AM3 'budget' build

[Samson5o5]

Hello all,

I am a long time reader of the [H] wanting some advice before making my purchase. Having done some research and have figured AM3 is the more logical choice for me due to budget and future upgrade reasons. Nothing is set in stone. I am looking at best bang for the buck with mainly CPU/GPU upgrades later.

All prices are in Canadian and I have priced the exact same parts from newegg.ca and NCIX.com with NCIX.com being $100 cheaper all around.


1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
I will be gaming, doing some light music compression, d/ls etc. Nothing to intensive.

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$1000 max

3) Where do you live?
Ontario, Canada

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
CPU, GPU, Motherboard, RAM, HDD's, heatsink

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about
the power supply. List make and model.
Corsiar TX750w, LG W2242P 22", case (dont have specifics, plenty big), mouse, Sound Blaster X-FI Xtreme Audio 24BIT, keyboard.

6) Will you be overclocking?
I want to do a moderate OC, not looking for the best of the best.

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
LG W2242P 22IN + second 22" later.

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
1-2 weeks.

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
I do want a duel head GPU for future 2nd monitor.

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license?
I have XP. Waiting for W7 for next buy.


Here is what I figure.

CPU: AMD Phenom II x3 720
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=36295
$199.97

MOBO: Gigabyte MA790XT-UD4P
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=36174
$158.00

RAM: Corsair XMS3 DHX TW3X4G1600C9DHX 4GB 2X2GB PC3-12800 DDR3-1600 CL9-9-9-24 (on sale with P2 purchase)
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=28942
$99.00

GPU: XFX Radeon HD 4850 512MB XXX DDR3 PCI-E Dual DVI-I HDCP HDTV Out Video Card
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=36070&promoid=1029
$179.99 (sale)

OS/apps HDD: Western Digital Caviar Black 640GB 7200RPM 32MB
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=34286&promoid=1029
$88.88

Storage HDD: Western Digital WD10EADS Caviar Green 1TB SATA 32MB
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=35676&promoid=1029
$114.99

Heatsink/fan: Xigmatek HDT-S1283 Direct Touch 3 Heatpipe
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=30012
$47.63

Heatsink mount: Thermalright LGA775 BOLT-THRU Kit for Xigmatek HDT-S1283
http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=24833
$10.10

Tax and shipping total: 1,004.09

Not sure is the heatsink mount is really needed but read it is easier.

Any Critique is appreciated.

 

[tiraides]

You can omit the bolt-thru kit, as it's designed for Intel's Socket 775.

I've heard, but I'm not 100% certain, that there is no performance difference between DDR2 RAM and DDR3 RAM for the Phenom II line. You could save yourself some money by picking up a DDR2 1066 kit and a 7-series board that uses DDR2 memory.

Which games are you playing? When are you getting the second monitor? Do you plan on playing games with both monitors active?

 

[ballistic]

I notice you are in Canada too, check out www.directcanada.com they are a branch of NCIX and I have had the same carts come out cheaper at DC because of cheaper shipping.

Prices on stuff are pretty similar, but for example the EP45 UD3R
I got it just below the NCIX weekly "sale" price, and that's directcanadas 24/7 pricing.
One thing I don't like about NCIX is if you don't buy the item from the sales page you get charged their "non sale" price which is usually a good bit above normal online retail prices.
I am not sure if they price match but it's worth a try IMO.

 

[hossdaddy]

try these as well,

www.infonec.com
www.canadacomputers.com

Infonec has 2 locations in the GTA, and Canada Computers has 15+ locations across on Ontario. I find their pricing better than ncix more often than not.
Especially if you can pick up your stuff and avoid shipping charges.

 

[flogge]

I just ordered parts for a rig based on the same proc. Looks like a pretty solid build. I went with the ASUS M4A79T Deluxe Mobo, but I wanted extra PCIe slots for folding. I know there is limited advantage right now with a DDR3 AMD system, but my thoughts on the matter are that you will replace that CPU before you replace the Mobo, and a new CPU means a new mem controller and possibly much better performance with DDR3. I'd hate to be stuck with DDR2 in 2 years without replacing my mobo.