My turn hehe...Look at my sig... I'm not satisfied with my performance in FSX. I've had to save money up for this but I should be in range of a completely new system purchase (within a few months).Note:I realize the new K cpu's are coming out shortly, so I may change a few things up, but ATM I'm basing my build around a core i7 950, which will be clocked to 4+ GHz.CaseCorsair Obsidian Series 800D - $300MoboGIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD5 LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 - $290(p.s. I looked at the lesser model, the UD3R, but decided to go with this one for the additional features like LCD status display, 2 LAN's, clear/reset cmos button, different audio controller, plus I've heard rumors its chipset and cooling is better)PSUCOOLER MASTER Silent Pro Gold Series RS800-80GAD3-US 800W - $170GPUEVGA 015-P3-1580-AR GeForce GTX 580 - $520 ("ouch" - do we really need the 580, would I be safe with a GTX470/460?)RAMMushkin Enhanced Redline 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 - $165CPUIntel Core i7-950 - $300 (might be able to pickup a 930 at micro center for $200 though, is there a big difference?)CPU CoolerNoctua NH-D14 120mm & 140mm SSO - $90 (I've looked into the Corsair H70/50 - what do people think of those? The 70 is similar in pricing to the Noctua anyway)Hard drives + SSDI'll be keeping my 250GB 7200rpm for Win7 x64, and other apps. I also have a 250GB 7200rpm backup drive for photos etc. Then I plan on getting this SSD for FSX only: G.SKILL Phoenix Pro Series FM-25S2S-120GBP2 2.5" 120GB SATA II MLC - $300Optical driveLG Black 10X Blu-ray Burner - Bulk SATA - $80DisplayASUS VH236H Black 23" 2ms(GTG) HDMI Widescreen Full HD 1080P LCD Monitor - $200Grand Total$2300+ S+HIt's pretty much been a dream build for the last few years. Things such as the Corsair case are a bit overkill lol but I really like the convenience of the second side panel area so you can more easily mount the cooler or change it. The hot swap drive areas are nice too. And I just love the physical look of the thing.Things I'm a bit scared of:Overclocking. I know there's a lot of helpful guides/resources but I'm not a huge fan of days of trial and error. I'm hoping a simple voltage bump and a few values will help me get to 4+ easily....Short circuiting something... On my last build when I updated my motherboard I accidentally shorted out my external hard drive's enclosure (remember I wrote that I use an internal one now for photos LOL - it's the same one ;) pulled the enclosure apart and fit the drive into my case via SATA) when installing the front USB drive header cables into the motherboard. I put them in opposite polarity or something and plugged in that external and ZAAAP! So I'm a bit wary of those dam cables because they are SOOO tiny and usually one pronged cables, not to mention difficult to read where they go correctly.I do however own a ant static wrist strap so for the rest of the components I should be good to go.Comments/Questions/Criticisms...

Looks like a good system - I prefer the Asus P6X58D but that's me.The I7's are a snap to clock literally. I clocked mine to 4.43 on air in 5 minutes. Two settings to change and memory settings and that was it. Had to test for over an hour but it passed.By comparison, my Q6600 and my 9650 took hours to clock - one small step at a time with varioius changes.A very forgiving CPU, you'd have to work hard to damage it so be aware but not afraid.And, as you mentioned, there's a ton of help here and elsewhere.The combo you are using is a common one so if you browse around you'll find several instances of the exact settings you need to acxhieve your stable clock.I know you know this but it can't hurt to reepeat - 1) use NickN's guides to set up your OS & FSX BEFORE you clock your system.2)Set up your clock and get it stable3) Run FSX *as is* to see if the clock remains stable in FSX (many times clock passes benches but fails in FSX) 4) Once you are swatisifed the clock is FSX stable. then start tweaking FSX etc.Good luck!!Vic

GPUEVGA 015-P3-1580-AR GeForce GTX 580 - $520 ("ouch" - do we really need the 580, would I be safe with a GTX470/460?)

I went the 1GB GTX460 with my latest upgrade (i950@4GHz, 6GB RAM, etc) and it seems to handle FSX on my TH2GO setup quite well even with AA/AF cranked up high and the latest drivers (260.99). Actually, I just finished playing Call of Duty:Black Ops at 3840x1024 and my system seriously kicked butt in the performance stakes. I wish the nearly four year old FSX performed as fast and smoothly as a latest release FPS, but there ya go!

Ok, that would be great so I could cut that cost in half! I would only run a single 23in monitor so it should be good. It's just a TON of money to spend on a video card lol!Oh, and another important question. Will the RAM I listed be able to hold up to that 4+ GHz overclock? Or do I need to step up to some DDR3 2000 stuff like the Corsair Dominators:http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145318(Then I wonder if those bad &amp;@(&#036;* looking heatsinks will interfere with my noctua cooler!)edit again: so I swapped out the gskill SSD for a new mushkin SSD, comparable prices. It's just that I trust mushkin more :) I also swapped out the GTX580 for a 470- nearly half the price. I think the 580 would suit people with TH2Go or just huge monitors. Since I'll be running a single 23 I should be ok.I looked at nvidia's site and the only real difference is 1280mb vs 1536mb and 448 vs 512 cuda cores whatever that means lol.I also considered the Corsair H50/H70 for ease of install but I've read the noctua beats both of those and that is impressive hehe, so I'm staying with the noctua.RE: the ram vgbaron I see you run the mushkin cas 6 I listed. You must not have had problems reachning 4+ with those sticks?Anyway, my grand total lowers to <$2000

I'm in about the same position. I have been planning on a build based on an i7 950, GTX 460 and an Asus board. I was hoping that Micro Center repeats the i7 950 for $199 sale. However, rumor control now has Sandy Bridge released January 9 with the i7-2600K chip as low as $317. If the release is that close I'll wait until the AVSIM hardware gurus take a look at it.

I am thinking of building more or less the exact same system. i7 950 @ 4.2Ghz (you can buy it pre-configured this way in the UK as a guaranteed clock speed for £30 extra). I decided on the GTX 580 too but didn't go as far as SSD in this instance, after reading a tonne about them I just decieded they were not worth the extra cash at the moment and will use normal drives, I can always pop one or two in later on next year.My problem is benchmark results even for a setup like this are not easy to find and when they are found aren't always that coherent. As a result I might sit on this a while. I have a Q6600 at 3.6Ghz and 4GB RAM at the moment with a 9800 Nvidia card in there, it's certainly starting to show its age with some software though and I have always wanted to have good FSX performance.But there are other considerations, I use a single 42" plasma display for FSX, that's at 1080p, so 1900 x 1080. I also run weather programes such as ASE, and only ever fly with complex IFR aircraft such as PMDG 747X, MD-11 and the soon to be released 737NG. These are my requirements, my system must cope with that and provide excellent performance.So, are we flogging a dead horse here? Will I get 'close' after spending over £1400 and if that's the case is it worth waiting till the new Sandy cores are released, to take advantage of their performance. I am in no desperate rush here, and can live with FS9 for a while longer without losing any sleep, I want GOOD performance for FSX and I will wait for that.Thoughts?CheersCraig

If your still using FS9, are you using the 'bloom' effect?

If your still using FS9, are you using the 'bloom' effect?

In FS9 I have every option checked and as high as it can go and still get good performance. As I said in my post, I only fly complex IFR aircraft, I use airport sceneries all the time and weather packages such as AES, REX and so on. I will need a machine that is capable of handling all of this if it can't then it's simply not worth the money to me.Thoughts?Craig

I'd just wait for MSFlight to be released. I reckon it'll be before june-July 2011. If you can't wait that, go the i7 950 route with gtx470 min. 6GB Ddr3 1600Mhz CL7 or lower, good cooler, good case, SSD/Vrap, HD. Nice stable OC and youre all the way for FSX.

I'd just wait for MSFlight to be released. I reckon it'll be before june-July 2011. If you can't wait that, go the i7 950 route with gtx470 min. 6GB Ddr3 1600Mhz CL7 or lower, good cooler, good case, SSD/Vrap, HD. Nice stable OC and youre all the way for FSX.

Perhaps, I'm never on the cusp of new hardware releases and I tend to be one generation (at least) behind the power curve of every new FS release. No one really even knows if Flight will support FSX planes or anything, or what will be required. I can always play the waiting game hehe.

I looked at nvidia's site and the only real difference is 1280mb vs 1536mb and 448 vs 512 cuda cores whatever that means lol.RE: the ram vgbaron I see you run the mushkin cas 6 I listed. You must not have had problems reachning 4+ with those sticks?

Not a problem at all - I ever have th ememory clocked a bit higher to 1612. It will do 1625 or so but why push it.Go for the 480 over the 470 - no comparison. Currently according to some knowledgeable folks, theideal is an I7/580 - next in line is I7/480 and a distant 3rd is the I7/470.Now, before I offend all the 470 users out there - not saying it's a bad card, not even close - just saying that the best bang for the buck right now is the 480, not the 470.Vic

I'd just wait for MSFlight to be released. I reckon it'll be before june-July 2011. If you can't wait that, go the i7 950 route with gtx470 min. 6GB Ddr3 1600Mhz CL7 or lower, good cooler, good case, SSD/Vrap, HD. Nice stable OC and youre all the way for FSX.

Chris - I hope you're not sadly disappointed when MSF is released. Acxcording to some scuttlebut that I've heard it won't be as good is FSX is right now. I'll still check it out when the time comes but I certainly would not recommend that anyone wait before upgrading. That's about all I can say for now.Vic

Go for the 480 over the 470 - no comparison. Currently according to some knowledgeable folks, theideal is an I7/580 - next in line is I7/480 and a distant 3rd is the I7/470.Now, before I offend all the 470 users out there - not saying it's a bad card, not even close - just saying that the best bang for the buck right now is the 480, not the 470.Vic

Actually there's a new card coming out shortly, the GTX 570, apparently also with 480 cores. It seems to be based off the 580... so I'll probably get that instead...http://www.sweclockers.com/nyhet/13132-geforce-gtx-570-samma-dag-som-cataclysm

Concerning the cooler; as of today I am the proud owner of a Corsair H70 cooler after ditching my Scythe Mugen 2 which I could not get to work properly. I could not have been happier with this cooler, I have overclocked my I7-950 to 4.4 GHz today and temps do not go higher than 70 degrees! I have no experience with the Noctua, but from what I have read it should perform about the same as the H70.

GPUEVGA 015-P3-1580-AR GeForce GTX 580 - $520 ("ouch" - do we really need the 580, would I be safe with a GTX470/460?)

nVidia just released the GTX 570. Newegg has them for about $350. A lot less money than the 580 and none of the heat and noise issues of the 470 - sounds like a win win.

yeah...errr... I made a post about that two up from yours lolhttp://forum.avsim.net/topic/319518-my-i7-950-build-q1-2011/page__view__findpost__p__1887013