What do you think of my new build?

[Reacon]

I'm going to be getting a new computer very soon and I thought I'd consult my friends at Neowin before I take the plunge and buy.

Here's the result of countless hours of research and browsing Newegg.

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWi...Number=10178426

I would've gone for a 1GB 4850, but unfortunately the cheap one went out of stock just a few days ago, so instead I went for a crossfire mobo with the x38 chipset for dual x16, so I may eventually get another card.

What I'm really skeptical on, is the PSU. Antec is a known brand and they make good quality PSUs, but I found a better deal on a brand I'm not too familiar with; Sigma.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16817226006

It looks very nice, but it has absolutely no reviews. Also, I'm concerned about its crossfire capabilities. It has a 6 pin and a 6+2 pin which clearly tells me it can support two cards, the wattage is definitely up to par, but it's not crossfire ready. Does it have to eb crossfire ready? Or is that just another marketing label like "Vista Capable". Plus, does anyone ever have any past experience with Sigma? I've never heard of them until now so I really have no clue as to how long their products last.

Advice welcome!

Edited January 9, 2009 by Recon415

[RadishTM Veteran]

Corsair HX520/620 for the PSU, or even the TX750.

Radish?

[Reacon]

My problem with that is the pricetag. I want to stick with <80$. I'm already over my 710$ absolute limit, but I am paying the extra few bucks myself to make up for that.

[Mannlich]

Don't skimp on the PSU. No point in buying all of that nice hardware and hooking it up to a piece of junk that you've never heard about -- which could ruin it. Also, skip the Q8200 and get a Q6600. Q6600 is a better chip with more cache and a higher clock speed. You should be able to OC it nicely in the x38 board.

[Reacon]

Don't skimp on the PSU. No point in buying all of that nice hardware and hooking it up to a piece of junk that you've never heard about -- which could ruin it. Also, skip the Q8200 and get a Q6600. Q6600 is a better chip with more cache and a higher clock speed. You should be able to OC it nicely in the x38 board.

I went with that Q8200 for mainly the FSB, power consumption, and heat output. I could care less about 2 mb of cache or 70 MHz since I'm going to be doing mostly gaming. I did consider the Q6600 though. For the same price, it was certainly a valid option for me.

As for the PSU, I guess the Antec I already had planned will have to do. I was thinking that Sigma might've been a good deal for the price. That Antec I was personally recommended by one of my friends, who used it in his build and had no problems. He also said that he tried Thermaltake and Corsair and they both died on him. Maybe he was just unlucky, but either way that Antec PSU is great for the price.

[RAID 0]

A Foxconn motherboard? NOOOOOOOOOO!

From the parts you've picked, it looks like you're going for a decent build. Go with Asus, Gigabyte or MSI. I've learned my lesson with second and third tier manufacturers. Can't you get a P45 and have the same crossfire ability?

As far as your PSU... I have a Seasonic and it's working great. A little pricey, but the sounds you don't hear make it worth it.

[Reacon]

As I said, I'm at my absolute limit. And with a P45 I can only do x16/x0 or x8/x8 bandwidth on the PCIe, that'll bottleneck any higher end card when in crossfire. From the looks of the reviews, this mobo is pretty good save for a pretty complicated BIOS. Here's my challenge to you. Find a ASUS, Gigabyte, or MSI mobo at the exact same price with the same functionality. ;)

[+PeterUK MVC]

As I said, I'm at my absolute limit. And with a P45 I can only do x16/x0 or x8/x8 bandwidth on the PCIe, that'll bottleneck any higher end card when in crossfire.

Since its the P45 the PCI-e 2.0 @ x8/x8 has the same bandwidth as PCI-e 1.X @ x16/x16 which is still more then enough bandwidth for high end cards in crossfire.

From the looks of the reviews, this mobo is pretty good save for a pretty complicated BIOS. Here's my challenge to you. Find a ASUS, Gigabyte, or MSI mobo at the exact same price with the same functionality. ;)

Sure it runs good at stock... reviewed boards that Foxconn and many others give for a review by sites are nothing like the retail ones.