New Builder, Need Advice Please

[NixAshtear]

First time trying to build a computer, need some help on what pieces getting together. Budget is around $2000 US, trying for a computer that can play games fairly well, maybe overclock too once I figure out how to do it.

I'm thinking about getting:
Q6600 for my CPU
a 24 inch monitor (Maybe the Acer 24" unless someone has another suggestion)
4 gb of memory (any particular kind people suggest?)
maybe a 74 gb raptor for my OS drive (bigger?or is this good enough?)
a 750 gb caviar for storage
2 Graphics Cards for SLI (thinking about GeForce 8800GT any good companies you recommend?)
2 Sony NEC Optiarc DVD Burners
Windows Vista Ultimate 64-bit (4gb ram enough right?)

Advice on motherbaord, case, power supply, keyboard, mouse, fan/heatsink. This is an entirely new computer, if I'm missing anything feel free to throw it in.

 

[auscanzukus]

How much do you plan to o/c the cpu? 3-3.6Ghz on air. Take your pick.

Look into Mushkin Redline 2x2GB.

74GB for system drive is fine. You can always install games on D drive

You can crossfire or sli. Which one to go depends on the monitor resolution and games. i.e. nvidia rules Crysis.

http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/gaming-graphics-charts-q3-2008/Crysis-v1-21,758.html

If you getting a 64bit OS, might as well throw in 8 gigs of ram since their prices are at rock bottom.

 

[coleman]

Hi nixashtear, i just built my first comp and i am posting to help you avoid the probs i had.

i would personal go for a single, better graphics card as it will be easier to install and setup.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102769

i personal like this keyboard, depens what you prefer
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823175001


if you are going to overclock then i would suggest that you do some research into cpu coolers to keep te temps down

Lastly, i purchase a samsung t220 which is 22" which is more than enough for me, if you down grade to a smaller monitor then u could spend the extra cash on the components, like a better mobo.

hope this helps

 

[wgdz]

+1 on single 4870 instead of sli with two 8800GT's.

 

[aevm]

First time trying to build a computer, need some help on what pieces getting together. Budget is around $2000 US, trying for a computer that can play games fairly well, maybe overclock too once I figure out how to do it.

I'm thinking about getting:
Q6600 for my CPU
a 24 inch monitor (Maybe the Acer 24" unless someone has another suggestion)
4 gb of memory (any particular kind people suggest?)
maybe a 74 gb raptor for my OS drive (bigger?or is this good enough?)
a 750 gb caviar for storage
2 Graphics Cards for SLI (thinking about GeForce 8800GT any good companies you recommend?)
2 Sony NEC Optiarc DVD Burners
Windows Vista Ultimate 64-bit (4gb ram enough right?)

Advice on motherbaord, case, power supply, keyboard, mouse, fan/heatsink. This is an entirely new computer, if I'm missing anything feel free to throw it in.

Q6600 is a good choice. Another one is Q9550. It's faster, but more expensive.

Acer makes pretty good monitors. Samsung usually makes better stuff but more expensive.

2x2GB DDR2-800. Mushkin and Corsair seem to be very good these days.

Get a Velociraptor if you can, rather than the older 74GB Raptor.

The 640GB Caviar is faster than the 750GB Caviar (something like 93 MB/s average read rate vs 80 MB/s)

A single HD 4870 or 9800GX2 or HD 4870X2 is a better idea than two 8800GT cards. Apart from the speed, it has the advantage that you don't need an nVidia motherboard and can use a P45 motherboard. You can get a very nice and stable P45 motherboard for $120 or so (GA-EP45-DS3R, Asus P5Q Pro).

I wouldn't buy a Sony product. If you must, change at least one of the burners to a Samsung or LiteOn or something. If a copy protection scheme fails on a burner it's good to have a different type of burner available too. Or if you get software, it's better to get two different types than the same type twice.

Have you picked a case and PSU yet? There are some good prices at www.buy.com for example, search for RC-690 and for 750TX.

 

[NixAshtear]

Thanks for all your help so far. This is my build at this point:

Cooler Master RC-690 Case
Asus P5Q Pro LGA 775 P45 ATX Intel Motherboard
Sapphire 100243-1GL Radeon HD 4870 1GB 256bit GDDR5 Graphics Card
Corsair CMPSU-750TX Power Supply
Q6600 Processor
Corsair 4GB (2x2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit
WD 150 GB Velociraptor Hard Drive
WD CaviarSE16 640GB Hard Drive
OCZ Alchemy Series Elixir Keyboard
Samsung 2253BW 22" Widescreen LCD monitor
Logitech G5 2-Tone 7 Buttons Laser Mouse
Asus 20x DVD Burner with LightScribe SATA
Samsung 22x DVD Burner SATA
Windows Vista Ultimate SP1 64-bit English 1pk DSP OEI DVD for System Builders

Anything else I need? Maybe an additional tower fan or 2 and a CPU fan? Thanks again for the help you've given me, its made things much easier for me. Of the 2000 budget, I've used $1780 before tax and shipping.

 

[aevm]

I think you'll be pleased with that build. TBH I'm kind of jealous now. I paid twice as much as you last year for my parts, and my 8800GTX is nowhere near your HD 4870

Check if Vista Home Premium 64-bit has all the features you need. If it does, you can save some cash there.

The RC-690/750TX/HD 4870 combination is perfect for Crossfire, so you have some serious future-proofing there. When one card is no longer enough, add a second one.
However, HD 4870 Crossfire will not work at its best on the P5Q Pro. P45 motherboards, including P5Q Pro, drop to x8+x8 in Crossfire. An X48 motherboard would still work at x16+x16 and that avoids some bottlenecking. Judge for yourself:
http://www.tweaktown.com/articles/1472/intel_p45_vs_x48_crossfire_performance/index.html
Those numbers are for HD 4850 512MB. With HD 4870 1GB cards I'd expect the bandwidth limitation to hurt more.
My favorite X48 motherboards are GA-X48-DS4 and P5E Deluxe (just in case you do upgrade the MB).

The HD 4870 has a vent and a dual-slot cooler, and the heated air goes directly out. That means you don't really need that many case fans. Maybe add more when/if you overclock the CPU or when/if you add a second video card.

If you buy the "Q6600 retail" it's $5 more than the "Q6600 OEM" at newegg and it comes with a cooler and fan. As long as you don't overclock, or do it just a bit, that's enough. If you want to overclock, get the Q6600 OEM and add an aftermarket cooler to the list. The Sunbeam Core Contact is very popular these days, for example:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835207004

 

[NixAshtear]

Since I've got some cash left on my budget, maybe I will upgrade the motherboard, the P5E Deluxe looks pretty good to me. And I'm still deciding between home and ultimate, I just put Ultimate on so I'd have the max amount of my budget taken up. So if you don't have any other advice, I just have 1 last question. Floppy drive, yes or no? I'm afraid some of the equipment might have drivers or something that are still on floppy disks

 

[coleman]

I agree with the avem on the mobo, to ensure that you rig is future prof, but your price seems to be going up and up. remember there is always 1 better for a little bit more money, so try not to overspend and buy for your needs.

hope all goes well with the build

 

[aevm]

Since I've got some cash left on my budget, maybe I will upgrade the motherboard, the P5E Deluxe looks pretty good to me. And I'm still deciding between home and ultimate, I just put Ultimate on so I'd have the max amount of my budget taken up. So if you don't have any other advice, I just have 1 last question. Floppy drive, yes or no? I'm afraid some of the equipment might have drivers or something that are still on floppy disks

I haven't had a floppy since 1999, I think... Still, you're right, it could be useful, especially for flashing the BIOS or installing RAID. It's cheap anyway. Drivers are usually downloadable from the manufacturer's site, no worries about that part.

Maybe something like this, if you have a digital camera and need a card reader and your camera uses SDHC or Memory Stick:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820223072

About the Windows version - you can compare features here:
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-vista/compare-editions/default.aspx

 

[NixAshtear]

Alright, 1 final question then I think I'm done, should I buy a sound card or do you think the onboard sound on the motherboard will be good enough?

 

[aevm]

It depends on you. If your ears are very good, your speakers are very good, your music is in 256Kbps mp3 or some uncompressed format, and you actually care about sound quality a lot, then a sound card might be worth it. Try the onboard sound for a week or two first.

 

[NixAshtear]

Alright final check time:
ASUS P5E Deluxe X48 ATX Motherboard
Sapphire Radeon HD 4870 1GB 256bit GDDR5 Video Card
Samaung T220 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor
Rosewill 3.5 Card Reader and Floppy Drive
Corsair 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2 800 PC2 6400
WD VelociRaptor 150 GB
WD Caviar 640 GB
ASUS 20x DVD Burner with LightScribe SATA
Samsung 22x DVD Burner SATA
Q6600 Processor
Windows Vista Home Premium 64-Bit
Cooler Master RC-690
Corsair 750TX Power Supply
Logitech G5 7 Button Laser Mouse
OCZ Alchemy Elixir Keyboard

Grand Total w/ Tax and Shipping:
$1996.65
I don't think I've gotten any closer to my budget if I tried. If no one has any other opinions I'll will most likely complete the order tomorrow. Thanks for everyones input, especially aevm, I'm very grateful for all the advice you offered.