First homebuilt fear

[Kolorean]

I posted a few weeks back about a homebuilt I want to do. I also said that it was my first time ever building one(Virgin alert) and I know almost nothing. My 3 previous systems have been purchased from ABS Computers. I have never had a problem with them, but I see I can get so much more, for less money.

Let me step back away from the specific parts for a bit. I have seen a couple guides on building a PC. I think Tom's actually has one also. I am still very afraid of doing this myself. I am retarded at this basically. So I take the following:

PSU
Motherboard
Memory
GPU
hard drive
CD/Burner/DVD
Can I use the Mircosoft XP home edition I got with my last comptuer(still have discs)
Going to use the sound onboard

The case on my last system is a full tower, metal, tons of room, has 4 90mm fans, MB tray, 2 vents. I see no reason to ditch this Anatec case unless I just sell my previous system.

I have two 160 gig hard drives in the system now, one with all my information I want to keep. Can I buy a new faster hard drive and slave the other for storage?

The whole process seems extermely difficult.

 

[proof]

Hey, welcome to the world of DIY. Yes, you can slave the others as storage. Are you having trouble deciding on components for your new rig?

 

[jeff_2087]

Just give a budget and a purpose for the machine and someone's bound to toss ideas at you.

As for your drives, yes you could get a new one and use your old ones for storage, but chances are the new one wouldn't be a whole lot faster. What are they?

 

[proof]

Yeah dude, put a budget out and in like 30 minutes you will have a speced out rig. We're good like that. 8)

 

[jitpublisher]

Yes, you can use your XP disc from your previous install.
You can certainly also buy a new Hard drive and run your current drive as a slave or secondary drive for storage.

Building is not that hard, but there are a lot of simple mistakes a first timer can make that can result in fried or ruined parts. Study the guides, take your time, and enlist the help of a knowledgable friend to help you with your first build.

Come back here an ask lots of questions if need be. There are NO stupid questions, just stupid mistakes made by not asking questions!

When you are done, you will have gained a wealth of knowledge and satisfaction.

 

[proof]

Yes, you can use your XP disc from your previous install.
You can certainly also buy a new Hard drive and run your current drive as a slave or secondary drive for storage.

Building is not that hard, but there are a lot of simple mistakes a first timer can make that can result in fried or ruined parts. Study the guides, take your time, and enlist the help of a knowledgable friend to help you with your first build.

Come back here an ask lots of questions if need be. There are NO stupid questions, just stupid mistakes made by not asking questions!

When you are done, you will have gained a wealth of knowledge and satisfaction.

AMEN!

 

[sirrobin4ever]

There are NO stupid questions, just stupid mistakes made by not asking questions!

Agreed.

 

[paraffin]

Welcome to building yoru PC

I built my first PC a few months ago and I will admit that I had problems.
However after going through all of those problems with the help of these forums and others. I have found that I now have a system that is stable and I have learnt a hell of alot about computers.

I will defineitely be building my next one, so please dont be scared you will find support and remember you will encounter problems but learn from them.

Good Luck

 

[Kolorean]

A little bit, but 3 weeks ago when I came here, I was totally clueless, now I know what to buy in theory, just getting it together, working, and stable really concerns me.

CPU: 6700
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115002

MB: ASUS 650i
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131142

Memory:G-Skill x2 (2 Gigs)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231088

GPU: 8800 GTS 640 good rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130081

Hard Drive:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136053

PSU: Is This enough? Quad rails at 18amps per
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817189007

CD Drive:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106047

I don't plan on going SLI, and I also plan on waiting till April for the Intel price reduction. Is there anything I am missing?

 

[Kolorean]

My budget is about 1600-1700 dollars.

I am going to be using this for gaming. I want the option for the newer FPS games, although 95% of my time is spent playing on-line games like Vanguard.

PS, the word "BIOS" scares the crap out of me. I might over clock, with help from here, but not at first.

 

[proof]

Do you have a monitor, keyboard, and mouse?

 

[loner47]

A good motherboard (Recomend ASUS) comes with a manual that when read and followed properly will guide you step by syep all the way through the build process.


Just take your time and familiarize yourself with all the parts and their placement,and read the entire manual at least once before you even begin, it can stop you making newbie mistakes.

Remember to breathe and that we're here to help if problems should arise.

 

[Kolorean]

I left off the monitor, because I figured between Circuit City, CompUSA and Best Buy, I could find one locally, save on shipping, and not have to worry about anything arriving dead. 19 wide screen LCD, but I need to include it in the bottom line price. Mouse and Keyboard I already have.

 

[jeff_2087]

My budget is about 1600-1700 dollars.

I am going to be using this for gaming. I want the option for the newer FPS games, although 95% of my time is spent playing on-line games like Vanguard.

PS, the word "BIOS" scares the crap out of me. I might over clock, with help from here, but not at first.

Looks pretty good, but you really should at least go into the BIOS to tighten the RAM settings. If you don't they'll be running at standard 5-5-5-15 and probably undervolted when they're capable of 3-3-3-8 at 1T. Wouldn't be an earth-shattering difference, but it'd be a shame to not get even the specified performance out of it.

Also I haven't heard of XCLIO power supplies and therefore I don't trust them. So unless someone can vouch for their decency, I'd recommend getting similar from FSP Group, Silverstone, Seasonic, Corsair, PC P&C.

 

[proof]

Intel Core 2 Duo E6600
eVGA T1 680i Motherboard
G.Skill 2GB DDR2 800 Memory
eVGA 8800GTS Video Card
Western Digital Caviar 16MB 260GB HDD (x2)
Corsair 620W PSU
Zalman 9700 HSF
$1362.93

Logitech G15 Gaming Keyboard
Logitech G5 Gaming Mouse (Unless you are hard core and want a Razer Copperhead or Death Adder)

 

[paraffin]

I have the P5N-E SLI and I like it because the price is very good for what is supported on the board.

I would however go for something a bit more expensive with better north and south bridge cooling.

I found install of this board easy and overclocking once I had figured out what all the settings meant was quite easy. If you want to see my settings in the bios I can post them.

 

[Kolorean]

In order to make myself feel safe and secure, I went and configured what I wanted from ABS. Do you guys think this is a hugge throw away on money?



Your Shopping Summary Print Summary
Ultimate X9 Firefox Elite (#1941 ) Parts List
Item Description
Quantity

Price


Thermaltake Armor Aluminum ATX Full-tower Case (Black Color) (Item#ABS11133154)
1

$40
ViewSonic Graphic Series VG2030WM Black 20.1" 5ms DVI Widescreen LCD 800:1 Built in Speakers (Item#ABS24116062)
1

$271.99
Black Polo Shirt with "Intel" Logo (Item#ABS00995024)
1

Standard
Intel 975X ATX Intel Motherboard (Item#ABS13121060)
1

Standard
Thermaltake toughpower 750W Power Supply (Item#ABS17153036)
1

$80
Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2 (Item#ABS37110039)
1

$-58.99
NVIDIA GeForce 8800GTX 768MB 384-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card (Item#ABS14130072)
1

$487.01
Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 2.4GHz Conroe FSB 1066MHz 4MB L2 Cache 65nm LGA 775 (Item#ABS19115003)
1

Standard
CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) (Item#ABS20145034)
1

$182
Seagate Barracuda 320GB 7200RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s (Item#ABS22148140)
1

$0
Seagate Barracuda 320GB 7200RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s (Item#ABS22148140)
1

$0
Thermaltake Silent 775 CPU Cooler With Heatpipe Cooling Technology for Intel LGA775 Processors (Item#ABS35106048)
1

$0
SAMSUNG 18 X SuperMulti Dual Layer DVD Burner with LightScribe (Black Color) (Item#ABS27151136)
1

Standard
SAMSUNG 18 X SuperMulti Dual Layer DVD Burner with LightScribe (Black Color) (Item#ABS27151136)
1

Standard
(For Two Same Size Hard Drive Only) RAID 0 Striped for SATA Hard Drives - Increase Performance (Item#ABS88101211)
1

Standard
Blue 8" x 9" x 6" ABS Mouse Pad (Item#ABS17114110)
1

Standard
ABS Computer System Binder for Organizing Drivers and Manuals (Item#ABS57101101)
1

Standard
Price with Option(s): $2601.01

 

[sirrobin4ever]

Its about $800~1000 overpriced. Also remember though that through ABS you get a warranty....

 

[proof]

Thermaltake Armor Aluminum ATX Full-tower Case
(Should be fine.)

ViewSonic Graphic Series VG2030WM Black 20.1"
(You can get a BenQ 20.1" Wide Screen for $219 on newegg.com)

Intel 975X ATX Intel Motherboard
(I would NEVER buy an Intel motherboard! ASUS or eVGA.)

Thermaltake toughpower 750W Power Supply
(Good stuff.)

Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2
(Just download XP Pro from thepiratebay.org)

NVIDIA GeForce 8800GTX 768MB
(Great stuff.)

Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 2.4GHz
(Great stuff.)

CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 800
(Overpriced stuff.)

Seagate Barracuda 16MB 320GB
(Get a Western digital Caviar 16MB 250GB)

Seagate Barracuda 16MB 320GB
(Get a Western digital Caviar 16MB 250GB)

Thermaltake Silent 775 CPU Cooler
(Get a Noctua NH-UF12)

SAMSUNG 18 X SuperMulti Dual Layer DVD Burner with LightScribe
(Save some money and ditch the Dual Layer.)

SAMSUNG 18 X SuperMulti Dual Layer DVD Burner with LightScribe
(No way you need two of them.)

RAID 0 Stripe
(Definately.)

 

[Lionhardt]

gewd,

 

[Kolorean]

Yup, so basically I would just be paying 800-1000 for piece of mind. I just need to pull the trigger and do it myself.

 

[proof]

Yeah you do. 8)

 

[paraffin]

You will enjoy it, save money and learn alot, just go for it.

If you have that much money spend it and build an amazing PC

 

[proof]

My e-penis:
Intel Core 2 Duo E6400
eVGA T1 680i Motherboard
GeIL 2GB DDR2 800 Memory
eVGA 8800GTX 768MB
Seagate 15k 36GB SCSI (Operating System)
Western Digital Caviar 16MB 250GB x2 (Storage and programs)
Thermaltake Tough Power 750W PSU
Noctua NH-U12F CPU Cooler
CoolerMaster Stacker 830 Evo (Black)
CoolerMaster 120mm UV Orange Fans (x4)
Logisys 12" Dual UV Cold Cathodes
Logitech G15 Gaming Keyboard
Logitech G5 Gaming Mouse
BenQ 20.1" Wide Screen

Upgrading to another 8800GTX, 4GB of RAM, two more WD Caviars, and a Q6700 after the price drop. Not too shabby if I do say so myself.