New gaming rig advice?

Message Topic Search Topic Options Post Reply Create New Topic Printable Version

   Hey folks, my friend strongly recommended Digital Storm for both the product and the forum community.  He's had a great experience so I thought I'd check it out.

I'm looking at a budget in the 2-2.5k range.  I could see myself going up to 3 if there's a good, compelling reason (like a significant boost to be had in performance/longevity).

This will primarily be a gaming machine.  Kind of celebrating the release of Guild Wars 2 with the purchase.  I'll also kick up Fallout: New Vegas to see the really pretty wasteland.  I'm hoping to run these and future games really well at 1920 (still looking at monitors, any recommendations there would be awesome as well, preferably under $400). 

3D doesn't hold any special appeal to me, and I'm content with a single monitor setup, but I'm hoping to get an extended period of use out of this (and maybe upgrade individual components in the future instead of buying a new one all at once).

I've heard wonderful things about SSDs, so I figure that's a plus.  Am I just chasing the latest buzzword, or will that be a good decision in the long run? I've heard they have kind of a limited lifespan, but I'm assuming there are some things I can do to keep from needlessly shortening it, right?

Glancing thru the pre-builds, it looks like the ODE 4 might be what I'm looking for.  I'm uneasy about a liquid cooling system, but the details say this one requires no maintenance.  Can anyone shed a little more light on that for me?

Anything else I should be considering or questions I should be asking? I tend to ramble so I tried to highlight the important bits 

Thanks guys!

Author	Message Topic Search Topic Options Post Reply Create New Topic Printable Version
Bobblehead Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 02 Jul 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 1	Quote Reply Topic: New gaming rig advice? Posted: 02 Jul 2012 at 6:17pm
	Hey folks, my friend strongly recommended Digital Storm for both the product and the forum community. He's had a great experience so I thought I'd check it out. I'm looking at a budget in the 2-2.5k range. I could see myself going up to 3 if there's a good, compelling reason (like a significant boost to be had in performance/longevity). This will primarily be a gaming machine. Kind of celebrating the release of Guild Wars 2 with the purchase. I'll also kick up Fallout: New Vegas to see the really pretty wasteland. I'm hoping to run these and future games really well at 1920 (still looking at monitors, any recommendations there would be awesome as well, preferably under $400). 3D doesn't hold any special appeal to me, and I'm content with a single monitor setup, but I'm hoping to get an extended period of use out of this (and maybe upgrade individual components in the future instead of buying a new one all at once). I've heard wonderful things about SSDs, so I figure that's a plus. Am I just chasing the latest buzzword, or will that be a good decision in the long run? I've heard they have kind of a limited lifespan, but I'm assuming there are some things I can do to keep from needlessly shortening it, right? Glancing thru the pre-builds, it looks like the ODE 4 might be what I'm looking for. I'm uneasy about a liquid cooling system, but the details say this one requires no maintenance. Can anyone shed a little more light on that for me? Anything else I should be considering or questions I should be asking? I tend to ramble so I tried to highlight the important bits Thanks guys!

kaldoot Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 18 Apr 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 39	Quote Reply Posted: 02 Jul 2012 at 6:23pm
	ODE level 4 is perfect for your needs, hard to top it in terms of bang for buck. I think the vortex cooler is a modified or rebranded corsair H100. here is the link : http://www.corsair.com/cpu-cooling-kits/hydro-series-water-cooling-cpu-cooler/hydro-series-h100-extreme-performance-liquid-cpu-cooler.html/ SLI 670 would play every game at max settings for a 24" monitor. You could look at DELL ultrasharp monitor, under your budget and I like it so far.

QuantumPC Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 23 Jun 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 45	Quote Reply Posted: 02 Jul 2012 at 6:25pm
	The Ode Level 4 is a great choice. The Vortex 240mm cooling system works great with the ODE setup, and it will keep your system nice, and cool. I don't know too much about the maintenance part, but there is no maintenance which means no fluid changes.

Orange7 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 24 Apr 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 758	Quote Reply Posted: 02 Jul 2012 at 6:39pm
	Also, about the SSDs; they are getting better with reliability and lifespan. The Intel 520s have a five year warranty, and the Corsairs have a three year warranty, however, so even if anything goes wrong, it is covered. They both also have ridiculous read/write speeds. I've got to say, that if you didn't mind spending an extra $40 over the ODE level 4, this might be a little better: 704441. It is about the same as the ODE level four, but the Intel does have the 5 year warranty, and the Caviar Black is much faster than the ODE's HDD, with double the cache. They would, however, only matter for program load times and perhaps a little more piece of mind over the long haul. Edited by Orange7 - 02 Jul 2012 at 6:39pm
	DS xm15 Stage 4 i7-3820 (2.7GHz/3.7GHz) 16GB 1600MHz DDR3 GT 630, 1GB 240GB Intel 520

Teemberland Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Groupie Joined: 19 May 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 117	Quote Reply Posted: 02 Jul 2012 at 7:49pm
	Like Orange7 and QuantumPC said, ODE LVL 4 is perfect for you. They are right on with the Montor as well. I got my Dell Ultrasharp 23 inch for 220 free shipping at Dell website. Edited by Teemberland - 02 Jul 2012 at 7:50pm
	Road To ODE Ver 2 Lvl 4 Stage 1: 6/25/2012 Stage 2: 6/27/2012 Stage 3: 6/28/2012 Stage 4: 6/28/2012 Stage 5: 6/28/2012 Stage 6: 6/29/2012 Stage 7: 7/2/2012 Shipped: 7/2/2012 Delivered: 7/5/2012

bprat22 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS Veteran Joined: 08 Jun 2011 Online Status: Offline Posts: 5142	Quote Reply Posted: 03 Jul 2012 at 7:44am
	The stage 2 Vortex 240mm unit is basically the Corsair H100 as was said, but without the built in fan speed control button the H100 has. ODE lvl 4 is a rig that is tough to beat.