So Im looking to buy a new system in the next week. The main purpose of this system will be to run FSX and FS9, im coming from a P4 3.4 so this is gonna be a big upgrade. I would like to stay under $900. Im looking for a complete system already built, With Windows 7, a Nvidia card, and at least 600w PSU. Do you guys have any recomindations?? Been looking at places like iBuypower, NewEgg, Tiger Direct, eCollegePC and seem to be some decent systems out there under 900, but just not sure what would be the best set up for FSX as right now i dont even run it. So any help with the right direction would be great.

I suggest an I7 920 @ 2.67 mhz processor and compatible Motherboard and at a minimum, a Nvidia 250 GT... with like 6 gb of DDR3 memory, it will go over your budget slightly i think but you will be able to overclock to 3.2 mhz easily, that will give you a very nice FSX experience at high slider levels, depending of what add-ons you use.Anything less is a waste of money in my book, at the moment; in 6 months from now, all bets are off :(

Sorry for the nitpick but being technically accurate when giving advice is important, IMHO. A couple things:1) it's GHz, not MHz2) it's the GTS 250, not the 250 GT. Everything else was right though.

You are right... Alain from Montreal

Thanks for the advice guys....So whats the big difference between the i5 and i7? i Found a set up with the following specs for $799, but its and i5, and not exactly the video card i want. What do you think of the following set ups? just some options, still looking for a deal on a i7Processor Intel Core i5 750(2.66GHz)Memory 4GB DDR3 1333Hard Drive 750GB SATAIIOptical Drive 1 24X DL DVD+/-RW DriveGraphics NVIDIA GeForce GT 240 1GBAudio Sound card - IntegratedEthernet 10/100/1000Mbps LANPower Supply 700WOperating System Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bitSpecial Features Apex TX-381 Gaming Towerneeds a bigger PSU but could always get that at same time but is the lowest priced at $759Intel Core i5 750 2.66Ghz4GB DDR3500GB SATA II HDDNvidia GT 220DVDRW420W PSUWindows 7 Home Premium 64-bit$859: * Intel Core 5 750 Processor * 4GB High-Speed DDR3-1333 Memory * 1TB SATA Hard Drive * 700w PSU * NVIDIA GeForce GTS250 1GB * MS Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit$879:Processor Intel Core i5 750(2.66GHz)Processor Main Features 64 bit Quad-Core ProcessorMemory 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1333Hard Drive 1TB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 7200RPM HDDOptical Drive 1 24X DVD

i5 = 4 threadsi7 = 7 threadsAlso some i7 models (the 9xx product line) feature triple channel DDR3 memory controllers, which provides more bandwidth and slightly more performance depending on the workload.As for the specific configurations you've been quoted, what company is that? The GT 2xx cards aren't adequate for FSX. They'd do fine for FS9 though. GTS and GTX 2xx cards are a rather large step up from the GT line, you'd do much better with one of those.

i5 = 4 threadsi7 = 7 threadsAlso some i7 models (the 9xx product line) feature triple channel DDR3 memory controllers, which provides more bandwidth and slightly more performance depending on the workload.As for the specific configurations you've been quoted, what company is that? The GT 2xx cards aren't adequate for FSX. They'd do fine for FS9 though. GTS and GTX 2xx cards are a rather large step up from the GT line, you'd do much better with one of those.

I would love to go with the i7, but looks like a decent increase in price for that. The video card i have configured on all setups is the GTS250. and the brands are Ibuypower and CyberPower. I just made one at CyberPower with the following specs for $769, Want kind of performance do you think i would get out of this in FSX? * CPU: Intel

FSX performance would be good. You could run mid-high settings w/add-ons. Don't expect the absolute highest settings though.

I would love to go with the i7, but looks like a decent increase in price for that. The video card i have configured on all setups is the GTS250. and the brands are Ibuypower and CyberPower. I just made one at CyberPower with the following specs for $769, Want kind of performance do you think i would get out of this in FSX? * CPU: Intel

well i just ordered the following system, cost me $794 shipped to my door, should be here by wed/thurs, coming from a old P4 system i cant wait to get FS9/FSX up and running on this machine. For the money i think it was the best deal i could find on a completed system. And im sure ill want to figure out how this whole "overclocking" stuff works one day ;)IBuypower 937iIntel Core i5 750 Processor4GB High-Speed DDR3-1333 Memory1TB SATA Hard Drive700w PSUNVIDIA GeForce GTS250 1GBMS Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit

Why the heck did I type i7 = 7 threads? That should be 8. Nice system. You won't be disappointed.

I am looking to build/buy an new system, finally, that will run FSX properly.I have been looking at Intel Core 2 Quad. What is the difference between this processor and the i7? I have seen the above advice but do not know what alternatives there might be in quad cores?

The Core i7 has a different architecture than the Core 2 line of processors. It supports hyper-threading and up to 3 channels of DDR3 RAM. It also has an extra level of cache on the chip that can help minimize performance bottlenecks due to memory requests. At the same clock speeds, an i7 can be anywhere from slightly faster than a Core 2, to significantly faster - it just depends on the workload. At this point in time the platform which the Core 2 resides upon is essentially a dead-end, so if you would like to upgrade again in the future you're much better off with a Core i7.

Another selling point of the i7 is it's OCing ability, it is really easy to push the i7 920 to 4GHz while keeping it stable and cool.

Another selling point of the i7 is it's OCing ability, it is really easy to push the i7 920 to 4GHz while keeping it stable and cool.

It wasn't exactly hard to get my Core 2 Quad to 4GHz either. Took all of 2 trips into the BIOS and perhaps 5 minutes total time spent. Current i7 chips are built on the exact same process as previous Core 2 Quad chips so their ability to overclock is rather similar, of course excepting for the additional heat i7 chips produce.