Getting a new PC - opinions please!

[tom123]

I am getting my new PC, and would appreaciate it if I could get some opinions on it.
Processor: AMD Phenom II x4 945 socket @ 3.00GHz
RAM: 4 GB Corsair DDR3
GFX: 1GB ATI Radeon HD 4850x2
HDD: 1TB
MoBo: ASUS M4A785TD-V EVO
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit
Case: Antec 900
PSU: 600W Quiet Quad Rail
Cooling: Super Quiet dBA Triple Copper Heatpipe CPU Cooler

 

[Genocidicbunny]

Get a different video card. The HD4850x2 needs drivers from the manufacturer, meaning that you cant just go to amd.com and download the latest ones. GTX 275 or HD 5770 will work quite well.

Also make sure your PSU is from a good brand, such as Seasonic or Corsair (to name a few.)

 

[tom123]

But you can get the drivers from www.sapphiretech.com, who make that card, so surely that isnt a problem?

 

[Genocidicbunny]

They dont update the drivers as often, the drivers are still fairly buggy and have other problems. The HD4850x2 is not an AMD-created card. Its actually Sapphire taking two HD4850's and putting them together. Therefore, you rely on them for drivers and support. Unless its a really good deal, I suggest going with a different card. There may not be as many problems now as there used to be, but even then, there's more than Id find acceptable.

 

[GVBN]

Latest Catalyst release notes list 4850x2 as a supported card. Why wouldn't it work

 

[Genocidicbunny]

Hmm, I must be a bit out of the loop. Anyways, looking up the cards specs, it will not fit into the Antec 900 (The 900 has 11" of room for video cards, you need 11.5".) You can pull out an HDD bay, but you lose a vital fan at the bottom if you do that. You also still have the scalability issues. The x2 are essentially crossfire on a board, and thus face the very same issues. There are games that will not be able to take advantage of it, and then you will be stuck with essentially a single HD4850.

 

[tom123]

The case has 9 bays at the front, 6 of which are taken up by fans, the other three are empty. As far as I can tell, I only need two, one for the HDD, and one for the DVD drive, so if need be the the fans can be moved to make space.

As for scalability, from what I have heard, that doesnt matter much for games which do not support it, as the x2 still outperforms a normal 4850.

EDIT: After looking at some more options, I have decided to change it to a 1GB HD 5770

 

[Genocidicbunny]

I have an Antec 1200 which is essentially a bigger version of the 900. By removing HDD bay I meant pulling out that whole unit, meaning you lose 3 HDD mounts and a fan, and on top of that, you end up with a hole in the front of your case. The bays arent actually taken up by the fans, but are instead situated behind the fans. Antec, while making pretty good cases, doesnt make them overly modular, so its rather hard to work with them after the fact.

 

[tom123]

Ah alright, it is hard to work out what is going on in there from pictures.

 

[Harshad]

I would go for 6 gigs of ram rather then 4.

 

[kingworldss]

i think you should get a better psu ,you see ,your cpu is 3.00GHz,and your ram is 4 GB Corsair DDR3 ,if you get a better psu ,it would work better,do you think so.look at this 650W Power Supply PSU $39.00[/URL]hope it helps you .
add to this ,i don't like the built one ,but it will be better than buying it directly .hehe!

 

[GVBN]

I've never even heard of Sunbeam

 

[Genocidicbunny]

Sunbeam is a fairly shoddy brand, I wouldnt trust that 650 to deliver even 500w cleanly.

A good rule of thumb is: if the PSU wattage divided by 10 is more than the cost of the PSU, you should really reconsider your options.

 

[kingworldss]

Sunbeam is a fairly shoddy brand, I wouldnt trust that 650 to deliver even 500w cleanly.

A good rule of thumb is: if the PSU wattage divided by 10 is more than the cost of the PSU, you should really reconsider your options.

Sunbeam is not good as others ,such as Tt,but i am using this one ,it works well after 1 year ,it's no noise at all.in my opinion,the famous brand is not the best one ,you should choose one that suits your computer specs .

 

[Genocidicbunny]

Uhhm, I choose my PSU's based on whether or not they can provide enough power and not fry my pc. Sunbeam ranks down there, close to "Holy crap dont buy you're gonna end up with magic black smoke"

 

[Quackers]

My pal says he is getting a specific gaming PC which has 9Gig Ram is that even around yet? lol

 

[Genocidicbunny]

You can get pc's with up to 24GB of RAM now (That is, consumer pc. If you go with server motherboards, half a terabyte is possible)

 

[Fëanor]

My pal says he is getting a specific gaming PC which has 9Gig Ram is that even around yet? lol

, my former gaming pc (currently in use as a HTPC) has 8Gig, i believe i never saw more that 35% usage of that RAM while gaming.

 

[aimeeandbeatles]

"Holy crap dont buy you're gonna end up with magic black smoke"

I thought it was blue smoke. Something to do with the silicon.

EDIT: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Magic_smoke.jpg

 

[Maniacal]

There's still no need for the average person, even gamers, to have over 8 gigs of ram.

And even then you need a 64bit OS to use more than 4 gigs (or rather, 3.5 gigs).