Planning my 5boxing Setup NEED suggestions/help

[vindicated]

ok, i think im gonna go with the cheaper processor -
any recommendations on a faster compatible HD then?


also, ive heard some bad things about the
eVGA nForce 680i SLI

that 680i isnt compatible with a lot of ram and it fries it. also that the sli isnt worth the cost.

and recommendations on a better mobo since im saving ~700 on the processor?

[marvein]

ok, i think im gonna go with the cheaper processor -
any recommendations on a faster compatible HD then?


also, ive heard some bad things about the
eVGA nForce 680i SLI

that 680i isnt compatible with a lot of ram and it fries it. also that the sli isnt worth the cost.

and recommendations on a better mobo since im saving ~700 on the processor?

I use the P5W DH Deluxe, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131025

works great for me, supports 4gb of RAM and quad core CPUs. Also has a number of other nifty features unrelated to WoW. It does support SLI but I dont use it atm.

As for video, a GTS will be fine for you, you can go with a GTX if you really want to spend the money (going with the cheaper cpu after all) but my GTS and 4gb of system memory is enough for 5 clients +FRAPS on my main. Outside I get 30-40fps on each minion and 50 or so on main. in org on a bad day alts will drop to the teens but at decent times its around 25-30; it is Org after all.

And you are correct on the 680i, it is very finicky about RAM, the issue with frying has been determined though. it has to do with how the motherboard draws power from the PSU even when the computer is off. So unplugging the PSU and then hitting hte power button to drain the last bit of juice from the PSU will prevent you from frying memory

[Vos]

couple of things, if you are looking at a 5-6 year timeframe...

1 drop to the q6600
2 get vista 64 or xp 64
3 get better ram like http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231145 or any of these cas4 sets http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...2508081&name=4
4 get a better power supply.... clean stable power is super important for a stable system http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817703009
5 consider moving up to 8gb of ram
6 go with a p35 or x38 based mobo (unless you want to do SLI)

All of these things will give you a better system for less than the price of the qx6700

Also I have the antec 900 case and it is great...

[marvein]

couple of things, if you are looking at a 5-6 year timeframe...

1 drop to the q6600
2 get vista 64 or xp 64
3 get better ram like http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231145 or any of these cas4 sets http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...2508081&name=4
4 get a better power supply.... clean stable power is super important for a stable system http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817703009
5 consider moving up to 8gb of ram
6 go with a p35 or x38 based mobo (unless you want to do SLI)

All of these things will give you a better system for less than the price of the qx6700

Also I have the antec 900 case and it is great...

1. dont bother with 8GB of Ram, its a waste of money and by the time you actually need 8GB of ram DDR3 will be mainstream and time to upgrade again.
2. that PSU is sufficient, I prefer Corsairs though (520W version is plenty unless you intend to OC a lot then go with the 620W)
3. I also have the Antec 900 and love it. lots of airflow and very qiuet due to the size of the fans. A bit on the heavy side though so not the best for LAN party travel.
4. Your right on the motherboards, was just sticking with an SLI board for that futureproofing thing since even though WoW doesnt there are some games that are pushing the envelope on GPU needs these days.

[vindicated]

i really appreicate the comments - they're helping a lot.

a few things im thinking about atm

going vista 64bit for direct x 10

deciding on a motherboard - want to get away from the 680i and deciding on SLI, i might in the future want to add another video card so..not sure what to do there might just get SLI to be safe.

Are there any issues with SLI regarding using 2 monitors?

video card
VGA 512-P3-N841-A3 GeForce 8800GTS (G92) 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130312

ram
G.SKILL 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1000 (PC2 8000) Dual Channel
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231145

if anyone has information regarding the ram or video card, SLI issues or winxp vs. vista, multiple HDs to handle loading times.

those are the issues at hand now - once these are resolved there will probably be more questions lol. thanks for the time spent looking for answers or helping me out - its all appreciated

[marvein]

this is the card I use
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130080
but either one is fine.

SLI is not needed for WoW but as long as you are using horizontal span you should be fine

DX10 gives you nothing in WoW either (or much else in any other game for that matter thanks to DX9c) Vista however doesnt have the same issue with dual view as xp does so there is no horizontal span. Minor difference but meh. Also vist will be able to see the full 4gb of ram while XP will see at most around 3.5 or so. but then WoW wont need it all anyways

G.Skill is a great brand, I use them for a lot of my rigs.

I do find a 2nd hard drive is a nice help, especially if you intend to fraps things.

[vindicated]

mmm i think that card is older ill prolly stick with the 512mb 8800 gts

still thinking about the motherboard - idk if i want something with sli just incase and i want a stable one for overclocking.

and i think you're wrong about winxp 64bit - it can see way more than 4gb of ram

[vindicated]

update:

ok for motherboards ive narrowed it down to
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...TE%2bP35%2bDQ6

or

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813128048

i decided against sli since it cant run dual display but ive got a widescreen 40" and a 19" regular so...we will see whats happens with that. might decided to grab sli after all. both those mobos i hear are very good for overclocking.

so my last two issues i guess after this mobo thing is dual HD set up and.. vista vs winxp

thanks again for all that are helping me with this - its helping very much

edit: decided to get a
Raptor X WD1500AHFD 150GB 10,000 RPM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822136011

for my programs and a Seagate 300GB for storage

[Vos]

what's your intended setup with the 40" and 19" for multiboxing? going to put them all on the same screen on the 40? split between the 19 and 40?

[vindicated]

1 on the 40" 4 on the 19"

this might be awkward but oh wells