Please Evaluate this Build

[Firefox444]

So I've put together a component outline for a multipurpose rig that I'm building for gaming and general use (i.e. storing my music, some light digital photography work, web surfing, etc.). I'm not planning on doing any serious OCing, but it would be nice to have that option. My current computer is a Dell Inspiron 8200 with a Pentium 4 mobile @ 1.9GhZ. It's about 4 years old, so almost anything is going to be a step up. The new system doesn't have to be bleeding edge, but I want it to be fairly powerful. My budget target was $2000 CDN, and the following clocks in at $2025 CDN including tax (but not including shipping). I'd love to trim a little off that if possble, but I am certainly willing to pay it if neccesary.

Please let me know what you think of this - if anything is underpowered or excessive in terms of the overall system, or if any of the components are junk. Please note I already have a decent monitor, mouse, and keyboard, so I don't need those. Also, please note that the "XP Home Edition" is just to tide me over until Vista is released.

PROCESSOR: Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 2.40GHz / 4MB Cache / 1066MHz FSB / Dual-Core / Socket 775 / Processor with Fan

VIDEO CARD: BFG GeForce 7900 GT OC PCI-E 256MB 256BIT GDDR3 SLI Ready Video Card

MOTHER BOARD: ASUS P5W DH Deluxe ATX LGA775 975X DDR2 2PCI-E16 2PCI-E1 3PCI SATA2 GBLAN Sound Motherboard

POWER SUPPLY: Antec Neo HE500 High Efficiency 500W ATX12V V2.2 Active PFC Power Supply

MEMORY: OCZ EL Dual Channel 2048MB PC5400 DDR2 667MHz Gold Memory (2 x 1024MB) <4-4-4-8 timings>

CASE: Cooler Master Ammo 533 ATX Case BLACK-SILVER 5X5.25 1X3.25 4X3.25INT 1X120MM Front Fan

HARD DRIVE: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB SATA2 3GB/S 7200RPM 16MB Cache NCQ Hard Drive

SPEAKERS: Logitech Z-4 2.1 3pc 40 Watt Speakers with Remote

OPTICAL DRIVE: Lite-on SHM-160P6S / 16x8x16x DVD+RW / 16x6x16x DVD-RW / 8x DVD+R DL / 4x DVD-R DL / 48x24x48x CD-RW / Black/Beige Faceplates / Internal / DVD Writer

OPERATING SYSTEM: Microsoft® Windows® XP Home Edition OEM Version

Thanks for your help!

 

[filthysanchez]

id go for a 600 watt psu.
also i'd get the evga 7900 gt ko off newegg instead of the one you have picked.

 

[PWMK2]

Lookin' good.

Agreed with above though, it might be worth it to go for a 600W PSU.
Keep in mind that Lite-on drives are noisy, however...

 

[454Casull]

You don't need the firepower of the E6600. The E6300 is good enough. Also, the P5W DH Deluxe is a Crossfire board and you can't take advantage of that with an NVIDIA card.

 

[Firefox444]

Thanks for the feedback! PWMK2, I really only picked Lite-on because Hard included their drive in their "budget OC" system. Which manufacturers would you recommend as a better alternative? 454Casull, I would have probably gone with the 6400 initially, but I thought that doubling the cache would be a good idea. Is this unneccesary? Also, as far as the mobo, I'm not really planning on going the SLI/CrossFire route, so I'm not too worried about that. As far as the board itself, some other threads suggested that the P5B was a popular choice for those going with the 6400, and the P5W Deluxe was popular with those going the 6600 route. It's probably more board than I need, but I like some of the features it incorporates. If you thought it was totally over the top, I may reconsider though...

 

[-=JacKaL=-]

if ur not worried about crossfire or sli you could get a much cheaper board but still an option.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813131032

to me it just seems too much for a mobo, could put that xtra $ towards vidcard or bigger psu or whatever , just my 2 cents

 

[454Casull]

Which features of the P5W DH do you need?

 

[Firefox444]

A few things that looked good about the deluxe:

- Firewire. Although it may be getting a little rarer with the onset of SATA ports these days, I do use some external devices (HD's, DV Cameras) that use it. A port on the back isn't really neccesary, but it would be nice to have a mobo that at least supports it internally, so that I could wire it to a port on the front of the case.

- WiFi. I don't need it right now per se, but my house isn't wired with RJ45, so if I ever wanted to change the location of my computer for whatever reason, I wouldn't have any internet access.

- DDR2 800/667/533 support. Some of the other boards don't have support for DDR2 800. It would be nice to have, even if just as an upgrade path.

- MP3 in. It's a nice feature that would prevent me from having to dig my tower out of it's cabinet or fiddle with my speakers. Although now that I think about it, those Logitech Z4 speakers actually have a line-in built into the wired remote, so the MP3 in feature would be less useful.

- Asus DH Remote. This is completely unneccesary, but still pretty cool.

- 8 Channel audio. Given my 2.1 setup, again completely unneccesary. But it could potentially be useful in the future. My home theatre is something that I may tackle once I have my new computer up and running...

I'd probably be completely happy to downgrade even to a P5B (and cut $120 + tax from my bill), but it doesn't have Firewire or WiFi either. I suppose I could also just get a cheaper board and buy a firewire / WiFi card, which would probably make more sense financially. It would take up case space, though. I guess there's nothing preventing me from upgrading the mobo itself in the future, is there?