My idea on a new computer

[narcolei]

Right now I'm getting the parts list together for my new computer, and it would be a great help if you could take a look at the list and make any suggestions. I'm open to any improvements for this gaming rig, but I don't want to spend much on a graphics card right now, given that DX10 just arrived, and the cards for it will soon be affordable. I was thinking about getting two 250 GB HDD in a raid 0, because it’s the same price as a 500 GB.

Here's my list:


Thermaltake Circle RH-F030-2SW Silver SECC 0.8mm (Chassis) Aluminum (Front Panel) ATX Full Tower Computer Case - Retail : $84.99

OCZ GameXStream OCZ600GXSSLI ATX12V 600W Power Supply - Retail : $129.99

GIGABYTE GA-965P-S3 LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail : $118.99

Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6600 - Retail : $316.00

BFG Tech BFGR76256GTOCE GeForce 7600GT 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card – Retail : $139.99

CORSAIR ValueSelect 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 533 (PC2 4200) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model VS2GBKIT533D2 – Retail :$189.99

two Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD2500KS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive – OEM : 2 * $79.99 = $149.98

RAZER DeathAdder RZ01-00150100-R2M1 Black 5 Buttons 1 x Wheel USB Optical High Precision Gaming Mouse – Retail : $59.99

Ideazon FANG Gamepad – Retail : $28.99


Any input would be much appreciated, especially in regards to memory. Is it worth it to spend more on something like XMS series performance RAM, or will the value memory be enough?

 

[drummerdude]

if you dont plan on overclocking, there is nothing wrong w/ value ram. imo, get the 500 gig hd instead. if one drive fails (twice as likely) in raid 0, you lose everything

 

[outlw6669]

Looks fairly good.
Do you plan on overclocking??
If so, some good Corsair XMS2 would work good for you.
If not use your value ram as it will work fine.

Now my 2c on the rest:
X1950PRO $159.99 after rebate and much faster
Belinkin N52
Logitech G5
Either 1 500Gb drive or 3 250Gb drives in a raid 5.

Good luck with your build.

 

[narcolei]

Firstly, thanks for the input, it really helps.

On the subject of OCing: is it worth it? I know that it will up my [/size]benchmark scores, but will i really notice real world performance increase? Either way, how much would it shorten the life of my parts?

Of course I know that the X1950 is much better, but I went for a cheap card that will just last me until DX10 cards become affordable.

**edit** OK, so nevermind the risks, I'm overclocking. I've decided on XMS2 ram and an E6300 processor. I would love to RAID 5, but does anyone know of a raid card that supports it? My mobo only has 0, 1, 10. If i buy two HDDs now for raid 0, can I later add a third and convert the array to 5?

 

[outlw6669]

Yes, overclocking will give you much better performance.
It will shorten the life of your rig, but not so much as you should wory about it.
Even with it clocked to the max 24-7, I would expect it to last at least 4-5 years.
Just follow wusy's guide and it will all go smoothley.

With the cash you save on your CPU, you could get a better MB that supports raid 5 and overclocks better.
What you have to look out for in regards to raid 5 support is the south bridge.
The ICH8 is the lower end chip, while the ICH8R (R for RAID) is the higer end one.

Here are a few that would work good in those regards.
Asus P5B Dexlux: $179.99
Gigabyte DQ6: $197.99
Msi P965 Platinum: $134.99

The last one (MSI) is the one I run.
While it does support raid 5, I woulden't expect it to overclock past 370FSB.
If you were to run the E6300 @370FSB you would be at 2.59GHz, or 190MHz faster than the E6600.
The other boards are massive overclockers with the P5B Delux on the top of my current list.

As far as the video cards go, my thoughts are Meh.....
If you are saving for a near future DX10 upgrade the 7600GT will work fine for you.
In my opinion the 1950 would be a better buy for only $20 more.
However, it will be your build and if you are happy with it's performance for now, go for it.

 

[tajoh111]

get the gskill 2 gig kit with pc 6400 ddr2. only 185 dollars or something and its much better!!It's also on the newegg website. It crushes that memory.

I get a cheaper powersuppy. That thing is overkill.

 

[narcolei]

Ok, I see what your are saying about the mobo, although the 965p-s3 was supposedly a good OCer, I do want one with raid 5. Problem is, i don't need SLI or CrossFire, and two pci slots isn't going to cut it. Can you recommend a good single x16 broad that still has a good feature set?

Oh, and the X1950 is like $70 dollars more. I do want a better card, but I'm also on a tight budget.

Thanks again for all of your help.

 

[Viceras]

Save yourself some more money and swap the E6300 for the E4300 if your overclocking the E4300 is far superior.

With half the cache of the E6300 and a 9x multiplier the E4300 is an overclocking MONSTER!!!

Its been at 3.6GHz on Air! Do a little research on this chip and you wont be dissappointed

 

[narcolei]

Ok, thanks for all of your help so far. Even though I'm on a very tight budget, I agree that a 7600 was a little weak. I'm also going for some components that are more overclockable, so I'm resigning myself to spend more money on that.

Can anyone recommend a good CPU cooler? My current pick is out of stock for two weeks, and I'm not sure I can that that long.

Here's where I stand now.


Thermaltake Circle RH-F030-2SW Silver SECC 0.8mm (Chassis) Aluminum (Front Panel) ATX Full Tower Computer Case - Retail : $84.99

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 620W Power Supply - Retail : $169.99

GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3 LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail : $126.99

Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 Conroe 1.86GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6300 - Retail : $187.00

SAPPHIRE 100176L Radeon X1950PRO 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card - Retail : $184.99

CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X2048-6400 - Retail :$210.00

Two Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD2500KS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive – OEM : 2 * $79.99 = $149.98

RAZER DeathAdder RZ01-00150100-R2M1 Black 5 Buttons 1 x Wheel USB Optical High Precision Gaming Mouse – Retail : $59.99

Ideazon FANG Gamepad – Retail : $28.99

NEC 18X DVD±R DVD Burner With 12X DVD-RAM Write Silver E-IDE / ATAPI Model 7170A-0S - OEM : $32.99

Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer 70SB073A00000 7.1 Channels PCI Interface Sound Card - Retail : $69.99

Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound - OEM : $5.99

COOLER MASTER RR-PCH-S9U1-GP 92mm CPU Cooler - Retail : $39.99

Total : $1343.88


I was really aiming at the $1200 dollar mark for this rig, so It not a fun thing to keep adding more to the cost.