new gaming build!!! ~$2600

[wataskier227]

Thermaltake Shark
case: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16811133143

ASUS Striker Formula II
mobo: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16813131255

2xNvidia 880gtx
video: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16814121033

PC Power & Cooling 1 kW
psu:http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16817703007

Intel Q6600(plan on overclocking)
cpu:http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16819115017

4gb total = 2xOCZ(2X1GB)ddr2-800
ram:http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16820227271

WD Raptor, 2xWD 750gb in raid 0
hdd: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16822136011
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16822136131

Samsung w/ Lightscribe
optical: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16827151154

Zalman 9700
Cooling: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16835118020



*will be using Windows Vista Home Premium 64bit edition

[liambl]

You would be better off with a single 9800GTX instead of 8800GTX SLi, its cheaper and would perform the same/better. It also supports all the new features of the G92 core like PCI-e 2.0. I would also get a Lite-On optical drive, Samsung have a dodgy reputation in the optical drive market.

[Masaki 7-11]

Also take a look at getting a Q6700 instead of the Q6600, new price cuts have made the Q6700 sell for $266. All Q6700 are G0 stepping whereas the Q6600 has both B3 (horrible for overclocking) and G0 steppings. The Q6700 will also overclock better than the Q6600 since it has an increased multiplier.

If you are interested in having a raptor HD, you might want to wait a bit since they have some new 300GB ones coming out soon.

[shadowpr]

Along with what has been said, get a single video card, and a mother board like the P5K-E.

Also, get 2x2gb of ram instead of 4x1gb.

[doubledragon5]

If you want a good drive try the Memorax, I have two that are two yrs old and have no issues at all.. Unfortunately lite-on are not as good as the use to be.. I have had two in my inlaws machine die within a yr and one die in my own machine within 3 months.. I would also look at Segate 7200.11 sata drives rather than the raptors. Raptors are over priced, and Segate performance is just a quick as they are.. They also come with a 5yr warranty..

[Katreat]

Build looks good. At the level you are building i would consider one of the newer Yorkfield quads, your spending alot of money buying at the top and I think the new 45 nm quads would give you the advantage of lower energy use and cooler temperatures. From what I have read they OC as good or better than the 65nm CPUs.

What size monitor are you using? If it is 24 inch or smaller you really wont see much advantage running SLI over a single card set up. If you are pushing it through a 28" - 30" monitor then the SLI will shine by providing the ability to run much higher resolutions.

Kat

[Drunner611]

I would just get a 9800gx2 and be done with it. At max, you need a 700w power supply with that setup (non/sli). 1kw is far overkill.

Raid 0 usually turns out to be more of a hassle than a benefit. I would stick to one raptor.

And finally, if your going to spend $2600, get a Q9450.

For all this money, you could also consider a cheaper mobo (non sli, get the 9800gx2) and water cool the whole thing.

[Masaki 7-11]

Originally Posted by Drunner611 I would just get a 9800gx2 and be done with it. At max, you need a 700w power supply with that setup (non/sli). 1kw is far overkill. Raid 0 usually turns out to be more of a hassle than a benefit. I would stick to one raptor. And finally, if your going to spend $2600, get a Q9450. For all this money, you could also consider a cheaper mobo (non sli, get the 9800gx2) and water cool the whole thing.

Overclocking will make it necessary for a minimum of 700 watts, especially if going SLI whether through two GTX cards or one GX2 card.

The Q9450 has bad overclocking potential due the limits on increasing FSB and the low multiplier, the Q6700 can get up to 4.0GHz on air without much trouble.

[aram]

Originally Posted by Drunner611 Raid 0 usually turns out to be more of a hassle than a benefit. I would stick to one raptor.

I have 2 raptors in RAID 0 and they are blindingly quick (if a little noisy ). Not had any hassle with RAID 0 either and depending on what your doing, it can have significant benefits. Having said that I would only use a 0 array for an operating system or temp storage, due to the increased risk of failure.

[alanebro82]

I know it's been said, but not specifically. Raid 0 is meant for speed, but it is much more prone to failure. If a single HDD fails, you lose all of your data. Since you have 2 drives in Raid 0, this means you have roughly twice as high of a chance of failure.

So, either drop the raid 0 or add a 3rd 750gig HDD for a parity drive (this makes it so 2 out of 3 must fail in order to lose your data)

[Katreat]

From the description posted, it appears that he/she plans on running two 750 GB drives in Raid 0 and a single raptor for the OS/programs.

Now I personally have not used raptors or set up a raid 0 because the cost/benefit ratio just does not hit my threshold for performance. The price just seem too high for that last little bit of speed so I make do with a slightly slower machine at a substantial cash savings.

However, I think I understand the reasoning behind both raptor drives and raid 0 so I am a bit confused at the application being proposed.

If he/she is really going for maximum speed shouldn’t you use two raptors in raid 0 and not raid 0 the storage HDs? I am discussing gaming application here, I understand that there is some more commercial applications that might benefit from faster retrieval from storage drives, but in games I think the main advantage would come from accessing the program, not stored data.

Also, just for my own knowledge, does anyone know how much faster raid 0 will make a drive? For an example, will two 7200 drives in raid 0 out perform one 10000 raptor?

Kat

[Doom]

I have an SLI setup and wasn't that impressed with what it gave me. You truly are better off w/ a top of the line card in a single card setup. If you decide that you really want SLI, the EVGA 780i SLI is rated a little higher on Newegg and is about $40 cheaper. I have one and have been very happy with it.

Samsung is highly recommended for monitors by many folks here, but not for optical drives. You're likely better served by a Lite-On which is the choice of most folks here. I have a Pioneer and am very happy with it (so far).