Budget Vs. Performance?

[idata]

Hi,

I am at the point of building my own machine and would like to have the compacity to game in hd, multitask, watch blue ray dvds,operate windows in 64bit, and so on. I was looking at a few higher end Intel processors and wanted to have those abilities at a reasoble cost without being to concerned about what challenges will be thrown our way in the next couple years and fears of becoming outdated to soon. I am not looking for the best however, what is it gonna take to achieve these abilities without digging to deep into my pocket?

[idata]

Hi there, first how much you are looking to spend?

I will suggest a quad core like q9650 which is a great cput with 9X multiplier which will make it easier to overclock. newegg sells it for $325 or you can get the cheaper Or Q9550 for $269. If you want to go for Nehalem like the popular 920, it will cost you more becuase of the expensier new DDR3 "still" and a board will cost more for it. You don't have to buy the extreme eddition chips just for the unlock multiplyer. A good board can do 1800FSB easy.

For video cards a gtx260 core 216 has the best value for performance wise.

Syetem that I have;

QX9650 clock at 3.8ghz on air

Evga 780i Board

8 gig of DDR2 800mhz ram cas at 4-4-3-10

with 2X evga GTX280

[pdens]

I disagree...as most of the I7 users out there will atest to.....go with the I7.....they all have 4 cores but add HT into the mix...8 cores. I have the 920 and it outperforms by far the Quad 4's. Gaming wise...eliminating the FBS logjamb and other refinements lead to a most satisfying game experience. I7 is the next wave...don't waste money on outdated tech.

My opinion ...of course

[idata]

i was in the same spot as you Nate if u can can save a little more i would go the core i7 920 cost $440 .the cost of ddr3 is not that much more you can get 3gb ram 1333mhz $100AU or 6gb for $170 thats is by no means the fastest ddr3 (a lot faster then ddr2 though) but it will get u going for now till the price comes down. as for motherbords both ASUS and gigabyte have lower end bords starting from $270+. so if $800 to $900max for a CPU,MoBo,Ram is to much then u need to go oldschool a i7 system will last a lot longer too and if the need be the I7 920 is a mad overckocker it will hit 4ghz+ stable on good air cooling (about $100 for a good air cooler)and if you go water cooling ($200+)you will get even more iv hit 4.7ghz with mine.

[idata]

Where are you getting your price from nuts? The 920 does not cost $440 they are a lot cheaper and it cost $280 on newegg. Get up to date, I don't have core i7 but I know what's going on. I'm planning on building a new rig next year with the new 32nm refresh of Nehelem.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202

[idata]

I live in Australia so there the prices we pay as our money not the same as it is in USA.

[idata]

I am not sure where to begin however, I want to thank you guys for giving me so much feedback to work with as I have finally made a decision. A couple of days ago I purchased the following:

Windows Vista Ultimate 64-Bit

Smilodon Gaming Tower

Intel Core I7-920

Gigabyte Ex-58 Extreme Motherboard

Ocz Flex Liquid XLC Colling Memory Cas Latency: 7-6-6-24

Ocz 850w GamerXStream Psu

Lite-On 16xBlu-Ray Player/Burner

1 TB Seagate Barracuda/Raid

Considering the money spent, I dont think I could have configured this setup any better.

The moral of the story is, I couldn't possibly be any happier. I took a chance and spent more then I initally wanted to.

You really get what you pay for, especially when you put alot of time and effort into reasearch and review.

The funny thing is, the Pc I upgraded from is a Dell Dimensions 2400. I purchased it 8 years ago. Man has technology come a long way, indeed.

I would have been ecstatic with anything other then that primative machine but this, never would I have ever imagined the end result would be so sweet. Thanks for giving me a new way of looking at things, I invision Intel Core I7 is here to stay.

[idata]

Very nice setup there, congratulations

The 920 is is the best and fastest processor right now before the i5 will be release. Just overclock it and you can get speeds of the 975 and more depending on the chip and your cooling.

[idata]

Unfortunately, my psu arrived dead. I had my buddy test his for me and used it for the day, was very pleased. I am awaiting OCZ to send me a replacement. I purchased the psu used. That is the only part of my build that was used and now I have to suffer the consequeces of waiting 2 weeks. I guess we learn the hard way, I was just trying to save a few bucks. Nontheless, my buddy is really tech savy and he suggests getting a water cooling kit to take it to the max. Any toughts on a good kit, I would like to go as far as 4.7ghz if it can be done safely? Also what kind of concerns are there when getting into oc?

[idata]

you got the same motherbord as me and i love it. it overclocks like crazy and is the most stable motherbord iv ever had so have fun. nice setup by the way