Low $1000's Build - Comments Appreciated

[dabicksta]

First Post, but Avid Lurker. Thanks in Advance

So for my 18th Birthday my parents are giving me money for a computer, Ideally we will keep it around the low 1000's, as anything over $1000 is coming from my own pocket, and I like to keep those as fat as possible

I'm a light gamer, but I keep most of that to my 360, I am an avid Photoshopper and Music Enthusiast.

Monitor and Peripherals will be recycled.

Motherboard : GIGABYTE GA-P35C-DS3R Cost : $149.99

Processor : Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Cost : $279.99

or

Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 Cost : $279.99

I know I could overclock the Q6600 to over 3Ghz, but I can't get past the stock 3Ghz of the 6850, minus the 2 cores, If i really am planning for the future, should I go Q6600?

Video Card :EVGA GeForce 8600GT 512MB Cost : $139.99

Hard Drive(s) : 2 x [Western Digital 320gb] Cost : $159.98

Memory : 2 x [G.Skill (2 x 1gb)] Cost : $99.98

Optical Drive(s) : 2 x [LITE-ON Black 20X DVD+R] Cost : $61.98

Case & Power Supply : This is where I tap into the great knowledge of the community, as all I know I want is a mid sized case, but other than that, I need help

Total : $891.91 before Case and Power Supply

Comments are appreciated and encouraged, thanks again!

 

[itotallybelieveyou]

lower the quad core get the 8800gt instead.

 

[ibleet]

Any Corsair PSU would suffice...I would recommend one of the following...VX450, HX520, or VX550.

 

[ibleet]

Antec and Coolermaster make some good cases.

 

[aadamszc]

Hello and glad you are posting,

Unless you have a specific need that is addressed in that motherboard, why not have a look at the P35 DS3L. It can be found for ~$85 and is considered a good overclocking board(which you may or may not do) and generally the best price per features.

The quad core is geared more towards applications(photo and video editing, etc.), whereas the dual core is more geared towards gaming as they usually have higher clocks and most games cannot take advantage of the extra cores as of yet. I would go for the quad core if I were you, but if you are looking for a dual core and want to save ~$100...I would consider the E6750.

I cannot advise someone to willing get a 8600GT at this point in time. I would really try to get something like an ATI 3850. It's price is currently around $179.99 though. If you budget is really tight and there is no way to cut corners...I suppose the 8600GT would be good for decent gaming purposes.

This is where you could cut some money. Is there a specific reason that you are getting 2 HDDs? I realize that if you use one to read and to write, that may be faster.

Also, basically what I am saying about the HDDs. Is there a specific reason that you need 2 of these? I would imagine even if you used one to read and write, the time difference would not be that much.

As for a PSU: http://www.tomswiki.com/page/Tiered+PSU+Listings?t=anon
Try to pick something from tier 3 or above.

As for a case: This is a really great spot to cut back on spending, but you need to make sure that there is decent airflow and space.

Hope I helped,
-Adam

 

[hughyhunter]

I completely disagree with the gpu recommendation... If you are not an avid gamer (you stated that you are a light gamer) then get a ATI 3850 that performs way better than that 512mb version of the 8600gt. You'll probably spend less too.

I would recommend that you try to get an x38 board too. You can get the foxconn x38a and get 2x2 gigs of ddr2 800 speed ram and still be under 1k. The x38 board will be very future proof as you'll be able to upgrade processors for a few more years with it and with the foxconn version you'll be upgrading to ddr3 when the price subsides and still be able to run cheap ddr2 right now.

The processor... Dont look any further than the q6600. This is hands down the best bang for the buck... It performs just as well as the dual core 6750 in games and performs much better when making movies and music. You will be very happy with it. MAKE SURE YOU GET THE G0 STEPPING THOUGH... OVERCLOCKS BETTER!

As for psu... read reviews if you are trying to spend less than 150... If not you should get a good quality pc power and cooling. Best psu on the earth proven year over year over year.

Cases are tricky... I personnally would try to get a newer antec or zalman... they are pricey though and if you dont have the money I know coolermaster makes some less expensive ones.

You really are overkilling this bugdet rig with raptors. I would get some faster 250-320 gig 7500 rpm drives for way less and then put them in RAID 0. If you are willing to go that route we can start looking at those options. I like the sale that seagate has going on... 320 gig drives for under 60 bucks.

Hope this helps.

 

[hughyhunter]

Hello and glad you are posting,

Unless you have a specific need that is addressed in that motherboard, why not have a look at the P35 DS3L. It can be found for ~$85 and is considered a good overclocking board(which you may or may not do) and generally the best price per features.

The quad core is geared more towards applications(photo and video editing, etc.), whereas the dual core is more geared towards gaming as they usually have higher clocks and most games cannot take advantage of the extra cores as of yet. I would go for the quad core if I were you, but if you are looking for a dual core and want to save ~$100...I would consider the E6750.

I cannot advise someone to willing get a 8600GT at this point in time. I would really try to get something like an ATI 3850. It's price is currently around $179.99 though. If you budget is really tight and there is no way to cut corners...I suppose the 8600GT would be good for decent gaming purposes.

This is where you could cut some money. Is there a specific reason that you are getting 2 HDDs? I realize that if you use one to read and to write, that may be faster.

Also, basically what I am saying about the HDDs. Is there a specific reason that you need 2 of these? I would imagine even if you used one to read and write, the time difference would not be that much.

As for a PSU: http://www.tomswiki.com/page/Tiered+PSU+Listings?t=anon
Try to pick something from tier 3 or above.

As for a case: This is a really great spot to cut back on spending, but you need to make sure that there is decent airflow and space.

Hope I helped,
-Adam

Wow... I didnt read your post before i replied... right on though. Pretty simular thoughts

 

[aadamszc]

Yep, exactly what I thought when I read your post. It seems you went into more detail(especially case, etc.) than I did.

Great minds think alike. =P