# Will this rig run stable?



## Outcast (Oct 1, 2010)

Hi, after making alot of threads on this website, regarding upgrading my computer.

I have decided on the following.

I will keep my CPU Q6600 (attempt you over clock it to 3ghz)
Won't upgrade my ram (4x1GB stick)
Replace my 8800GT with an ATi 5870
Keep my current resolution at 1440 x 900

Will I have to upgrade my 600Watt PSU for a ATi 5870? I was told I would for the 5970.

I chose not to get a 5970 as the rest of my PC would apparently bottle neck it and I would see no difference using a 5870

Will this pseudo rig :-

Q6600 @ 3ghz
ATi 5870
4GB ram
600watt 80+ PSU
1440 x 900 (to save fps)

Be a Stable rig? Or can you suggest improvements/replacements.

More importantly will it play Crysis on very high DX10 with 8 x AA and Stalker Call of Pripyat DX11, 1440 x 900 resolution, without any problems?

Thank you.


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## hhnq04 (Mar 19, 2008)

Any reason you're intending on putting $350 into a video card and only running it at 1440x900?

IMO, you're better served getting a less powerful GPU (5830) and upgrading your CPU and mobo.

5830 and Phenom II x4 955 $285
ASUS M4A77D $85

Assuming your RAM is DDR2, you should be able to re-use it with this mobo. Check ASUS website for compatibility with your specific RAM before taking this for truth.


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## Tumbleweed36 (May 14, 2005)

We might have a better idea on your power supply if you listed the brand name, because that makes a real difference in output. However, I can tell you up-front that you will most likely need a stronger power supply for any pci-e video card. Tell us what you decide on and we can tell you which power supply best fits your needs.

If you stick with the 5870, I would use a 750 watt Corsair or Seasonic in there, especially if you plan on heavy gaming at all with overclocking.


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## Outcast (Oct 1, 2010)

First off, thanks for your replies and let me explain a few things.

"Any reason you're intending on putting $350 into a video card and only running it at 1440x900?"

My monitor is 19" and I am quite happy (accustomed) to it, and playing in a smaller resolution should save me some FPS and allow me to use AA and AF

$350 is kinda cheap for me, not a brag or anything but I set myself 800 GBP / $1200 a year for upgrading my pc.

How to spend $1200 upgrading wisely
This thread is related, an earlier thread I posted weeks ago. (http://www.techsupportforum.com/f255/800-1272-to-upgrade-with-wisely-519770.html)

I was going to get a 5970 but I was told from tech support users, my PC would be a bottleneck for that card and I wouldn't see any difference if I where to get a 5870, which im doing.

My ram is DDR2 at 1022mhz x 4GB

My power supply is:-
Xilence 600W XP600-FL Semi-Fanless Power Supply
http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/products/psus-501-600/x-xp600-flhttp://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/pro...600/x-xp600-fl

I just plan on overclocking my GPU as its still an expensive CPU to buy and I have not really had much use out of it, I assumed the term quad core would still hold some weight.

I built the thing 2 years ago, had no problems apart from my useless abatron 512mb 8800gt overheating.


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

you need to replace that psu. Xilence are not very good,

For that grapgics card and system you should be running a corsair 750TX.


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## Outcast (Oct 1, 2010)

Yes I was planning on upgrading to a corsair 1000watt PSU? 80+ rating.

I am tired of having to upgrade my PSU every time I get a new GPU ^^


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## Tumbleweed36 (May 14, 2005)

Outcast said:


> Yes I was planning on upgrading to a corsair 1000watt PSU? 80+ rating.
> 
> I am tired of having to upgrade my PSU every time I get a new GPU ^^


Excellent thought process, do get that PSU and you will be set for a long time.


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

yep good choice


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

For £800 ($1272) why not build a new system?


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## hhnq04 (Mar 19, 2008)

Tyree said:


> For £800 ($1272) why not build a new system?


Agreed. You should easily be able to build a solid rig at that price point(and even replace the 19" and go bigger and play at a higher resolution).


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## Outcast (Oct 1, 2010)

hhnq04 said:


> Agreed. You should easily be able to build a solid rig at that price point(and even replace the 19" and go bigger and play at a higher resolution).


Maybe I will, as I want something that can master a 5970 flawlessy, meaning new Mobo, cpu, ram etc...

No idea about that kind of rig though and no idea about all the new chipsets and what cpu needs what mobo

Very confusing for me.

Also Computer components are ALOT more expensive in the UK than the US, almost 40% more!

USA 5970 $599 (£360 GBP) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161335&cm_re=5970-_-14-161-335-_-Product

UK 5970 £460 ( $735.494 USD) http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/2GB-...725MHz-3200-Cores-Dual-Link-DVI-I-DisplayPort

Wish I could get all my parts from the USA.

Also I am still happy with a 1440 x 900 resolution but if the 5870 performs well enough I would upgrade to a something higher, I just love the fps I save playing in a smaller resolution, would take detials over size of screen any day.


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

thats because we have to VAT in the UK though. I always buy my stuff from overclockers.co.uk They are quite good on prices.


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## Outcast (Oct 1, 2010)

Yea that website seems pretty cheep, thanks for the info.

So I should just upgrade my PSU to say 800-1000 corsair and overclock my Q6600 to 3ghz per core, add a 5870 and I should be able to play all then newest games without a problem?

Is there anything else I should upgrade or should I buy a complete new rig?

I really just want to play crysis maxed and STALKER CoP maxed without a problem at 1440 x 900

Do I need to build a new rig to unlock a 5970 for that?


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## Outcast (Oct 1, 2010)

Will this be a good choice for me to master crysis?

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/1GB-...DR5-GPU-875MHz-1600-Cores-DP-2x-DL-DVI-I-HDMI


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

Personally I suggest the following

I definely would not trust the Xilence 600 watt psu when you want to overclock and run a 5870 / this PSU is regulary seen bundled with an Apevia gaming case which of its self is suspicious / second it has dual rails at 20A each on the 12volt lines; a more approiate power supply should offer more than 40Amps & be single rail design

B) you wont get far overclocking with 4 sticks of ram ......better to get a decent matched pair of DDR2-800 gaming timing and higher voltage capable sticks

C) the ATI 5850 will far outrun your needs / the 5870 is just as much unusable overkill as is the 5970


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/222056

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/135514

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/143844


you have a very good motherboard for overclocking



sell off your old parts on ebay to offset your costs


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

I agree with Linderman.

2x2GB is better than 4x1GB especially when your trying to overclock.


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## Outcast (Oct 1, 2010)

Thanks for replies

"B) you wont get far overclocking with 4 sticks of ram ......better to get a decent matched pair of DDR2-800 gaming timing and higher voltage capable sticks"

Thats something I will do at a later date when I see how this rig runs without any overclocking with a q6600 default clock speed and a 5870 default clock speed. I'f I am happy with the overall performance I will not get new ram. If I feel I could get more out of that GPU buy overclocking my CPU I'll get new ram.

"C) the ATI 5850 will far outrun your needs / the 5870 is just as much unusable overkill as is the 5970 "

I see videos of people getting between 30fps - 50fps with the settings I want to play at with similar rigs as me with a 5870, I dont wont less than 30fps so a 5850 may give me less.

These are the upgrades I am a few clicks away from buying unless you guys state otherwise.

Corsair 650watt 80+ PSU
http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=684734&source=corsairpsu

XFX 5870 OC
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/1GB-...DR5-GPU-875MHz-1600-Cores-DP-2x-DL-DVI-I-HDMI

Scan is good for me as there is a store not far away from where I live

Anything else I should look at in regards to overclocking my CPU to 3ghz on air cooling only?


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

your plan looks good; with the corsair 650 and the 5870

just remember when its time you want to improve things; the Q6600 is definetly going to be your bottleneck as long as you are at the stock speed


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

yep at most you will get 3.2 with the q6600 if your lucky. See how it plans out first then we can help. Good luck


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## Outcast (Oct 1, 2010)

Im flying home soon and will start on upgrading soon as i'm back, I would rather not change my ram but I definitely want to overclock my CPU, if it blows up I would buy a i7 920 if that can go onto my asus PK5?

I'm going to aim for 3.2ghz at most but i'll be happy with 3Ghz, but with my ram I don't know how to make them work together, timings, stepping etc

I am hoping one of you can take me though it in baby steps? Could I get some hands up for people who I should PM or IM when I need help?

Be home in about a week.


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

just post in the overclocking section and I will try and help you. The Q6600 is quite hard to overclock once you get to 3.1. I currently have my E8400 3GHz @ 4GHz


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

with a Q6600 I would settle for 3.0ghz 

or go with a new E8500 and enjoy 3.8 ghz with EASE


http://cgi.ebay.com/Intel-Core-2-Du...B9K-/320603356781?pt=CPUs&hash=item4aa572fe6d


http://cgi.ebay.com/Intel-Core-2-Du...-C1-/190457140724?pt=CPUs&hash=item2c582155f4


no worry on cpu's pulled from Dell computers (they cant be overclocked thanks to Dell's neutered bios)


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## Outcast (Oct 1, 2010)

Hmm i have been geen giving it some thought and I think I might go for one of these new generation builds

I have seen so many poeple getting like 60-70fps in crysis with max setting with full AA with:-

i7 920
6gb ram
xfx radeon 5970
asus p6t or similar
and a much larger monitor than me

What do you think would be a reasonable price for a new build like this?

and i7 withe DDR3 ram and a 5970? Would have get a new everything.

I want to spent around 900 pounds but I think with the 5970 being like 480 pounds on its own, that might not be possible?

What do you think would be the best rig to build around a 5970 at a reasonable price, staying within my annual PC budget?


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

I get an average of 64 FPS in crysis with my build. Look in my system details.


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## Outcast (Oct 1, 2010)

greenbrucelee said:


> I get an average of 64 FPS in crysis with my build. Look in my system details.


What resolution do you play at and do you use 8xaa?

I would rather do things cheaply by just buying a new 5870 and being able to max it with my q6600 but I don't know if that's possible. 

And to upgrade to an i7 920 means I need a new everything.

Not quite sure which way to go...

I need to find benchmarks of videos of someone playing with that kind of rig at 1440 x 900 to fully make up my mind, based on their fps.


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

Cant remember its a while since I played but something like 1650 x 1050 with no AA

download the crysis benchmark tool


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## Outcast (Oct 1, 2010)

Based on your feedback which I am thankful for, I think a sensible thing would be to purchase a 5870 with a 1000watt corsair PSU and If I am not happy with the performance I get from my Q6600 overclocked at 3.2ghz, ( if I cant get crysis, wars, warhead and stalker clear sky and CoP maxed out with full AA at 1440 x 900 with 50-60fps) I will get my friend to build me this following rig and use the two parts I just purchased in it so I will end up with...

CPU: Intel Core i7 950 
GPU: XFX 5870 brought over from old rig
Motherboard: Asus P6T
RAM: 6-8GB DDR3 of ram that makes it easy to overclock
PSU: 1000watt brought over from old rig
Maybe look into water cooling
New HUGE case
windows vista 64bit from old rig
SATA2 500GB HD

Rebuild my old rig with the parts of I have no and try and sell it on for £300 - 400? That a reasonable price for my current pc?

Can any body see a flaw in that plan?

Thanks again guys, really helpful. Will definitely use the overclocking forum when the time comes to give me default q6600 a work out.


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

Good rig but I see a flaw, windows 64bit, crysis wont like that I am pretty sure on that. Crysis will prefer 32bit OS.


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## Outcast (Oct 1, 2010)

I would want to use more than 4GB of ram though?

Can anybody help me value my current pc?

Intel Q6600 4 x 2.4Ghz CPU
4GB corsair RAM
Albatron 8800GT 512mb
GPU
Asus PK5 motherboard
600watt PSU
Windows Vista 64bit ?

I want to sell it to a friend/family but need a good value for that in today's market? In £££££?

I could use that money towards my new build, im guessing around £350 - £450?

Thanks


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## linderman (May 20, 2005)

I agree on your valued price $350.00


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## Outcast (Oct 1, 2010)

£350 or $350? Huge difference there.

£350 ok I guess, would only have to put £600 towards my new build... Depressing how selling my old pc system wouldn't be enough to get me a single 5970 in the UK


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

$350 dollars is right. I am from the UK and would have said £200. If you converts $350 to pounds its £222.

The low end manufacturer graphics card and no name psu let you down a bit.


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## Outcast (Oct 1, 2010)

A q6600 still costs £200 in stores on its own.

http://www.pricerunner.co.uk/sp/q6600.html
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Intel-Q6600-Core2-2-4GHz-Processor/dp/B000LRMR26
http://www.kelkoo.co.uk/ssc-110901-intel-q6600.html

Surely I can get more.

I sold my

Packard Bell
amd 1.8ghz CPU
2GB ram
350watt PS
7600GT

For £300 to my sister 3 years ago :grin:

Used that money towards the pc I have now which costs me around £850 to build


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## greenbrucelee (Apr 24, 2007)

yep but your is used and you can get them between £50 and £80.

You could get more if you sell it to someone who knows nothing about PCs but I would give you £200 for the lot. I know that sounds harsh but PCs are like cars they depreciate a lot.

My whole system (in my sig) cost £1300 two years ago I gurantee that if I were to sell it even with its overclocked state I wouln't get anymore than £850 for it probably £800


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