Nick - Need Your Advice - New Build from Pentium 4

[an-225]

I'm planning a new PC, as my current one is outdated, to say the least. Pentium 4, 3.2GHz, and an Nvidia 8800GT that replaced my old 6800GT last year.

For the crucial components of my PC, I'm looking at:

~ Asus P6T Motherboard
~ Intel i7 965
~ Nvidia GTX 285
~ 6 GB DDR3 RAM

I will not overclock.

It will run on Windows Vista 64 Bit, Vista being installed on one Seagate Raptor, and FSX on another Seagate Raptor. I plan to upgrade to Windows 7 at a later point.

I most certainly do not expect to run FSX at 100 FPS with max autogen in the PMDG 747 over Manhattan X.

My expectations are considerably more realistic, and autogen will be run on very dense, with little to no AI.

My question is, CAN such a system run FSX smoothly, with no stutters? Will there be a considerable improvement over my Pentium 4 and 8800GT?

Smoothly being upwards of 15 FPS. I know there are a lot of variables, such as weather and add-ons involved. But if I know that there will be a considerable improvement over my Pentium 4, I will have no hesitation into committing to this new rig.

[Mazza]

I say you should get good fps, On about the settings you expect

[NickN]

Answer: Yes but you would not want to run with little or no autogen because that makes the sim run WORSE

And,

A 965 is very expensive. Athough you will get a bit more base clock out of it you are paying 500 dollars more for a few hundred MHz on a processor that is priced that high because the multiplier is unlocked for clocking. The 940 is significantly cheaper and if you do not intend to clock at all then you paying a premium for a small upgrade result with a 965


BTW.. its Westren Digial VelociRaptor you are after for drives..    not Seagate Raptor

[dvpro]

Why would someone buy a 965 and not clock it? One might be better served in putting that extra 500 into the monitors or something. My system is easily clocked to 4.06 and my sliders are at about 90 - 95 up to 100% and I get a smooth flight over and in densely populated areas. I can't imagine paying another 500 for what....a slightly faster generation of trees / terrain? no thanks. As has been said many...many times with respect to the core i7 stuff they just work. Enought ppl on here have voiced their results to be confident in what you can expect. This forum is Intels best sales generator  ;D

[an-225]

I'm 14, so I'm definitely not going to be overclocking a Nehalem.

I will buy 965, just because I want the fastest results out of the box (no matter how marginal they are). 975 has taken my interest, and since it may be a short while before I can order the new system, that might be better (but probably not worth waiting for).

Thank you Nick, for your opinion on this topic. Its time I put this Pentium down to rest.

I often get the manufacturers of the Raptor and the Barracuda mixed up, my mistake.