Please check this build out. It's for my brother. Let me know if I am missing something, or if something can be/should be upgraded. There is still a little budget left. Thanks!
CPU: E8400
Video: evga8800GT
Mobo: Gigabyte P35-DS3L
RAM: CORSAIR XMS2 DHX
Case: Antec Sonata III LifeStyle
Audio: optional, can be added later. Mobo has 8 channel-out audio.
HD: Samsung Spinpoint F1 Series HD753LJ 750GB
Optical: ASUS DRW-2014L1T
Yay, you still have money left, let's spend it quickly
Good choices, in general.
Upgrade the video card to 8800GTS G92 512MB. You definitely want a video card with a dual-slot cooler, otherwise that Sonata III will have a difficult time cooling it. It's also faster than the 8800GT and overclocks better.
Hard disk: get a WD6400AAKS or two instead of the Samsung.
I'm assuming you don't intend to overclock the CPU, otherwise the case is a bad choice and you'd need an aftermarket cooler too.
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In a world without walls and fences, who needs windows and gates?
I like the P182, the Antec 900, and the Tsunami from that list.
If you're in Ottawa or Stittsville check out www.shoprbc.com too. They are located somewhere on Richmond Road. I got almost all my parts there last July, and I only needed a price match for the video card. They had the best local prices for everything else. http://www.shoprbc.com/ca/shop/configurator.php?cgid=6
For the cooler: the best air cooler ever made is $60 at ncix today, for Canadians only. The US version (www.ncixus.com sells it for US$106)., It beats the Xigmatek. It even beats the Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme, according to an Anandtech review. http://www.anandtech.com/casecooli [...] spx?i=3268
Edit: about the PSU. If you want it from oemexpress.com, my favorites are the Antec Earthwatts 650W and 500W. Their PSU list is really not that good. The best thing on it is the Antec Quattro 850W, I think, but you don't need that much power for that build.
aevm: newegg does ship to canada i believe. and the links are very helpful as newegg has more info tha ncix...
so here is the final build, please comment if anything needs to be changed:
CPU E8400
CPU Cooler Noctua NH-U12P LGA775 AM2
Video EVGA E-GEFORCE 8800GTS
Mobo Gigabyte P35-DS3L
RAM CORSAIR XMS2 DHX
Case Antec Nine Hundred Gaming Tower
PSU Corsair TX650W 650W
HD WD6400AAKS
Optical Samsung SH-S203B Black
As for OS, would you recommend to go with XP or Vista? I know the general downsides/upsides of both, but since I don't play games, I don't know if it's different in the gaming community. I'm a web developer, and stick with XP because of more compatibility.
Message edited by molts on 05-21-2008 at 05:29:38 PM
For the cooler: the best air cooler ever made is $60 at ncix today, for Canadians only. The US version (www.ncixus.com sells it for US$106)., It beats the Xigmatek. It even beats the Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme, according to an Anandtech review.
http://www.anandtech.com/casecooli [...] spx?i=3268
I wouldn't say the Noctua beats the TRUE at the Anandtech review, re page 7: http://www.anandtech.com/casecooli [...] i=3268&p=7 but rather that they are equal. And I found a TRUE for a few less dollars than the Noctua. I did, use a Noctua NF-P12 fan combo for the silence, and to my ears, silence is golden.
Will all the hardware work fine with Vista? I've heard some nightmare stories re drivers and such...
That's generally a thing of the past.
NVIDIA is quite lazy with it's drivers but they fixed most of the issues.
The other hardware is pretty much driver proof.
Message edited by Andrius on 05-21-2008 at 05:52:29 PM
I wouldn't say the Noctua beats the TRUE at the Anandtech review, re page 7: http://www.anandtech.com/casecooli [...] i=3268&p=7 but rather that they are equal. And I found a TRUE for a few less dollars than the Noctua. I did, use a Noctua NF-P12 fan combo for the silence, and to my ears, silence is golden.
I tried hard to figure out if the Noctua or the TRUE was best. Not that it matters, since they're so close, but I was curious. The only difference I found was in the temps of the X6800 overclocked at 3.94 GHz under load. Noctua 55 degrees, TRUE 59. OK, I can't just declare the Noctua the winner based on a single difference, but still I'm very impressed with it.
The Noctua comes with its fan, the TRUE doesn't. To get those nice numbers with the TRUE, Anandtech included a SFF21F fan, which is $19 where I live. Sailer, did your slightly cheaper TRUE include the cost of the fan? Anyway, you guys in the US are so spoiled, you've got a lot more good retailers
Vista has DirectX 10. That makes Crysis and FSX look somewhat better. IMO it's not very important - who sits and enjoys the scenery when the aliens are shooting at you or the plane is crashing? Still, I'd go with Vista just because it's guaranteed to have patches for a long time.
