Curse

Uberness · Oct 21, 2006, 07:58 AM // 07:58

My current computer is about 4 years old now and is starting to show its age, so I am trying to do research and find the best parts to use for a new computer and figure out how everything works and whats top of the line now adays and if the pieces will even work together.

This is my first time trying to do this sort of thing so am trying to ask for advice from people who know about this and to help me out by telling me if the parts I'v chosen are any good or what there preferred parts might be that would be better then what I have picked out, Also to point out if I'v made any huge mistakes for somebody new at this.

I am going to use the speakers and DELL monitor from my last computer, I don't believe there is much decay with age with these parts or am I wrong?

I still haven't picked out a motherboard for the computer, I need to figure if it is compatible with all these other parts and it would help if you guys could recommend any that would work or which are top of the line these days.

All the prices are from www.newegg.com

The Case to put it all in
Lian Li PC-V1000 computer case $180
Review of the Case that got me interested
http://www.dansdata.com/pcv1000.htm

Processor

Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz 4M sharing L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor $315

Memory

CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory $240 with rebate

Heatsink and Fan

ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler $30

And trying to decide between these two graphic cards.

eVGA 01G-P2-N592-AX Geforce 7950GX2 1GB 512-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Dual GPU Video Card $495

XFX PVT71UZDF9 Geforce 7950GX2 1GB 512-bit (256-bit x2) GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Xtreme Video Card $575

Now I got to figure out what kind of power supply I will need for all this will 500W do or will I have to go higher? thinking between these

RAIDMAX RX-630A ATX12V/ EPS12V 630W Power Supply 115/230 V CB, IEC, TUV, UL, CSA $109

APEVIA (ASPIRE) ATX-CW500WP4 ATX 500W Power Supply 115/230 V UL, CSA, TUV, CE $40

Hard Drives
Internal

Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD5000KS 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM $180

External

Western Digital Extreme Lighted WDXC2500JBRNN 250GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache USB 2.0 / IEEE 1394a External Hard Drive $120

Total: $1425-$1560 without shipping or any extra fees

Thanks in advance for any help.

Mushroom · Oct 21, 2006, 04:09 PM // 16:09

One thing I notice that you are missing is a motherboard.

Whenever I build a high end single processor system, I only use boards from one manufacturer: Asus. They have a long (and well deserved) reputation of building rock-solid boards, that will outlive almost every other component in your system. In over 6 years of useing Asus, I can count the number of motherboard failures on one hand (and still have leftover fingers).

Since you are planning on useing NVidia and LGA775, I would recommend the P5N32-SLI Premium/WiFi-AP. You can check the board out at the Asus website:

http://usa.asus.com/products4.aspx?l...&modelm enu=1

One of my sources (I think it was MaximummPC) recently gave this board it's "Kitchen Sink" award, because it includes almost everything but that. Heat pipe cooling, Wi-Fi (which can work as a client, or as an AP), 7.1 surround, SPDIF, Dual gigabit LAN, massive overclocking options, Firewire, multiple RAID and 3 Gb SATA configurations, and a lot of other features.

Uberness · Oct 24, 2006, 11:13 AM // 11:13

Ok after taking in alot of info and advice from many diffient forums and reviews, here is what I got so far

Processor - Duo Core E6600 $315

Graphic Cards - two 7900 GS in SLI $200 each
seems like a good deal $400 for two cards with lower noise/power and abit lower then the highend $500-600 cards http://techreport.com/reviews/2006q3...s/index.x?pg=8 10 page review and charts of it.

Hard Drive - I believe two Seagate Barracuda hard drives would be good $80 each
Capacity 250GB
RPM 7200 RPM
Cache 16MB
Average Latency 4.16ms

Heatsink - Will go with the Scythe for heatsink since its recommended so highly, $40

Memory Same thing still corsair 2 GB $240 after $40 rebate.

Motherboard - I am thinking of Asus P5B since I'v recommended it, but reading reviews of it if I want it to work with a duo core E6600 I need to change the bios for it to reconize the duo core... so if I want that motherboard I need to learn how to change the bios, $200
There is also the P5N as recommended by you, what advantages does it have over the P5B?

Computer Case - Still going to go with the Lian Li I think ($180), but been reading reviews saying how good wood computer cases are, and you could build a entire desk to fit the computer inside or just a case, costs $300-400 to buy one but if you make it yourself can do it for $100-150 and extra for tools... I think in a couple of years I might try building a wooden case but for now a normal case will do.

http://www.voidedwarranty.com/PC_Cas...2_articleid/46 some screenshots of a wooden case

Heat Pipe - Thermaltake CL-P0200 Silent 939 K8 - AMD K8 solution w/ Heatpipe Cooling Tech $30 seems useful and cheap to help keep temps down.

Power Supply - The top two am trying to decide between this OCZ PSU 700W http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817341002

This Seasonic M12 700W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817151031

And this PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750W http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817703006

All recommended as good power supplys and good for gaming got good reviews and seen a review for one in a magazine, mainly aiming for something strong, silent and that will last me for a long time. $150-200

DvD/DvD Burner/CD/Zip Drives
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Custra...82E16827134013 Asus Brand CD drive, just $11

http://www.newegg.com/Product/CustratingReview.asp?
item=N82E16827131016 $50 Sony DVD/DVD Burner

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16840107123
Zip Drive, haven't done any research about it

I haven't done much research on the CD/DVD drives, tell me if you think they will work or if you got a model you would recommend.

Total of ALL that $2115 without shipping or extras.

I -think- thats everything I should need, am going to use the monitor/speakers from my old computer.
Tell me if I missed anything or if there is anything you would recommend as a improvement over anything there.

Appreciate the help.

Tachyon · Oct 24, 2006, 11:40 AM // 11:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mushroom

Whenever I build a high end single processor system, I only use boards from one manufacturer: Asus. They have a long (and well deserved) reputation of building rock-solid boards, that will outlive almost every other component in your system. In over 6 years of useing Asus, I can count the number of motherboard failures on one hand (and still have leftover fingers).

I definately concur with what mushroom said. You can't go wrong with an ASUS motherboard. This A8N-SLi Premium nForce4 that I run is as stable as nothing else I've ever used.

crucifix · Oct 24, 2006, 11:49 AM // 11:49

my preferred MOBO brand is MSI. I have owned many an asus mobo, but i found that OC'ing the processor is much easier and more stable on an MSI. ALSO: your cpu choice.. go with AMD.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103026

^on sale ATM, but WAAAAAY more bang for your buck.

i also prefer x1900xtx's, i have 2 that run in crossfire, but they can be a tad more expensive thatn the 7900's. I'm big into overclocking (whole system is water cooled) so i go with parts that overclock and stay stable. if you arent a fan of playing with hardware, then go nvidia.

Tachyon · Oct 24, 2006, 12:02 PM // 12:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by crucifix

my preferredALSO: your cpu choice.. go with AMD.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103026

^on sale ATM, but WAAAAAY more bang for your buck.

I'm also an AMD user, but if I were suggesting someone go the AM2 AMD X2 route I'd suggest that they go for the X2 5200+ as for a negligible extra £30-£40 you get double the level 2 cache, 2x1MB over the 5000+'s 2x512K.

Mushroom · Oct 24, 2006, 02:59 PM // 14:59

I have been "bashed" in here before as being "to AMD" oriented. But if you look, I normally reccomend AMD when people are looking at "budget" systems. An E6600 is not a "budget" chip, so am letting the CPU stand.

However, if the person was looking at the E6300, I would definately recommend AMD instead.

I like MSI boards, and we sell a lot of them. We generally use them for "midrange" systems. However, when I am looking at somebody what wants "high end", I always go with Asus (or Tyan for servers). MSI is a relative newcommer to the "high end" market, so I would like to see how they do in the next year or so before I recommend them for that use.

However, I would advise against going with any fancy SLI at the moment. Just get a single video card in the mid-range, and go with that. As has been said in here recently, the new generation of DirectX 10 cards will be out within the next 2-3 months. Just get something to get you by for the moment, then upgrade to the newest generation when it comes out.

A high ended system like this should be a constant "work in progress" anyways, replacing older components and putting in newer stuff.

And flashing a BIOS is very easy. Asus even gives you a tool that allows you to do it right in Windows. I flash the BIOS of every computer I build before it goes out the door. ANd it is something you want to do every 6 months or so anyways.

Myself, I though would also go with AM2. AMD has been proven to be much more "upgrade friendly", keeping the same sockets for years. Intel all to often likes to throw everything away and start over every time they upgrade to a new CPU. During the time AMD used Socket A, Intel went through Slot 1, PGA 370, PGA 423, and PGA 478. This meant that when you wanted to upgrade to the newer processor, you also had to replace your motherboard.

And don't forget that while a lot of people are going ga-ga over "Dual Core", "Quad Core" will be out by the middle of next year. And with that release, expect the Dual Core CPU prices to start dropping like a rock, to make room for the "newest bestest thing". I always recommend for people to find the "sweet spot" in pricing, and go with that. This leaves you room to take advantage of upgrades when they come along.