Buy or build?

[Slaymate]

I've been reading up on overclocking the I7 920, and from someone with zero% overclocking experience, it started to make my mouth drool, both with how easy it is, and how much more powerful it can become. I also love how compatable (with overclocking) it is with the EVGA x58 motherboard.

The EVGA X58 mobo's are my favorites, but they really require a good working knowledge of overclocking to tweak them just right. Most people opt for the Asus P6T series of mobo's and there well worth considering.

As for doing SLI vs single, I've read mostly bad things about SLI, that it's mostly just an uneccessary upgrade, that it will increase the price and electrical drainn of your pc without adding much benifit, and that some lower-demanding PC games actually run better on single cards than dual. As well as the fact that a good high end card will run just as well.

So that is why I'm thinking of going for a single, and the 295 looks GREAT. Should I bother overclocking the 295, or is it worth it? Or does it even really need it?

I've had a SLI system (4 of them) for a number of years now, works good for me. I wouldn't get a GTX 295 right now. In a few months both ATi and Nvidia will have new High-End cards out. I would go as cheap as possible now, whatever will get you by. You'll be happier in the long run.

One question I have about the SSD. Since it is "faster" than an HDD, should I put my operating system on it and use it as my main drive, and use the HDD to store files?

Yes, exactly

 

[Jewelspoint]

Thanks for the answers, I looked up the Asus P6T and I have to say I'm still leaning towards the EVGA X58. Unfortunately I don't have any overclocking experience, but there are a lot of how-to-guides on Google, so I think I could get away with it safetly.

Do you happen to know when the new video cards will be coming out? Or is it just speculation. My thoughts are that they'll be running around $6-700 for the first few months, and they probably won't be out for quite a while. I can just buy a $200 card to last me until then, or use my old crappy video card for a few months... (Any pointers on buying a used video card?) But it depends on when the new cards come out. I don't wanna be stuck with a low end card on a high performance system for too long.

I am getting stationed to Arizona in about 6 weeks, I plan to purchase the parts then. It should be a nice welcome gift to myself =D

Thanks again for all your input, you guys have been incredibly helpful.

~ Jules

 

[dirkpitt45]

I'd recommend a 4890 for now if you want to wait for 300 and 5000 series of cards. Its a solid card that'll play anything no problems right now. Plus it'll have a good re-sale value when the new cards come out I'm guessing. Cause there'll be people like me who can't afford the new shiny stuff right away but still want an upgrade . It's one step below the 4870x2 so its one of ATI's highest end cards.

Newegg.com - XFX HD-489A-ZDFC Radeon HD 4890 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards

 

[Slaymate]

Right now the speculation is Novmber for Nvidia cards. If your planning on Nvidia I wouldn't buy the 4890 suggested above as a temp card.

If you get the EVGA mobo let me know when you set it up. I'll help if I can