Juclassic

Another question :)My Optical drive is Sata I, but I only have 4 Sata II connections and 4 Sata III connections, does this mean I need a different drive?I take it my Sata II Hdd goes in the first numbered Sata II port, that being SATA3G_3? (Sata III takes up 1 and 2) on the P8P67 Evo.Thanks everybody, feeling like a bit of a muppet...!

Hi Everyone!Thanks to everyone who posted with help previously!Unfortunately I went away with work for a few months, but now I'm back I've finally got round to building the PC.The spec has changed, only in little areas here and there, but now I only need 1 component; the Graphics Card.I know from reading advice that FSX is more CPU dependent; but now I have a small conundrum!Basically a friend has offered me an unused Palit GTX550Ti which I think is a good card, or for an extra £20 I could get a Palit Sonic GTX 460 from Amazon which would probably be the most I'd be looking to spend.Basically my question is, is there a big enough difference between the two for FSX? Also in the future? I'm not technically minded enough to know the difference between the two... so any help would be greatly appreciated! :)Thanks again everyone,Andy. Edit: Not sure if this will matter too much, but I'll be downsizing to an LG 22" Monitor from my current Samsung 24".

Thanks Dario. I'm looking at the SSD, I can live with longer load times - I'll consider the option since Bjorn gave me the advice, i'll probably not go down that route mind.Thanks for the heads up on the 212 - that saves £10. :) Hi Word Not Allowed, thanks - I've looked into it, and have given myself 2 options - 1. Buy the motherboard and have it replaced when the fixed mobos are in circulation for free, or 2. as I plan to finish the build around the end of March, maybe they'll have the new mobos around anyway?Thanks again!Andy.

Thank you Dario, I've practically decided on the RAM now, thanks to your response.I've downgraded (?!) to a 650W PSU, I don't plan to go dual SLI any time soon, but again thank you for your advice.I've practically finished my planning stage I think. I'll reconsider the RAM option to a lower latency should I find RAM in the price range I'm looking. But for now, here is the plan:-----My Projected Build-----Processor:Intel i5-2500K 3.3 GHzMotherboard:Asus P8P67-M ProGraphics Card:Gainward GTX 460 Golden SRAM:Corsair XMS3 8GB 1600MHz (2x4GB)HDD:Seagate Barracuda 1TBPSU:Corsair TX650WCPU Cooling:Corsair A50OS:Windows 7 Home PremiumCase:Coolermaster Elite 330 Drives:Samsung SH-223 DVD RW Drive x 2Misc:Thermal Paste - Arctic Cooling MX-4Extra 120mm fan - Xilence Red WingOffice 2010Microsoft Keyboard and Mouse.This all comes to £882.36.--------So, this is the provisional list, I can't believe the spec I can create for a few extra hundred pounds and doing it myself. Unbelievable. Still looking into RAM and SSD options. Still, can't wait to start putting it together now!Andy.

Thank you very much, I'll certainly look into the SSD route. On a sidenote, a quick RAM question - With myself looking into 8GB of RAM, is there any kind of issue with having RAM say, 2x4GB or 4x2GB etc, should I look for one or the other?Help appreciated as always,Andy. Edit: I've noticed that people are handling similiar builds to mine on a lower powered PSU, should I get a lower rating (and therefore save a few pennies while I'm at it?)Andy.

Thank you Bjorn, just the kind of advice I need!

Hi Taylor, Thanks for your post!I've got the Noctua NH-12UP done for the CPU cooling - I've only got it as a safety first option, should I be just using the stock cooler?Ah, I'm glad you said about the motherboard, I wondered about the -M. Now I know! I'll search around and find the right one! Infact Taylor, I've just noticed you've got a similiar set up to what I'm looking for - what is your FSX performance like? Can I live with a lower powered PSU like yours?Thanks again!

Hello everyone,I've only joined in the last couple of days, but after Dazz's reply and seeing a lot of videos of FSX on Youtube, I've decided to take a little longer to plan, build and use my PC and therefore have a slightly bigger budget than I originally had. I think at the end I will join a club/clan (never thought I would but having seen the attitude and community here I like the idea...) I'm looking for a good amount of detail and for it to be smooth.I am an absolute beginner, never built my own PC, but I'm willing to give it a go. I'm hoping my work as an Avionics Technician in the Air Force will help! My planning stage will probably take a couple of weeks, but ultimately I'd like the build finished by the end of March (new house move is taking up a lot of time!) I will update this thread with photos and updates as soon as something happens!Basically I'm looking for advice on whether everything is compatible, whether I need to change certain components, and generally grabbing your advice along the way.I realise my budget (Exactly £1000) wont allow miracles, but it's got to be a massive improvement on an 8 year old laptop!I already have a 24" Samsung Syncmaster HD TV, and a mouse(!)Anyway, I'll stop boring you, here is what I have jotted down thus far. All prices include delivery where I've been able to sort that!-----My Projected Build-----Processor:Intel i5-2500K 3.3 GHz - £167.94I'm reading an easy 4GHz OC? Have considered the i9-920, but is the bigger outlay really worth it?Motherboard:Asus P8P67 Pro - £127.15To be honest I'm not 100% on Mobos, but these seem to be a popular choice.Graphics Card:Currently Undecided.RAM:G Skill Ripjaws 8GB 1600MHz - £82.50Another dodgy area - is the frequency ok? Should I look elsewhere? Cheaper versions?HDD:Seagate Barracuda 1TB, Sata II - £40.79PSU:Coolermaster 850W - £92.50Do I need 850W?CPU Cooling:Noctua NH-U12P - £50.75OS and Misc:Windows 7 Home Premium - £74.30Office 2010 - £65Case:Coolermaster Elite 330 - £28.49Am open to suggestions on Case...Drives:Samsung SH-B123L Blu Ray Drive - £46.18Samsung SH-223 DVD RW Drive - £12.20Misc:Thermal Paste - Arctic Cooling MX-4 - £8.83Extra 120mm fan - Xilence Red Wing - £5.12At the moment, without a Graphics card, I have a total: £801.75.--------- Does this seem to be along the right lines, or do I need to start over?!Thanks for your time and advice in advance! :)Andy.

Thanks for your reply Dazz :). I've decided to build my own, your signature being part of the inspiration!It'll take a bit longer to have, my budget will therefore increase. Please have a look at my new topic when I finish writing it up!Regards,Andy.

Hi everybody, My first post so apologies if in the wrong section.Basically, the time has come for me to bin my 8 year old laptop and poor FS2004 performance and buy a new PC and FSX!My budget, I'm afraid is only around £600-£700 as I'm currently moving home.Obviously I'd love Ultra High settings, but I realise I won't get that, but I'd like as high as possible :). All I use a PC for is basic photo editing, music, Football Manager and Flight sims! All I tend to fly is a VC-10 around the UK (I happen to work on the RAF VC-10 as a job.)I looked into building my own, but being a complete beginner I've decided to look around at pre-built PCs, I've had a look around a couple of places and I think I've narrowed it down to these four computers:1. Titan Exodus2. Titan Predatoror 3. a quote from Arbico.co.uk:NZXT GAMMA STEEL BLACK GAMING ATX2 x 120MM CASE FANSXilence 580W DUAL RAIL PSUAMD PHENOM X6 1075T (AM3, 3.00GHZ, 9MB CACHE) CPUASUS M4N68T-M V2 Motherboard ( Upgrade to Asus M4A77T/USB3 for extra £30, this motherboard will give you two spare slot for RAM upgrade in future, also 2 x USB3.0 ports on back )4GB DDR3 1333MHZ RAMNVIDIA 460GTX 1GB PCI-E GRAPHICS CARDSONY OPTIARC 24X SATA DVD BURNER1000GB S-ATA 7200RPM Hard Drive2 x USB2.0 Ports on Front4 x USB2.0 Ports on Back10/100/1000 Gigabit Network6 Chanel HD AudioMICROSOFT 64BIT WINDOWS 7 HOME PREMIUMWarranty: 2 Years Return To Base (1st Year Parts & Labour, 2nd Year Labour Only)for £695. 4. Another quote, only slight difference to above:NZXT GAMMA STEEL BLACK GAMING ATX2 x 120MM CASE FANSCOOLERMASTER 500W DUAL RAIL PSUAMD PHENOM X6 1075T (AM3, 3.00GHZ, 9MB CACHE) CPUASUS M4N68T-M V2 Motherboard4GB DDR3 1333MHZ RAMNVIDIA GTS 450 1GB PCI-E GRAPHICS CARDSONY OPTIARC 24X SATA DVD BURNER1000GB S-ATA 7200RPM Hard Drive2 x USB2.0 Ports on Front4 x USB2.0 Ports on Back10/100/1000 Gigabit Network6 Chanel HD AudioMICROSOFT 64BIT WINDOWS 7 HOME PREMIUMWarranty: 2 Years Return To Base (1st Year Parts & Labour, 2nd Year Labour Only)For £625.Are these reasonable prices etc? Feedback?Thank you for your time, look forward to responses!Andy.