New Build Review

[ja7mad]

Review/Critique my new build please. Primary use Games, Games, Games and Internet. Let me know what you guys think. The links are in my wish list. (Will update the post with individual links and prices as soon as I get home tonight.)

Newegg Wish List:
https://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/Wishlist/PublicWishDetail.asp?WishListNumber=10706307&WishListTitle=pc

Case:
Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16811129021

Motherboard:
ASUS P5E LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16813131219

PSU:
CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 620W Power Supply - Retail
http://www.buy.com/prod/corsair-620w-sli-certified-modular-atx-power-supply/q/loc/101/203270718.html

RAM:
CORSAIR XMS2 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820145176

CPU:
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz LGA 775 Quad-Core Processor Model BX80562Q6600 - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16819115017

OS:
Microsoft Windows Vista 32-Bit Home Premium for System Builders Single Pack DVD - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16832116202

DVD:
SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-S203B - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16827151153

Cooling:
XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16835233003

HDD:
Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 ST3500320AS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16822148288

Graphics:
EVGA 512-P3-N841-A3 GeForce 8800GTS (G92) 512MB
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16814130312

Wireless:
GIGABYTE GN-WP01GS IEEE 802.11b/g PCI Wireless Adapter
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16839121008

Subtotal:
$1414.90

Thanks for the input.

 

[Cpt Deadboots]

Excellent.

I would trade the Raptor for a Seagate 7200.11, but otherwise it looks great.

 

[pous]

8gb ram in 32 bit vista isn't going to show up as much more than 3 or 3.5gb at the most... kind of a waste really. May want to consider a 64 bit os. (I prefer XP as of now for 64 bit, but it's really just personal preference at this point)

Other than that I agree to go with the seagate vs the raptor. Raptors aren't worth the extra $$ anymore.

As for cooler you could look at the AF7Pro... 26.99 and comes with fan on it. It's quiet and keeps my Q6600 cool at 3.0ghz.

Everything else sounds nice though, should be good to have a 9 series card after using 7600.

 

[ja7mad]

8Gb would show up as ~4gb in the OS but wouldn't it really be using all 8 of them? I was tempted to get vista-64 but read a lot of bad things about the drivers what do you think?

As for the hdd, a 10k rpm wouldn't give me a performance boost for vista over the Seagate 7200.11?

 

[pous]

As far as everything I've heard... it doesn't use the 8gb because it can't recognize more than 4. I just said 3-3.5 because that's usually what shows up in system monitors.

As for drivers, I have a few friends all using XP64 and no problems yet. Haven't talked to a lot of people with Vista64 but the general opinion seems to be if you're mostly playing games and such there's no problems with drivers. Some anti-virus programs like AVG don't have 64bit support yet, but there are other viable options out there.

With hard drives... the 10k does offer a slight performance boost. The problem is that the performance isn't generally thought to be worth the extra $$ spent on it... I guess it comes down to your budget and how comfortable you are spending extra on that vs something else.

 

[chuckm]

The power supply is cheaper here;
http://www.buy.com/prod/corsair-620w-sli-certified-modular-atx-power-supply/q/loc/101/203270718.html

Save some money and get this cooler, does almost, if not as good and comes with a fan;
http://www.jab-tech.com/Xigmatek-HDT-S1283-Heat-pipe-Direct-Touch-Universal-CPU-Cooler-pr-4097.html
You won't use 8gig of ram.

 

[0gab0ga]

i see you edited the gpu to a 9600gt. you say you will be using it for a long time before you get a 9800gtx and it wil be used for gaming, so i would reccomend to pay the extra cash for a 8800 gt or gts 512. by going with chuckm's cpu cooler the money is already saved. buying the psu on buy.com will save even more. if you do decide for a 8800 gts you can bundle the evga A3 version (includes crysis if you dot have it) with vista and save 20$. (+ the step up plan means you dont have to throw out the card if you want a 9800 witin 3 months)
you could save evn more by buying a p35 board instead since you are not going crossfire or sli. the asus p5k-e wifi has virtually all the features of the p5e except for pci-e 2.0 and will save you 70$. also note that vista 32 bit can be bundled with either of these mobos for 20$ off
finally, as everyone says, 8gb of ram will do you no good and you are better off finding cas 4 with 4-4-4-12 timings
these are all just suggestions that will save you money without compromising performance (at least only minimal) which i wll be incorporating in my first build as i would like to keep it as cheap and as good as possible, however other soultions may be better for you.

 

[ja7mad]

Ok I have updated the list in the original post and posted the links. I will go for the GTS 512, and the Xigmatek Cooler. Total is still below budget = . I will keep the P5E, which reminded me of a wireless card (added above). I dropped the 8G a long time ago but I forget to update the post.

Thanks 0gab0ga, chuckm, pous and Cpt Deadboots for the input. Much appreciated. If you guys could make a final scan after the updates that will be great. I will buy the stuff later tonight.

 

[chuckm]

Looks real good. Just a comment on the wireless card, which I really don't know to much about, but I got this one;
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833315041
I like it because the antenna is not hidden behind the case, you can move it around and improve the signal from the wireless. I've had it for about a year, am using it in the basement, the router is in the dining room. I have a small house but have never had a problem recieving the signal from the router.

Quick update, how 'bout one for 99 cents after MIR, same thing, it doesn't have a fixed antenna;
http://www.clubit.com/product_detail.cfm?itemno=CA5341001