Any suggestions before I place my order for a new PC?

S

Sometwo

Limp Gawd
Joined
Nov 7, 2004
Messages
202
 
if its in the budget i would get a 480+ power supply and another gig of ram. but thats just my opinion.

other than that it all looks good.
 
Well, my only suggestion would be to go for an Intel platform instead (DS3 / E6400 / 1GB DDR2 Dualchannel PC-6400 memory) especially if you are going to OC a bit, the E6400 will easily reach 3GHz and blow that AMD processor out of the water.

For graphics cards around $175 you should probably look for the 1950Pro instead (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814161062) as it looks to be a wee bit faster than the 1900GT cards.

Oh and I prefer the look of the antec p150 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811129166) to the one you have chosen but ofcause you cannot argue on personal preference. :)
 
Thanks for the suggestions. I think I'm going to get another gig of RAM sometime in the future when I need it, and I've never OC'ed anything before so I don't want to experiment on my new PC. I'm starting to worry about my power supply not being good enough though. Is 400W enough to safely run this PC?
 
You should be worrying about the performance you're missing out on by going with that CPU, hehe. Intel's Core2Duo really is that much better than the Athlon X2.

Reason to go Intel:
http://anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=2903
http://anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=2802
http://anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=2795
http://dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=5414

If you still want AMD, and are going with your build posted above, get the case without a PSU and go for the Sunbeam that everyone seems to be liking:
$60 - Sunbeam NUUO SUNNU550-US-BK 550W PSU

I also second the nomination for another gig of ram, and faster speed, too:
$165 - G.Skill 2GB (2x1GB) DDR2-800 F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ

This is why you need higher speed ram with AM2:
http://anandtech.com/memory/showdoc.aspx?i=2800&p=6

I also second the nomination for the X1950Pro over the GT.
 
I agree on getting the intel C2D system. Its not going to cost much more and your performance will be WAY better. You can also overclock and blow away the other system.
The AMD system is fine if thats what you really want, and not just because its AMD.
 
Alright you guys have convinced me to switch to Intel... Do you have any recommendations for a good mobo and heatsink for the core 2 duo?
 
Motherboards:
$105 - Biostar TForce965PT LGA 775 Intel P965 Express
$133 - Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 Socket T (LGA 775) Intel P965 Express
$140 - Asus P5N-E SLI LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI
$151 - Asus P5B-E Socket T (LGA 775) Intel P965 Express
$220 - Asus P5W DH DELUXE/WIFI-AP Socket T (LGA 775) Intel 975X Crossfire
$250 - eVGA 122-CK-NF68-AR Socket T (LGA 775) NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI
$250 - DFI LANParty UT ICFX3200-T2R/G Socket T (LGA 775) ATI CrossFire Xpress 3200 IE
$260 - Asus P5N32-E SLI LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI

Coolers:
$20 - Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro
$40 - Zalman CNPS9500 AT 2 Ball CPU HSF
$40 - Scythe SCNJ-1100P 120mm CPU HSF
$50 - Thermalright Ultra-120 CPU HSF
$53 - Scythe SCINF-1000 120mm CPU HSF
$55 - Zalman 9700 LED 110mm 2 Ball CPU HSF
$65 - Tuniq Tower 120mm CPU HSF
 
Danny Bui said:
You might want to update that list of links of yours, enginurd. Ewiz doesn't have the Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro anymore.
Click to expand...

:mad: and newegg still has it more than double what it should be. bastids! Good lookin out!
 
I'm looking at the Intel CPUs on on Toms Hardware CPU Benchmarks and comparing them with AMDs on pricewatch.com, AMD seems faster and cheaper. What Intel CPU would be faster than the Athlon 64 X2 5000+ Windsor 2.6GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Processor and around the same price of $220?
 
Sometwo said:
Alright you guys have convinced me to switch to Intel...
Click to expand...

Read the reviews conducted by the illustrious staff right here at [H].

http://enthusiast.hardocp.com/article.html?art=MTEwOCwsLGhlbnRodXNpYXN0

http://enthusiast.hardocp.com/article.html?art=MTExMCwsLGhlbnRodXNpYXN0

http://enthusiast.hardocp.com/article.html?art=MTExMSwsLGhlbnRodXNpYXN0

Depending on what your main uses for the system will be, the higher price offset for the Conroe might be a worthless expenditure. Either platform will tear and rip through the newest games and apps with authority. Neither is slow.

If you're interested in gaming, save money on the cpu+mobo and dump it towards the best GPU you can get.

Wait until the intel pricecuts happen soon, and wait until affordable DX10 GPU's enter the market; you'll have a lot more options for the money.
 
Sometwo said:
I'm looking at the Intel CPUs on on Toms Hardware CPU Benchmarks and comparing them with AMDs on pricewatch.com, AMD seems faster and cheaper. What Intel CPU would be faster than the Athlon 64 X2 5000+ Windsor 2.6GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Processor and around the same price of $220?
Click to expand...

It's not the clockspeed; it's how intel's more efficient.

the 5000+, an E6400-6600 is like, better. much better. Go with that.
 
Sometwo said:
I'm looking at the Intel CPUs on on Toms Hardware CPU Benchmarks and comparing them with AMDs on pricewatch.com, AMD seems faster and cheaper. What Intel CPU would be faster than the Athlon 64 X2 5000+ Windsor 2.6GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Processor and around the same price of $220?
Click to expand...

The Core 2 Duo E6400 beats that Athlon and it is $221.
 
what skews the charts is that ANY C2D can be overclocked to around 3.2 GHz as easy as falling off your roof where you will run out of OC on the AMD quick.

Since the Celerion 333 slot 2's my personal machines have all been AMD. Its over, go Intel.

Gigabyte DS3 (S3 if you really tight on budget) or Asus P5B-E Socket T P965 chipset is the main thing, its easy, mature and you are not talking dual video cards.
E6400
1 gig PC6400 ram, dont need expensive OC ram. If you can swing a 2GB pair, do it.
good heatsink artic freezer 7, scyth, tuniq
rest - as long as decent quality it wont matter a lot, Power supply probally next important thing. My rig runs fine on a 420W .
 
Thanks for the suggestions. Here's the Intel based computer I've come up with now.

Case: Antec Performance One P150 White Steel ATX Mini Tower Computer Case 430-Watt ATX12V v2.2 Power Supply - Retail $155
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811129166
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 Conroe 2.13GHz 2M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor - Retail $221
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819115004
Mobo: GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3 LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $122
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813128012
Heatsink: ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler - Retail $70
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835186134
Memory: Crucial 1GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 533 (PC2 4200) System Memory - OEM $95
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820161400
Video Card: HIS Hightech H195PRQT256DDN-R Radeon X1950PRO 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 IceQ3 Turbo HDCP Video Card - Retail $185
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814161062
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD4000KS 400GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gbs $120
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822136004

What do you guys think of this one? Will it be able to handle Supreme Commander?

I've never installed a heatsink like this before. How hard do you have to push it in to hear the click? Is there anything I need to know or be careful of when installing it?
 
Don't buy the Artic Cooler Freezer 7. Newegg jacked up the price on it. It's normally $30 or so so don't buy it now. But if you still want an aftermarket CPU cooler, I'd recommend this cooler because its It's $30 cheaper and performs better at cooling: Scythe Ninja CPU Cooler - $40

If I were you, I'd downgrade the hard drive to a Seagate 320GB hard drive and buy 2GB of RAM with the extra bit of money. Believe me, 2GB of RAM helps with Supreme Commander. I'd recommend this RAM: G.SKILL F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ 2 x 1GB 240-Pin DDR2 800 RAM - $168.99

The case I'm not too sure of. It's a bit pricey for my tastes. But its a good case.
 
Danny Bui said:
Don't buy the Artic Cooler Freezer 7. Newegg jacked up the price on it. It's normally $30 or so so don't buy it now. But if you still want an aftermarket CPU cooler, I'd recommend this cooler because its It's $30 cheaper and performs better at cooling: Scythe Ninja CPU Cooler - $40

If I were you, I'd downgrade the hard drive to a Seagate 320GB hard drive and buy 2GB of RAM with the extra bit of money. Believe me, 2GB of RAM helps with Supreme Commander. I'd recommend this RAM: G.SKILL F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ 2 x 1GB 240-Pin DDR2 800 RAM - $168.99

The case I'm not too sure of. It's a bit pricey for my tastes. But its a good case.
Click to expand...

Alright I think I'll take your advice on the RAM, the heat sink didn't get a very good review at this site The installation of it looks pretty complicated and I can't find the Artic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro anywhere else. Do you have any suggestions on another heatsink?

What case with a 420+ watt power supply would you recommend?
 
I did recommend a CPU cooler. Check my last post again. As for a case with a power supply, I'd recommend Antec Sonata II w/ 450W PSU. The Antec Sonata II is a pretty silent case with a decent 450W power supply and its cheaper than the P150 you chose.
 
Danny Bui said:
I did recommend a CPU cooler. Check my last post again. As for a case with a power supply, I'd recommend Antec Sonata II w/ 450W PSU. The Antec Sonata II is a pretty silent case with a decent 450W power supply and its cheaper than the P150 you chose.
Click to expand...


Yeah but that Ninja heatsink didn't get a good review at modthebox.com. It looks like it was really hard to install and I really need something easier.

Looks like a good deal on that case. I've added that to the list. Thanks!
 
Sometwo said:
Yeah but that Ninja heatsink didn't get a good review at modthebox.com. It looks like it was really hard to install and I really need something easier.
Click to expand...

The Tuniq Tower 120 would be my recommendation but right now its out of stock at many websites. Here's a review of it: http://anandtech.com/casecooling/showdoc.aspx?i=2906

Just so you know, many after-market coolers are "hard" to install. But they're worth the effort.
 
The ninja isn't "hard" .... its just not easy, lol. I don't find it any harder to install than the stock intel cooler. just make sure the ram isn't in the way of the fan. if it might be, install the ram first if you have to. otherwise, install the hsf first, then the ram, then the fan. i've never heard of modthebox.com, and the ninja is a very well known top of the line hsf. there are more known sites that give the ninja a good review.

the zalman's are probably the easiest aftermarket coolers to install. the tuniq is rather easy as well. while i personally havent tried a newer zalman, i do own both a tuniq tower and ninja plus rev b. the last zalman i got was the 7000, and it was pretty easy to install. a good friend of mine uses the zalman 9700, and said its easier to install than the ninja (he borrowed mine for testing).
 
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