My New Setup is underway.

[droddis]

I've starting ordering the parts for my new PC setup:

Q6600 2.4GHz Core 2 Quad 1066FSB 8Mb Cache
MSI P7N-SLI Platinum Motherboard
2x 256MB BFG nVidia Geforce 7800 GTX OC - Total of 4 Outputs
4GB DDR2 800Mhz RAM
120GB SATA HDD

Will this be ok to run FSX??? I dont have FSX yet, but will upgrade in the future (as soon as PMDG release NGX) but i suppose then i'll need FS11.

And ive got my eye on a nice projector for the display on ebay.

Thanks

[Paul G]

Sure it should run it no problem, but the question really is what will it look like. Without add-ons it should run smoothly at medium - high settings. One big factor is whether you're using Windows XP or Vista. Another is whether you plan to have 4 outputs running and what you'll have on them.

One output for instruments and 3 for visuals might over-tax your video cards. I'm running 3 outputs reasonably well but only one is visuals.

Might be worth getting a faster stock processor though as I keep hearing that the processor speed seems to be the bottleneck with FSX. I have the same, well ok a dual running at that speed and it's ok. But I'm already considering an upgrade.


I've starting ordering the parts for my new PC setup:

Q6600 2.4GHz Core 2 Quad 1066FSB 8Mb Cache
MSI P7N-SLI Platinum Motherboard
2x 256MB BFG nVidia Geforce 7800 GTX OC - Total of 4 Outputs
4GB DDR2 800Mhz RAM
120GB SATA HDD

Will this be ok to run FSX??? I dont have FSX yet, but will upgrade in the future (as soon as PMDG release NGX) but i suppose then i'll need FS11.

And ive got my eye on a nice projector for the display on ebay.

Thanks

[WJH308]

Thats my computer your building except I have a 3850 radeon video card.
I will suggest to you to wait for the newer Intel quadcores to come out. Yes your setup will run FSX very nicely. I get up to 100fps with the stock airplanes with graphics on medium, no AA. Throw in the Level D 767 into Miami with many buildings, the FPS drops down to 20's. Away from the cities, up to 35 fps.
Still though, save your money, wait for a new quad core, next generation 45nm ones.

[droddis]

so i'd be better with something like the Q9550 2.83GHz or the Q8200 2.33Ghz???

for the displays 3 would be the instruments and 1 for visual - on HP vp6111 projector.

thanks

[WJH308]

At least a 9series quadcore. Intel has new chips comming, longer you wait, the better.

[droddis]

Whats the expected price tag on the new chips. i'm working to a tight budget and i'm also impatient.

If i do go for the q6600 i'll more than likely try to OC it to 3Ghz.

[WJH308]

Whats the expected price tag on the new chips. i'm working to a tight budget and i'm also impatient.

If i do go for the q6600 i'll more than likely try to OC it to 3Ghz.


First thing first. If you want to O/C the Q6600, dont buy the LT680i motherboard like I did, it is bugged, could only get 2.6 out of it.
Another thing, if your on a budget, go to Ubid and buy a refurbished quad core 9series desktop for around 600$ usually. You will still want to put a nice video card in it. Yes we could all wait for a better deal, every 6 months theres better deals...

[droddis]

Ok well after consideration i've decided to go for the Q9550 2.83Ghz Yorkfield as i've seen a good price. Its on the 45nm architecture and also has the 1333FSB so should give a bit more power.

Any advice??

[Paul G]

There's always new technology lurking around the corner, so there's never a good or bad time. With money being an issue, waiting for new technology to be available isn't a wise choice as it will be very much more expensive. My approach is to wait until a new generation of chip has been around a few months. By then the first processors in that range will become considerably cheaper compared with the newest, but with only a small difference in performance. Then, in my opinion, is the time to buy, for maximum longevity.

[Paul G]

Just checking the processor you're going for and that's exactly what I'm talking about. You're going for a new processor which has dropped in price sufficiently (around $350). Yet you'd have to fork out nearly $300 more to get a tiny increase in performance.

2.66GHZ Yorkfield 1333FSB 12MB OEM No HSF $344.99

+0.17GHz @ $10

2.83GHZ Yorkfield 1333FSB 12MB Retail Box $354.98

+0.17GHz @ $280

3.0GHZ Yorkfield 1333FSB 12MB Retail Box $629.99

Sensible choice in my opinion.

[Padraig]

if you do what I call "Bang for your Buck" I would get a intel processor which is Quad, like the 2.4ghz and overclock it to the max, that way you save money and get the same performance as a more expensive model of their chip, I have done this with a dual core which was clocked at 2.4 and clocked it to near 4ghz but it needed watercooling for this to be stable, but all in all, if you know what you are doing regarding overclocking you will save alot of money for those over priced chips.

[droddis]

I know nothing about overclocking but surely if i bought the Q9550 and overclocked it then I would have better than wats on the market?

[Paul G]

I think you're right. Overclocking does present serious risk of fire and damage to not only your chip but your entire system and other property. I was going to overclock my 6600 chip but I decided that I wanted stability over speed so didn't

Youd be better off going for a higher clock at a higher price than slower and overclocking. Of course if you're careful you can liberate more juice but you gotta be real careful from what I hear. A bit like playing Blackjack in some ways.

[WJH308]

Overclocking is not as mysterious and dangerous as you think. The main thing is excess heat. Often times, to get stability with a higher clock, you need to bump up the cpu voltage. This is where the heat is generated that causes problems, hence why many people spend some money on better cooling.
I simply do not over clock because stability is very important to me. Why the **** would I want to plan a nice long flight in my level D 767 only for a system crash when I was getting ready for the approach?
It IS something you can play with, just read a bunch of howto's on what settings to play with in your bios, keep an eye on the cpu temps.