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What do you guys think of this build?

Forum Homebuilt Systems : New System Build - What do you guys think of this build?

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This will be the first PC I've ever built. I'll be using it for both gaming and schoolwork and I'm looking to spend between $900-$1100. I want a motherboard with SLI so that when I have more money I can add in another video card. I might do a little overclocking, but not much. I already have a monitor, mouse, and keyboard. Let me know what suggestions you guys have.

OS - Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit ($100)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6832116488

CPU - Intel Core 2 Duo Processor E8400 3GHz 1333MHz 6MB LGA775 CPU, OEM ($182)
http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?p=E [...] c356276b01
*Note: I'm also strongly considering the Q6600, what do you guys think?

MOBO - ASUS P5N-D LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 750i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard ($150)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131232

RAM - OCZ SLI-Ready Dual Channel 4096MB PC6400 DDR2 800MHz Memory (2x2048MB) ($71)
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applica [...] =O261-8038

GPU - PNY GeForce 8800GT 512MB DDR3 PCI-E 2.0 Dual-DVI HDTV-Out ($168)
http://fxvideocards.com/PNY-GeForc [...] 16160.html

HDD - Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s ($85)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822136073

DVD Drive - LG Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 10X DVD+R ($24)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6827136117

PSU - PC Power & Cooling S610EPS 610W Continuous ($90)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817703005
*Note: I'm not really sure if this will be enough if I add in another GPU

Case - Cooler Master RC-690-KKN1-GP Cooler Master 690 ($61)
http://www.provantage.com/cooler-r [...] OOL023.htm

Cooler - ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler ($27)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6835186134
*Note: I'm not really sure if I need this cooler or not. Also, do I need thermal paste?

Total = $958

Thanks in advance for your help!

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looks good... but for 90 bucks more you can upgrade to a q9300 which will last you longer than a dual core...

also if you plan on over clocking... maybe a different heat sink such as http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] k=s1284... same as the s1283 except I think has one or two more heat pipes and only 5 $ more

Reply to thogrom

^+1. Every thing else looks good. XIGMATEK-S1283 review:
http://www.frostytech.com/top5heat [...] ELHEATSINK

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http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2617/3815217176_0a5be7955d_o.gif

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3553/3818083596_1a772f7162_o.gif

Reply to Shadow703793

Change the burner to something based on SATA, e.g SH-S203B.

Change the HDD to something with PMR, e.g. WD6400AAKS or WD7500AAKS. Much faster.

+1 for the Xigmatek.

I'd change the video card to this XFX 8800GT:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814150252
It's $12 more, but you get the game Company of Heroes and you're dealing with XFX and Newegg instead of PNY and fxvideocards.com.

Normally I'd advise dumping the 8800GT for an 8800GTS G92, but if you do SLI with dual-slot cards you usually end up with the PCI slots blocked. The 8800GT will be fine, because your case has good cooling.

Reply to aevm

Message edited by aevm on 06-02-2008 at 04:11:08 AM

Reply to aevm

I think the Silencer 610W is enough for 8800GT SLI, but it's not certified by nVidia for it. The 750W version is certified, but the sale ended at newegg and now it costs a lot. I recommend the Corsair 750TX. It's also certified and only $110 now.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] &Tpk=750tx
http://www.slizone.com/object/slizone_build_psu.html

Reply to aevm

Looks good, I agree with aevm HD suggestion and a SATA burner. SATA devices are much easier to deal with than IDE.

You might as well try to get everything from newegg, makes everything simpler when you get everything from one supplier.

Reply to San Pedro

Hey mate, your build was great to start with, i'll agree with people and reccommend you to the Xigmatek 120mm RIFLE CPU cooler, or Xigmatek S1283 if you need product name, also +1 for the Corsair 750TX that aevm recommended to you. I will note that it doesn't have modular cabling but that doesn't matter I don't think.

Reply to p0isonapple

Modular cabling is convenient that first day when you build the PC. In fact, with some cases, it's quite important.

After that, though, you pay for it day after day by getting somewhat smaller efficiency. Nothing serious, of course, but still I'd rather put up with the inconvenience once. Just my personal opinion...

Reply to aevm

Thanks a lot guys! I'm going to hold off on the Q9300 (don't have enough money for that and the other upgrades), but other than that I think I'll make all the changes you recommended.

Reply to carnetarian

How about Q6600? That's $60 less than the Q9300. It's just as fast most of the time (that is, you'll rarely make a quad work at 100%, whether it's Q9300 or Q6600, because the HDD will be a limiting factor, or the GPU), With overclocking, the Q6600 can do better than the Q9300 because it has a bigger multiplier. The current prices with Q9300 more expensive make sense for people who don't OC, but if you know how to OC the Q6600 is actually worth more IMO.

Reply to aevm

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