I'm going to be building a new system, the first by myself, in the next few weeks. I have $400 to spend right now but will have about $500 more next month for more parts. It's for home use and I do quite a bit of photo editing, some video editing and I'd like to be able to watch HD content. The only issue for me is how much power it uses.
The E8400/E8500 would use less but is short 2 cores which I might use. I'd like to game a little as well, FSX and maybe a few other games. I've read literally thousands of threads about the Q6600 vs. the E8400 so I won't go there but do you think the dual would be enough for me? My current system barely loads up web pages so anything would be a step up! The AMD 1800+ was nice in 2002/2003 but is quite dated now!
I was thinking about buying the processor now along with maybe the case and the motherboard. Or should I wait on the motherboard and buy something else like the PSU?
I was thinking about getting the Gigabyte DS3L since I would like to try overclocking and some G.Skill memory, most likely 2x2GB since I'll be getting Vista. I also thought about getting the ASUS P5E-VM HDMI for the integrated video but I realize how awful that is and the extra $30 or so would be better spent on a graphics card. The only question is what is the best card I can get for around $100? What about the Gigabyte P35C DS3R for the DDR3 memory support?
So here my list:
Intel Q6600 or E8400
Gigabyte DS3L or ASUS P5E-VM HDMI or the Gigabyte P35C DS3R
G.Skill 2x2GB DDR2 800
Seagate 250GB 7200.10 Hard Drive
500W PSU by FSP or Thermaltake
Lite-On DVD Burner SATA Drive
22" Acer LCD Widescreen Monitor
Is there anything else that I might need? What do you think of my selections?
I think you would be better off with the Q6600 based on your needs. It will handle most games just fine based on the resolutions you would be able to get out of that monitor, and it will be better to "future proof" you once more apps are created for multicore cpus.
Mobo: You definitely don't need one that supports DDR3 ram. It has little to no benefit at the moment and you would be spending lots of money on the board as well as the ram to go with it. The Gigabyte DS3L would be a fine board for what you are looking at doing.
I would also consider an aftermarket heatsink/fan for your cpu. Check out Xigmatek HDT-S1283 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6835233003 Only $37 to keep your cpu cool if you plan on overclocking anytime in the future.
From a power standpoint, on multithreaded apps the Quad core is going to kill in performance/watt. But in singled-threaded apps the 45nm will beat it. So later on, again the quad would be the better bet once more apps are multi-threaded.
As for the buying strategy, I never like to buy some components at one point and the rest at another. I'd suggest either buying enough to get the computer up and running (exclude the monitor, possibly borrow cd drive from other computer) or save until you have that extra money next month and buy all at once. If one of the components is bad, you'd have no way of telling until you have purchased everything and sometimes you wouldn't be able to return it and have to go through warranty instead. Just a personal preference here though.
First & foremost, FSX is more cpu-intensive than gpu-intensive. It's not to say onboard graphics makes no difference. If you want to see all the glory of FSX, you'll need a capable DX10 card. The Q6600 is the perfect budget candidate for FSX. The 8600GT is a good starting point. If you have a large resolution like 1200/1600, you might want to consider the 8800 GTS 512 or HD3870 X2.
Q6600
GA-P35-DS3L
XFX 8600GT
G.Skill 2x2GB DDR2 800
Seagate 250GB 7200.10 Hard Drive
500W PSU FSP/Earthwatts/Corsair VX
Lite-On DVD Burner SATA Drive
22" Acer LCD Widescreen Monitor
I suggest you either get the barebone of a mobo, cpu & ram right now or nothing til you have the 900 bucks. June is when the GPU war begins & the P45 debuts.
For $105 after rebate, you can currently get an EVGA 8800 GS 384mb (it's even an O/C version!). The performance will absolutely blow any 8600 series card out of the water.
