New Machine

[busia12]

This is the parts list for my new computer...if you guys would be so kind as to review the list and tell me what you think I'd appreciate any comments.

1) CASE - Thermaltake Soprano VB1000BNS Mid Tower Case (Black) Link

2) POWER SUPPLY - Thermaltake W0070RUC TR2 Series 430W Link

3) MOTHERBOARD - Gigabyte GA-945P-S3 w/Audio Link

4) PROCESSOR - Intel CPU Core 2 Duo E6420 2.13 GHz FSB 1066MHz 4M Link

5) HDD - Western Digital Caviar SE WD2500JS 250GB Serial ATA II 7200 RPM w/8MB Buffer Link

6) DVD DRIVE - Sony Q170A-B2 18x Double Layer DVD +/- RW

7) MEMORY - Kingston KVR533D2N4K2/2G 2GB Kit DDR2-533 PC2-4200 (2 of these for a total of 4GB) Link

8) GRAPHICS CARD - PNY Nvidia GeForce 8800 GTS 640MB Link

These are my current specs, I will be running Windows Vista 64-bit. I didn't forget anything did I? Let me know what you think before I click the "check-out" button.

 

[Sdiver2489]

1. Thermaltake uses too much plastic for my tastes...I prefer coolermaster...however that's largely personal opinion

2. Don't get a Thermaltake PSU...look at Seasonic, Corsair, FSP(Fortron), Enermax....yadadadaa

3. Fine if you don't plan on OC'ing

4. Good

5. Again, largely experience based with the different brands...but WD has been reliable for me

6. I would go with the Samsung 183L

7. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231044 Instead. Why are you getting 4 gigs?

8. I would go with the 320 MB version and save 100...put that 100 towards a better proc, case or mobo

 

[busia12]

1) but the LED in the front of the case makes me happy!

2) .......whats wrong with Thermaltake?

3) Thanks

4) Thanks

5) Thanks

6) Yeah, i like samsung, too....but they're all backordered on the website I'm using....and i get free shipping there.

7) 4Gigs cause of the 64-bit windows and looking toward the future.....why not??

8) whats the performance difference between the 320 and the 640?

 

[igloo15]

The 640mb is good for video card especially if you don't expect to be upgrading it soon as in next 2 years or less. The rest is great case is personal preference and I agree that psu needs to be swapped out for something better. 4gigs is good for vista 64bit, though i would get faster ones ddr-533 is like the slowest you can go for ddr2. Get two of these and you will be golden.

 

[Sdiver2489]

Originally posted by: busia12
1) but the LED in the front of the case makes me happy!

2) .......whats wrong with Thermaltake?

3) Thanks

4) Thanks

5) Thanks

6) Yeah, i like samsung, too....but they're all backordered on the website I'm using....and i get free shipping there.

7) 4Gigs cause of the 64-bit windows and looking toward the future.....why not??

8) whats the performance difference between the 320 and the 640?

1. Ok...

2. Thermaltake simply isn't known for their power supplies as much as the other manufacturers I mentioned. While some of their models are decent, I would look elsewhere. Check out reviews on www.jonnyguru.com

...

7. I suppose...its just...the long term trend for ram is always downward. Why not buy 2 gigs now and 2 gigs later? Meh, you can do what you want

8. not much
http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=2926&p=5

 

[Slugbait]

Originally posted by: busia12

8) whats the performance difference between the 320 and the 640?

Not a whole lot. However, games like Quake 4 cannot be run in ultra quality with anything less than 512 megs. The 320 is fine for today, but games being released in the near future are going to like having the extra buffer. And no, SLI with the 320 will not increase the amount of available memory to 640.

1. Thermaltake uses too much plastic for my tastes...I prefer coolermaster...however that's largely personal opinion

I just got an Armor, and most of the plastic is in the fans.

Thermaltake is OK for a PSU.

I'd get a board with the 965 or 975 chipset, and take total advantage of that processor.

 

[Sdiver2489]

Originally posted by: Slugbait

Originally posted by: busia12

8) whats the performance difference between the 320 and the 640?

Not a whole lot. However, games like Quake 4 cannot be run in ultra quality with anything less than 512 megs. The 320 is fine for today, but games being released in the near future are going to like having the extra buffer. And no, SLI with the 320 will not increase the amount of available memory to 640.

1. Thermaltake uses too much plastic for my tastes...I prefer coolermaster...however that's largely personal opinion

I just got an Armor, and most of the plastic is in the fans.

Thermaltake is OK for a PSU.

I'd get a board with the 965 or 975 chipset, and take total advantage of that processor.

I was referring to some of their cheaper cases...such as what the OP picked

And I wouldn't say Quake 4 "won't run" on Ultra settings....the anandtech review I linked to shows the 8800GTS gets near 60 FPS on quake 4...while that is down from the others...its perfectly playable and that's at 1920 x 1200!

 

[Oyeve]

I would def get a board with a 965 or 975 as stated before. Quads baby, quads!

 

[Slugbait]

Originally posted by: Sdiver2489
And I wouldn't say Quake 4 "won't run" on Ultra settings....the anandtech review I linked to shows the 8800GTS gets near 60 FPS on quake 4...while that is down from the others...its perfectly playable and that's at 1920 x 1200!

I was basing this on what I read in this month's issue in MaxPC...they specifically mentioned this limitation while reviewing an 8800 GTS 320. Perhaps they were trying to run at very high rez with AA turned on, which the Anandtech review also could not run...I need to check the mag again to see if they specified other settings.

 

[newb54]

I would switch to the Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3. That PSU only has 18A on the 12V rail, which should be enough for your comp but it does not leave you room to upgrade. Plus Thermaltake aren't the highest quality PSUs either. I would go for a better PSU.

 

[busia12]

Okay, so in summary.....

1) Too much plastic??

2) My Power supply needs an upgrade....

3) MoBo.. 965 or 975.....

4) Samsung DVD drive

am I missing anything?

 

[busia12]

bump

 

[Tsuwamono]

Go with the 975 motherboards, Thermaltake is good in the Toughpower series. Very reliable and 85% efficient i believe. As far as thermaltake cases i love them except the matrix. The problem i had with it is that im a perfectionist and it tore the ****** out of the paint on the side of my hard drive when i put it in because it uses that clip in bay(which is actually very useful btw)

 

[hurtstotalktoyou]

I'm assuming you'll be buying from Newegg, so all prices reflect that unless otherwise noted...

1. The Thermaltake VB1000BNS is made of plastic, so it's not going to look anywhere near as sleek in real life as it does in the pictures. Also, it's got that silly front door which seems to annoy the heck out of most people. I would instead suggest the Raidmax Apex ATX-802BP. It's $25 cheaper than the Thermaltake, it looks and probably feels nicer (in my opinion), and it's got a 450W power supply which, though you wouldn't want it to power your main rig, can be useful as a spare or earn a few bucks on Ebay.

2. Ugh, lord no! Thermaltake sells terrible PSUs which should never be trusted on midrange or high-end components. Your best bet is probably going to be the FSP Group (Fortron Source) ATX400-PA, which is pretty much the same price as the Thermaltake, minus the $10 mail-in rebate.

3. Excellent choice! Sdiver2489 said the Gigabyte GA-945P-S3 isn't a good overclocker, but that is simply not the case. This board will scream on the overclock, rivaling its older brother the 965P-DS3. Feature-wise, it's a little bland, but most folks don't seem to need anything it's missing. Just make sure you don't need RAID or more than one IDE channel.

4. I would stick to the E6320, which is $21 cheaper than the E6420 you had picked out. The only difference is the clock speed, and with your motherboard's ability to overclock that won't matter one bit. In fact, I would consider the E4300, which is only $114 ($54 less than the E6320) but when overclocked is pretty darn close in performance to an overclocked 6320 or 6420.

5. Western Digital makes great hard disks, but in this case I'd go for the Seagate ST3250820AS, instead. It's only $3 more, but it's slightly faster, should be quieter and cooler, and sports a 5-year warranty (compared to WD's 3-year warranty).

6. Sony makes decent drives, but again there's a better choice for you: the Lite-on LH-18A1P-186 retail box. The $3 difference gets you a faster burner, DVD-RAM support, interchangable face plates (white or black), and Nero CD/DVD burning software. Plus, Lite-on seems to have a better track record than Sony when it comes to optical drives.

7. Bad idea. Zipzoomfly has the Corsair XMS2 DDR2-675 2GB kit (TWIN2X2048-5400C4) for $86 shipped, which is only a dollar and a half more ($3 if you buy two) than the Kingston kits you had in mind. I myself have XMS2 RAM, and I can assure you it's a wonderful performer and overclocks quite nicely. I would stay away from anything below DDR2-667. Also, I would start with 2GB, and only upgrade to 4GB later on if you feel like you need the performance boost.

8. I have no idea. I never, ever play graphic-intensive games, so I have no idea what makes a good card and what doesn't. However, I would caution against spending close to $400 for this one component. The money could probably be better-spent elsewhere.

I hope that helps!

 

[busia12]

Hurtstotalktoyou, you are a man among men, and certainly a helpful guy among Anandtech posters. This was incredibly helpful.... I'm revising my list, and i'll see what i can come up with.

 

[busia12]

Okay...Here's my updated list...

1) Same...still haven't browsed the non-plastic options....suggestions?

2) Antec SmartPower 2.0 SP-500 500W Link
-OR-
BFG BFGR650PSU 650W Link

3) Gigabyte GA-965G-DS3 Link

4) same

5) same

6) same

7) only going with 2GB for now.....

8) same

 

[panipoori]

You could get the GA-965P, for a little cheaper and I believe its has similar features for 114 at clubit.com. Looking further it seems the 965G has integrated video as well, a feature you prolly wont need

 

[hurtstotalktoyou]

Maybe you could outline your reasons for each choice. That might help us evaluate them.

 

[busia12]

Okay, I can always do more detailed.

1) I chose my case because it looks cool. The LED in the front makes me happy. However, this is the first case I've bought myself, so I need help when it comes to things like plastic. I would really appreciate some links to cases that are made of 'better' material and that look snazzy too. Definitely don't want to break $90 on this item, however...that just seems ridiculous.

2) The PSU was a recommendation from a friend. I've gone back over it with him, and we came up with the two options in my last post...if you can't agree with either of those I'm wide open to selections, however he says that on machines that won't be oc'ing, thermaltake does just grand. I probably won't be oc'ing. I'm not that hardcore, I just want my games to play with all the graphics sliders at the max and still get high FPS.

3) I had originally thought this was a good choice...but as you can see in my last post, I revised. Panipoori re-posted on my revised option...not sure I completely understand what she's saying....

4) Y'all seem to like my processor.....thats a relief.

5) Y'all seem to like my hard drive, too......I'm 2 for 5 now.

6) Yea, i was pointed towards a Samsung drive, but they're sold out on zipzoomfly.....I don't feel like backordering, and want my parts to arrive at the same time.....suggestions?? Is the SONY that much worse??

7) Okay.....I'm not a RAM expert...this is probably where I need the most help. You have convinced me that I should just grab 2GB now, and upgrade later if I need it. But as for specifics....I'll be gaming and web surfing, along with some photos and stuff on Windows Vista 64-bit. You tell me what I need.

8) I like my graphics card......640MB vs. 320MB is the question though.....

 

[busia12]

bump

 

[busia12]

bump

 

[busia12]

one more bump

 

[hurtstotalktoyou]

1. Anandtech's midrange guide recommended the Cooler Master RC-534-KKN2-GP and the above-mentioned Raidmax ATX-802BP. I have to agree with their choices--both are fine, sleek cases with plenty of ventilation, sturdy construction and no sharp edges inside. The Raidmax is my favorite of the two. However, if you want something with a front door (which I do *not* think is a good idea, by the way), the Ultra Wizard will probably go on sale soon at Frys.

2. That seems like too much for a PSU. Like I said, the FSP Group ATX400-PA should be fine (it's only $42 or so). Also, there's a deal going right now at Frys for a Ultra X-Finity 600W, ~$12 after mail-in rebate, depending on where you live (tax & shipping vary from place to place). I've done two rebates through Ultra and each went off without a hitch.

3. Your original choice was probably best. There are only a few differences between the GA-945P-S3 and the GA-965P-DS3, but a huge price gap. Do you need any features not available on the former? If not, I'd go for it.

6. Sony isn't too hot, no. It's strange, because you would expect quality products from such a huge name as Sony, but, alas, they have churned out some crap. It's been that way for many years, too. Back in the day I bought a Sony CD-ROM drive, and it started acting up within a few months. NEC used to be reliable, but lately they have slipped. Samsung is a decent manufacturer. Lite-on, Philips and BenQ are nice, too. Personally, I prefer Lite-on.

7. The Corsair XMS2 DDR2-675 series has proven quite nice and reliable. Then again, Kingston makes an excellent value line. Strangely, the budget brand Wintec AMPO memory has gotten stellar reviews, despite being incredibly cheap; Anandtech even recommended it in their latest buyer's guide. In my opinion, it's a toss-up between the XMS2 DDR2-675 and the AMPO DDR2-800. As you can tell from my sig, I opted for the XMS2, and never looked back.

 

[Sdiver2489]

STOP BUMPING!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119074

That is a case that is made of aluminum in front and steel for the chassis that resembles yours. IT also comes in a silver/green combination:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119075

EDIT: I think I got the soprano mixed up with the tsunami..it appears as if yours is not made of plastic in the front actually...sorry

 

[Tsuwamono]

i would suggest the thermaltake Bach Vx... kick ass case and has a super sweet 140mm front fan that you cant see... it also has a removable HD cage which i love dearly

I would also suggest the Thermaltake Toughpower series. despite what the other guy said i have never had a problem with a thermaltake PSU and neither has any of my customers or friends.