Must buy pc tomorrow here is what I have built please help

[y2kdos]

Hi guys I am building a new pc whch I plan to have ordered by tomorrow evening as I sold my old pc yesterday for a tidy so I have money to spend.I cant wait until vista comes as I need a pc now, I have £700 to spend on it and I will be using it to play games,burn dvds,surf the net and encode video and stuff.Here is the parts I have picked so far

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/cgi-bin/ca000001.pl?ACTION=SHOWCART

If you cant see it from the link here it is

Shopping Cart (Prices in British Pounds) REFERENCE DESCRIPTION QUANTITY PRICE COST REMOVE
CP-135-IN Intel Core 2 DUO E6300 "LGA775 Alendalle" 1.86GHz (1066FSB) - OEM (CP-135-IN)
£114.95 £114.95
MB-073-MS MSI 965P NEO (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard (MB-073-MS)
£69.95 £69.95
HD-055-SE Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 250GB ST3250824A ATA-100 8MB Cache - OEM (HD-055-SE)
£48.95 £48.95
MY-038-CR Crucial 1GB DDR PC2700 CAS2.5 Dual Channel Kit (CT2KIT6464Z335) (2x512MB) (MY-038-CR)
£54.95 £54.95
CD-035-NE NEC ND3550 16x16 DVD±RW Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - OEM (CD-035-NE)
£19.95 £19.95
CA-004-EN Enermax EG465AX-VE(G)(FMA) 460W ATX1.3 Power Supply (CA-004-EN)
£29.95 £29.95
CA-018-EN Enermax CS-527 Case Black No PSU (CA-018-EN)
£29.95 £29.95
OS-001-MS Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition inc. SP2 - OEM - 1Pk (N09-01528) (OS-001-MS)
£51.95 £51.95
GX-044-CO Connect3D ATI Radeon X1800 XT 256MB GDDR3 AVIVO TV-Out/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail (GX-044-CO)
£139.95 £139.95
Subtotal £560.55
VAT £98.10
Total £658.65

Im buying of this site http://www.overclockers.co.uk/ as it is the cheapest and most reliable

 

[ikjadoon]

You've picked some DDR RAM. You need DDR2, 667Mhz is good.

Otherwise, pretty good.

~Ibrahim~

 

[y2kdos]

Thanks man I nearly made a big mistake,so its pretty good is it?

MY-081-CR Crucial 1GB (2x512MB) DDR2 PC2-4200C4 Dual Channel Kit (CT2KIT6464AA53E) (MY-081-CR)
£54.95 £54.95

 

[177ine177ine]

Should be fine. Not a high end system but should perform nicely. Are you planning to overclock?

 

[bliq]

Should be fine. Not a high end system but should perform nicely. Are you planning to overclock?

"High End" is such a subjective term This system will be a better all around system than literally 99% (maybe more) of all the machines in the world.. It's only us lunatic fringe in the last 1% that care about things like X1800XT's (which are still pretty damn good by the way)

That set up probably puts it in the top 10% of even the "enthusiast" category so totally go for it. It looks good to me.

 

[177ine177ine]

Well, in that case it's a not a high end system in the 1% lunatic fringe. And x1800xt's are still really good. Do you happen to know how they compare to 7900gt's?

 

[dragabain]

Why don't you get a 7200.10 drive from seagate, they made a couple of enhancements (i.e. perpendicular drives) to them. Besides that looks good.

 

[bliq]

I did a lot of research on this specifically for building a system to play Oblivion.

The X1800XTs were more consistently higher performers but the 7900GTs had brief periods of very high frame rates.

I ended up buying a X1900XT in the end since I got a killer deal on it.

the review is on firingsquad.com. There's another good one but I forget where it's at.

 

[Doughbuy]

I would suggest a bit bigger PSU, at least 500W 450W is a bit low for computers these days, and PSU's should never be neglected. You can skimp on everything else, but a good PSU should last your quite a while, save money on electricity bills through better power regulation, and just help system stability overall. The Antec True Power 2 is nice, or anything around that price range. Any more and you'll probably go over budget.

 

[ikjadoon]

The Antec True Power 2 is nice, or anything around that price range. Any more and you'll probably go over budget.

So that is what TP2 stands for...

~Ibrahim~

 

[Mondoman]

Good start, but a few key problems:

CP-135-IN Intel Core 2 DUO E6300 "LGA775 Alendalle" 1.86GHz (1066FSB) - OEM (CP-135-IN)

* An "OEM" processor means it does NOT come w/heatsink/fan. Only a few of the supposedly socket 775 compatible aftermarket HSFs do a proper job of cooling nearby motherboard components, and they are VERY big and expensive. Stick to the "retail" CPU package, which includes an Intel HSF. (CP-126-IN £129.95; sorry, £15 more)

MB-073-MS MSI 965P NEO (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard (MB-073-MS)

* MB looks fine as a basic Core 2 Duo; memory only runs to DDR2-800 is the main limitation.

HD-055-SE Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 250GB ST3250824A ATA-100 8MB Cache - OEM (HD-055-SE)

* PATA drives are being phased out. Get a SATA drive instead - similar cost, and you'll be able to transfer it to your next system. Bigger cache, too, at 16MB. (Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 250GB ST3250620AS SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM HD-079-SE £52.55)

MY-038-CR Crucial 1GB DDR PC2700 CAS2.5 Dual Channel Kit (CT2KIT6464Z335) (2x512MB) (MY-038-CR)

* Even in your DDR2 post below, You've chosen some pretty slow memory compared to your processor's FSB speed. I'd go for the fastest your MB can handle, DDR2-800/PC6400. Extra RAM is usually the most cost-effective boost to speed up your computer, and buying larger-size sticks is cheaper-per-MB, so I'd strongly suggest this: Corsair 2GB DDR2 XMS2-6400C5 TwinX (2x1GB) (MY-092-CS £124.95)

CD-035-NE NEC ND3550 16x16 DVD±RW Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - OEM (CD-035-NE)

* Fine

CA-004-EN Enermax EG465AX-VE(G)(FMA) 460W ATX1.3 Power Supply (CA-004-EN)

* As others have mentioned, you need a *good* quality PS. Antec is good and preferred, but here's a decent one about 20% cheaper: Hiper HPU-4M580 Type R 580W ATX2.2 PSU - Black (CA-009-HP; £44.95)

CA-018-EN Enermax CS-527 Case Black No PSU (CA-018-EN)

* The case is OK, but seems to come WITHOUT case fans. If so, you'll have to order at least a couple of fans. According to one of the reviews, installing a front fan is a pain; also, there is only room for noisier 80mm fans in back, not a 120mm fan. When fan costs are added in, you may be better off going with a slightly more expensive case that already includes them.

OS-001-MS Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition inc. SP2 - OEM - 1Pk (N09-01528) (OS-001-MS)

* You would think this would be fine, but according to the fine print, if you want to use both cores in your dual-core, it seems you'll need Win XP *Pro* version: Microsoft Windows XP Professional Edition inc. SP2 - OEM - 1Pk (E85-04026) (OS-002-MS) £81.95

GX-044-CO Connect3D ATI Radeon X1800 XT 256MB GDDR3 AVIVO TV-Out/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail (GX-044-CO)

* I'll leave the graphics card to those with better knowledge than me.

 

[y2kdos]

Hi Guys thanks very much for all your help,well here she is http://www.overclockers.co.uk/cgi-bin/ca000001.pl?ACTION=SHOWCART

If you cant see the link this is it here

REFERENCE DESCRIPTION QUANTITY PRICE COST REMOVE
CP-126-IN Intel Core 2 DUO E6300 "LGA775 Allendale" 1.86GHz (1066FSB) - Retail (CP-126-IN)
£129.95 £129.95
MB-073-MS MSI 965P NEO (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard (MB-073-MS)
£69.95 £69.95
MY-014-GS G.Skill 2GB DDR2 NR PC2-6400 (2x1GB) CAS5 Dual Channel Kit (F2-6400PHU2-2GBNR) (MY-014-GS)
£106.95 £106.95
CD-037-NE NEC ND3550 16x16 DVD±RW Dual Layer ReWriter (Silver) - OEM (CD-037-NE)
£19.95 £19.95
HD-071-SE Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 250GB ST3250624A ATA-100 16MB Cache - OEM (HD-071-SE)
£50.95 £50.95
CA-035-AN Antec Performance TX1088AMG Metallic Grey Tower Case - 480w Truepower PSU (CA-035-AN)
£80.75 £80.75
OS-002-MS Microsoft Windows XP Professional Edition inc. SP2 - OEM - 1Pk (E85-04026) (OS-002-MS)
£81.95 £81.95
GX-044-CO Connect3D ATI Radeon X1800 XT 256MB GDDR3 AVIVO TV-Out/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail (GX-044-CO)
£126.95 £126.95
Subtotal £667.40
VAT £116.80
Total £784.20

I have changed a few things the case,memory,psu from your advice so what you think Im going to buy it right now Im on the checkout as we speak.Oh yeah Ive decided to go with a 480 watt psu as the 550 watt psu are much more expensive and im allready over budget so ill go with 480 watt,im not going to use sli and super powerful graphics cards so I think it should do

 

[The_Abyss]

OS-001-MS Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition inc. SP2 - OEM - 1Pk (N09-01528) (OS-001-MS)

* You would think this would be fine, but according to the fine print, if you want to use both cores in your dual-core, it seems you'll need Win XP *Pro* version: Microsoft Windows XP Professional Edition inc. SP2 - OEM - 1Pk (E85-04026) (OS-002-MS) £81.95

Sorry, but this is wrong since either SP1 or SP2 (I forget which). I'd always recommend Pro over Home, but if you were spending an extra £30 just for this point, there is no point (if you get my point).

 

[y2kdos]

OS-001-MS Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition inc. SP2 - OEM - 1Pk (N09-01528) (OS-001-MS)

* You would think this would be fine, but according to the fine print, if you want to use both cores in your dual-core, it seems you'll need Win XP *Pro* version: Microsoft Windows XP Professional Edition inc. SP2 - OEM - 1Pk (E85-04026) (OS-002-MS) £81.95

Sorry, but this is wrong since either SP1 or SP2 (I forget which). I'd always recommend Pro over Home, but if you were spending an extra £30 just for this point, there is no point (if you get my point).

Fuck I just bought everything 20 mins ago ahh well Im sure pro is worth the extra dosh as I was gonna get a higher watt psu 550 watt.

 

[The_Abyss]

Pro has a lot more functionality in it, which if you use it, is certainly more than worth the extra cash.

 

[y2kdos]

Pro has a lot more functionality in it, which if you use it, is certainly more than worth the extra cash.

Thanks for the advice man Ill let you now how it runs when the gear arrives tuesday

 

[Mondoman]

Thanks Ab, I must have dredged up an obsolete document on Win XP multiprocessor support.

 

[The_Abyss]

Thanks Ab, I must have dredged up an obsolete document on Win XP multiprocessor support.

If it was true, just think of all the lawswuits that builders like Dell would face, selling dual core CPUs with XP Home bundled in

 

[Mondoman]

If it was true, just think of all the lawswuits that builders like Dell would face, selling dual core CPUs with XP Home bundled in

"What, you thought *both* cores would be used at the same time? No, the second core is just there as an instantly-available backup for the first core."
Good point. I guess I need to hang out at the pre-built computer stores more often...