Potential new build around $1000

R

rhyx

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Jun 8, 2005
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Any comments or suggest modifications? I plan on getting a video card at a later date. Probably a GTX260 or HD 4850.

SAMSUNG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model SH-S223Q - OEM - $27.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151173

LIAN LI PC-A7010B Aluminum ATX Full Tower Computer Case - Retail - $309.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112178

Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM - $74.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136218

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX 620W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply - Retail - $149.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139002

G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ - Retail - $49.99 Buying two of these for a total of $99.98 for 8GB RAM total
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231122


GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail - $136.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128358

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 Yorkfield 2.83GHz LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80569Q9550 - Retail $319.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115041

Total: $1,119.92
 
Take advantage of the Q9550's "combo deal" and get a free copy of FarCry 2.

While picking a case is a highly subjective matter, personally, I don't see the point of spending over $200 on a case. If you want to save some money on the build, getting a cheaper case would be the easiest step to take.

You could also get a cheaper modular power supply, such as the Antec NeoPower 650.

But I have a few questions myself:

- What's your budget?
- Which monitor/resolution are you using?
- What do you already have/are you reusing for this build?
- Do you already have a(n) unused/retail copy of Windows on hand?
- When are you planning to buy everything?
 
tiraides said:
Take advantage of the Q9550's "combo deal" and get a free copy of FarCry 2.

While picking a case is a highly subjective matter, personally, I don't see the point of spending over $200 on a case. If you want to save some money on the build, getting a cheaper case would be the easiest step to take.

You could also get a cheaper modular power supply, such as the Antec NeoPower 650.

But I have a few questions myself:

- What's your budget?
- Which monitor/resolution are you using?
- What do you already have/are you reusing for this build?
- Do you already have a(n) unused/retail copy of Windows on hand?
- When are you planning to buy everything?
Click to expand...

Far Cry is included I just didn't bother to list it.

The nice Lian Li case is because I want a nice case I can use on future builds. I've previously used Antec SOHO style cases but think it is time to move to something else. I don't want gawdy - just want a nice clean case.

Power supply is also something I believe in spending money on. I've read good reviews on the Corsair. I'll certainly take a look at that Antec.

- What's your budget?
I'll spend whatever to get a decent computer. Prefer to keep it under $1500.

- Which monitor/resolution are you using?
37" Westinghouse 1920x1080 (yes really). If I have to scale down the resolution to keep a decent framerate in a game then so be it but I would likely use 1280x720 if that happened. Need to keep the 16:9 ratio.

- What do you already have/are you reusing for this build?
I have various computer components that could be reused. I have a 74GB 10k Raptor from my current computer. It is a Socket 939 dualcore Opteron (essentially Athlon 64 X2) with DDR. Nothing else special about it. Video card is a 7600GS piece of crap.

- Do you already have a(n) unused/retail copy of Windows on hand?
Yep, Vista Ultimate 64-bit

- When are you planning to buy everything?
Ideally I'd prefer to get everything from one vendor most likely Newegg.
 
Are there other cases that you're willing to consider? You could fit an HD4870X2 or a GTX 280 -- either of which would be preferable for the resolution you're planning to game at -- into the $1500 budget, but that would also require a cheaper case (along with a few other changes).
 
I'm more concerned with getting the best price/performance out of whatever I get.

The case is something I'm almost set on. I could move down to one of the Lian Li cases in the $200 area.

I'd rather not spend more than $300 on a graphics card. By gaming I mean stuff like GTA4, Starcraft 2, Diablo III. Stuff that isn't out yet but shouldn't require an insane graphics card. From what I am reading a GTX 260 should be fine.
 
Holy smokes, no offense man but ditch that case already. Hehe. That's just too much to just hold computer parts. I wouldn't even spend $100 on a case. Invest some of that money into a new GPU. $1500 you can have a build with an HD4870X2 and you will be gaming at 1920 x 1080 res. Check your local Best Buy, they may have the Visiontek Radeon HD4870X2 for $499.99. What's nicer and enjoyable to look at, a $300+ case sitting on the floor, or 1920 x 1080 gaming with AA and AF enabled on a 37" 1080P lcd?

But, if you want to spend only $300 on a GPU, get the Geforce GTX (216) or Radeon HD 4870 1gig.
 
As HG mentioned, the GTX 260 (216SP) or the 1GB HD4870 would work. The GTX 280 and the HD4870X2 are for if you can't stand playing games at less than high/max visual settings.

But seriously, get one of the cheaper Lian Li cases. You don't need that much room for everything, and every dollar you spend on the case is one less dollar you have for getting the rest of the parts you want.

I take it that you aren't planning to overclock?
 
No overclocking whatsoever. From what I can tell you just increase the heat load on the system and end up paying for it on your power bill.
 
I'm going to recommend those few changes now.

I strongly suggest going with one of the cheaper Lian Li full tower cases. That way you could get everything, including the video card, within your $1500 budget. The PC-G70B and PC-A70B both look like they could suit your needs.

I also suggest a different motherboard. The Asus P5Q Pro has most (if not all) of the same features as the Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3P, but it's about $20 cheaper.

While the Corsair HX620 is a good choice, there are other options available. The Seasonic M12 600W power supply is modular, 80 Plus certified, and cheaper (once you factor in the combo deal it has with the P5Q Pro). It also generates up to 48A through its 12V rails, which gives it more than enough power for your build.

For the video card, you can't go wrong with either the 1GB HD4870 or the GTX 260 (with 216 stream processors). Since you are using a board that supports CrossFire, you may want to consider the HD4870 first.

Though it's optional, you may want to consider an aftermarket CPU cooler, which runs quieter and perform better than the stock HSF that comes with the processor. The Xigmatek HDT-S1283 (with its retention bracket) is a good choice that won't cost you an arm or a leg.

Here's a list with some of my ideas. The items that I left alone are in italics.

$210 - Lian Li PC-A70B full tower case
$205 - Asus P5Q Pro and Seasonic M12 SS-600HM combo deal (free shipping on both)
$320 - Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 (with free copy of FarCry 2; free shipping)
$100 - Two G.Skill 2x2GB DDR2 800 kits (free shipping)
$28 - Samsung SH-S223Q SATA DVD burner (free shipping)
$75 - Western Digital WD6400AAKS (free shipping)
$290 - Asus HD4870 1GB ($20 mail-in rebate)
=====
$1228 - Subtotal (not including shipping, taxes, or rebates)
 
A build for $916 including Vista Home Premium: http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=11121988
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Two major problems with that build:

1) The OP is pretty set on his case selection. I could have gone much cheaper myself, but I figured he chose the Lian Li full tower case for a reason.
2) Benchmarks show that even the Q6600 outperforms the Phenom 9850 in several areas.

While I understand that you're trying to provide a cheaper option, sometimes it's better to let people get what they want. The issue isn't that the OP can't afford the parts in his build, but that the "priority" of certain components are impacting what he could get.
 
speaking of $1000 builds I think this calls for my stolen build ( thx HG)


CPU – Q6600 retail for $190
Mobo – Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3L for $105 ($15 MIR)
RAM – G. Skills DDR800 for $50
Video – Visiontek HD 4870X2 for $510 and free ground shipping from Dell.com
HDD – WD 6400AAKS 640gig for $75
Optical Drive – Samsung 22X SH-S223F for $25
Case/PSU – Antec 300 case + Antec Neopower 650 for $105 (Neopower 650 certified for 4870X2 video card)
Heatskink – Xigmatec HDT-S1283 120mm rifle for $32 + retention bracket $7

Total - $1,099 before shipping and rebates.

you could swap out the 4870x2 for ASUS Radeon HD 4870 1GB and get that ridiculous case with a CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V ( the 750 is cheaper then the 620)

Total $1,199 before shipping and rebates.

but this is a base rig, i would also swap out the giga for p5q pro, and the q6600 for the q9550 since having a Q6600 and not OCing it is sacrilege.
 
Thank you for all the replies everyone! I haven't built a new computer for myself in probably 3 years now so this is long overdue.

Make sure you catch that I have a total of 8GB of RAM for $100. There are two sets of that G.Skill 2x2GB pack. I saw some quotes with only one.

A modular power supply is a must. I hate having useless power supply cables floating around. The Corsair TX series is not modular and significantly cheaper than their HX (modular) series.

In all honestly, I will probably go with any parts revisions except the case. I'm almost dead set on the Lian Li PC-A7010. While there are cheaper full towers from Lian Li and other companies, they all seem to lack certain key features desirable to me. So as tiraides put it, there is definitely a reason I chose that case =)

If anyone is curious, the 7010 has the slide in hard drive bays so there is very little cabling needed for your hard drives. It also has 6x120mm fans for cooling.

Also appreciated were the suggestions regarding a CPU cooler. I have never used anything but the stock HSF that comes with a retail boxed processor. I suppose that could be the source of my noise in previous builds.

I really like that combo deal with the P5Q Pro and the Seasonic Power supply. I might have to go for that if I can find out more about Coax SPDIF versus Optical SPDIF. I've always used optical with my receiver but it appears that Coax can do the exact same thing.
 
I have the Lian Li PC-A70b and love it. Although I like some of the other/newer Lian Li cases, I cant see upgrading to another case anytime in the future as this 1 kicks arse.
 
Tiraides and others have made excellent suggestions. As has been pointed out, I think the rub here is the case. I too like nice cases, but maximizing performance / value and buying a $300 case for slide out hard disks conflicts in my opinion. Put it another way, I'll often recommend high end Lian-Li or Silverstone cases, but usually to people who's budget for a completely new rig is considerably larger than $1000-$1500.

A CoolerMaster Cosmos has one of the most innovative drive-bay systems I've seen, and it includes slide in / slide out hard disks. It's not quite as roomy as the Lian Li, and it's not full aluminum (in fact I think it's mostly steel) but it's an excellent alternative that will allow you to boost performance elsewhere while keeping to your budget.

I myself went from a Silverstone TJ-09 (which, when I got it, was in the $300 category) to a Cosmos S (which is still pricy, but still a notch down from the Silverstone) and yet I prefer the Cosmos. While not of quite the same material quality, it's a smarter design that I find easier to work.

In any case (no pun intended,) I advise you to do one more sweep of your options before pulling the trigger on the Lian-Li. Still, if you are dead set on a Lian-Li full tower A series case, then I'll just say I prefer the A77 to almost anything else Lian Li makes, the A7010 included.
 
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