SurClaro Flight Simulator Resources

[heeshung]

Nice choice with the Antec Twelve Hundred. It's a kickass case.

Look into DDR3. It's on the verge of going mainstream.

But if you intend to stick with DDR2, here are some MB suggestions.

If you want:

No SLI and an Intel Chipset:
GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS3L (~$85)

SLI and a nForce Chipset:
EVGA 132-CK-NF78-A1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 780i SLI (~$230)

CPU:

There are many good ones that can be recommended.

Dual-core? Take a look at the Core 2 Duo E8400 (~$170 [3.0GHz]). However, if you can save money here to go towards a GPU, take a gander at the E7200 (~$120 [2.53GHz]). But if you already allotted enough budget for the GPU, go for the E8600 in the dual-core category by all means.

Quad-core? Take a look at the Core 2 Quad Q9450 (~$320 [2.66GHz]) or Q9550 (~$335 [2.83GHz]).

If you REALLY want a quad-core without spending over $300, you could go with some older but tried and tested quads based on the 65nm process, like the Core 2 Quad Q6600 (~$190 [2.4GHz]).

The prices are there; you can mix-and-match any of these CPU's with the MB's listed above. Also, as a side note, I got my Q9450 for $300. All the prices I provided are from current pricing trends on Newegg.

[tropicalfish]

For the E8400, there are a few combo deals.
Look for the one with the mobo:
ASUS P5Q Pro LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

If you want SLI, then this is another mobo listed in the combo that supports SLI:
XFX MB-N780-ISH9 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 780i SLI Intel Motherboard - Retail


This combo goes till 09/30.

The E7200 is rated for 2.53 ghz, but it is still a great processor.

What are some things that you will be doing that will use the computer to the max?

[rd]

What's the difference between having or not having SLI, other than you need 2 GPU's.

If you guys missed it, I will get the XFX 9800GTX for it. Two, if I have to.

RD

[tropicalfish]

SLI allows the two GPU's to work together, but at the moment, it only supports one monitor.

Having two graphics card not in SLI is just like having two more monitor ports. It does not benefit in the fact that the GPU's are unable to work together.

[heeshung]

Obviously, if you have SLI, that doesn't REQUIRE two GPU's; it just means that it's possible if you want more performance, whereas on the non-SLI mobo, you'll only be able to harness the power of one GPU.

On the 780i, 3 PCI-E ports are offered, so theoretically, with your 9800, you COULD buy three of 'em, and have all three work together in Tri-SLI.

[rd]

As with just about everything else, when you make things better/faster, you lose something.

What, if anything will suffer by having two cards SLI. As well, is there that much of a difference that is noticeable, from having one or two 9800GTX's???

RD

[heeshung]

The scaling of SLI varies from game to game, but as a general rule, I'd say on a very rough average you'll experience about 1.7x to 1.8x the performance as compared to no SLI. And, of course, if you decide to add a THIRD 9800, in most games, you'll get more performance, although with a third card, the performance boost from two to three cards is less than the performance boost from one to two cards.

Keep in mind, though, many factors affect the outcome. The resolution, game engine, shader model, etc. all may affect SLI scaling.

Also, with SLI, power consumption is obviously more, but far from 2x the power used to run one card.

[tropicalfish]

Note: FS is unable to use SLI to it's full potential.

FS9 can only use one core of your processor.
FSX can use up to 32, provided that you have installed SP1.

[rd]

Excellent point T-fish.

Being overwhelmed with everything going on, I forgot the obvious. ](*,)

My regards for this new rig, revolves around FS9, more so than FSX (which is on the super rig). So this does actually, narrow it down alot.

Here's the deal guys. Find me through newegg, a good MB/CPU from their combo link, or suggest a good MB and CPU match.

As for RAM, I'm not sure on whether I want DDR2 or DDR3. I'm hoping DDR3 is cheaper in the next week or so. As I will probably set it up as 4gb.

RD

[tropicalfish]

RD, it's a bit confusing on what you really want.

You never specified how well you want to run FS, because we can give you some specs that can get either 100FPS, or 30 FPS.

We don't know your computing habits well, the general programs you run, what you tend to do.

That information will help quite a bit.

[jaeger52]

RD,

To [poorly] hack a quote from former US President JFK:

"What do you want your computer to do for you?"

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6! Spell it out! Is the new build being designed primarily for for gaming? Anything else?

Name your critical desires in terms of software, too!

Complete your research for the most critical components AND software before making purchases.

I know this is a gut wrenching, pound your fist process. But be wise in what you want rather than take a short cut. Now's the time to do it right and smart! Be particular! If you don't like a certain product, then RMA that MoFo most RickyTic! Keep track of your purchases with hard copy receipts and links!

Wishing you well, RD!

Jaeg-

[heeshung]

jaeger52 wrote: I know this is a gut wrenching, pound your fist process. But be wise in what you want rather than take a short cut. Now's the time to do it right and smart! Be particular! If you don't like a certain product, then RMA that MoFo most RickyTic! Keep track of your purchases with hard copy receipts and links!

Some of us enjoy that process.

[rd]

jaeger52 wrote: I know this is a gut wrenching, pound your fist process. But be wise in what you want rather than take a short cut. Now's the time to do it right and smart! Be particular! If you don't like a certain product, then RMA that MoFo most RickyTic! Keep track of your purchases with hard copy receipts and links!

Are you kidding me???? "Now's the time to do it right and smart"???? WTF!!! The rig lost it's 4yr old 40g HDD. It did not crash and burn the house down. It is better than alot of systems still being used. The CPU and MB with 3g's of RAM, GPU, are still working perfectly.

And now with it being done with the SATA HDD issues, it is up and running just fine. And I am off the laptop.

This is what I am currently running:

MB: A7N8X Deluxe http://www.driverheaven.net/reviews/asus/

CPU: AMD Athlon XP 2700+ http://www.firingsquad.com/hardware/xp2700/default.asp

RAM: 3 gigs of PC3200, Corsair. All matched

GPU: EVGA 7800GS http://www.evga.com/articles/276.asp

PSU: Antec 650w http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371001

Please tell me what is "not smart" on the above. And remember, the CPU and MB are 4 yrs old. The GPU and RAM are 2yrs old, and the PSU only a couple months old.

RD

[tropicalfish]

Do you plan on keeping your current computer, or do you want to take it down completely and use some of it's existing parts?

[rd]

http://forums.surclaro.com/ftopic18433-0.html

I don't have a budget. Take it as you will.

Here's the game plan. I want to use some of my old parts, if possible, and they are:


1. 500gig SATA HD Maxtor

2. 200g SATA HD Maxtor

3. 250g SATA HD Western Digital

4. IDE DVD R/RW

5. IDE CD R/RW

6. SATA BLUE RAY DVD RW

7. 650W PSU

So as you can see, all I am in need of, is a decent MB, CPU, G-CARD (9800GTX), RAM, and a case. As well, the OS will be XP PRO.

I just want something faster all the way around from my old 2.19ghz rig.

************************

C'mon , read the posts, or reread all the posts. Including this one, and the one on this page, that shows what I have now. My MB and CPU are over 4 yrs old. So I am thinking about a newer, quicker system. G-card is not an issue, as everything now is PCIe, and not AGP.

RD