Capo Posted September 4, 2009 Posted September 4, 2009 (edited) Hi All, I'm looking for a good design for a "low-end" (relatively speaking) i7 build. Parts needed are case, psu, cpu, mobo, ram, video card, hard-drive(s). Can such a system be built (preferably with a video card AT LEAST as strong as a 4890) for around 1200? I assume the i7 920 would be the only potential option? Is that proc still "the best" at its price point or is there an AMD counterpart at that price which is faster? Whether it can be done at price point or not, I'd love to see a good low to mid end i7 build, if anyone has one laying around... Edited September 4, 2009 by Capo Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizzlenitch Posted September 4, 2009 Posted September 4, 2009 What are you going to be doing with the i7 system? The system you have is pretty powerful as is if you're just gaming and such. Depending on what you use your systems for it might be more beneficial to spend less money on, say, a graphics card. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
rourkchris Posted September 4, 2009 Posted September 4, 2009 (edited) It can be done with pretty decent parts. This is very similar to one I built recently(minus the case) without too much compromise. i7 920 $279.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16819115202 Mushkin DDR3 1600 6-7-6-18 $199.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820226050 Asus Rampage II GENE $219.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813131371 WD Caviar Black 1TB $94.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16822136284 Sapphire Vapor-X 4890 $219.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16814102841 Corsair 750 watt Power supply $109.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16817139006 with enough power and connectors to add a 2nd 4890 if you want Cooler Master Storm Scout $89.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16811119196 Total $1214.93. You could save a lot by going to MicroCenter and buying the processor there for $80 cheaper. This alone would allow for an aftermarket heatsink of high quality and allow for significant overclocking and lower temps. Different brand/lower speed of RAM would be cheaper. You could save on a different motherboard, case, smaller HDD, different video card, or lower wattage power supply. $1200 is a good budget for an i7 system. You could do it for significantly less. This build to me doesn't feel low end at all. Edited September 4, 2009 by rourkchris Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
N.E.A Posted September 4, 2009 Posted September 4, 2009 (edited) It can be done with pretty decent parts. This is very similar to one I built recently(minus the case) without too much compromise. i7 920 $279.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16819115202 Mushkin DDR3 1600 6-7-6-18 $199.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820226050 Asus Rampage II GENE $219.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813131371 WD Caviar Black 1TB $94.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16822136284 Sapphire Vapor-X 4890 $219.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16814102841 Corsair 750 watt Power supply $109.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16817139006 with enough power and connectors to add a 2nd 4890 if you want Cooler Master Storm Scout $89.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16811119196 Total $1214.93. You could save a lot by going to MicroCenter and buying the processor there for $80 cheaper. This alone would allow for an aftermarket heatsink of high quality and allow for significant overclocking and lower temps. Different brand/lower speed of RAM would be cheaper. You could save on a different motherboard, case, smaller HDD, different video card, or lower wattage power supply. $1200 is a good budget for an i7 system. You could do it for significantly less. This build to me doesn't feel low end at all. if he is going with ATI then http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813130226 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813128375 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813188051 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813186161 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813130227 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...82E16813131365R you can get amd build which will give the same performance in gaming but it will be high end stuff what do you say http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813128398 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813130223 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813131363 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813128377 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16813131392 these are very very high end boards now for the cpu http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16819103674 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16819103649 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16819103692 they are blacks the same psu , and case and every thing else except for the ram http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList....84%20x%202GB%29 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820227286 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820231259 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820104141 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820104142 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820227320 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820146871 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820145200 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16820145264 and you can get a far better card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16814102852 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16814121308 this is the best 4890 or you can get 2 and run cross fire and for that a 750 w is good for this build you have the options you can pick any one but i would stick with AMD good luck ...................................................... Edited September 4, 2009 by N.E.A Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Smith Posted September 4, 2009 Posted September 4, 2009 Yeah, in games the X4 965 is far better than the 920. With the money saved you could get a second video card, which will show quite an increase in performance, depending on your resolution. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ccokeman Posted September 5, 2009 Posted September 5, 2009 If you are interested I have a motherboard and a video card that work well within your cost constraints and help you get lower than the 1200 build price. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capo Posted September 5, 2009 Posted September 5, 2009 Thanks for the info all. I would appreciate some more info on whether an AMD or an Intel i7 build would be better for gaming and longevity at this 1200 price point? I was under the assumption that once you got into the i7 world, AMD struggled to compare. Are there newer chips on par or better than them now? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
N.E.A Posted September 5, 2009 Posted September 5, 2009 Thanks for the info all. I would appreciate some more info on whether an AMD or an Intel i7 build would be better for gaming and longevity at this 1200 price point? I was under the assumption that once you got into the i7 world, AMD struggled to compare. Are there newer chips on par or better than them now? for this budget AMD is better for you , x4 965 is very good like Mr smith said he says it is better than the 920 :angry2: ( should have got one instead of 920 ) and you can get another card and that will be much better than i7 + one card as i always say : ( two is better than one ) and besides with this budget you will build a high end amd system , but with i7 ............. GO FOR AMD AND WILL NOT REGRET THIS , and i may add that you can overclock it easier than the i7 since it is a black edition ......... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capo Posted September 5, 2009 Posted September 5, 2009 Ok, so let's say I go with an AMD system... for the longevity of the system, would it better to get 2 4890s or would it be better to go with on top end Nvidia card? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulktreg Posted September 5, 2009 Posted September 5, 2009 What is the resolution of your monitor? There is no point in spending a small fortune on graphics cards if you can't use them to their full potential! Cheers Paul Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capo Posted September 6, 2009 Posted September 6, 2009 What is the resolution of your monitor? There is no point in spending a small fortune on graphics cards if you can't use them to their full potential! Cheers Paul This system will be used on a 24" monitor with a native resolution of 1920x, I believe. However, this is a build for someone who wants the thing to last as long as possible and im not sure of his ability to upgrade it himself in the future, that being said, a little overkill is OK if it extends the life... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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