WTB: Powerful gaming rig - High Budget - Help!

[Core i7 965 Extreme]

I'm buying a new PC very shortly, and my budget is a whopping Rs. 1 Lakh.

Since I need a future-proof (read 3-5 years) rig, I'm inclined towards Core i7 for the processor. And hence, I'll need good DDR3 memory and a nice motherboard with o/c features to go with it. What brands and models should I buy?

Other than that, other components I'd like suggestions on include Cabinet, SMPS, monitor, juicy graphic card/s, HDD, speakers (cheap 2.1 ones are just fine), sound card (required?) and a wireless card (and anything else you think I might need).

Also, I'd like to hear your opinions about PC vc MAC. Which is better and why? I've heard that Mac is the coice of preference for programmers (and I'm a programmer in the making); is that true?

Please feel free to suggest even other configs that you think would make a kick-ass gaming rig, guys.

[Cool Joe]

First, let's come to the PC v Mac thing. If you want to game, stick to a Windows machine. Period. And your own assembled PC offers better value for money compared to a Mac. High end gaming iMacs will cost in excess of a lakh. So stick to your own assembled PC.

Secondly, if you want a Core i7, then better wait for a while. They aren't available here right now. Even if they were available, then the cost of a proccy + socket LGA 1366 mobo + DDR3 RAM itself would eat up half of your budget. And then you'd have to buy a superb monitor, gfx card, and a PSU capable of powering this rig.

So, my advice is, wait for a bit. Or if you're in the U.S, Newegg has some good deals for the i7.

[Core i7 965 Extreme]

Originally Posted by beta testing

First, let's come to the PC v Mac thing. If you want to game, stick to a Windows machine. Period. And your own assembled PC offers better value for money compared to a Mac. High end gaming iMacs will cost in excess of a lakh. So stick to your own assembled PC.

Secondly, if you want a Core i7, then better wait for a while. They aren't available here right now. Even if they were available, then the cost of a proccy + socket LGA 1366 mobo + DDR3 RAM itself would eat up half of your budget. And then you'd have to buy a superb monitor, gfx card, and a PSU capable of powering this rig.

So, my advice is, wait for a bit. Or if you're in the U.S, Newegg has some good deals for the i7.

Point noted about the PC vs Mac thing. I guess I'll stick to a Windows machine then.

Core i7 isn't available here yet?? Damn... anyway, could you please recommend any good configurations for the available budget?

P.S. - The monitor doesn't have to be an awesome one, a moderate one will do. I don't want to spend over 12-15K on the monitor...

[MetalheadGautham]

Another thing about the PC vs Mac thing: those wars were valid only in the pre 2006 days when mac used the PowerPC architrcture instead of standard PC (x86) architecture. Today, a Mac is a PC with an apple logo attached to it. Anyway, back to the configuration:

Monitor: BenQ 21.5" Full HD Monitor @ 13.5K
Creative Inspire 5.1 speakers @ 4K
Logitech Multimedia Lazer Combo Keyboard and Mouse @ 1.5K
Zebronics Peace Cabinet without PSU @ 1.6K
HD4850X2 GPU @ 20K
Samsung 24X SATA II DVD Drive @ 1.5K
Seagate 640GB SATA II HDD with 32mb Buffer @ 4K
OR Maxtor 1TB 10000 RPM HDD @ 9K

CPU, Mobo, RAM - need to calculate if Core i7 920 can fit in or not.

[Cool Joe]

Originally Posted by Core i7 965 Extreme

Point noted about the PC vs Mac thing. I guess I'll stick to a Windows machine then.

Core i7 isn't available here yet?? Damn... anyway, could you please recommend any good configurations for the available budget?

P.S. - The monitor doesn't have to be an awesome one, a moderate one will do. I don't want to spend over 12-15K on the monitor...

I really recommend waiting a bit for the i7 to arrive here. Because when they do, they'll be much better buys than the current E8x00 processors of now. Still, if you want a rig right now, then:

Intel C2D E8600
Zotac nForce 790i Supreme
Corsair Dominator 2x2 GB DDR3 1800 Mhz RAM
LG/ Samsung DVD writer
XFX GTX 280
WD Caviar 640 GB HDD
Tagan 850W PSU
Thermaltake Armor VH8000BWS cabinet
Logitech G5 (mouse) + Logitech G15 (keyboard)
Dell E228WFP

I don't know about recommending speaker sets, so ask someone else about it.

Seriously, this is one hot rig. How I wish I had a rig like this... Complete with a 2 mbps unlimited connection.... So I could download games and play them all the time...

BTW, if you needed a UPS, then I'd suggest an APC 1000VA 800 W UPS.

[Psychosocial]

^Duh.

Q9400
2x2GB DDR2 1066MHz Corsair Dominator RAM
ASUS P5Q Pro motherboard
2xPalit HD4870 1GB SONIC
1TB Hitachi Deskstar HDD
Corsair 1000W SMPS
CoolerMaster Stacker cabinet
Dell 248WFP 24" LCD monitor
Altec Lansing MX5021 2.1 speakers
Creative X-Fi Fatal1ty sound card
Logitech Gaming G1 kbd/mouse


pretty good eh ? Well I also suggest you wait for i7 coz i7 960 and ECS X58B-A will be a good combo if you can get. The above mentioned config is only if you cant wait and want to buy one soon. But remember, it will take time for i7 stuff to reach India (the basic i7 920 kit is there but it looks lame with a reference Intel X58 mobo) and even when it reaches, it will be costly and will take a lot of time to get cheap. Its upto you now. I suggest you call it in from US through KMD or something .

[Cool Joe]

Originally Posted by Psychosocial

^Duh.

Huh? What for?

[Psychosocial]

Originally Posted by beta testing

Huh? What for?

your UPS suggestion.

[comp@ddict]

ALl u guys, he has 1 lakh, dun let it go waste. O'course a NEHALEM CPU.

The nehalem+mobo+4GBram+HDD comes for some 50k.

50k I guess will be enug for:
kbd/mouse
speakers
monitor
GPU-HD4870X2

[Psychosocial]

^^Nice thought but its India dude.

[Core i7 965 Extreme]

Thanks for the suggestions guys, I think I'll get a Core 2 Quad processor since I can't wait and need the PC urgently...

BTW, does a quad core Core 2 Extreme cost very high? Would it fit into the budget? Is it worth paying those extra bucks?

Originally Posted by beta testing

I really recommend waiting a bit for the i7 to arrive here. Because when they do, they'll be much better buys than the current E8x00 processors of now. Still, if you want a rig right now, then:

Intel C2D E8600
Zotac nForce 790i Supreme
Corsair Dominator 2x2 GB DDR3 1800 Mhz RAM
LG/ Samsung DVD writer
XFX GTX 280
WD Caviar 640 GB HDD
Tagan 850W PSU
Thermaltake Armor VH8000BWS cabinet
Logitech G5 (mouse) + Logitech G15 (keyboard)
Dell E228WFP

I don't know about recommending speaker sets, so ask someone else about it.

Seriously, this is one hot rig. How I wish I had a rig like this... Complete with a 2 mbps unlimited connection.... So I could download games and play them all the time...

BTW, if you needed a UPS, then I'd suggest an APC 1000VA 800 W UPS.

Thanks... but can you recommend a quad core instead? I think even though currently most games aren't optimized for quad core, they will be eventually in the future. Until then I can probably just use it overclocked.

Originally Posted by Psychosocial

Q9400
2x2GB DDR2 1066MHz Corsair Dominator RAM
ASUS P5Q Pro motherboard
2xPalit HD4870 1GB SONIC
1TB Hitachi Deskstar HDD
Corsair 1000W SMPS
CoolerMaster Stacker cabinet
Dell 248WFP 24" LCD monitor
Altec Lansing MX5021 2.1 speakers
Creative X-Fi Fatal1ty sound card
Logitech Gaming G1 kbd/mouse

Any idea how much Q9400, 2xPalit HD4870 1GB SONIC, Corsair 1000W SMPS and 1TB Hitachi Deskstar HDD costs? Is there a site where I can check pretty accurate current Indian prices?

Originally Posted by comp@ddict

ALl u guys, he has 1 lakh, dun let it go waste. O'course a NEHALEM CPU.

The nehalem+mobo+4GBram+HDD comes for some 50k.

50k I guess will be enug for:
kbd/mouse
speakers
monitor
GPU-HD4870X2

I really don't think Nehalem+Mobo+4GB DDR3 RAM+HDD comes for around 50K...

Mobo - 15-20K
4GB DDR3 RAM - 18-20K
HDD - 5K
So Nehalem - 5-15K (at the most I could probably get a Core i7 920)...


Also, about the video card, should I buy a GTX280 or 2 x HD4850 (Crossfire)? I think they'll cost around the same, but which ones gives better performance?

Once again, thanks for the suggestions guys, keep 'em coming. I'll go to SP road (Bangalore) and check out the prices tomorrow evening and buy it on Wednesday.

[Psychosocial]

Originally Posted by Core i7 965 Extreme

Thanks for the suggestions guys, I think I'll get a Core 2 Quad processor since I can't wait and need the PC urgently...

BTW, does a quad core Core 2 Extreme cost very high? Would it fit into the budget? Is it worth paying those extra bucks?



Thanks... but can you recommend a quad core instead? I think even though currently most games aren't optimized for quad core, they will be eventually in the future. Until then I can probably just use it overclocked.



Any idea how much Q9400, 2xPalit HD4870 1GB SONIC, Corsair 1000W SMPS and 1TB Hitachi Deskstar HDD costs? Is there a site where I can check pretty accurate current Indian prices?



I really don't think Nehalem+Mobo+4GB DDR3 RAM+HDD comes for around 50K...

Mobo - 15-20K
4GB DDR3 RAM - 18-20K
HDD - 5K
So Nehalem - 5-15K (at the most I could probably get a Core i7 920)...


Also, about the video card, should I buy a GTX280 or 2 x HD4850 (Crossfire)? I think they'll cost around the same, but which ones gives better performance?

Once again, thanks for the suggestions guys, keep 'em coming. I'll go to SP road (Bangalore) and check out the prices tomorrow evening and buy it on Wednesday.

www.theitwares.com
www.lynx-india.com

Check the prices on this two sites. You can order your stuff from this sites too! And C2E costs a LOT. QX9770 costs 54k :O:O. I dont think its worth all that. Don't go for a single GTX280 coz 2xHD4870 beats it. But GTX280 in SLi can be a real deadly pair but it will cost a lot too.

[toofan]

Intel core 2 Extreme Q9770 is available for around 68450.00 give it a look.
Then comes the Q9650 for 48750 now with this one you can really set up a great machine with in 1lack.

processor: Intel xtreme Q9650 48750
MOBO: Asus P5Q Pro 8950
RAM: 2x2gb kingston 800mhz 3000
Harddisk 640 GB westron digital 4000
gfx Card: Palit HD4870 16800
PSU: crosair 620w 6800
Monitor Dell 22 inch 17000
Speaker Logitech X530 5500
cabinet 2000
______________________________________________
Total: 1 10 000.00
--------------------------------------------------------------
OOps its above 1 lack. But " Jahen chaalees wahan ghap-chaalees."

[Psychosocial]

^^Extreme is not worth it. He will get a lame config if he buys that. He wants a gaming config.

[Cool Joe]

Better go for a quad core as Psychosocial suggested. And don't worry, everything will be within 1 lakh. You better go for DDR3 RAM, it'll be faster than DDR2 RAM at the same frequencies, because of tighter timings.
Instead of the GTX 280, you could go for 3x 9800GTX because the mobo which I mentioned supports 3 way SLI.

[Psychosocial]

^^lol... DDR3 will have performance boost of like 10% with a Quad. DDR3 is only recommanded if you buy a Nehalem coz current genaration of Quads and Duos dont intialize the power of DDR3. And 3x9800GTX o_0. Better opt for 2xHD4870 coz 790i will cost a bomb so will DDR3.

[MetalheadGautham]

Originally Posted by MetalheadGautham

Another thing about the PC vs Mac thing: those wars were valid only in the pre 2006 days when mac used the PowerPC architrcture instead of standard PC (x86) architecture. Today, a Mac is a PC with an apple logo attached to it. Anyway, back to the configuration:

Monitor: BenQ 21.5" Full HD Monitor @ 13.5K
Creative Inspire 5.1 speakers @ 4K
Logitech Multimedia Lazer Combo Keyboard and Mouse @ 1.5K
Zebronics Peace Cabinet without PSU @ 1.6K
HD4850X2 GPU @ 20K
Samsung 24X SATA II DVD Drive @ 1.5K
Seagate 640GB SATA II HDD with 32mb Buffer @ 4K
OR Maxtor 1TB 10000 RPM HDD @ 9K

CPU, Mobo, RAM - need to calculate if Core i7 920 can fit in or not.

Originally Posted by comp@ddict

ALl u guys, he has 1 lakh, dun let it go waste. O'course a NEHALEM CPU.

The nehalem+mobo+4GBram+HDD comes for some 50k.

50k I guess will be enug for:
kbd/mouse
speakers
monitor
GPU-HD4870X2

Cheers. Wanna merge lists ?

[comp@ddict]

Yeah, go ahead spend the one lakh.OH yeah, buy the QX9770 too for 68k ONLY. After all, it's only slower than i920 for some 15k. Leave nehalem, no get the 100000k PC

[amitash]

Nehalem FTW...dunno about the prices in india but for 300$ for the cpu, 220$ for the cheapest mobo(msi x58 platinum) and 130$ for 3GB ddr3 RAM it comes upto 650$ which comes upto 32,500Rs...+ taxes here will cost you around 40k itself for a nehalem based config...in 60k i think you can surely get a HD4850x2,A decent monitor,case,storage and a DVD writer.

[Psychosocial]

^lol you already bought it ?

[toofan]

Intel core 2 Extreme Q9770 is available for around 68450.00 give it a look.
Then comes the Q9650 for 48750 now with this one you can really set up a great machine with in 1lack.

processor: Intel xtreme Q9650 48750
MOBO: Asus P5Q Pro 8950
RAM: 2x2gb kingston 800mhz 3000
Harddisk 640 GB westron digital 4000
gfx Card: Palit HD4870 16800
PSU: crosair 620w 6800
Monitor Dell 22 inch 17000
Speaker Logitech X530 5500
cabinet 2000
______________________________________________
Total: 1 10 000.00
--------------------------------------------------------------
OOps its above 1 lack. But " Jahen chaalees wahan ghap-chaalees."

Replace the processor with Quad Core Q9550 for about 17000.00 and add that saved amount on Palits HD4870x2 (2gb ddr5) for 35000.

[amitash]

^lol you already bought it ?

Yep i had to get it now or never as my aunts comin from the US...wats wrong wid it?

[Psychosocial]

Originally Posted by amitash

Yep i had to get it now or never as my aunts comin from the US...wats wrong wid it?

Oh you got it from US. Congo. I was actually surprised first because you did not mention that you had bought it from US coz AFAIK, MSI X58 aint available here.

Originally Posted by toofan.is.back

Replace the processor with Quad Core Q9550 for about 17000.00 and add that saved amount on Palits HD4870x2 (2gb ddr5) for 35000.

Q9400 will be more VFM, you can easily OC it later.

[toofan]

why to oc. and do you think with a budget of 1 lack someone look for VFM.

[amitash]

why to oc. and do you think with a budget of 1 lack someone look for VFM.

touche

Oh you got it from US. Congo. I was actually surprised first because you did not mention that you had bought it from US coz AFAIK, MSI X58 aint available here.

I did ask around here but the dealers hadnt even heard about core i7 so x58 was out of the question....Will my TRUE fit on the core i7?

[Psychosocial]

Originally Posted by toofan.is.back

why to oc. and do you think with a budget of 1 lack someone look for VFM.

Why not ? If he saves 25k... he can prolly get a X360 or a good phone! And 'Why to OC ?' ... well Google it. OC is beneficial in many ways. All in all, Q9400>Q9550.

And ya, what if he wants a 2xGTX280 setup in 1 lakh ? If it was so, he would have to be satisfied with a E8500 or Q8200. 1 Lakh is still not a VERY high budget in the world of PCs. Only yesterday I was customising an Alienware notebook for fun and I saw that it reached the 7Lakh price mark...

[toofan]

why not i had answered in some thread.
why do we need that much power if everything run ok with that. And for gaming you need to oc your card.

[nish_higher]

Q9550 's new variant is gonna launch next yr with a very less power consumption.i guess its worth it,when compared to a Q9400

As far as op's rig is concerned- wait till next year.availability of nehalem is quite limited and not many boards to choose from.


BTW- NEhalem supports Triple channel DDR3 , so 3gb/6gb configurations.

[Psychosocial]

Originally Posted by toofan.is.back

why not i had answered in some thread.
why do we need that much power if everything run ok with that. And for gaming you need to oc your card.

I also said leave it. Its no use arguing on this.

You just dont understand

[desiibond]

I would say, for now get the cheapest mobo+proccy+ram that you can get and use for 4-5 months.

YOu will really really regret if you purchase a quadcore proccy worth 16k etc.

Get this:

1) E7200 for 5.5k
2) MSI P45 Neo-F for 5k
3) 2X2Gb DDR2 800MHz for 3.5k

E7200 is a very powerful processor and is insane overclocker.

Once the Nehalem stabilizes (should be by March), get it with the money that you saved.

Max I would pay for a processor is 8k in current market situation as Intel is moving to a new socket and you have 1L to spend on the rig.