# f123 looking for a new rig. please help him.



## desiibond (Dec 4, 2009)

Hey all..

I am planning to buy a new (mid-range) sturdy system for basic home use (multimedia and some casual gaming).
I would need you help and guidance to zero down on the final list.


Here is the configuration that I have thought about,

CPU - Phenom II X2 550 3.1GHz B.E. @ 5.4k
Mobo - Gigabyte GA-MA785GMT-UD2H @ 5.5k
RAM - Corsair TW3X4G-1600C9DHX 4GB Kit @ 6.6k or Kingston KHX1600C8D3K2/4GX 4GB Kit @ 6k
HD - Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 1TB @ 4k
Monitor - Samsung 2233SW 22" FULL HD LD Monitor @ 9.2k or Dell S2209W 21.5" FULL HD LCD Monitor @ 9.2k
DVDRW - LG 22x DVD @ 1.1k
PSU - Gigabyte 80 Plus Active PFC 460W @ 2.2k
Speakers - Altec Lansing VS2421 2.1 @ 2.6k
Cabinet, Keyboard/Mouse - Any @2.5k

I might add a graphics card later.


Kindly give your suggestions.
Thanks in Advance, Awaiting your Reply.

Cheersss !!!


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created a new thread as f123 is not able to create new thread.


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## j1n M@tt (Dec 4, 2009)

nice rig 

some suggestions:

1. X4 620 would be future proof.
2. Benq G2220 Full HD too is a good model to consider.
3. There is some doubt in build quality of Gigabyte Superb 460W PSU. So can consider another brand if budget allows.
4. VS2421 is good, but can consider Logitech X240 too.


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## f123 (Dec 4, 2009)

Thanks a lot bro for starting this thread..


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## vickybat (Dec 4, 2009)

@ desiibond

hi buddy

Go for a better psu if you want to add a card later.I suggest  corsair vx450 @4k or coolermaster real power 460.The former can even handle a 5850.

Go for the x4 620 as its more futureproof being a quadcore.

you can consider cm elite 335 for the cabinet.


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## TheHumanBot (Dec 4, 2009)

only thing i can suggest is HDD 520GB x2 
what if your 1TB goes bad then ...


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## f123 (Dec 4, 2009)

Thank you for pouring in..

I have read that X2 550 B.E. is better than X4 620 in gaming, also that it has 6 MB L3 cache.

Another interesting fact that I found was it has two more cores which can be unlocked (however, luck is a prime factor)

*www.overclock.net/amd-cpus/535501-amd-phenom-ii-core-unlocking-guide.html

Points noted for PSU, LCD, HD and speakers @(j1n M@tt, vickybat and vishal)


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## f123 (Dec 4, 2009)

Another interesting fact

A few overclockers have found recent success turning an Athon II X4 620 or 630 CPU into a fully-fledged Phenom II X4 just by activating ACC in the BIOS. Instead of a core being unlocked, the ACC is capable of activating the 6MB of L3 cache turned off on the chip. Here's the thing, if you have the older Deneb based processor... you might be in luck. Propus, as explained however, has this cache physically missing and as such it's just not possible to unlock it.

*www.guru3d.com/article/amd-athlon-ii-x4-620-review-test/2


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## desiibond (Dec 4, 2009)

CPU - Athlon II X4 620 @ 5.4k
Mobo - Gigabyte GA-MA785GMT-UD2H @ 5.5k
RAM - Corsair TW3X4G-1600C9DHX 4GB Kit @ 6.6k or Kingston KHX1600C8D3K2/4GX 4GB Kit @ 6k
HD - Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 1TB @ 4k
Monitor - Samsung 2233SW 22" FULL HD LD Monitor @ 9.2k or Dell S2209W 21.5" FULL HD LCD Monitor @ 9.2k
DVDRW - LG 22x DVD @ 1.1k
PSU - Corsair VX450W: 4k
Speakers - Altec Lansing VS4121 2.1 @ 2.2k-2.5k
Cabinet: Cooler Master Elite 330 for 2k or Zebronics Bijli for 1.3k without PSU
 Keyboard/Mouse - Logitech k/b and mouse : 700 bucks.


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## layzee (Dec 4, 2009)

I would rather go in for the Athlon II X4 620


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## desiibond (Dec 4, 2009)

oops. sorry. changed the processor to Athlon II X4 620. better to for quad core as it is fast becoming mainstream now.


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## j1n M@tt (Dec 5, 2009)

^^we can cross our fingers and hope that may be the next generation games and softwares will be quad optimized.

but the bare truth is that the X2 550 BE now beats the X4 620 in every games by some notable fps margin.


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## f123 (Dec 7, 2009)

I just found a very good monitor --> Samsung P2370HD
(Is it available in India and if yes at what price)


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## desiibond (Dec 7, 2009)

I think that model is avialable in India for some 12k.


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## f123 (Dec 8, 2009)

Cool.. thats just about 3K more for HDMI.


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## f123 (Dec 11, 2009)

I have thought about everything else but am still not able to make up my mind as to which processor should I go with.
Phenom II X2 550 B.E (Black Edition) or Athlon II X4 620
A fully unlocked 550 would be just great, also with Black Edition we can be pretty sure about it.
I read that there were some issues with unlocking Phenom II X2 550 cores on Gigabyte GA-MA785GMT-UD2H, is it so ? Has anyone tried doing it ?


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## layzee (Dec 11, 2009)

f123 said:


> I have thought about everything else but am still not able to make up my mind as to which processor should I go with.
> Phenom II X2 550 B.E (Black Edition) or Athlon II X4 620
> A fully unlocked 550 would be just great, also with Black Edition we can be pretty sure about it.
> I read that there were some issues with unlocking Phenom II X2 550 cores on Gigabyte GA-MA785GMT-UD2H, is it so ? Has anyone tried doing it ?



It can be unlocked on any board that has the SB750 southbridge using a feature called *Advanced Clock Calibration* (ACC) . Even the SB710 supports this feature but all boards with this SB do not provide the ACC option.

---------- Post added at 06:41 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:38 PM ----------




f123 said:


> I have thought about everything else but am still not able to make up my mind as to which processor should I go with.
> Phenom II X2 550 B.E (Black Edition) or Athlon II X4 620
> A fully unlocked 550 would be just great, also with Black Edition we can be pretty sure about it.
> I read that there were some issues with unlocking Phenom II X2 550 cores on Gigabyte GA-MA785GMT-UD2H, is it so ? Has anyone tried doing it ?



It can be unlocked on any board that has the SB750 southbridge using a feature called *Advanced Clock Calibration* (ACC) . Even the SB710 supports this feature but all boards with this SB do not provide the ACC option. 
It is still not advisable to go in for the Phenom II X2 550BE because in many cases the unlocker's haven't been able to keep the unlocked cores stable and there are many who haven't been able to unlock at all.


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## f123 (Dec 16, 2009)

Heyy.. thankyou layzee 

After a little bit of contemplating
Here is the final list,

CPU - Athlon II X4 620 2.6GHz @ 5.3k
Mobo - Gigabyte GA-MA785GMT-UD2H @ 5.5k
RAM - Corsair TW3X4G-1600C9DHX 4GB Kit @ 6.6k
HD - Western Digital Caviar Green/Black 1TB @ 4.3k/5.6k
Monitor - Samsung 2233SW 22&quot; FULL HD LD Monitor @ 9.2k
DVDRW - LG 22x DVD @ 1.1k
PSU - Corsair VX450W @ 4.1k
Speakers - Altec Lansing VS2421 2.1 @ 2.6k
Cabinet - Cooler Master Elite 334/341 @ 2/2.2k
Keyboard - Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000 @ 1.1k
Mice - Gigabyte GM6800 Laser Mouse @ 0.75k

Wat say ?  --- Thumbs Up ---


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## desiibond (Dec 16, 2009)

one small modification.
replaceahlon II X2 640 with phenom II x4 925 which is lot more faster and get transcend ram instead


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## Zangetsu (Dec 16, 2009)

@desiibond : will buy the Seagate 1TB HDD coz there r lots of issues of 1TB going kaput


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## f123 (Dec 16, 2009)

Transcend ??? I have heard they are not that reliable.. Are you serious about the RAM @ desiibond ?

The only thing missing in the Athlon X4 620 is the L3 cache and if OC it will perform almost the same as Phenom II X4 925, isn't it ?

Yeah even I have heard that, but am not sure if its true.. @karan
(I'll go for WD Black 500GB instead, that would be better)


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## desiibond (Dec 16, 2009)

@f123, cache makes a big part in performance, especially when doing gaming or AV conversion. I picked Transcend just to balance out the price of cpu+ram. 

Transcend sells value ram that are not good for OC but they are reliable. They used to be most preferred brand in here before Corsair came in.


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## f123 (Dec 16, 2009)

" Transcend sells value ram that are not good for OC but they are reliable. They used to be most preferred brand in here before Corsair came in. "

I thought Kingston had that distinction.
Hmm...


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## harryneopotter (Dec 16, 2009)

If its not late, i may have to say a few things 

1. 500 GB Black is not easily available ...check it if you want it. Other wise 1 TB Green is a good option.

2. Transcend RAM is good, But these days many people are complaining about the RMA Service, which is being handled by Accel care, is not upto the mark. Turnaround time for Memory RMA is more than 45 days in most of the cases (for proof, just visit the other two forums, dedicated thread for this issue). 

3. CM Elite 341 should not be an option if you are planning to add a mid range GPU anytime in future. CM 33X series should do good. 

4. X4 925 is a worthy CPU for its price. L3 cache do makes some difference in Mathematical Operations, which are an integral part of AV conversion. 



 And If you dont mind, what is your location (to f123).


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## desiibond (Dec 16, 2009)

f123 said:


> " Transcend sells value ram that are not good for OC but they are reliable. They used to be most preferred brand in here before Corsair came in. "
> 
> I thought Kingston had that distinction.
> Hmm...


 
Kingston is kind of in between Transcend and Corsair but there are some of their products that actually rock. We can't write off transcend that easily but if RMA is having issues then it's better to look for Kingston and Corsair.


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## Zangetsu (Dec 16, 2009)

desiibond said:


> Kingston is kind of in between Transcend and Corsair but there are some of their products that actually rock. We can't write off transcend that easily but if RMA is having issues then it's better to look for Kingston and Corsair.



How is G-Skill RAms....r they gud


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## f123 (Dec 16, 2009)

Thanks a lot for you post, it did make a diff @ harryneopotter 

I'll try to squeeze Phenom X4 925 in my budget (will have to drop something else).
Is it really worth spending almost 2.5K more just for L3 cache ? Is the diff noticeable ?
(Frankly speaking I am still in a state of uncertainty) 
.....


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## desiibond (Dec 16, 2009)

yes. it is worthy to spend 2k extra for that. And by going for WE Blue instead of Black, your budget will be set.


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## harryneopotter (Dec 16, 2009)

G Skill is a very good brand of memory, equal in performance of Corsair. And A good 1600 Mhz 4 GB Kit will cost you around 6.6k shipped to your place if you know where to look for.


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## Zangetsu (Dec 17, 2009)

harryneopotter said:


> G Skill is a very good brand of memory, equal in performance of Corsair. And A good 1600 Mhz 4 GB Kit will cost you around 6.6k shipped to your place if you know where to look for.



so shud i go 4 them G-Skill 1600Mhz instead 1333MHz 
will they be utilized @full frequency or what ?


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## asingh (Dec 17, 2009)

^^
Karan have you narrowed down to your sytem specificiation, or purchased it. Long time ago, I remember some thread(s) pertaining to you and your system. But your questions keep cropping up. Not that it is bad, but difficult to remember. 

Now I wanted to ask you, on which system you plan to put the RAM..? At least please, update your signature or put in a "planned" system specs. So we can easily answer your queries. Right...right..! 

Who wants to know which USB and mobile phone you have...!


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## Zangetsu (Dec 17, 2009)

asigh said:


> ^^
> Karan have you narrowed down to your sytem specificiation, or purchased it. Long time ago, I remember some thread(s) pertaining to you and your system. But your questions keep cropping up.



My selected config is previous only..which i had put on graphics card thread 



asigh said:


> Now I wanted to ask you, on which system you plan to put the RAM..?



On a DDR3 mobo...



asigh said:


> At least please, update your signature or put in a "planned" system specs. So we can easily answer your queries. Right...right..!



Ok will do it...



asigh said:


> Who wants to know which USB and mobile phone you have...!


Those were my last purchases..dats y...


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## f123 (Dec 17, 2009)

Hmm... In that case I might as well go for Kingston HyperX 4GB DDR3-1600 and WD Cavair Green (500 GB, 32MB cache) @ desiibond


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## f123 (Dec 18, 2009)

Edifier C3 looks cool.. ( I'll drop AL VS2421 for now, save some bucks and get this instead) @desiibond
Do you have anything else in mind ? Are there any good 16:10 AR monitors ?

(LOL.. Almost the entire list has changed now.. Good)


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## desiibond (Dec 18, 2009)

Dell 248WFP if you are lucky. It's very very difficult to find these 16:10 displays.

---------- Post added at 11:44 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:43 AM ----------

I heard that WD Green is sometimes too slow. Look for Blue as there is no difference in price. maybe a hundred bucks or two.


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## f123 (Dec 18, 2009)

desiibond said:


> I heard that WD Green is sometimes too slow. Look for Blue as there is no difference in price. maybe a hundred bucks or two.



Is it ?? :0
But, WD Blue doesn't have 32 MB cache support, in that case the only option with us is WD Black or Seagate...


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## f123 (Dec 28, 2009)

Hello friends, Hope you all are doing great !!! 

I finally got the PC and given below is it's config,

CPU - Phenom II X4 955 3.2GHz B.E.
Mobo - Gigabyte GA-MA785GMT-UD2H
RAM - Kingston KHX1600C9D3K3/6GX 1600MHz DDR3 - 4GB
HD - WD Cavair Green 500 GB, 32 MB Cache
Monitor - Samsung 2233SW 22" FULL HD LD Monitor
Speakers - Edifier C3
Cabinet - CM Elite 335
PSU - CM eXtreme Power Plus 500W


It took me two days, to source all the components (they weren't readily available at Lammington Road). Corsair DDR3 1600MHz wasn't available at all so I had to go with Kingston, there too the only available kit was 6GB so I purchased two 2GB sticks from that kit.
I had to compromise a bit here and there but am happy. 


Assembled the system yesterday and installed the OS. Testing is yet to be done, I think it will take another day or two.
One strange thing that I noticed was that during startup it shows memory installed as DDR3 1333Mhz (will have to check out the settings for this one) and just 2.75 GB in windows.


I am still using my earlier IDE DVDRW drive and Keyboard/Mouse.
Will get them soon (may be a Microsoft Wired Desktop 600 or Microsoft Digital Media Keyboard 3000 and Gigabyte GM 6800) and yes an extra fan for the chasis in the front. 


Total Cost (till now) - 41.2K



Thanks to everyone for helping me out with this one.

I had used this thread a lot while searching a config that would suit me *www.thinkdigit.com/forum/showthread.php?t=96218
(Thanks comp@ddict, topgear and thetechshopguy)


And a very special note of thanks to desiibond for his guidance..


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