How's this build?

[stevephhs016]

As title says, how's this build guys?

I know that the next gen ATI cards are coming this month.

Just an FYI, this would be my first build. A new project to work on.

Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

Antec TPQ-850 850W Continuous Power ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Certified

GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 Yorkfield 2.83GHz 12MB L2 Cache LGA 775 95W

EVGA 896-P3-1170-AR GeForce GTX 275 896MB 448-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card

Kingston HyperX 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066

XIGMATEK Dark Knight-S1283V 120mm Long Life Bearing CPU Cooler

Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM

Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit

Total= $1120


1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
System mainly would be used for mainly gaming, light multi-tasking. No photoshop/ video editing. Will be using parts from machine in sig to save money.
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$1200 and less.
3) Where do you live?
D.C
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
All listed in parts to purchase.
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
DVD writer, SATA cables
6) Will you be overclocking?
Would if I knew how. But as this is my first build, might not.
7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
Already running with a 24" with machine in sig
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Couple months.
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
At least SLI support, no need for Core i7
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license?
Nope

 

[leSLIe]

it's a secure link, can't access it

 

[Potatocodone]

Answer the sticky questions will also help too. Such as what type of computer user are you?

 

[engiNURD]

Please just list your part names out and yes, also answer the sticky questions.

 

[leSLIe]

also answer the sticky questions.

nobody reads the sticky posts

 

[engiNURD]

nobody reads the sticky posts

well, i actually see more people answering the questions without being told about them, though... so thats a relief. ... but the troubleshooting guide has the least views. LOL... Then again, there are more build threads than anything else around here.

 

[lt_shiro]

Antec Nine Hundred Two Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail and Antec TruePower New TP-750 750W Continuous Power ATX12V V2.3 / EPS12V V2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE ... - Retail combo $200

MSI P55-CD53 LGA 1156 Intel P55 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $120**

Intel Core i5 750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz LGA 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX8060515750 $210**

or

ASUS M4A785TD-V EVO AM3 AMD 785G HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail $100*

AMD Phenom II X4 945 Deneb 3.0GHz Socket AM3 95W Quad-Core Processor Model HDX945WFGIBOX - Retail
$170*

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

COOLER MASTER Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7 compatible RR-B10-212P-GP 120mm "heatpipe direct contact" Long life sleeve CPU ... - Retail
$30

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL - Retail
$80

Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM $75

LG Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 22X DVD-R 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD Burner - OEM $28

XFX HD-489A-ZDFC Radeon HD 4890 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
$200***

Total before S&H $1020*-1080**

* Core i5 boards and CPUs should be on the market by this week
** Socket 775 is end of life socket can't be suggested for any new builds as it would pull you into no upgrade path
*** AMD is launch its new Directx 11 cards, I advice you to wait ontill the 10th for pricing.

 

[Potatocodone]

People are still considering the LGA 775?

 

[tiraides]

At this point (IMO, of course), getting a new LGA 775 board or processor is only worth the effort if you're trying to upgrade your current LGA 775 system -- but only if you're only upgrading one part of it. (For example, I upgraded the processor to my old Gigabyte GA-G33M-DS2R so I could give the system to my brother.) It's still fine if you have no intentions of upgrading (at least) over the next two or three years.

For a new build, and/or for frequent upgraders (about every year or two), the Phenom II performs well enough to compete with the Core 2 systems, but it's also cheaper and newer. I'm withholding judgment on the Core i5 (in terms of its viability as a mid-range option) until I can see more benchmarks and reviews.