Future Build Suggestions

[Direland]

I'm thinking of upgrading my machine in the not too distant future and I was wondering if you guys would give me some advice on it?

Here's my current setup -

Motherboard:
EVGA nForce 780i SLI nForce 780i (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard

EVGA nForce 780i SLI nForce 780i (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard (132-CK-NF78-A1)

Processor:
Intel Quad Core Q6600 95Watt G0 Stepping 4 x 2.40Ghz 8Mb Cache 1066 FSB Quad Core Processor

BX80562Q6600SLACR : Intel Quad Core Q6600 95Watt G0 Stepping (This is the one that Overclocks) 4 x 2.40Ghz 8Mb Cache 1066 FSB Quad Core Processor : Intel Core 2 Duo & Extreme CPUs : novatech.co.uk

Graphics Card:
EVGA NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT KO 512MB PCI Express Graphics Card - Retail (675MHz Core Clock) (1950MHz Memory Clock) (1500MHz Shader Clock)

512-P3-E805-AR : EVGA NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT KO 512MB PCI Express Graphics Card - Retail (675MHz Core Clock) (1950MHz Memory Clock) (1500MHz Shader Clock) : nVidia PCI Express Graphics Cards : novatech.co.uk

PSU:
Corsair HX 520W ATX2.2 Modular SLI Compliant PSU

CMPSU-520HX : Corsair HX 520W ATX2.2 Modular SLI Compliant PSU : Power Supplies : novatech.co.uk

RAM:
Corsair XMS6400 2GB DDR2 (2x1GB) 800Mhz Non-ECC

TWIN2X2048-6400C4 : Corsair XMS6400 2GB DDR2 (2x1GB) 800Mhz Non-ECC : DDR2 800 - PC6400 : novatech.co.uk

This all fits rather snugly into the Antec 900 case. I was thinking of upgrading to the Antec 1200 case recently released. I also won't be overclocking most likely, as I'm not familiar enough with it yet. Budget is not really a problem once i get paid at the end of this month. Plus I would like to stay with Intel and Nvidia, as they're my products of choice.

Also I'll be upgrading from a 19" screen to a 22" widescreen as well.

What are your recommendations?

Thanks,
Dan

 

[kobe24]

dont get a 780i unless u want sli. get a p45 board by gigabyte and one 9800gx2. cpu good ram get gskill hz's 4gb ddr800.

 

[Sora]

first off...
BL2KIT12864AL804 : Crucial 2GB kit (2x1GB), Ballistix Tracer 240-pin DIMM (with LEDs), DDR2 PC2-6400 Memory : DDR2 800 - PC6400 : novatech.co.uk
those definitely instead of XMS2

Do you really need a 780i? The main difference from the 750i is tri-SLI

MSI P7N SLI Platinum nForce 750i (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard

I understand you have no budget but still...actually see if you can't find a evga 750i ftw board. I own one and many others do as well and this thing is flippin SWEET

 

[Sora]

dont get a 780i unless u want sli. get a p45 board by gigabyte and one 9800gx2. cpu good ram get gskill hz's 4gb ddr800.

HZ's are very expensive still for their performance. They used to be some of the cheapest D9's. The Ballistix Tracers are just as good as they use the same IC's for less money since Micron is a division of Crucial.

 

[Direland]

Honestly, when I bought the 780i board, I was inexperienced with motherboards, so it wasn't planned as such.

Ok then so now I've got to decide between a p45 gigabyte board or the 750i FTW board...

As for the RAM I'll go for the Crucial lot, shall I keep it at 2 GB or upgrade to 4? I'm running Vista 32 presently but I can upgrade to 64 if necessary.

And graphics...9800gx2 you say? That sounds good as I wasn't planning to use SLI mode as I'd heard that it wasn't too reliable with some games (slow down, etc) unless I'm mistaken?

 

[Sora]

Honestly, when I bought the 780i board, I was inexperienced with motherboards, so it wasn't planned as such.

Ok then so now I've got to decide between a p45 gigabyte board or the 750i FTW board...

As for the RAM I'll go for the Crucial lot, shall I keep it at 2 GB or upgrade to 4? I'm running Vista 32 presently but I can upgrade to 64 if necessary.

And graphics...9800gx2 you say? That sounds good as I wasn't planning to use SLI mode as I'd heard that it wasn't too reliable with some games (slow down, etc) unless I'm mistaken?

Ah i see yes P45 for a single GPU and 750i for SLI.

As for how good SLI is i used to bash it becuase it was just bad for the money however these new games SLI scales very well. Now i must admit with the add of radeon 4850 it is quite the card for the price and beats out SLI. However you are an Nvidia fan lol.

The best Nvidia card is the 280GTX but that is 800 bucks however the 9800gx2 is around 400ish i think and it's right next to it.

Another great Nvidia card for the money is the 8800GTS G92. It is more powerful than the 8800GT for not much more.

 

[Direland]

Ok, that's the motherboard out of the way.

Let's say hypothetically I want to use SLI mode (just normal SLI, not tri or quad), what graphics card should I use?

If I don't do SLI I'll most likely go for the 9800gx2. I'm assuming it's the same for SLI?

Also with that setup would I need to increase my PSU at all?

 

[wafflehammer]

New card is $650, not $800.

Anyway it would be best to go with a p45/750i board instead of the 780i.

People are saying that nvidia is making a 9800 gtx+ to be released next month, maybe you can wait for it?

 

[Direland]

It'll be one of the last things I'll buy most likely. The motherboard/RAM will come first, along with the PSU upgrade (if necessary).