First Ground-Up PC Build, Suggestions/Comments/etc. Wanted!

[kungfused]

[I posted this same system for comments on AnandTech as well, just in case anyone who reads both forums feels a sense of déjà vu. ]

Hey guys,

I've been lurking here for a while, digging up answers for most of the questions that cropped up for me while planning a system for the first time, and now that I think I have everything picked out, I decided I'd register and post -- hopefully if there's some egregious incompatibility I've overlooked you guys can catch it for me! Also, suggestions on where I can improve the machine's performance without a whole lot of additional cost, or on where I could cut costs without losing much performance, would also be very welcome.

So here's what I've got picked out right now:

Case: Centurion Cooler Master 5 Mid Tower

Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3 ATX Intel Motherboard

Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 2.13GHz

Video Card: EVGA GeForce 7900GS

Power: ENERMAX Liberty 400W PSU

Hard Drive: Western Digital WD2000JS 200GB HD

Memory: Kingston DDR2 667 1GB x2

Optical Drive: Samsung 18x DVD+-R IDE CD/DVD Burner

Monitor: Samsung 206BW 20" DVI Widescreen

Speakers: Logitech Z-4 2.1 Speakers

Keyboard: Logitech UltraX Full Size Keyboard w/ Laptop-style Keys

My price target got bumped to ~$1250 after shipping (when I originally posted elsewhere my budget was a bit lower) and I'm right about there with these components. I'm not looking to overclock any higher than I'll be able to go with the stock HS/F (but I am getting some Arctic Silver thermal paste from a friend who just finished building himself a new machine and has some extra), probably just enough to match the CPU's speed to the 667 RAM. I'd be using it for gaming, standard boring schoolwork (web research, reports, yadda yadda) and for more processor-intensive data generation overnight.

Please let me know what you think!

Cheers,
Kyle

 

[sanjiwatsuki]

Is that PSU going to be enough? Otherwise, looks fine.

 

[CmdPT]

I don't think that PSU is going to be enough, I would suggest getting a OCZ GameXStream 700W and beside its on sale too, so why not?

 

[kungfused]

Hmm, the wattage is definitely lower than that OCZ, but when I compare amperage, the ENERMAX seems very competitive with the OCZ:

[code:1:855d8d7eba]+------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|PSU | +3.3V | +5V | +12V1 | +12V2 | +12V3 | +12V4 | -12V | +5VSB |
|--------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------|
|OCZ | 36A | 30A | 18A | 18A | 18A | 18A | 0.8A | 3.0A |
|ENERMAX | 26A | 28A | 20A | 20A | - | - | 0.6A | 3.0A |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------+[/code:1:855d8d7eba]

Considering this system isn't loaded down with hard drives, optical drives, USB devices, 8000-series top-o'-the-line video cards, etc., and especially since the enermax has more amperage on the 12V rails it does have, will I really have issues powering my system?

 

[kungfused]

Thanks for your thoughts, guys! I doubt I'll be upgrading that GPU very soon -- my budget just doesn't have room for a $300+ GPU, and my gaming habits (WoWaholic) don't require that kind of power right now! That thread is extremely informative though, mpilchfamily; thanks for putting the time into writing it and thanks for pointing me in its direction.

 

[alcattle]

The PSU offers a total of 30A on the combined +12v rails. This is plenty for that system and will even support an OC. But if you try to upgrade the PSU later on you will need to pick up a better PSU. Go to the Power Supply and Case section here and read the PSU 101 sticky there. Here is a link.

Always good advise MP but I think it is late and you meant to say"to upgrade the GPU later on you will need to pick up a better PSU.

 

[alcattle]

Oh yes, I figured as much. It is Midnight here and 3rd shift is just starting.