# Australian Building a Computer



## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

*Budget*: $1500AU
*Brands*: Any brands but I am more familiar with nvidia and intel
*Multitasking*: Sometimes when converting video to put on my mp4 player I browse the web while its converting or when extracting files I browse the web while its extracting.
*Gaming*: Yes, I would like to play games like crysis and far cry 2 with seamless flow, no jittering
*Calculations*: In the future I am buying a TV tuner
*Overclocking*: I don't intend to.
*Storage*: I already have a 1TB Hard drive so I won't need to buy one. I will be storing games, videos, pictures, music, some documents.
*Legacy Support*: No don't think so.
*Operating System*: I already have a copy of Windows 7 64bit I can use.
*Case*: Big enough to fit parts in and room for future updates.
*Accessories*: No
*Recycled Components*: OS and Hard Drive
*Monitor*: Already have one.
*Stores*: Buying from shop in the city, don't know which one.
*Location*: Australia 

I have some questions

1. Whats the main differences between the Phenom II and the Q9550? apart from the socket and money. Is it more powerful than the Q9550 and is the Ph II future prof?

2. Is the ATI Radeon HD 4890 good for playing games? And recording TV?

3. Is it better to have an AMD graphics card with a AMD cpu? Do they work better together?

4. The intel i5 uses a odd socket doesn't it? So would it be hard to upgrade in the future?

5. Is the i7 920 more than I need to play games?

6. Is the i7 920 future prof?

7. Is DDR3 ram worth the trouble over DDR2

8. Is the ATI Radeon HD 4890 noisy at all?

9. GeForce GTX 275 or ATI Radeon HD 4890? Which is more powerful?

10. Do I really need 6GB of ram or is 4GB enough?

11. Should I go with faster ram rather than bigger ram?

12. Is gigabyte a good brand of motherboard?

13. Should I buy a case seperate from the psu?

Thanks for answering these questions, they would be a great help

This is what i'm thinking to get atm:

CPU - i7 920/Q9550/Phenom II
Case - Whatever fits ?? something for - $150AU
Sound Card - something for $50AU to 75 
DVD Drive/Burner - $50AU to 75
Hard Drive - $0 
OS (64-bit)(W7) - $0 
Motherboard - Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD3R i7/gigabyte ga-ep45-ud3r p45 mb/gigabyte ga-ma790fxt-ud5p/
Ram - 6Gb Triple DDR3/4GB DDR2/4GB DDR3 
Graphics Card - GeForce GTX 275 or ATI Radeon HD 4890

Atm i'm most likely to get an i7 920, ATI Radeon HD 4890 and Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD3R i7. 

Anyone pls help me to decide? :tongue:


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

> 1. Whats the main differences between the Phenom II and the Q9550? apart from the socket and money. Is it more powerful than the Q9550 and is the Ph II future prof?


It's hard to compare CPUs from two different manufacturers, but both the Core 2 Quad and Phenom II X4 series are very good. The Phenom IIs are better bang for the buck.



> 2. Is the ATI Radeon HD 4890 good for playing games? And recording TV?


Yes, it's a very good graphics card.



> 3. Is it better to have an AMD graphics card with a AMD cpu? Do they work better together?


That's a bit more complicated question. An ATI (AMD) graphics card will work well on any Intel or AMD motherboard, but not as well on an Nvidia motherboard. Nvidia graphics cards work best on Intel and Nvidia motherboards, but will still work on AMD. If a board has integrated graphics (excluding Intel graphics) it's best to pick a graphics card from the same brand as the integrated card.



> 4. The intel i5 uses a odd socket doesn't it? So would it be hard to upgrade in the future?


Hard to say. I do find the fact that Intel is using two sockets for its new lines of CPUs (LGA1156 and LGA1366, plus there's word of an LGA1155) very odd... I would steer clear of LGA1156 for the time being.



> 5. Is the i7 920 more than I need to play games?


The i7 920 is actually inferior to high-end Core 2 Duo CPUs. A fast dual core will always be better for games than a moderate speed quad core, at least for the forseeable future. I would recommend a Core 2 Duo E8000 series CPU if you go with Intel.



> 6. Is the i7 920 future prof?


Not particularly. It's in the same situation as the Pentium D was. If you look at Pentium D motherboards today, they only support Pentium 4 and Pentium D CPUs, and very rarely support Core 2 CPUs. I think that Core i7 is going to be the same way. It would be better to just wait for the technology to mature some and wait for the next generation of CPUs to go for the new sockets.



> 7. Is DDR3 ram worth the trouble over DDR2


Not really, it's actually slower than DDR2 until you reach DDR3 1600 or higher, and by that point I couldn't justify the price.



> 8. Is the ATI Radeon HD 4890 noisy at all?


No more so than any other graphics card in that range. When the fan is running between 25-65% you probably won't even hear it, when the fan rises above that level it can be noisy, but on my Radeon 4870 it doesn't become distracting until ~75%, and it never reaches that fan speed unless I set it there.



> 9. GeForce GTX 275 or ATI Radeon HD 4890? Which is more powerful?


The GTX275 is more powerful, as the 4890 was designed to compete with the GTX270, which the 275 is an improved version of. However, unless you're playing on a 22" monitor you probably won't notice any difference, and in fact up to a 1440x900 or even 1680x1050 resolution a Radeon 4870 or GeForce GTX260 will serve just as well.



> 10. Do I really need 6GB of ram or is 4GB enough?


4GB is plenty unless you're going to be running heavy duty server or VM software.



> 11. Should I go with faster ram rather than bigger ram?


4GB DDR2 800 or 1066 should be just fine for your needs.



> 12. Is gigabyte a good brand of motherboard?


Gigabyte and Asus are the two premier motherboard manufacturers, if you decide to go Core 2 Duo I would recommend the Asus P5Q line or the Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3 line.



> 13. Should I buy a case seperate from the psu?


Most definitely, the PSUs bundled with cases are often low quality and insufficient for your needs. For what you're looking at I would recommend a ~750W unit from Corsair, SeaSonic, or PC Power and Cooling. The CoolerMaster Real Power Pro PSUs are very good as well (but only that particular line), as are the Thermaltake Toughpower models (again, only those models). Certain OCZ Fatal1ty units are decent as well, but check with us which one before buying.

As for cases, I like (and we recommend) the Antec 300 (medium mid-tower with good cooling and no LEDs), Antec 900 (large mid-tower with lots of cooling and LEDs), or Antec 1200 (large full-tower with excellent cooling and many LEDs), and also the CoolerMaster Centurion 5 (mostly mid-towers, a few mini-towers) series and CoolerMaster HAF (full tower) cases.


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

ok this is the shop I will buy from http://www.netplus.com.au

Ive decided to go with the i7 920 and the GeForce GTX 275

*GeForce GTX 275*
http://www.netplus.com.au/products-detail.asp?pcode=VDGFGTX275-E8&cat=Video Card&subcat=&code=VD5

*i7 920*
http://www.netplus.com.au/products-detail.asp?pcode=CPINPCI7-920&cat=CPU&subcat=&code=CP1

*4Gb DDR3 1600 Corsair*
http://www.netplus.com.au/products-listing.asp?code=MY3&group=DDR3 Memory

*Antec Nine Hundred Tower*
http://www.netplus.com.au/products-detail.asp?pcode=CAANNINEHUNDRED&cat=Case&subcat=&code=CA10

*Corsair 750W TX-750 ATX*
http://www.netplus.com.au/product/P...140mm-Fan,-20+4-4X-PCIE-8X-SATA-8X-HDD-2X-FDD

*LG GH22-NS50 22X SATA Black*
http://www.netplus.com.au/product/O...-22X-SATA-Black-DVDRW,-Dual-Layer-Kit;-DVDRAM

*Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi*
http://www.netplus.com.au/product/S...dio-7.1Ch-Sound-Card-24-Bit-PCI-E-PCI-Express

Question now is what motherboard? Any have I missed anything? Is my psu too expensive? would it be worth getting a cheaper 1?


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

You can never have too good a power supply. The Corsair TX750W is one of the units we recommend most, I have one myself. A high quality (and yes, expensive) power supply can ensure your components have a long life, are stable, and are protected from power spikes and surges.

If you want an i7 motherboard I would recommend an Asus P6T. There are several variants, pick to suit your budget, the more expensive the better heatsinks and more features it will have.


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

ok. they have two types online.

http://www.netplus.com.au/product/M...R3-SLI/CrossFire-Intel-i7-Triple-Channel-DDR3

http://www.netplus.com.au/product/M...CrossFire-Intel-i7-P6T-SE-Triple-Channel-DDR3

which one is best?


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

The second one gives me an error. :|


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

wierd it was working earlier well the first one is a....

Asus P6T X58 LGA1366 MB 6DDR3 SLI/CrossFire Intel i7 Triple Channel DDR3 

and the second 1 is a...

Asus P6T SE X58 LGA1366 MB 6DDR3 CrossFire Intel i7 P6T-SE Triple Channel DDR3


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

Ive just realized the ATI Radeon HD 4890 is $70 cheaper than the GeForce GTX 275. You say theres no difference? Then Ill go with the ATI. Will the Asus P6T still work with the ATI?


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## Phædrus241 (Mar 28, 2009)

The Asus P6T is a good board, if knowledge serves me right the P6T is slightly better than the P6T SE, but both are good boards.

The 4890 and GTX275 are not the same, the 275 does give better performance, but as I said, unless you're using a very large monitor you won't even notice it. The 4890 is a very nice card.


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

yes it should


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

ok ill go with the ATI

Is buying a sound card worth it?


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

these days onboard are quite good


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## Fapguy (Oct 2, 2008)

What is it that your stating? The GTX 275 is no where near the 4890. The 4890 beats the GTX 285 by 2% or so. They are neck to neck when both overclocked.


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

http://ati.amd.com/products/radeonhd4800/overview-4890.html
at this page it says you need....

5. Blu-ray drive required

edit - don't worry, found it out "Blu-ray™ playback requires Blu-ray drive"

edit - how do you know that KharnakIHazWoW?


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

http://ati.amd.com/products/radeonhd4800/requirements-4890.html


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

yeah i was just there 

edit - dai, im from WA too, where would you get ur parts from?

edit - it also says my Corsair 750W TX-750 ATX is not supported by the 4890

edit - whats the requirements for the i7? I can't find any info


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

ple in wangara i used to deal with netplus when they were in n/perth before they moved to ossy park but found them expensive and difficult to deal with on faulty parts

i would be running a corsair 850w

whats not compatible


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

What psu will work with the i7 and 4890 then?

http://www.netplus.com.au/products-listing.asp?code=PW20&group=Power Supplies


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## Fapguy (Oct 2, 2008)

The 750w Corsair will work with your I7 and 4890. 


dan101 - http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/page-266469_15_0.html its so ******* fanboyish to just say whatever you want about performance. You actually recommended a more expensive and worse performing card than the 4890.


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

KharnakIHazWoW said:


> dan101 - http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/page-266469_15_0.html its so ******* fanboyish to just say whatever you want about performance. You actually recommended a more expensive and worse performing card than the 4890.


What does that mean?

So your certain the Corsair 750W TX-750 ATX will work with the i7 and the ati?


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

yes it should 
the recommended psu list is out of date and does not cover the 4890


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## Fapguy (Oct 2, 2008)

No that was just a reply to dan101  but yes, that power supply will work with that setup, i vote you should go for the 850w corsair instead tho, cos you might want to upgrade in the future, and the PSU is the part you dont want to cut down on.


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

Dia, does PLE alow you to pick up your order? Is it like a store where you can shop for stuff or is it a office?


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

yes it is a shop

i prefer to order over the net as i usually order sufficient to get free delivery

http://ple.com.au/?p=contact


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

this is my final choice. What do you think?


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## Fapguy (Oct 2, 2008)

Well, if i am to be honest, the CPU is overkill, what do you want to do with it?... For gaming, a E5300 would do, and a nice mobo like the P5Q Pro or similar.. The E5300 could get above 3.6ghz easily, and no games need more than that, at all.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Personally, I feel the i7 is overpriced and not a good investment at this time. 
A 775 chipped Mobo will give you equal performance for much less money and you don't have the DDR3 worries.
An P45 chipped Asus or GB Mobo combined with an E8400 CPU and the other parts you have listed will give excellent gaming performance.


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

tyree said:


> personally, i feel the i7 is overpriced and not a good investment at this time.
> A 775 chipped mobo will give you equal performance for much less money and you don't have the ddr3 worries.
> An p45 chipped asus or gb mobo combined with an e8400 cpu and the other parts you have listed will give excellent gaming performance.






*
ditto *


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

so this would be better than a i7?

http://www.netplus.com.au/product/C...re-EMT64T-3.1Ghz-1333Mhz-FSB;-LGA775-BOX-45nm

edit - the ati radeon 4890 runs at 84ºC. Is this a problem?


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## Fapguy (Oct 2, 2008)

The 4890 doesnt run at 84 degrees, it CAN, but it doesnt. Q6600 with a thermalright ultra 120 extreme.

Dont take the e8500, more money for almost nothing compared to the E8400.

Overclock the E8400 just by 600mhz and you wont need to change for a year or two. And then, you can overclock it by more than 1.4ghz if you feel like.

Just be sure to get a E8400 with E0 stepping (E-zero) or the Q6600 quad core (abit more future proof imo?)

Get a X48 mobo maybe, so you can crossfire OR sli in the future.

And the best cooler along with any of those is the Thermalright Ultra 120 extreme. Arctic Silver 5 as thermal paste of course.


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

That case ill probably go for a Phenom II Quad Core. Is this I good idea idk :S


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

The E8500 is worth every penny of the extra $20.00 to buy one ? anyone can overclock the E8500 to 4.0ghz where as the E8400 struggles a bit more and the individuals experience level must be a tad higher 

then Phenom DENEB core is a good choice if youre sold on quad cores ? personally IMHO they are hardware that most users cant fully use unless your into intensive photoshop or auto cad rendering; such apps like that can perform tasks out of sequence so to speak therefore all four cores can really be put to work, but apps like games cant be run out of sequence much at all


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

Will the 1366 sockets support the future octo core? Because if it does ill probably get an i7


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/intel/showdoc.aspx?i=3326&p=3


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

ok so they look like they will, but its unsure.


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

i thought the initial ones would be for server boards


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## dan101 (Feb 12, 2009)

huh? what?


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

from what i found they are meant to run in a duel cpu server m/board

there was also something else that mentioned a new chip that runs as a single cpu in server board
aimed at small to large business,which usually indicates very expensive

http://www.tcmagazine.com/comments.php?shownews=29544&catid=2


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