Poll: Did you build your computer?

[Sneaky-Pie]

Built my own. Inside one of these.

And no, I wont post the specs. It's... well, it was state of the art three years ago...

...awww...

I have the same case. It's brilliant.

OT: Sure did, never will go back to buying one. I'm in need of an upgrade though, the system is approaching about two years old.

CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 @ 2.40GHz
RAM: G.Skill 8.0GB Dual-Channel DDR2
Mobo: MSI Platinum nForce 750i SLI
GPU: Dual GeForce 9600 GT SLI + a wonderful 24" monitor
HDD: 1TB Western Digital HD
HDD 2: 500GB Western Digital HD (my media drive)
Audio: Creative X-Fi Sound Card along with a 5.1 surround sound system by Altec Lansing

I've been thinking about overclocking my CPU, but am a total newb to that kind of stuff. If anyone's familiar about OCing a Q6600, let me know.

 

[VincentX3]

Processor:
Intel Core 2 Duo CPU E8400 @ 3.30GHz (2 CPUs) (Overclocked)

Memory:
4GB

Hard Drive:
600 GB Total

Video Card:
NVIDIA GeForce 9600 GT (MAX Overclocked)

Motherboard:
Gigabyte EP45-UD3LR

Computer Case:
NZXT CAJA M59 ATX


Self made not to long ago

 

[nofear220]

Core

CPU: i7 920
Mobo: ASUS PT6 Deluxe II
GPU: nVidia GTX295
HDD: 2x500GB SATAII
RAM: 2x2GB DDR3 10600
PSU: Antec Truepower Quattro 850W
CD/DVD: Philips DVD RW
Cooling: Stock
Overclocking: None

Peripheral

Monitor: LG W2252TQ 1680x1050 (16:10)
Mouse: Logitech Performance MX
Keyboard: Logitech G15 gaming keyboard
Case: Coolermaster Stacker nVidia Edition

Built it myself over several years.

Your computer reminds me so much of mine, you know why? cause we have so many similar parts (well really just the cpu,mobo,videocard,and psu type)

Here are pics of mine, I built it myself in August of '09 in a day.

CPU: i7 920 @ 3.8ghz
Mobo: ASUS PT6 Deluxe II
GPU: Dual nVidia GTX295 Quad-sli
HDD: 2x1000GB WesternDigital Black SATAII
RAM: 6x2GB OZC platinum DDR3 2000mhz
PSU: Antec Truepower Quattro 1000W

Peripheral

Monitor: Samsung SyncMaster 2494HM 1080p
Mouse: Razer Mamba
Keyboard: Razer Lycosa
Case: Antec 1200

Do not use these pictures without my permission please and thank you, you can check me out on the "trubritar forums" (quick google search will get you there).

 

[Infinatex]

Yep, and this is what it is.

CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600
MB: ASUS P5K (budget board)
GPU: ATI Radeon HD 5850 Black Edition
HDD: 1 x 500GB, 1 x 1TB
RAM: 4GB (2x2GB)
PSU: Widetech (750W)
CD/DVD: Samsung DVD RW
Case: CoolerMaster NV 690 nVidea Edition

Monitor: Samsung 42" Plasma
Mouse: Razer Naga MMO Mouse
Keyboard: Logitech G19 gaming keyboard
Gameboard: Logitech G13

It needs a bit of an upgrade soon though. Thinking of adding:
CPU: Intel Core i7-860
MB: Sabertooth 55I P55
GPU: ATI Radeon HD 5850 Black Edition x 2 (Crossfire)
RAM: Kingston 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1333MHz

 

[Blemontea]

No... but im am seriously regretting it.

 

[nofear220]

It needs a bit of an upgrade soon though. Thinking of adding:
CPU: Intel Core i7-860
MB: Sabertooth 55I P55
GPU: ATI Radeon HD 5850 Black Edition x 2 (Crossfire)
RAM: Kingston 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1333MHz

Dont get a Socket LGA-1156 i7, it is not a real i7
trust me on this and get an i5 they overclock nicely and you'll save money

 

[child of lileth]

No. I'm not into that kind of thing.

 

[Italian Stalion]

nofear220
its........ beautiful

 

[open trap]

No i just use the family computer for gaming when im not playing on the 360

 

[Infinatex]

It needs a bit of an upgrade soon though. Thinking of adding:
CPU: Intel Core i7-860
MB: Sabertooth 55I P55
GPU: ATI Radeon HD 5850 Black Edition x 2 (Crossfire)
RAM: Kingston 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1333MHz

Dont get a Socket LGA-1156 i7, it is not a real i7
trust me on this and get an i5 they overclock nicely and you'll save money

There's too many i7 options out there at the moment lol So you think O/C i5 might be the way to go. I also have been recommended the i7-870. Is that a worthwhile option?

 

[octafish]

I bought mine complete, back when it was a Pentium 4. The only thing that remains is the P ATA optical drive and the beige box that has had three extra fans added.

E8500 @ 3.8Ghz
Freezer 7 Pro
g31 mATX board
4gb 1066 RAM (don't ask, I needed this to OC my mobo)
HD 4890
Corsair TX650
2x 500Gb WD Blacks

Lg 2442
G15 (to monitor temps while gaming using Core Temp)
x9 wireless (I don't find it too large)
Plantronic GameCom 777 Cans

I have a lovely second hand p193 and Sata DVD burner ready for my next upgrade/build I'll keep the HDDs, GPU, and the PSU and make the shift to DDR3. I don't know what socket I'll get, probably 1156 despite bulldozer and sandybridge on the horizon.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

Nope. I got an HP desktop I'm afraid. That free window's 7 upgrade was too good to ignore.

I'll probably build my next computer with a friend.

 

[Reg0]

going for the third option, becuase i can and wanted to see how many people bought prebuilts

my room mate built his own and ocuk packaged a very similar rig and called it the xenomorph or something to that extent, he wasnt pleased, so hes easy troll bait when you say "cant believe you bought a pre-built"

 

[octafish]

snip
There's too many i7 options out there at the moment lol So you think O/C i5 might be the way to go. I also have been recommended the i7-870. Is that a worthwhile option?

Depends if you OC or not, if you are planning on OCing the 870 you'll have to disable hyperthreading, negating the good thing about that chip. Using them both stock I think the 870 is worth it, but if you are looking at pushing to 3.6-4ghz then the i5 750 seems to be the one to go with. It's the option I'm looking at.

 

[no oneder]

My dad built it =D.

I'm really lucky to have someone who's so skilled with computers as a father.
He probably built me a +2000? computer with my old pc and about 500? worth of components

If your father had made your computer out of an old wooden table, you could name your computer The Red Special.

 

[Infinatex]

Depends if you OC or not, if you are planning on OCing the 870 you'll have to disable hyperthreading, negating the good thing about that chip. Using them both stock I think the 870 is worth it, but if you are looking at pushing to 3.6-4ghz then the i5 750 seems to be the one to go with. It's the option I'm looking at.

Yeah in that case looks like the i5 is the way to go. Not to mention its like $250 instead of $700!

 

[Jorias]

Not this one, but i built all my previous computers. Too lazy to build another mostly.

 

[Wicky_42]

My box kicked ass a couple of years back, but the GT8800 250mb is a bit slow these days :/

Got an overclocked Q6600 - that's four cores clocked from 2.4GHz to 3.5GHz. Turns out I bought an 'eco' version of the chip that can't take a higher clock stably, but is more energy efficient, otherwise I'm pretty sure I'd be able to clock it higher. Would love to upgrade to an I5 or I7, but naturally they have a different socket so I'd have to upgrade motherboard and RAM at the same time, and that's an expense I'll not make lightly.

On the plus side, my box glows blue beautifully... as do my keyboard and mouse... and headset

 

[Raptor Defence Engineer]

I built mine a year ago. Still rocking.

Running a Phenom II X4 940 3Ghz quad, 4Gb of OCZ Reaper RAM, 650w Corsair PSU, Gigabyte mobo (can't recall specific model no.), ATI HD 4870 1Gb, Two Western Digital Black Caviar 1Tb and 640Gb HDs, a Creative 5.1 sound card and surround system that I can't remember the specific name of all in a Coolermaster ATCS 840.

Cost me about maybe £800 at the time from overclockers.co.uk

 

[nofear220]

nofear220
its........ beautiful

Thanks It was worth every penny.

There's too many i7 options out there at the moment lol So you think O/C i5 might be the way to go. I also have been recommended the i7-870. Is that a worthwhile option?

No, any i7-800 series is socket LGA-1156 (a mid performance platform) and the i7 900 series is socket LGA-1366 (a high performance platform). The i7 on LGA-1156 is just a new rubbish way of overcharging people for the i7 name. The i5 and i3 on the other hand, should be the only cpus on that socket type. The best bang for your buck by far is to get an i5 and OC it.

Edit: I know people who have gotten their i5 @ 5.0ghz which is CRAZY high for an i5, I would never recommend doing that unless you wish to decrease its lifespan by permanently damaging it. Plus you're probably air cooling so, 3.8-3.6 ghz will work great, just dont run too high of a voltage.