Building new compy

[Horuku]

Hey, I was told to come here and post the parts I was about to order and get some more opinions. Any opinions is much appreciated.

APEVIA X-DISCOVERY-BK Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16811144170

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

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16813128012

EVGA 320-P2-N811-AR GeForce 8800GTS 320MB 320-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16814130082

OCZ StealthXStream OCZ600SXS ATX12V / EPS12V 600W Power Supply - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16817341010

Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80562Q6600 - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16819115017

Patriot eXtreme Performance 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model PDC22G6400LLK - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820220144

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS (Perpendicular Recording Technology) 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16822148140

ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16835186134

Thanks for any opinions in advance.

 

[systemlord]

The only two things I'd change are, the newer GA-P35-DS3P for $159.99 and Antec 900 can be had for around $100 at NewEgg. I do like the look of the case you have selected. Never under-estimate the importance of PC cooling as your components will last longer and perform problem free. My hole rig froze up several times a few nights ago because my PC case is horrable at cooling, the heat was just to much for my PC. Good luck on your new rig! Anymore ?? please ask.

 

[lunyone]

If your spending that kind of dough, than do what systemlord says. You can step down the mobo to the cheaper Gigabyte (still on the P35 chip) and save about $50, but that is up to you. Good luck with the build, looks mighty nice

 

[Solariscs]

I would suggest the Corsair 520W PSU instead of the one you picked if you aren't going to upgrade the card anytime soon. If you are, look into the Antec HENeo 550W or the Corsair 620W PSU, those are really good units.

 

[Horuku]

I was actually looking at the Antec 900 before I settled down with the Apevia x-disco...but what kept me away was the price. I can't justify 140$ over 70$ simply because it has more fans. I'm not planning on OCing much, maybe the processor (hence the AS7), so the 120mm and side 80mm fan on the Apevia are fine. If not, I'll just prop open the side and direct a fan on it...

I think I'll stick with the current mobo, because I've heard its pretty good and I'm not a fan of Sli, and I don't really a raid system. As such, is this mobo : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128059
better than the one I have listed?

Otherwise, I'm pretty much set on the other parts. I just have some worries about the 8800gts320mb. I've been reading up on it and it's brother the 640mb. I plan on gaming in rather low res 1280x1080...so is it worthwhile to consider the 640mb?

 

[Solariscs]

I suggest going with a new P35 board, they will give you much better performance and also allow you to upgrade in the future. If you don't want to send that much money, get a Gigabyte P35-DS3L for around $90.

The 640MB would be better for future DX10 games, but at that resolution, I think you should be alright with the 320MB

 

[Horuku]

K, I'm gonna go ahead with the GS3R version instead. It's only 40$~ more and it seems like it has more features over the 3L, just incase in the future I want to add raid .

 

[Solariscs]

its your choice, its just an older technology. The p35 chips are much better.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128050

That's a really great board with many feature like raid and is very easy to OC

 

[Horuku]

^DS3R was the one I was looking at, not GS3R (gg typo). And why did you recommend those different power supplies? The 520w Corsair is a bit more expensive than the OCZ 600w that I picked out...

EDIT: Actually gonna pay 30$ more for the 160$ DS3R board. Seems like a more ideal purchase because it supports DDR3...pretty much a good investment board because it will support 45nm cpus and ddr3 memory...which in 12-18months will be the same price as current stuff :O

 

[Solariscs]

Yeah, its a little more expensive, but its a much better unit. It will be more stable and is higher quality. Plus it also has modular cabling so you don't have a mass of cables you don't use hanging inside your case.

 

[Horuku]

Ah, I actually ordered the parts at noon (MNT) and then 5 minutes later read that. Yah I guess the modular would be better since I have a side window, but since I did rush processing I couldn't edit the order. As such, I'll have to stick with the OCZ. If it is too cluttered/bad looking I'll just rma it and get the corsair. Thanks for your help!

 

[Solariscs]

No prob! just get some zipties and you should be alright with the OCZ, you can push the cables together so they aren't all over the place.

 

[systemlord]

The OCZ was a great choice, its a solid PSU. Did you get the 8800GTS 640?

 

[Horuku]

The OCZ was a great choice, its a solid PSU. Did you get the 8800GTS 640?

No, I decided to just stick with the 320mb. I have a 4 year old Dell 17inch lcd that runs in 1280x1024, so I didn't really need high res support. Although I read that the 320mb performs way worse than the 640mb on some games, but that's a driver issue I believe. Either way, I didn't feel like spending another 100$ for the 640.

 

[systemlord]

No, I decided to just stick with the 320mb. I have a 4 year old Dell 17inch lcd that runs in 1280x1024, so I didn't really need high res support. Although I read that the 320mb performs way worse than the 640mb on some games, but that's a driver issue I believe. Either way, I didn't feel like spending another 100$ for the 640.

I've only found a few games that need as an option 512MB or more for high textures. The difference between high & med. textures is very little difference in GRAW 1 & 2. The 320 has the same GPU as the 640 so you should be fine for awhile.

 

[Horuku]

Just finished installing all the Hardware. Boy was that a chore! For a first system build, that case was an awful mess to work with. Screws galore...the PSU took forever to fit...the drives are a pain to fit as well. Sliced my thumb open on the darn thing! Otherwise everything is running pretty well. I think I messed up the thermal compound on the AS7 and the Quad Core so I'm getting temps around 38~celsius...I might want to reapply some AS5 later on, but it could just be high ambient temps. Otherwise, thanks for the tips y'all.