noob building first pc ever.. need your help

J

jsx1115

Weaksauce
Joined
Oct 23, 2007
Messages
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hello everyone.. im new to the forums... i hope i can learn as much as possible on building my very first pc.. i have never done this before, and have never seen it done really so i will need to kno everything i possibly can.. my friend usually helped me out with my previous pc but i have moved to another state (hawaii actually) so i will be on my own.. this site, i hope, will be all i need to do this...
ok anyway.. this pc im tryin to stay within $1500-2000 (before the monitor) and i just want a killer system for general purposes, media, gaming.. doesnt have to be the ABSOLUTE BEST for gaming.. but id like to be able to play any game out rite now and it look real good... so heres my list thus far... please critique..
oh yea btw, overclocking is something i have no idea about.. but if i were to be taught how to, id try.. other than that.. i guess i prefer a system that needs little oc'ing for now..

gonna order from newegg..
case: antec 900
cpu: athlon 6400+ black edition
mobo: asus m2n32 sli
ram: corsair xms2 (2 x 1gb)
video: evga 8800gtx
hd: wd raptor 150gb 10,000rpm sata
soundcard: creative x-fi xtremegamer 7.1
psu: ocz gamexstream 700w
dvd drive: sony nec optiarc 16x
dvd burner: lite-on 20x
mouse: logitech mx518
keyboard: waiting on new g15
monitor: dell 2407 wfp-hc (the new version)

do these parts mesh together well?
will i need extra cooling? i heard about a heatsink? and if so which one should i get?
should i change anything? am i overspending?
is my psu enough? or too much?

and i know that new gfx cards are coming out and stuff.. but unless its something i definitely must wait for, im just gonna get this system now, cuz i need one for my new apartment...

thank you all.. and i hope i learn wat i can..
 
Let me be the first to say that you should consider using the Intel Core 2 platform, as it is widely regarded to be the better performing and more overclockable of the current choices.

You seem to have a decent understanding of what you need to say you've never done this before.

Regarding your questions;
You don't need a 3rd party cooler but i would advise it - the Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme or Ultima 90 would be good choices.
The power supply you chose would be fine, but you probably don't even need that much. A Corsair 620 or maybe even 520 would also be fine.
I wouldn't get a Raptor HDD - the extra cost doesn't warrant the small increse in speed in a desktop environment - look up some benchmarks/reviews.
You don't really need an SLi motherboard if you won't use SLi....
You might consider 4GB of RAM - especially under Vista64...

etc etc - these are all really common things that come up in everyone's builds. Have a look at some other threads.
 
Yeah I'm concur with Concentric. Really consider going with an Intel build if you're spending that much money on your system. A good recommended Intel setup is as follows:
Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 CPU - $189
Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3R Intel P35 Motherboard - $130

The above Intel setup will definitely outperform that AMD setup.

Ditch the OCZ PSU. At high loads, it has out of spec ripple or voltage fluctuations that can damage your parts over time. Sure you'll most likely at high loads that often but why pay for a PSU that has a potential of killing your system while other better and non-system killers are avaliable?

Also, ditch the sound card as well. Creative's Vista drivers are pure shit at the moment. Also, onboard sound has gotten pretty good over the past few years so check out the onboard sound first before you splurge on a sound card.
 
I concur with Danny and Concentric... I'll probably add more later. ;)
 
well id like to stick to amd.. and ive decided to go with the 6000+ instead
also ive changed the psu to the corsair 620 like u guys suggested
im also looking to get a thermalright heatsink as well.. will i need to buy thermal paste? or does it come with it?
and i also wanna change the motherboard since im not gonna be doing sli.. which asus one do u guys suggest?
also if u guys can think of ways to drop my final price without changing the performance too much that would be awesome.. remember, i wanna game but i dont need the greatest gaming pc there is.. i just wanna be able to play anything.. thank you guys
 
thanks for the advice.. what about my mobo? should i get a cheaper non-sli one instead of the one i posted?
 
I would say save money and get dual Seagate Barricuda 7200.10's and RAID them up. That will give you more room for better hardware.
 
yea i think i will indeed go with 2 250gb barracudas in raid 0.. although i have no idea how to do that.. ill figure it out later i guess.. plus i get more space for cheaper.. thanks for the advice...

can anyone give me advice on my mobo?
 
Yes do ditch that mobo since you don't really need SLI. SLI is only useful for 1920 x 1200 gaming at extreme max settings. Though I think the GTX can handle games pretty well at 1920 x 1200.

Unfortunately, I'm not sure what's the top/decent gaming/overclocking AM2 mobo right now. I usually recommend AMD as a budget build, not a high-middle end build. Sorry.

Though just in case, you may want to check out this mobo:
Biostar TF560+ Nvidia nForce 560 Motherboard - $69
 
Well, with AMD, the nForce chipset is as good as it gets right now, lol. So, any nForce 560/570/590 board should be fine as long as it has the features you need.

AMDs arent usually used for high end builds anymore, simply because Intel's are THAT much better. Though, since prices have dropped immensely on them, they're not much of a waste of money as they used to be, lol. However, they do have little headroom for OC'ing compared to the 1GHz OC's that most Core2 chips are seeing. BTW, OC'ing is easy and does not compromise stability/reliability as long as you keep everything cool.

RAID0 is easy, but just know that there are now two potential points of failure instead of one, therefore doubling your chances of data loss. With or without RAID, you should always have a good backup solution. Whether it be data DVDs or an external drive, you'll need it -- especially with RAID0.

RAID0 stripes the data across two drives, so there are two drive heads writing/reading the data, making it FAST. My dual 'cudas get 112MB/s sustained avg transfer speed. Alone, they each do 65MB/s. A Raptor does 78MB/s, but has a MUCH faster seek time. However, that faster seek time still doesn't make up for the huge price premium on those drives.
 
after some thought, i have decided to ditch amd and go with intel like you all suggested..
danny bui, i have decided to go with your suggestion for the e6750 and the giga p35-ds3r
so here is a recap of my parts..

antec 900
e6750
giga p35-ds3R
8800gtx
2x barracuda 250gb
xtremegamer
dvd-drive & burner

now for questions about the ram, psu & cpu cooling..
should i stick with the corsair xms2 (2x1gb)?
should i stick with the corsair 620w psu?
what should i get for the cpu cooling?
 
Ditch the Corsair RAM. It's overpriced and it's not worth it. I recommend G.Skill for a light OC of up to 3.2Ghz or the Ballistix RAM for a 3.2Ghz+ OC:
G.SKILL F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ 2 x 1GB DDR2 800 RAM - $66
Crucial Ballistix BL2KIT12864AA804 2 x 1GB DDR2 800 RAM - $98 ($40 MIR)

Stick/Go with the Corsair 620HX 620W PSU. It's significantly better in terms of quality and power than the OCZ PSU:
Corsair HX620 620W PSU - $147

As for HSF recommendations, I have a few. The more you spend, the best you get:
Scythe SCNJ-1100P Ninja HSF - $36
Tuniq Tower 120 HSF - $45
Thermalright Ultima-90 HSF - $46 & Panaflo FBA09A12M 92mm Fan - $3
Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme HSF - $55 & Scythe S-Flex SFF21E 120MM Case Fan - $14
 
omg..i just checked shipping charges for everything on newegg and it comes out to $300+
wtf
 
Did you add up the shippings charges manually? Because thats not what Neweggs does:

When you order multiple items together, your shipping cost is usually reduced, according to weight and size, safety and insurance required. Simply place all items you wish to purchase in the shopping cart, pick your state and method of shipping and apply the shipping calculator. You will be shown a total shipping cost that includes any applicable reductions. For certain items, due to significant shipping discounts already offered by Newegg.com, the shipping will be added cumulatively, unless multiple items are purchased. Your shipping charge is always as per the website.
Click to expand...

And if you did do all that above and got $300+, where the hell do you live? Alaska?
 
hawaii actually..
and that 300+ total was including logitech's z-5500 speakers.. so i tried removing that, and it went down to 171 but still....damn
 
now i tried removing the antec case, and it dropped by another 100... jeez i guess im not ordering anything heavy
 
I hope you can get those heavy items locally, lol. Comin to the mainland anytime soon? lol.

Anyhow, check out the new rig in my sig. For best results with that chip/mobp, I'd suggest getting the ballistix and the Ultima90. :D
 
Hawaii? Ouch. Like enginurd said, see if you have any computer store nearby that has those speakers or a case that you like so you don't have to ship them over there.
 
yea i think i saw the antec at bestbuy but it was much more expensive... i dunno, i guess its still cheaper than shipping it over here...

ok so whats the difference between the ultra120 and the ultima90?
 
I don't like how heavy the Ultra 120 extreme is, and the Intel listed weight limit is 550g. However, many people have been using these without issues, so its just a personal preference of mine.

The Ultima90 is really all you need, imo. My E6750 @ 3.8Ghz 1.55v idles at 28°C and reaches 52°C during full load with an ambient temp of 22°C. I got the same temps with my Tuniq as I did with my Ultima90, and the U90 is much lighter/smaller... and not to mention, easier to install.

Here's a review:
http://anandtech.com/casecoolingpsus/showdoc.aspx?i=3068&p=4
 
so how am i lookin?

antec 900
e6750
giga p35-ds3R
2gb ballistix
8800gtx
2x barracuda 250gb
xtremegamer
corsair 620w
ultima-90
s-flex sff21e
dvd-rom / burner
 
Try out the onboard sound first before you buy that sound card. Onboard sound has gotten pretty good theses days so try before you buy. Though if you're an audiophile, then go for it.

Other than that, looking real good. Roll with it.
 
if im getting the ultima90 should i get that panaflo fan u suggested? i dont wanna spend more on the scythe if i dont have to
 
jsx1115 said:
if im getting the ultima90 should i get that panaflo fan u suggested? i dont wanna spend more on the scythe if i dont have to
Click to expand...

The Panaflo fan is great. Both the Scythe S-Flex fan and Panaflo Hydrowave fan use FDB, Fluid Dynamic Bearing. Thats what makes them push a lot of air while remaining quiet. The only difference is the company (Hydrowave = Panasonic; S-Flex (S-FDB) = Sony).
 
Dell.com has free shipping on peripheral orders over $129, and the speakers you are wanting are sold for $260.

When are you going to be buying the monitor and the speakers?

I'd suggest looking at the 8800 GT's, they seem to be getting all kinds of praise nowadays. The money you save on the card could maybe go to something else, or banked for getting a second one later if you wanted.
 
man am i glad i procrastinated.. im gonna grab this 8800gt that came out.. and i wanna give myself the option of doing sli in the future so can someone recommend me a good sli mobo for my intel build?

btw, i went to compusa today and they had the antec 900 on sale for 90 bucks... good deal :D
 
For most people the best choice for an SLI motherboard is the EVGA 122-CK-NF68-A1. It's a 680i based motherboard and is known to be one of if not the best overclocking 680i boards. At 229.00 (on newegg at least before rebate) it is a reasonably priced board as well. It has a good layout, the only major complaint I've heard about it is they like plastering on the thermal paste on the northbridge/southbridge heatsinks, so you may want to redo them yourself if you think they might be handicapping your overclock. Grats on finding the antec 900 at a halfway decent price somewhere that you don't need to pay shipping btw heh.
 
If the NF68-A1 is too pricey for you, the NF67-T1 is also a good alternative, with the 680i SLI LT. I forgot which combination of chips it uses, but its basically a light version of the standard 680i SLI chipset.
 
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