New Build / New Member!

[Muttbone]

Hey all! I'm a new member to the forums, though I've been coming to the [H] for plenty of years now, so please, go easy!

So I'm ready to build a new 'puter, as the one I'm using is about roached. Just wanted to post a few key things an see what the community had to say about any of it or suggestions. Going to be moving it about quite a bit, as I take my rig to friends' houses all the time for LAN gaming. Therefore, it will have a mATX chassis an MB.

Lian Li PC-V354 case
MSI 890 GXM-G65
Phenom II X6 1090T
WD Caviar Black 640 SATA III

I'm pretty sure that I'm going with a single HD 5870, though haven't made up my mind on what vendor. Leaning toward PowerColor.

Also, I need some suggestions as to what memory would best suite me. I will have the typical 4 DIMM slots on the board, so I would like to start out with 2x4Gb DDR3 instead of the 4x2Gb route, as eventually I will be upgrading the memory to the boards' max 16Gb as money allows.

Thanks all. Any suggestions or thoughts are much appreciated!

 

[Dangman]

Please answer the stickied "ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS FIRST!" so that we can help you better.

 

[tiraides]

Welcome. Please help us out by answering the questions listed in the "Asking for Build Help?" sticky.

However, I can tell you off the bat that the processor and hard drive are bad choices for the money. If you insist on having a hex-core, go with the X6 1055T instead; there's only 400MHz difference between the two, and the 1055T can easily overclock to the level of the 1090T.

Go with the Samsung F3 HD103SJ 1TB hard drive instead of the WD Caviar Black WD6402AAEX. (I'd post a NewEgg link, but it's out of stock over there.) The long story short is that it's cheaper and known to perform well. Plus, no single mechanical hard drive is capable of surpassing the bandwidth available from the SATA II (3.0Gbps) bus, so you'll see no performance boost from going with a SATA III drive.

Why are you looking at the HD 5870 when Nvidia and ATI has recently released new video cards? PowerColor isn't a good brand when it comes to video cards; I recommend that you stick with one that offers a limited lifetime warranty, like XFX.

 

[Muttbone]

Thanks for the input. I will research farther on the 1055T. As for the HDD, I was planning on putting a pair in RAID 0. I'm still sorta new at the SATAIII, so it wouldn't really increase performance?

I had thought about XFX for Radeon boards, though I've read over an again they've gone away from the reference design, so that kinda put me off. I would LOVE to go with the newer cards, but my budget won't allow it, an as for nVidia, that is out as I plan to purchase 1 more monitor for Eyefinity, again, as my budget becomes available to do so.

 

[tiraides]

First, answer the sticky questions.

Then, tell us which PSU you're considering for this build.

No, SATA III hard drives aren't better than SATA II drives, as they're mostly based off the same technology. The hard drives with the two 500GB drive platters, like the Samsung F3, have been consistently shown to outperform those with two 320GB drive platters, like the predecessor to the WD6402AAEX.

 

[Muttbone]

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Gaming mostly, some light pre-press work, folding
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
No real set budget, but not looking to build the "Uber-rig" an crush my bank, either.
Will be buying additional hardware (i.e. second vid card, upgrade to SDD, ect.)
3) Where do you live?
North Carolina
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. The word "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.
HD 5800, PC3 memory
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
None, fresh build
6) Will you be overclocking?
Eventually
7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
Have Samsung SyncMaster 2033 19-20" now, plan on decent 24" x 3 later
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Over time during the next month, part by part.
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? etc.
Going with the above stated mATX MSI board. RAID 0 for now till upgrade to SSD, USB 3.0, SATA III
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
No, will be purchasing Windows 7 Ultimate

 

[E4g1e]

First, answer the sticky questions.

Then, tell us which PSU you're considering for this build.

I second the above two.

No, SATA III hard drives aren't better than SATA II drives, as they're mostly based off the same technology. The hard drives with the two 500GB drive platters, like the Samsung F3, have been consistently shown to outperform those with two 320GB drive platters, like the predecessor to the WD6402AAEX.

I agree that the physical transfer speed of a mechanical hard drive cannot even hit the maximum practical transfer speed of even a SATA II interface, let alone a SATA III interface. And the WD6402AAEX is not so bad of a value as it is just a mediocre value: It uses two 500GB platters that have been short-stroked in firmware to 320GB per platter. In this particular case, with the WD6402AAEX, you do pay a premium for a relatively high minimum sequential transfer speed and a relatively quick random access speed. But it costs the same as the 1TB Samsung F3 hard drive, which I feel is a better value.

 

[Muttbone]

Crud, forgot to mention

PSU - XFX Black Edition 850W

Also, I went with a SATAIII board mainly for future-proofing as I will be looking into upgrading to an SSD at some point. Figured a SATA 3.0 HDD couldn't hurt till then in RAID 0?

 

[Muttbone]

After having reviewed the Samsung F3 1T, I'm glad I came here looking for advice. Think I will deff. be going with that, an cheaper, too!

It's just impossible to think of every single make/model of parts these days, sometimes things like that get lost from thought.

 

[tiraides]

Since you only listed the monitor as the part you plan on reusing (per question 5), is it safe to assume that you need everything that comprises the PC tower, as well as the keyboard, a mouse, and a set of speakers?

We often recommend that you buy as much as possible in one go. There's no guarantee that the parts you're considering now will get any cheaper in a month or so. However, so we're all on the same page here, how much AT MOST (including shipping and taxes) are you willing to spend on this build? And how much can you spend right now?

Why are you considering Windows 7 Ultimate? Why not, say, Windows 7 Home Premium?

Additionally, please give us a general timeline for the "complete" build. Assuming that you buy all of the parts you need to get the computer up and running by the end of January, when are you buying the three 24" monitors? The SSD? The additional video card(s)?

 

[Muttbone]

No, I didn't include my mouse an motherboard as things that I would be reusing. I have a Logitech G15 keyboard an a Razer Naga mouse that will be making the transition over.

As for price, I haven't done all the math yet with other expenses an bills upcoming. I'm looking to spend somewhere in the neighborhood of $1,500 at most, but this can change.

As for Windows 7 Ultimate, I will be getting a legitimate, unopened an unregistered unused copy cheaply from a family member that had purchased it an got the wrong version.

 

[Dangman]

Muttbone, please answer this question:

Additionally, please give us a general timeline for the "complete" build. Assuming that you buy all of the parts you need to get the computer up and running by the end of January, when are you buying the three 24" monitors? The SSD? The additional video card(s)?

 

[KicktheCan]

1500 bucks?

you can wait till sandybridge comes and see how that influences prices.

 

[tiraides]

Sandy Bridge won't really influence prices for AMD, as AMD's processors have always been priced lower than the Intel "equivalents."

 

[Muttbone]

I already have 2 of the 3 24" monitors. As for the SSD an additional vid cards, there is no set time limit, as these items I'm considering as upgrades in the future, an do not need to be counted in the original build. I figure if no other unexpected bills an whatnot arrive, should be able to get this thing built probably mid to late January.

 

[tiraides]

OK, now I'm confused. You said that you were reusing your Samsung SyncMaster 2033 "for the time being," but which 24" monitors do you have?

 

[Muttbone]

Sorry, I guess I didn't specify.

I have the 2 24" monitors, as well as the SyncMaster.

 

[Dangman]

If you're overclocking, then I recommend this RAM:
$120 - 2 x G.Skill Ripjaw Series F3-12800CL9S-4GBRL 4GB DDR3 1600 RAM

If not, this RAM:
$100 - G.Skill Ripjaws F3-10666CL9D-8GBRL 2 x 4GB DDR3 1333 RAM

Now since you're buying in Late January, please check in at that time to make sure that whatever parts you're buying are still good buys then and whether or not there are Newegg combo deals that'll save you some cash.

 

[tiraides]

OK, now I'm confused. You said that you were reusing your Samsung SyncMaster 2033 "for the time being," but which 24" monitors do you have?

Sorry, I guess I didn't specify.

I have the 2 24" monitors, as well as the SyncMaster.

Which SPECIFIC monitors (brand and model) do you have?

And what do you mean by "light pre-press work" (in question 1)?

 

[Muttbone]

I have 2 Dell 2408WFPs, an will be getting a third to replace the Samsung SyncMaster 2033 which I also have.

Pre-press work. Pantone colour correction an type-face setting for a printing press. None of these monitors would be used for final production, but they will be used for general layout an such. It's not a big consideration at all, so I'm not worried about that.

 

[tiraides]

So we don't have to go around in circles much longer, here's what you have right now (but feel free to correct me if I'm wrong):

Logitech G15 keyboard
Razer Naga mouse
Two Dell 2408WFP 24" monitors (will buy a third one later)

Here's what you're considering:

Lian Li PC-V354 case
MSI 890 GXM-G65
AMD Phenom II X6 1090T
WD Caviar Black 640 SATA III HDD
XFX Black Edition 850W
Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate (buying from family)

You plan on spending no more than $1500 on this build, and you plan on completing the build in January. (15? 31?)

Assuming that you wish to buy parts sooner rather than later, the following parts are what I recommend for right now. I'm going to avoid trying to use combo deals, promotion codes, and other "specials" that may expire at the end of the year.

$150 - LIAN LI PC-V354A Silver microATX case
$130 - MSI 890GXM-G65 Socket AM3 microATX motherboard
$145 - AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition quad-core processor
$30 - Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus CPU cooler
$120 - G.Skill Ripjaws Series F3-12800CL9D-8GBRL 2x4GB DDR3 1600 dual channel RAM kit
$60 - Samsung Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200RPM 32MB Cache SATA II (3.0Gb/s) HDD
$17 - Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS SATA DVD burner
$230 - XFX HD-687A-ZNFC Radeon HD 6870 1GB PCI Express 2.1 (x16) video card
$150 - XFX Black Edition XPS-850W-BES 850W 80 Plus Silver PSU
=====
$1032 - Subtotal (not including shipping, taxes, or rebates)

Since the primary role of this machine seems to be gaming, I focused more on the video card than the processor. Unless you can prove otherwise, I don't believe that you need a hex-core for your pre-press work.

I left you with some room in your budget for Windows 7, some fans, and other parts that you may consider. Assuming that you buy everything on the above list today, but nothing else, you have enough room in your budget for a video card upgrade (like, say, the HD 6970), a second HD 6870 (for CrossFire), or a good SSD like the Intel X25-M 120GB SSD.

But again, everything that I mention above operates under the assumption that you are going to buy everything by, say, the end of the year. Your $1500 budget may actually be enough for an Intel Sandy Bridge-based build, if the prices that are currently being advertised for the new Intel processors and motherboards turn out to be true.

Having said all of that, the 2x4GB RAM kit has a $20 off promotion code that expires today. If you really want it, get it now. You may also want to pick up the Samsung HDD now, as it's currently out of stock at NewEgg and may run out in other places as well.

 

[Muttbone]

I appreciate the help, tiraides.

Originally, I had what I thought would be a good build, but the suggestions for the Samsung HDD turned out to save me a bit of money an at a better performing solution than I'd originally researched. That is why I come here to the [H] for all my reviews an such.

Also, with more reading an researching (enough to give one a headache, actually), I will probably go with the X4 as mentioned, as it scales better as I understand it. When I'd originally thought about the 1090T, I was looking at future-proofing. Some of the stuff I've listed isn't a "must-have", however I was looking long-term. I'm not fortunate enough to be able to update or rebuild a computer every couple of years. Hells, right now I'm still running a single core 4000+ AMD an a failing HD 3850 (in AGP bus with Omega drivers, no less)

That all being well an good, I came with just some suggestions anyone might have on specifically what memory to choose, as I was overwhelmed by the information I had been trying to pin down. In doing so I found out a bit more than I expected, an I thank each an every one of you for that.

When parts trickle in here an there, I will take picks an keep a log an post them as I go along. Though not the most l33t pc out there by far, it will be interesting to see how I progress even to mineself. It's been nearly 2 1/2 years since I built a new pc from the ground up, an, admittedly, the tech has gotten away from me since.

 

[tiraides]

Since you plan on buying parts piecemeal, here's the order that I recommend buying the parts in:

1) Get the RAM now, as in yesterday. The promo code that I mentioned earlier expires at midnight tonight, and RAM is likely to go up in price once Sandy Bridge arrives.

2) I recommend buying the Samsung F3 HDD shortly after the RAM purchase, if not around the same time as the RAM. I don't know whether or not it will be in stock when you decide to go for the rest of your parts. Since it's so cheap, I also recommend buying the optical drive along with either the RAM or HDD.

3) Since you know what you want, grab the case next. You should also consider buying at least two more 120mm case fans for cooling.

4) I recommend that you finalize your decision as to which video card you plan on pursuing. I suggest that you also buy your power supply around the same time as the video card. If you're going to stick with just one video card, you don't really need a power supply with more than 750 watts or 60A of power on its 12V rails. (However, some of the best deals on power supplies seem to be towards the 750-850 watt models.)

5) Hold off on the motherboard and processor purchase until after Sandy Bridge arrives (on or around January 5). An Intel-based build using a Sandy Bridge processor and a Socket 1155 motherboard is more powerful than the AMD combo that I recommended earlier, but it could also be considerably more expensive. Hopefully, by the time that you place your order, NewEgg will have a decent CPU/mobo combo deal that you could take advantage of.

6) You should also wait on buying the CPU cooler until after you decide which processor you'll be using. If, for example, you stick with the Hyper 212 Plus but go with an Intel Sandy Bridge processor instead, you may or may not be able to mount it onto the Socket 1155 motherboard right out of the box. (However, early reviews indicate that the Socket 1155 boards will keep the same mounting structure as its Socket 1156 predecessors.)

7) Since you're buying Windows 7 Ultimate from family, you can buy it whenever you get the chance. It's not really a high priority (I'm somewhat assuming that you've bought it already), hence its position on the bottom of the list.