Almost Final Build Specs 2.0

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counihan3

Weaksauce
Joined
May 22, 2008
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Huge thanks to tiraides and enginurd for all of the information, I have been out of the loop for too long and there help was awesome.

E7200 or E2180 I am torn on price/performance/longevity
MSI P43 Neo3-F or GIGABYTE GA-EP43-DS3L the same initial price leaning towards the MSI
XIGMATEK HDT-S963 and bracket, if it makes a real difference
G.SKILL 2GB or PNY OPTIMA 2GB which ever is better, theres only 5 bucks difference
Antec earthwatts EA430 everyone recommends it besides I will get the rebate
I am completely lost on the video card I have looked at the GeForce 8800 GS, ASUS EN9600GSO, and GeForce 9600 GT
Ideas, comments. Thanks
 
You know, you could have posted this in your previous thread.

How much can you spend now? If you could afford it, here's how I would go:

Intel E7200 (my take: get as much power as you could afford -- both are great overclockers)
MSI P43 Neo3-F (the extra SATA ports gives you more options in the long run)
Xigmatek HDT-S963 (the mounting bracket makes things easier, but it's not a necessity; if you plan on overclocking, however, you'll need/want the HDT-S963)
G.Skill 2x1GB kit (more reliable brand, with arguably some of the best customer service around)
EA430 (though if you have $5 more, you could buy the EA650)
ZOTAC 9600GT (it's a gamble, due to lack of brand recognition, but it's also the best video card out of the three)

I'm assuming that you're still stuck with your (relatively) fixed budget, so please tell us what you could afford.
 
I recommend the E7200. If you tend to the lower budget side, wait for the E5200, the 45nm followup of the E2xxx series. While the E7200 is closer at the E8xxx series, the E2xxx can cut some corners slightly too much, depending on the application.

For the mainboards, I guess it's personal preference. Usually the Gigabyte is recommended here, but the MSI should work just as good.

I would look at the S1283 as an alternative to the S963 cooler. The S1283 uses a 120mm that runs slower and quiter. I definately recommend the bracket, it makes mounting a lot easier and safer.

I'd take the G.Skill, but only because I've never heard of PNY RAM :p

For the video card you should think about what you need and/or are willing to pay. But since the three are basically the same in price, I'd take the 9600GT because it should have the most power. Zotac is just one of the smaller brands, but I'm running a 8800GT from them just fine.
 
I don't play a lot of games on the pc, I do go to the occasional lan party though. I am more concerned with processing power.
 
You might aswell be able to get a good deal on a 8800GT for about the same price as the 9600GT. That would give you a good amount of additional power.
 
triades, you missed the MIB on the EA430, that in mind, the ea650 is 35 bucks more.
 
Rydawg5143 said:
triades, you missed the MIB on the EA430, that in mind, the ea650 is 35 bucks more.
Click to expand...

I didn't miss anything -- the $30 mail-in rebate for the EA430 is not immediate savings. Personally, I'd rather take the immediate savings (which is why the EA650 is currently $70) than wait for the MIR.

(Though you did miss the second "i" in my name.... :p )

As for the EA650, consider this: the Corsair TX650 is $110 (before $30 mail-in rebate) at NewEgg. The next best deal for a >500W power supply is the TX750 deal everyone already knows about.
 
1440x900 is my resolution I am wondering how much card i really need. I had been pretty happy with my 7300, given that I am not gaming on it all that much
 
Get a 3870, they are super cheap and work great at that Res ( I had one on my 19" monitor and was great) the 430EA is perfect
 
counihan3 said:
1440x900 is my resolution I am wondering how much card i really need. I had been pretty happy with my 7300, given that I am not gaming on it all that much
Click to expand...

I'm using 1440x900 with a 8800GT and CoD4 is smooth like butter on max details. Since the game doesn't have too heave requirements, you might be fine with a 9600GT aswell.
 
Two questions What is the best video card I can get for about $90, and with all of the components listed plus 2 hard drive and 2 dvd burners is 430 watts enough.
 
timme said:
You might aswell be able to get a good deal on a 8800GT for about the same price as the 9600GT. That would give you a good amount of additional power.
Click to expand...

Cheapest 9600GT I could find online: ZOTAC 9600GT (NewEgg - $110 with free shipping)
Cheapest 8800GT I could find online: PNY 8800GT (TigerDirect - $130 plus shipping)

The problem is that the OP still has a limited budget.

counihan3 said:
About $400, with this build I am at $410 after rebates. I did find this XFX GeForce 9600 GT
Click to expand...

Let's ignore the MIRs for a bit, and try to pare this down:

My original suggestions:
$85 - MSI P43 Neo3-F (or Gigabyte GA-EP43-DS3L)
$125 - Intel E7200
$25 - Xigmatek HDT-S963
$45 - G.Skill 2x1GB DDR2 800
$70 - Antec Earthwatts EA650
$110 - ZOTAC 9600GT
=====
$460 - Subtotal (not including shipping, taxes, or rebates
Click to expand...

As much as I don't want to do this, you could get a cheaper motherboard that can support every part that you want. The Gigabyte GA-P31-S3G supports both the E2180 and E7200, and with today's PCI-E 2.0 cards backwards compatible with today's PCI-E 1.1 (x16) slots, you'll have no problems with any of the recommended video cards. However, depending on the BIOS version of the board you may receive, it may or may not support the E7200 out of the box; both P43 boards that were recommended earlier do support the E7200 right out of the box.

The E7200 is more powerful right out of the box, so I suggest keeping that. Consequentially, you should choose one of the P43 boards. If you want to save money, you could go with the GA-P31-S3G. However, I recommend going with the E2180 instead for immediate compatibility. If you're not going to overclock right away, you can hold off on getting the HDT-S963.

You'll see no difference in performance between the G.Skill and PNY brands, so you could switch over to the PNY kit to save money. However, I suggest keeping the EA650, as it gives you more headroom for future upgrades (or, possibly, another build). (If you don't mind MIR, though, get the EA430. But before rebates are factored in, the EA650 is only $5 more for 220W of additional power.)

If gaming's not a primary concern, you could drop the video card down to the 9500GT that I referred to in your other thread.
 
counihan3 said:
Two questions What is the best video card I can get for about $90, and with all of the components listed plus 2 hard drive and 2 dvd burners is 430 watts enough.
Click to expand...

At NewEgg, the best video cards you could buy for around $90-$100 are the 9600GSO and the HD3850. For $80-$90, the best options are the 9500GT and the HD3650.

And yes, the EA430 is enough for everything, but if you decide to upgrade your video card, you may want more power in reserve.

Rydawg5143 said:
9500?
Click to expand...

That's not a typo on my part. The 9500GT was just recently released (though I can't say exactly when). Since it is based off the 9600GT, I'm recommending it over the 8600GT -- which was never exactly hot as a gaming card.
 
The Earthwatts line, IIRC, is the better of the two, since they were designed to meet the 80 Plus energy efficiency standard. However, the True Power Trio 550W would suit your needs just as well (though I'm somewhat surprised that I missed that deal).
 
Why not go with the EA430? it will fit your needs and is half the cost opf the others suggested.
 
Again, you don't save any money right away with mail-in rebates. Plus you'll have to wait weeks to get the "savings" back -- and there's always the possibility that you won't receive the rebate check.

Other than that, I see no problems with getting the EA430. In terms of immediate deals, though, the TP3-550 is the best out of the Antec models.
 
It's designed to be a "holdover" board for those who are using DDR3 RAM. (Stick with DDR2.) ASRock is okay for a budget option, but if you have any intention of overclocking, I suggest sticking with either Gigabyte or MSI.

Since it was recently released, I haven't heard much feedback on that board. Personally, I'd go with either the GA-EP43-DS3L or the P43 Neo3-F.
 
Thanks everyone for the help. I ended up going over budget but I think it was worth it. I ended up with the following
E7200
MSI P43 Neo3-F
G.SKILL 2GB
GeForce 9600 GT
XIGMATEK HDT-S963 and bracket
Antec True Power Trio TP3-550 550W
 
Antec Performance One P180, the only thing that I don't like about the case is having to deal with the power supply cables.
 
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