another build critique please

[bothra]

1. What YOUR PC will be used for:
- moderate to heavy gaming (no FPS, mostly RTS and RPGs), typical office type stuff, folding@home, dvd copying
- Oh, yeah. QUIET (not silent)

2. What YOUR budget is:
- $1100-$1200

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.
- USA

4. IF YOU have a brand preference.
- no brand preference really. i've had bad experiences with Samsung HDDs, but this was years ago.

5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts:
- none other than kbd/mouse

6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads:
- yeah, I just have a question or two about the build. mostly psu rating and vid card stuff.

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds:
- I do plan to moderately o/c, just to maximize bang per buck ratio. nothing serious though.



case - using rocketfish bought at BB for 50$ OTD.

cpu - Q6600 or e8400 - can't decide if quad is overkill at this point. the cpu intensive stuff i do these days is video conversion and game loading screens. while working i may have 8-10 apps running outside of the taskbar. looks like these two will be the same price next week.

hsf- scythe scnj-1100p - good for cooling? i hear they are quiet. i don't want to spend $65-70 on a TRUE + Scythe fan.

mobo - gigabyte ga-p35-ds3l - no frills and cheap, is it too cheap?

psu - corsair 520hx - never gonna dual vid card, 1 maybe 2 HDD, 2 DVD burners... is 520 too small, enough, or can i do with a corsair 450vx? otherwise i want dead quiet, modular and trustable.

ram - gskill 4GB ddr2 800 - possible to get a good OC with only 800 speed ram? by good I mean 3.5+ on e8400 and 3.0+ on the q6600. is gskill too 'budget'?

gfx - evga 8800GT or 8800GTS - i'm set on either one, but will i get $40 better performance from a G92 GTS over a GT? should i buy even lower and swap up through evga?

hdd - WD 6400AAKS - are these quiet and fast?

dvdrw - samsung sh-s203b drives - anyone use and have an opinion?

lcd - acer 22" al2216Wbd - very interested in opinions if anyone has one of these..


thanks for the advice, i'm just really fishing for any parts that scream out at you. i'll probably be pulling the trigger just before May 1.

 

[The Bakery]

I can give you advice on the GPU, since I was in the same boat.

The 8800gts is just a tad faster than the 8800gt. From the conversations I've
had, it's good for a handful more frames per second. After reading, I boiled it
down to the GTS squeezing a little bit of performance over the 8800gt.

To me, that was not worth the money and I got an overclocked 8800gt for $170.

 

[chinaman1472]

The 8800GTS starts to edge out a little more at 1680x1050. Resolutions lower than that, you'll get identical performance from an 8800GT. It boils down whether you want to spend the extra $50 for a GTS. If you plan on the eVGA card, then use step up if you feel it is inadequate.

Q6600 or E8400 is a good choice either way. The E8400 runs a little cooler IIRC. In most cases, I'd say pick up whatever is cheaper or whatever is more convenient for yourself, since sub-$200 Q6600 seem to be limited to in store Fry's and Microcenters I believe.

Tuniq Tower or Xigmatek HDT-S1283 are good alternatives to the TRUE for a HSF for $40-45. The OCZ Vendetta is supposed to be really good too.

Good choice on Mobo, RAM, PSU, and HDD.

Can't comment on the monitor though, sorry.

 

[bothra]

great great info, thanks a ton!

i was planning on running 1680x1050 as much as possible on the 22". dual 22s in fact. i've read something where there were problems with running fullscreen apps in secondary monitor on the 8XXX series drivers, but i can't find the link. i can't imagine it's widespread or i'd see more about it, but anyone have that problem?

i'm leaning towards the GTS simply so i dont have to rely on cooling and successful OC to get the bang out of the GT. i kinda have to buy from the egg for the whole deal, so it sorta limits me.

how quiet are the those HSFs? i guess i could just get a quiet 120mm for any one of them.

 

[Roguestar]

Hell, you could even just get the 8800GT and overclock it yourself for freeeeeeeeee. Makes sense to me.

That motherboard is a good choice, not too cheap.

Q6600 if you spend more time video coding than gaming, otherwise E8400.

 

[bothra]

yeah i need to not be lazy and OC a 8800GT

i'll try to remember to step up while i can


i'm thinking the 8400 as well, seems to be cooler and easier to get the most out of.


anyone use the rocketfish case with air cooling?
- seems like there isn't enough intake going on. one 120mm in the front, but the case is 2.5 feet long! would putting a fan in the bays up top help? or is it a waste of fan?
- i cut a window in the side, debating on cutting a blowhole since we have one exhaust, another exhaust from bottom-mounted psu, and another exhaust over vid card.
would an intake directly above the mobo help or hurt airflow?

 

[s44]

Originally posted by: Roguestar
Hell, you could even just get the 8800GT and overclock it yourself for freeeeeeeeee.

He'd be starting with a worse cooler, though. And fewer shaders.

 

[bothra]

Originally posted by: s44

Originally posted by: Roguestar
Hell, you could even just get the 8800GT and overclock it yourself for freeeeeeeeee.

He'd be starting with a worse cooler, though. And fewer shaders.

sorta works out tho, if i get the 8800GT and an aftermarket cooler so i can OC it, the cost pretty much equals up to a stock 8800GTS

course then i'd want an aftermarket cooler for the GTS to OC with!

 

[PurdueRy]

I encourage you NOT to get that monitor. It was ok...for the money. But there is a rather prevalent problem with it not detecting a DVI signal if turned on when the computer is running. Sometimes this doesn't happen right out of the gates...but it happens quite often. Just search for Acer No signal on google and you'll find some discussions on the issue.

I changed to the LG L227WTG from BB and am much happier with it. I would say the screen is the same quality(both TV's) but I feel the LG is built better(weighs more and feels less "cheap") and is a bit more ergonomic with the rotating base.

Just note that this version is glossy. I kinda like it, doesn't really bother me either way. Certainly LOOKS a lot better.

Oh and the 1:1 scaling mode kicks major ass

 

[bothra]

thanks, PurdueRy exactly what i needed to hear. there weren't many reports of DVI probls on the newegg reviews, but i do see what you mean.

ill look around some more for another, thanks again

 

[PurdueRy]

Originally posted by: bothra
thanks, PurdueRy exactly what i needed to hear. there weren't many reports of DVI probls on the newegg reviews, but i do see what you mean.

ill look around some more for another, thanks again

I think that's probably because most Newegg reviews are posted within minutes of turning on the screen. I didn't have a problem for a few days. As I said some people experience this problem intermittently.

Here is some discussion on it:

http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1116093

As I said, you can get all sorts of people posting about this problem if you type in "Acer no signal" into google. What's even MORE worrisome is it is not limited to just the model you picked out. Pretty much any Acer model has the potential to have this problem. On my computer, I thought I had "fixed" it only to have it return a week later.

Not worth the chance IMO, especially with the strict return policies on monitors. Luckily I bought from newegg and they were willing to make an exception.

I looked long and hard into 22" models. For the most part they all appear to be similar in screen quality. However, they differ in build quality. I was down to getting a NEC, LG or samsung. I thought about getting the NEC because I loved my previous NEC it just died after 5 years of service(nearly 24/7). However, The LG was new and, after comparing it to the Samsung at BB(2253 I think), I wanted the LG. Add in the fact that I had trouble with my brother's Samsung LCD recognizing a digital signal much the same as the Acer and it was a fairly easy decision.

I have not regretted it. As I mentioned the 1:1 mode is one of my favorite features. Playing Warcraft III stretched into widescreen is just awkward. By setting the monitor to 1:1 mode the screen actually uses 1280 x 1024 pixels, so the image looks just as crisp as it should.

I should note that any 4:3 resolutions WILL be scaled. The are stretched to fit the largest size 4:3 box that can fit within the 22" widescreen. It still looks pretty decent and at least no one is stretched horizontally!

Hope this helps you.

 

[bothra]

i've decided to hold off on monitor purchase since I can do that locally and avoid shipping costs. also it helps to be able to take it back to the store if something messes up.

i'm pretty firm on the 8800GT now, thanks for the help all.

as far as HSF, though, i'm at a crossroads. the ninja is revB, meaning the new pushpin mounting system doesn't hold well. i'm comparing the xigmatech HDT-S1283, the tuniq and the TRUE. the xigmatech is cheapest and performs well, but it relatively new...

big question i have is whether or not the Corsair 450VX PSU will be good enough for the e8400, 1 maybe 2 HDD, 2 DVD burners, 3-4 case fans, single 8800GT??

 

[PurdueRy]

Originally posted by: bothra
i've decided to hold off on monitor purchase since I can do that locally and avoid shipping costs. also it helps to be able to take it back to the store if something messes up.

i'm pretty firm on the 8800GT now, thanks for the help all.

as far as HSF, though, i'm at a crossroads. the ninja is revB, meaning the new pushpin mounting system doesn't hold well. i'm comparing the xigmatech HDT-S1283, the tuniq and the TRUE. the xigmatech is cheapest and performs well, but it relatively new...

big question i have is whether or not the Corsair 450VX PSU will be good enough for the e8400, 1 maybe 2 HDD, 2 DVD burners, 3-4 case fans, single 8800GT??

It would be enough however I would go up to the 550 to run your power supply at a "easier" load.

I believe the cost differential was only $10 at buy.com last time I checked.