pretty badass though. You'll like that....

[SuperChief]

Originally Posted by KC Fish

A six core Phenom is really overkill. There's only a handful of applications that will actually take advantage of that many cores. Most games only use 2-4 cores at most, so you're not gaining anything there. Unless you're running some specific expensive video encoding software, you're really wasting money. The motherboard you're getting has a core unlocker anyway. You'd be much better off just getting the X3, and unlocking the extra core. The X6 is mainly a marketing ploy aimed at those who think more is better.

That video card is pretty badass though. You'll like that....

I keep reading that 6 cores is "preparing for the future" and such. Any validity to this point, you think?

I'm stoked about the video card - hopefully BF3 and TES:Skyrim respond well!

[Fish]

Originally Posted by SuperChief

I keep reading that 6 cores is "preparing for the future" and such. Any validity to this point, you think?

I'm stoked about the video card - hopefully BF3 and TES:Skyrim respond well!

Well yes, it's "preparing for the future". But by the time the apps and games you use have built in support for more than 4 cores, your future build will be ready for replacement.

When building a machine, I always recommend building for the present. It's nice to look to the future with regards to your build. But putting technology in the machine that likely won't be taken advantage of over the life of the machine is just wasting money. Especially considering the price difference compared to the performance increase in your situation. And something like the CPU can be easily upgraded by itself later if you decide you need more cores.

If you're going to over do it, and prepare for the future, I'd really recommend doing so with the mobo or video card first and foremost.

[SuperChief]

So you're saying I'd probably be better served to get something like so:

AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb 3.4GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor HDZ965FBGMBOX

[Fish]

Originally Posted by SuperChief

So you're saying I'd probably be better served to get something like so:

AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb 3.4GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor HDZ965FBGMBOX

Yes...

Or if it were me, I'd get the AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8Ghz, and unlock the other core.

The Phenom II X3 is simply an X4 chip with one of the cores locked. The mobo you're getting has a built in core unlocker specifically for this purpose, which makes the chip an X4. And the X3 720 is very easily overclocked as well. So you could save big bucks and get the X3 720 at 2.8Ghz, and turn it into an X4 at 3.2Ghz very very easily. I've done exactly this with several builds, and it's turned out great.

But honestly, you're not going to notice much of a difference between 2.8Ghz and 3.4Ghz if you don't want to mess with overclocking. It won't really show up in performance other than running advanced benchmarks. Your RAM and Vid card are more important than CPU core speed.

[Fish]

FYI.... AnandTech has a great CPU/GPU/SSD benchmark comparison list:

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/GPU11/188

Tom's Hardware has great info as well:

http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/

[SuperChief]

Just so I'm on the right path here, I'm probably going to need another PSU? What if my case comes with a PSU? Do I replace it with a better one?

[loochy]

Originally Posted by SuperChief

Just so I'm on the right path here, I'm probably going to need another PSU? What if my case comes with a PSU? Do I replace it with a better one?

1.) Case PSUs typically suck, so get one without if you can.
2.) I'd get a nice healthy PSU in case you ever want to Crossfire, SLI, or overclock. Look for a 700W or 750W.

Modular PSUs are nice. They let you plug only the cables you need into the PSU so you can keep your case tidy and uncluttered for better airflow.

[SuperChief]

Originally Posted by loochy

1.) Case PSUs typically suck, so get one without if you can.
2.) I'd get a nice healthy PSU in case you ever want to Crossfire, SLI, or overclock. Look for a 700W or 750W.

Modular PSUs are nice. They let you plug only the cables you need into the PSU so you can keep your case tidy and uncluttered for better airflow.

Also, do you have an aftermarket CPU cooling fan, or do you just use the stock one for your 6core CPU?

[loochy]

Originally Posted by SuperChief

Also, do you have an aftermarket CPU cooling fan, or do you just use the stock one for your 6core CPU?

I'm using stock right now since I'm not overclocking. A good aftermarket cooler doesn't hurt, but there's really no need unless you want to up the voltage and overclock.

[Fish]

Originally Posted by SuperChief

Just so I'm on the right path here, I'm probably going to need another PSU? What if my case comes with a PSU? Do I replace it with a better one?

What do you mean?

[SuperChief]

Originally Posted by KC Fish

What do you mean?

Meaning in addition to or to replace the PSU that comes with the case I ordered. I'm probably going with this one:

Corsair Enthusiast Series 650-Watt 80 Plus Bronze Certified Power Supply Compatible with Intel Core i3, i5, i7 and AMD platforms 650TX v2