Combination HTPC and Gaming PC

[egozip]

Hi gurus

As a part of my 2 yearly upgrade cycle I am trying to create a new machine to attach to my Sharp 37" LCD.

The PC is going to be use for general video and audio, RAW photo editing, office apps, internet browsing and occasional gaming. It needs to last around 2 years, work with Vista and be DX10 Compatible. It needs to look very simple and be extremely quiet. I'm not trying to break the bank but Iwant a reasonably high end system. Not too high as gaming is not a priority.

I have no idea what motherboard to get but have pretty much decided on the other components and would appreciate your expert feedback.

Cases
Lian Li Lian Li PC-V2100 PLUS II Aluminum Case Black (Bit big?) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811112064
Lian Li PC-101B Black http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811112107
Black Antec P180 (Apparently very cramped)

Case needs to hold at least 6 hard drives for now. I don't want a HTPC case.

CPU - Intel 6600

OS - Vista Ultimate

Hard Drives- Already have 2x200gb + 2x 320 Gb in RAID
Getting 1x 150Gb WD Raptor for OS

Soundcard - Already have Audigy 2 ZS, See no point in getting Xi-fi as its very similar to audigy 2 zs.

RAM - Corsair 2x1g ddr2 6400c4. Will another 2 gb in about a year.

Keyboard & Mouse - Logitech Di Novo Edge and MX revolution

Video Card - 8800 gts 320 or 640? I want a DX10 card. Overclocked or not? Not sure if monitor can handle above 1920 x 1080. Should probably have HDMI...

Cooler - Zalman 9700nt or cooler master hyper 6+. Not sure if I can get the tuniq 120 here...

PSU - Zalman zm600-hp or 550w Antec phantom?

Motherboard - Not sure!
Don't need SLI. Needs RAID, Needs at least 6 SATA
680i or 975? Will be overclocking the 6600
I'm not a huge fan of Asus. I hear EVGA is better than most...

I would really appreciate your help!

Thanks

 

[akhilles]

For quiet cases, you can't go wrong with Antec P180 silver or black.

8800GTS is a bit overkill for casual gaming. Next... eh, later this month, there should be lower end of 8000 series video cards coming out. 8600 ULTRA for $180 us should be more than suffice. Yep, they're all DX10. Then add an HDMI-to-DVI adapter.

For mobo, I would buy P965 again. Specifically, ASUS P5B DELUXE. Then again, I'm an overclocker. How about AB9 QuadGT?

http://www.abit-usa.com/products/mb/techspec.php?categories=1&model=335

It has 6 sata. It overclocks pretty well. The typical 975 has 4 sata.

Scythe Ninja is a very good cooler & can be upgraded to 2 fans:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835185038
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835185043

Any of these psus are good:

http://forumz.tomshardware.com/hardware/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&p=1491365#1491365

 

[egozip]

Thanks akhilles

Yeah the P180 is good looking too...
8600 ultra sounds perfect

Still not sure about the mother board though as I've had problems with Asus in the past. Are the 650i boards any good?

Thanks

 

[akhilles]

650i & 680i have issues. The 680i has more than you can shake a stick at. P965 & P975 are the most stable. That's why I always suggest P965 if the buyer isn't running sli.

 

[madmurph]

For mobo, I would buy P965 again. Specifically, ASUS P5B DELUXE.

2nd that.

Egozip: I'm like you; was very reluctant to buy ASUS just because of some of their customer service issues. However, I got this same board and couldn't be more pleased. It has worked flawlessly, so I haven't had to deal with ASUS. One caution, though. Don't know if you're going with some RAID config, with that many hard drives, but on the ASUS, maybe other P965 boards as well, 2 of those SATA ports are on a different channel (raid controller), and have to be config'd separately. Check first.

 

[egozip]

Thanks again for your help guys.... If it wasn't for you I probably would've gotten the Asus p5n32e-sli and regretted it!

I've placed my order!

Here's what I'm getting:

Case - Antec P180 Black
Motherboard - Asus P5B Deluxe Wifi-ap
CPU - Intel 6600
Hard Drives- 1x 150Gb WD Raptor for OS
2x200gb + 2x 320 Gb
Soundcard - Audigy 2 ZS
RAM - Corsair 2x1g ddr2 6400c4. Will add another 2 gb in about a year
Keyboard & Mouse - Logitech Di Novo Edge and MX revolution
Video Card - xfx 8800 gts 320
Cooler - Zalman 9700nt
PSU - Zalman zm600-hp
OS - Vista Ultimate

madmurph - Well i only have the 2x200gb and 2x320gb drives RAIDed at the moment so thats 4 SATA ports but yeah I'll be careful! Thanks for the tip....

Time to visit the overclocking forumz now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[akhilles]

No problem. This is must-read:

http://forumz.tomshardware.com/hardware/Core2Duo-Overclocking-Guide-v1-ftopict197995.html

Any o/c questions, fire away in o/c forumz.

 

[madmurph]

No prob -- pay it forward. Good choices, have fun!