Advice on Building Comp

T

ts404

New Member
Hello,

I'm looking on doing some upgrading. I'm using my computer for long and heavy competitive gameplay such as Left 4 Dead 2, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and the new Final Fantasy 14 that is coming out later this year. (the game looks like a huge resource piggy)

With that being said I'd like to also point out that with my current build I am experiencing the occasional BSOD, freezes in-game, and Black Screens. I ran some stress tests for my vid-card but it did alright. It may be a cooling issue, and for the BSOD I'm thinking my ram is damaged? But anyways, I'll leave the guesses to the pros.

My current setup is...

Machine name: BLACKMONSTER
Operating System: Windows XP Professional (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 3 (2600.xpsp_sp3_gdr.100216-1514)
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: System manufacturer
System Model: System Product Name
BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG
Processor: AMD Athlon(tm) 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 6000+, MMX, 3DNow (2 CPUs), ~3.0GHz
Memory: 2046MB RAM
Page File: 781MB used, 3156MB available
Windows Dir: C:\WINDOWS
DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0c (4.09.0000.0904)
DX Setup Parameters: Not found
DxDiag Version: 5.03.2600.5512 32bit Unicode

Card name: NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS
Manufacturer: NVIDIA
Chip type: GeForce 8800 GTS
DAC type: Integrated RAMDAC
Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_0193&SUBSYS_228919F1&REV_A2
Display Memory: 640.0 MB
Current Mode: 1680 x 1050 (32 bit) (60Hz)
Monitor: Plug and Play Monitor
Monitor Max Res: 1600,1200
Driver Name: nv4_disp.dll
Driver Version: 6.14.0011.9062 (English)

If you need any other information let me know!

My budget is around $700 CDN ($680 USD roughly)

Here are some pics of my setup:

Layout


Motherboard


Ram Details


PSU Details


My Thoughts

I'm debating wither I should go with another GeForce 8800 or to buy a new videocard. If I go with another 8800 I'll probably need a riser card. But even with that I don't know if even that will work. I really do not have a whole lot of space between the PSU and the GPU slots (refer to the Layout pic) :(

I guess I'll have to get a new GPU all together?

So much for SLI...

Also I'd like to hit around 4g ram (what do you all think I will need for the games coming out for the next 2 ish years?)

I'm going to need a 2TB HD (this is a must)

Do I need additional cooling?

Thanks for all the help!

Please let me know if any of you need any additional information.

Thanks a whole bunch everyone. :)
 
Your pix server appears malicious. :eek:

An intrusion attempt by www1.softhelper10.com was blocked
Risk Name: HTTP Fake Scan Webpage 5
Attacking Computer: www1.softhelper10.com (209.212.149.17,)

Edit, Strange, Now when I click on the link it's fine, Only happened the first time when I clicked on the first picture.
Anyway I know imageshack's OK, maybe just a coincidence that it happened when I clicked on the link.
 
Last edited:
jevery said:
Your pix server appears malicious. :eek:

An intrusion attempt by www1.softhelper10.com was blocked
Risk Name: HTTP Fake Scan Webpage 5
Attacking Computer: www1.softhelper10.com (209.212.149.17,)

Edit, Strange, Now when I click on the link it's fine, Only happened the first time when I clicked on the first picture.
Anyway I know imageshack's OK, maybe just a coincidence that it happened when I clicked on the link.
Click to expand...

Woah that is odd. I assure you, even if I wanted to I have no idea how to do anything malicious to anyone lol

Isn't the blue slot at the top a PCI-e slot?
Click to expand...

I really don't know but I will check...

What is your mobo model?
Click to expand...

ASUS M2N32 - SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
 
Alright, after some searching on Google I found a diagram of my mobo :D

MOBO Diagram



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

It does look like I have 2 PCIe slots :eek:

Thanks for the reply's!
 
It looks to me that your second PCIe-16 slot is occupied by your existing GPU leaving the primary slot above it available for a second 8800 in SLI. The MB obviously supports SLI.



If I were you, I'd pick up a second 8800 GTS off ebay and SLI it, put in a larger HDD, and buy an OEM copy of windows 7. I'm guessing your Antec 650 PSU would be OK with a second 8800.
 
jevery said:
It looks to me that your second PCIe-16 slot is occupied by your existing GPU leaving the primary slot above it available for a second 8800 in SLI. The MB obviously supports SLI.



If I were you, I'd pick up a second 8800 GTS off ebay and SLI it, put in a larger HDD, and buy an OEM copy of windows 7. I'm guessing your Antec 650 PSU would be OK with a second 8800.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply jevery, up until today I didn't even know that was another available slot! Haha, :P

So if I get that other video card I just have to plug it in and it'll work? I heard about bridging video cards for the comp to work with both. Or is it that SLI automatically bridges the video cards?
 
i honestly wouldnt bother with sli, id just get a more efficient gpu, like a radeon 5xxx series, dust the case...the fan appears to have some on it... i have two cards, honestly i feel its a waste of time, only thing it is doing is giving me a card to fold on as i play games... 5850 idles at 20ish watts...which is quite incredibly cool, would probably save on power bills, if thats a factor in the purchase
 
There is a choice to be made. Looks like an 8800 GTS could be had for around $50 used on ebay. A pair in SLI benchmarks 3DMark06 at about 22,700. He would have to have more than a 5850 to match that particular benchmark (5850 = 21,950). So a 5870 would be needed for a really noticeable gain over the 8800 SLI.

Bang for the buck, get another 8800 for now, and plan on using it for another year or so. Not much $ and a significant gain in GPU power, BUT no upgrade path - When you need more power, toss it in the trash and start over, or

Plan for the future, get a 5850 now. A lot more $, but you can take it to your next build - in CrossFire if you like.
 
Ah! Hey guys, thanks for all the replies. Actually my computer died a couple days ago! Sorry I haven't been able to get into these forums, but this thread is not dead.

I had a problem with my monitor not getting a signal, I went through so many fixes and finally it was because the thermal gel on the cpu had eroded away. I replaced it myself (haha, I feel techy!) and everything is working again!

Alright so getting back to the subject. I think I will definatly go with bridging the 8800's. But my question is, do I need the EXACT same video card? Because I was looking it up the other day and I was having major difficulties trying to find my exact card. Also my card seems to still be going for around $180! I was thinking it would be a cheap $100 or less. If anyone can help me cross reference this I would greatly appreciate it!

I noticed that there are two different colors for my vid card, one is a green chip board and the other is black. I think one is a special edition or something. But the main thing I need to know is if I need the EXACT same card in order for this bridging to work.

I'm going to make this post and shut my comp off and take pics of my vid card and post them.

Thanks for all the help!
 
I think you shouldn't go buying a second same card, you should go for just one single card, that is good, like maybe a Sapphire 5870 Vapor-X.
 
makd said:
looking for a decent buy, what you think of this pc:

http://mocustoms.co.uk/am-470i.html
Click to expand...

Appreciate the link, and the comp looks pretty good! However after jevery's advice:

There is a choice to be made. Looks like an 8800 GTS could be had for around $50 used on ebay. A pair in SLI benchmarks 3DMark06 at about 22,700. He would have to have more than a 5850 to match that particular benchmark (5850 = 21,950). So a 5870 would be needed for a really noticeable gain over the 8800 SLI.

Bang for the buck, get another 8800 for now, and plan on using it for another year or so. Not much $ and a significant gain in GPU power, BUT no upgrade path - When you need more power, toss it in the trash and start over, or

Plan for the future, get a 5850 now. A lot more $, but you can take it to your next build - in CrossFire if you like.
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure my most economical solution would be another 8800 for now.

Also after I upgrade the ram and HD I think my comp would be in pretty good condition for the next gen games.

It doesn't have to be exact, it only needs to be another 8800 GTS.

http://www.slizone.com/page/slizone_faq.html#c16
Click to expand...

Thanks again for the great advice jevery :D

I was checking my motherboard box (I tend to keep all my boxes :P) and I even found one of those bridging things! So I think I'm in pretty good shape for my upgrades.

My next question is about ram. I've been doing some research on which brand to go with and I've read that crucial, mushkin, ocz, and gskill seem to be the top brands. What do you guys think?

I found this information in my manual:

The motherboard comes with 4 double data rate 2 dual inline memory module sockets.

Does that mean I can only use DDR2 memory sticks? Also do all memory sticks have to be the same DDR2 DIMM's?
 
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