1x Mage prepping for Cata

[Kawasa]

I am looking to build a computer that will be able to superbly run Cataclysm on max graphics with more than 10 fps while I am boxing my 1x mage(s).
2-3 tiers away from top model.

UPGRADE
MOTHERBOARD: 4x 240pin DDR2
CPU/PROCESSOR: Intel Xeon e5440
GRAPHICCARD: RADEON 5850 $290
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161330&cm_re=Radeon_HD_5850-_-14-161-330-_-Product
RAM: 4 gb
POWERSUPPLY: 550?
WINDOWS: 7

[Khatovar]

I am looking to build a computer that will be able to superbly run Cataclysm on max graphics with more than 10 fps while I am boxing my 1x mage(s).

I'm confused. Boxing one mage(s) does not compute.

[alcattle]

using DDR2 will limit your CPU choices. Of those you listed only a core2quad would be an upgrade. every video card is over kill for a 4 gig MB as the GPU will need some of the RAM as a buffer.

[Targ]

Any MOBO that is supporting DDR2 is going to be more then 2-3 teirs away from a top model.

Triple Channel DDR3 is current state of the art.
Dual Channel DDR3 is a step back.

I don't think there is any MOBO that supports an I5 and DDR2.

And good luck finding a a 6-core i3 / i5 processor they don't exist. to get to 6 cores your going AMD or i7.

Besides I would say any i3 is more than 3 teirs from a top model.
Top teir being "6 core i7" followed by "4 core i7" followed by "4 core i5"

What is Boxing 1x ???

[Svpernova09]

I'm confused. Boxing one mage(s) does not compute.


Kawasa is a random pug the Legion of Boom raid team adopted, he's not a boxer, never will be. We just fed him, and he kept coming back.

[Oatboat]

Kawasa is a random pug the Legion of Boom raid team adopted, he's not a boxer, never will be. We just fed him, and he kept coming back.

Lol, i love strays!

[Kawasa]

nom nom nom gbank.

Oh... I thought the cores were CPUs themselves.
So does quad core means 4 core and duo core means 2 core?
I hear people around me just say duocore or quadcore.
What is 2coreQuad?

So how much ram do you suggest to get the video cards?
And is going quadcore or whatever its called (2corequad?) going to skimp out my high detailed fun in Cata?

Opened to other suggestions that will aid my epic pewpewing in Cata.

[alcattle]

in a way, you are right. each core is a cpu, and the dual or quad just means how many cores are on the main processor. Intel started using the term core duo, then it went to core2duo which meant about the same. the core2quud is the 4 core model. All of these used the LGA 775 socket, and those motherboards used DDR2 RAM. AMD is not as clear but follows the same patterns. The newer i series went to DDR3 RAM, and there are 2 sockets used. LGA 1156 use dual channel DDR3 and the LGA 1366 use triple channel DDR3.
So if you want to stay with the DDR2 RAM, You can use a LGA 775 Motherboard ( I think that is what you have now.) 4 sticks of RAM should work, and will be fine for dual boxing.

[mikekim]

first things to look at:

find out the make and model of your motherboard. this will allow you to ascertain what the maximum processor you can install into your current setup.

the core 2 quad's that people are referring to are more commonly known as "Quad cores".

if you are running 1x mage on a system you will only need a Dual core E7500 (core 2 duo), a reasonable graphics card (Radeon 5850 1024MB RAM) and 2-4GBGB ram (the ram you currently have is OK).
your power supply (550watt will be ok to run this)

[alcattle]

^ what Mike said.....If you only play WoW, then the lower tier cards will do you just fine, that 5770 from MSI looks nice.

[Kawasa]

if you are running 1x mage on a system you will only need a QUADCORE, a reasonable graphics card (Radeon 5850 1024MB RAM) and 4GBGB ram (the ram you currently have is OK).
your power supply (550watt will be ok to run this)
How long do you guys think my computer would last on high/max graphics according to Mike's suggestion with a few changes? Maybe going for a computer that can last high graphics for a few years (3?) then medium graphics for last 2 before I upgrade again (: (< i only upgrade my comps once in a blue moon lol)

So Radeon 5850 is better than GeForce GTX 470?

[Kawasa]

Also, I am thinking of using multiple monitors to solve my alt-tabbing sickness (possible 2 at first, 3 if any of you have nice setups)
Do any of you mind showing me a picture of your setup (monitor placement, etc)?
I just want to get an idea of how cool I can set them up from the PROS!

[mikekim]

my machines are all low end quad core (q6600's & q9400) here is the link (http://www.dual-boxing.com/showthread.php?t=30736) to the thread on my setup.

your best bet would be to look at getting the best eyefinity card you can afford, which will allow you to run three screens. you can then rotate the 2x side screens, or leave them as normal, like the bottom row of screens in my current setup (both shown in the link (http://www.dual-boxing.com/showthread.php?t=30736))

I picked up a 5850 Toxic 2gb and was playing around with the three screen option and it seemed to work ok.

As for the issue of lasting three years, my machine is over 2 years old now and runs whatever i need fine (i get 60 fps in wow (capped) lowering to 50 at peak times in dal) when i play the occasional other games(Bioshock and Crysis) they run very well on medium to high settings on a 24" screen (1920x1200).

I have been toying with the idea of upgrading, but tbh it serves me fine for the moment (but then if i went on the upgrade route it would probably set me back £2,500 -3,000)

[alcattle]

How long do you guys think my computer would last on high/max graphics according to Mike's suggestion with a few changes? Maybe going for a computer that can last high graphics for a few years (3?) then medium graphics for last 2 before I upgrade again (: (< i only upgrade my comps once in a blue moon lol)

So Radeon 5850 is better than GeForce GTX 470?
Get either one, they will be fine until they hard wire the video to your brain. lol not going to happen. The rest of the machine is good now but it is on the last upgrade. After that, save for the next gen stuff. Good thing is the video card will travel with the new machine, and you can put the 8800 back in for a backup/web surfer.

[thefunk]

You'll need a full new installation to 1-box cata. My suggestion:

http://www.kunstonline.dk/indhold/pics/venedig4.jpg

I'll get you fit too

[Kawasa]

Mike, your monitors are just so fucking sexy.

And they sell dual monitors that are hooked together!?

[Kawasa]

Can I put a Intel Xeon e5440 processor into a desktop motherboard AND having it fully functional?
like say this random one
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128394&cm_re=ddr2-_-13-128-394-_-Product

Or do I have to be SPECIFICALLY a server motherboard? I heard that they weren't for gaming tho...

And what does Eyefinity do exactly? Is that what allows you guys to have more than 2 monitors?
What is Crossfire and Sli?

Muhaahahaha my sexy new comp is coming to fruition.

[mikekim]

Can I put a Intel Xeon e5440 processor into a desktop motherboard AND having it fully functional?
like say this random one
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128394&cm_re=ddr2-_-13-128-394-_-Product

Or do I have to be SPECIFICALLY a server motherboard? I heard that they weren't for gaming tho...

And what does Eyefinity do exactly? Is that what allows you guys to have more than 2 monitors?
What is Crossfire and Sli?

Muhaahahaha my sexy new comp is coming to fruition.

without knowing your motherboard this question cannot be answered.

eyefiinty is an ATI multi monitor solution that allows you to run 3 (or 6) monitors from one graphics card.

crossfire and SLi are ATi & Nvidia's solutions for running more than one graphics card in your machine. (you will get no benefit form this in WOW, but woill help greatly in other games, ie first person shooters)

as for your question re joined monitors, look at a company that produce multiple monitor stands (i got mine from here (http://www.imount.co.uk))

[Kawasa]

Processor: http://ark.intel.com/Product.aspx?id=33082
server processor Intel Xeon e5440

would these mobos be compatible with it?:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157175 $60

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131393 $82
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128380 $80
the bottom one says its memory standard is 1066, will it still take 800mhz?

one more thing, what is an SSD?
one more thing, what is that thing about having your windows and games on different harddrives?
one more thing, is this the best (close enough) 5850?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161330&cm_re=Radeon_5850-_-14-161-330-_-Product

[mikekim]

the motherboard you specified is has a 775 processor slot, the cpu you have linked to is a 771. It will NOT fit onto the motherboard.

you would be better off looking at http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116347 (it will work in the motherboards you have specified)

yes the board will take 800mhz ram

an ssd is a solid state drive (think along the lines of big fast memory stick, that looks like a disk drive :P)
if you run windows and wow on different drives you get a speed boost as the game and O/S are not reading from the same drive at the same time (this is what most people use an ssd for)

as for the best 5850 = http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102889&Tpk=5850%20toxic

[Kawasa]

I wouldn't and didn't buy this Intel Xeon e5440 cpu, my dad just gave it to me.

Any motherboard you would suggest?

[mikekim]

do a search from your local hardware suppliers for a 771 motherboard. (all the ones I use only stock dual boards - as this is primarily a server cpu).

[Kawasa]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131191&cm_re=771_Motherboard-_-13-131-191-_-Product
would that be any good? it wont affect my gaming since its a server mobo?
and does it support 800 ram?

[alcattle]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131191&cm_re=771_Motherboard-_-13-131-191-_-Product
would that be any good? it wont affect my gaming since its a server mobo?
and does it support 800 ram?
It says that ECC RAM is supported. Most server boards are that way. Using the non_ECC RAM should be looked at on the MB Home page.
Maybe a tech might know, also a lot of them will run with one CPU but not all.

[mikekim]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131191&cm_re=771_Motherboard-_-13-131-191-_-Product
would that be any good? it wont affect my gaming since its a server mobo?
and does it support 800 ram?

Item of note: this motherboard takes fbdimm ram modules, which are different to standard ddr2. So standard 800 ram will not work in this board

[Kawasa]

>.< this sounds costly as upgrading to ddr3

[mikekim]

>.< this sounds costly as upgrading to ddr3

you will probably find that the cost of the modules are 2-3x the price of standard ddr2 or ddr3

[Kawasa]

Well... Mike... TOO BAD! (:
my dad just hooked me up with some 4x4gb RAM!
I just need to finally pick out a legit server mobo and I'll be good to go.

now I'll never know that feeling of spending 3x of ddr3's cost :D

[alcattle]

Well... Mike... TOO BAD! (:
my dad just hooked me up with some 4x4gb RAM!
I just need to finally pick out a legit server mobo and I'll be good to go.

now I'll never know that feeling of spending 3x of ddr3's cost :D
What kind of RAM is it? It could be from a server board like the CPU.

[Kawasa]

Server Style
MOTHERBOARD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813182155&cm_re=771_Motherboard-_-13-182-155-_-Product
CPU/PROCESSOR: 2 x Intel Xeon e5440
GRAPHICCARD: HIS RADEON 5850
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161330&cm_re=Radeon_HD_5850-_-14-161-330-_-Product
RAM: 4 x 4gb FBDIMM
POWERSUPPLY: 550 watts
WINDOWS: 7

Will I have any problems gaming on this?

[MiRai]

Server Style
MOTHERBOARD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813182155&cm_re=771_Motherboard-_-13-182-155-_-Product
CPU/PROCESSOR: 2 x Intel Xeon e5440
GRAPHICCARD: HIS RADEON 5850
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161330&cm_re=Radeon_HD_5850-_-14-161-330-_-Product
RAM: 4 x 4gb FBDIMM
POWERSUPPLY: 550 watts
WINDOWS: 7

Will I have any problems gaming on this?
If you do have problems gaming on it... then what?

[alcattle]

Server Style
MOTHERBOARD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813182155&cm_re=771_Motherboard-_-13-182-155-_-Product
CPU/PROCESSOR: 2 x Intel Xeon e5440
GRAPHICCARD: HIS RADEON 5850
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161330&cm_re=Radeon_HD_5850-_-14-161-330-_-Product
RAM: 4 x 4gb FBDIMM
POWERSUPPLY: 550 watts
WINDOWS: 7

Will I have any problems gaming on this?
Specs on the GPU at Newegg says it requires 500w or higher. Too close for me.

[Kawasa]

Hmm... going to look back on this due to a few issues.

1. No one uses a server mobo to game on (and everyone I've asked has discouraged it)
2. The Server Mobo alone cost $450 (12 ram slots tho)
3. Thinking that I can spend much less yet have a computer more powerful/equivalent.

I'll throw up a few computer specs later for you pros to decide which is the best (:

I'll probably go DDR2 Mobo for now, wait 4 months until Black Friday and then buy a DDR3 mobo and ram since it'll be cheap. < THAT SOUND MORE SOLID THAN MY EL SERVER COMPUTERO?!

[daviddoran]

only potential problem with a server mobo would be drivers, but still, it would be a very powerful system to box 1x mage(s).

If you got free ram and CPU, just get the cheapest server mobo that u can fit the stuff in and use that until black friday. You might not need to tho, for single boxing that is.

[Kawasa]

eh, I decided to do us all a favor and just go to fry's and pick up a ddr3 1366 mobo.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130226

BTW! Whoever it was that said microcenter had processors for $100 off, THANK YOU!
I'll have the comp specs up soon.

[Kawasa]

MSI X58 Pro-E LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130226) $190
Intel Core i7 930 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115225) $200
CORSAIR XMS3 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145220) $145


Radeon HD 5770
XFX HD-577X-ZNFC Radeon HD 5770 1GB 128-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150462) $180 (15 rebate)
SAPPHIRE 100283-3L Radeon HD 5770 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102873) $160

Radeon HD 5830
XFX HD-583X-ZAFV Radeon HD 5830 1GB 256-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ Eyefinity (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150497) $250 (20 rebate)
HIS iCooler V H583FN1GD Radeon HD 5830 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/EyefinityAverage Rating4 out of 5 eggs4/5(24 reviews)iCooler V technology (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161327) $240

Radeon HD 5850
XFX HD-585X-ZAFC Radeon HD 5850 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ Eyefinity (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150477) $300 (10 rebate)
HIS H585FN1GD Radeon HD 5850 (Cypress Pro) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ Eyefinity iCooler V Cooling Technology (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161330) $320

GTX 460
MSI N460GTX CYCLONE 1GD5/OC GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127510) $225 (20 rebate)
GIGABYTE GV-N460OC-1GI GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125333) $23
= $700 - 830 (without rebate)

Help ): me choose a link broskies! we're almost passed the finish line!
so it's like 460/5770 < 5830 < 5850?
What graphic cards are you multiboxers using?

OCZ ModXStream Pro OCZ700MXSP 700W (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=17-341-018&SortField=0&SummaryType=0&Pagesize=10&PurchaseMark=&SelectedRating=-1&VideoOnlyMark=False&VendorMark=&IsFeedbackTab=true&Page=3#scrollFullInfo) $85 ($25 rebate)
And do I need this powerful of a PSU? My current one is only 550W.

[daviddoran]

All of those graphics cards are way overkill for boxing 1x mage, get the one that is cheaper, or prettier :) I think the GTX 460 is a good price/performance ratio. I've always been more fond of nVidia myself, but AMD/ATI does just fine too.

If you want more than 2 monitors on a single card, ATI with eyefinity is the only way to go.

I like to get eVGA brand name, good support, good warranty, good prices, etc etc.

Power supply mostly has to do with which video card u get. I think you will be fine with 550W provided its a quality one.

[Souca]

I'd back anything made by EVGA. They have good support and a strong community.

As for the server board vs. normal board from a couple posts back, the main thing is how the board handles the interconnects between the CPU and the PCI-E devices. Most gaming boards are geared to get the maximum bandwidth between the CPU and the graphics cards and will even add additional bridges to allow more than one slot to run full x16. Server boards don't spend the money on that sort of thing and focus on ECC memory, extra memory slots, and that extra CPU slot.

As for Xeon vs normal CPU, only buy the Xeon if you have too, i.e. you are buying one of these: http://www.evga.com/products/moreInfo.asp?pn=270-WS-W555-A1

- Souca -

[Kawasa]

Oh and running wow and windows on two seperate databases... can I use 2 HDD instead of an hdd and ssd?

[daviddoran]

Yes, 2 hdds, or an hdd and a ssd will work fine. I prefer to just run it all on one drive, makes life simpler. I have a 1TB drive for my large files, pics, videos, music, but games/windows is on my SSD. I have a 128GB drive and its fine for my uses.

[Kawasa]

Thanks for your guys patience and help (:
Proud owner of a 1366 i7 6gb DDR3 Radeon HD5850 for $800! (+~$100 in cooling parts)

ARHHHHHHHHHHHHHH WHEN I GET THIS MONSTER BUILT SEE YOU ALL IN DALARAN WITH 10+ FPS!

http://www.dual-boxing.com/showthread.php?t=32037
now go there to see the next adventure!