Hi all, new here (but been using FS for years now) and hope this is the right place to post this. Well I'm in the market for a new FSX rig, and after spending the last month or so reading reviews, forums, etc I've come up with the following specs:

 

CPU: Intel i5-3570k

 

Motherboard: Asus p8z77 V-Pro

 

Hard drive: WD Velociraptor 600GB

 

RAM: G.skill Ripjaw 8GB 1866mzh CL9 (2x4GB) , (will going to 2133 or 2400mhz offer any reasonable improvement)?

 

Graphics Card: Asus DCU II GTX670

 

Power Supply: Corsair HX850

 

Case: Coolermaster HAF X

 

Cooler: Coolermaster EVO 212 or Noctua NH-D14

 

 

I plan to do a bit of overclocking down the track and I've heard that Ivy Bridge chips run hotter than Sandy, but are apparently more effecient clock for clock and seem to be good to about 4.4-4.5ghz with air cooling as I've read.

 

Also, is there any benefit to getting a small SSD , say 60GB as the boot drive?

 

And is there any real advantage in getting an i7-3770k for FSX performance? It is $150 more than the 3570k which is quite a big difference.

 

thanks for your help.

Cooler: Coolermaster EVO 212 or Noctua NH-D14

 

Get the Corsair H100 instead. - Much more aesthetically appealing and it outperforms just about everything on the market within its price-range.

 

Also, if you want super fast RAM, get something like THIS instead. Going from 1866 ----> 2400 will make about an 8-10% FPS jump.

 

Honestly, don't waste your money on the 3770K. The 3770K has 2MB extra of L3 Cache and HT which truly make almost no difference in FSX. Also, when OC'ing we FSX users typically turn off Hyperthreading so that also is another reason to go for the 3570K instead.

 

If you want to get an SSD, get one like THIS. - Prices on these having been plummeting recently and you should see them drop even further in the coming months if you ever feel the need to throw another one into your system. 240GB should be enough for your OS AND FSX if you can use your storage space wisely. BUT, if you would rather stick with a mechanical drive, one like THIS would work wonderfully.

Thanks for replying Ben. I decided I'll go with the 3570k, saving $150 over the 3770k. Instead I'll put that money toward a 120gb SSD for OS and programs and have FSX sit on the velociraptor.

 

Trying to keep budget around $2000-2200 (including having a PC shop build it - I've got zero experience putting together PCs). Prefer to stick with air cooling for now. Only looking to do a mild overclock (and that is after I learn how!) maybe 4-4.4ghz. Don't know if the Evo 212 wil be enough, but surely the noctua NH-D14 will be?

 

Also anyone have any experience with a GTX670 and FSX? I'm looking at getting the ASUS DCU II version.

 

cheers

Get the Corsair H100 instead. - Much more aesthetically appealing and it outperforms just about everything on the market within its price-range.

 

Also, if you want super fast RAM, get something like THIS instead. Going from 1866 ----> 2400 will make about an 8-10% FPS jump.

 

Honestly, don't waste your money on the 3770K. The 3770K has 2MB extra of L3 Cache and HT which truly make almost no difference in FSX. Also, when OC'ing we FSX users typically turn off Hyperthreading so that also is another reason to go for the 3570K instead.

 

If you want to get an SSD, get one like THIS. - Prices on these having been plummeting recently and you should see them drop even further in the coming months if you ever feel the need to throw another one into your system. 240GB should be enough for your OS AND FSX if you can use your storage space wisely. BUT, if you would rather stick with a mechanical drive, one like THIS would work wonderfully.

 

Hello,

 

would it make any noticeable difference if I switched to those rams instead of the currently installed 2x2 GB Mushkin Redline 1600 (1.65v) 6-8-6-24 ones?

 

Thanks,

 

Rob

Do you have a link to the store where you're buying your parts? It all depends on local prices really.

As of today, going by newegg's prices, Ben's suggestions look great to me.

The H100 is now just $20 more than a NH-D14 there, and for a chip like that that tends to get so hot, the H100 is going to show it's muscle. In Sandy Bridge you where always limited by voltage, but things have changed with Ivy Bridge. But for a moderate overclock a good mid range air cooler should be fine

2400MHz CL10 RAM at just $97 is well worth it IMO. It's like a 500MHz CPU clock speed boost for just an extra $50 (when compared to most common 1600 RAM). Here in Europe you can find 2400 RAM for less than 100€ already, should be the same in Australia.

 

The SSD is expendable. You can always add one later down the road if you want one, I would avoid those Agility 3 and any other Asynchronous NAND unit for that matter. Right now the best choices are Crucial M4 or Samsung 830. Just tell the guys who will put together your system to make sure they install Windows with the SATA controller set to AHCI so the potential future transition to an SSD goes smoothly.

 

If you need to save some money to get faster RAM or a better cooler, you can always go with a TX series PSU and maybe a CM HAF 932 case

 

 

Hello,

 

would it make any noticeable difference if I switched to those rams instead of the currently installed 2x2 GB Mushkin Redline 1600 (1.65v) 6-8-6-24 ones?

 

Thanks,

 

Rob

 

A 10% boost give or take. What are your specs?

View Postrp1, on 10 June 2012 - 11:18 AM, said:

Hello,

 

would it make any noticeable difference if I switched to those rams instead of the currently installed 2x2 GB Mushkin Redline 1600 (1.65v) 6-8-6-24 ones?

 

Thanks,

 

Rob

 

A 10% boost give or take. What are your specs?

 

2500k @ 4.7

RAM as described

ASUS P8Z77-V

Gigabyte GTX560Ti (factory OC model)

Instead I'll put that money toward a 120gb SSD

 

One like THIS would be great.

 

Also anyone have any experience with a GTX670 and FSX? I'm looking at getting the ASUS DCU II version.

 

Excellent choice.

One like THIS would be great.

 

 

 

Excellent choice.

Do you have a link to the store where you're buying your parts? It all depends on local prices really.

As of today, going by newegg's prices, Ben's suggestions look great to me.

The H100 is now just $20 more than a NH-D14 there, and for a chip like that that tends to get so hot, the H100 is going to show it's muscle. In Sandy Bridge you where always limited by voltage, but things have changed with Ivy Bridge. But for a moderate overclock a good mid range air cooler should be fine

2400MHz CL10 RAM at just $97 is well worth it IMO. It's like a 500MHz CPU clock speed boost for just an extra $50 (when compared to most common 1600 RAM). Here in Europe you can find 2400 RAM for less than 100€ already, should be the same in Australia.

 

The SSD is expendable. You can always add one later down the road if you want one, I would avoid those Agility 3 and any other Asynchronous NAND unit for that matter. Right now the best choices are Crucial M4 or Samsung 830. Just tell the guys who will put together your system to make sure they install Windows with the SATA controller set to AHCI so the potential future transition to an SSD goes smoothly.

 

If you need to save some money to get faster RAM or a better cooler, you can always go with a TX series PSU and maybe a CM HAF 932 case

 

The store I'm planning to buy from is Scorptec http://www.scorptec.com.au/ not the cheapest, but not the most expensive either and they have excellent customer service and support as I've heard from folks who did business with them.

 

The H100 here cost about $70 more than the Noctua and it seems that the air cooler is will do the jobs for O/Cs up to around 4.4-4.5Ghz on the 3570k which supposedly is equal to around 4.7 on the Sandybridge chips.

 

 

The 2400mhz ram here is about $125-130 (equal to around 100 euros), but opinions on it differ greatly - some say it won't make any real difference to 1600 ram with lower CAS value, while others suggest it'll give up to 5FPS more. At the moment I am considering 1866mhz CL9 ram, which is half the cost of the 2400mhz...

 

As for SSD, If I go that route, the Crucial M4 seems to be highly appraised.....but it's got me thinking.... should I get a 1TB HDD instead for the same price or even less? That'll have all my storage covered, while FSX will live on the Velociraptor? Whereas with an SSD, I might run out of storage pretty quick.

 

The 2400mhz ram here is about $125-130 (equal to around 100 euros), but opinions on it differ greatly - some say it won't make any real difference to 1600 ram with lower CAS value, while others suggest it'll give up to 5FPS more. At the moment I am considering 1866mhz CL9 ram, which is half the cost of the 2400mhz...

 

There has been clear evidence that 2400MHZ RAM will provide a 10% jump in FPS over 1600MHZ. I would strongly recommend it.

Hi mate,

 

I've bought parts from Scorptec before (both in Malvern and Clayton) and can tell you that there service is second to none, absolutely top notch! So from my experience I wouldn't hesitate to buy from them.

 

As far as the RAM goes, listen to the advice given here. I ran some tests using FSXMark11 to test performance differences on my system. I went from 16GB 1600Mhz (4x4GB @ 9-9-9-24-2T) of Corsair RAM to 8GB 2133Mhz (2x4GB @ 9-11-10-28-2T) of GSkill Ripjaws. What I noticed was that not only did my average FPS increase but the flight also appeared to be smoother.

 

I'm on Sandy Bridge so the 2133Mhz was the quickest compatible with my system, but if your on Ivy Bridge and can afford it I would definitely go with 2400Mhz RAM.

Thanks guys. It gets confusing when on some people say it won't make any real difference while others say it will. Looks like 2400mhz is the way to go after all.

No worries. Let us know how it all turns out! :good:

Is the 2400mhz ram compatible with Asus Maximus Extreme IV guys?? Cheers

Is the 2400mhz ram compatible with Asus Maximus Extreme IV guys?? Cheers

 

Here's a list of qualified motherboards for the 2400mhz Ripjaws http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=186_912&products_id=20097

 

while we're on the subject, is there any difference between the Ripjaws and Trident 2400mhz RAMs?

This is the rig I am planning on purchasing....planning on going with Scorptec for their customer service and support and warranty.

 

 

Windows 7 and programs will live on the SSD, while i plan to use the Velociraptor as an FSX / games drive.