2300 dollar computer

[Wizrdwarts]

Just a quick challenge to you tech people here. What's the best performance you could get from $2300 at stock clocks? Buying the parts and assembling yourself of course. I think you guys could do better than HP:

Processor
Dual Core - Intel® Core2™ Duo 2.66GHz E8200
Memory
2 GB 667 MHz PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM
Thermal Management
Air Cooling
Motherboard
EVGA nForce™ 780i
Operating System
Microsoft® Windows Vista™ Home Premium
Warranty
1 year limited hardware and 1 year technical support
Graphics and Audio
Graphics Cards
NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT, with 512MB of GDDR3 SDRAM
Audio Boards
ADI Onboard
Power Supply
900 Watt Power Supply
Storage Systems
Primary OS Storage
320GB 7200rpm SATA
Optical Disk Bay 1
Super multi-drive, slim slots with Lightscribe (DVD+/-R/RW+/-DL)

[jake_]

Re: 2300 dollar computer

Here ya go:

Qty. Product Description Savings Total Price
1 Intel Core 2 Duo E8200 Wolfdale 2.66GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model EU80570PJ0676M

Intel Core 2 Duo E8200 2.66GHz LGA 775 65W Processor
Item #:N82E16819115047
Return Policy: Processors (CPUs) Return Policy
Add item to Cart Add this item to your cart

$179.99
1 ASUS P5K DELUXE/WIFI-AP LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard

Open Box: ASUS P5K DELUXE/WIFI-AP ATX Intel Motherboard
Item #:N82E16813131182R
Return Policy: Open Box Item Return Policy
Add item to Cart Add this item to your cart

-$70.00 Instant
$169.99
$99.99
1 LIAN LI Lancool PC-K10B Black Aluminum/ SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

LIAN LI Lancool PC-K10B Black Computer Case
Item #:N82E16811112155
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
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-$30.00 Instant
$149.99
$119.99
1 Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive

Western Digital Caviar SE16 500GB 3.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
Item #:N82E16822136073
Return Policy: Limited 30-Day Return Policy
Add item to Cart Add this item to your cart

$89.99
2 BFG Tech BFGE88512GTSE GeForce 8800GTS (G92) 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card

BFG Tech GeForce 8800GTS (G92) BFGE88512GTSE Video Card
Item #:N82E16814143119
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
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$30.00 Mail-in Rebate
$509.98
($254.99 each)
1 Tuniq Tower 120 P4 & K8 CPU Cooler

Tuniq Tower 120 P4 & K8 CPU Cooler
Item #:N82E16835154001
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
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$49.99
1 CORSAIR 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X4096-6400C5

CORSAIR 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
Item #:N82E16820145184
Return Policy: Memory (Modules, USB) Return Policy
Add item to Cart Add this item to your cart

-$25.00 Instant
$40.00 Mail-in Rebate
$139.00
$114.00
1 Microsoft Windows Vista 64-Bit Home Premium for System Builders Single Pack DVD

Microsoft Windows Vista 64-Bit Home Premium for System Builders Single Pack DVD
Item #:N82E16832116204
Return Policy: Software Return Policy
Add item to Cart Add this item to your cart

-$10.00 Instant
$109.99
$99.99
1 SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-S203B

SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-S203B
Item #:N82E16827151153
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
Add item to Cart Add this item to your cart

-$3.00 Instant
$29.99
$26.99
1 CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX ATX12V / EPS12V 750W Power Supply

CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W Power Supply
Item #:N82E16817139006
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
Add item to Cart Add this item to your cart

-$5.00 Instant
$40.00 Mail-in Rebate
$179.99
$174.99
Grand Total: $1,465.90

I just threw this together in like 5 minutes, so I might have missed something or made a mistake.... but it's definitely better and $800 cheaper.

That's the most money I would be willing to spend on a PC. Anything more is overkill and just a waste of your money IMO. :)

As that one I put together stands, it can kick just about any other PC's a** in terms of gaming power. You could upgrade to 2 9800 GTX's instead, but I'm not sure it would be worth it.

[RDST]

Re: 2300 dollar computer

$2,300 is basically enough to buy... well... the best computer parts available. So:

1. SLI would be a good options, possible tri-sli with 9800 GTXs.
2. A 790i motherboard
3. DDR3 Corsair RAM
4. A Silverstone or Lian-Li case
5. A High-end quad or dual core
6. Possibly a sound card?
7. Who knows...

That much money give a almost unlimited array of options. Uncanny!

[Skaggy]

Re: 2300 dollar computer

Case: Antec P182 - $140
Mobo: ASUS Striker II Formula nForce 780i - $330
RAM: mushkin 4GB(2 x 2GB) DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) - $80
CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6700 Kentsfield 2.66GHz 2 x 4MB L2 Cache - $540
GPU: 2 x eVGA GeForce 9800 GTX(G92) 512MB - $600
HDD 1: Western Digital Raptor X 150GB 10,000 RPM - $175
HDD 2: Samsung Spinpoint F1 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache - $240
PSU: Antec TPQ-850 ATX12V / EPS12V 850W Power Supply - $200

Roughly $2300.

[Wizrdwarts]

Re: 2300 dollar computer

Tri-SLI with 9800s?! And HP only offers 2 8800 Ultras for their $6,000 model.

[[2ID]B|CPT.GuitarFreak]

Re: 2300 dollar computer

Tri-SLI with 9800s?! And HP only offers 2 8800 Ultras for their $6,000 model.

That's why you build it. If you buy a prebuilt, it's gonna cost a lot more than if you built it.

CM Cosmos 1000 $210
EVGA 780i SLI $260
Q9450 $350
640GB hdd $120
2x9800GX2s $590 each
Zalman 850w psu $200
4GB G.SKILL RAM $80
Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme $56

$2456 total. Plus shipping. That'll run any game for at least 3 years.

[Wizrdwarts]

Re: 2300 dollar computer

Of course, but I didn't expect the difference to be so much.

And btw, who drew your sig? I've seen some 21CW people with the same style of banners too.

[[2ID]B|CPT.GuitarFreak]

Re: 2300 dollar computer

Of course, but I didn't expect the difference to be so much.

And btw, who drew your sig? I've seen some 21CW people with the same style of banners too.

Yeah, there usually is a big difference.

Stealth did it. Not sure if he still does though.

[camper.]

Re: 2300 dollar computer

That's why you build it. If you buy a prebuilt, it's gonna cost a lot more than if you built it.

CM Cosmos 1000 $210
EVGA 780i SLI $260
Q9450 $350
640GB hdd $120
2x9800GX2s $590 each
Zalman 850w psu $200
4GB G.SKILL RAM $80
Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme $56

$2456 total. Plus shipping. That'll run any game for at least 3 years.

That won't run Crysis at more than 50fps at any good settings and you're talking the next three years? :laugh:

The case is just a ridiculous waste of money as is the motherboard (X38 would be better) and don't even start on the GPU.

Quad SLI was truly successful last time nVidia tried it.

[[2ID]B|CPT.GuitarFreak]

Re: 2300 dollar computer

That won't run Crysis at more than 50fps at any good settings and you're talking the next three years? :laugh:

The case is just a ridiculous waste of money as is the motherboard (X38 would be better) and don't even start on the GPU.

Quad SLI was truly successful last time nVidia tried it.

I run crysis at 1680x900 in the editor and get 20-30fps with everything maxed and 2xaa on my setup. I have no doubt that'll hit 50FPS.

Plus, not every game is as demanding as crysis. Hell, you can still run a lot of games off of a 6 series card.

X38 would be better, but for $2300, SLI is the way to go. The GX2 is the most powerful single card out there now, and the 9900s are coming soon which will be even better.

[signa]

Re: 2300 dollar computer

Case: Antec P182 - $140
Mobo: ASUS Striker II Formula nForce 780i - $330
RAM: mushkin 4GB(2 x 2GB) DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) - $80
CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6700 Kentsfield 2.66GHz 2 x 4MB L2 Cache - $540
GPU: 2 x eVGA GeForce 9800 GTX(G92) 512MB - $600
HDD 1: Western Digital Raptor X 150GB 10,000 RPM - $175
HDD 2: Samsung Spinpoint F1 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache - $240
PSU: Antec TPQ-850 ATX12V / EPS12V 850W Power Supply - $200

Roughly $2300.

I would go with a yorkfield processor like a q9450, instead of a kentsfield or wolfdale. with that you get the 45nm cpu, 12mb L2 cache, and higher bus speed - of course with that, you will have to go with a 780i chipset.

other than that you have a nice list there, except for factoring in the optical drive and OS.

[RDST]

Re: 2300 dollar computer

I would go with a yorkfield processor like a q9450, instead of a kentsfield or wolfdale. with that you get the 45nm cpu, 12mb L2 cache, and higher bus speed - of course with that, you will have to go with a 780i chipset.

other than that you have a nice list there, except for factoring in the optical drive and OS.

Good luck finding them though.

Not to mention the Q9450 has a lower multiplier making it hit an FSB wall much sooner then other CPUs like the Q6600. The most I've seen a Q9450 do is 3.6 GHz before all the other components give out (at around +450!).

Granted this might not be a problem if he is using DDR3 RAM and an X48, but... if he isn't then why bother?

[Eagle101]

Re: 2300 dollar computer

I would pass on the GX2 and get a HD3870X2 as far as i know the GX2 is not one card its two slapped together the HD3870X2 has two chips on one PCB iirc (correct me is mistaken) and anyways i definitely see the HD3870X2 a better option over the 98GX2.

[Hellsent 2.0]

Re: 2300 dollar computer

ya i agreee with eagle here..i think 2 x2's will be cheaper and better than two gx2's

[TheSpark29]

Re: 2300 dollar computer

:shakehead:

Wow. I wouldn't choose ANY of your builds.

@ the OP: Listen. You obviously have $2300 to spend. Do yourself a favor and get the best bang for your buck PC. Spend $1200 and get a kickass PC, and save the rest. A high end PC truly isn't worth it considering a midrange PC can give 90% of the performance for 50% the price.

I don't have time to do all the fancy formatting. Just look these up on Newegg.com. (if you're in the US) Here goes:
Antec 900
Corsair 620HX
Abit IP35 Pro
Intel E8400
XIGMATEK HDT-S1283
4GB OCZ DDR2-800 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820227269)
BFG 8800GTS
750GB Samsung F1
DVD Burner (doesn't matter what brand)
22in monitor (I'd prefer Samsung)
Total: ~$1600 after including mouse, keyboard, speakers.

Thats a solid mid-high end system. Anything more isn't worth it imao.

9800 rant:
Now, for all of you recommending nVidia's 9800 series, lemme tell you how much they suck. First, the 9800GTX is nothing more than an overclocked G92 part. Same silicon as in the 8800GTS, but with some new fancy name. Why would you pay $100+ more for a slightly overclocked 8800GTS? Same goes with the 9800GX2. Its nothing more than two 8800GTS SLI on a single card. Nothing revolutionary about it. Both are definitely a waste of money. Second reason they suck is because of the 9900 series coming out in a few months. The 9800GTX/GX2 will have a life span of about four months. The only reason they exist is so Nvidia can say they have the fastest single card on the market. The 9900 series is not a G92 part and will truly be a high end product. The 9800 series is just a carry-over until then. Third, Nvidia's recent chipsets have been of very poor design imo. The 780i is nothing more than a 680i that supports tri-SLI. Just an update, not a new board. And then 790i is finicky . Having data corruption on your flagship product isn't good. Especially when you consider how expensive it is. A tri-SLI system will cost at minimum ~$1300. Minimum means Mobo+3 GPUs. No CPU, no nothing else. For $1300, I could build a complete system.

Ok thats all. I'm not an anti-Nvidia person. I just think that 9800 and 780/790 aren't very good products.