My new Gaming Rig...

[AstaLaVista]

Yeah, I guess so... thanks for the little push!

Thanks also to xguntherc for showing me the differences between batches, that was part of the reason I wanted to go with the ebay guy since I won't know which chip I'll get with newegg... I guess time will tell.

 

[sygnus21]

Unless you plan on extreme overclocking, I doubt you'll notice. But then again, I'm only overclocking my "B3" Q6600 to 2.9 on air with a Zalman CNPS9500 AT whereas a lot of folk have their "GO" Q6600 at 3+gig with fancier coolers.

Man I can't wait to get my i7 system.

 

[smarteyeball]

differences between batches,

From what I can tell, my q9550 isn't from a 'sought after' batch, but it's currently sitting nicely @3.77ghz with more left in it. Chances are high that yours will be a EO stepping which is what you want.

Man I can't wait to get my i7 system.

I can. Or should I say I have to

 

[sygnus21]

I can. Or should I say I have to

That's where you and I differ

 

[smarteyeball]

lol

On the plus side, by the time I go i7, I'll be in revision territory

 

[sygnus21]

Heck by the time I get my finances together, I'll probably be able to get the Intel Core i7-965 Extreme Edition for $300.

Kidding, just kidding...it'll be $600 LOL

 

[AstaLaVista]

I don't think I'll be talking i7 until about 2 years from now. The only way I might change my mind is if another neighbor or customer makes me an offer I can't refuse on my rig, and even then... I think I have had enough exciment building a new rig and buying parts for this year! :D

 

[smarteyeball]

Heck by the time I get my finances together, I'll probably be able to get the Intel Core i7-965 Extreme Edition for $300.

Kidding, just kidding...it'll be $600 LOL

Either way, it's not on my agenda any time soon

I don't think I'll be talking i7 until about 2 years from now. The only way I might change my mind is if another neighbor or customer makes me an offer I can't refuse on my rig, and even then... I think I have had enough exciment building a new rig and buying parts for this year! :D

Oh, I don't know... once you take a breather and get recharged, you soon discover you've been bitten by the upgrade bug

 

[sygnus21]

Oh, I don't know... once you take a breather and get recharged, you soon discover you've been bitten by the upgrade bug

I'm not normally like that though. The system prior to this one was an Intel D850E motherboard with a P4 3.06GHz processor and1 gig of PC1066 RDRAM (RAMBUS). Other then video card upgrades, the last being a ATI Radeon X800 Pro with 256MB memory, lasted 5 years before building my current system a year and a half ago! :D

Since my current system was already aging when built it, I'm looking to build something a little more modern

Or...as you say, I've been bitten by the upgrade bug

 

[AstaLaVista]

Truth be told, I was very happy with my old rig and all I was wanting to do was to replace my case for more cooling and the PSU for more power to my new video card but, everything went south (or north depending on your point of view) when my neighbor decided he wanted my pc :D

Even though I have seen some i7 hardware at a decent price, all the good brand components (RAM, Mobo, CPU) are still a bit pricey for my taste. Besides, I have got to get my money's worth out of this CPU before I commit to upgrading to the new cores.

 

[sygnus21]

Asta,

Since you got a new system, I wouldn't even be looking at a new system for a while. But in a year or so, you'll be just like me...wanting something new

And for what it's worth, you got a pretty nice system as is...better than mine

Speaking of your new system...hear anything on your deliveries?

 

[AstaLaVista]

According to my tracking, the package was delivered today as foreseen but my RMA status has not changed "Issued" to "Received" yet, although, they are in Cali so I may still have a good chance since it is only about 1: P.M.

On the other hand, by this time, someone would have seen the package... Oh, the pain

 

[smarteyeball]

On the other hand, by this time, someone would have seen the package... Oh, the pain

lol, I know the feeling. I ordered a mouse/keyboard/cathodes and case fans on the 2nd of March. They finally shipped the order on the 11th. Not bad for a 'premium on-line store' that promises processing and shipment within 6 hours of receiving the order

As for upgrading, realistically all I need is a new PSU and video card and I'll be good to go for another 2 years. From what I've seen so far, the i7's don't give you that much advantage in games. It will be quite a while yet before the Q6xx and Q9xx series start to struggle with games.

The only real performance loss is in the e-peen department

 

[sygnus21]

The only real performance loss is in the e-peen department

I guess I'm feeling a little shrunk right now

 

[AstaLaVista]

The only real performance loss is in the e-peen department

I guess I'm feeling a little shrunk right now

There's a sale on some vertically-challenged trojan preservatives... you may want to stock up on those?

 

[sygnus21]

The only real performance loss is in the e-peen department

I guess I'm feeling a little shrunk right now

There's a sale on some vertically-challenged trojan preservatives... you may want to stock up on those?

Did I mention I own the company :D

 

[smarteyeball]

lol, discounts for all?

 

[AstaLaVista]

CLASSIC! :D

Well, I am happy but sad at the same time, my new & shiny Quad 9650 is already here (ordered on Monday), yet, my board is nowhere to be found...

Although, it has been received and approved last I checked, hopefully, I'll receive an e-mail soon with tracking number but I seriously doubt it will be here tomorrow so... there goes my weekend.

Oh, I almost forgot, the Q9650 Batch number is L837B693 and according to the extended & really good explanation by xguntherc and my idiotic & negligent mind, I think I got one of the good chips, right?

 

[AstaLaVista]

The board just got here today so... tomorrow is another day! :D

 

[AstaLaVista]

I am back and better than ever baby, well, minus one little tid bit that I will attack tomorrow.

I am not much into showing so there are no pictures, I am extremely happy but, at the same time, a little depressed due to the fact that the deal with the neighbor stressed me to the max, hence, why I think I have not been able to enjoy my new rig but I am hoping it will pass soon.

Anyways, I put eveything back together and this time around the installing of the CM V8 Cooler was a breeze, I left the pc open for about 2 or 3 days and outside of the little place it will have to go just in case I needed to get to it for something. tonight, I went ahead and installed everything else that I hadn't yet (scanner, printers, usb this, usb that), closed it all up and back to its hole it went.

Turn the pc up, booted up w/o a single glitch, phewww, big sign of relief... or so I thought. The side case fan does not want to turn on. I knew the CM V8 Cooler was going to touch but, last time, it was working so, all I can think off is that I forgot to plug it into the PSU but, and here's the kicker, I don't recall plugging it in the last time either.

So, tomorrow, as much as it pains me, I am going to have to get the rig out of the little hole it sleeps and see what I forgot... isn't building a new rig GRAND!!! :D

Oh, Vista gave me 5.9 across the board, don't really know what that means or what it does but... it feels good to see it!

CPU core at 28 to 30 degree celsius while at idle (compare to 45+ before, I say, I am not doing so bad). Oh and this is w/o 1 230mm side fan running

GPU at 42 degree celsius... not really a huge gain, at least, not what I was hoping for but, I have heard that the 200 series cards run hot so I am hoping it will not go up that much once I start capping some Replica Soldies and that snotty little bi, erm, well... ALMA!

8GB's went ok and I now have them at 1066 with some Manual settings... I am going to need some help with other Bios settings but I'll leave that for much later as I want to try to enjoy the thing for a while before touching anything else.