Feedback On My Computer Build

[Kagrath]

It's time for an upgrade. I've got 700$ to blow (or will soon enough) and I need a little help with my rig. If anyone has a better build for the buck please post it.

Graphics Card: XFX HD-487A-ZHFC Radeon HD 4870- $149.99
-http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150394

CPU: AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz Tripple Core- $119.00
-http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103649

Or
(Ethereal)
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E7400 Wolfdale 2.8GHz Dual Core- $119.00
-http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115206

Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-MA790X-UD4P- $109.99
-http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128387&Tpk=GA-MA790X-UD4P

Or
(Ethereal)
Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3R- $119.99
-http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128359

Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar 640GB 7200rpm- $69.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136218

-EDIT-
Memory: 4GB DDR2 800- $46.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227420

Optical Drive: SAMSUNG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner- $27.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151173

Tower: COOLER MASTER Centurion 5- $49.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119068

-EDIT- (Thank you RAKtheUndead)
Power Supply: CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W- $99.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005



Total: $671 not including shipping

Thanks in advance guys.

 

[mcx]

It's a pretty good build IMO, not the best but you won't run in to any problem if you are going to play any newer games.

 

[Inconnu24]

My only suggestion is that you can get DDR2 1066 RAM for literally a few more dollars. Your chosen board will support it.

 

[TMAN10112]

Very nice.

Are you planning on getting any additional GPU or CPU cooling?

 

[SomeGuyNamedKy]

My vote is for getting a dual-core processor. Many programs, even games, won't support multi-core, at least you can get a faster core for a lower price.

 

[flare09]

Go for the quad core if you're getting more than 2.

 

[Kagrath]

Very nice.

Are you planning on getting any additional GPU or CPU cooling?

I'm going to see how hot it runs at first and then decide. What kind of cooling would you suggest?

 

[The Political Gamer]

I would do some replacements:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128332 - Motherboard with free 4GB ram
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130469 - 1GB Graphics card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115017 - Quad core

 

[Vek]

Don't get an AM2/2+/3 mobo. Get a DDR3 mobo, like this GIGABYTE GA-MA790XT-UD4P [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128378]. It's AM3 only, with DDR3 1333 support, a better north and south bridge, and it's only $30 more.

As to your power supply:
The minimum recommended PSU wattage for the 4870 is a 500. I just ordered myself a new comp, with a Phenom II X4 955, a 4870, and grabbed myself a 750W. I'd say at least go 600W on your PSU. In my experience, as well, Antec, Cooler Master, and Zalman make the best power supplies.

 

[Kagrath]

What's the use of a Quad Core? I understand that it's "better" but is it better for gaming? From what I've read (in articles over the net mind you) they're more useful to things like photo editing and such. Will a Quad be useful or should I just go for a 3.0 dual? And remember, 700$(ish) limit.

 

[TMAN10112]

Very nice.

Are you planning on getting any additional GPU or CPU cooling?

I'm going to see how hot it runs at first and then decide. What kind of cooling would you suggest?

Will you be overclocking it any time soon?

 

[thiosk]

From a voracious consumer of intel and nvidia products,

build a core i7 build instead.

that is all

 

[Ethereal]

It is good. It will certainly work. But improvements could be made.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115206 <-- A cheap, and modest processor. As for quad/tri cores, a lot of games haven't taken full advantage of them yet so you will actually get better performance from a dual core. Also, This particular CPU is a great overclock er if you ever wish to dabble with that.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128359<-- A damn fine motherboard that has everything you need and nothing you don't.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227420<--- Great pair of memory sticks. They have a CAS latency of 4 (The G.Skill's in your's had a 5) which means it will be a tad bit faster. Again, if you ever feel the need to overclock these, they have a great heatspreader and will not disappoint.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139004<---- A PSU is something you DEFINITELY don't want to cheap out on. It is the only part that could destroy your entire computer if it doesn't work right. Also PSU advances are not as quick as other PC Hardware, so this is the one part you might be using for a while. I've had this particular PSU myself for 3 years in a build similar to this. ZERO issues.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150395 <---- The card you choose was a great choice. However, it is out of stock, and this seems to be the same one except with an overclock.

Your Case, DVD drive, and Hard Drive are good choices so I would keep those.
In the end it should come down to
$699.92
Just under your budget, but trust me these changes are worth it.

 

[Kagrath]

Very nice.

Are you planning on getting any additional GPU or CPU cooling?

I'm going to see how hot it runs at first and then decide. What kind of cooling would you suggest?

Will you be overclocking it any time soon?

I'll probably try it after I've gotten the rig together and all the bugs worked out. And after I've read up on it more.

 

[Horticulture]

snip

Looks pretty good to me, overall. The only suggestion I have is swapping the motherboard for an AM3 model like one of DDR3 [http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813186168], but it's only a few bucks more. Using a newer socket and RAM should make upgrades cheaper and more accessible in the future.

 

[Ethereal]

What's the use of a Quad Core? I understand that it's "better" but is it better for gaming? From what I've read (in articles over the net mind you) they're more useful to things like photo editing and such. Will a Quad be useful or should I just go for a 3.0 dual? And remember, 700$(ish) limit.

They're developing games that will be optimised for quad-core processors; indeed, the recent title, ArmA 2, seems to work much better on a quad-core than a dual-core processor.

Actually one of the lead programmers said that performance wise if you have similarly clocked Dual/Quad Cores, than the Quad core will offer better performance. However, seeing as how Quad Cores tend to be slower and more expensive per clock than Dual Cores, it might just be a better buy to spend that same amount on a faster dual core and achieve better performance. This will also be the issue with a lot more games to come I assure you.

 

[Kagrath]

One of the reviews for the Intel Dual Core claimed to have over clocked it to 4.2, seems like a massive upgrade from the AMD I was looking at. How to AMD fair in the overclocking department?

 

[Horticulture]

One of the reviews for the Intel Dual Core claimed to have over clocked it to 4.2, seems like a massive upgrade from the AMD I was looking at. How to AMD fair in the overclocking department?

http://xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/display/amd-phenom-ii-x3-720_11.html#sect0

3.6-3.8 seems about typical from what I've seen and heard for the Phenom. The small performance advantage for the Phenom in that test most likely comes from the extra core (2 extra cores if you get a chip with an unlockable 4th core), cache, and on-die memory controller.