$4000

[Ste]

Im thinking he will spend the extra cash on a Really Nice Case and a Really Really Nice Widescreen Moniter. Maybe a 21 Inch or bigger.

 

Obviously he can get all the Main parts for under 2.5 Grand (Or even 2.8) and its going to be a hardcore gamming system. But Like I said He can use the rest of the cash for 2 items that will last a long time. Uber case and Uber Moniter.

[ClayMeow]

I'd suggest getting rid of the second GTX. I guarantee you that if you buy one and give it an honest shot, you'll see absolutely no need for a second. It will simplify your configuration drastically, as well as save you money and reduce your power needs.

Although it'd be GREAT to be able to say you have dual 8800gtx's, seeing as ONE 8800gtx handily beats every single other card on the market, and even beats the best SLI and Crossfire configurations in some tests....I think you can hold off on buying a second one

[Verran]

evga 122-ck-nf68-ar mobo

evga 8800gtx (x2)

intel core 2 duo x6800

4gb corsair twin2x2048-6400

plextor px-755sa

Tagan 900 watt ps

just pc r900 case

seagate barracuda 7200.10 320 gb

and you probably won't use even 2 cores of the quad core

If you read his original post, he's NOT getting a quad-core. That was brought up by someone else. All the responses about quad-cores were to that other person, and not the OP.

and you probably won't use 4 gigs of RAM. Let me just say, this computer will get all the chicks in your pants...............

4 gigs of ram isn't that crazy really. I agree that for most purposes 2gb will serve you just fine, but it wasn't that long ago that people were saying 2gb was stupid. If you're planning to run Vista, I don't think 4gb is really that crazy. Plus, different people are on different budgets. Yeah, $4k is a lot of money to me and you, but to others that's really not that much. There are plenty of people who make enough money where $4k is not out of the question. If you're at that point, I think 4gb isn't really that 'ridiculous'. I do, however, still think that two 8800gtx's is just a waste of $650.

[Makaveli]

I do, however, still think that two 8800gtx's is just a waste of $650.

 

Amen.

 

But hey, let's hear what you plan on doing with this computer? If you tell us what you want to do with this system, we can perhaps tailor you a better computer for your needs.

[l2003coatl]

theres mainly only two graphics intensive programs that i plan on running(im sure i will add more) but the two are flight simulator x, and solidworks, the solidworks is the reason i was thinking of 4 gigs of ram and the two cards

[Verran]

Well those are two very good reasons to go with 4gb and mega-graphics. I think 4gb is probably a smart move, but I still think you should just get the 1 8800GTX and see what you think. You can always add another if you think you need it, but the 8800GTX is a mean machine, and you might be surprised what a single card can do. Really though, it just boils down to whether the $650 is important to you. If it's no big deal, then I guess just go with 2 and don't look back.

 

Also, on that kind of budget, I think you'd be crazy not to get at least one WD Raptor drive, or maybe even multiple in a RAID-0 config.

[ClayMeow]

theres mainly only two graphics intensive programs that i plan on running(im sure i will add more) but the two are flight simulator x, and solidworks, the solidworks is the reason i was thinking of 4 gigs of ram and the two cards

One thing to keep in mind is that the geforce series isn't optimized for Solidworks. You can see their testing here. I don't know the extent to which you use the program though, and the 8800gtx will definitely help for FSX, esp. when DX10 is available.

[Makaveli]

About the 8800GTXs, I've heard that they run extremely hot, around 80C under load. Does your case have good airflow for 2 of these? Do you have water cooling? You may want to consider these questions.

[Verran]

Watercooling GPUs is pretty much overkill unless you plan to do some HEAVY overclocking on them. And as far as temperatures, I wouldn't actually worry that much. Thankfully, nVidia has finally changed their reference cooler design to exhaust the hot air out the back of the case. A friend of mine just got an eVGA 8800GTX and the temps are very reasonable on the stock cooler (no more than 65c full load). They may seem hot, but remember that most GPUs are rated to run at 130c+ before they have problems. Honestly, I'd be more concerned with size 10.5 inches is a big boy.

[hardnrg]

10.5 inches is a big boy.

lol

 

the only limitation that is listed for the NV7 series is

 

Limited number of accelerated windows. Amount of video memory determines the number. If 64M - 128M of memory, 3-12 accelerated full screen windows.

 

but 2x768MB = 1536MB... so i think you might be ok with the full screen window limitation (144 full screen windows if you go by 128M=12 windows)

 

there are a number of features of the Quadro cards that you may or may not need for SolidWorks... it really depends on what you are doing... so you might want to consult the lead draughtsman or design engineer that already uses SolidWorks... or possibly contact Solidworks themselves...

 

i do limited 3D modelling using 3DSMax and Maya, but i don't need the specialised features of Quadro / FireGL / Wildcat or w/e cards... and i'd rather have maximum game performance... it all boils down to how hardcore are you in SolidWorks

[ClayMeow]

Watercooling GPUs is pretty much overkill unless you plan to do some HEAVY overclocking on them.

Not at all. I WC my gpu and I don't OC it (though it's technically pre-OC'd). Lower temps are always better and it aids with the overall system temp. The other reason I got it was for less noise.

 

I think for most WC'ers, they have cpu and gpu blocks.

[Savan]

I water cooled my GPU and got an extra 700 points in 3Dmark05 over stock cooling OC'd