Feedback Needed

[decaprime]

Hey guys I have been looking into building a new computer for a while now and I am getting closer to finalizing what I want. These are some of the parts that I found and would really appreciate some feedback on. I can run most games on low-medium settings on my current machine but I would like to be able to run them on high at my native resolution (1920x1200). I will mainly be using this machine for gaming, I do take and edit some FRAPS video but not enough to warrant building the machine differently. I am looking to spend around $1500.


Processor: Core 2 Duo E6600

Seems like the best choice in the price range for me.

Motherboard: EVGA nForce 680i SLI

Really not sure about this one. I am not going to do SLI right off the bat because I don't know if I will really need it yet and I certainly can't afford it. Open to suggestion though.

Video Card: EVGA 8800GTX

Since gaming is at the core of the system I think it only makes sense to spend the most money here.

Memory: CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) DDR2 800

I know I want 2GB of DDR2 800 but I'm not loyal to any brands.

Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s

I had two 80GB raid 0 for a while then one of them died on me. I don't' really see a need to raid with this rig though so this seems like a nice single hard drive.



I really need help finding a case/power supply/cooling that isn't going to break the bank. I don't plan on OCing a lot, but I may just a bit.

 

[akhilles]

I've seen a lot of unbalanced new builds in which the buyer overspends on some parts & undercuts the important one - psu. I hope you're not gonna do that cuz if the psu does down & takes the parts with it, it WILL break the bank to rebuild a new one.

You can spend $1000 on a mobo that will run as fast as a $100 one at stock with the same cpu. If you're not overclocking, don't bother with anything other than a plain sli or non-sli mobo. 680i would be overkill. /570/650i such as ASUS P5N-E SLI would be a much better/smarter choice.

Your current specs will set you back about $1500 w/o a case/psu/dvd.

I'd just get a P965 mobo, e6300/6400 overclocked to 6600, & have $200+ for a case/psu/dvd.

 

[Viceras]

Looks good but i hear those eVGA motherboards run very hot so good cooling is a must also the budget nVidia 8 (DX10) cards will be making an appearence in a months time and you can get two for half the price of the 8800 (in SLI) and those budget cards i.e. the 8600 ultra etc... only takeup one port iirc so more space and better ventalation.

 

[decaprime]

@akhilles: Thanks for the input, I took a look at the ASUS P5N-E SLI and it seems to meet everything I need; however, it seems to be getting a lot of crap in the reviews on newegg so I would want to research those problems more throughly before buying. Also, dvd isn't a major deal, and $1500 isn't exactly the absolute limit.

@Viceras: The graphics card isn't really where I want to be cutting, and I don't know much about the "budget" cards you are talking about, but the word "budget" makes me think they aren't going to be able to give me the performance I hope to get with the 8800GTX

I am honestly at a loss for a case/PSU/cooling if anyone could just chime in and give me a product to look into that would be great. Also I forgot to mention this, not that it particularly matters but I am still debating using Vista or not.

 

[yay]

Youd be looking Mid sized tower right? if so i recomend an X blade tower, many of my mates have them and they seem indestructible, and quiet.

They look rather nice tooo, as far as the power supplys go, i cant help you there since every one ive ever gotten has died on me and killed one HDD. but as far as wattage goes, for that system your looking 500, 550 would be safer.

But always spend the money here, im the king of cheap PSU's that die. Other good cases are Coolmaster, some of there models are a bit flimsy round the edges so gotta be gentle on this one, Antecs are pretty stock, but do include some good ideas/ features like temerature zones and support for 5 fans in many models, and are ideal for lan partys as they are built pretty solid. These brands are all pretty closely priced.

As for power supplies well spend money.

 

[Viceras]

Case: Antec NINE Hundred
PSU: SeaSonic S12 600W
Cooling: Arctic Freezer 7 Pro

If those picks are over budget, cases from thermaltake (Im using the Armor) Cooler Master etc... are all good. The best low budget case is the cooler master centurion 5 IMO, as for a Power Supply, Fortron Source make good bang for buck PSUs

 

[decaprime]

I like this one but I still need a power supply.

I actually have an X Blade case now... I really don't care what the case looks like as long as it isn't to flashy and eccentric. I found this while searching for one but I am really weary about the built in power supply. The one that came with the X Blade I am using now has served me well for a few years I think it has been, but this new system should require a bit more power. A lot of the other cases along the lines of the X Blade seem to have crappy power supplies built in that I would just have to throw out. If that power supply could work then I would be more than happy to get that one.

 

[akhilles]

110% agreed with what you recommended. Wouldn't be cheap on psu if I spend that much on everything else.