You were just given $850

[RimX]

You have the idea, basically you're right. amd will get the job done for less $, so you can up your graphics. Intel gives you more headroom in the event you feel like pushing the envelope. the downside of that in this instance, is that you get less graphics and shop harder to stay on budget...

for instance, micro center has the core i7 930 for 199.99 walk-in which essentially gives you about $30 more dollars for graphics, etc...

if you were to choose the best of everyone's builds you would probably over shoot your budget some because it would be the best stuff. i think most of us shaved off a little bit here and there to make the budget work...

 

That, and when it comes down to it, personal preference. Personally, I would always spend the extra and buy Intel, but that is mainly because I've always had Intel chips and have had good luck with them. But that's not to say that AMD is a bad choice, like has been said you can buy an AMD for less and still get the job done.

 

The same can pretty much be said for the nVidia or ATI choice, at the resolutions that most people play games at the performance and quality will be pretty much the same. Besides personal preference, the determining factors here are features that one brand has over the other. Like TheHippi said ATI has eyefinity, nVidia has CUDA and physics.

Edited October 28, 2010 by RimX

[TEK_Speedy]

I think down to the wire, it really depends on the GPU solution. As long as the CPU and memory don't bottleneck the GPU(s) you should be fine.

 

So, whats the best out of the following? By best I mean, can you put them in order of best to not best?

 

2x6850 (650w psu?)

1x6870

1xGTX470

2xGTX460 (650w psu?)

 

I would just assume, find the best GPU solution, and pinch every bit of whats left on decent RAM and a CPU? Maybe it wasn't the best idea to ask for personal preference in everything. I know when a lot of people ask how to build their computer, something that comes up is 'What do you want it to do exactly?" Well, for $870, I want to be able to ensure my FPS is as high as it can possibly be in any game, preferably on the highest settings with at least 2xAA.

 

Then again, I've also been told, going with an i7 and a 6870 is a good platform for upgrading down the road. Just buy a newer GPU when I get the funds, and it will go into an already nice build.

Edited October 28, 2010 by TEK_Speedy

[El_Capitan]

I think down to the wire, it really depends on the GPU solution. As long as the CPU and memory don't bottleneck the GPU(s) you should be fine.

 

So, whats the best out of the following? By best I mean, can you put them in order of best to not best?

 

2x6850 (650w psu?)

1x6870

1xGTX470

2xGTX460 (650w psu?)

 

I would just assume, find the best GPU solution, and pinch every bit of whats left on decent RAM and a CPU? Maybe it wasn't the best idea to ask for personal preference in everything. I know when a lot of people ask how to build their computer, something that comes up is 'What do you want it to do exactly?" Well, for $870, I want to be able to ensure my FPS is as high as it can possibly be in any game, preferably on the highest settings with at least 2xAA.

 

Then again, I've also been told, going with an i7 and a 6870 is a good platform for upgrading down the road. Just buy a newer GPU when I get the funds, and it will go into an already nice build.

2xGTX4601GB comes first if you count overclocking. There's a Gigabyte combo that's $359 with a $40 MIR, making it the cheaper than the 2x6850. The 2x6850 isn't bad either, just not as fast as the 2xGTX4601GB. A 650w PSU should handle it, but it's cutting it close. You're looking at close to a 445w draw for 2xGTX4601GB overclocked.

[TEK_Speedy]

2xGTX4601GB comes first if you count overclocking. There's a Gigabyte combo that's $359 with a $40 MIR, making it the cheaper than the 2x6850. The 2x6850 isn't bad either, just not as fast as the 2xGTX4601GB. A 650w PSU should handle it, but it's cutting it close. You're looking at close to a 445w draw for 2xGTX4601GB overclocked.

 

Well, as for the budget, probably not realistic to get 2x460's if their power draw is that high. Probably better off with 6850's, I hear their power draw is a little bit lower. As for my question though, are 2x6850's better than a single 6870? I'm not even talking about upgrades in the future for this question, I mean as is, which is better?

 

EDIT: http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1445/7/

 

Seems dual 6850s is faster than a single 6870.

Edited October 28, 2010 by TEK_Speedy

[El_Capitan]

Well, as for the budget, probably not realistic to get 2x460's if their power draw is that high. Probably better off with 6850's, I hear their power draw is a little bit lower. As for my question though, are 2x6850's better than a single 6870? I'm not even talking about upgrades in the future for this question, I mean as is, which is better?

The power draw on overclocked 2x6850's is around 350w, so 150w better than the 2x460 1GB's overclocked. It also depends on the brand, I'm putting up approximate numbers. No doubt about it, 2x6850's overclocked are better than a single 6870. They're also only 2-4FPS behind 2x6870's overclocked in 1920 x 1200 resolutions with 8xAA or 4xAA.

[cjloki]

Well, as for the budget, probably not realistic to get 2x460's if their power draw is that high. Probably better off with 6850's, I hear their power draw is a little bit lower. As for my question though, are 2x6850's better than a single 6870? I'm not even talking about upgrades in the future for this question, I mean as is, which is better?

 

EDIT: http://www.legitrevi...article/1445/7/

 

Seems dual 6850s is faster than a single 6870.

 

650 watts on the gaming build you're envisioning is cutting it pretty close.

i would definately be looking at 750 watts

300-350 gpu/s

100-150 mobo/hard drives/memory/peripherials

100-150 cpu

ballpark figures alone suggest 750 will give a little breathing room ....

[IVIYTH0S]

Did anyone even look at my build

[El_Capitan]

Did anyone even look at my build

We've learned to ignore you.

 

Seriously, a GTX 295? That's so 2009.

[TEK_Speedy]

While I may not have taken everyone's suggestions directly, the entire experience overall has provided great input. Through these times, I've been able to open my eyes more, see more benchmarks, and understand the tech better.

 

Here is the final build: (Some parts of the build are on a separate budget and could not be given towards the budget for the internal components, thus why in this post I was specifically looking at CPU/Mobo/GPU/PSU/Ram)

 

Keyboard/Mouse/Hard Drive not listed, too general.

ASUS VE276Q Black 27" 1920X1080 2ms Full HD HDMI Widescreen LCD Monitor

Microsoft Windows 7 Family Pack/ Home Premium Upgrade

LIAN LI Lancool PC-K7B Black Aluminum/ SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

Intel Core i7-950 Bloomfield 3.06GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor

GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory

2x SAPPHIRE 100315L Radeon HD 6850 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity

CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply

 

Thank you oodles for your help. I was very tempted to go AMD, however I figured I could go i7, and only get one Radeon 6850 for now, and buy another one later.

Edited October 28, 2010 by TEK_Speedy

[IVIYTH0S]

We've learned to ignore you.

 

Seriously, a GTX 295? That's so 2009.

And I bet it it's 470 or better performance

That's why they're afraid to put the 4870x2 or 295's in newer benchmarks, they'd do just as good and I found a 4870x2 for $135 the other day.

 

While I may not have taken everyone's suggestions directly, the entire experience overall has provided great input. Through these times, I've been able to open my eyes more, see more benchmarks, and understand the tech better.

 

Here is the final build: (Some parts of the build are on a separate budget and could not be given towards the budget for the internal components, thus why in this post I was specifically looking at CPU/Mobo/GPU/PSU/Ram)

 

Keyboard/Mouse/Hard Drive not listed, too general.

ASUS VE276Q Black 27" 1920X1080 2ms Full HD HDMI Widescreen LCD Monitor

Microsoft Windows 7 Family Pack/ Home Premium Upgrade

LIAN LI Lancool PC-K7B Black Aluminum/ SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

Intel Core i7-950 Bloomfield 3.06GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor

GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory

2x SAPPHIRE 100315L Radeon HD 6850 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity

CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply

 

Thank you oodles for your help. I was very tempted to go AMD, however I figured I could go i7, and only get one Radeon 6850 for now, and buy another one later.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226155&cm_re=mushkin_silverline_3_x_2gb-_-20-226-155-_-Product better mem for a bit more.

and honestly, you don't know what the 6900's will bring to the table so get this: http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1551166 (4870x2 for $135)

then down the road you could get a single 6950 or 6970 while breaking even in the sale of the 4870x2

[IVIYTH0S]

DOUBLE POST!

[MercuryDoun]

Unless newegg has some super sick combo paired with that i7-950 make sure you buy that at www.microcenter.com, its only $230.