My dealer has proposed the following setup with options for the motherboard and video card, and comments would be very welcome. I think I should be over-clocking to get reasonable performance but the setup is a bit pricier than I really want, $2200 and $2500, and any suggestions on cost paring would also be appreciated. I have studied Nick

There has not been much change in the CPU scene in the interim. Going to the I7-940 still seems to involve quite a cost leap.

The i7 940 has since been superseded by the 950 and now the 960. For $20.00 more I

The i7 should run well if you OC it to 4GHz. But for that you will need a very good coller and a case with excellent air flow, ie CM Storm Scout, Antec 900/902, CM 690 etc. You will need a case with at least one intake fan and one exhaust fan. The more the better. You could save yourself money by just going for the asus p6t deluxe, or go for the gigabyte EX58-U5D. it's one of the best i7 mobo's on the market. Make sure the ram is triple channel. Also it doesn't matter what graphics card you choose because any card above the 8800gt in FSX does very little. Also you could find a cheaper cooler that will do the exact same job. Finally, you could save a lot of money by shopping around. Many people just go for the first dealer they find and get charged excessively. Build your own or shop around.

Also it doesn't matter what graphics card you choose because any card above the 8800gt in FSX does very little.

Going from an 8800 Ultra to a factory overclocked GTX 280 and now a factory overclocked GTX 285 did do more than a

Yeh I wasn't talking about going for an 8800GT, Im talking about choosing between the GTX260 or GTX275. The difference wouldn't be large.

Yeh I wasn't talking about going for an 8800GT, Im talking about choosing between the GTX260 or GTX275. The difference wouldn't be large.

You

You might want to check and see if they are building the PC with an OEM version of the i7 CPU, too. The OEM versions of the chip have the memory multiplier locked, whereas the retail ones do not. That could make a big difference if you plan to overclock it.RegardsBob ScottColonel, USAF (ret)ATP IMEL Gulfstream II-III-IV-VColorado Springs, CO

Yeah, your probably best, and cheaper, to go out, buy all the parts yourself, and do a home build.

You might want to check and see if they are building the PC with an OEM version of the i7 CPU, too. The OEM versions of the chip have the memory multiplier locked, whereas the retail ones do not. That could make a big difference if you plan to overclock it.RegardsBob ScottColonel, USAF (ret)ATP IMEL Gulfstream II-III-IV-VColorado Springs, CO

Bob,This is the first time I've heard of this?I mean if he or she were going with some HP or Dell with a motherboard that had a locked BIOS I wouldn't doubt it but the ASUS Rampage II Extreme and P6TD Deluxe were specifically mentioned as options.

It all depends on who you buy the system from. Some companies sell the best mobo's, cpu's etc, but still lock the timings and certain features of the mobo

It all depends on who you buy the system from. Some companies sell the best mobo's, cpu's etc, but still lock the timings and certain features of the mobo

The question is how are they locking the BIOS on motherboards like the Asus Rampage II Extreme, I mean if you flash the mobo to a non-proprietary BIOS you'd think it would

That's why I suggested he built it all himself. He would most likely save money, and he doesn't have to worry about components being locked. It would really p**s you off if you got it and it was locked or something!

You might want to check and see if they are building the PC with an OEM version of the i7 CPU, too. The OEM versions of the chip have the memory multiplier locked, whereas the retail ones do not. That could make a big difference if you plan to overclock it.RegardsBob ScottColonel, USAF (ret)ATP IMEL Gulfstream II-III-IV-VColorado Springs, CO

This was only true for the early engineering samples.CPU article

Thank you for all you responses and I must apologise for not acknowledging these sooner but the Christmas Season caught up with me and I did not have any time to think about new computers.I am probably going to try a different dealer this time, the new one specialises in gaming and is experienced in over-clocking which provides me with some degree of re-assurance, and will provide the unit over-clocked. The new dealer is also recommending a more powerful cooler, the Coolermaster V8. I have also decided to get away from the 10,000rpm hard drive since it doesn

I'd recommend you get a good quality fast SSD drive (128GB or 256GB). What I've noticed for a truely "smooth" experience was adding the SSD and putting FSX and all related add-ons on my SSD.Overclocking helps also.My PC http://www.myrobtv.com/Home/PC.htmlhttp://www.myrobtv.com/Home/PC_FSX.htmlRob