Help me spend $3800

[superman22x]

Not many mobos support dual processors. Just one i7 should suit you well. To be honest, there aren't any games out there that a $1000 computer can't max out. Like I said, save a decent chunk for future upgrades. You may need it when Crysis 2 comes out in December.

 

[Remeniz]

To confirm, One cpu is also better?

For your uses, yes.

Or two i7's better for two screens etc?

Nothing to do with multiple screens. The graphics cards is whats important when talking multi screens and resolutions.

Also just one 5970 can handle the multiple screens right?

Handles three screens I believe.

 

[payj]

Hey, was on new egg whats the diff between this i7 and the $300 ones? Its like 300mhz faster? Am I missing something?

I see the description is a little diff but I don't what any of it means



http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115223

 

[foothead]

6 cores, 12 threads. It's the holy grail of processors right now, but tbh, completely useless to any gamer.

Go with the Phenom II build I made on the last page. It will serve your needs quite nicely. For strictly gaming, an i7 is not worth it at all.

 

[Jesusfrk611]

I just kinda scanned through the whole thread, but I have this to say. No computer, no matter how much is spent, will last you 10 years reasonably. Look at 10 year old gaming systems now. They can barely handle Windows XP SP3 unless they were upgraded later on... It's reasonable to say that system may last you 5-6 years. With technology advancing so fast now, who knows what we will see in the future that will completely surpass anything we have now just within a year. Not to mention MS should probably come out with a new OS every 3 years or so now.

 

[Grantofhell]

Foothead, I know you're all pro-AMD. But when games and programs start to utilize more and more threads, The I7 will definitely be a smarter option. Not to mention, Triple Channel DDR3, X58 chipset which can take Crossfire and SLI, and the ICH10R (on most X58 boards).

EDIT: Also, Foothead and I worked on a guide for building custom liquid cooling loops. There are kits out there...but the performance will not be any where near what you can get by building your own loop to match what you need. My post is a general synop of the components and what to be looking at. Foothead's post has a number of suggested loops based on their performance. Because motherboards and graphics cards are manufacturer and model specific, he couldn't put what blocks to use for boards/GPU in the suggested loops. I'm sure he has a plethora of good suggestions for the parts that you might buy.

Guide: Liquid Cooling Systems.

 

[Mutant Corn]

^ Many games can use that many threads now. None of them require it, though.

Normally I'd say AMD as well, but with a budget like that, an i7 is in order.

 

[Remeniz]

The I7 will definitely be a smarter option. Not to mention, Triple Channel DDR3, X58 chipset which can take Crossfire and SLI, and the ICH10R (on most X58 boards).

It's a heavy set up! And it's not much more than a PII X4 AMD rig. But it's well worth it.

Intel Core i7-930
GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD5
CORSAIR DOMINATOR 6GB (3 x 2GB)
CORSAIR CMPSU-850TX

Consider this to start you of as well.

 

[payj]

Which I7 would be best for my uses? I few people posted different ones ie: both i7's but diff numbers one was 920 I think the other 930? Or what would be a better 17 than those. I would like to keep it no more than $350-400 for one so that one that cost over 1k is out of the question lol.

Also, is liquid cooled a necessity for a comp like this? Or would I be fine buying fans? The liquid cooled stuff is awesome but, I want as little maintence as possible. On top of that, I am not too savy in figuring things like that out and I don't want to ruin and parts because of me being an idiot without knowing it.

 

[foothead]

Which I7 would be best for my uses? I few people posted different ones ie: both i7's but diff numbers one was 920 I think the other 930? Or what would be a better 17 than those. I would like to keep it no more than $350-400 for one so that one that cost over 1k is out of the question lol.

Also, is liquid cooled a necessity for a comp like this? Or would I be fine buying fans? The liquid cooled stuff is awesome but, I want as little maintence as possible. On top of that, I am not too savy in figuring things like that out and I don't want to ruin and parts because of me being an idiot without knowing it.

Get the 930.

Liquid cooling is pretty useless unless you will be overclocking a lot.