Finally building a new computer...

[zeboim]

Well, this is my first time posting here but you guys certainly seem to know your stuff, so if you don't mind I'd like a bit of advice. I've built a computer before, but it was almost 5 years ago, and now it has finally died and needs to be replaced. The problem is that during those 5 years I completely stopped paying attention to PC Hardware. So now I'm trying to take a crash course and get back into the groove, but things have changed quite a bit.

Basically, what I'm going for is the ability to upgrade it as necessary in the future, such as going SLI when it finally begins to slump in a while, 2 more gigs of RAM, HDs, etc. I also plan to overclock quite a bit.


ENERMAX Chakra ECA3052B Black SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
SAMSUNG SpinPoint T Series HD501LJ 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16814130080
OCZ GameXStream OCZ700GXSSLI ATX12V 700W Power Supply - Retail
G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL4D-2GBHK - Retail
EVGA 122-CK-NF67-A1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i LT SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
Intel Core 2 Duo E6420 Conroe 2.13GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6420 - Retail
ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler - Retail

TOTAL: $1,233.93

Have I made any ridiculous oversights or newbie mistakes? Any recommendations? Suggestions? Should I pay extra for the E6600 if I'm going to overclock the E6420 anyways? Will everything work with that Motherboard? And should I go with Corsair after all, rather than experimenting with G.SKILL? Opinions on the case (I really don't care about things like side windows and LEDs) or how I can make the computer run less loudly (My last one sounded like a jet)? If necessary I'm willing to spend a bit more money if you can tell me something that will increase performance a bit. I've already got a monitor/DVD Burner/Keyboard/Mouse and some speakers, so I'm really only focusing on the tower at the moment.

Thanks.

 

[gators1223]

if you are going to be over clocking it is well worth your money to get the e6600 because it over clocks much better than the other c2d's it is the best over clocker for the money

 

[goldragon_70]

The E6600 won't give you the most overclocking, but will still let you reach a higher overclock.

 

[zeboim]

I think I'm going to go for the E6600. What I'd really like to know, though, is whether that Mobo is going to work out with everything else and will give good performance for it's price.

I'm also considering swapping the OCZ PSU for this eaSonic S12 Energy Plus SS-650HT ATX12V / EPS12V 650W Power Supply 100. If anybody could maybe throw out some case recommendations as well I'd really appreciate it (if the one I picked isn't necessarily ideal).

 

[akhilles]

The case I'd get is:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Description=ENERMAX+Uber+Chakra&x=11&y=27

cuz it has LOTS of room to work around. Cools way better than the smaller one.

The Seasonic 650w is sli-certified. It'll run sli no problem. Can't say the same about generic brands. The reason Seasonic is so expensive is that it'll last a long time until it runs out of wattage/amperage. Compared to PCP&C (best psu imo), Seasonic is cheap.

The OCZ 700W is plenty for SLI. My buddy is running 7900gtx sli with the 850w. He has 680i & e6600. He will upgrade to e6850 & 8800gtx sli. His build is similiar to yours.

If you do get e6600, it'll be a waste if it's not paired with a better cpu cooler such as noutua, typhoon, or geminii. That Freezer can't touch the ones I mentioned. Heck, some even go water with 680i & 6600. 3.5ghz would be a minimal o/c.

The G.SKILL HK is no match for its HZ series in terms of overclocking. HK is ok. HZ can go over 1000mhz from 800mhz. So if you overclock, get the HZ for about the same price. The heatspreader is black, BTW.

If you don't overclocker, get the cheapest G.SKILL of the same speed & size. Then again, I wouldn't get 680i if I don't overclock. That's just me. I've seen its awesome overclockability.

 

[zeboim]

Thanks for the info. I think I'm going to go with the RAM you mentioned.

So if I want the *ability* to run 2 8800GTS cards SLI, either of those PSUs are fine? What about this one? I plugged all this into the PSU calculator and it came out at around 550W, so does this Corsair one not give enough overhead?

I'm also thinking about changing the case out for an Antec 900 simply because they seem to be all the rage these days. The one you recommended is a step up from the one I had picked, but there aren't any customer reviews so it's making me kind of hesitant. That, plus the Antec 900 is $110 with free shipping.

What do you guys think of the Tuniq Tower for the cpu cooling?

 

[akhilles]

Antec 900 is solid. It won't cool as well as the Charka with 25cm side fan.

Tuniq is a top performer as well. Geminii will kick everyone's rear cuz it lets you choice ANY 12cm fans. It can hold 2. 8O & cools cpu, ram & chipset.

All the mentioned psu's are brand names & SLI-certified.

CORSAIR = 50A 620W
SEASONIC = 52A 650W
OCZ = 57A 700W

I'd get the OCZ hands down. The cheapest among them & having the highest W & A.

BTW, I take those wattage calculators with a grain of salt. While you may find the right wattage for a STOCK setup, the total requirement will vary under load & when overclocked.

 

[zeboim]

Allright, so I'm pretty much decided. I'm going to go with this in a few hours unless anybody points out any major problems.

EVGA 122-CK-NF68-A1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
EVGA 640-P2-N825-AR GeForce 8800GTS 640MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 SUPERCLOCKED HDCP Video Card - Retail
OCZ GameXStream OCZ700GXSSLI ATX12V 700W Power Supply - Retail
Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6600 - Retail
G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400PHU2-2GBHZ - Retail
SAMSUNG SpinPoint T Series HD501LJ 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
Tuniq Tower 120 P4 & K8 CPU Cooler - Retail

Plus the Antec 900.