Finally got my new rig



Intel Core i7 920
Cooler Master V8
MSi Eclipse Plus
6GB DDR3 OCZ Platinum Series PC3-12800 Triple Channel CL7 1600Mhz
2 x Sapphire HD4890 Vapor-X CrossFireX
1TB WD Caviar Black
Corsair HX1000W
Silverstone Raven RV01
AOC 2434Pw
Razer Mamba (Got it a month back)
Razer Lycosa Mirror
Razer Mako THX 2.1

PSU is a bit overkill, was planning to run 3 4890s, but it was too hot. So two cards only .

Haha yeah I'm a Razer fan. Almost maxed out my 10k budget, but sadly it couldn't run with 3 cards, so in the end spent RM9050. Should have spent the extra money on a better keyboard though, damn.

I love the simplicity and pure power of a simple 2.1 setup. So it was either the Mako or the Bose Companion 5. But I do moderate gaming, so I chose the Mako. Awesome speakers. Worth the price.

LOL no la dude. I'll try the SoundBlaster X-FI Xtreme Gamer card that came with my motherboard first.

Sounds decent so far. But even if i upgrade the soundcard, it won't be the barracuda, it would have to be one of the better Asus Xonars

LOL not even if I had the money for it. The 920 was RM1k, the 965 more than triple that. The performance advantage is not worth anywhere near that much. And I can overclock it slightly if I feel like it. Plus, not like it's a slow processor in the first place is it?

No mate, 1GB each. Yeah it looks good, with better cooling and less noisy fans compared to the reference cards too. Though would have preferred the 4890 Toxic if they had them in stock.
One 4890 Vapor-X will struggle with games that don't support CrossFireX.

Got the whole rig from a LYN forummer - Storm88, shop in Puchong. Great guy, sourced me the MSi Eclipse Plus and the 4890 Vapor-X, both of which I couldn't find in any shop in LYP.

This post has been edited by igor87: Jun 30 2009, 11:29 PM

LOL sorry la guys, tried out the 3 cards setup, but it ran too hot, so 2 cards it is. I'm more disappointed that I can't join your club here than you are.

Don't exactly know why it couldn't sustain the 3 cards, maybe it was my casing, or that particular cards are not designed for 3 way CrossFireX.

But yeah, the moment it starts lagging on any games at all, I'll try out the 3 cards, maybe change back to nVidia this time , depending on the performance of the next generation of cards.

That's a possibility.. The Raven does have 2 huge fans placed at the bottom of the casing, with one exhaust fan on the top side. With the mobo tilted 90degrees with the Raven, I had thought that it would be a great casing for multi-gpu setup. Maybe I was wrong.

It works well enough with two cards, so I'm fine with my current setup.

Maybe when it comes to upgrading (in a year or two), you guys can suggest me a better casing.

This post has been edited by igor87: Jul 1 2009, 12:18 PM

I can't stand 2560 30" displays, way too big and annoying for my liking.

Wanted 3 cards to just to make it last for quite a while. But yeah I guess there is no need for that, I'll upgrade when the time comes. Single card won't be enough though, on certain games that don't support CrossFireX, it barely runs at satisfying speeds. At least now for games that do support CrossFireX (which is a large proportion of current games), it runs at very good speeds.

I'm not an fps freak, just around 60fps is enough, but not less than that. Not like there's any difference above that anyway.

GTAIV in particular is really ticking me off though. Piss poor graphics, no AA, yet runs like crap with no CrossFireX/SLI support. C'mon Rockstar, you're better than this!

Actualy I have used one before, Dell 30". Just couldn't stand it, had to move my head to look around. My current 24" is just about right for me.

Haha I guess I'm too used to a lousy laptop display. Damn uni life.

I can off CrossFireX to see how games fare on a single 4890. On certain games, yes, one card is definitely enough. But on others, it isn't.

COD4/5, one card runs it perfectly fine.
FarCry2? You'll need 2 cards to really enjoy it.

But then again it depends on your tolerance towards lag.

I'm happy with my 2 cards, no regrets about it whatsoever. It didn't really cost me that much anyway, unlike gettting 2 GTX285s. Hell, even 3 4890s would have cost me less than 2 GTX285s, LOL.

I don't have COD 4 right now.

With COD 5 at 1920x1080, all settings max, 4xAA, V-Sync off, first Russian mission -
Single card, around 50-70FPS, dips to around 40 plus during heavy gunfights.
CrossFireX, around 90-100+FPS, dips no lower than 80.

Erm I have Gears of War, FarCry2, Fallout 3, Left4Dead, DMC4, and GTAIV.

I know the mobo has 4 PCIe slots, but would you actually fit 4 dual slot cards on it? My MSi Eclipse Plus has 4 slots too, but when a card is installed in the 3rd slot, it covers the 4th slot too, making it unusable.

Oh wow that is insane!

Would all the 4 cards be running at PCIe 16x or 8x? If I use the first 3 slots on mine, they would all be running at 16x, but then the 4th slot will be limited to 4x. Would be a waste running your 3rd graphics card (and not your PhysX dedicated card) with that limitation.

Can you give like a short review of the AOC 2434Pw?
I want to see if it's really just me who thinks it's not a very good monitor, even at that price point.
Thanks.

Okay then. I'm using mine as my primary display and it's not any good. Ghosting, bright decolouration, long startup time, not to mention the horrid build quality.

Replacing it soon, along with some other items. Really didn't do enough research for this build. Damn.

The Roccat Valo looks cool, but do they make ones with US standard layout?

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Added on August 15, 2009, 2:54 pmScratch that. Checked out their website. I wonder why they use the large, 2 row 'enter' key instead of the conventional design..

This post has been edited by igor87: Aug 15 2009, 02:54 PM

Yup, my old cheapo keyboards all have those too.

But I've come to prefer the smaller key now. Looks better, and the '\' key is not misplaced. Easier for programming.

Awesome cards mate. Care to compare their performance compared to your 4890 CFX? Curious to see how large/small the gap is.

Finally found this, Everglide DTKBoard AluminIum (to hell with the American spelling ) Gaming Keyboard to replace my Razer Lycosa Mirror.


Just a temporary keyboard until Razer comes up with a proper keyboard.

I bought it for RM195. I've been looking for i for quite a while, pretty much all shops don't have it anymore since it has been discontinued. Got the last piece from PC Zone LYP. You might have to look for used ones if you still want it.