Gaming Rig Build

the obligatory logitech z-2300s or their respective 5.1 counterpart the z-5500s are decent choices. Hopefully you don't become an audiophile down the road and want better sound because bookshelves + subwoofer + receiver can do massive damage to your wallet. I suppose in comparison head-fi is slightly less painful.

My budget audiophile setup: Audioengine 5s w/ Acculine Asub was about 600 total (shipped) compared to say my bro's z-2300s which were 99 shipped (ZZF back in their 2 day free ship days). A quick check shows newegg at 128 shipped at the moment which isn't bad.
 
jterp7 said:
the obligatory logitech z-2300s or their respective 5.1 counterpart the z-5500s are decent choices. Hopefully you don't become an audiophile down the road and want better sound because bookshelves + subwoofer + receiver can do massive damage to your wallet. I suppose in comparison head-fi is slightly less painful.

My budget audiophile setup: Audioengine 5s w/ Acculine Asub was about 600 total (shipped) compared to say my bro's z-2300s which were 99 shipped (ZZF back in their 2 day free ship days). A quick check shows newegg at 128 shipped at the moment which isn't bad.
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Yeah, I think I'll save my audiophile days until I'm out of college and makin' the big bucks.
 
falconxxxpunch said:
D'oh! Forget to get speakers. Oh well, I'm sure I can find some crappy ones kicking around till I can get replacements. Come to think of it, do you guys think I might be lucky enough to find some cheap at my local Circuit City (are they still alive?)?
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Dunno if they are, but Circuit City had some pretty bad markup on their products when I checked it out 2-3 weeks ago.
 
I think I heard my local one is still kickin' (not completely sure though). I'll probably swing by sometime soon and check it out.
 
My local one had APC UPS' for 40-50% off last week... I forgot to check this week, though, lol. I didn't see any speakers, but you'll probably get 20-50% off if they have any. ;)
 
With regards to the audio system I got a sony home theatre system, reciever plus speakers no dvd system, and I have been really happy with that it was only 150 for the whole system, just bought a 6 dollar optical cable off of monoprice.com and it works great with the integrated sound, plus as I've come across good deals on full speakers I have been able to switch them out, really nice for both movies and games. Here is the new version of my system: http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs...10151&langId=-1&productId=8198552921665360000 I'm sure you could find the old one in best buy or something for cheapers, found it much better sounding and easier to set up than my old logitech 5.1 set up(still a decent set though).
 
wow, not bad for a budget HTIB. One thing I'd do at your local CC/Best buy is to bring your ipod/mp3 player with songs you know and try out the speakers and HT systems at the store. Selection will be really limited, but at least you get to try them at all.
 
Alright, thanks for the advice on the speakers guys.

Well, my monitor and case came in today. The rest was being shipped from across the country, so it'll hopefully get here tomorrow. So far, I'm pretty impressed by the sizes. The case was way bigger than I expected, and it looks a lot sharper than I thought, too. I'm pretty sure I could fit two of my Dell cases in that beast, and it's not even a full-size tower! The monitor, though not as big as the 33" HDTV I used to play Xbox 360 on, is pretty impressive for a computer monitor. I was a little worried 22" wouldn't be adequate for playing 360 on, but it seems like it's a perfect size for playing in my small room. I can't wait to get the rest of these parts and start putting everything together.
 
OK, I'm in the middle of building this thing, and so far everything is going pretty good (I think). The motherboard, video card, optical drive, hard drive, and power supply are all installed in the case with their various connectors. One problem I'm having though, and I'm not sure if this is even a problem, is that when I power the thing up the CPU Cooler's fan makes a strange, loud clicking sound. This is without the monitor or keyboard or mouse hooked in, I just plug the power supply in, turn the power supply's switch on, and hit the power button. Everything lights up fine and from the outside all the fans seem to be working propersly, lights are lighting up on the motherboard, etc. The fans all sound normal when they're first starting up, they sound like, well, fans do. However, after a few seconds the CPU's fan starts to slow down and make a clicking noise, almost like someone is sticking a piece of paper in it when it is turning (but it doesn't start until it slows down after a few seconds). It's pretty noticeable with the case sides off, but it isn't terribly loud, so I'm not sure if it is normal or not. Is it normal? Will it not be as loud when the case is all together? Anyone know what I'm talking about? Please give any advice, this is my first time doing this.

Also, while I'm here I might as well ask, is it normal to have a complete mess of wires inside the case? After everything is plugged in I still have extra plugs and I don't know what to do with everything. Am I supposed to just shove 'em all in there or what?

Thanks!

EDIT: By the way, this did this with both my stock fan, and my aftermarket fan I installed (Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme 1366 RT). So I doubt they are both malfunctioning the same way (that is, if this is even abnormal).

Thanks again.
 
falconxxxpunch said:
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One problem I'm having though, and I'm not sure if this is even a problem, is that when I power the thing up the CPU Cooler's fan makes a strange, loud clicking sound.
...
Also, while I'm here I might as well ask, is it normal to have a complete mess of wires inside the case? After everything is plugged in I still have extra plugs and I don't know what to do with everything. Am I supposed to just shove 'em all in there or what?
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Not really sure what could be causing that clicking sound on the fan, just make sure you have it facing the right way.

Yeah, it can be normal to have all the cables in a mess. You should organize/manage the cables. That will help with airflow as well. Here is a basic guide; it's pretty simple, just hide it wherever you can, remember cable ties are a blessing.
 
Are you sure that it's the CPU fan?

And yes it's normal to have to a mess of cables inside the case, especially for a first build.
 
Alright, scratch that: it's the CPU. I couldn't figure what the hell was making the noise for awhile. I finally tried unplugging the CPU from the PSU and leaving everything else powered (including the CPU Cooler fan) and that stopped the noise. So what the hell? How is my CPU making a clicking/rattling noise? Could something be loose? Why the hell is a little oversized-Cheezit sized metal thing making a loud noise anyways? Is this normal? I've tried putting the sides on my case and it was still loud as hell.

Thanks.
 
Did you set the CPU in correctly? I'm pretty sure you have to lock the CPU in. Read the manual.
Is your heatsink set correctly? Read the manual as well.
 
Alright, it's definitely the video card's fan. I took the video card out and moved the fan around with my finger and it makes a weird scratchy noise that would sound like what I'm hearing at higher speeds. I checked to see if there was any interference and I did not see any. I'm guessing it is just a faulty part and I have to replace it. Any other thoughts?

Thanks.
 
lol i had to go back to see what vid card you have..um thats definitely not normal seeing as I have the same card as you. I'd definitely RMA once you're 100% its the gpu fan and not something else.

seeing as you bought from newegg, you're good either way. TD on the other hand...
 
Yeah, it was definitely the fan. I'm going to return it for a replacement tomorrow. Oh well, everything else seemed to work fine, so hopefully when the new card comes in I can just plug it in and start everything up.

Thanks for the help.
 
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