System Build - Australia

[NSFW]

Hi there,

I'm looking to build a new PC, and while I will spare you guys long details, I do have a few questions. I live in Australia, Brisbane to be exact and the webpage I'm buying from is www.pricespy.com.au.

Items as follows:

Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 2.4GHz FSB 1.06GHz CPU (Go Steppin) $329.95

Seagate 320GB Serial ATA HDD 7200.10 RPM $89.95

OCZ 4GB OCZ2VU8004GK DDR2 PC2-6400 Dual Channel Kit (2 x 2GB, 800Mhz) $420

EVGA e-Geforce 8800GTS PCI-E 640MB DDR3 320-bit 500MHz 1.6GHz DirectX 10 Max $514

Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3R P35 Motherboard $168.00

Antec Nine Hundred Case $165

Antec 650W ATX TruePower Trio Power $163.40

MS O/S Windows Vista Home Premium Edition 64Bit DVD Version OEM $146.34

Now i'm pretty confident these are solid choices based on the research i've done here at this site. The questions I have lie around overclocking, the PSU, Australian heat, and a few others.

I chose the Antec 900, basically because I planned to over clock to 3.2 GHZ, and I'm worried about heating. Brisbane at the peak of summer can be around 38 degrees, high of 41 degrees. The Antec 182 offers less cooling and is actually more expensive ($199). It is quieter though. So my question comes down to whether or not you think the Antec 900 is overkill. I'm thinking not, and I do like the case features of the 900, but I do like quiet as well. I don't plan to over clock any higher then that, at least not until DDR3 becomes cheaper, and I'll buy a pair of those at a higher speed FSB, and add a couple more fans. I like that I have that future investment in the parts and the case. Oh, I also considered the Sonata III, but I'm certain it won't cut it here in Brisbane.

I find the RAM price a bit high, is anyone able to look in that site and find a suitable substitute? I'm avoiding 4 1GB platforms though. If you guys think that RAM is a solid choice though or think I should I choose anything else, I'm open.

Lastly, this to me is a pretty future proof PC. I do have a copy of Windows XP though (32 bit) and I could significantly cut the price down of this purchase (money is not really an issue, but I can certainly do something with any spare cash) by cutting down on all the fancy whistles centering around Vista. Probably a different graphics card, 2 gigs of ram and anything else you guys might point out. I've read the debates about Vista, and read up on Vista and I don't have any older apps that I'm just MUST use, so I think I might just make the jump now. Thoughts?

Am I missing something in the list? I think I might need to look into heatsink for the chip? Or does the chip come with a sufficient one? Been awhile since I've looked at parts.

Lastly, is the PSU overboard? I've done the PSU calculator, and it was 429V. So I could probably save a few bucks and stick with a 550, but at this point another 20-40 bucks for a 650 won't kill me.

Thanks for your time guys.

 

[aevm]

All solid choices indeed.

That memory sounds expensive indeed. For example I paid CAD$229 for 2x2GB OCZ Vista Upgrade DDR2-800 and CAD$290 for Q6600. I looked at the list at http://www.pricespy.com.au./pno_8589.html but it looks like those prices are normal in your area. Sorry... I saw some Kingston chips there that could save you a few bucks, but I think OCZ is a good choice anyway.

How much is the Corsair 620HX there?

If you don't overclock you won't need a special cooler. The Antec 900 is a good choice for hot rooms. Maybe Thermaltake Armor too... Whatever case you get, add all the optional fans. For example my TJ09 came with 2 fans but I could add 3 more.

Maybe get a GTX card instead of GTS, if you have the money. It will do better and last longer.

 

[NSFW]

All solid choices indeed.

That memory sounds expensive indeed. For example I paid CAD$229 for 2x2GB OCZ Vista Upgrade DDR2-800 and CAD$290 for Q6600. I looked at the list at http://www.pricespy.com.au./pno_8589.html but it looks like those prices are normal in your area. Sorry... I saw some Kingston chips there that could save you a few bucks, but I think OCZ is a good choice anyway.

Sweet, I'll stick with the OCZ.

How much is the Corsair 620HX there?

$167, make the switch?

If you don't overclock you won't need a special cooler. The Antec 900 is a good choice for hot rooms. Maybe Thermaltake Armor too... Whatever case you get, add all the optional fans. For example my TJ09 came with 2 fans but I could add 3 more.

I definitly plan and want to overclock. Any suggestions? I hate messing around with heatsinks. I'll buy the extra fans if you think It'll be needed. I thought 4 would be enough initially haha.

Maybe get a GTX card instead of GTS, if you have the money. It will do better and last longer.

About a $230 dollar jump, and something I considered. It really depends on price drops in the next 2 months (when i'll have the money to purchase and build the rig.). I'm pretty happy with the GTS, and I want to keep things as close to $2000 as possible. I've got a trip to Thailand to save for over Christmas as well.

 

[chookman]

Hey NSFW...

Ill also say good solid choices, if was me id stick to the Antec PSU... and i would stick with the 900 case, i own a P180 and the 900 looks to be more open which would be better for OCing. As for the GTX how big is the screen you are playing on? if you have a 19" or 20" or something it would be a waste to get the GTX whereas with a 24" the GTX would be awesome.

I too am from Aus and i just had a look at that pricespy site and seems its only a price matching site, much like what shopbot.com.au is and you cant actually order anything is this correct?

 

[NSFW]

I definitly don't have a 24". I have a good monitor already from a previous PC that I plan to use. I don't have the budget for a new one either.

Oh and ya Pricespy is only a price matching site, I only listed it as a reference.

 

[daleyboy]

What resolution will you be running? only go for the 640MB GTS (or GTX) if you plan to run games 1600x1200 res or higher. Apart from that most of it seems sweet i bought this rig myself only 3 weeks agon in Sydney

Thermaltake Armour LCS
E6750
GA-P35-DS4
4Gb(4x1) Corsair PC6400 4-4-4-12
Old recycled 320gb SATAII HDD
Leadtek 320MB GTS OC
recycled me old thermaltake toughpower 750W

runs everything perfect at max settings so far (inc bioshock) at 1280x1024

NOTE: (i just found this out myself) check your peripherals as there are some that wont work on PC's that recognise 4Gb RAM .. i found this out with my logitech Quickcam when i upgraded 2gb to 4gb on Vista 64bit. Logitechs solution - disable memory remapping which limits ur system to 3GB (not happy jan)

 

[NSFW]

I don't remember my monitors specs, it's unfortunately still in storage. All I know is it's a view sonic.

I'd get the 640 anyway, seeing as in a few months after this purchase, I could afford a new monitor if needed. It's just more future proof. Having just said that though, I suppose that's reason enough to get the GTX.

Gotta find some way to remember what res my monitor can go at!

Don't have any peripherals to worry about =)

EDIT: I beleive it's a View Sonic 19" bought just under a year ago. It was reviewed here at Tom's around that time as well. Should that be alright for a 640 GTS?

EDIT 2: It's a View Sonic 19" VX922. Does that change anything?

 

[chookman]

The viewsonic will do 1280x1024... which the 8800gts 640mb maybe a little over kill could save a few $$$ with a 320mb version. This is unless you are looking to upgrade the monitor in the near future.

Nice build daleyboy

Seems this might be an aussie forum haha

 

[NSFW]

Well darn...

How overkill would the 640 be? It's just so hard not to higher on a GPU rather then lower, because it's not something I want to turn around and decide to replace in the short term! Haha.

Also, I'm still unsure about heatsinks, which brand and make, or even if I need it (I am planning to OC the chip).

EDIT: Well I've looked into it. Most quality monitors that can hit 1600 x 1200 Resolution are just way out of my price range, even a couple months down the road. So if I get a strong consensus (which it seems to be) I'll save myself the 100 dollars and downgrade to the GTS 320mb.

EDIT 2: Hey chookman, why the Antec over the Corsair PSU?

EDIT 3: Theoretically speaking, if I were to downgrade this to a Windows 32 bit XP system, what would you guys replace? I'm just curious.

 

[aevm]

Those PSUs are both good. Since they're the same price you can't go wrong either way.

Heatsinks: the best ones around tehse days are made by Thermalright. Ultra 120 Extreme is the best heatsink ever, while Ultima 90 is very good and smaller. Personally I got a Scythe Ninja, but my first priority was silence rather than extreme cooling. The nicest cooling results I've seen in reviews so far were achieved with Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme combined with a SilenX IXtrema fan (not sure I spelled that right, but you get the idea).

GTS 320 will be fine on your current monitor, right.

For edit 3: I wouldn't replace anything, just keep the money and save more until you can get a bigger monitor.

 

[Gundam1s]

I would recommend getting a 620HX from Corsair over the Antec TP3 because I'm currently using an Antec TP3 650W and it blew on me, literally flash and smoke....so now I question their quality. (nothing died tho)
Besides the Corsair is a modular ^_^

 

[chookman]

Sorry NSFW im just a bit of an Antec fan, the corsair will be great as well.

 

[rammedstein]

you should be able to pick up the 2900xt for the same price if not a bit less, if you could it woul;d be a better choice than the 8800gts640 for about the same price, and that psu could handle it.

http://www.staticice.com.au/cgi-bin/search.cgi?q=2900xt

 

[NSFW]

Thanks everyone

I'm still tossing and turning over the 320mb vs the 640mb.

I know for a fact that after spending 2000 on a new PC, and having a perfectly good monitor already, that I won't be able to explain or justify a 700 dollar monitor haha! Not now, not later, just to many other things to save for in the coming year.

But for 100 dollars now, which I can squeeze in, I can future proof myself at least a bit.

Anyway able to spell it out for me? Is it a COMPLETE and total waste if I purchase the 640mb? I can probably justify it if I can get ANY reasonable use out of it on my monitor. Even if it's a small improvement, at least I'll sleep comfortably knowing I've future proofed myself a bit and I'm getting a use out of it.

What does modular mean? Don't know much about PSU's outside of needing a good one.

I'll probably stick with the Thermalright 120. I think I need all the cooling I can get.

Again, thanks everyone.

 

[rammedstein]

http://www.pricespy.com.au./cat_5.html#g146 - check out the acer at gamedude/scorptech, they are very reliable people and i had one here the other day, they look beautiful, they are 22"/1680x1050 though...

also, i can't really justify the 640mb over the 320 because of the memory being slower, but i can justify the 2900xt because it overclocks like a champion.

 

[rammedstein]

modular means you can unplug the cables at the back of the psuuu you don't use, for tidyness's sake, the thermalright ultra 120 is a great cooler, just remember it doesnt come wiht a fan unless explicitly stated.

 

[NSFW]

Ah ok, modular seals the deal for me, I love a tidy case.

Throwing in the 2900 XT was just cruel =P What's a excellent 2900 XT manufacturer?

I know EVGA does quality work, and right now the 320 is sitting at $403.

The cheapest ATI 2900 XT is 479 and a Gigabyte, which considering the reviews on the motherboard (also a gigabyte) must be descent. It's 479 (but on special and I'm not purchasing at least till october). Any other brand I know for ATI is sitting at $513 (MSI). EVGA is selling the 640 at 514.

I saw the monitor you listed, and it's affordable, but after I make this purchase I have a trip to save for and University to save for after that. A new monitor is just never going to happen soon.

EDIT: Anyone have experience with the Antec 900 and the Thermalright 120? I've done some reading and it seems the Thermalright 120 won't allow me to place a side fan in the antec 900. Would a Tuniq Tower allow this? What case am I looking at otherwise. I've looked at the Thermaltake Armor, it's pricey, but seems bigger.