My first gaming computer build.

Bodaggit23 said:
Why would you think an Athlon II will outperform a Phenom II?
Click to expand...

Aastii said:
2 extra cores, which in CSS, won't make a difference, but then a single core CPU can max it, but in WoW, it will make a heck of a difference, especially when cata comes out. The Athlon II x4 would be better than the Phenom II x2
Click to expand...


@bodaggit, which one of you are more correct?

@jevery, i went with your suggestion on the 6850, had some promising reviews.

You have full confidence this motherboard?
ASUS M4A785TD-V EVO AM3 AMD 785G HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard?
 
hitmochan said:
@jevery, i went with your suggestion on the 6850, had some promising reviews.

You have full confidence this motherboard?
ASUS M4A785TD-V EVO AM3 AMD 785G HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard?
Click to expand...


I'm out of my element with AMD MBs, So I make no claim to expertise in that area. With AMD I look at popularity, ratings, and the criteria that is applicable to both Intel and AMD.

The MB I linked,

ASUS M4A785TD-V EVO AM3 AMD 785G HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...8&cm_re=M4A785TD-V_EVO-_-13-131-398-_-Product

Has onboard graphics which I usually would pass by, but it has good reviews and in addition to crossfire compatibility with 2 lanes at 16x, it also has hybrid compatibility - Meaning you can combine the onboard graphics with your AMD GPU of choice. Problem is the onboard graphics, HD4200, isn't DirectX 11 compliant, so would not be a viable enhancement to the 6850. I'm not sure about the whole hybrid crossfire thing anyway as I've never had a chance to try it.


Another one would consider if I was buying for myself,

ASUS M4A79XTD EVO AM3 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard, $94 w/Rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131402


or another step up

ASUS M4A79T Deluxe AM3 DDR3 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard, $120 w/Rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131363
 
Asrock has a pretty good 8x/8x board for the price:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157198

It's nothing special in terms of features, but it's a solid board...no quality issues.

jevery said:
I'm out of my element with AMD MBs, So I make no claim to expertise in that area. With AMD I look at popularity, ratings, and the criteria that is applicable to both Intel and AMD.

The MB I linked,

ASUS M4A785TD-V EVO AM3 AMD 785G HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...8&cm_re=M4A785TD-V_EVO-_-13-131-398-_-Product

Has onboard graphics which I usually would pass by, but it has good reviews and in addition to crossfire compatibility with 2 lanes at 16x, it also has hybrid compatibility - Meaning you can combine the onboard graphics with your AMD GPU of choice. Problem is the onboard graphics, HD4200, isn't DirectX 11 compliant, so would not be a viable enhancement to the 6850. I'm not sure about the whole hybrid crossfire thing anyway as I've never had a chance to try it.
Click to expand...
That board doesn't have 16x/16x. If you look in the details, one of them runs at x4, even though it's physically an x16. Only 790FX/890FX boards can do 16x/16x. Also, the HD4200 IGP is not capable of hybrid crossfire with anything more powerful than an HD3450, though the version in the 880G/890GX can do it with a 5450.
 
Last edited:
Yea, misread that. The Deluxe does support dual @ 16x, though, in reality I don't think the difference between 16 & 8x is detectable other than benchmarks. 16 & 4x, yea, wouldn't want to do that. Hell, I run a card in 8x just because it allows the upper card to run a few degrees cooler.
 
@ Drenlin that mobo you chose looks great ; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...-_-na&AID=10521304&PID=3952373&SID=ee3pio05l9

Heres part of a review of that mobo, Does this concern me?
"The only thing this board doesn't have that the ASUS M4A89GTD PRO/USB3 does, is:
a) IDE drive connection
b) one less SATA port for a total of 5 instead of 6
If you don't need either of those, BUY THIS board and save yourself some dough."


@ Bodaggit, your saying that the Phenom II, will have my computer as a whole run better? If so, ill grab that one..

Thank you guys, i appreciate your help, and the tolerance of my noobie-ness.
 
Last edited:
Yeah i just subscribed, but if im not planning on buying this for awhile, deals obviously only last so long, correct?
and do mail in rebates last for a few months?
 
hitmochan said:
@ Drenlin that mobo you chose looks great ; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...-_-na&AID=10521304&PID=3952373&SID=ee3pio05l9

Heres part of a review of that mobo, Does this concern me?
"The only thing this board doesn't have that the ASUS M4A89GTD PRO/USB3 does, is:
a) IDE drive connection
b) one less SATA port for a total of 5 instead of 6
If you don't need either of those, BUY THIS board and save yourself some dough."
Click to expand...

Compared to that motherboard it also lacks onboard graphics...which you shouldn't need. It's also $30 cheaper and uses a lower chipset, so you should expect to lose some features. It's darned good for an 870 board, though.

A) IDE is outdated, and most new systems don't use it. They left if off to keep the cost down. None of your drives are IDE so it's a non-issue.
B) The SATA 6GB/s ports are part of the southbridge, and there are 6 on every 870 board, but they moved the 6th one to the eSATA port on the rear. So instead of that 6th internal port that you'll probably never use, you have an external eSATA 6GB/s port.
 
Last edited:
hitmochan said:
Yeah i just subscribed, but if im not planning on buying this for awhile, deals obviously only last so long, correct?
and do mail in rebates last for a few months?
Click to expand...
combo's last a while, i think as long as they have the parts.
the norm is 30 days for rebates, but ive seen 60. you can see b4 you buy.
don't forget to register the components with the manuf., some void warranty if not registered in time.
here's another instance, for $5 more you could get 1600 ram
instead of 1333:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220436

or a combo for a psu that won't be cutting it close:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.549138
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top