Drakelet

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Hey all, Sorry for making another thread! I just really want some quick advice. :)

I'm thinking of building a new PC. Price-range, I'm not sure, but around £600 would be best. I have case etc, but I need new CPU, Mobo, RAM, PSU and GFX card. I also wouldn't mind a sound card.

I was thinking:
CPU C2D E6750
GFX XFX 7900GTX 512MB -OR- 8800GTS
MOBO Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3R
PSU Corsair 620W ATX2.2
RAM Corsair 2GB RAM
SND Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 7.1

After reading an article in PC Gamer, though, I'm not sure on a few things:
Firstly, do I need that PSU? After all, it's £100 and the one in PCG is £40 - Big difference! Do I need ATX2.2?
Secondly, in PCG they had an E6320 because "its overclocking potential is massive". Does this mean getting a E6750 would be a waste of money?
Also, what is the "best" make for 8800GTSs? Does it matter if I get a cheap one?
The sound card I put in the list above is only about £15 - Is it even worth getting?

As a final thing, what are your thoughts on getting seperate HDDs for OS, programs, games and storage? Or just get one to do it all?

I'm not planning on buying the rig right now (I hav no moneyz :(), but hopefully within the next two months. Any new GFX cards/CPUs etc that are coming out soon that fit my needs better (2900?)?

That's all! Cheers in advance all!
 

chookman

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PSU maybe a bit of overkill a Corsair520 would do the trick but make sure you get a decent one.
Are you planning on OCing and have you done it before... If answer to either one of those is "no" then go with the 6750
Definetly get the GTS over the 7900GTX and best brands are eVGA XfX and BFG most others are ok but these are commonly known as the better ones youll pay a bit of a premium but generally worth it
Dont get an Audigy, either use onboard or get an X-fi of some description (Audigy is outdated)

Generally i use one hard drive (smaller one) for OS and a separate bigger disk for the rest. However, its also fine and still good performance wise to set a smaller partition for your OS at the start of a bigger drive then the rest for whatever.

2900's are out now... but the new one will the 2900pro and i believe what nvidia will call 8800gt that wont be as good as a 8800GTS. If you arent buying now then maybe you should wait till Q1 2008 for NVIDIA and AMD/ATI to bring out there highend parts.
 

Drakelet

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Thanks dude!

PSU: OK, point taken. :)

OCing: I've done simple stuff before (ATITool, but of CPU/RAM in BIOS [screwed it up once though, had to reinstall Windows]). I'm definitely wanting to learn more about OCing and OC the new PC.

GFX: Thanks! About makes, I was thinking XFX or BFG. Is it worth buying already-OC'ed ones?

SND: X-Fi are expensive though...I've heard Phillips do a goodish cheap one though?

Well, I won't be able to afford it until Q1-08, so I'll obviously wait. :) I just want to get some general ideas ATM.
 

Drakelet

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Well, I've been doing some more research, but still need help!

I've chosen the XFX 8800GTS which runs at 560MHz/1700MHz.

For power supply, I ran an online test to see what wattage I needed. I exaggerated a bit and it said I need about 580W. Admittedly I added 2 more HDDs, some more cold cathodes, more USB devices, overclocked CPU etc, all running at 100% power, just to be safe. So I need around 600W. How do these look?
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=480708
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=631247
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=446787

I also need a new CPU fan, and I was thinking of this:
http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/products/intelcooling/tr-mst-9775
It says it's a PWN fan - Those are 4-pin yeah? Does that mean I can't swap it for a normal 3-pin one?

I'm also thinking of getting a new fan controller.
The one below looks quite good, but it doesn't mention if it can support PWN fans. Can it?
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=505970
Same with this:
http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/products/casefanaccessories/x-fan-controller-3
This also looks good, and says it supports 1 PWN fan. Would that include the one on the CPU heatsink?
http://www.quietpc.com/gb-en-gbp/products/casefanaccessories/zm-mfc2

Thanks all!
 

emp

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Only the Corsair 620HX is a good unit. Zalman makes good cooling products but lousy PSUs, same goes for Cooler Master. I'd recommend Antec NeoHE series, Corsair HX series, Corsair VX series, Seasonic M12 series, Seasonic S12 series, or PC Power & Cooling Silencer 610W. (Any of the units that I mentioned before rated at least at 500W will work perfectly.)