SSD or GTX 580

[Commander19]

I would get the gtx580 and get another one and stick it in sli, of course then you really wouldn't need that ssd anyways lol.

 

GTX580s in SLI? Honestly, that is kind of overkill unless of course you would need the memory bandwidth for dual, triple, and/or quad monitor setup, in which case you could just purchase a 3GB GDDR5 Memory model, it would cost a bit more upfront, but in the end it would be worth it.

Edited October 21, 2011 by Commander19

[Thor.]

Thats my plan if i ever get a new sli setup lol. Next year the latest. Hopefully they would have the next gen cards out by then.

[Jeux]

OP, I anticipate the day you finally build this supercomputer I KNOW you're plotting to build.

[hoofhearted4]

lol, no SLI. i never really plan on going SLI, id rather just have on good card. by the time the 580 becomes outdated where i would want to go SLI, they might not even make the one i buy at that point, in which case i would just upgrade to a newer card.

 

the games i do or would play would be RPGs, meaning large open world games. or RTSs. games i play or plan on playing:

 

Dragon Age

Starcraft

Diablo

New Vegas

SWTOR

C&C

Total War

The Witcher

Skyrim

RTSs and RPGs basically

 

i dont NEED a 580 really, i know that. but it couldnt hurt right? as i said, i could get a 560 and an SSD from the get go. or i could get a 580 and just wait a bit and get an SSD later. the hybrid drive i will also be getting is faster then a 10k drive, so ill already be going faster then most. i cant get both at the same time, just not the budget, which is pretty high to begin with, and im even going over what i planned on, so going over what im already doing just cant happen. when i first started planning on my PC i planned roughly $1400, itll cost ~$1600 for the build when everything is said and done, and i think (hope) its a little over estimating. but in the end id get the best of both. :D

 

i guess while i got ppl reading this, and to avoid yet another thread, any recommendations for a good motherboard? its gotta be Asus, as ive had many ppl recommend that to me. either P67 or Z68, im still deciding. the Z68 would be nice for when i get an SSD, but either will work. and the big thing, which is better? micro ATX or regular ATX? is either one easier to work with when it comes to the big GPUs and whatnot? is it better to have everything not scrunched up like on a micro ATX?...thanks for your opinions and help guys!

[Commander19]

lol, no SLI. i never really plan on going SLI, id rather just have on good card. by the time the 580 becomes outdated where i would want to go SLI, they might not even make the one i buy at that point, in which case i would just upgrade to a newer card.

 

the games i do or would play would be RPGs, meaning large open world games. or RTSs. games i play or plan on playing:

 

Dragon Age

Starcraft

Diablo

New Vegas

SWTOR

C&C

Total War

The Witcher

Skyrim

RTSs and RPGs basically

 

i dont NEED a 580 really, i know that. but it couldnt hurt right? as i said, i could get a 560 and an SSD from the get go. or i could get a 580 and just wait a bit and get an SSD later. the hybrid drive i will also be getting is faster then a 10k drive, so ill already be going faster then most. i cant get both at the same time, just not the budget, which is pretty high to begin with, and im even going over what i planned on, so going over what im already doing just cant happen. when i first started planning on my PC i planned roughly $1400, itll cost ~$1600 for the build when everything is said and done, and i think (hope) its a little over estimating. but in the end id get the best of both. :D

 

i guess while i got ppl reading this, and to avoid yet another thread, any recommendations for a good motherboard? its gotta be Asus, as ive had many ppl recommend that to me. either P67 or Z68, im still deciding. the Z68 would be nice for when i get an SSD, but either will work. and the big thing, which is better? micro ATX or regular ATX? is either one easier to work with when it comes to the big GPUs and whatnot? is it better to have everything not scrunched up like on a micro ATX?...thanks for your opinions and help guys!

 

Well, when it comes down to choosing between getting the GTX 580 and the SSD, do you want more FPS with higher graphical detail or do you want faster access time to files and boot up (which games will only access the files as fast as your CPU and the game engine will allow anyway) while sacrificing FPS with low-mid graphical detail. In relation with what I've posted earlier, the types of games you want to play it would be more beneficial to go with the higher end GPU than it would to get an SSD because a GPU should be considered as something of a long term investment when it comes to building your PC, it's very hard to upkeep with the flagship GPU especially since there is one released about 1-2 years (i.e. The GeForce 500 Series in Autumn of 2010 and The GeForce 600 Series sometime between Autumn of this year and Autumn 2012). The same principles apply when it comes to buying flagship CPUs and Motherboards basically.

 

As with the recommendation of a motherboard, it would have to depend on what platform you are going with, Intel or AMD. If you are going with AMD's platform I would recommend either the Crosshair IV Formula or the Crosshair V Formula. I can't really suggest any Intel motherboards to you without knowing the processor you are getting since Intel basically has 3 platforms running the same race right now, but if you tell me what processor you are getting, I could suggest a few motherboards.

 

As far as the form factor (Micro ATX vs. ATX), you will want to go with an ATX Motherboard, ATX motherboards is the standard form factor for most PCs (i.e. Workstations, gaming rigs, etc.), once in a blue moon you will find E-ATX Motherboards (which have slightly more width than ATX motherboards, and sometimes longer). Micro ATX motherboards are used more for things like Home Theatre PCs, and sometimes an alternative to laptops, so generally the specifications are downgraded significantly since they are just there for performing day to day computing tasks.

 

If you have anymore questions, you know what to do. Cheers!

[hoofhearted4]

speed or high graphics? i want both lol. hence i think im gunna get the 580 and then the SSD sometime later. if i get the SSD when i build it, i have to get the 560ti (which isnt bad) but i could do better lol

 

and i do believe i said i was choosing between the P67 and Z68 mobos, which is intel, specifically LGA 1155, which is the Sandy Bridge CPU. :D

 

thanks for you input

[Commander19]

speed or high graphics? i want both lol. hence i think im gunna get the 580 and then the SSD sometime later. if i get the SSD when i build it, i have to get the 560ti (which isnt bad) but i could do better lol

 

and i do believe i said i was choosing between the P67 and Z68 mobos, which is intel, specifically LGA 1155, which is the Sandy Bridge CPU. :D

 

thanks for you input

 

Okay, good call on the 580, will be beneficial in the long run. :)

 

Anyways, depending on which specific chipset you decide to go ahead and buy, here are my recommendations:

 

Z68 Motherboards:

Maximus IV Extreme

Maximus IV Gene

 

P67 Motherboards:

Maximus IV Extreme

Sabertooth

 

These are some of the motherboards that I would recommend getting, again, depending on which chipset you decide to go with. I don't have all that much first-hand experience with Intel like I do AMD, but all of these motherboards have gotten great critic and consumer reviews. If you want my recommendation on what I would go forth buying, it would be the Z68 Maximus IV Extreme since the Z68 seems to be doing better overall.

[hoofhearted4]

yea im thinking z68 personally, since if/when i get an SSD it can take advantage of it.

 

one of those is a micro board (actually that board is the reason i asked about micro boards, lol i like the look) the others are WAY to expensive. the current board i have picked out is $170, and thats about how much i wanna spend. or cheaper....dont really need a board that has SLI, since i dont ever plan on doing it....that said, the board i have picked out does have SLI

 

EDIT: also another route i could take, and i think someone mentioned this. is i could get the EVGA 570 instead. i would still have to wait a while for the SSD (which i dont mind) but i think the big thing is i would save $150 and not lose very much performance (if any), of course this i all speculation, and ill have to see what my savings are like and my income is like when the time comes, but i think this would almost be a smarter option....opinions?

Edited October 21, 2011 by hoofhearted4

[Commander19]

yea im thinking z68 personally, since if/when i get an SSD it can take advantage of it.

 

one of those is a micro board (actually that board is the reason i asked about micro boards, lol i like the look) the others are WAY to expensive. the current board i have picked out is $170, and thats about how much i wanna spend. or cheaper....dont really need a board that has SLI, since i dont ever plan on doing it....that said, the board i have picked out does have SLI

 

EDIT: also another route i could take, and i think someone mentioned this. is i could get the EVGA 570 instead. i would still have to wait a while for the SSD (which i dont mind) but i think the big thing is i would save $150 and not lose very much performance (if any), of course this i all speculation, and ill have to see what my savings are like and my income is like when the time comes, but i think this would almost be a smarter option....opinions?

 

Your friend is actually quite correct, you would save a pretty decent amount of money if you were going with a GTX570 instead, this EVGA GeForce GTX570 gives you pretty close performance to the current 3GB Reference model and you would save about $150.

 

Here is a comparison of the two cards:

EVGA GeForce 2.5GB GTX570

1. 732MHz Core Clock
   
2. 1,464MHz Shader Clock
   
3. 480 Processor Cores
   
4. 3,800MHz Effective Memory Clock
   
5. 2,560MB (2.5GB) Memory
   
6. 320-bit Memory Interface
   
7. Requires a minimum PSU of 550W
   

 

EVGA GeForce 3GB GTX580

1. 772MHz Core Clock
   
2. 1544MHz Shader Clock
   
3. 512 Processor Cores
   
4. 4008MHz Effective Memory Clock
   
5. 3072MB (3GB) Memory
   
6. 384-bit Memory Interface
   
7. Require a minimum PSU of 600W
   

 

Using the data above here is a comparison of the two:

EVGA 2.5GB GTX570 vs. 3GB GTX580

1. 40MHz Core Clock difference
   
2. 80MHz Shader Clock difference
   
3. 32 Processor Core difference
   
4. 208MHz Effective Memory Clock difference
   
5. 512MB (.5GB) Memory difference
   
6. 64-bit Memory Interface difference
   
7. 50W minimum PSU difference
   

[hoofhearted4]

currently, this is the mobo and GPU i have picked out.

 

GPU

 

mobo

 

of course, being something like 4-6 months from building this, these are more just for estimates as anything could become out of stock or change in price and whatnot., but if i were to build this today, thats what id be going with