First comp

[misanthropy]

From a budget of $1,700 including peripherals minus OS and games, what would you put together?

This is a Vista system but keep in mind that I already have $400 in addition to the seventeen hundred dedicated exclusively to the OS and games, so all of that is out of the equation. It'll be the first comp I've built from scratch. I want to get this done right the first time around.

Here's what I've come up with so far. Feel free to change anything. I have in italics what I am weary about.

Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor
- $315.00

GIGABYTE GA-965P-S3 LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard
- $109.99

EVGA 640-P2-N821-AR GeForce 8800GTS 640MB 320-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card
- $389.99

OCZ GameXStream OCZ600GXSSLI ATX12V 600W Power Supply 100 - 240 V CB/CE/CSA/UL/FCC
- $129.99

CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
- $219.00

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS (Perpendicular Recording Technology) 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
- $94.99

SAMSUNG Black 18X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 18X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2M Cache IDE DVD Burner With LightScribe Technology - OEM
- $32.99

COOLER MASTER CAVALIER 3 CAV-T03-UK Black Aluminum / Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
- $64.99

NEC Display Solutions 90GX2-BK Black 19" 4ms DVI LCD Monitor 400 cd/m2 700:1
- $249.99

Microsoft B2M-00015 Black 103 Normal Keys 17 Function Keys USB Wired Ergonomics Keyboard - OEM
- $39.99

Logitech G5 2-Tone 6 Buttons 1 x Wheel USB Wired Laser Mouse
- $45.99

 

[Frintin]

Looks great to me!

The 3 things you are leery about (evga video card, Viewsonic monitor and gigabyte motherboard) are actually 3 of the strongest quality and performance items on your list! You cannot match an evga video card for quality and service. Viewsonic makes quality monitors. Gigabyte is doing a bang up job on their 775 motherboards.

Since it is your first build the things I would recommend you do most of all are:

1. get a case you can stand looking at for a long time (cases tend to hang around longer than the parts inside.)
2. Buy the best video card you can find while you are ok with spending the money (high end video cards are always very expensive, and upgrading something you handed over big bucks for is never a fun thing to do.)
3. Get a great monitor because it is the primary thing you see everyday.

 

[misanthropy]

OK I finished it, take a look. All my parts are final. The last step is the OS. I've noticed newegg does not have Vista at 64-bit. Should I buy the OEM version on amazon instead?

 

[Frintin]

Newegg has Home Premium 64-bit OEM here.

Newegg has Business 64-bit OEM here.

Newegg has Ultimate 64-bit OEM here.

 

[misanthropy]

How is it only $119.99?

 

[misanthropy]

The OEM is cheaper than I thought. Unfortunately the case I was going to buy is out of stock.

 

[Operandi]

Originally posted by: misanthropy
The OEM is cheaper than I thought. Unfortunately the case I was going to buy is out of stock.

That case isn't particularly great, the tool less card and drive holders are cheap and don't seem very secure. The cooling is a bit unbalanced with a 120mm exhaust, 80mm intake. As an alternative check out the Lian Li PC-7B.

I would also change your PSU the Seasonic M12.

 

[misanthropy]

I want a case that is easy for first time builders to work with. My budget is as high as $90

 

[misanthropy]

I bought it. thread closed.