Globalkiwi,
I should just add that a good quality power supply is also money well spent. It'll have a range of good quality connectors, work with various graphics card configurations and provide a more stable system than a cheap option. In a modern rig it's wise to start no lower than a 450W PSU for a basic system and add to that output if you're running the latest graphics cards (most notably if >1 card), lots of HDDs or overclocking your processor.
A good quality PSU draw power efficiently so you'll actually save money on your electricity bill in the long run. It also has stable output reducing wear on your components.
If you live in a hot place like I do, invest a bit more on custom cooling. Stock fans are adequate in a moderate climate but not in a hot place. You don't have to get a phase change cooling or anything hardcore, a chunky fan and heatsink should be more than enough to keep your CPU around or under 120ºF.
I must say I'm a little confused by this RAM compatibility issue you're talking about willis. Having a custom built PC usually means you have more than a few different brands under the hood, eg. nvidia card, asus mobo, intel CPU. Now I went to Kingston's website and they have system specific RAMs but what am I suppose to match the RAM with?
To be honest I never really looked at the RAM timing. All I look at is the frequency and make sure it's the same or higher than the mobo spec. Never have any problem with compatibility.
globalkiwi wrote:
Indeed Nicholas, the more I read, the more convinced I am that a custom/self-built rig is the way to go. Still have some trepidations about the logistics - component compatibility, wiring, etc. - but plan to keep researching. Thanks all for your input!
globalkiwi,
There are several reputable Boutique PC-builders out there, http://www.pugetsystems.com for one, has an outstanding reputation in the business. But check out this 2 or 3 minute Video to see what can be done with overclocking: Click Here
It may be way over your budget, but, then again, you may not need all of the high-end components shown. But I thought you'd like to see what can be done with the Intel i7/920 PCU.
Particularly with DDR2 RAM many of the higher clocked modules just dont work with some mobos/bios (at any frequency) in my experience. Asus (and others) test their Mobos with various RAM modules to ensure compatibility and a list of compatible modules can be found on their website. Maybe you've been lucky. I've had no problems with Corsair and Kingston but OCZ and GeIL have been troublesome, probably just BIOS related but as I say theoretical compatibility doesn't guarantee the box will boot.
I've never had any problems with RAM compatibility but I did have a problem with a mobo shipping with an older BIOS version that didn't support a newer processor. I had to buy a cheapo processor to flash the BIOS and then put the new CPU back in. A bit of a fiddle and only really applicable if you're buying a newly released CPU. It's worth checking out before you buy though.
The ASUS website, as an example, has a list of all supported CPU's and what BIOS version is required to run them.
willis wrote:
Globalkiwi,
I should just add that a good quality power supply is also money well spent. It'll have a range of good quality connectors, work with various graphics card configurations and provide a more stable system than a cheap option. In a modern rig it's wise to start no lower than a 450W PSU for a basic system and add to that output if you're running the latest graphics cards (most notably if >1 card), lots of HDDs or overclocking your processor.
Is a 750W PSU sufficient for a single graphics card but several HDD's & an overclocked CPU?
globalkiwi wrote:
Is a 750W PSU sufficient for a single graphics card but several HDD's & an overclocked CPU?
globalkiwi,
Here is a website where you can enter your key components and it will tell you the minimum recommended PSU: http://www.antec.outervision.com/
But I think that running an i7-920 OC'd to 3MHz or a little higher, you should be fine with the 750W. The reason I went for the 1000W in my rig was to enable me to add another GTX295 at some point in time if or when I added a second monitor. nVidia says that you need minimum 1000W to run SLI.
Those calculators are great but - unfortunately - they ask for a lot of information I haven't made final decisions about yet (mobo, video cards, degree of OCing etc.). But, guestimating on the heavily ambitious side, the calculator suggests I need a 769 wattage PSU - so perhaps I should either reconsider my choices or go for a 1000 watt unit.
I have a Q6600 OC'd to 3.4Ghz (with water cooling), 8Gb memory, 4x750Gb drives, 2x DVD-Rs and dual video out .... all with a 450W PSU. Only when I hit all 4 CPUs hard with Prime95 or Seti does it get over 300W.
I just built several servers: 2.5Ghz, 4Gb, PCI-E RAID, 7x Velociraptor hard drives. On powerup, they juice about 350W, but idle at under 250W.
I would agree that higher is better - to not run into upgrade issues later. But overkill is on the trend to boost the economy. Also, I plan on upgrading my whole box every 2-3 years, so I don't bother purchasing that far into the future.
And for a CS4 video card as mentioned before, there isn't the need that the high end GTX cards demand.
Why water cooling? I have a fan cooling (Arctic Freezer Pro) on mine (Q6600) and I am getting 3.6 ghz.. Only when I use Prime95 is my temps closing in on 80 degrees with all 4 cores maxxed.
Ryan
p.s. I agree the Video card as long as it's dedicated (which they all are) doesn't matter. As long as it's 512MB it won't matter. Also I personally have a 750 Watt PS and I have no worries that it will fry anything.
Why water cooling? I have a fan cooling (Arctic Freezer Pro) on mine (Q6600) and I am getting 3.6 ghz.. Only when I use Prime95 is my temps closing in on 80 degrees with all 4 cores maxxed.
Two reasons:
I went with a simple (MaxCool) system that is quieter with only a low RPM (high pressure) fan pulling through the radiator and my temps only get to 45 degrees running Prime95 stress test.
I can get 3.6 no problem, but my memory is not stable with Prime95 within a couple hours, so I backed it off.
Nickle/Willis,
Interested in your thoughts on video cards - I wish to run two large (30") monitors but have been thinking I'd probably be able to manage with a reasonably decent (not absolutely top of the line) NVidia card (GTX 260-95) as I am a multi-tasker & wish to do advanced photo processing but am not a gamer. Would you be willing to share the thoughts that shaped your choices?
thanks!
g/k (aka: scott)
ps. Actually, if I can prevail upon you (& others if they are reading this thread any longer) - I'd be equally interested in thoughts about motherboards too. Inspired by your responses I'm gradually wending my way through the PC building process!
Nickle S. wrote:
willis,
My system is very close to yours, I have 2X 150G Veloceraptors (OS on partition)plus 1X Black Caviar. I've got the ASUS P6T V.2, 12 Gs RAM, nVidia GTX295 and Vista 64bit. I'm O'Ced to 3.75 and I can't see needing more for a LONG while. It's very hard to convey to others how fast this rig is and what an absolute pleasure it has become working in a digital darkroom. Technology just keeps getting better and better, why not take advantage of it? Enjoy
Something like a 295 would be overkill IMO. I have a 260 and it runs LR2 on dual monitors no problem.
In fact, it doesn't even break a sweat. I can hear the fan spinning up when it starts to get stretched. I never hear a peep out of it when running LR2. It's not like you're throwing round millions of polygons afterall - I should imagine the likes of LR2 and CS4 are more memory and CPU dependent.
Mike Farren wrote:
Something like a 295 would be overkill IMO. I have a 260 and it runs LR2 on dual monitors no problem.
In fact, it doesn't even break a sweat. I can hear the fan spinning up when it starts to get stretched. I never hear a peep out of it when running LR2. It's not like you're throwing round millions of polygons afterall - I should imagine the likes of LR2 and CS4 are more memory and CPU dependent.
You would if you're using the Extended version.
I'm also an avid gamer so there's no such thing as an overkill.
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I'm also an avid gamer so there's no such thing as an overkill.
n0b0,
I'm not a gamer like you, but I have a Blu-Ray player in my computer and the rendering with the GTX295 is incredible. Agreed, if you're just running Photoshop, a high-end card like mine would be overkill. When I chose the components for my computer, I obviously tried to be as future-proof as possible, so I went all-out with the chip, PSU and video card.
In my experience, going for the second best is usually the best way. Specially these days when hardware development seems to be leaving the softwares in the dust.
Future proofing is understandable but you also have to think about the lifespan of these components. 3-4 years is around the time when the hardware start to become unreliable. It's also about the right time for a system overhaul.
Going all out is only viable when you have the cash to burn, otherwise save the money and get the second best. You can always OC it to squeeze the extra performance.
Inspired by your responses I'm gradually wending my way through the PC building process!