Another i7 Rig Configuration. Need the BLESSINGS :) of our in house experts.

[dOm1naTOr]

thats a good point
btw, 955 is 13.5k locally, ut the 500 bucks wont make much difference.
But Intel is changing platforms and sockets every now and then. And with past experience, even if sockets are same, newer proccys wont fit in older mobos.
for eg, LGA 775 was here from 915, 925, 945,965, G31.....X45 mobos. But newer proccys wont fit in 915/925 mobos even though the 925 was their high end mobos once.
Even their newer upcoming corei5 is gonna use newer socket. While the i5 become mainstream, i7 will remain as premium and i7 920, and 940 will be discontinued, and only i7 955/65 will remain and will cost almost triple[~750$] of current i7 920.
SO to juice the i7 965, they gonna get some new chipset or innovation and current most expensive X58 mobos like EVGA classified will become kinda obselete when u plan to upgrade later from i7 920.

But in case of AMD, upgradibility is main feature. u can use a PII in even older AM2 mobos like M2NE[nforce5 Ultra] or a 690G mobo, to 780, 790 mobos.
And AMD promises all upcoming proccys to be fully compatible with current mobos. So an AM3 mobo will take atleast 3 or more yrs to be called obselete[when 32nm bulldozer X8 or X12 gets released on Q4 2010]

And MSI 790GX-G65 is Am3 with DDR3 support, and comes for 8.5k

For gaming, surelly a GTX 260 will hold u back on a full HD 1080p display. It wiser to invest the extra savings[8k+] for the GPU and get a GTX 275[18k] or 4770x3 CFX[better][19.5k].

And for gaming purpose, even a non OCed 955 matches to a non OCed 920 and only if the GPU isnt bottlenecked. Ull need a hefty graphics card array[SLi or CFX] to bottleneck either a pII 955 or i7 920.

[Shadowfax2009]

Yes in that way u are correct. i5 kind of makes things dicey. and even a saving of 3000/- maters
Similarly about grafix card, these are quotations I am getting.
Powercolor 4890 is available for 15000/- whereas PALIT GTX275 is available for 15500/-
Both perform equally or almost equally. Various forums support various products. Why should one buy a GTX 295 now when gtx 300 series is only 4 months away? When GTX 300 comes either it will be available at 30000/- price point as AMD is also prepping its RV840 core. Or it will push down GTX275 to 10000/- mark. Now 2 gtx 275 is equal to gtx 295 right? So why not buy one 275 now and wait out. If you buy the gtx 300 series Nvidia has the only additional advantage of using the old card as a physx pard which AMD doesnot offer. Also Win7 allows to use two separate grafix driver simultaneously. So I can even use a ATI as my main card and a nvidia for the Physx. Only catch is that physx is not that helpful currently. But what would you do with a 4790 then? I would rather wait and see before I spend big on the GRafix card. For the next 4 months I think I can play most current games except for crysis on GTX 275. So here is my LOGIC for going the NVIDIA way. However the prices of NVIDIA would never have come down it ATI was not there. So ATI ….. JAI HO.

[Shadowfax2009]

@ MetalheadGautham

UD4 is currently not available in India... Newegg has it at 259$ so importing by KMD will cost around 16000/- bucks.

[dOm1naTOr]

yup, a GTX 275 makes a a good sense.
btw 2x 4770 beats a GTX 275, and costs just 6.5k*2=13k.
Prices of 4770 isnt gonna fall soon, as its already launched at low segment and seems to have terrific vfm, considering that it scales the best with the CF than any other SLI/CF setups. As prices wont fall soon atleast for it, it ll have good aftersale value when u plan to upgrade the GPU to gtx 300 or HD 5xxx.

[Shadowfax2009]

^ We will keep on discussing tomorrow.Planning seems to be the most enjoyable part of buying a rig. Just a quick question before I go to sleep. Which mouse RAZOR or ALTEC. And is there a need for G15 keyboard?

[dOm1naTOr]

G15 is crap. the LCD display has hardly any use, other than displaying playlist for music tracks. nobody wants to check keyboard display for ammo or health status in games. Moreover only some rare games support keyboard HUD displays.
G11 has better vfm@ 2.5k. Trantaula is expensive but is gr8. costs bout 7k !
razer salmosa has good vfm. all razor mice are suited for paw movements. That is not for them who plces entire palm over mouse like on G5 or MX 518.
u have to choose according to taste. Copperheads has reported lots of hardware failures, though a good performing mouse.

will write more on mouse and KB 2moro

[desiibond]

@Shadowfax2009

1) GPU: If you want to go for next gen graphics card, get something like dual HD4770 or GTX260 (11k-13k) for now. These cards will have terrific resale value and you can sell them easily when you are ready to go for HD5xxx or GTX3xx.

2) My pick would be a decent keyboard and an XBOX 360 controller for windows

3) Mouse: same thing. get a decent optical mouse with good mousepad and use xbox 360 controller for gaming.

4) mobo: if you want to go for core i7. Get a board inside 15k.

[MetalheadGautham]

^^And you can also try importing UD4 from newegg if you want to stay with Intel.

Just for the reference, DDR3-1333 is quoted in India. In US its filthy cheap, but yeah, 6GB kit of Triple Channel 1600MHz memory @ 6.6K is truly VFM.

BTW, whats KMD ? An online store ?

[MetalheadGautham]

^^And you can also try importing UD4 from newegg if you want to stay with Intel.

Just for the reference, DDR3-1333 is quoted in India. In US its filthy cheap, but yeah, 6GB kit of Triple Channel 1600MHz memory @ 6.6K is truly VFM.

BTW, whats KMD ? An online store ?

[Shadowfax2009]

KMD is a dealer KatManDude who operates at Tech-Enclave forum.... Very reliable person. Have bought stuff by him before. Charges around 66/- - 70/- rs per dollar.

[topgear]

You can also try gigabyte x58 UD5 mobo. It reatials for around 16.5K.

[MetalheadGautham]

Originally Posted by Shadowfax2009

KMD is a dealer KatManDude who operates at Tech-Enclave forum.... Very reliable person. Have bought stuff by him before. Charges around 66/- - 70/- rs per dollar.

Nice. Does he operate only from TE or does he own his own online business website ?

Originally Posted by topgear

You can also try gigabyte x58 UD5 mobo. It reatials for around 16.5K.

UD5 retails @ 16.5K in India ? Then its better than UD4 imported @ 16K.
If its the Indian equivalent of US price, it could probably cost a lot more.

[Shadowfax2009]

Guys

Where is UD5 retailing in India at 16.5K?
I am getting quotation at 17.5K - 18K. AND ONCE MORE, TELL ME A FEW GOOD SHOPS TO HUNT AT NEHRU PLACE DELHI. The threads on this topic are quite old.

Also

As far as I know KMD operates from forum only. All guys of The techshop guy/ Mediahome/ ITWares also operate in the forum. I somwhow feel the forum is more safe than the website as u continuously get peer reviewes of all dealers.

[damngoodman999]

Originally Posted by Shadowfax2009

Guys

Where is UD5 retailing in India at 16.5K?
I am getting quotation at 17.5K - 18K. AND ONCE MORE, TELL ME A FEW GOOD SHOPS TO HUNT AT NEHRU PLACE DELHI. The threads on this topic are quite old.

Also

As far as I know KMD operates from forum only. All guys of The techshop guy/ Mediahome/ ITWares also operate in the forum. I somwhow feel the forum is more safe than the website as u continuously get peer reviewes of all dealers.

if u r going for the corei7 920 u cant seek out any budget -- i am telling get AMD 955 it sure beats handsdown on corei7 920 with DDR3 ram

u can go for this config

AMD PHENOM2 955
Asus M4A78T-E DDR3 1600
Palit GTX295 [or] Palit revolution HD 4870X2
4 GB DDR3 1333mhz
TAGAN 800 watts modular power

this config beats corei7 920 badly wen u get any other grafix card with corei7

[Shadowfax2009]

^

Guys

Why do you keep on saying that AMD beats down Intel hands down?
Look at today's toms hardware review. Even they are suggesting i7. http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/...5,2318-11.html

Both i7 and 955 have so much juice that the grafix card is the only differentiating point when gaming.

What I think is that, making a AMD Phenom II 955 Rig with DDR3 memory is only 5K cheaper than i7 rig.

The current best bang for buck is to make a Phenom II 940 rig with DDR2 RAM...and GTX295/280. However 1 yr down the line you may not find DDR2 ram in the market. I am worried to go with DDR2 system as I had difficulty in finding DDR1 ram for my old system before.

Also as I said before I am not inclined to buy a DX10 grafix card at 35K when DX11 is just round the corner. (DX11 will be significantly better due to its compute shader and tesselation shader. Also NVIDIAs GT300 series will be fundamentally different than GT 200 series and not a mere sequential improvement )

Perhaps it is best to wait till i5 comes into the market. But I cant wait another year.

May be I have read so much about i7 that it makes me want it....... I need someone to hammer an alternative to my head. Guys can you post me an alternate configuration with AMD 955 and DDR3 with price/ and where to buy. I will keep my purchases on hold for the next one week.

Wise little things, these forums are..... Should have joined earlier.

[topgear]

@ MetalheadGautham & Shadowfax2009

Here you go guys :
http://www.lynx-india.com/index.php?productID=3486

It's 16092 at the time of posting - don't blame me if the price hikes after that

[Krow]

If u really are gonna get an i7 and DDR3 RAM et all, then look for future-proofing too. Its no point having the most expensive rig of 2day and being left out with an incompatible tech later. If that's what u want still, then go for it as nothing beats i7 when it comes to multi-threaded apps. I repeat, right now only AMD will give u a solid upgrade path.

The ECS A790GXM-AD3 board is great but it has only 4 RAM slots. Better get any mobo with six slots as DDR3 works better in triple channel mode. Ive seen the board and even assembled a rig with the 955 and I can tell u that the board looks amazing! I saw the rampage II extreme(all @ the Digit BootCamp Workshop) and assembled a rig with the i7 965 and I was totally blown away even though I dint power on the system. On second thoughts, I felt that today's 30k advanced boards are tomorrow's trash, even though every cell in my body wanted to own such a config.

Whatever u buy, keep in mind the upgrade path and where u want 2 be a couple of years down the line. Going for the GTX 295/4870 X2 when GT3xx/Radeon 5xxx are less than 6 mnths away is not very wise. I say go for a single GPU solution like the 4890/GTX 285(EVGA SSC). U cn SLI/CF it later when more and more games are optimised for multi-GPU utilisation. Anyway, 4890=15k & 4870x2~30k. U cn chk any review and I can guarantee the fact that 4870X2 isnt 2x4890 in terms of performance! Same goes for the GTX 295. A single GPU will perform excellent in all of today's games. Better CF/SLI IF needed than spend all ur cash on something which is astronomically expensive and would probably retail for dirt cheap rates in a year or so! If u ask me, I'd say go for the GTX 275 (Palit SONIC)/HD4890 whichever performs better.If u r buying DDR3, go for a six slot mobo at least.

Please buy a modular power supply and do not fall for the numbers and get a 1100/1300W SMPS as even on full load I dont think whatever system u buy is gonna draw more than 600W of power. I'd say go for a modular Corsair 750/850W SMPS as modular SMPS reduces Cable Clutter. Go for DDR3 RAM. U r right when u say that it is the future. But 6x2GB=max 12GB, unless 4GB sticks become mainstream. I have a 4 slot DDR2 mobo, so I can still have around 8GB RAM, which would be great until at least 2 more years, When OS'es finally gain the ability to utilise more! So, please look for a config which u cn pimp every year or two and still stay a little ahead of the pack rather than trying to lead it 2day and be the laggard of tomorrow.

[damngoodman999]

Originally Posted by Shadowfax2009

^

Guys

Why do you keep on saying that AMD beats down Intel hands down?
Look at today's toms hardware review. Even they are suggesting i7. http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/...5,2318-11.html

Both i7 and 955 have so much juice that the grafix card is the only differentiating point when gaming.

What I think is that, making a AMD Phenom II 955 Rig with DDR3 memory is only 5K cheaper than i7 rig.

The current best bang for buck is to make a Phenom II 940 rig with DDR2 RAM...and GTX295/280. However 1 yr down the line you may not find DDR2 ram in the market. I am worried to go with DDR2 system as I had difficulty in finding DDR1 ram for my old system before.

Also as I said before I am not inclined to buy a DX10 grafix card at 35K when DX11 is just round the corner. (DX11 will be significantly better due to its compute shader and tesselation shader. Also NVIDIAs GT300 series will be fundamentally different than GT 200 series and not a mere sequential improvement )

Perhaps it is best to wait till i5 comes into the market. But I cant wait another year.

May be I have read so much about i7 that it makes me want it....... I need someone to hammer an alternative to my head. Guys can you post me an alternate configuration with AMD 955 and DDR3 with price/ and where to buy. I will keep my purchases on hold for the next one week.

Wise little things, these forums are..... Should have joined earlier.

if u r going for MULTIWORKSTATION process then u can go for i7 , But AMD phenom 2 940 is best Overclocker

phenom 2 955 has uni core process which is faster than phenom 2 940 of 25% , phenom 2 955 is Best Overclocker among AMD till now get Cooler master V8 CPU cooler then OC to 4 Ghz then see .

Corei7 920 is OCable but up to 3.4Ghz u can go with Air , its a workstation processor not the OCer maximum u can u can take it to 4 Ghz with Liquid cooling but goes above 15K liquid cooling & more power PSU -- u should buy 1000 - 1300 watts power supply . [ thats really insane ]

GTX 3 series wont be counting on till DEC 09 , also HD5 series from ATI , there lot of games to play till now .

GTX 295 is the fastest card

[Krow]

These might help ...
http://www.guru3d.com/article/ecs-a7...oard-review/20

http://www.legitreviews.com/article/938/1/

Ive linked you to the conclusions page of the Guru3D review as it kinda makes my point :

What you need to do is simply focus on what offers the best bang for buck to you. DDR2 memory right now is cheaper than DDR3 memory. It would only make sense to go for the DDR2 version, as performance wise it hardly matters.

Don't get confused though, the DDR3 platform is certainly not a bad thing, yet the reality of the situation is that right now in-between the two the performance benefit is NIL. Looking at the long term, if you have to buy everything new anyway... DDR3 might be the way to go. Future platforms will all be AM3 based and thus DDR3 based whereas DDR2 memory is as fast as it can really be. Why is there so little performance difference between DDR2 and DDR3 you ask? Well, DDR3 memory has a higher frequency, yet slower timings. Vice versa DDR2 memory has a lower frequency yet often tighter latency timings. So in terms of memory bandwidth there is just very little to gain here. Unless DDR3 would have had higher than 1333, say 1600 MHz support.

[asingh]

Originally Posted by Techalomaniac

If u really are gonna get an i7 and DDR3 RAM et all, then look for future-proofing too. Its no point having the most expensive rig of 2day and being left out with an incompatible tech later. If that's what u want still, then go for it as nothing beats i7 when it comes to multi-threaded apps. I repeat, right now only AMD will give u a solid upgrade path.

The ECS A790GXM-AD3 board is great but it has only 4 RAM slots. Better get any mobo with six slots as DDR3 works better in triple channel mode. Ive seen the board and even assembled a rig with the 955 and I can tell u that the board looks amazing! I saw the rampage II extreme(all @ the Digit BootCamp Workshop) and assembled a rig with the i7 965 and I was totally blown away even though I dint power on the system. On second thoughts, I felt that today's 30k advanced boards are tomorrow's trash, even though every cell in my body wanted to own such a config.

Whatever u buy, keep in mind the upgrade path and where u want 2 be a couple of years down the line. Going for the GTX 295/4870 X2 when GT3xx/Radeon 5xxx are less than 6 mnths away is not very wise. I say go for a single GPU solution like the 4890/GTX 285(EVGA SSC). U cn SLI/CF it later when more and more games are optimised for multi-GPU utilisation. Anyway, 4890=15k & 4870x2~30k. U cn chk any review and I can guarantee the fact that 4870X2 isnt 2x4890 in terms of performance! Same goes for the GTX 295. A single GPU will perform excellent in all of today's games. Better CF/SLI IF needed than spend all ur cash on something which is astronomically expensive and would probably retail for dirt cheap rates in a year or so! If u ask me, I'd say go for the GTX 275 (Palit SONIC)/HD4890 whichever performs better.If u r buying DDR3, go for a six slot mobo at least.

Please buy a modular power supply and do not fall for the numbers and get a 1100/1300W SMPS as even on full load I dont think whatever system u buy is gonna draw more than 600W of power. I'd say go for a modular Corsair 750/850W SMPS as modular SMPS reduces Cable Clutter. Go for DDR3 RAM. U r right when u say that it is the future. But 6x2GB=max 12GB, unless 4GB sticks become mainstream. I have a 4 slot DDR2 mobo, so I can still have around 8GB RAM, which would be great until at least 2 more years, When OS'es finally gain the ability to utilise more! So, please look for a config which u cn pimp every year or two and still stay a little ahead of the pack rather than trying to lead it 2day and be the laggard of tomorrow.

Hey..I really liked this write up....

Even I believe...at least in today's scenario a good robust single GPU solution is better than SLI/X-fire. Games still are not optimized for dual GPU's...many games dont even recognize a second card, and the second unit goes to waste..!

Yea...and modular supplies are the in thing now. I just put my new system together..and was kind of shocked to see the cable clutter on my Corsair TX650. Wish I had invested a bit more, and picked up a modular supply.

[MetalheadGautham]

Actually, with DDR3 1333MHz @ 1.8K for 2GB in India, I see no reason why you should NOT invest in a DDR3 rig unless you are planning for a sub 10K budget for CPU/RAM/Mobo/GPU.

Anyway, I still think its worth getting a 12K 790FX AM3 4-way crossfirex board over a 16K UD5.

The MSI 790FX-GD70 790FX/SB750 AM3 @ 11.7K (incl tax) seems like a nice buy. See http://hothardware.com/Articles/MSI-...3-Motherboard/

The advantage of buying Indian hardware is that you get warranty in India and don't need to send products to USA for RMA.

Having said that, go US if its cheaper from KMD. And DONT compare KMD pricing of i7 rig with Indian pricing of P2 rig. Compare both Indian or both KMD if you want. Its only fair then.

[MetalheadGautham]

Actually, with DDR3 1333MHz @ 1.8K for 2GB in India, I see no reason why you should NOT invest in a DDR3 rig unless you are planning for a sub 10K budget for CPU/RAM/Mobo/GPU.

Anyway, I still think its worth getting a 12K 790FX AM3 4-way crossfirex board over a 16K UD5.

The MSI 790FX-GD70 790FX/SB750 AM3 @ 11.7K (incl tax) seems like a nice buy. See http://hothardware.com/Articles/MSI-...3-Motherboard/

The advantage of buying Indian hardware is that you get warranty in India and don't need to send products to USA for RMA.

Having said that, go US if its cheaper from KMD. And DONT compare KMD pricing of i7 rig with Indian pricing of P2 rig. Compare both Indian or both KMD if you want. Its only fair then.

[damngoodman999]

MSI 790FX-GD70 AM3 Motherboard

This board is monster like ASUS RAMPAGE !! good Overclocker for phenom 955 with V8 cooler this board can take up to 4.5Ghz thats massive overclocking 4.2will be stable good choice MHG !!

[Shadowfax2009]

@ MetalheadGautham, Techalomaniac, damngoodman999, topgear, dOm1naTOr and off-course the invincible desiibond. First thanks for all your advice and help.

The fight of the AMD and Intel has just become more competitive and exciting. So let it roll on boys; I am NOT spending a single penny till I become convinced one way or the other.

@ MetalheadGautham: I strongly disagree with the comparison of Indian/Imported configuration.
Any one who wants to build i7 or 955 rig with TX/real power, TRUE or V8 cooler is not the avg Joe customer who goes to the shop and asks the shopkeeper about... computer.

So we all discuss in forums ....ask current users about their experiences (because we dont believe in marketing gimmick)......and WE HUNT FOR THE BEST DEALS.

The price of processor i7 @ 14,250/- or EVGA @ 19000/- or Gigabyte ud5 @ 16,200/- , PALIT GTX275 @ 15,500/- and DELL 24" S2409W @ 13,500/- are all the result of such hunt. They are all Indian price with FULL Indian warranty.

Only the RAM has been brought from US by KMD and it doesn't have a Indian warranty (though even that is negotiable with OCZ). If DDR3 @ 1600 can be brought to India at prices cheaper than current market and without any hassle ..... it is INDIAN AVAILABLE PRICE and should be compared with other Indian available prices.

I am not comparing hypothetical US price with Indian price ....but quoting real available Indian prices after including importers commision. Its a route and all should know it and use it wisely. I would get 1k to 2k less on most things imported but warranty issues become important at that price difference. (so i wil pay 2K more for GFX card and go for Indian warranty, but when price difference is at around 8K to 10K, one has to do the risk benefit analysis.)

The world is moving to e-shops....It is well known that newegg or tigerdirect rates are fer less than any Manhattan shop and 99% of people there buy from e-stores. The same is slowly happening in India too. Most shop at Nehru place in delhi have the cheapo things and will sell you only those, or have poor knowledge. (eg: RR Enterprise is good shop for mainstream things like USB Drive... but ask for i7 920 with D0 stepping ----- "India me aya nehi hai.." is the prompt answer. I have been qouted prices like 15,700/- for my i7 proccy.... and the shopkeeper took huge credit that he can arrange the same thing at 300/- less if I buy the whole rig from them.)

I find these new breed of Etellers of India more tech-savvy and more forthcoming with information. When I made the deal with phoenix for my dell monitor I was a bit skeptical about being taken for a ride..... but at every step HE has called me from Mumbai to inform me the small things (payment made/ payment recieved and so on)... He even spontaneously offers me to make arrangement with rashi so that i can pick up my other things from Delhi so that both of us are spared the "tension" of sending and receiving things over DTDC. The point I am trying to make is that our eteller guys are not bad or untrustyworthy...only we have to be careful (read forum reviewes... comments... previous deals... grievences etc.)

After Topgear gave the qoute from Lynx about Gigabyte mobo yesterday, I called up Amarbir (Dealer at Lynx)..... He said he could supply me with all I need and if I make the system from him (part I didnt like)...he would bear the transport cost (part I liked)... I will bargain with him tomorrow and keep u all posted.


Coming back to main topic..... well I have nothing to say now... will read some further reviews I guess.

[topgear]

@ Shadowfax2009 - ther's the simple decision you have to make :

If you want unmatched performance then go for core i7 rig ( no amd rig can give performance neck to neck to core i7 rig )

If you wants extreme value & comparable performance ( get performance for every penny you paid ) then opt for amd based rig. The huge plus point is that you don't have to spend a fortune to get a good OC capable mobo for amd. You can get them in 5-8K range.In general AMD phenom based rig can be compared with intel Q9xxx series but you just can not compare a phenom with core i7 in terms of just pure performance.

PS : I've no intention to flame amd

Muy suggestion : opt for intel core i7 based rig with those OCZ 1800Mhz ram . Later on buy a good HSF & OC the proc & ram to extreme level
For mobo if you want to OC beyond say 4Ghz then opt for EVGA. It's just mobo which is OCErs dream. If you want something a little bit less OC capable say 3.8Ghz - 3.9Ghz then get gigabyte x58 UD5.

[desiibond]

@shadowfax,

Thanks to AMD's new X4 955 processor, time has come to think twice before buying core i7. But still, one thing that I noticed is that core i7 still has edge in gaming at or above FullHD. Go for core i7 based rig now. I saw that MSI X58 Pro is selling for 12k and X58 Platinum for 14k in lynx-india. take a look at these boards.

Also add one good Dolby/dts sound card like creative X-Fi or ASUS Xonar.

[Krow]

Originally Posted by asigh

Hey..I really liked this write up....

Even I believe...at least in today's scenario a good robust single GPU solution is better than SLI/X-fire. Games still are not optimized for dual GPU's...many games dont even recognize a second card, and the second unit goes to waste..!

Yea...and modular supplies are the in thing now. I just put my new system together..and was kind of shocked to see the cable clutter on my Corsair TX650. Wish I had invested a bit more, and picked up a modular supply.

Thanks man. But u gotta acknowledge some of the more knowledgeable members here. They dont mock the noob, rather, they acknowledge the fact that todays noob is 2mrw's geek.

@ Shadowfax2009 If u want to game, then get AMD as it is the one u cn keep pimping every now and then and keep playing the latest games @ max res! It'll help u save a lot of money for the GFX when u next upgrade! If u r into video encoding, editing, 3D modelling, max, maya, etc, Get i7. If u r into buying just for OCing, then its upto u what u wanna showcase. I suppose i7 will give u a higher pcmark score than phenom II at a lower clock, but Phenom II is going to give u a higher clock at colder temperatures ~ -230 deg cel. That is if u r gonna get Liquid Nitrogen and stuff like that. For OCing, get at least a 1000W SMPS as u always want to have a lil' bit of headroom. A lesser SMPS could lead to a lot of regrets especially if u r gonna clock ur CPU above 4GHz! And one more thing, the Phenom II's power consumption becomes very high when OC'd and yet it wont give u cinebench scores very higher than the Core i7. So, buy Phenom for Gaming & buy i7 for benchmarking/video encoding. Please state what is ur primary need. Then u cn choose with glee. At the end of the day, whatever u buy is gonna be burning a hole in ur pocket, hence, all we can do is choose what's more worth the money! Cheers!

[damngoodman999]

@ Shadowfax2009

Now im gona say wat all of them says , if u really want stick with stock performance then ur cOREi7 but if u r a hardcore gamer or geek/Enthusiast then u can go for AMD rig cause gamers always really on the overclocking & budget rig they push themselves the rig to be more powerful .

As last year u see many of them bought E8400/E8500 from intel which is quad core processor which is Gr8 overclocker & best of gaming till now many of them dont see the Quadcore performance , still now E8400 can be Overclockable to 4gHZ & above many of Hardcore gamers use now .

Keep in mind Corei7 920 is not Overclocking processor , u can only overclock up to 3.2 on air

[Krow]

Originally Posted by damngoodman999

@ Shadowfax2009

Now im gona say wat all of them says , if u really want stick with stock performance then ur cOREi7 but if u r a hardcore gamer or geek/Enthusiast then u can go for AMD rig cause gamers always really on the overclocking & budget rig they push themselves the rig to be more powerful .

As last year u see many of them bought E8400/E8500 from intel which is quad core processor which is Gr8 overclocker & best of gaming till now many of them dont see the Quadcore performance , still now E8400 can be Overclockable to 4gHZ & above many of Hardcore gamers use now .

Keep in mind Corei7 920 is not Overclocking processor , u can only overclock up to 3.2 on air

Isnt E8400/8500 a Core 2 DUO 3/3.16GHz???

[damngoodman999]

^^ thats right its a core2duo , in 2008 it made the gamer delight