Will this ROCK? PC for dual-boxing

[Ajuga]

Hi there, I've decided I want to dual-box! 5-boxing is too expensive, so for now I'll try out two boxes. My current beast can't handle it - it can barely handle a single box when facing great battles in Alterac. So the time has cometh, I must buy a new PC. Here be the specs so far (suggestions are encouraged):

Processor:
Core 2 Duo E8400 6 MB (Intel Boxed) / 3 GHz / 1333 MHz

Motherboard:
ASUS P5Q / LGA775 Socket / Intel P45 Express / 1600 MHz / ATX / DDR2 SDRAM

Graphics Card:
ASUS EAH4850/HTDI / ATI Radeon HD 4850 / 400 MHz / PCI Express 2.0 x16 / 1 GB DDR3 SDRAM / 1.986 GHz

RAM:
Mushkin Performance XP 2x2 GB (4 GB) / DUAL RAM / DDR2 SDRAM / PC2-6400CL4 / 800 MHz

Hard Drive:
2x Samsung SpinPoint F1 HD642JJ 640 GB / 7200 rpm / 16 MB / Serial ATA-300 / 8.9 ms

Power Supply:
NorthQ 4775-500S Ultra Silent PSU 500 Watt / Internal / AC 230 V / 47 - 63 Hz

Operating System:
Windows Vista Home Premium x64

Total Cost (w/o OP & Case): 5,500 Danish Kroner or ~1100 US Dollars

I expect this to be able to run two WoW (WotLK) clients smoothly in main cities, raids, Alterac Valley raids etc. And at the same time be able to Fraps in good quality. Let me know if I can't expect all of that.

I'll be running at 1600x1200 with my Master, and my Slave will be on top at 400x300 in a corner. Both will have settings maxed out, so if I switch between them it'll look the same.

I went with two Hard Drives; one for WoW, the other for Fraps. Does that sound like a good plan? Would I manage with just a single HDD?
I'm not sure where I'll put the operating system (probably on a partition of Fraps' drive).

I know it's not the most expensive system, but I didn't want to spend cash on something I wouldn't need. This is the time to tell me if I need more :!:

[wowphreak]

considering yer getting vista 64 get more memory or yeh still be lagging in any major city.

[sqeaky4100]

considering yer getting vista 64 get more memory or yeh still be lagging in any major city.

No way. He'll be fine.

I doubt you'll even have to minimize settings on the second WoW

[iztehzha]

You should be able to quadbox on that machine actually..

[Ajuga]

considering yer getting vista 64 get more memory or yeh still be lagging in any major city.

No way. He'll be fine.

I doubt you'll even have to minimize settings on the second WoW

That's what I thought. I even considered just 2GB, but went with 4GB. Anyhow I'll be able to upgrade with another 2x2GB sticks easily should the need be there.

You should be able to quadbox on that machine actually..

Great, then there's room for more. I also expect it to last a couple of years and still be able to 2-box well.


Anyone wanna comment on whether a second hard drive is needed? Or will one be fast enough?

[sqeaky4100]

considering yer getting vista 64 get more memory or yeh still be lagging in any major city.

No way. He'll be fine.

I doubt you'll even have to minimize settings on the second WoW

That's what I thought. I even considered just 2GB, but went with 4GB. Anyhow I'll be able to upgrade with another 2x2GB sticks easily should the need be there.

You should be able to quadbox on that machine actually..

Great, then there's room for more. I also expect it to last a couple of years and still be able to 2-box well.


Anyone wanna comment on whether a second hard drive is needed? Or will one be fast enough?

One is fine for dualboxing... but I found huge improvements when I added a second HDD for the 5box setup.

[suineg]

I would suggest getting two hard drives and instead of making them for different things I would RAID them. You should be able to grab two 500GB for super cheap right now. Or you could always use the ones you included. Are those single platter drives?

[Ajuga]

I would suggest getting two hard drives and instead of making them for different things I would RAID them. You should be able to grab two 500GB for super cheap right now. Or you could always use the ones you included. Are those single platter drives?

I'm not sure. I was told to get the 640GB model instead of the 500GB cause it was faster.

I've considered RAID, but I'm not sure it's worth the trouble/extra cost. I feel like saving the money for now and just get a single 640GB. I'm used to 160GB, so space shouldn't be a problem.

[Noids99]

System should comfortably run 2 x WoWs and fraps as you wish.

Worthy upgrades would be a quad core CPU in case you ever want to quad box (trust me you will :P)

As another poster mentioned, Vista 32 is probably slightly better for 4GB ram than Vista 64. Saying that an extra 4GB is easy to drop in for V64 if you ever do want to quad.

I would consider a 650W PSU possibly esp. if you want to consider a quad core CPU with that GPU.

Cheers

[Momo]

That system will dual box no worries...Easy. Everywhere in the game.

Points of note:

You need a better PS. Seriously.

Go for the 8500CPU....for what? $20 more?

You may not be thinking of 8G of RAM right now....but you will be....

Make sure your PS & Mobo can handle it.

DDR2 is getting hella cheap.