Need some help

[FLG]

Hey guys/gals,

Most of you should remember me. Been busy lately and VERY much out of the PC hardware loop. Was wondering if i can just get some help picking components for a gaming build. Just need mobo, video card, and processor recommendations. The rest i can still do on my own

Also if someone could just update me on some of the new stable chipsets that are out id appreciate it.

Im not AMD or Intel biased and i KNOW where those threads used to go. But id like to stick with intel for this build.

Thanks,

Frank

[Masaki 7-11]

Originally Posted by FLG Hey guys/gals, Most of you should remember me. Been busy lately and VERY much out of the PC hardware loop. Was wondering if i can just get some help picking components for a gaming build. Just need mobo, video card, and processor recommendations. The rest i can still do on my own Also if someone could just update me on some of the new stable chipsets that are out id appreciate it. Im not AMD or Intel biased and i KNOW where those threads used to go. But id like to stick with intel for this build. Thanks, Frank

What kind of budget are you looking at?
In terms of processors, the three options to look at are the Core i7, Core 2 Quad, and Core 2 Duo depending on what you need done. Core 2 Duo is fine for gaming, Core 2 Quad is also fine for gaming, but costs more and is also more future-proof. Core i7 is the most expensive and is good for gaming and futureproof, but requires a high end motherboard and DDR3 ram.

In terms of chipsets for intel, P45 and X48 are the best for Core 2 Duo/Quad with the X48 being better for crossfire configurations, while the P45 has a better southbridge and better prices; both support DDR2 and DDR3. If you are looking for a chipset that supports SLI for the Core 2 Duo/Quad, the 780i and 790i chipsets are good. The 790i is faster than the 780i, but is more expensive and uses DDR3 ram whereas the 780i uses only DDR2 ram. For Core i7, the only chipset available is the X58 which only works with DDR3, has a good southbridge and supports both crossfire and SLI.

For video cards, from the best and down in terms of performance:
HD4870X2 (best)
HD4850X2
GTX280
GTX260 (216 shaders)
HD4870 1GB
HD4870 512MB
HD4850 1GB
9800GTX+
HD4850 512MB
9800GTX
HD4830
9800GT
HD3870
9600GT
9600GSO
HD3850
HD4670
HD4650
8600GTS
Anything lower isn't worth using for gaming unless you have a REALLY small budget, some cards can be pretty close in performance, and now you generally get what you pay for, the X2 card's performance varies quite a bit depending on the driver's optimization for the game.

[Doom]

I just finished a setup that I had a lot of luck with. I'm an EVGA fan and have built two computers using the EVGA nVidia 780i SLI board. It supports up to 3-way SLI and I feel it's put together well. I paired up an E8400 3.0GHz Dual Core Intel CPU with an EVGA nVidia GTX 260 card.

I think the card is a good balance of power and performance from the latest www.tomsharware.com video card ratings (unless new ones are out in the last six days)...and I didn't get the E8500 only because the store was out of stock and I was looking to build that day.

This setup isn't too expensive (yet admittedly not on the cheap side), but it ran very smoothly, should have a good capacity to OC well and ran both Crysis and COD4 with great results and stability (1.5 hour test run on Crysis).

Cheers

[FLG]

Thanks Guys,

Masaki, thank you for the comprehensive list. There is no set "budget" yet so i figure ill look at either a core 2 quad or the Core i7, which honestly i had no idea existed (core i7). Ill then just see how much of a price difference i have and pick the best bang for your buck build.

Unless SLI or crossfire has changed much since i remember it, it seemed it was always better to go with the best card you could afford rather then 2 sub-par cards. So ill probably take a look at the top tier cards and see which one dosnt break the bank.

Thanks again.