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Mort Eveson
Gallente
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
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Posted - 2010.08.18 17:26:00 -
[1]
Hi all, not sure if this is the right place to post, but here goes:
I'm buying a new PC and was wondering if getting 2 graphics cards is worth it?(I know I should build my own, but never done it before and want it fairly fast).
The basic set up comes with a 1GB ATI Radeon HD5750. For a similar price I can upgrade that to:
2x 1GB ATI Radeon HD5750 - CrossFireX Configuration
or
1 x 1GB NVIDIA Geforce GTX465 with CUDA Graphics Accelerator
or for a little more
1 x 1GB ATI Radeon HD5850 Graphics Accelerator
Eve is the only graphs intensive program I run (and even then isn't huge), I mainly play strategy games (e.g. the total war series).
I'll post the whole set up if it helps, or if I get lots of replies.
Thanks,
Mort.
P.S. the system comes with a 700W X-Power power supply, will this be sufficient/any good?
""
Visit us on http://www.ilfcorp.com/ |
dr doooo
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Posted - 2010.08.18 17:42:00 -
[2]
I wouldn't have thought so. How can you get a set up with 2 HD5750 for a similar price to a set up with just one?
I guess you've had a look at Tom's Hardwares gpu recomendations. That site will give you an idea of relative performance of 2 cheaper cards verses on better one. You could of course add another card at a later date if you needed it (and had a suitable mobo), but unless you are playing Eve at huge resolutions, I can't see that you'll need it or see any noticeable difference.
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Mort Eveson
Gallente
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
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Posted - 2010.08.18 17:48:00 -
[3]
Oh sorry, I meant the 2 x Radeon HD5750 was a similar price to the Geforce GTX465. Editing the OP now
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Visit us on http://www.ilfcorp.com/ |
ReaperOfSly
Gallente
1st Cavalry Division
Circle-Of-Two
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Posted - 2010.08.18 18:37:00 -
[4]
Honestly, I'd just go for the single card, simply because it takes up less room in the case and will therefore be likely to run cooler.
But if the most graphically demanding thing you run is Eve, you'll be able to get away with just one of those 5750s.
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Exploding Tukey
Gallente
Capital Construction Research
Pioneer Alliance
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Posted - 2010.08.18 18:47:00 -
[5]
No.
single 5870 with a slot for a second 5870 when the prices drop.
Stop buying economy cards, especially two of them.
<Signature Type="Clever" Width=100% Height=5 Edible="No" /> |
Reiisha
Evolution
IT Alliance
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Posted - 2010.08.18 19:03:00 -
[6]
Get a single 5870.
You don't need more.
"If you do things right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all"
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dr doooo
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Posted - 2010.08.18 19:11:00 -
[7]
 Originally by: Exploding Tukey
No.
single 5870 with a slot for a second 5870 when the prices drop.
Stop buying economy cards, especially two of them.
You are joking, right?? For playing Eve? I suppose if the op had a 32" monitor.... but then again 2 5750's in crossfire would perform better and cost a fair chunk less.
If I were the op, I would probably upgrade a little to a single 5770, and also spend maybe the extra 10 or 20 quid for a full crossfire motherboard, just in case I wanted to add a second card at a later date. I don't think anyone ever actually ends up adding a second card later on (at least I never have), but it's only a little more for the mobo, and it's nice to have the option.
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Reiisha
Evolution
IT Alliance
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Posted - 2010.08.18 19:38:00 -
[8]
Originally by: dr doooo
Originally by: Exploding Tukey
No.
single 5870 with a slot for a second 5870 when the prices drop.
Stop buying economy cards, especially two of them.
You are joking, right?? For playing Eve? I suppose if the op had a 32" monitor.... but then again 2 5750's in crossfire would perform better and cost a fair chunk less.
If I were the op, I would probably upgrade a little to a single 5770, and also spend maybe the extra 10 or 20 quid for a full crossfire motherboard, just in case I wanted to add a second card at a later date. I don't think anyone ever actually ends up adding a second card later on (at least I never have), but it's only a little more for the mobo, and it's nice to have the option.
No need for two cards. It's for 'enthusiasts' only. Both Crossfire and SLI are barely supported by the manufacturers themselves, let alone games.
A single 5870 will serve you fine for the next few years. By the time you want to upgrade it, the newer generation, single GPU cards will be faster than 2 5870's, let alone 5770's.
There is absolutely no point in getting a dual gpu setup, especially not as a casual/mmo gamer.
Or to put it in another way: If you're not sure whether you should get a dual gpu setup, you shouldn't get one. Don't get it unless you're absolutely sure about it.
"If you do things right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all"
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dr doooo
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Posted - 2010.08.18 20:43:00 -
[9]
Originally by: Reiisha
Originally by: dr doooo
You are joking, right?? For playing Eve? I suppose if the op had a 32" monitor.... but then again 2 5750's in crossfire would perform better and cost a fair chunk less.
If I were the op, I would probably upgrade a little to a single 5770, and also spend maybe the extra 10 or 20 quid for a full crossfire motherboard, just in case I wanted to add a second card at a later date. I don't think anyone ever actually ends up adding a second card later on (at least I never have), but it's only a little more for the mobo, and it's nice to have the option.
No need for two cards. It's for 'enthusiasts' only. Both Crossfire and SLI are barely supported by the manufacturers themselves, let alone games.
A single 5870 will serve you fine for the next few years. By the time you want to upgrade it, the newer generation, single GPU cards will be faster than 2 5870's, let alone 5770's.
There is absolutely no point in getting a dual gpu setup, especially not as a casual/mmo gamer.
Or to put it in another way: If you're not sure whether you should get a dual gpu setup, you shouldn't get one. Don't get it unless you're absolutely sure about it.
But if you buy a 5870 you a paying the 'early adopter' flagship premium of? well over ú300, and it's total overkill for most people, especially for playing Eve. I'd say that was the 'enthusiast' option. I would guess that the op would be happy with the performance of a single 5750 or 5770, but if for some reason he was not, he could add a second, and it would still be substantially cheaper than a single 5870. I've gone the high end route for gpu's myself in the past, and I can honestly say that I saw no difference when playing eve (on my 20" monitor) between that and middle of the road (and much cheaper) cards.
I also don't get you first point of "Both Crossfire and SLI are barely supported by the manufacturers themselves, let alone games." There is plenty of manufacturer support for crossfire, and in my experience, you are much more likely to run into stability or driver problems with a cutting edge high end card, rather than with a middle of the road crossfire setup. After all, crossfire/sli has been around for several years now. I believe that 5870's had crossfire problems when they first came out, but of course they were the high end cutting edge of gpu's at the time.
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Mort Eveson
Gallente
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
|
Posted - 2010.08.18 20:44:00 -
[10]
Thanks all!
From what I've seen so far consensus is that I only need one and that EVE isn't going to be pushing it even then. The HD5870 is an extra ú100 on top of what I was going to spend if I upgraded, so don't think that's going to happen. I think it's agreed that EVE will run find on a HD5770 and by the time they update EVE I'll be able to afford something better :-p.
Therefore my build will be:
Case:
XGS Gaming Chassis 6XR9
Motherboard:
ASUS M4A89GTD PRO/USB3 TurboV ATX Mainboard - AMD 890GX CrossFireX- AM3, DDR3
Power supply:
950W X-Power Desktop Power Supply
Processor:
AMD Phenom II X6 1090T Black Edition Processor - 125W AM3 (3.2-3.6GHz)
Memory:
G.Skill 8GB DDR3 1600MHz Memory (4x 2GB KIt)
Graphics card:
1GB ATI Radeon HD5770 Graphics Accelerator
Hard Drive:
1TB Serial ATA 2 Hard Drive with 32MB Buffer
Kind of tempted by a solid state drive, since it is apparently quicker for booting windows, but I don't think it's worth it for the extra couple of seconds.
Thanks again guys!
""
Visit us on http://www.ilfcorp.com/ |
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Zeba
Minmatar
Honourable East India Trading Company
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Posted - 2010.08.18 20:46:00 -
[11]
Eve doesn't support multiple video cards and by all accounts actually runs worse when using them. This also seems to be true of most other games that don't specifically support multiple cards too so unless you have a game that explicitly supports them just go for a powerful single card.
Originally by: CCP Oveur
My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard.
Originally by: CCP Adida
Moved from missions and complexes. All other game discussions are only aloud in OOP.
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Freyya
Advanced Planetary Exports
Intergalactic Exports Group
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Posted - 2010.08.18 22:00:00 -
[12]
In all seriousness, you're much better off building your own like you said. It doesn't take rocket science skillbooks to figure out what goes where. And usually any bigger webshop has the stuff in supply so you can order it and get it the next 2-3 days. That having said; Usually a prebuilt PC of more than half the companies is loaded with "manufacturer" software and such. Also known as bloatware. Dunno where you're buying it but keep that in mind..it's usually harder to get rid off.
On the build itself; The 5750 is low end to medium. 5770 is medium to enthousiast and best bang for buck in that category. 5830 is really just a downgraded 5850 but with higher W consumption so 5850 is the mainstream enthousiast card with best bang for buck for powerconsumption in that category. Anything up is for the die hard who wants to play on rediculous resolutions (e.g. think 3 24" screens). BTW; the HD5*** series should be dropping in price pretty soon since around November the HD6 series will most likely be released.
About your power supply; Ditch it. Ditch it immediatly. Do it. Now. All the specs on the Cheap ass power supplies is what it can deliver at peak for only a short time. After that it could fry your pc. Get a name PSU like Enermax/Zalman/Tagan etc.. If it's under 50 bucks there's usually a good chance it's utter crap and could fry your pc after a while.(I recommend the be-quiet L7 530 W) They portray specs that are at efficient load and can deliver more @ peak. PSU's run at their best at around 70-80% load so anything that's way above your system powerconsumption is a waste of energy and your system won't suck more than 600 Watt @ normal load. Way less in 98% of the cases.
Solid state drives are usefull if you're impatient and want the best of the best because you have more than enough dough anyways.
Under normal use any (i recommend the Samsung spinpoint f3 series) HD is sufficient.
The rest seems to be in good order. The BE AMD proc is usually a good choice since it has good performance for less money than an Intel proc.
GL anyways and enjoy your new pc 
___________
NOW COLLECTING ISD AND CCP AUTOGRAPHS
It'll be worth something someday. -Rauth
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Reiisha
Evolution
IT Alliance
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Posted - 2010.08.18 22:30:00 -
[13]
Hmm, i stand corrected... 5870 is overkill and a little overpriced. I could have sworn it was cheaper than 300 euros.
A 5770 is very good back for your buck, and a single one will serve you just fine for a long time.
And yeah, power supply has to be good quality, not just quantity. Zalman and Coolermaster come to mind.
"If you do things right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all"
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Mort Eveson
Gallente
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
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Posted - 2010.08.18 23:17:00 -
[14]
Edited by: Mort Eveson on 18/08/2010 23:17:32
Thanks again all!
Hmm so it seems everyone agreed that the X-power PSU is rubbish. I'm going to go through tomorrow and see if I can find all the components to build it myself. No point buying a machine where I'll just have to disconnect everything to put in a new PSU. Will just have to make sure it fits :-p.
The build I was going to have is based off the Slayer Dragon Turboon meshcomputers.com.
I assume I can beat that price by custom building?
I'm going to get some sleep, expect an update on my total lack of knowledge tomorrow.
""
Visit us on http://www.ilfcorp.com/ |
Grez
Empire Assault Corp
Dead Terrorists
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Posted - 2010.08.19 00:01:00 -
[15]
Originally by: Reiisha
Hmm, i stand corrected... 5870 is overkill and a little overpriced. I could have sworn it was cheaper than 300 euros.
A 5770 is very good back for your buck, and a single one will serve you just fine for a long time.
And yeah, power supply has to be good quality, not just quantity. Zalman and Coolermaster come to mind.
You're probably thinking of the 5850 Reiisha. I got one for my brother and his is waltzing through anything he can throw at it. Absurd levels of AA & AF 4tw.
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HerFirefly
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Posted - 2010.08.19 07:05:00 -
[16]
I personally have two in mine. I don't recall what kind, and it's really late at night so I don't feel like checking at the moment. But I've got the cross fired and it runs beautifully. I've never had any sort of problem with any games as far as graphics go. Now compatibility with Windows 7? That's another story...... lol
The Insane Pen!
http://theinsanepen.blogspot.com/
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Anddeh McNab
Matari Department of Gun Control
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Posted - 2010.08.19 09:12:00 -
[17]
Originally by: Reiisha
No need for two cards. It's for 'enthusiasts' only. Both Crossfire and SLI are barely supported by the manufacturers themselves, let alone games.
Lies. Everything is faster with two. I get to work to work twice as fast driving two cars.
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Mort Eveson
Gallente
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
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Posted - 2010.08.19 16:29:00 -
[18]
Edited by: Mort Eveson on 19/08/2010 16:32:46
Originally by: Anddeh McNab
Originally by: Reiisha
No need for two cards. It's for 'enthusiasts' only. Both Crossfire and SLI are barely supported by the manufacturers themselves, let alone games.
Lies. Everything is faster with two. I get to work to work twice as fast driving two cars.
I can only assume you work in a hospital :-p.
Just back from work and very briefly looked at building it myself on overclockers, slightly cheaper I think, but not added in the cost of buying windows (7 pro 64bit). Still deciding between building myself or buying and replacing PSU. Is Corsair a good brand for a PSU?
Again I apologise for being a total noob in the PC building department.
""
Visit us on http://www.ilfcorp.com/ |
Vogue
Skynet Nexus
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Posted - 2010.08.19 16:32:00 -
[19]
An issue with dual graphics cards is the sheer amount of heat they emit. You need a big case with good air flow - sucking in and front and out at rear.
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Cylon cultural victor! |
SupaKudoRio
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Posted - 2010.08.19 16:45:00 -
[20]
Edited by: SupaKudoRio on 19/08/2010 16:49:54
You really have no reason to have dual graphics cards if EVE is the most demanding thing you're going to run on it.
I'd dare say you could even downgrade without any noticeable performance loss.
Who said anything about buying Windows 7...  I'd give you a link, but the mods wouldn't like that.
Ye'llo? |
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Mort Eveson
Gallente
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
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Posted - 2010.08.19 17:22:00 -
[21]
Originally by: SupaKudoRio
Edited by: SupaKudoRio on 19/08/2010 16:49:54
You really have no reason to have dual graphics cards if EVE is the most demanding thing you're going to run on it.
I'd dare say you could even downgrade without any noticeable performance loss.
Who said anything about buying Windows 7... I'd give you a link, but the mods wouldn't like that.
I have a plan involving an OLD HD with XP on it and a cheap upgrade CD but need to research if it will work :-p
""
Visit us on http://www.ilfcorp.com/ |
SupaKudoRio
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Posted - 2010.08.19 18:11:00 -
[22]
Originally by: Mort Eveson
I have a plan involving an OLD HD with XP on it and a cheap upgrade CD but need to research if it will work :-p.
Old HD in new system, boot from XP, insert upgrade CD, install to new HD, remove old HD...sounds simple...
I doubt that would work. Far as I know, you can only get a cheap upgrade if you have Vista.
Try it, though! I could be mistaken.
Ye'llo? |
Joe Phoenix
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Posted - 2010.08.19 19:01:00 -
[23]
Probably.
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SupaKudoRio
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Posted - 2010.08.19 19:15:00 -
[24]
Originally by: Joe Phoenix
Probably.
I'm no tech guru, but I'm certainly more qualified than you. 
I'm not entirely sure because I've been plodding along with XP to wait out the new OS' growing pains. I'm glad I did, too, Vista was truly terrible.
Ye'llo? |
dr doooo
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Posted - 2010.08.19 20:47:00 -
[25]
Originally by: Mort Eveson
Edited by: Mort Eveson on 19/08/2010 18:54:14
Edited by: Mort Eveson on 19/08/2010 17:57:27
Originally by: SupaKudoRio
Edited by: SupaKudoRio on 19/08/2010 16:49:54
You really have no reason to have dual graphics cards if EVE is the most demanding thing you're going to run on it.
I'd dare say you could even downgrade without any noticeable performance loss.
Who said anything about buying Windows 7... I'd give you a link, but the mods wouldn't like that.
I have a plan involving an OLD HD with XP on it and a cheap upgrade CD but need to research if it will work :-p.
Old HD in new system, boot from XP, insert upgrade CD, install to new HD, remove old HD...sounds simple...
EDIT
Looking at this I think the OS will have a fit and complain when I move it between machines.
If you still have the old XP code/cd, then that shouldn't be a problem afaik. Just stick your old HD in, do a repair install, and then all being more or less ok, upgrade to windows 7  . I've never done this specific thing myself, but afaik you only need one integral part of your old rig to do a repair install of xp, and xp or Vista can upgrade to 7.
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Viktor Fyretracker
Caldari
Fyretracker Heavy Industries
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Posted - 2010.08.19 20:48:00 -
[26]
Two Cards, One Power Supply...
id suggest maybe 850w or 900w just to give a buffer.
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Mort Eveson
Gallente
Intaki Liberation Front
Intaki Prosperity Initiative
|
Posted - 2010.08.19 22:52:00 -
[27]
So the plan is now...
Case: Thermaltake VK60001W2Z Element S Case
PSU: Corsair TX 650W ATX SLi Compliant Power Supply
Mb: ASUS M4A89GTD PRO/USB3 - motherboard - ATX - AMD 890GX
CPU: AMD Phenom II X6 Six Core 1090T Black Edition 3.20GHz (Socket AM3)
RAM:Corsair Dominator 8GB (4x2GB) DDR3 12800C8 (1600MHz) Dual-Channel Kit
GPU: Asus ATI Radeon HD 5770 CuCore 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
HD: Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache
DVD: Sony Optiarc DRU-870S 24x DVD¦RW SATA ReWriter
Comes out at about the same as the pre-built kit but everything is a good brand (I think). Now just to sort out the OS.
""
Visit us on http://www.ilfcorp.com/ |
SupaKudoRio
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Posted - 2010.08.19 23:02:00 -
[28]
Originally by: Mort Eveson
Comes out at about the same as the pre-built kit but everything is a good brand (I think). Now just to sort out the OS.
Check your eve-mail on that character, I have a solution to that for you.
Ye'llo? |
David Grogan
Gallente
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Posted - 2010.08.19 23:27:00 -
[29]
Originally by: Mort Eveson
So the plan is now...
Case: Thermaltake VK60001W2Z Element S Case
PSU: Corsair TX 650W ATX SLi Compliant Power Supply
Mb: ASUS M4A89GTD PRO/USB3 - motherboard - ATX - AMD 890GX
CPU: AMD Phenom II X6 Six Core 1090T Black Edition 3.20GHz (Socket AM3)
RAM:Corsair Dominator 8GB (4x2GB) DDR3 12800C8 (1600MHz) Dual-Channel Kit
GPU: Asus ATI Radeon HD 5770 CuCore 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
HD: Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache
DVD: Sony Optiarc DRU-870S 24x DVD¦RW SATA ReWriter
Comes out at about the same as the pre-built kit but everything is a good brand (I think). Now just to sort out the OS.
only use that dominator ram with the add on cooler fans that attaches to it.
it gets really hot without it Dominator ram cooling fans
SIG: if my message has spelling errors its cos i fail at typing properly :P |
Freyya
Advanced Planetary Exports
Intergalactic Exports Group
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Posted - 2010.08.20 07:24:00 -
[30]
Edited by: Freyya on 20/08/2010 07:26:44
Corsair is a good brand yes. And really, the dominator memory is fun and all but any other kingston hyperx / OCZ Gold or Platinum series will do just fine for 1/2 the price in most occasions. Just keep an eye on speed and latency. Google is your friend my friend. Other than that it's a nice system this way.
___________
NOW COLLECTING ISD AND CCP AUTOGRAPHS
It'll be worth something someday. -Rauth
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