After ages of reading: my first build in 3 yrs..

[Discord]

Please offer any advice if you spot anything wrong! I've got a few questions below too..

usage = mainly gaming

CPU: C2D E6600 Retail
MB: Asus P5W DH Deluxe
Mem: Corsair 2gb Twin PC6400C4
HD: Seagate Barracuda 7200 320gb
GFX: XFX 7600GT {pending DX10 future purchase}
Sound: Will use onboard
Cooling: all stock cooling

Other things I already have:
Monitor: Samsung 17" Syncmaster 700IFT - will upgrade to 19" tft soon
Keyboard: Saitek Eclipse
Mouse: Logitech MX510
Case: no idea on type! bought from Overclockers 4 yrs ago. ATX, 2 top & 2 side fans
PSU: Antec NeoPower 480w - will see if it's enough!

I'm not planning on doing any oc'ing yet - my current AMD PC has never been oc'd. I know that I'll need to change the PSU if I do.

Questions:
do I need any cables - especially for the HD. ie Akasa Serial ATA?
This is not likely to be the only HD in the PC - I'll keep my existing Quantum Fireball KX13 {120gb} on the secondary channel - unless this effects performance?

On my current PC I have my primary drive partitioned - one for windows and stuff, the other for games. Will this be a good idea to do on the new HD?

Cheers!

 

[Zenthar]

When you buy a motherboard, it usualy comes with all the necessary cabling (SATA, PATA, Floppy, ...). As for the Power supply, it should be more than enough for now, but many rumors go around about power consumption for DX10 cards. So you might have to change it when you upgrade, we'll all have to see then.

 

[col-p-todd]

Good choice on the parts. the only thing I would get different is the 7600GT for asus.

and all the cables are included with the mobo. but if you want round cables you have to get them seperate. (these cables are better for the airflow but not a must)

and as for the seperate partitions I don,t see the use of having multiple on 1 hd. if the drive fails you lose everything anyway. so I just go with 1 partition per hd.

 

[Zenthar]

I usualy create more than 1 partition on my drives as Discord suggested, but for "simplicity" reasons, not for safety. I think it makes managing the data easier.

I create partitions based on "criticality" of content and those containing more critical data I backup more often (yes I DO make backups BEFORE loosing data ). Moreover, by having a "Windows only" partition, I can make a periodic (preventive) formats of my system every few months without having to move too much data back and forth from another physical HDD. Since I format my system 2-3 times a year it was of great value to me.