New Build

[Amdcrankitup]

New Build Specs:


Intel Core2 Duo E8400 (Wolfdale)
Asus Blitz Formula Intel p35 DDR2
BFG 8800GT OC 512mb PCI e
Corsair DominatorTwin2X2048-8500C5D
1 Raptor 150gb Sata
LG DVD Burner Sata
PC Power&Cooling Silencer750Quad
CoolerMaster 690 Case
Zalmon Fan Controller
24” LCD Moniter Brand (Undecided)
Logiteck Keyboard,Mouse.(Wireless)
Logiteck Z-680 5.1 Speakers
Windows Vista Ultimate

Tell me what you think.

 

[crispy55]

Think I might swap the hard drive for a seagate 250, and get rid of vista.

 

[CptFalcon]

Think I might swap the hard drive for a seagate 250, and get rid of vista.

So much Vista hate. Why? No reason.

Ditch that HDD and get a bigger one, the raptors aren't worth shit anymore. SSD is where its at now.

 

[Markyip1]

There's no hate for Vista on this forum... just some random guy spouting FUD. In fact, with 4 gigs of RAM, you absolutely want to use Vista x64 over XP.

You don't need PC-8500 RAM for an E8400, which has a multiplier of 9. PC-6400 / 800mhz RAM is all you need to reach your E8400's OC potential. Read the new General Hardware sticky and scroll down to the "What Speed of Memory do I need for my CPU" section for an excellent explanation as to why.

 

[engiNURD]

Check out this link, it benchmarks several HDDs using HDTune:
http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1284410

You'd be better off with the WD6400AAKS than the WD1500ADFD.

Dominators, IMO, are a waste of money. There's some OCZ 4GB Reapers on sale for $95 on the egg, with a nice MIR, IIRC.

 

[devil22]

Yea, skip the raptor, it's a waste. Oh, and ignore the vista haters, it's a very good OS.

 

[Amdcrankitup]

Thanks for the input on my build. Actually nothing in my build is locked in at this time except for the E8400 and the Blitz formula.I had no intentions on the raptor being the only drive.Re: the ram I will take a look at the reapers and at this time I do have 2gs of 6400 in a box never been opened.As far as Vista ultimate a friend of mine bought me a copy so it hasnt cost me a thing.Im an XP fan but just like XP when it was new it was a little awkward.I have been messing around a little, very little with Vista and it does have some good features.Guess it has to be tuned and tweaked.And most of all it was FREE!!

All suggestions are welcome thanks.

 

[bennieboy2290]

Some people say that the 690 case isn't worth it at its current price point (~100). It got so famous because it was extremely cheap not too long ago and was an excellent deal.

 

[Amdcrankitup]

I think the 690 is a great case and already in case mods forums people are doing a lot of things.Besides $6200 was a good deal.

 

[aem]

Another vote to skip the raptor and get a bigger hard drive.

Yeah I picked up the CM690 when it was cheap AFTER REBATE and with tons of boxes for PC components laying around and needing space I promptly THREW AWAY the box so couldn't send in the UPC for the rebate. LOL, blah. Oh well thats the only rebate I lost when building my new PC and I'm pretty sure I spent about $70 for the case before rebate which isn't a bad deal anyway. Not much room for my cables but other than that it has done pretty well.

 

[JadeMonkeyStang]

Check out this link, it benchmarks several HDDs using HDTune:
http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1284410

You'd be better off with the WD6400AAKS than the WD1500ADFD.

Dominators, IMO, are a waste of money. There's some OCZ 4GB Reapers on sale for $95 on the egg, with a nice MIR, IIRC.

I agree with enginurd, get the 640GB Western Digital WD6400AAKS instead. It's nearly as fast as the Raptor, is quieter, and uses less power. It just came back in stock at Newegg last night: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136218

-Jade

 

[Amdcrankitup]

Ill check into the WD640 has good price on new egg could not find the 4GB reapers for $95.00 but ill keep looking. Thanks

 

[aethelwulf]

I think the 690 is a great case and already in case mods forums people are doing a lot of things.Besides $6200 was a good deal.

I think you paid too much!

Actually, with regards to the RAM, if you plan on OCing then you should get more than DDR800. They can easily hit 4Ghz and you'll want DDR1066 or DDR1000 for that. G.skill is also some good RAM that can be had for very reasonable prices.

That PSU is also more than you'll really need. The Corsair 520HX is a great modular PSU, or the 550VX if you don't want modular.

Are you getting an aftermarket HSF?

 

[engiNURD]

What are your OC'ing goals?

/*------------- <cut n paste> -------------*/
Formulas for Intel platform @ 1:1 settings: (base FSB speed is SDR, or single data rate)
c x [Base FSB speed] = CPU speed (c = CPU Multiplier)
2 x [Base FSB speed] = RAM speed (DDR: double data rate)
4 x [Base FSB speed] = FSB speed (QDR: quad data rate; Effective FSB speed)

On Intel platforms, running the RAM higher than a 1:1 ratio with the CPU is, for the most part, useless, so don't bother trying to do so. If the BIOS does it for you, just let it. All you need is a 1:1 config, though. Here's some possible clock speeds (as always with OC'ing, your results will vary):

E8400: 9 × 333 = 3.0Ghz, DDR2-667 << STOCK
E8400: 9 × 400 = 3.6Ghz, DDR2-800 << Nice OC
E8400: 9 × 445 = 4.0Ghz, DDR2-890 << Good OC
E8400: 9 × 500 = 4.5Ghz, DDR2-1000 << Great OC

You won't notice a difference between CL4 and CL5, unless you're running benchmarks (and even then, the difference is negligible), so don't pay a huge price premium for lower latency.
/*------------- </cut n paste> -------------*/

So all you really need are these G.Skills:
$100 - G.Skill 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2-1000 F2-8000CL5D-4GBPQ

However, these OCZ's have nice rebates and should be able to OC to such speeds, if you need:
$92 - OCZ SLI-Ready Edition 4GB(2x2GB) DDR2-800 OCZ2N800SR4GK ($30 MIR)
$85 - OCZ Reaper HPC Edition 4GB(2x2GB) DDR2-800 OCZ2RPR8004GK ($30 MIR)