Time to build another Box

[Skuzzy]

The Core i7 is more than just bragging rights if you do a lot of video transcoding work.  It is a major step in performance over the Core 2 for those particular operations.

[Getback]

The Core i7 is more than just bragging rights if you do a lot of video transcoding work.  It is a major step in performance over the Core 2 for those particular operations.

rgr, was thinking game play. I don't do much video editing.

[Wolfala]

rgr, was thinking game play. I don't do much video editing.

OK, the damage list is as follows:

MSI 790FX-GD70 AM3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130223

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103674

EVGA GeForce GTX 295 1792MB 896 (448 x 2)-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130504

System Drive:  Western Digital VelociRaptor WD1500HLFS 150GB 10000 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136296

roadkill drives:  Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 ST3750528AS 750GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5"
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148445

2x CORSAIR XMS3 DHX 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (4 sticks x 2 GB)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145200

Reusing the optical and card readers and case. Greatly appreciated the input everyone

[MrRiplEy[H]]

I would ditch the raptor and get a single 1.5 or 2 Tb single drive, then partition it to system and data partitions.

Raptors access time doesn't give much benefit compared to its price. With a super large drive you get speed and storage space with a good pricepoint.

With the money saved on the raptor I'd upgrade the CPU/mobo to Intel. I guarantee you you'll get better bang for buck that way.

[Die Hard]

If you want a fast system drive and have cash to burn, look into SSD's. There are a number of reasonably priced SSD's on the market now.

[Vipermann]

If you want a fast system drive and have cash to burn, look into SSD's. There are a number of reasonably priced SSD's on the market now.

+1 I'm running 2 SSD's in a RAID 0 and the speed can't be beat. I would recommend additional drives for storage though.


Also I'm a big fan of EVGA's X58 mobo. I've been running one ever since it was released and it is rock solid and insanely fast

My current rig

EVGA x58 Mobo
Intel I7 920
6GB RAM
Dual 120GB SSD's in RAID 0 (System Partition)
Dual 75GB Raptors in RAID 0 (Storage for System Partition)
Dual 150 GB Velociraptors in Raid 0 (Program Install Partition)
2 1.0 TB drives for Storage
2 DVD burners
Dual EVGA GeForce 260's in SLI
Samsung TOC 26" LCD

[Die Hard]

That's a very, very nice system. One question though: Why don't you install your programs on the SSD drive?

[Vipermann]

That's a very, very nice system. One question though: Why don't you install your programs on the SSD drive?

They are too small to install everything I need/want so I install the programs/games I use the most on the SSd's and the rest on a seperate array.

[Die Hard]

Ah... games.

You run your swap file on the Raptors I presume?

[Sandman]

I've built three machines using Tech Report's system guide.

It doesn't get any easier than this. For me, the biggest pain was coming up to speed on the new gear and the evolving technologies. Mainly because I usually build a machine for myself about once every 4-5 years.

http://techreport.com/articles.x/17102

[Masherbrum]

Only issue with that link is the use of Antec PSU's and their recommendations. 

[Sandman]

Only issue with that link is the use of Antec PSU's and their recommendations. 

Had this one for a year. Not statistically significant, but it's been solid.

[Vipermann]

Ah... games.

You run your swap file on the Raptors I presume?

I've tested it on the SSD's and the Raptors and I've seen no difference in performance so I left it on the SSD's. With 6GB of RAM the pagefile doesn't get much use.

[Die Hard]

It always gets some use, and SSD's have a limited number of writing cycles. I've always been told/read that the swap file should be on a standard plate-type HD so it won't drastically reduce the lifespan of the SSD. Has this changed?

[Vipermann]

It always gets some use, and SSD's have a limited number of writing cycles. I've always been told/read that the swap file should be on a standard plate-type HD so it won't drastically reduce the lifespan of the SSD. Has this changed?

Software built into the SSD controller is supposed to spread out the wear over the entire disk, although I'm not sure how effective it is in RAID configs. I'm not really too concerned about the lifespan as I'm sure I'll be replaceing them with something newer/faster well before they would hit the wall. Also I'm pretty sure that the newest SSD's have greatly increased write cycle life, almost to the point of eliminating that as an issue, but I don't have the newest generation SSD yet.