Show off your computer here! THE PC Spec thread.

[Citizen]

I don't dispute that my cpu is cutting the potential of my 8800GTX severely but as you pointed out,

When it gets to the point that I am unable to do that I probably will care less about potential damage from overclocking my processor.(Because ill probably want to buy a new one by then anyway , K8L for the win!)

In terms of overclocking correctly there is no immediate damage if it's done right but the total operating life of the hardware is usually reduced due to the added stress on the hardware. It is also impossible to guarantee that two of the same piece of hardware will be able to withstand the same levels of stress as the manufacturing process does not result in identical pieces of hardware. Because the hardware varies in quality the processors are always clocked below their maximum potential which is what makes overclocking possible.

Which is also exactly why I have not OC'd my machine... and probably won't.

[Hadrian]

I don't dispute that my cpu is cutting the potential of my 8800GTX severely but as you pointed out,

In terms of overclocking correctly there is no immediate damage if it's done right but the total operating life of the hardware is usually reduced due to the added stress on the hardware. It is also impossible to guarantee that two of the same piece of hardware will be able to withstand the same levels of stress as the manufacturing process does not result in identical pieces of hardware. Because the hardware varies in quality the processors are always clocked below their maximum potential which is what makes overclocking possible.

All very good points, BUT, your system will probobly be outdated and collecting dust before OC specific components wears them out earlier than normal use, especially with proper cooling for OC components. Most of the components in the systems in question are designed with OCing in mind anyway, since they are basically top end "extreme" components and, proper cooling would bring the "wear and tear" of the additional OC bandwidth back into normal parameters. JMO....

[Mad_Cat]

@ Machiavelli,

Thanks, to tell the truth I needed a really high spec computer for games my cuz Works at computer shop so I thought what the heck. I was going to wait to see what processor AMD were going to come up with, but after asking around on TWC I wasencourage to go for the qx6700.

@ Hadrian and Citizen
Thanks, but wanna know what really sucks ass? Vista doesn't support SLI so I can only use one of the GTX cards, DAMN you VISTA and your delayed updates.

[Elric von Rabenfels]

Thanks, but wanna know what really sucks ass? Vista doesn't support SLI so I can only use one of the GTX cards, DAMN you VISTA and your delayed updates.

Don´t get me wrong, but you could simply use Windows XP....

[Incinerate_IV]

Well here's what I got so far for my new computer;

CPU: Core 2 Duo E4300 (Not OCed yet)
Motherboard: Biostar TForce 965PT
Memory: 2x512mb Corsair XMS2 5400C4 (temporary)
GPU: Radeon X1950XT 256mb
PSU: Enermax Liberty 400W
HD: Western Digital Caviar WD1600AAJS 160GB
Case: Antec P180 (Extremely nice)

And Watercooling; D-Tek Whitewater waterblock + Black Ice Xtreme 2 Radiator + Via Aqua 1300

BTW, Vista has wayyy too many problems right now for a practical gaming machine, stick with XP for the win.

[Shaun]

isnt the E4300 crap? How much does it retail for? I would get at least an E6### if I were you.

[Incinerate_IV]

It's still a Allendale core except with a 9x multiplier (The same as the E6600), which makes it extremely good for overclocking.

It's the same price as a E6300 btw.

[Shaun]

Does it perform just as well?

[Incinerate_IV]

It's got the same clock speed as the E6300, but it performs a little worse than the E6300. Because of the high multiplier it's FSB is only 200mhz compared to E6300's 266mhz. But the low FSB makes this thing perfect for OCing, with some nice DDR2-800 and watercooling I should be able to get close to 4ghz.

Let me find my camera and take some pics of the P180, because that case is alsome.

[Hadrian]

@ Machiavelli,

Thanks, to tell the truth I needed a really high spec computer for games my cuz Works at computer shop so I thought what the heck. I was going to wait to see what processor AMD were going to come up with, but after asking around on TWC I wasencourage to go for the qx6700.

@ Hadrian and Citizen
Thanks, but wanna know what really sucks ass? Vista doesn't support SLI so I can only use one of the GTX cards, DAMN you VISTA and your delayed updates.

@ Mad_Cat Going for the Intel processor was definately the right move because AMD looks lost right now with no answer in sight for the Conroe. Vista will eventually (pretty soon) suport SLI, they've just got alot of other release issues to work out right now. When they do, your system will be unstopable for quite some time to come. I'm officially jealous BTW....

@Incinerate I really like my (silver) P180 too. Air cooling at it's best. Hey, remember to make a filter for the left rear intake if you don't use the big, black video card airduct. Nice creative build Incinerate, and with your OCing abilities, I'm sure you'll have that processor at 3. something in no time flat! How did you decide on the Biostar Mainboard? Is it a good OCer?

[Citizen]

Case: Antec P180 (Extremely nice)

I was actually going to get your case. It is a very nice case.


... then I found the Lian Li V1000.

[belson]

I don't know about you guys, but my processor is rated for 15 years. So lets say that overclocking cuts my processor life in HALF, which I think is a little bit of an overstatement. That means my processor will only last for 7 years (now 6 I guess, its 1 year old). If I'm still using this computer then, I will be very disappointed.

[Incinerate_IV]

@Incinerate I really like my (silver) P180 too. Air cooling at it's best. Hey, remember to make a filter for the left rear intake if you don't use the big, black video card airduct. Nice creative build Incinerate, and with your OCing abilities, I'm sure you'll have that processor at 3. something in no time flat! How did you decide on the Biostar Mainboard? Is it a good OCer?

Thanks for the filter tip, I hate having carpets in my computer. The Biostar motherboard is one of the best budget OCing board for Core 2 Duo, it should be able to reach 500FSB with no problem.

... then I found the Lian Li V1000.

Yea but that's also $100 more. I got this case for "only" $100, CompUSA was having a sale on all its Antec cases, $60 off.

[shenmueguru]

eVGA 8800GTX
C2D E6600 (not oc'ed yet...stupid temps)
Corsair XMS2 2 gigs
Gigabyte GA-965P-S3
SATA 160 gig HDD

[__PoweradePaladin__]

C2D E6600 @ stock 2.40 ghz
AGP:ATI X850 XT PE (need to upgrade.. want an 8800 GTX)
ASRock 775Dual-VSTA LGA 775 motherboard-- supports AGP & PCI-E.
Raidmax ATX case
OCZ Platinum 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200)
western digital 120 gig HD
liteon dvd & cd drives (forgot the speed)

[PyrrhusIV]

So many people here have so much overkill, it's not even worth picking up.

[Elric von Rabenfels]

So many people here have so much overkill, it's not even worth picking up.

Yeah, I wonder, is my pc the second slowest here or just the 5th slowest?

[sdjenkyn]

10th slowest at least You know it really depends what you are doing with it. If your just building a gaming rig then by all means throw away all your money but if its to accommodate real applications then its probably money well spent.

[Hadrian]

It blows me away how many people have Conroes and 8800's. The quality of the average system on these forums has markedly gone up in the last 9 months or so. Besides, there is no such thing as overkill, only advanced pre-emptive system requirement installations!! Yeah, that's it....

[Niccolo Machiavelli]

Besides, there is no such thing as overkill, only advanced pre-emptive system requirement installations!! Yeah, that's it....

I think I get the sarcasm in that line, but nonetheless, I'd like to point out that "advanced pre-emptive system requirement installations" are highly cost-ineffective - basically, since SLI or similar things exist, these systems aren't worth the money. I learned this the hard way by having two voodoo 2 cards back in the days. Now I've just bought one 8800 GTS for the next 6-12 months and I guess I'll then get the downgraded 9x version, which will run games better than two 8800 GTX's will do by then - the difference is that I'll then pay ~400€ (300 if I sell my GTS for 100€ by then) for one card whilst I'd now have to pay ~1000 € for performance I don't need until one year from now (not to mention the additional 150W that system picks up).