Hey everyone, I've been reading these forums for a while but I believe this is my first time posting. Anyway I'm looking for a little bit of advice on a build that I'm thinking of.
To follow the sticky at the top of the forum
1. I'm going to be using this rig mainly for gaming and multimedia functions. I already have this laptop for work and the like.
2. As far as my budget goes, I'm shooting for just under 1600 (CAD)
3. Buying parts from Canada
4. Brand preference? I'm probably going with a Q6600, so that would be Intel. As well I'm deadset on an 8800gts. Found an EVGA superclocked one on sale for 299.99. Aside from this I'm open to suggestions.
5. Not using any existing parts, going all new.
6. I've searched through other posts and whatnot in order to decide on the parts I want.
7. Yes I plan on overclocking. I've seen the benchmarks for an OC'd Q6600 so that's why I'm going with it over the E6850.
Now onto the build ( All parts from memoryexpress.com it's a local pc shop):
eVGA nForce 680i LT SLI w/ DualDDR2 800, 7.1 Audio, Gigabit Lan, 1394, Dual PCI-E x16 SLI
- 219.95 (M.I.R brings it down 25) For me it's really between this and the PK5-E/WIFI-AP. I don't plan on running SLI or Crossfire. The problem I have is that the PK5-E will have to be bought over the web, and I'm not really warm to that idea as far as returns go.
Intel Core?2 Quad Processor Q6600 2.4GHz w/ 2x4MB Cache
- 299.95 Not much to say here, aside from asking how to tell if the proc I'll be getting has the G0 stepping or not.
Crucial BallistiX 2GB PC2-6400 Dual Channel DDR2 Kit (2 x 1GB)
- 114.95 (M.I.R brings it down 35) Seems like decent RAM, though I am up to suggestions. The place I'm getting this all from has some sales on ram. Chose this because it was the cheapest, while getting good reviews.
EVGA e-GeForce 8800GTS Superclocked 320MB Video Card
- 299.95 Found this on sale, going to go grab it after class today.
Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme Aluminum Heatsink for P4-775 / AM2
- 69.95 Seems to be the best cooler out there, as long as I get a good one. If not I'll return it to the store and get another.
Antec Nine Hundred Ultimate Gamer Case
- 114.95 Toss up between this case and...
P182 Advanced Super Mid Tower, Gun Metal Black
- 149.95 Not sure which one to get. I'd really appreciate some open debate here
Corsair HX 520W Modular Power Supply w/ Triple +12V
- 119.95 (M.I.R brings it down by 20) Choose this over an OCZ, though it's an extra $20. Seems to be the higher quality choice.
Seagate 320GB Barracuda 7200.10 SATA II w/ NCQ, 16MB Cache
- 84.95 Cheap, seems like enough room. A 500 GB is available for 119.99 but I really don't think the extra cash is worth it.
LG Super Multi DVD Writer 18x18x10 DVD +/-RW Dual-Layer, SATA w/ Lightscribe, Black (OEM) - 39.95 Cheap, seems alright.
Total price after M.I.R and including the stuff mentioned below (Roughly) 1517.41
In addition to this I have a Scythe S-Flex med-flow fan (19.99), Window Vista Premium 64-bit OEM (129.95). Still wondering if I'd really need a floppy drive. I've heard the bios on the EVGA board can only be updating through a floppy, but I'm not sure, so some confirmation on that would be great. As well, for thermal compound, wondering if I should go with Artic silver 3.5g (9.99) or stick with the stuff that come with the Thermalright cooler. In regards to a monitor, I have 2 that I can use. Both LCD, one running at the standard resolution (12xx x 10xx) and a widescreen (1600 x 14xx). As far as gaming goes, I'll stick with the standard resolution monitor, seeing as the GTS I've chosen only has 320mb ram, so for future games at high resolution I maybe be out of luck.
In regards to future proofing (Impossible I know) I think the set up I have priced out should hold out fairly well. Worse comes to worse I can buy a new video card and maybe switch the processor to Penyrn in the future. I hoping that the 8800gts can handle Crysis, if not, I'll probably lose faith in PC gaming What do you guys think?
So there you have it, hopefully my new build. Thank you for taking the time to read through my post, now please! Lay on the criticism, be it constructive or not!
Edit: Whoops, I mis priced the corsair PSU, it's actually 119.99 and then a $20 M.I.R
In reply to MarcVenice, I'd like to the get PK5-E wifi, it runs 185 roughly from a Canadian e-tailer, plus shipping, so I think it will actually come out to be more than the EVGA. Does anyone know if I were to order it from the US, if I would end up paying additional border charges or whatnot?
Update: After considering mervin338's advice, I've narrowed possible motherboards down to 2. The Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3R and the Asus P5K-SE. I really can't choose between the two. I've read reviews and whatnot and it seems like the recent Gigabyte boards have been faulty, and the Asus only has enough ports to support 4 drives. Anyway I'd like to see what you guys think of these boards, or if you have any suggestions for other boards. Preferably ones available from the aforementioned website.
To follow the sticky at the top of the forum
1. I'm going to be using this rig mainly for gaming and multimedia functions. I already have this laptop for work and the like.
2. As far as my budget goes, I'm shooting for just under 1600 (CAD)
3. Buying parts from Canada
4. Brand preference? I'm probably going with a Q6600, so that would be Intel. As well I'm deadset on an 8800gts. Found an EVGA superclocked one on sale for 299.99. Aside from this I'm open to suggestions.
5. Not using any existing parts, going all new.
6. I've searched through other posts and whatnot in order to decide on the parts I want.
7. Yes I plan on overclocking. I've seen the benchmarks for an OC'd Q6600 so that's why I'm going with it over the E6850.
Now onto the build ( All parts from memoryexpress.com it's a local pc shop):
eVGA nForce 680i LT SLI w/ DualDDR2 800, 7.1 Audio, Gigabit Lan, 1394, Dual PCI-E x16 SLI
- 219.95 (M.I.R brings it down 25) For me it's really between this and the PK5-E/WIFI-AP. I don't plan on running SLI or Crossfire. The problem I have is that the PK5-E will have to be bought over the web, and I'm not really warm to that idea as far as returns go.
Intel Core?2 Quad Processor Q6600 2.4GHz w/ 2x4MB Cache
- 299.95 Not much to say here, aside from asking how to tell if the proc I'll be getting has the G0 stepping or not.
Crucial BallistiX 2GB PC2-6400 Dual Channel DDR2 Kit (2 x 1GB)
- 114.95 (M.I.R brings it down 35) Seems like decent RAM, though I am up to suggestions. The place I'm getting this all from has some sales on ram. Chose this because it was the cheapest, while getting good reviews.
EVGA e-GeForce 8800GTS Superclocked 320MB Video Card
- 299.95 Found this on sale, going to go grab it after class today.
Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme Aluminum Heatsink for P4-775 / AM2
- 69.95 Seems to be the best cooler out there, as long as I get a good one. If not I'll return it to the store and get another.
Antec Nine Hundred Ultimate Gamer Case
- 114.95 Toss up between this case and...
P182 Advanced Super Mid Tower, Gun Metal Black
- 149.95 Not sure which one to get. I'd really appreciate some open debate here
Corsair HX 520W Modular Power Supply w/ Triple +12V
- 119.95 (M.I.R brings it down by 20) Choose this over an OCZ, though it's an extra $20. Seems to be the higher quality choice.
Seagate 320GB Barracuda 7200.10 SATA II w/ NCQ, 16MB Cache
- 84.95 Cheap, seems like enough room. A 500 GB is available for 119.99 but I really don't think the extra cash is worth it.
LG Super Multi DVD Writer 18x18x10 DVD +/-RW Dual-Layer, SATA w/ Lightscribe, Black (OEM) - 39.95 Cheap, seems alright.
Total price after M.I.R and including the stuff mentioned below (Roughly) 1517.41
In addition to this I have a Scythe S-Flex med-flow fan (19.99), Window Vista Premium 64-bit OEM (129.95). Still wondering if I'd really need a floppy drive. I've heard the bios on the EVGA board can only be updating through a floppy, but I'm not sure, so some confirmation on that would be great. As well, for thermal compound, wondering if I should go with Artic silver 3.5g (9.99) or stick with the stuff that come with the Thermalright cooler. In regards to a monitor, I have 2 that I can use. Both LCD, one running at the standard resolution (12xx x 10xx) and a widescreen (1600 x 14xx). As far as gaming goes, I'll stick with the standard resolution monitor, seeing as the GTS I've chosen only has 320mb ram, so for future games at high resolution I maybe be out of luck.
In regards to future proofing (Impossible I know) I think the set up I have priced out should hold out fairly well. Worse comes to worse I can buy a new video card and maybe switch the processor to Penyrn in the future. I hoping that the 8800gts can handle Crysis, if not, I'll probably lose faith in PC gaming What do you guys think?
So there you have it, hopefully my new build. Thank you for taking the time to read through my post, now please! Lay on the criticism, be it constructive or not!
Edit: Whoops, I mis priced the corsair PSU, it's actually 119.99 and then a $20 M.I.R
In reply to MarcVenice, I'd like to the get PK5-E wifi, it runs 185 roughly from a Canadian e-tailer, plus shipping, so I think it will actually come out to be more than the EVGA. Does anyone know if I were to order it from the US, if I would end up paying additional border charges or whatnot?
Update: After considering mervin338's advice, I've narrowed possible motherboards down to 2. The Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3R and the Asus P5K-SE. I really can't choose between the two. I've read reviews and whatnot and it seems like the recent Gigabyte boards have been faulty, and the Asus only has enough ports to support 4 drives. Anyway I'd like to see what you guys think of these boards, or if you have any suggestions for other boards. Preferably ones available from the aforementioned website.