I have a parts kit picked out, but I want some input from The Collective!

[Silicon Spear]

Hi everyone, does this look fine for a gaming PC? Is everything compatible and reliable here?


Sony OptiArc Drive - $31 http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16827118030
Most other DVD drives seem more expensive and less reliable than this one. Where are the reliable drives when you need one....

WD Caviar 1TB Drive - $100 http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16822136284
Hopefully this one's reliable.

Gigabyte Mobo - $80 http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813128392
Good rating, not too expensive, and supports 4890 and DDR3.

Sapphire 4890HD 1GB - $190 http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814102830
I keep hearing that crossfired 4850's are better, well for that I'd have to spend extra money for a good mobo with 2+ PCI 2.0 x16 slots, right? 4850x2 have horrible reliability compared to this thing.

Corsair 520W PSU - $90 http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817139001
VERY low failure rate from reviews, cause unlike other computer parts, a PSU can fry everything if it fails (I think)!!

Crucial 2x2GB 1333 DRR3 - $58 http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820148262
Fast, cheap, great rating. What else could I need? I'll just stick in a couple more later if it's not enough. 4 GB sticks are so expensive that it would make more financial sense to throw these out and buy them in a couple years, than to buy them now.

Phenom II X4 3GHZ + COOLER MASTER COSMOS 1000 case - $315 ($90 off!!!) http://www.newegg.com/Product/...?ItemList=Combo.208484
The case is the biggest one that I found with a good rating, so hopefully that will make it easy to cool and easy to manage everything in.

OS: I'll use Windows 7 RC for now, then buy the OEM when it comes out to save money. From what I read, it doesn't look like I'll be able to save money by using the upgrade trick, since the only copy I have of XP is the one that came with my Dell laptop (and I don't think it transfers).

Shipping: $40

Total on Newegg: $933.77


What's really bugging me is the PC building topic says that heatsinks are a core component. But I can't find any heatsinks with AM3 compatibility on Newegg. Could someone please help me with this issue? Or do I not need a CPU heatsink with my setup?



As for the rest of the stuff, I already have a monitor, a keyboard, and a mouse that I'm currently hooking up to my 2-year old laptop (which runs DOOM 3 in 512x384 at about 30 fps, by the way, so you can see why I'm building my first desktop).


Thanks much for your time, everyone!


edit:
Added appropriate questions and answers.

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.
All kinds of gaming - I'll be downloading a demo of every game I couldn't play on this laptop! Probably buying a couple once I'm sure which I like. And keeping about 10 windows of Google Chrome open at a time, each with 5 tabs. I like to multitask.

2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread
Around $1000

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.
United States of America

4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc, etc, etc, you get the picture.
I'm probably sticking to AMD/ATI this time around

5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
SONY CPD E500 flat CRT monitor, 1400x1050@100hz / 1600x1200@89hz. Anything above that flickers too much. I got it for $50 on Ebay, so I don't regret getting it instead of a normal LCD monitor like everyone else.
Standard keyboard/laser mouse (I might buy a better mouse later on, but I'm not going to build my computer based on which mouse I'm going to use)

6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads.
Yeah, but I want to be sure these parts work together.

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
Default speeds for now, since I'm a n00b to all this and my goal is just to get it working. Maybe I'll overclock eventually.

8. WHEN do you plan to build it?
As soon as possible, though I don't plan to pay extra for fast shipping =P

 

[WaitingForNehalem]

Select a SATA DVD drive from here: http://www.ewiz.com/query.php?...=30&anchor=#displaytop Your board accepts DDR2 not DDR3. If you want to take the DDR2 route then you might want this combo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...?ItemList=Combo.209473 Get a StealthXStream 700W for PSU. 4890:http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/...p?ProductCode=10010282

 

[Silicon Spear]

Originally posted by: WaitingForNehalem
Select a SATA DVD drive from here: http://www.ewiz.com/query.php?...=30&anchor=#displaytop Your board accepts DDR2 not DDR3. If you want to take the DDR2 route then you might want this combo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...?ItemList=Combo.209473 Get a StealthXStream 700W for PSU. 4890:http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/...p?ProductCode=10010282

Sorry about the RAM - it was really stupid of me! :headdesk: Thanks for catching that!

I chose this one instead now: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...2&ref=dynamitedata.com ; the motherboard on the combo didn't look too reliable... (edit: changed the RAM again, this time to G.SKILL 800)


For video card, yeah it looks $10 cheaper ($30 cheaper after respective MIRs) but I am afraid because it also looks less reliable from the ratings on Newegg..

Same with that PSU. 5% have 1-star reviews instead of 2%. Looks like it fries on more people. Or is that just because people expect more of it because the manufacturer slapped on a higher wattage rating? Plus I noticed that Corsair replies on a lot of negative comments, which is a good sign because they probably care more if it breaks.

Am I being too paranoid? Or is it normal to want to buy stuff that's a little more expensive because it has more people saying it works? More importantly, will my current build work with the new DDR2 RAM I posted, or do I *have* to change something because of incompatibilities?




As for the DVD drive, thanks for the SATA comment, I didn't realize that would be a problem! But the link doesn't work. Says item not found. Newegg just ran out of those Pioneers so looks like I'll have to get something else anyways, though. Hows this one? http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16827118030 I read here than Sony isn't quite as bad as LG, in terms of DVD drives.


Also thanks a lot for responding, and sorry for taking so long to respond in turn - I fell asleep.

 

[Blain]

The Collective would rather see you run PC2-6400 rated at the JEDEC standard voltage of 1.8-1.9v... Like This or This

The Collective doesn't like the Cosmos case either, no matter how cheap it is.... Too BIG and Too HEAVY

The Collective has spoken :laugh:

 

[Silicon Spear]

Originally posted by: Blain
The Collective would rather see you run PC2-6400 rated at the JEDEC standard voltage of 1.8-1.9v... Like This or This

The Collective doesn't like the Cosmos case either, no matter how cheap it is.... Too BIG and Too HEAVY

The Collective has spoken :laugh:

Thanks, I fixed the RAM to the G.SKILL 800!

What's wrong with a big case? I know I picked the biggest one out there, but is something going to not work right because it's too big? I mean, I have a huge 71 lb CRT monitor, so I'm used to big stuff.

Everything else in this build is going to work OK, right?

 

[Blain]

I got a great deal on one of those Cosmo cases for $90 (shipped & after rebate).
It's just too big & heavy for my tastes. And I don't have anything against full tower cases.

Check out this CM Storm Scout...
It's about $100 cheaper (including shipping),
It's got the same number of 5.25" external bays,
It's got 5 internal 3.5" vs 6 with the Cosmos,
It's 18 pounds lighter than the Cosmos,
And it has a handle.

 

[Silicon Spear]

Originally posted by: Blain
I got a great deal on one of those Cosmo cases for $90 (shipped & after rebate).
It's just too big & heavy for my tastes. And I don't have anything against full tower cases.

Check out this CM Storm Scout...
It's about $100 cheaper (including shipping),
It's got the same number of 5.25" external bays,
It's got 5 internal 3.5" vs 6 with the Cosmos,
It's 18 pounds lighter than the Cosmos,
And it has a handle.

Well, I'll take your word on everything being able to fit in it, including the huge 4890 GPU. I'll think about it, thanks.

Other than that, my setup looks fine, right?

 

[WaitingForNehalem]

Originally posted by: Silicon Spear

Originally posted by: WaitingForNehalem
Select a SATA DVD drive from here: http://www.ewiz.com/query.php?...=30&anchor=#displaytop Your board accepts DDR2 not DDR3. If you want to take the DDR2 route then you might want this combo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...?ItemList=Combo.209473 Get a StealthXStream 700W for PSU. 4890:http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/...p?ProductCode=10010282

Sorry about the RAM - it was really stupid of me! :headdesk: Thanks for catching that!

I chose this one instead now: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...2&ref=dynamitedata.com ; the motherboard on the combo didn't look too reliable... (edit: changed the RAM again, this time to G.SKILL 800)


For video card, yeah it looks $10 cheaper ($30 cheaper after respective MIRs) but I am afraid because it also looks less reliable from the ratings on Newegg..

Same with that PSU. 5% have 1-star reviews instead of 2%. Looks like it fries on more people. Or is that just because people expect more of it because the manufacturer slapped on a higher wattage rating? Plus I noticed that Corsair replies on a lot of negative comments, which is a good sign because they probably care more if it breaks.

Am I being too paranoid? Or is it normal to want to buy stuff that's a little more expensive because it has more people saying it works? More importantly, will my current build work with the new DDR2 RAM I posted, or do I *have* to change something because of incompatibilities?


As for the DVD drive, thanks for the SATA comment, I didn't realize that would be a problem! But the link doesn't work. Says item not found. Newegg just ran out of those Pioneers so looks like I'll have to get something else anyways, though. Hows this one? http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16827118030 I read here than Sony isn't quite as bad as LG, in terms of DVD drives.


Also thanks a lot for responding, and sorry for taking so long to respond in turn - I fell asleep.

NewEgg reviews don't mean much. Those graphics cards are basically the same thing with a different label since they use ATI's reference design. The PSU is also good. Choosing products based on reviews is a bad way to choose. That Biostar mobo is reliable if you don't need surround sound and don't care about 100% solid state capacitors, otherwise pick up an AM3 board since it is the latest socket and use DDR3. I've read LG drives are among the best. I have one and it works fine but yes that Sony drive will work fine.

 

[Silicon Spear]

Originally posted by: WaitingForNehalem
NewEgg reviews don't mean much. Those graphics cards are basically the same thing with a different label since they use ATI's reference design. The PSU is also good. Choosing products based on reviews is a bad way to choose. That Biostar mobo is reliable if you don't need surround sound and don't care about 100% solid state capacitors, otherwise pick up an AM3 board since it is the latest socket and use DDR3. I've read LG drives are among the best. I have one and it works fine but yes that Sony drive will work fine.

Sorry for replying late again, I had work this time.


You suggest I should pick up an AM3 board that supports DDR3 if I don't go with that Biostar mobo. I'm looking at this one here, since it's cheap and seems to support everything I need: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813128392 . The North Bridge and South Bridge have lower numbers though, is that ok? Will that cause me any problems? You said in roguemonkey's thread that it "doesn't use SB 750 or a 790 series NB" - since our builds are pretty similar, could you please tell me what is the problem with this? I mean, it has a PCI-E 2.0 x16 slot for running my 4890 at full speed, right?

 

[WaitingForNehalem]

Originally posted by: Silicon Spear

Originally posted by: WaitingForNehalem
NewEgg reviews don't mean much. Those graphics cards are basically the same thing with a different label since they use ATI's reference design. The PSU is also good. Choosing products based on reviews is a bad way to choose. That Biostar mobo is reliable if you don't need surround sound and don't care about 100% solid state capacitors, otherwise pick up an AM3 board since it is the latest socket and use DDR3. I've read LG drives are among the best. I have one and it works fine but yes that Sony drive will work fine.

Sorry for replying late again, I had work this time.


You suggest I should pick up an AM3 board that supports DDR3 if I don't go with that Biostar mobo. I'm looking at this one here, since it's cheap and seems to support everything I need: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813128392 . The North Bridge and South Bridge have lower numbers though, is that ok? Will that cause me any problems? You said in roguemonkey's thread that it "doesn't use SB 750 or a 790 series NB" - since our builds are pretty similar, could you please tell me what is the problem with this? I mean, it has a PCI-E 2.0 x16 slot for running my 4890 at full speed, right?

Read this:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMD_700_chipset_series.

Then decide if it is worth spending $35 more to get the top chipsets.

 

[Silicon Spear]

Originally posted by: WaitingForNehalem

Originally posted by: Silicon Spear

Originally posted by: WaitingForNehalem
NewEgg reviews don't mean much. Those graphics cards are basically the same thing with a different label since they use ATI's reference design. The PSU is also good. Choosing products based on reviews is a bad way to choose. That Biostar mobo is reliable if you don't need surround sound and don't care about 100% solid state capacitors, otherwise pick up an AM3 board since it is the latest socket and use DDR3. I've read LG drives are among the best. I have one and it works fine but yes that Sony drive will work fine.

Sorry for replying late again, I had work this time.


You suggest I should pick up an AM3 board that supports DDR3 if I don't go with that Biostar mobo. I'm looking at this one here, since it's cheap and seems to support everything I need: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813128392 . The North Bridge and South Bridge have lower numbers though, is that ok? Will that cause me any problems? You said in roguemonkey's thread that it "doesn't use SB 750 or a 790 series NB" - since our builds are pretty similar, could you please tell me what is the problem with this? I mean, it has a PCI-E 2.0 x16 slot for running my 4890 at full speed, right?

Read this:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMD_700_chipset_series.

Then decide if it is worth spending $35 more to get the top chipsets.

Hmm, okay, thanks. I wonder if I saw what you wanted me to see, so I'll write it here:

For Southbridge: SB710 only seems to be missing RAID 5 as opposed to SB750. Raid 5 means I'm going to RAID at least 3 HDs. Now don't get me wrong, this is pretty cool, but pointless for someone whose budget is $1000. If I need reliability or extra storage space I am going to use extra disks and/or backups, not RAID. As for performance, I'm really not at the price point where I'm going to spend lots of money to make my HD work faster - it's just not a reasonable price/performance ratio for me.

For Northbridge: Crossfire! Too bad I only see 790 series that are either $100 more, have lower reliability according to the reviews (more bad stuff happens than with the mobo I posted), or only support 8 GB of memory. Spending a lot on future proofing is a bad idea as far as I know, due to the fact that it makes more sense to just drop another $1000 on a new computer in a couple years than try to spend extra ahead of time, since things change so unpredictably.

Umm, that's all I see, sorry if I missed anything you intended to point out to me....

Did I miss anything? I edited my build for now (RAM too of course), since I'm hoping that a newer DDR3 mobo will have less x64 compatibility issues than an older DDR2.


Again, the most important thing to me is that everything is compatible. I'm really worried about buying 2 parts that won't work together, so thanks to everyone who pointed out mistakes and incompatibilities in my build!

 

[WaitingForNehalem]

Everything is built to conform to standards. Most standard pc components will be compatible with each other. Foxconn is a very good brand and one of the top 4 motherboard makers but if you want the GIGABYTE then go for it. Don't worry about NewEgg reviews unless the majority have problems with it. You can't be so paranoid, otherwise go buy a pre-built computer.

I just wanted you to see the difference between the chipsets and decide if it was worth $35-50 more for the 790gx/sb750.

 

[Silicon Spear]

Originally posted by: WaitingForNehalem
Everything is built to conform to standards. Most standard pc components will be compatible with each other. Foxconn is a very good brand and one of the top 4 motherboard makers but if you want the GIGABYTE then go for it. Don't worry about NewEgg reviews unless the majority have problems with it. You can't be so paranoid, otherwise go buy a pre-built computer.

I just wanted you to see the difference between the chipsets and decide if it was worth $35-50 more for the 790gx/sb750.

Alright, thanks for your help!