Good Setup?

[Berserker]

I will be upgrading my computer over the summer, and I'm wondering if this setup would last me awhile (I don't want to upgrade again soon, to expensive). Here it is:
EVGA nForce 680i SE SLI (TR Version)
2 EVGA Geforce 8800 GTS 320 MB (SLI)
2GB DDR2 Corsair Dominator Memory
1000 Watt Power supply
All of that totals up to $1,588.96.
All I need is a good CPU, and I have a question about those... Are all CPUs SLI compatible? And is the rest of this a good setup?

[Lunarhawk]

100 Watt Power supply

What? Did you mean 1000?

[Berserker]

Yes, lol... I'll edit that.
EDIT: What I need to know
Is what I written up there good?
Will I have to upgrade again soon if I get what I wrote? (Hopefully not.)
What is a good CPU that would go with what I have there that is not very expensive?

Originally Posted by Berserker

Yes, lol... I'll edit that.
EDIT: What I need to know
Is what I written up there good?
Will I have to upgrade again soon if I get what I wrote? (Hopefully not.)
What is a good CPU that would go with what I have there that is not very expensive?

??????????

Or do I even need a new CPU processor thingy? What I have now says:
Intel Celeron 2.93Ghz. Do I need a better one? Should I get dual core processors?

[Corbs]

I would get a dual core.

What's the price of the Corsair Dominator? In my opinion, they've been overpriced lately (Dominator ones).

May I ask why you are getting SLI? What monitor will you be using?

[Berserker]

Originally Posted by Corbs

I would get a dual core.

What's the price of the Corsair Dominator? In my opinion, they've been overpriced lately (Dominator ones).

May I ask why you are getting SLI? What monitor will you be using?

K, I'll get dual core.

I'll find the Dominator and post it in a second. EDIT: I'm getting it for $160
I'm getting SLI so I don't have to upgrade my video card soon, but I don't know what the monitor is called, I didn't think it really mattered, does it?

Another EDIT: Intel Dual Core E440 2.0 Ghz? Is that good for the dual core processors?

I've been told getting SLI just isn't worth it, is that true? Why wouldn't it be worth it? If I shouldn't get SLI what video card should I get?
EDIT: 2 GeForce 8800 GTS 320 MB(what I was going to get/might get depending on if it is worth it or not)=about the cost of 1 GeForce 8800 Ultra... Which one, or should I do something else?

Whoa... I just read about the upcoming GeForce 90 series coming around Christmas... Two times the speed of the 8800 Ultra, should I put off upgrading until then, or will the prices for these cards be incredibly high?

I can no longer edit my last post... so I hope this dosen't count as a double post, but...

I've been told this might be a good idea, instead of getting SLI or anything as expensive for graphics cards, I should get an 8800 GTX and use the extra money to get 4gbs of RAM and a better CPU. Sound good?
EDIT: Using what I heard, I put together another possible setup, here it is:
4GB Corsair Dominator
Intel Core 2 duo E6600 Conroe 2.4 GHz
EVGA GeForce 8800 GTX
and now all I need is a good motherboard... Suggestions?

[Corbs]

Well, here's a few suggestions.

Honestly, computer parts are always in constant evolution. Therefore, it really doesn't matter much if you buy it one or a year after. Be warned, some technological breakthroughs have more impact than others. In the end, it all depends on your needs.

First of, 2GB DDR2 Corsair Dominator Memory (assuming 800mhz) for 160$US is not worth it in my opinion. You can get OCZ 2GB XTC Gold DDR2-800 for under 90$ and I'm even seeing Patriot Signature Line 2GB DDR2-800 for under 80$ canadian. I've had the OCZ 2GB XTC Gold DDR2-800 running for 8 months now and have not yet been disappointed.

Second, if you're wondering if you should wait for the GeForce 90 series, ask yourself two questions:

1. For what purpose are you buying this new computer? Is it for Huxley, or it is actually to play the newer upcoming games and not necessarily Huxley?

My answer: If you're only buying a new computer in order to play Huxley, well then all I can say is: wait. Depending where you're ordering from, it can take less than a week to receive your items.

1. If you want to get a GeForce 90 series later on, why not buy the 8800 GTS 320 mb for now and upgrade it when they do come out (and if you do really need it)?

Moreover, as far as the motherboard, I wouldn't look to far. No need for a gazillion gadgets on it (like the P5W DH Deluxe, which I bought and was a total waste). I do like the fact that my motherboard supports Quadcore processors but in all honesty, by the time I upgrade my processor, I'll just change the whole damn thing.

At last, why did I ask for your monitor? Well, the only way I could see SLI being useful, is if you would actually play on high resolution (2560X1600 for example). Therefore, if you own a LCD monitor (highest resolution of lets say 1280X1024), it would be a total waste. Furthermore, if playing at 1280X1024 satisfies you, then it is yet again a total waste imo. You should know that having two video cards does NOT double your frame rate... unfortunately.

Anyways, hope this helps.

[Berserker]

So should I wait or not? I do want to play Huxley, but also other games (Crysis, Bioshock, Assassin's Creed...) Will the G90's be really expensive? More expensive than the 8800 GTX? Where do you shop for your memory? I looked and I couldn't find anything close to the prices you posted... Thanks

[Corbs]

I unfortunately don't know that many US e-store but tigerdirect.com does have quite a nice selection.

Tigerdirect DDR2-800 2GB List

Well, since the 8800 GTX has been release since a few months I'll say that the G90 series will probably cost more than the 8800 GTX upon its release. Although, computer parts are always cheaper during the summer (for an obvious reason, hence less demand). Wait or not to wait, it all depends on you. Do you want your computer now or can you wait?

If you think you can wait, then wait.
If you can't wait, then buy it now.

Hell, you can wait for Bioshock to be released if you want. The game is expected to be released in mid August (last time I checked), and I doubt prices will have raised by then. Nevertheless, if you do wait until september or november, I can almost say with certainty that some computer parts will cost more than now. (Happened last year)

[Berserker]

Ok, I think I know what I'll do. Thanks for the help man.

[connnnn]

Unless you're talking about specific sales specials, prices don't often rise over time except in the case of RAM. RAM is weird because it tends to fluctuate constantly almost like a commodity, but things like CPUs and GPUs which get consistent new hardware releases aren't really affected in the same way, because there's always something pushing the line of pricing (new releases announced/occurring). What can happen, however, is a general under-production of a popular piece of hardware (for instance last year it was the 7800GT's). In the somewhat rare instance where 1 piece of hardware just has a ridiculously low supply for a really high demand, then prices can go up as demand rises, but usually there's enough (and typically too much) manufacturing supply of PC hardware to keep that from happening. Guessing the timing and degree of price drops is very difficult, though.

[Berserker]

Would the original motherboard I posted be good? Suggestions?

Alright, I know a guy really well, we have always been friends, he is much older then me and has been working with computers his whole life. He is into gaming himself, and is recommending these parts, but is telling me to ask around about motherboards, because he dosen't what would work well. So I'll post what he did say...

EVGA GeForce 8800 GTX
Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 2.66 GHz
4GB Corsair Dominator RAM (for Vista, he is also getting it for me cheap, only $100 )
What motherboard?

A motherboard under $200 that would work with that setup.

[Corbs]

Originally Posted by connnnn

Unless you're talking about specific sales specials, prices don't often rise over time except in the case of RAM. RAM is weird because it tends to fluctuate constantly almost like a commodity, but things like CPUs and GPUs which get consistent new hardware releases aren't really affected in the same way, because there's always something pushing the line of pricing (new releases announced/occurring). What can happen, however, is a general under-production of a popular piece of hardware (for instance last year it was the 7800GT's). In the somewhat rare instance where 1 piece of hardware just has a ridiculously low supply for a really high demand, then prices can go up as demand rises, but usually there's enough (and typically too much) manufacturing supply of PC hardware to keep that from happening. Guessing the timing and degree of price drops is very difficult, though.

Right on. I was actually referring to RAM (which went up 100$ two weeks after I bought my 2GB sticks).

Wasn't the 7800 replaced (discontinued) for the 7900?

Originally Posted by Berserker

A motherboard under $200 that would work with that setup.

I personally like the Gigabyte DS3 for its overclocking potential, but someone else might suggest something else (Will you overclock your CPU?).

[Berserker]

I've heard about overclocking, and I'm not sure what it means. What does it do and how do you do it? Thanks

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813128012?

Oh and, would I need an 1000W power supply as I posted? Or could I get something smaller?

Would 650W be good?

http://www.tigerdirect.com/cgi-bin/shoppingcart.asp Ouch. Any way to get that down to about $1500-$1700?

Is there? I hope so...

http://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/...mit=ChangeItem

Better... Would the power supply be alright for that?

[Corbs]

There's no need to send us a link to the shopping cart page. All the information is stored client side (cookie).

Minimum requirements for the 8800 GTX would probably be a 450W

450W PCI Express-compliant system power supply with a combined 12V current rating of 30A or more*

*Minimum system power requirement based on a standard PC configured with an Intel® Core™2 Extreme X6800 processor

Those are the minimum requirements. I would probably go for a 650W or 700W. I highly doubt you need more (unless you went SLI).

Best bet would be the official forum of EVGA.

***Source

[Berserker]

Oh ok. I didn't know about the cookie thing, but thanks. I think I know now.

*Hanns 17" Monitor $149.99
*Ageia PhysX $129.99
*GeForce 8800 GTX $559.99
*620W Power Supply $169.99
*4GB Corsair Dominator $358.00
*GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3 (rev. 1.3) LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $99.99
*Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 2.66 GHz
Subtotal: $1,784.95
Shipping: $22.38
Grand Total: $1,807.33
EDIT: I'm not sure why the motherboard became a link... Don't bother with it.
Is that setup good?

[Corbs]

How much for the E6700? And what's the difference in price between that model and lets say the E6300 or E4400? The motherboard I recommended (DS3) offers huge overclocking potential, hence why I would of suggest a lower end processor in order to overclock it (ex: E6300 model starts off at 1.86ghz and can easily be overclocked higher than 2.5ghz).

I honestly don't get it why you hassle over Corsair Dominator. Are you actually buying 2 sticks of 2GB or is that 4 sticks of 1GB each? 358$ for 4GB is a lot IMO.

http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=23483&vpn=OCZ2VU8004GK&manufacture=O CZ%20Technology&promoid=1051

Just take a look at this. 245.10$ or 229.99$ (weekly savings) for 2 DDR2-800 sticks of 2GB. And that's canadian dollars...

What casing are you getting? As for the monitor, is that LCD or CRT? (17" is small...)

P.S.: IMO, to save money, you should order from different places, ex: newegg & tigerdirect

Edit: What kind(CRT or LCD? size?) of monitor do you currently have?

[Berserker]

The Processor is $317. I don't know why I didn't say that. How do you overclock?

I was making a hassle over the dominator because I heard it is good. 4 sticks of 1GB.

Wow. That's a lot cheaper... is OCZ good as well?

I have a case, but I don't know what is it called. Maybe with the extra money from getting the OCZ (if it is as good) I'll get a case.

The monitor is LCD. Should I get a bigger one?

Thanks