Buying new computer, critique please

I

Iron Ace

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Nov 5, 2006
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I don't know how to get my computer wishlist to link easily from Newegg so here's a copy and paste. Notice the lack of CPU, I am currently planning on an E4300 waiting to see if I have enough tax return money and hopefully the price on the CPU will be down by then. :p I am going to OC the CPU and possibly vid card, RAM is an outside possibility but it won't be by much if I do.

COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 CAC-T05-UW Black Aluminum Bezel, SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
Model #: CAC-T05-UW

ASUS P5N-E SLI LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
Model #: P5N-E SLI

eVGA 640-P2-N821-AR GeForce 8800GTS 640MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card - Retail
Model #: 640-P2-N821-AR

SeaSonic S12-600 ATX12V 600W Power Supply - Retail
Model #: S12-600

G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL4D-2GBPK - Retail
Model #: F2-6400CL4D-2GBPK

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS (Perpendicular Recording Technology) 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
Model #: ST3320620AS

SAMSUNG 18X DVD±R DVD Burner With 12X DVD-RAM Write Black E-IDE/ATAPI Model SH-S182D - OEM
Model #: SH-S182D

ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler - Retail
Model #: ACFZ7-PRO

Current total about $1400 including CPU and shipping.

Ok, here's my thoughts/concerns:

- Is the PSU overkill? I plan on going SLI later with another GTS. Looking to save some money here if possible ($150 current price) but I do want quality first and foremost.
- I know I don't need that expensive RAM for an E4300 machine but I plan on running the RAM at the full 800MHz with tight timings. Anything cheaper ($220 currently) that is good quality with the same overall stats? I don't think I need killer D9 chipped sticks for this setup. I am not particular about brand for RAM.
- I'm not too picky about chipsets on the MB but it needs SLI and I want quality without a huge price. This one is currently about $140 and I do like the ASUS brand. Any other suggestions?
-And the big one, if the price of the E4300 doesn't go down enough any time soon I might be inclined to go for the E6300. Only problem is that I'd have to drop another ~$60 on RAM and it seems damn impossible to find sticks that have good Micron D9 chips in them these days. Maybe some pointers there for where to get some good new ones.

Thanks for the feedback!
 
The PSU will need to be upgraded if you are going to use SLI. I would recommend the Seasonic M12 700W.
 
Any other opinions on the PSU? I have heard of people using a 500W just fine for SLI rigs. I figured 600W would be safe and anything more would be overkill.

As for the RAM I saw that one and noticed the 5-5-5-15 timings vs the 4-4-4-12 timings on the ones I am looking at. I'm not totally sure what the real world performance difference would be, maybe 5%-10% if I'm lucky?
 
Ordering this later today and building it for a friend.

http://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/wishlist/PublicWishDetail.asp?WishListNumber=5363307

Subtotal: $1,463.89
Add another $20 for shipping.

$85 worth of mail in rebates... Plus a $20 newegg promo code (it's not on the wish list) cancels out shipping.

$1378 total after mail ins. That's with the 20.1" LCD monitor :eek:

If you want to save some quick cash, look at the cases that have free shipping. That'll chip off $15 right there.

If you don't mind mail in rebates:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820220095
For RAM. Those sticks are a great deal.

Otherwise just keep an eye out for hotdeals (make sure to post them in the forum)
 
Good stuff there GTA3mobster, thanks for the tips. Where does one get a NewEgg promo code BTW? :D

I was looking at the Geil RAM also, just don't know anything about them vs. G.Skill's excellent rep. Might go that route to save a bit.

Been reading bad things about Rosewill PSUs. There's a $90 price difference between that and what I'm looking at getting. I was hoping to find a good 600W PSU for about $100 but there doesn't seem to be any.

Thanks again for the good shopping advice!
 
Iron Ace: Skip the S12 600w. Try the S12-EP 550 which offers more power where it counts (40a on +12v), or try the Corsair HX 520 or 620 which are cheapest at ZZF or Buy.com.

GTA3, I wouldn't recommend the rosewill psu. Even with the recent review of it at JG's, that wasn't exactly the same model, and I'm not a believer. At that price, try the Corsair HX 520 (a bit more) or the XClio goodpower 500 (a bit less).
 
Go with the 620W Corsair since you plan on goin to a dual card setup. GeiL ram is good, but I doubt the one you're looking at has micron chips (if thats what you're looking for). Otherwise, it'll run at the same timings as the 2GBPK g.skill sticks, for a bit less (after rebate). Here's the link for the ram list: http://ramlist.ath.cx/ddr2/
 
All right so the Corsair HX620 it is, didn't realize it was cheaper than the Seasonic currently so that's a win-win.

enginurd, that RAM looks good I shouldn't need anything more than that for an E4300. Thanks for the link, I had seen it before and noticed a lack of info on the new G.Skill sticks.
 
I recommended the GeiL ram to my friend, but he was turned off by the newegg user reviews. While I usually don't care much for them, there seems to be alot of people having trouble with the GeiLs I linked... so go for the g.skill instead.
 
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