[Answered] Questions about my first build - PC Help Forum - Free Computer Help, Windows, Hardware, Software and more!

Jester · #1 02-04-2008

I'm about ready to build my first PC and I have a couple questions. First is this. I have a Dell Inspiron 9300 with a fried motherboard. Dell told me I had a bad hard drive, so I bought a hard drive for it only to find out that it wasn't the hard drive that was bad. Anyway, now I have two hard drives with nothing to stick them in. If I build a PC is it possible to use those to identical hard drives in a raid 0 format or not? I have been reading about building computers for awhile, but still have a lot to learn.
Second question. Does anyone know what SLI motherboard would be compatible with this processor: Intel E8400 Wolfdale. Any help will definitely be appreciated,
Landon

AW_3_3 · #2 02-04-2008

Hello jester. welcome to pchf! I dont know much about RAID, i have never set it up, and to me for everday use its probably not worth the hassle. Until the Nvidia Nforce 780 comes out, i dont know of any SLi compatible motherboards for Wolfdale. I actually recommend getting a crossfire board, and running two 3850s in crossfire. I recommend this motherboard.

GIGABYTE GA-X38-DS4 LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

And if I may, I reccomend these for crossfire.

VisionTek 900203 Radeon HD 3850 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail

And as for memory, i highly recommend this.

Crucial Ballistix Tracer 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model BL2KIT12864AL804 - Retail

Jester · #3 02-04-2008

Just curious, why do you recommend crossfire over SLi? And the really big question, is SLi/crossfire really necessary for a gaming computer? Thanks.

AW_3_3 · #4 02-04-2008

They are both about the same to me. And if you want to have excellent performance, then yes. I personally only use one of those cards, and it suits me fine, but i have rather low standards so.. lol

Jester · #5 02-04-2008

If you only use one GPU how far does that get you. I mean do you NEED two video cards in order to play games like Crysis? What are your standards? Maybe I could getaway with only one video card.

AW_3_3 · #6 02-05-2008

*chuckles* if you want to play crysis on decent, semi high res settings, i highly recommend dual cards. I can play stuff pretty well on my single card, but thats just me.

Jester · #7 02-05-2008

Hey, thanks for the information. Back to the hard drives. Becuase the hard drives came out of a laptop does that mean that I will have a hard time getting them hooked up in a desktop? Also, do you know how I figure out how big of a power supply I will need when I've got everything else in order? thanks

Jester · #8 02-05-2008

Here is what I was thinking for a computer. The power supply is just a guess.
Comments and suggestions are wanted. Tell me if there is anything that I'm missing or if there are any conflicts. Thanks.

ASUS Striker Extreme LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX The Ultimate Gaming Motherboard
Striker Extreme
Item#:N82E16813131074

Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz 6MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor
BX80570E8400
Item#:N82E16819115037

EVGA GeForce 8800GTS (G92) 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported
512-P3-N841-A3
Item#:N82E16814130312

Crucial Ballistix Tracer 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit
BL2KIT12864AL804
Item#:N82E16820148076

Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Nine Hundred
Item#:N82E16811129021

FSP Group Everest 1010 ATX12V V2.2/EPS V2.91 1000W Power Supply - Retail
Everest 1010
Item#:N82E16817104041

SAMSUNG Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 20X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe - OEM
SH-S203N
Item#:N82E16827151154

Logitech LX310 Black 103 Normal Keys 12 Function Keys USB Cordless Standard Desktop Laser Mouse Included - OEM
LX310
Item#:N82E16823126032

Dell Refurbished E207WFP 20-inch Widescreen Flat Panel LCD
Part # TW956

AW_3_3 · #9 02-05-2008

Looks good. But I recommend the previously mentioned Gigabyte GA-X38-DS4 board. It uses the Intel X38 chipset, which is far superior to the Nforce 680 SLi chipset. Actually... none of the NVIDIA based boards are compatible with the new 45nm processors, because Intel wont release the microcode to them until they reach an agreement on an SLi Licence to Intel. So it wont even work, unfortunately. D= Like i said anyway, the Inte X38 has a far superior memory controller. Also, the 8800GTS (G92) is a great card, also consider this one too.
Newegg.com - VisionTek 900209 Radeon HD 3870 X2 1GB (512MB x 2) 512-bit (256-bit x 2) GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail

Jester · #10 02-05-2008

I read the 3870 X2 review. Unfortunately I was not as impressed as I thought I would be. The 512MB Geforce 8800GTS beat the 3870's score most of the time, even on Crysis. That was surprising!

Right now I think that I'm going to stick with Nvidia.
Yes, the GIGABYTE GA-X38-DS4 looks great,but it does not support SLi. I am not trying to argue with you, but I was on Asus' website and they said that the Striker Extreme motherboard could support a 45nm CPU. That Gigabyte motherboard really does look good though.

Do you think a 1000watt power supply would be enough for SLi/crossfire?
Thanks

AW_3_3 · #11 02-05-2008

I dont think so. Because as of the last time I checked, Intel still hadnt released the ucode key to NVIDIA for use in their chipsets. I could be wrong though. I really like Gigabyte boards, i have found them to be extremely reliable, and great performers. I also prefer Intel chipsets over Nvidia ones, out of personal preference. LOL. 1000 watts will be more than sufficient. Newegg seems to be down right now, but I recommend the OCZ GamXtreme 700watt ATX12v Power Supply Unit