New Computer Thread

[GoldenEagle]

I know one of these posts pop-up every now and then, and I to am seeking the expertise of FOFC when it comes to putting together a new computer. I do not think I will have any problems assembling it, but I want to make sure I have parts that will be compatible with each other.

I am using the computer for playing poker and FM. I am also planning on picking up Civ4 and AOE III and some other RTS games. I want a dual-processor because I do some multi-tasking and plan on having dual monitors with this machine. I am also planning on running some web development tools such as Photoshop and Dreamweaver.

Case: Antec Performance I P180 Silver 0.8mm cold rolled steel for durability through the majority of chassis, 1.0mm cold rolled steel around the 4x HDD area ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
NewEgg link:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811129154

I have heard nothing but the best about Antec. I have also seen one of these recently as a co-worker had one shipped to the office. It is really no contest here.

Power Supply: Antec SmartPower 2.0 SP-500 ATX12V 500W Power Supply 115/230 V TUV, UL, CUL, CE, CB, FCC
NewEgg link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817103937

I figure if I am going to get an Antec case, I might as well get the power supply to go along with it. I am thinking 500W is plenty for this machine.

Processor: Intel Pentium D 805 Smithfield 533MHz FSB 2 x 1MB L2 Cache LGA 775 Dual Core,EM64T Processor
NewEgg link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819116001

This is the famous processor that you can overclock to 4.1 ghz if you wanted to. I have no intentions of doing that, but I may move into the 3.4-3.6 range.

HeatSink/Fan: ?
I have put the question mark here because do not know if I need one. I do not want to risk any chances of this thing blowing up so I imagine I will get one.

Motherboard: ASUS P5LD2 Socket T (LGA 775) Intel 945P ATX Intel Motherboard
NewEgg link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813131538

This seems to be a pretty good motherboard at a decent price.

Memory: Patriot Signature 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM Unbuffered DDR 400 (PC 3200) System Memory
NewEgg link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820220079

I am planning on most likely getting 4 GB of RAM, so I would be ordering two of these. Patriot is a little bit cheaper than Crucial and it seems to be a good brand. My co-worker got this same RAM for $100 two weeks ago so I guess I missed out on a sell.

Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 SATA NCQ 3Gb/s ST3160812AS 160GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
NewEgg link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822148105

I think 160GB is plenty of hard drive space. Segate is a quality brand from what I have heard so I do not think I will have any problems there.

Optical Drive: NEC Silver 16X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 16X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2M Cache IDE 16X DVD±R DVD Burner
NewEgg link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16827152060

I only have a CD burner now and I am so looking forward to getting the DVD.

Video Card: eVGA 512-P2-N548-TX Geforce 7600GS 512MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI Express x16 Video Card
NewEgg link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130021

This is where I get confused. The PCI express has to plug into a PCI express compatible motherboard, correct? Also, if I wanted to run two DVI montiors on this, would I need another cord?

Am I missing anything else? Any suggestions/comments/etc.?

[Wasabiak]

If I'm not mistaken, the retail version of your processor should come with a heatsink/fan. At least mine did when I built my pc.

Edit--nevermind about the vid card, hehe.

[Deattribution]

Video Card: eVGA 512-P2-N548-TX Geforce 7600GS 512MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI Express x16 Video Card
NewEgg link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130021

This is where I get confused. The PCI express has to plug into a PCI express compatible motherboard, correct? Also, if I wanted to run two DVI montiors on this, would I need another cord?

Am I missing anything else? Any suggestions/comments/etc.?

correct here, the PCIE video card has to go into a PCIE MB. As far as the DVI cable is concerned, to run two monitors yes you'd need an additional DVI cord. It doesn't look like from what you have listed you get one with the video card, just an adapter.

I've mostly skimmed through the stuff, but from what I can tell it doesn't look like that the video card would even support dual monitors. I may be incorrect, it just looks like it has two ports just incase you haven't a DVI compatiable monitor, as from my experience dual DVI cards have two DVI ports.

Also, concerning the heatsink/fan, you will get one if you purchase a CPU retail BUT if you intend on over-clocking it might be wise to look into something other than a stock heatsink/fan. They tend to get gradually warmer as it goes along anyway.

IF you end up switching vid cards and you happen to go with something bigger, it's possible that it may require it's own power coord - a PCI-E power cord, make sure that if it doesn't come with the card (common with OEM from newegg sometimes) that you purchase it seperately then.

[ThunderingHERD]

As for the dual monitor thing, that card has 1 DVI and 1 VGA port--you should probably get one with 2 DVI outputs in you plan on hooking up two monitors via dvi.

[dacman]

If I'm not mistaken, the retail version of your processor should come with a heatsink/fan. At least mine did when I built my pc.

Intel retail heatsink/fan setups are crap for overclocking in most cases. I'd get a quality copper-core aftermarket instead. Zalman, Coolermaster, something like that.

GE, You'll need 240-pin DDR2 RAM -- your link is for 184-pin DDR.

[SirFozzie]

I'm going to wait till october/november for the processor/motherboard prices to collapse

[GoldenEagle]

What is the difference between a 2GB (2 x 1GB) and a normal 2GB or 1 GB?

I guess I need to find a new video card. Anyone have any suggestions?

[Deattribution]

What is the difference between a 2GB (2 x 1GB) and a normal 2GB or 1 GB?

I guess I need to find a new video card. Anyone have any suggestions?

The less sticks the better the performance. Although I'd stick with 1 gig sticks tops, just for value alone... the performance difference probably would be negliable compared to the price.

[Stevebsfan]

I'm thinking of buying a new PC soon, but i'm definitely waiting on this for the CPU

http://www.tomshardware.com/2006/06/05/first_benchmarks_conroe_vs_fx-62/

Also, why the expensive case? Is it water cooled or something?

Btw, 160gb is nothing now. It may be good for your OS drive and for games you want ultimate speed on, but if you store any porn, you'll rip right through that HD. If you get that HD, it's best to get a storage drive too, not even just for porn. Some games alone now are running a few gigs each.

[GoldenEagle]

I'm thinking of buying a new PC soon, but i'm definitely waiting on this for the CPU

http://www.tomshardware.com/2006/06/05/first_benchmarks_conroe_vs_fx-62/

Also, why the expensive case? Is it water cooled or something?

Btw, 160gb is nothing now. It may be good for your OS drive and for games you want ultimate speed on, but if you store any porn, you'll rip right through that HD. If you get that HD, it's best to get a storage drive too, not even just for porn. Some games alone now are running a few gigs each.

Withy my dual monitors, I could watch side by side porn.

[yabanci]

a few thoughts:

I've got the P180 case. Great case, best ever, highly recommend. If you get a good HSF, you won't need to run the top fan. If you only have one hard drive, you probably don't even need to run the the lower chamber fan. The power supply should be enough to blow the hot air out of the lower chamber. Also, since you won't be using the upper chamber drive cage, take it out so it doesn't block the air flow from the front vents.

The Smartpower is a good choice. The important thing with the P180 is to get a powersupply with modular cables.

As an alternative, you might consider the Antec p150. It's a quieter case and includes a 430wt PSU that will give you more than enough power.

Forget about the stock HSF. If you're going with the P180, you want something big and quiet. Go with the Zalman: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835118115

I would go with a Western Digital over the Seagate. They are faster and for about the same price, you can get a 250gb with a 16mb cache: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822144701 . If the mobo doesn't come with a sata cable, make sure to order one. If you don't already have an extra hard drive for backups, you really should consider getting a second.

Get the black DVD+RW instead of the silver. Everything is black inside the door of the P180 and the silver will look bad.

[the_meanstrosity]

RE: POWER SUPPLY

There's a great deal on a Ultra power supply that's been given good reviews. $15 after tax with a MIR. I grabbed one recently since it's such a steal. It should be more than enough to power your PC and it's a bargain to boot.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2210219&siteID=.7WaaTN6umc-.cM_8gvveg2WyL8TIJnnhw

[Deattribution]

RE: POWER SUPPLY

There's a great deal on a Ultra power supply that's been given good reviews. $15 after tax with a MIR. I grabbed one recently since it's such a steal. It should be more than enough to power your PC and it's a bargain to boot.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2210219&siteID=.7WaaTN6umc-.cM_8gvveg2WyL8TIJnnhw


Is that a misprint?

The regular price 79.99, the sale price is 59.99 and it's 9.99 after rebate?

I see they have a $50 rebate offer but under the terms and conditions it has to be purchased with a xfx 6800 video card.

[the_meanstrosity]

Deattribution,

There is an updated rebate that does not need a video card purchase. And no, it's not a misprint. I'll paste a link to the correct rebate.

http://www.onrebate.com/OfferDetails.aspx?rebid=4802

[the_meanstrosity]

Another poster suggested, but I wanted to make certain you noticed it. There is a rumored major price drop on AMD and Intel processors in late July / early August. If you can afford to wait, I would hold off on purchasing a system until October or November this year. The reason for waiting is that you would get the newer architecture at a much better price. Plus this should be long enough to have the bugs fixed from the new motherboards for the new processors. Hope that makes some sense.

RE: CASE

The Antec P180 is a nice case, but I have seen better prices on that. I've seen CompUSA have that case on sale for $80-$100 with a Mail In Rebate (MIR). I too was once looking at the P180 since I own an Antec case for my backup system. I elected to go with another case due to price and better airflow. The doors on the front of the cases just get in the way, IMHO. I eventually removed the door off my old Antec case.

I will also make my own case suggestion. I own the CoolerMaster Centurion 532 and I absolutely love it. It can be had for $80 with free shipping at New Egg. It can hold two 120mm fans and even a third one with the purchase of an additional
CoolerMaster attachment. It has good airflow due to the front mesh. I'll link the case below. I've seen a MIR for this case that knocked the price down to $55 last month, but I don't know if there is one right now.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811119094

If you don't mind spending the money on the P180, I would direct you to the older CoolerMaster CM Stacker. It's a huge case though that can take a number of fans. NewEgg has it for a pretty good price after MIR. There's also the newer CM Stacker, but I honestly prefer the older version myself.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811119042

RE: CPU/Processor

Since you're building a new machine I would suggest going with the newer CPU's such as AMD's AM2 or Intel's Conroe (due late July). Again as I mentioned above, I would only go with the newer technology after it's had some time to be patched. That's the main reason I am holding off on building a new system.


RE: RAM

RAM will depend on the processor and motherboard you end up with. The newer CPU's and motherboards will need DDR2 RAM. Make certain which RAM your motherboard needs.

RE: HARD DRIVE

Western Digital or Seagate will be fine. I'd go with a Western Digital 250-300 GB. That should be enough space to last your for a while. If you've got money to burn then I'd look at a setup of the Western Digital Raptor 150 GB hard drive for your operating system, games, and applications. Then I'd grab a Western Digital SATA 250-300 GB drive for storage. The Raptor is one of the fastest drives today which is what you'd want for your OS, games, and apps. That's only if you have money to burn though.

RE: DVD BURNER

Stick with NEC, Pioneer or Benq. You can't go wrong with any of those drives. Plextor is solid too, but it's usually at a premium cost.

RE: VIDEO CARD

You definitely want PCI Express since most new motherboards only have PCI-Express. Based on the games you mentioned you probably don't need a super expensive video card. I believe the GT card is a bit better and is $10 more. I'd have to look at the benchmarks again, but I'll link to NewEgg for the product.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130283&CMP=BAC-pcparticle1204&ATT=MidRange

I just noticed that Dell Small Business is having a sale on a similar video card as posted above. It's $146 with a $20 MIR plus you can use a 15% coupon that can be found at Fatwallet. I can PM you the coupon code if interested.

http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&cs=04&sku=A0633991&ACD=qIpwRKwXCU0aAkm8tZw1&AID=0038386869

[Deattribution]

Deattribution,

There is an updated rebate that does not need a video card purchase. And no, it's not a misprint. I'll paste a link to the correct rebate.

http://www.onrebate.com/OfferDetails.aspx?rebid=4802

That is a great deal then, even if you just wanted one as a back-up.

[the_meanstrosity]

My sentiments exactly. And the great thing is that this PSU is getting good reviews and has most of the newer technology. Can't beat that. It'll probably be replacing my old PSU when I do my next build.

[GoldenEagle]

Bump...

I am getting ready to buy these parts. Is there anything new I need to know about?

[dacman]

Go Core 2 Duo if at all possible (different CPU, different MB) -- the price isn't much more -- the performance is nearly off the charts. The E6600 is big bang for your bucks.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819115003

[GoldenEagle]

$330 is some coin to drop on a processor. Are these coming down in price anythime soon?

[jbmagic]

$330 is some coin to drop on a processor. Are these coming down in price anythime soon?


Get Athlon AMD much cheaper and better.

[Router Help]

Get Athlon AMD much cheaper and better.

Not anymore. Core 2 Duo is where its at.

[Aylmar]

Not anymore. Core 2 Duo is where its at.

Right on. Anyone still pimping AMD over the Core 2 Duo is a couple months behind on their research.

If you were planning on getting an 805, the E6300 or E6400 will blow it's doors off.

(Hope this is the right chart):

http://www23.tomshardware.com/cpu.html?modelx=33&model1=433&model2=449&chart=174

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819115005

[Scoobz0202]

I am looking into building a PC. I have only a general knowledge of PC's though so I have a few questions that I was hoping you could answer. I am on a budget so I am not looking to build the end all of PC's. I just know that I can save a lot of money by building my own. I do want to use it to play some new Counter Strike and the new Battlefield games and what not.

1) AMD 64 FX or Intel Pentium D? Specifically, Pentium D 840 3.20 GHz ( See below) vs. AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+. At first I went with the Motherboard below with the Pentium D 840, but I just did some reading and it looks like the Athlon 64 X2 4400+ blows it out of the water. If I go with the AMD does anybody know a good motherboard combo?

2.) With the setup below, can somebody fill me in on what I am going to need for fans and heatsinks?

3.) Also, is the Power Supply enough that comes with the case below or am I not even close to having enough power?

4.) I am a little unsure on the whole SLI technology for video cards. Is it something I should really look into using for gaming? Will that really require some new fans and a bigger power supply?

5.) See Case question below.

6.) See the RAM question below.


Case: Is an expensive case really necessary? I could really give two shits less whether my case looks like some alien space age technology, or something from the early age of PC's. I found this at Tigerdirect.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=329194&CatId=0

Motherboard/CPU: Found this with the Intel CPU and it seemed like a good motherboard if I go with Intel.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2458540&Sku=MBM-945PVS-840

Hard Drive: Found this Seagate 160GB for a decent price.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1639147&CatId=139

Ram: Crucial Dual Channel 1024 MB (2 x 512MB) This is the memory my friend picked out, but I was looking and saw some other memory for $60 cheaper. Any idea how the other is?

Crucial: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1558790&Sku=C19-4172
A-DATA: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2212582&CatId=0

CD/DVD Drive: Seems like a solid drive.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1647585&Sku=N27-1886

Graphic Card: Here is the graphic card I found.
XFX GeForce 7600 GT XXX Edition 256MB GDDR3 / SLI / PCI Express / Dual DVI/ HDTV
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2427578&CatId=1558

Monitor: I need a new monitor and I found this 19'' LCD for $150.
I-Inc by Hanns-G CY-199DP 19" 8ms 700:1 LCD
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2418924&CatId=170


Any help is appreciated. Thanks in advance guys.

[Scoobz0202]

bump.

[Buccaneer]

It's time again. In 2002, I built a system that had lasted 4+ years, which was my goal. Most motherboards (at least at the time) had a small window for upgrading CPU and RAM but I didn't bother since I wanted to be content with the money I spent at the time. It worked in that I was able to play the (few) games I wanted to play in the past 4 years without any major problems. But as I mentioned in the Gothic3 thread, I would have forego playing that game if I had to build a more powerful PC (which I couldn't afford to do). However, eBay sales recently of part of my card collection proved very successful and decided to go ahead and build one with the intent of making it last 4+ years again. Here's what I'm getting for Christmas:

ASUS M2N4-SLI Socket AM2 Motherboard
AMD Athlon64 3800+ Dual-Core CPU
2GB DDR2-533 RAM
nVidia GeForce 7900GS 256MB GDDR3 GPU
160GB SATA HD

I already have a really nice Antec SOHO Server Tower case but upgaded to a 500W Power Supply, as well as upgraded the fans to the Antec 3-speed kind.

Like before, I used www.sysbuilder.com (http://www.sysbuilder.com) for a Tested MB Combo to ensure proper CPU+Cooling installation and the correct RAM (which I had trouble in previous experiences in getting right). The graphics card and hard drive I got on sale at Best Buy. All together, it came to $840 (including power supply).

What I like about this configuration is getting the newer technologies:
AM2 for motherboard
Dual-Core for CPU
DDR2 for RAM
GDDR3 for graphics (256mb GDDR3 outperforms 512mb DDR2, if I recall correctly)
SATA for HD

I purposely did not spec out the latest and greatest (like a 8800 graphics card or a 4300+ CPU) because those are very high in cost but I do have the option in the future to upgrade the CPU, add 6GB RAM and go to dual on the graphics, if I so choose. But like other do-it-yourselfers, it's about bang-for-the-bucks and I am pleased with what I got for what I spent.

What do you think?

[gstelmack]

Right now, Core 2 Duo are the fastest processors out there bar none. AMD lost the performance crown by a fair margin. These things are screamin'.

[Deattribution]

It should be a good system. I assume you've already done some research on the video card, as that's the one place you don't want to get bottle necked. The additional memory on the card will help but on high end games it'll still come down to what the card can produce and how fast. If what you've read has you satisfied with what you're going to be doing then that should be just fine.

I'm running a fairly similiar system (minus the dual-core, and I have dual 10k raptors running on raid settings with an x850xt gpu) and I've yet to hit any snags with anything I've played (half life 2, civ, oblivion ect).

[ISiddiqui]

Right now, Core 2 Duo are the fastest processors out there bar none. AMD lost the performance crown by a fair margin. These things are screamin'.

Yep... I currently have an AMD Dual Core processor, so I'm not an Intel fanboy, but the Core 2 Duo is supposed to be utterly amazing and blows AMD out of the water in EVERY test I've seen done.

[wishbone]

ASUS M2N4-SLI Socket AM2 Motherboard
AMD Athlon64 3800+ Dual-Core CPU
2GB DDR2-533 RAM
nVidia GeForce 7900GS 256MB GDDR3 GPU
160GB SATA HD

What do you think?

I think it looks good, but would have gone with a 7900GT instead of the GS and a larger (250GB or 320 GB) hard drive. It would add about $100 to to the total cost, but gives you a better video card for any directx10 games and more space for everything else. Personally, I have been looking at very similar specs but am going to wait for vista and DX10 video cards.

[Buccaneer]

It's a real chore. In between following the games online, I've been going through my disk drive to figure out what I need to migrate as well as remembering what settings I need to backup. I got 4 years worth of stuff and while I am not erasing this drive, it's not going to go into the new computer and I do need to clean it out. The one thing I remembered to do was to unlicense the eLicense stuff.