Need a review, first time building a comp

[scorpaznatica]

I've been wanting to build my own computer for a while now and i just recently had enough cash to do so. I put together a little list of items and was wondering if people could give me feedback such as compatibility, if there are better options or better prices and what not. I dont have an old computer to dissect so this is basically from scratch and all new.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

Motherboard: asus P5Q deluxe

Processor: E8400 Wolfdale from intel

Memory: G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR2 1066

Video Card: EVGA GeForce 9600GT 512mb

Power Supply: CORSAIR CMPSU-520HX 520W

Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar 640GB 7200 RPM

The case is a mid size so im assuming everything should fit. Let me know what you think and thanks in advance!

 

[Dangman]

- What's your budget?
- What size monitor do you have?
- What is the exact case do you have or plan to get?
- Will you be overclocking?

Ditch the Asus P5Q Deluxe. Overpriced and overkill. Go with a motherboard that best fits your needs:
Gigabyte GA-EP43-DS3L Intel P43 Motherboard - $95
MSI P45 Neo3-FR Intel P45 Motherboard - $120
Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3R Intel P45 Motherboard - $135
Asus P5Q Pro Intel P45 Motherboard - $150
DFI Lanparty DK X38-T2R Intel X38 Motherboard - $180
Asus P5E Deluxe Intel X48 Motherboard - $220
Gigabyte GA-X48-DS4 Intel X48 Motherboard - $225

Just to help you out: All of these motherboards have PCI-E 2.0 which may be useful for future GPU upgrades. If you don't need RAID, more than 6 SATA ports and only need semi-decent overclocking, check out the DS3L. If you need 8 SATA ports, RAID, 4 PCI slots, and legacy ports, then get the Neo3-Fr. If you don't need more than 6 SATA ports but want RAID, firewire, a second PCI-E x16 port, a second gigabit port, support for 16GB of RAM, optional eSATA, x8/x8 Crossfire, and high overclocks, then get the DS3R. If you like the DS3R but need 8 SATA ports, want an onboard pre-installed fast booting Linux setup, only need support for 8GB of RAM and don't need a second gigabit port, get the Asus P5Q Pro. If you want Crossfire with full x16/x16 bandwidth, get the Lanparty DK X38. Do note that the Asus website can be slow sometimes.

With the money you save by going with a cheaper motherboard, you can up your video card to this:
VisionTek 900241 Radeon HD 4850 512MB PCI-E Video Card - $190

Oh and forget DDR2 1066 RAM and go with this cheaper but not much slower RAM:
G.Skill F2-8000CL5D-4GBPQ 2 x 2GB DDR2 1000 RAM - $85

 

[Zero82z]

As usual, Danny's advice is spot on. I'd also like to add that your CPU, power supply, and hard drive choices are excellent and you should stick with them while taking Danny's advice into account.

 

[scorpaznatica]

Well, the budget is up to 2k but i don't plan on spending that much if i don't have .

The monitor i haven't yet picked out but i was planning on getting something around a 20'' flat screen with a price somewhere around 200$

The case i was looking at is a Rosewill R5604-TBK. i was trying to go for something with a low price. i'm not that concerned with how it looks.

Also, what's your opinion on the GeForce 9800gtx+?

Oh, and overclocking, hmmm. It's something i've wanted to try for a while so down the line ill probably dable in it.

Thanks again for the help, really informative.

 

[Zero82z]

Since your budget is up to $2000, I don't see a reason to skimp on a case and get a cheap Rosewill instead of something quality. Even if you don't care about looks, it would be good to get a better case anyway for the sake of having something with better build quality and features to make it easier to work inside.

About the 9800GTX+, it's not that great of a card. It's about on par with the Radeon HD4850, but it'll be more expensive as well. Either card will handle the native res of a 20" monitor fine with current games, although in the future the 4850 will probably be faster since it has more shading units.