Computer spec for 5 box on one computer

[worldroll]

I wanted to do a 5 box the machine i've got at moment is just about up to doing one copy so i'm wondering about what i need to run 5 instances well. i have searched :) but to be honest i'm still not sure of what kinda of specs i need.

i'm looking to get one of these http://3xs.scan.co.uk/Category.asp?SystemMasterCategoryID=20 and i need help

Are these good value for money

Which one should i choose?

any help appreciated

[Zakalwe]

I've always preferred to build my own systems as it's fun and tends to save you some cash, plus you get to know your rig and its capabilities and don't have any extra "fluff"

Having said that, from what I've been reading here it seems the 2 most important factors if you want to 5 box on 1 PC are: RAM & CPU.
You'll want a minimum of 6Gb RAM, although just get 8 and be done with it. All those instances will use almost 1Gb each, plus your OS
You'll want a quad core CPU so that you can run most of your instances on 1 core.

After that you'll need a decent sized HDD to store everything in. If you're really keen you could look at RAID although its overkill imo.
A fairly recent graphics card to handle the output, I'd say anything from 8800 series onwards with Nvidia or one of the newer ATI's.
A PSU to handle this.....around 600W will be more than enough.
Monitor (s) seems like 2 would be the go with your main on one and slaves on another.

Finally, a 64-bit OS to handle the large physical memory. Any one of the Vista 64-bit options will suffice.

EDIT: the system I'd lean towards if you HAD to by from that place would be the one with the Coolermaster case, except you need more RAM, drop all the rubbish software, get a 64-bit OS and piss that sound card off. In short find someone who likes building PC's and ask them to help you or build it for you, if they've got a good idea they'll be able to build you an awesome rig to do exactly what you want :)

[worldroll]

Ok done a lot more research and think i'm about ready to build a computer

mointers already got samsung 226bw (22 inch for my 4 alts) and Iiyama 19" E1908WSV-B1 Monitor ('http://www.microdirect.co.uk/ProductInfo.aspx?ProductID=38423&source=PriceGrabber')

processor Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 ('http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Intel-Core-2-Quad-Q6600-Kentsfield-Core-S775-240-GHz-1066MHz-8MB-Cache-9x-Multiplier-Retail') £150.26

motherboard ASRock ATX Mainboard P45XE ('http://www.dual-boxing.com/forums/ASRock%20ATX%20Mainboard%20P45XE') £75.10 + postage

memory 2*GB (2x2GB) Corsair TwinX XMS2, DDR2 PC2-6400 (800), 240 Pins, Non-ECC Unbuffered, CAS 4-4-4-12, ('http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/4GB-%282x2GB%29-Corsair-TwinX-XMS2-DDR2-PC2-6400-%28800%29-240-Pins-Non-ECC-Unbuffered-CAS-4-4-4-12-DHX') DHX
£111.88

case Coolermaster RC-330 V2 Elite Black Midi Tower ('http://www.dual-boxing.com/forums/Coolermaster%20RC-330%20V2%20Elite%20Black%20Midi%20Tower') £27.57

harddrive 500 GB Seagate ('http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/500-GB-Seagate-ST3500320AS-Barracuda-720011-SATA-300-7200-rpm-32MB-Cache-85-ms-NCQ') £42.19

graphics card PowerColor HD 4830 512MB GDDR3 DVI VGA HDMI PCI-E Graphics Card ('http://www.dual-boxing.com/forums/PowerColor%20HD%204830%20512MB%20GDDR3%20DVI%20VGA %20HDMI%20PCI-E%20Graphics%20Card') £89.99

operating system Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1* 64Bit 1Pk OEM (DVD) ('http://www.dual-boxing.com/forums/Microsoft%20Windows%20Vista%20Home%20Premium%20SP1 *%2064Bit%201Pk%20OEM%20%28DVD%29') £88.42

power unit 700W Coolermaster Silent Pro Modular Whisper Quiet PSU ('http://www.dual-boxing.com/forums/700W%20Coolermaster%20Silent%20Pro%20Modular%20Whi sper%20Quiet%20PSU') £79.28

cpu cooler Zalman CNPS9700-LED Super Aero Flower Cooler ('http://www.dual-boxing.com/forums/Zalman%20CNPS9700-LED%20Super%20Aero%20Flower%20Cooler') £40.12

4*World Of Warcraft Battlechest ('World%20Of%20Warcraft%20Battlechest') £59.60

I plan to oveclock the system as well. So any thoughts on this setup

thanks :)

[Ticks]

I'd go with at least two drives and configure them for RAID 0 and I wouldn't go less than 1GB on a video card.

[-silencer-]

The main glaring issue with your build is the videocard. The 4830 series is more of a standard desktop graphics card.. I wouldn't go any less than the 4850 for gaming, and for multiboxing two monitors, you'd be much better off with a 4870 with 1GB of memory.

[asgradth]

I'm not a fan of Intel... maybe it's cause I work for DAAMIT :)... Regardless, here's the Box I put together to 6-box EQ2. I know that WoW does need nearly this much power, but other games (fallout 3, crysis warhead) run flawlessly at the highest settings:

PSU CORSAIR|CMPSU-1000HX 1000W RT - Retail ('http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139007&nm_mc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel&cm_mmc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel-_-Content-_-text-_-N82E16817139007')
MEM 2Gx4|GEIL GE28GB800C4QC R - Retail ('http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820144226&nm_mc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel&cm_mmc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel-_-Content-_-text-_-N82E16820144226')
CASE ANTEC|TWELVE HUNDRED BK RT - Retail ('http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129043&nm_mc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel&cm_mmc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel-_-Content-_-text-_-N82E16811129043')
MB GIGABYTE GA-MA790GP-DS4H 790GX R - Retail ('http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128352&nm_mc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel&cm_mmc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel-_-Content-_-text-_-N82E16813128352')
HD 1T|WD 7K 32M SATA2 WD1001FALS % - OEM ('http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284&nm_mc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel&cm_mmc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel-_-Content-_-text-_-N82E16822136284') (5 drives, Raid5 for gaming/storage) edit: *4 drives... too many numbers...*
HD 500G|WD WD5001AALS % - OEM ('http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136320&nm_mc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel&cm_mmc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel-_-Content-_-text-_-N82E16822136320') (2 drives, raid0 for OS)
VGA SAPPHIRE 100259-1GL HD4870 1G R - Retail ('http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102801&nm_mc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel&cm_mmc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel-_-Content-_-text-_-N82E16814102801') (two, with four monitors)
CPU COOLER ZALMAN|9700 LED RTL - Retail ('http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118019&nm_mc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel&cm_mmc=TEMC-RMA-Approvel-_-Content-_-text-_-N82E16835118019')

I'm running an engineering sample processor, equivalent to the Phenom II x4 (3ghz core, 2ghz NB) which is unreleased at the moment (only the 1.8ghz NB version is available). I have the system overclocked to a 3.6ghz core, 2.4ghz NB & 2.4ghz HT3. The video cards are overclocked to 850 cpu / 1200mhz memory. I forced the memory to 4-4-4-15 CAS timings (Auto = 5-5-5-18 for some reason ). Everything is air cooled and ambient in-case temp during a dungeon run is < 60C. Idle temp is < 30C. It is power hungry due to the high NB... the Processor is probably pulling ~ 200Watts of power, but it's worth it.

There is one hitch... Some of the SATA connectors on the Mobo are covered up by the 2nd 4780 graphics card. The only way to get all 6 SATA connectors working is remove the connectors from the SATA Cables and carefully remove the connectors from the Mobo, then solder the SATA Cables directly onto the Mobo Pins. I don't recommend trying this unless you know what you're doing as your Warranties will be voided. However, it did work for me.

RD790 + SB750 is going to be the AMD Standard for 'enthusiast gaming' until the SB800 is released many moons from now. So, if you dont' like Intel or want to save some cash, I recommend this setup with the AMD Phenom II x4 940 (3ghz core, 1.8ghz NB).

[pinotnoir]

Dont get the q6600. I have one and I am now building a second system so it runs better. I run 5 accounts off the q6600 right now. It works but you have to put up with the low fps. If the Q6600 cost you 150.00 just get the i7 920 for 299.00. Much more room for the future. Then the ram you get will be DDR3. Get you a 4850x2 video card that can run up to 4 monitors if you wish for another 299 at newegg.com. The card beats nvidia 280's and almost does what the 4870x2 can do while costing a ton less. I would get a few 7200 drives and raid 0 if you are tight on money. If not you can go balls out and get a SSD for wow.. Thats really expensive. If you go DDR3 you will prob get 6gig or 12gig ram. They run in 3's instead of 2's like DDR2. Tomorrow I begin the hardware install for my new pc. Once its finished the plan is to run 2 accounts from the q6600 and 3 accounts from the i7 920.

[Ualaa]

I'll have to echo what Pinotnoir said...

Basically my Q6600 (which I build 2 years ago) runs wow just fine.
If your budget is very limited you might go this way too.

However, if you're building a new system today, it makes a lot more sense to go with a newer and more powerful system.
The core i7 processors go onto a newer motherboard, which supports more ram and that ram is more powerful too. Neither of these will go onto a Q6600 board.
Even the lowest end i7 processor leaves room for upgrading to a more powerful version down the road; even if you never upgrade it, its a lot more powerful then even an overclocked Q6600.
Any i7 will likely play the next warcraft expansion (or other game) as a boxer, not sure if a Q6600 (and slower ram etc...) can say the same.

The i7 costs less now then the Q6600 did when it had been out a similar amount of time.