DesertFox

So I have re-thought it out and barring any real problems that you guys can come up with this is probably what I will be getting.

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450
ASUS P5Q3 P45 DDR3-1600
2 x OXZ Platinum OCZ3P16002GK 2x1GB
GTX280
FSP Fortron FSP700-80GLC 700W
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium
Western Digital Raptor 150GB SATA 10KRPM 16MB

EDIT: Also what do you guys think about the Q9550, is it worth the extra money?

Should end up costing me around 2400. (with the 9450)

Bamboo

Wow, that adds up to that much?
Depending on when you buy, the prices may have dropped down some. The 9450 has already dropped more towards the list price and is now $339 on newegg. Like I posted before, Intel has a price cut planned for their quads (9550 down to about where the 9450 is now), the GTX will be pretty expensive the first couple weeks it is out if there is high demand, and the price of DDR3 just keeps dropping. Price of the board will go down, but probably not for 2-3 months, maybe more. Just checked the price of my board, which was $220, and it is now $179, and there is a $20 rebate dropping it to $159

Couple of questions. Why just the 2 gigs of RAM? And are you going with the Vista64 version?
Up to you on the Raptor. I have one, and it runs good from what I can tell. But I have the 74gig just for my OS, and another HD for everything else. That way Vista runs fast as possible, and when things are happening in the back ground when I am gaming, I am not being limited by 1 HD doing all the work. Bunch of other guys here run a similar setup. My 2 drives probably cost the same at the 150gig Raptor. If you don't mind spending the money though, you will be happy with that drive as long as you have a good case, as it runs hot and a can be a bit loud. (Another reason I love my P182, as it is near soundproof )
I have no experience with that brand of PSU, but if it gets good reviews, cool. Check out this thread for some good info on PSUs
http://www.tacticalgamer.com/hardwar...t-psu-buy.html

Regardless of the things mentioned, that will be a kick ass rig, and should keep you running at the top for a very long time.

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DesertFox

http://pc.ncix.com/pcbuilder/index.p...latformid=1001

That link should work for everything I have picked, I will buy 2 of the 2 x 1GB so 4 GB. Whats the difference in performance and that for 32/64?

Bamboo

One thing to note is that having 4 populated memory slots can cause more problems and will usually run slower than having 2 sticks. Plus, as kick ass as this rig will be, who knows if 2 years down the road with as cheap as memory is, some devs really start using it and you would want to run more than 4 gigs. If you buy 2 sets now and populate all 4, you will end of having to dump 2 if you want to upgrade to more later.
Plus, the memory you marked is going to cost you $400, and you can get a 2 stick 4 gig kit for cheaper. Just makes more sense.
By the way, even if you don't order from Newegg, make sure you look at the buyer's reviews on any thing you are thinking of buying. Use newegg like a reference book. If an item has like 30 ratings, and it only has 2 eggs, you know for sure not to buy.
As for performance question, I guess you are talking about Vista. Vista 32 can only use about 3 gigs of memory, give or take. But with that high end gfx. and stuff you might get a bit less, while a rig with a 256mb gfx card could use like 3.4 gigs of ram.
Vista 64 will let you run an insanely high amount of RAM, and a lot of newer games are also being written to take advantage of a 64bit OS. Crysis is just one of them, as is ARMA to a point, and ARMA 2 will be even better. More and more games and programs support it, to the point I rarely now find a program that doesn't, except ZoneAlarm Firewall, which I still can't believe they havent updated yet.
Also, interesting that the site you linked to actually charges less for the 64bit than the 32 bit. It is usually the other way around.
I would also consider spending the $25 and throwing in an extra DVD-ROM drive, so you are n't constantly having to switch out disks. I keep my BF2 in all the time so it is ready to go when I want to play.
Not sure about that cooler. May be good, but I have no experience with it. And it has AM2 in the name, so make sure it isn't just for AMD motherboards/CPUs.
I use the test chart on this page any time I am looking at CPU coolers.
http://www.anandtech.com/casecooling...spx?i=2981&p=3
You might could contact that seller and ask why they have that CPU still at $400, while it has come down in price everywhere else by about $50. They might hook you up with a deal.

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DesertFox

I only see two 2x2GB for sale, one is the G.Skill FD-12800CL9D-2GBHZ PC3-12800 DDR3-1600 for 299.99 and the Corsair XMS3 DHX Twin3x4096-1600 DDR3-1600 for $714, is that corsair stick worth getting if I can afford it?

Good idea on the DVD-ROM, I think I will do that. What about compatibility problems with 64 running say BF2, I remember reading that there were some problems.

Namebot

So is it now worth going for DDR-3 over DDR-2?

With the lowest price I can find it would have to give roughly X2 the value?

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Bamboo

I really haven't had any problems. Some people do, and it is usually fixed by setting the shortcut to "Run as admin" and setting the shortcut to run in compatibality mode of XP service pack 2.
I did both when I first installed the game, and never had a problem. Some people have also needed to set the game to run on one cpu core, but mine has run fine without doing that.
I feel it really comes down to if you want to run with more than 3.2 or so memory at some point in the future (which I have done now running Crysis, plus a few things in the background like firefox and teamspeak and x-fire.) To me, I like having a computer that I don't have to worry about shutting every single extra thing down so I can make a game playable, so I went with 64.
Like I said, sometimes it is hard to find find the exact program you are used to running for vista 64. I had always used Zonealarm, for like 5 years, so at first it bothered me that I couldn't use it and had gone with vista. But I looked around and a few days later found out about Comodo firewall, which is actually better rated in a lot of reiviews, and is Vista 64 ready. But that is the story of just about every program you might come across that doesn't work, there is almost always another one that does. Search these forums and you will find a bunch of threads talking about Vista 64 and pretty much everyone is happy with it, though I know Birde is having trouble in TX right now with Vista. Soon as I get a decent intnet back up, if he hasn't gotten fixed, I plan to help on that.
And don't for a sec. listen to those whiny little 12 year old complaining about vista in the PR.com forum. They wouldn't know how to use a computer if I dropped one on their heads. I actually almost got banned from the hardware forums there after I went on a rant because of all the whiny babies double and triple posting vista hate threads, when the problems turned out to be user error. Seems their moderators don't like when you point out what a crap job they do
For memory, they also offer this option
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145209
it is actually the same price newegg has it ($449).
Question is, does this store you are looking to buy from let you still do the mail in rebates? Like do you get the empty packages after they build your system so you can send in the UPC?
Also something I noticed is if you select the memory I posted above, and then click the question mark, it brings up the item page. But then if you scroll down, it shows some combo deals, and guess what they list. The intel q9450 for $365, instead of the $399 it lists on the build page. You really should call them up and ask if you can get that combo special, and check if any of the other stuff you are looking at has things like that. You might end up knocking off $100.
And also, G-Skill is getting decent reviews these days, and would be a good option considering the price. I looked them up on newegg, and there are no user reviews since it is a newer item.

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DesertFox

Does newegg ship to canada? And I think I will go with 64 then. I also can't seem to find the question mark you talk about :P And yeah they do give the boxes for rebates.

Just one more thing and then I think im ready to buy whenever that GTX280 comes out I heard there have been some problems with creative sound card's and vista? In terms of ****ty performance etc, is that true or just whiners? :P

Bamboo

Actually, there was some problems, because Creative wouldn't get off their butts and put out a good driver. Their most recent one released a few months ago is much better.
But ASUS has also started putting out some sound cards, and they are about the same price and are getting good reviews.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16829132006
That is the equlivent of the XtremeGamer from Creative.
Newegg has a sister site in Canada called Chief Value.
http://www.chiefvalue.com/
They actually have the q9450 for the same $339 as newegg.
I don't feel like checking other prices because this connection is so slow, but should be about the same. You would have to put the computer together yourself, but it is very easy to do. And I actually had fun doing it.
Also, don't forget to get some good thermal paste to go between the CPU and cooler. I forgot to get some with mine, so my computer was sitting waiting for 3 days while I had it rush shipped to me, and of course it was over a weekend, and no one delivers over Sat. and Sun. The new thermal paste for OCZ is getting rave reviews, and has no cure time.
You don't see the little blue question mark next to the selections at the site you link to above?

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DesertFox

Alright if creative has some decent drivers out then I think I will go with them, I will probably end up getting that 2x2GB of corsair ram. Also thought you meant question marks on the page you linked not the one I linked :P I also was reading there are rumours that the GTX280 is going to be released on the 17th so im counting down the hours

Thanks for all your help

Long Bow

Desert I would recommend NCIX as I have dealt with them several times and been happy. They have a sister company http://www.directcanada.com which has some of the best prices in Canada that I have found. Their website isn't as nice as NCIX and doesn't have as many customer reviews to use as research. I just ordered some parts from them and saved my self almost $150 on a small'ish order Example their price on the Q9450 is $345.

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DesertFox

So I ordered it today, I ended up getting

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450
ASUS P5Q3-DELUXE/WIFI-AP ATX LGA775 P45 DDR3
EVGA E-GEFORCE GTX 280
Antec P182
Corsair XMS3 4GB 2x2GB DDR3-1600 9-9-9-24
Western Digital Raptor 74GB SATA 10000RPM
Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 500GB SATA2
Thermalright ULTRA-120 Extreme 6 heatpipe cooler
Scythe 120MM Cooling Fan 1600RPM
Silverstone Zeus ST85ZF 850W
2 x DVD-ROM
Floppy

I changed the power supply at the recommendation of the NCIX employee. Only thing im thinking about though is that I would have liked a window on the side of my case but eh :P

Just wanted to say thanks for everyone for all there help

Bamboo

That rig is going to be awesome. Do you mind mentioning how much you paid in the end?

Also, there are some companies out there that do custome work to the sides of P182 cases, and you can order a sidepanal with a window if you want.
Nice thing about the P182, if the NCIX people know what they are doing, they will route all the cables so you don't see them behind the motherboard tray, and it will be a super clean looking install, perfect for a window.

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Long Bow

Wow, that is a killer machine. Glad you found what you were looking for.

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Raej

Lol your video card cost more then my whole machine, people and there high paying jobs =(