This is what I'm thinking of building, any suggestions?

[Shiv_379]

Greetings all!

I'm looking at building myself a new desktop, I have a case I can use and peripherals, but everything else will be new. This is what I have so far:

Processor
http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/112706
£200
Core 2 Duo E6600 2.4ghz - Skt775 Fsb1066 4mb Cache Boxed

Sound Card
http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?rb=24511143254&action=c2hvd19wcm9kdWN0X292ZXJ2aWV3&product_uid=119556
£56.64
Creative SoundBlaster X-Fi Xtreme Gamer Soundcard - Retail Boxed

Motherboard
http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/116481
£133
Asus P5b Deluxe wifi ap Lga775 Core 2 Duo P965 Fsb1066 8gb DDR2 Sata Dual Gigabit Lan Wifi Audio Firewire ATX

Power Supply
http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/products/powersupplies/zm600-hp
£110
ZM600-HP Heatpipe Cooled 600W Modular PSU

Cooler
http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/products/intelcooling/cnps9700
£50
Zalman CNPS9700 Super Aero Flower Coolers

Hard Drives
http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/115418
£65
Seagate 7200.10 320GB SATAII/300 8.5ms 7200rpm 16MB Cache - OEM

http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/113697
£30
Seagate 80GB Barracuda SATAII 7200rpm 8MB Cache - OEM


Graphics Cards
http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/111198
£110
Asus Nvidia 7600GT 256MB DDR3 TV out DVI PCI-E




The observant of you may have noticed that I haven't included any memory...that's because I can't figure out what would be best!! Ideally I want 2Gb but will probably buy 1Gb to start with then upgrade later.
So my questions:
1 - Are the components above the best choice for the money? Can anyone suggest anything cheaper that's as good? (or even another retailer)
2 - Are the components above compatible with each other?
3 - What's the best choice for memory?

The machine will be used mainly for high end gaming, playing things like the new Splinter cell and some upcoming games, but it will also need to handle data processing pretty well (SQL Server / MS Access).

Thanks in advance for any advice!!
~Shiv

 

[AdamBomb42]

For the RAM my vote is on this:
http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/111439

As for the mobo:
http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/113820

PSU:
http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/112897

Video Card:
http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/119956

I would say to stick with the onboard sound for now and upgrade later if you think you need to.

Cheers!

 

[Shiv_379]

Thanks for the advice
Why do you recommend those over the ones I listed originally?
Do you have that PSU yourself by any chance, do you know what the sound levels are like from it?

I agree on the sound card.
Nice looking RAM!
EDIT: With the processor running at 1066 FSB shouldn't I be looking at PC2-8500 memory (such as http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/119190/rb/24517632204)? Or doesn't it make a difference? I thought that you had to match the speeds, but I'm more of a software guy so what do I know!

Is it generally agreed that the Duo2 is the way to go then?

~T

 

[akhilles]

I 2nd AdamBomb42's suggestion. The psu is:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/CustratingReview.asp?item=N82E16817128006

"whisper & very quiet".

As for ram, it doesn't matter what speed it is if you're not overclocking. But I've found that 800 makes quite a difference in benchmarking, as opposed to 667, with the same parts except the ram.

c2d is the way to do unless you work for amd or are a amd stockholder or are one of those amd diehards who would never switch. I was a huge amd fan until c2d.

 

[John_C]

For a quiet yet effective & efficient power supply, I'd recommend a Seasonic unit (including the Corsair branded models). Silent PC Review has them listed all across the top of their recommended PS lists complete with detailed sound measurements and even recordings to compare the noise characteristics. Great site for those interested in keeping the noise down in a build.

http://www.silentpcreview.com/article699-page1.html

 

[Shiv_379]

Ok, revisions are:

Power Supply
http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/114945
http://www.corsairmemory.com/corsair/HX_power_supply.html
£80
Corsair HX Series 520W Modular PSU - ATX12V v2.2 APFC
Thanks to the article John_C linked to, this PSU looks to have the stability and power I need, running pretty quietly, while being modular, and with the benefit of being cheaper than most of the other modular PSU's I've seen

I've gone off the ASUS motherboard I originally suggested as I've realised it does not support SATA II (which from my limited understanding would mean slower hard drives), however I'm wary of the Gigabyte Intel 965P-DS3 suggested by AdamBomb42 as according to http://www.hardware.info/en-UK/productdb/bGNkapiUmJHK/viewproduct/Gigabyte_965PDS3/ this mobo does not support SLI / EPP memory, which again from my limited understanding would mean slightly slower memory.

In all honesty I don't know how much difference these things would make, and I think I might be a classic example of knowing enough to be dangerous but not enough to be useful!

However I'll definately be going for a PCI-E graphics card, so that rules out the one suggested by AdamBomb42, as that's AGP. Sorry! Thinking of going for a 7800 as the interactive VGA chart on here (http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/graphics/charts.html) shows a significant jump between them.

Another point is that I'll be saving for this over the next few months so things might change by then, but I'd like to set down now what I want then when it comes to buying it I can be pleasantly surprised by the drop in price (in particular the cost of the Duo2 is expected to drop in Q2 apparently)

~Shiv

 

[desolationw]

AdamBomb42 prob meant to suggest this:

Sapphire X1950Pro 256MB

I, like you, was going to get a 7600GT at ~£100 but couldn't resist getting a x1950Pro since it was only £20 dearer for a far better card. The x1950 Pro is the best value for money card atm.

 

[AMDThunder]

Another point is that I'll be saving for this over the next few months so things might change by then

Thanks for mentioning this, but you just made your entire post a moot point. Unless a few months is really a month or two. Things could change drastically in a few months. Check back when you're a couple of weeks out from ordering.

 

[TheLaughingMan]

If you can bare a few more months until May, or June to build your rig, you can get the C2D for 40% cheaper. But if you need your build, then by all means buy it.