Slick Wilhelm 0 Posted April 24, 2009 Thank you. I've been drooling over phase 3 for a long time, but my poor old Intel P4 gaming rig was just not up to playing it with decent frame rates. The last phase I tried was phase 1. Having landed a new job this week, I celebrated by buying the parts for my new gaming rig: Asus P6T motherboard Intel i7 920 Quad-core CPU OCZ Gold 6GB (3x2MB) 240-pin DDR3 1600 triple channel SDRAM WD Velociraptor 300GB 10,000 rpm SATA HD XFX ATI Radeon HD 4870 1GB video card Antec Nine Hundred Two case I'll be ordering my OFF phase 3 dvd soon! Btw, does anyone have any thoughts about whether I should load WinXP or spring for 64-bit Vista? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
UK_Widowmaker 571 Posted April 24, 2009 (edited) No Contest!...WINXP!!! (IMHO of course!) Edited April 24, 2009 by UK_Widowmaker Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fortiesboy 3 Posted April 24, 2009 Thank you. I've been drooling over phase 3 for a long time, but my poor old Intel P4 gaming rig was just not up to playing it with decent frame rates. The last phase I tried was phase 1. Having landed a new job this week, I celebrated by buying the parts for my new gaming rig: Asus P6T motherboard Intel i7 920 Quad-core CPU OCZ Gold 6GB (3x2MB) 240-pin DDR3 1600 triple channel SDRAM WD Velociraptor 300GB 10,000 rpm SATA HD XFX ATI Radeon HD 4870 1GB video card Antec Nine Hundred Two case I'll be ordering my OFF phase 3 dvd soon! Btw, does anyone have any thoughts about whether I should load WinXP or spring for 64-bit Vista? Slick - Congrats on the new system and welcome to OFF. FYI I have the same Intel i7 Quad core type processor and memory setup like you. I opted for the Windows XP so that my peripherals all worked as before. However, you may consider this- I had a difficulty with the mic of my headset not working, and it came down to the sound recorder of windows not working ( mic-wise ) with my Creative sound card. Turned out the MS knowledgebase gave an indication that the reason was the fact that XP was operating with more than 2 gigs of memory ! So it seems the XP together with the triple memory gave a problem.! Now, I got over this by using the realtek onboard sound instead of the creative soundcard. Using the realtek, the mic works fine. It may be that creative have soundcard drivers which get over the problem- don't know- I stuck with the realtek. And i don't know how important a mic is to you. But it's a thought. I would have expected MS to correct the problem, but i suppose they consider XP old hat now. HTH Cheers Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
+Winder 32 Posted April 24, 2009 Slick - Congrats on the new system and welcome to OFF. FYI I have the same Intel i7 Quad core type processor and memory setup like you. I opted for the Windows XP so that my peripherals all worked as before. However, you may consider this- I had a difficulty with the mic of my headset not working, and it came down to the sound recorder of windows not working ( mic-wise ) with my Creative sound card. Turned out the MS knowledgebase gave an indication that the reason was the fact that XP was operating with more than 2 gigs of memory ! So it seems the XP together with the triple memory gave a problem.! Now, I got over this by using the realtek onboard sound instead of the creative soundcard. Using the realtek, the mic works fine. It may be that creative have soundcard drivers which get over the problem- don't know- I stuck with the realtek. And i don't know how important a mic is to you. But it's a thought. I would have expected MS to correct the problem, but i suppose they consider XP old hat now. HTH Cheers Sadly I think they consider Vista old hat too.... WM Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sitting_duck 3 Posted April 24, 2009 Thank you. I've been drooling over phase 3 for a long time, but my poor old Intel P4 gaming rig was just not up to playing it with decent frame rates. The last phase I tried was phase 1. Having landed a new job this week, I celebrated by buying the parts for my new gaming rig: Asus P6T motherboard Intel i7 920 Quad-core CPU OCZ Gold 6GB (3x2MB) 240-pin DDR3 1600 triple channel SDRAM WD Velociraptor 300GB 10,000 rpm SATA HD XFX ATI Radeon HD 4870 1GB video card Antec Nine Hundred Two case I'll be ordering my OFF phase 3 dvd soon! Btw, does anyone have any thoughts about whether I should load WinXP or spring for 64-bit Vista? damn,,first of all,,,how you get all that for 1400??? The i7 chip i was looking at when i built my sytem was 800 bucks alone and think it would be a waste to put an i7 behind xp, and limit yourself to 3.5gigs. I have xp64, (only for the memory), but cant say i would recommend it, only because i dont know if there would be any performance improvements if i was running vista64. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Macklroy 2 Posted April 24, 2009 (edited) Slick Wil, that setup is very simmilar to my own. I have just 4gb of ram and am running an amd 3.1 dualcore. I have vista64 basically because they were going to charge me 'more' for XP. Anyway, with vista you get more use out of that ram you have. And im just scared to buy anything microsoft that they dont want you to have anymore. Support seems to go bye-bye for them. S! And welcome to the addiction my friend. ps - the game runs great on my set up btw. Edited April 24, 2009 by Macklroy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Slick Wilhelm 0 Posted April 24, 2009 sitting duck, could you have been looking at the enormously over-priced "Extreme i7 965" cpu that comes in a nice black box? Sure, it's faster than my lowly "stock" i7 920, but it wasn't worth almost $800 more. I got the i7 for $229 American, and the 965 sitting right next to it was priced at $989! I realize that if I install WinXP Pro 32-bit on it, it won't be able to use the other 2 gigs of RAM...but really, if this is a gaming rig, so what? 4 gigs of RAM on XP should be smokin'. Also, it was a paltry $20 difference between the 3 gig set and the 6 gig set. Not to mention I'm already set if I decide to upgrade to Windows 7 whenever that shows up. I guess what I'm really interested in is if maklroy or anyone else knows of any real benefit in GAMING if I pony up for the 64-bit OS. In other words, this is strictly a gaming rig, and if the games(namely BHaH)can't use the 64-bit architexture of the i7...why bother? Fortiesboy, thanks for the heads up on the mic, but since I plan on using the onboard audio, I don't anticipate any issues. I'm actually excited about dusting off the CH Pro HOTAS that's been wimpering in the corner of the room. I sure hope BHaH is the second coming of the Red Baron superpatch, or even the original Red Baron from Dynamix in 1990 that I loved to death on my 386SX-16 with 2 MB of RAM. Yes, I said MB, not GB. Man, am I getting old or what! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dutch_P47M 9 Posted April 24, 2009 Hmm, I think for OFF3 its a little bit overdone, but you properly also have RoF in your mind. Come on give us the true reason?? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sitting_duck 3 Posted April 24, 2009 lol..yeah,,thats the one i musta been looking at. my board supports both, (dual and quad) so i figured if i have to upgrade for the next generation of games..im all set,,, But, not quite sure if even rof is going to benifit from quad core.....could be wrong. and have always said, imho, its crazy to build something "for the moment"......you are wasting your money if you dont shoot for a system that will not be obsolete too soon. and also,,imho,,,,know you have already gone out and made a commitment,,,but when researching drives...most of what i saw lead me to belive that a 7200rpm raid(0) system would give you performance benifits over a single 10000 rpm drives. (llike i said,,,imho) But it would be a shame to have a system like that,,and only have 3.5 or 4 gigs of ram. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RAF_Louvert 101 Posted April 24, 2009 Slick Wilhelm, IMHO if you want the best OS for your gaming computer go with XP Pro 64-bit. It has all the advantages of a 64-bit OS with none of the Vista glitchiness. You can get a copy for $79 from Blue Surf Software right here: Windows XP Pro 64 for $79 I run this system in my new gaming computer and it is FAST, and troublefree. Cheers! Lou Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rickitycrate 10 Posted April 25, 2009 Welcome to the club Slick! I can't offer any computer advice but wish you well in your decisions. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RAF_Louvert 101 Posted April 25, 2009 uncleal wrote: Might this be the same XP 64 that the Developers gave the thumbs down to it's use in OFF Well I couldn't say Sir, and if it is I don't know why. I have been using it in the box I built strictly to run OFF and the next generation of WWI flight sims and it has performed flawlessly. I loaded it up, installed the service packs and tweaks via Windows Updates, and it has been running perfectly. It is not only affordable but is lightning fast and makes use of huge amounts of memory well in excess of the 4 gigs a 32-bit system tops out at. But then maybe I'm just lucky. Cheers! Lou Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BirdDogICT 3 Posted April 25, 2009 I realize that if I install WinXP Pro 32-bit on it, it won't be able to use the other 2 gigs of RAM...but really, if this is a gaming rig, so what? 4 gigs of RAM on XP should be smokin'.... Not to mention I'm already set if I decide to upgrade to Windows 7 whenever that shows up. I'm actually excited about dusting off the CH Pro HOTAS that's been wimpering in the corner of the room. I sure hope BHaH is the second coming of the Red Baron superpatch Slick Wilhelm, If you go with XP 32-bit, BHaH will only be able to address about 2.75MB memory (best case) after your 1MB video card and onboard sound are mapped to memory, but 2.75 is more than enough. I'm getting great performance with an old Socket 939 Opteron 185 overclocked to 3.0 GHz, 2Mb DDR550 memory and a 512MB 4870. You can always upgrade to Windows7 later. Definitely dust off your CH HOTAS. "Bonz" at the CH Hangar http://www.ch-hangar.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6204 has posted an OFF profile for TrackIR that I use. Spend the money and get TrackIR if you don't have it...almost as important as your CH gear. I could never stay alive for long in RB3D since I didn't have TrackIR, but now that I have it, I can't imagine flying any of my sims without it. Cheers Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bletchley 8 Posted April 25, 2009 I think XP is due to loose support around 2011, so there might be security issues after that if you have it connected to the Internet - but if it is 'stand alone' then this shouldn't be a problem. And I guess you can upgrade to Vista or Win 7 later if you need to. But as a gaming machine Vista might have even more backward-compatability problems than XP? So it depends on what other games you want to play on it, and how old they are...I wouldn't like to loose the ability, for example, to play RB3D by moving to Vista (like you, I am puzzling over this issue right now). I can't see any other advantage right now, other than more memory (which probably won't be used by OFF, but probably will be by future releases such as RoF). Bletchley Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Slick Wilhelm 0 Posted April 25, 2009 Slick Wilhelm, Definitely dust off your CH HOTAS. "Bonz" at the CH Hangar http://www.ch-hangar.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6204 has posted an OFF profile for TrackIR that I use. Spend the money and get TrackIR if you don't have it...almost as important as your CH gear. I could never stay alive for long in RB3D since I didn't have TrackIR, but now that I have it, I can't imagine flying any of my sims without it. Cheers Aha, thanks for that, BirdDog! I was wondering if BHaH would support my TrackIR 4. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Slick Wilhelm 0 Posted April 25, 2009 But, not quite sure if even rof is going to benifit from quad core.....could be wrong. and have always said, imho, its crazy to build something "for the moment"......you are wasting your money if you dont shoot for a system that will not be obsolete too soon. and also,,imho,,,,know you have already gone out and made a commitment,,,but when researching drives...most of what i saw lead me to belive that a 7200rpm raid(0) system would give you performance benifits over a single 10000 rpm drives. (llike i said,,,imho) But it would be a shame to have a system like that,,and only have 3.5 or 4 gigs of ram. Well, all good points, sitting duck. What is this "RoF"? Is that a new mod or WW1 flight sim coming out? As far as "Buying for the moment"....back in the day I used to build myself a new gaming rig about every 18 months. But as I've grown, uh, more experienced , I've started doing more war gaming, which doesn't require much in the way of hardware. That's why it's been 5 years since I've built my last gaming rig. I was able to keep that one going by doing video card/power supply upgrades. And frankly, I've played just about every good flight sim on the market to death, including online like Warbirds, Aces High and WW2OL. OFF BHaH is the first sim to really get my blood going in many years. I think I'm just a wood & canvas guy at heart. Anyway, I splurged for this system because I'm hoping it will last me 5 years like my last one. With all the usual upgrades, of course! You're right, a RAID 0 config would be faster, but I've always wanted a 10,000 rpm drive just to compare the difference. Slick Wilhelm, IMHO if you want the best OS for your gaming computer go with XP Pro 64-bit. It has all the advantages of a 64-bit OS with none of the Vista glitchiness. Lou Hey Lou, thanks for that! I'll give that serious consideration. Btw, I just noticed that there are three Minnesotans in this thread! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Geezer Gamer 0 Posted April 25, 2009 Slick Wilhelm.....you and I are just about building the same rig. I think you can definitely build a fine system in that $1500 to $1700 range. I came to the conclusion the Windows XP 32 with 3 gig's of ram made the most sense. My strategy ( and I hope it works ) is to put in the three 1 gig sticks (DDR3 1600), wait a year or two for the bugs to settle on Windows 7 and than by three more 1 gig sticks to get to six gig's of ram Pros and Cons Windows XP 32 bit is the most generic, sometimes issues with 64 bit or difficulty finding drivers current drivers Windows XP 32 can only recognize up to 4 gig ram ( reads as less) and really doesn't need more than 3 gig to run very well Vista really wants 4 gig or more of ram, guessing Windows 7 will be the same, a system with 6 gigs should be more than plenty My real hope was that I could build a very funtional system and never have to run Vista on it! Anyone out there see big flaws in that logic? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Geezer Gamer 0 Posted April 25, 2009 In case your interested in the details.....welcome all comments ( my first build, so still in the hunting mode) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Geezer Gamer 0 Posted April 25, 2009 One more comment Wilhelm....I have a Pentium 4 Dell computer from 2006 with 1 gig of ram. I upgraded the graphics card a year ago to an 8800 GT. I can run OFF and BOB II reasonably well with the graphic settings cranked down a bit. I have to be careful to not set up scenarios with too many planes in the sky, but many a hairball with three to six planes runs very well The tough part is load times, with the old processor it takes a long time to load up. Good luck with your build! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Slick Wilhelm 0 Posted April 30, 2009 I ended up going with WinXP Pro 32-bit, mainly because I already had a licensed copy. I've got it all built and ready for gaming, but work is busy this week and preventing me from doing any gaming yet. Also, I'm waiting for my DVD of BHaH to arrive. Boy, is that Antec Nine Hundred Two case a nice one! Best case I've ever owned. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rickitycrate 10 Posted April 30, 2009 (edited) Hey Lou, thanks for that! I'll give that serious consideration. Btw, I just noticed that there are three Minnesotans in this thread! Slick I think there may be 6 of us Minnesotans ramblin' 'round the forum. Pretty good representation. I'm working on getting more and maybe some cheeseheads too. Slick, don't forget you need CFS3 too. Edited April 30, 2009 by Rickitycrate Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Slick Wilhelm 0 Posted May 1, 2009 Slick, don't forget you need CFS3 too. Yep, already have it. I tried out phase one of OFF a few years ago, so I bought CFS3 at that time. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
