help - building gaming desktop

[Boosh3]

Hey I have all of the following so far

OCZ 2048MB PC10600 DDR3 1333MHz (4 x 1024MB)
WD Caviar 400GB SATA-3G HD 7200/16MB/SATA-3G (2x for raid 0)
Apevia Warlock 1100W psu
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300
NZXT Apollo Blk ATX Mid-Tower Case

I had a few questions about which motherboard and gfx cards to get
i was leaning towards the 790i ultra to sli 2 9800gtx cards?
i've heard some good and bad things about the 790i though
hows the x48?
do boards that are for crossfirex support SLI?
is SLI/crossfire worth it?

help me decide on a mobo and card please D=

also pretty noob this is my first system build what will i have to change in the bios like timings and voltage for the memory if need be x_x

 

[ThirdLeft152]

go with the x38/x48 and crossfire 4850's or 4870's.. thats gonna be the general consensus.

the x38/x48's do not support sli. as for the price/performance i would say it depends. 4850's in crossfire seem to do a good job at the price.

 

[veg1992]

No CrossfireX and SLI are not backwards compatible.

X48 is really good, SLI/CrossfireX is worth it if you play at 1920x1200 or higher

Check out the HD 4850, I'd prefer CrossfireX, because you get to use P45/X48/X38 boards which are better in my opinion then SLI Chipsets

 

[wafflehammer]

why not just wait for nehalem before spending that type of money? and if you buy DDR3 ram at least get 1600mhz+ ...1066/1333 are a waste of DDR3

 

[Boosh3]

i'll be using my 32inch 720p hdtv as my display
so x48 and crossfire 2 4850s?

 

[wafflehammer]

i'll be using my 32inch 720p hdtv as my display
so x48 and crossfire 2 4850s?

if you use x48 you can't use DDR3 ram

 

[Boosh3]

if you use x48 you can't use DDR3 ram

???
i see plenty of boards with that chipset that support ddr3
i just dont know which one to get

lets see these are all ASUS boards..
Rampage Extreme
P5QC
P5Q3
Striker II
P5E3

looking for motherboard recommendations that support ddr3 :]

 

[wafflehammer]

i still say wait till nehalem and x58 chipset before you throw money out for a system that will be old news in 2-3 months :|

 

[Boosh3]

i still say wait till nehalem and x58 chipset before you throw money out for a system that will be old news in 2-3 months :|

kinda need this computer for school too, lol.. so i only have a few weeks to build one

 

[Trotter]

Don't worry about DDR3. It is still raw and does not outperform DDR2 yet.

Since you already have your CPU, don't worry about Nehalem, either.

Running Crossfire or SLI is great, but it is not necessary. You could grab a 4870 and be set for a long time with the single card. By the time you need to Crossfire, new cards will be out that are more powerful than 2x4870. Such is the nature of the beast.