New Build

[plasticfish]

I post a few weeks ago but ended up changing hardware and budget (somewhere around 1500 to 1700) thanks to some suggestions and with the geforce 8800 coming out. I am building the rig for a family member so there will not be any over clocking. I just wanted to build something fast and very stable. I am not familiar with DDR2 and core 2 duo so I am needing some help picking memory (4200/5300/6400)and would appreciate any other suggestions. Here is the list of parts so far:

Intel Core 2 Duo 6600 $312.00
Asus P5B Deluxe $182.99
Evga 8800GTS $489.00
Seagate Barracuda 250 GB $74.99
Seasonic S12-430 $94.99
Antec Solo/Black (will the
8800 gts fit?) $89.99
NEC DVD Burner $30.99
Windows XP $89.99

Memory that I have looked at

Crucial DDR2 5300 Anniversary $229.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16820148017

Corsair XMS2 DDR2 6400 $239.99 a/r
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145590

And I am open to any other suggestions. Just want the best price to performance on these with out o/c. Will there be any performance difference between the slower memory and the 6400 without o/c.

If there is anything else you would recommend please post. Thanks for the help in advance and sorry for the stupid questions.

Thanks
Fish

 

[acegazda]

The build looks great! What monitor are you getting? Invest in a good one (see: 20-24" lcds)
I would go with the ddr2-667 crucial, but If you're not overclocking, just get corsiar valueselect for $200.
I believe that the solo can house the gts as it is not longer than the current 7950gx2.
Again, nice choice of components, you did you're homework. Kudos.

 

[pkme2]

You might want to up your PSU for that G80.
http://forums.extremeoverclocking.com/showthread.php?t=237428

 

[plasticfish]

Originally posted by: acegazda
The build looks great! What monitor are you getting? Invest in a good one (see: 20-24" lcds)

I think he may look at upgrading to a wide screen next year but decided for now he just wanted a nice rig. He currently has a 20 in Samsung (not wide screen) so he is still in pretty good shape as far as that department goes.

On the memory I had read that if you are running at 5300 it can slow things down but it doesn't look like there are many choices at the 4200 level. So do I need to go at either the 4200 or the 6400 or does it really make enough difference to matter? I had noticed dell putting in 5300 speed memory into there system but didn't want to base it just off of them. Thanks for your help.

 

[plasticfish]

Originally posted by: pkme2
You might want to up your PSU for that G80.
http://forums.extremeoverclocking.com/showthread.php?t=237428

Pulled this off of evga's website.
Minimum of a 400 Watt power supply.
(Minimum recommended power supply with +12 Volt current rating of 26 Amp Amps.)


Was curious myself if the split 12v lines where going to cause problems at 14a and 15a with total power of 348. Any suggestions?

 

[dBTelos]

The 8800 series probably wont fit into the Solo (I have a Solo). Good pick on the PSU, it will handle the parts great.

 

[plasticfish]

I saw a measurement on line (not sure if it is correct) that said the gts was 8.980 in. The asus moterboard is 9.6 in but does the board mount under the drive cage?

 

[plasticfish]

Anyone have any idea?

 

[w00t]

I just ordered some that crucial has D9 chips great for overclocking better than the G.Skill HZ DDR2-800 considering the price. I would highly recommend getting the Crucial 10th Anniversary stuff you have linked.

I would recommend some changes though:
Motherboard I bought the MSI Platinum 975X V.2 which I prefer to the P5B Deluxe
I'd check the S-12 Energy Plus quieter and more efficient. I just ordered the SS-550HT

everything else looks good :-D

Edit: Will the 8800GTX, 8800GTS fit in the Solo? I just googled "Antec Solo" I don't think it will fit without modifications from looking at this picture:
http://img111.imageshack.us/img111/3896/fullopen8ag.jpg

That's a X1800XT btw you can probably cut out part of the drive cage I find it nvidia ridiculous at this point they can't even get the cards to fit in some cases..... I swear they don't care about voltage, heat, and size all they seem to care about is performance. I can't say much about ATi being too good lately either though they seem to be coping nvidia more and more.

more pictures of size comparisons:
http://images.techtree.com/ttimages/story/77046_1.jpg
http://techreport.com/reviews/2006q4/geforce-8800/gtx-vs-x1900-bare.jpg
http://techreport.com/reviews/2006q4/geforce-8800/gtx-chips-vs-r580.jpg
http://www.legitreviews.com/images/reviews/413/8800gtx_x1950xtx.jpg

Edit: I think the GTS is smaller than the GTX:
http://image2.sina.com.cn/IT/h/2006-11-10/165f0bfb83dd78185eec3568bf990054.jpg

 

[ProSlayer]

You might want to switch out the E6600 for a E6400 and use the extra money on a 8800GTX.

 

[w00t]

Originally posted by: ProSlayer
You might want to switch out the E6600 for a E6400 and use the extra money on a 8800GTX.

the GTX is bigger he is going to have to modify the case already to fit a 8800GT plus the GTX is not worth the extra money IMO.

 

[plasticfish]

Thanks for all the help so far I appreciate it.

http://www.modders-inc.com/reviews-story--41.html

It says there that the 1800xt is 9 in long which is what the 8800 gts is. So it might fit correct?

 

[Gautama2]

Originally posted by: w00t

Originally posted by: ProSlayer
You might want to switch out the E6600 for a E6400 and use the extra money on a 8800GTX.

the GTX is bigger he is going to have to modify the case already to fit a 8800GT plus the GTX is not worth the extra money IMO.

It will be once dx10 titles start rolling out, Oblivion only uses 64 of the gtx's 128 stream processors. The gts only has 96. So once they get pushed, the gtx will really shine over the gts

 

[Gautama2]

Originally posted by: plasticfish
Thanks for all the help so far I appreciate it.

http://www.modders-inc.com/reviews-story--41.html

It says there that the 1800xt is 9 in long which is what the 8800 gts is. So it might fit correct?

GTS is 8.5 i believe

 

[plasticfish]

I think I will just stick with the 6600 and the gts since he is not just into gaming but it is a good suggestion. Just have trouble thinking of spending 500 on just a video card as it is.

 

[plasticfish]

Anyone used this board with raid 1?

 

[Operandi]

For the case the Lian Li PC-7B puts the Solo to shame.

Though the Crucial is good RAM for not much more you pick up this low latency Geil DDR2 800.

Everything else looks very solid indeed.

 

[Icepick]

Originally posted by: plasticfish
Thanks for all the help so far I appreciate it.

http://www.modders-inc.com/reviews-story--41.html

It says there that the 1800xt is 9 in long which is what the 8800 gts is. So it might fit correct?

I have the Antec Solo and had a 7900GTO installed for a few minutes (Right before I RMA'd it). The 7900GTO is the same length as the 8800GTS. Therefore, the 8800GTS will fit.

The Antec Solo is a great case with a lot of good features and good build quality. I've been looking around at cases for over a year before I decided on this one and I'm happy with it.

The Seasonic S12 430W will provide plenty of power for that card and the other system components. The 26A that they recommend means 26A output on the entire 12V line (this is both of the rails combined). This model is capable of putting out 348W on the 12V. 348/12 = 29A. The total output of this power supply at 12V is 29A, which exceeds the minimum recommendation. Keep in mind also that nVidia & ATI tend to recommend on the high side to account for low quality power supplies that are not able to perform as labeled in many cases.

 

[snowdrift]

Hello, all.

I am looking at putting together a new system myself at home and am looking at a similar system to what plasticfish outlines above, with the notable exception of wanting to use two massive IDE hard drives I already own and a 2-year-old old ATI/Radeon 9800 Pro 128M 8X R video card.

I am not what I consider a high-end user but I want to be able to run Vista Ultra ably when it hits the streets. I never play games, just surf and email and do a lot of MP3/FLAC music stuff and some database work and occasional graphics.

If I go with the following:

Core 2 Duo E6600 (775 - 2.4 GHz 2048K) (Intel)
Asus P5B Deluxe
Crucial Technology 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Dual Channel Kit
OCZ GameXStream OCZ700GXSSLI ATX12V 700W Power Supply 100 - 240 V

and use that old video card, am I wasting my time with this set-up?

Is the 700W PS too much? I have a 400W one now, which currently seems to serve my AMD 3000+/MSI Neo Platium combo well.

Thanks for any insights.

 

[Icepick]

Snowdrift: The 9800Pro is AGP and will not work with the P5B Deluxe motherboard, which uses a PCI-E graphics port. If you go with this setup then you'll need to buy a low end graphics card too. I say low-end because you said that you don't play any games and just want to run Vista with all of the eye candy. Something along the lines of a 7600GS will server your needs without breaking the bank.

In regard to the power supply, you'll have to check the motherboard connector. If it's a 2 year old power supply then chances are it uses a 20 pin motherboard connector. You'll need one with a 20+4 pin or 24 pin connector. The OCZ 700W power supply will far exceed your requirements and will be tremendous overkill unless you're going to upgrade to SLI or Crossfire graphics with high end cards. For your system with a low end graphics card (7600GS or lower) you can get by with a quality 350W power supply.

 

[snowdrift]

Icepick, I found out about the PSU before it was too late to order one, so here's the set up I was able to get today:

Core 2 Duo E6600 (775 - 2.4 GHz 2048K) (Intel)
Asus P5B Deluxe
Crucial Technology 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Dual Channel Kit
Sapphire Radeon X1900GT 256MB
FSP Group (Fortron Source) FX700-GLN ATX12V/ EPS12V 700W Quad. SLi Power Supply

This PSU is overkill too, but what the hell. Maybe I will still be able to use it in 2 years when I order my next system?

 

[Icepick]

Those are all solid choices and they'll work well together.

I will warn you that your strategy on spending more for a power supply now because you might benefit in two years is flawed. The computer industry changes a lot in 2 years. Look what's happened just since 2004 - The motherboards require different power connectors and the video cards require more power. My recommendation is to buy what you need now and bank your money for later.

 

[snowdrift]

Icepick, you're probably right on what the future holds. I know the new graphics cards coming soon will need 800W or more (to run dual GPUs), but it's too late for newegg.com to drop this part of the order, so I'll just keep it rather than waste more money on an RMA and S&H. I probably wasted $50 on this overkill PSU, but it's not the first time I've blown cash. Glad it wasn't more...?!?

... Kind of wish I had sprung for a new case as well in the order... so as to replace my old brushed aluminum Kingwin case, but I guess I'll keep it now.

Thanks for the input.