New gaming system build - any issues?

[etavoa]

I'm putting together a list of components for a new high end gaming system. I've built one computer in the past, so would call my skills pretty limited. I don't know much more than how to follow an online guide, so there will be no special tricks (i.e. overclocking).

I'm wondering if these components are all compatible and if you recommend any other items than what's listed. I'd like this to be pretty high end, expandable in the future, and run very quietly. Thanks in advance.

CPU - Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 2.83Ghz http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115041

Motherboard - Foxconn Destroyer AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA nForce 780a SLI ATX AMD Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813186152.

Heatsink - ZALMAN CNPS 9700 NT 110mm 2 Ball Ultra Quiet CPU Cooler
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118020

Ram - CORSAIR XMS2 DHX 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Quad Kit Desktop Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145217

Case - Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129021

Power Supply - COOLMAX CUQ-1200B 1200W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Active PFC Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817159067

Fan - Scythe S-FLEX SFF21D 120mm Case Fan
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185004

Hard Drive - Western Digital VelociRaptor WD3000GLFS 300GB 10000 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136260

DVD-RW - LG Black 22X (CAV) DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X (CAV) DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 22X DVD±R DVD Burner
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136152

Video Card (do I need two of these?) - XFX PVT98UZHDU GeForce 9800 GX2 1GB 512-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150301

Sound Card - Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion Series 70SB088600007 7.1 Channels 24-bit 192KHz PCI Express Interface Sound Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102021

Network Card - Do I need to buy one of these separate? I haven't found one yet.

I already have a gaming mouse, keyboard, and OS.

 

[skywalker9952]

Your motherboard and your CPU are incompatible. Other then that looks good.

One 9800GX2 will do you fine.
You will have an integrated network card on your motherboard so you won't need a discrete one.
A 64 bit OS is required for all 8GB of ram.

Options for you mobo - cpu incompatabilities:
change your mobo to a X38, X48 or P45 chipset.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=Property&Subcategory=280&Description=&Type=&N=2010200280&srchInDesc=&MinPrice=&MaxPrice=&PropertyCodeValue=717%3A40132&PropertyCodeValue=717%3A29253&PropertyCodeValue=717%3A34674&PropertyCodeValue=3879%3A31644&PropertyCodeValue=3879%3A39004&PropertyCodeValue=3879%3A27158&PropertyCodeValue=3879%3A27244&PropertyCodeValue=727%3A10689&PropertyCodeValue=727%3A10630&PropertyCodeValue=4943%3A34966

Or change you CPU to an AMD chip. I don't really recommend this as you don't seem to be building toward the low end (the only place AMD makes sense right now).
Your PSU is super huge for your build.

 

[etavoa]

Ahh...good catch on the mobo and CPU incompatibility. I'll probably go with this:

ASUS P5E Deluxe LGA 775 Intel X48 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131317

I was planning on running Vista. I should be good for a 64 bit then, right?

You mention just one 9800GX2 video card. Will I see much benefit from two cards? Don't most high end gaming machines use two cards?

 

[aevm]

Wow, that's an expensive PC.

Get a motherboard suitable for an Intel CPU, because your Q9550 needs it. Also, avoid nVidia SLI motherboards because they are more trouble than they're worth. If you really need a lot of graphics power, go for something like GA-X48-DS4 and two HD 4870 X2 cards. Maybe get a single video card for now and add the second one if needed.

GA-X48-DS4
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128336&Tpk=GA-X48-DS4

Sapphire HD 4870 X2
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102768

You don't really need a network card, or a sound card. Try the integrated network and audio first.

I'd upgrade the fans to SFF21E. That's what I'm using myself. Can't hear them, and the airflow is better than SFF21D.

This Noctua cooler is better, quieter, and a little cheaper than the Zalman 9700. It's in fact the best air cooler ever made so far AFAIK.
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=27130&vpn=NH-U12P&manufacture=Noctua

This Corsair 1000HX costs $20 less than the Coolmax 1200W, it's still powerful enough for two HD 4870 X2 cards, and it's ranked tier 2 instead of tier 5 as quality goes.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139007&Tpk=1000HX

 

[aevm]

Oops, I hadn't seen your reply above mine. P5E Deluxe will do very nicely.

Just switch the video to ATI because X48 supports two ATI cards (Crossfire). It does not support two nVidia cards (i.e. SLI).

Get Vista Home Premium 64-bit.

 

[shortstuff_mt]

The motherboard you listed is a X48 chipset. The X48 chipset is a crossfire board. You cannot run SLI on a crossfire board. What resolution are you planning on gaming at? The current ATI cards would be a great option. I would get a 4870 1GB model. The crossfire board you listed could also run two of those cards if you would like. The 1GB comes in handy when you game at high resolutions with AA turned on.

Here's a good article on the 4870 1GB card:

http://www.anandtech.com/video/showdoc.aspx?i=3415

You could also get the 4870x2 card if you want the fastest card on the market at the moment.


Edit: aevm and I have a habit of posting at the same time.

 

[etavoa]

Wow...you guys are a ton of help. Thank you so much! So with your comments, below is my revised list (with costs totalling $2894.50). Am I missing anything? Thansk!


Anti-static wristband 8 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16899888207 Belkin F8E093 Anti-static wrist strap

Zip ties 5.5 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812999102 Generic Cable Tie 4in

Thermal compund 6 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100007 Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound

Processor/CPU 320 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115041 Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 2.83Ghz

Motherboard 225 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128336&Tpk=GA-X48-DS4 Gigabyte GA-X48-DS4 LGA 775 Intel X48 Motherboadrd

Heatsink / CPU fan 60 http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=27130&vpn=NH%2DU12P&manufacture=Noctua Noctua NH-U12P LGA775 AM2 Heatsink Cooler

Ram x2 279 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145217 Corsair XMS2 DHX 8gb (4x2gb) 240-pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800

Case 110 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129021 Antec 900 Mid Tower

Power Supply 260 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139007&Tpk=Corsair%201000HX Corsair CMPSU-1000HX 1000w ATX12V Power Supply

Fans 15 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185005&Tpk=SFF21E Scythe S-Flex SFF21E Case Fan

Hard Drive 280 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136260 Western Digital VelociRaptor WD3000GLFS 300GB 10000 RPM Hard Drive

DVD RW 26 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136152 LG 22X DVD+R

Video Card x2 1100 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102768 Sapphire 100251SR Radeon HD 4870 PCIE Video Card

Sound Card 200 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102021 Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion Series

 

[lunyone]

spendy rig!!! I wouldn't spend +$200 on a sound card. You'd be amazed at how well onboard sound is these days. I'd rather spend my extra $ saved on the sound card and spend it on a Blue Ray Drive or burner. You know your going to want one in the future, so either save the $ now or buy one with this build.

 

[jpdykes]

Hi etavoa, comments for you:

What screen size are you planning on using? This is a rough guideline for gamers:

<22": 4850
~24": 4870
<30": 4870 or 2x 4850
30": 4870X2 or 2x 4850.

Tom's isn't recommending anything else. They go against the 4870X2 unless you are running a massive screen. Generally they think Xfire 4850 will cope with almost anything.

Link: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/Best-Graphics-Card,2033-4.html

You may be about to drop a whole load of money that you don't need to and won't gain you anything.

The resolution you are play at also makes a difference to motherboard choice. You will see little difference from the 2x PCIe 16 slot on the X48 boards unless you are planning on playing at large res. If you aren't go for P45.

Also try onboard sound and networking first before spending on discrete solutions. For almost all users they should be perfect.

You might want to add an extra storage drive. Seagate 7200.11's are good drives.

 

[aevm]

If you use the PC for more than games, like Visual Studio.Net 2008, the 8 GB of RAM is a great idea. If not, 4 GB is fine.
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2008/07/08/is-more-memory-better/1

Either you're a very special person, able to live with only 300GB, or you forgot to add a storage drive. Check out the WD 640GB.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136218&Tpk=WD6400AAKS

 

[aevm]

Hi etavoa, comments for you:

What screen size are you planning on using? This is a rough guideline for gamers:

<22": 4850
~24": 4870
<30": 4870 or 2x 4850
30": 4870X2 or 2x 4850.

Tom's isn't recommending anything else. They go against the 4870X2 unless you are running a massive screen. Generally they think Xfire 4850 will cope with almost anything.

Link: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/Best-Graphics-Card,2033-4.html

You may be about to drop a whole load of money that you don't need to and won't gain you anything.

The resolution you are play at also makes a difference to motherboard choice. You will see little difference from the 2x PCIe 16 slot on the X48 boards unless you are planning on playing at large res. If you aren't go for P45.

Also try onboard sound and networking first before spending on discrete solutions. For almost all users they should be perfect.

You might want to add an extra storage drive. Seagate 7200.11's are good drives.

Umm, I guess we all assumed he can afford $500 for a monitor running at 1920x1200, or maybe even more for a 30". It makes sense, considering that build. If he's playing at 1680x1050 a single HD 4870x2 is plenty, yes.

Between Seagate and WD: their 640GB versions are among the fastest disks available today. The WD's average read/write rate is just a tiny bit better than the Seagate's, but nothing you'd notice in real life. I recommended WD because he's already getting the WD Velociraptor and that way he won't mix HDD drivers and utilities.

 

[etavoa]

To the latest set of posters - I'm using a 27" monitor with my current computer, and plan on continuing to use this for my new build. I'm running it at 1920x1200.

I also have a 1TB external HD for pictures, movies, etc...., so I don't need anything too big in my new unit.

 

[lunyone]

You should be fine with 2x4850's for about $320 or so. That would be about $200 cheaper than 1 4870x2, but to keep things open, you could just get 1 x 4870x2 and get a p45 based mobo. Of coarse the x38/x48's are better for OC'ing (in general), so if your going to be doing some extreme OC'ing than I'd get the x48 mobo that Avem suggested.

 

[etavoa]

Thanks to all of your advice, I ordered the following components today. My only concern - can I use just one video card for now and buy the other later? Or does the mobo require two video cards?

Wish me luck in putting this beast together! Please provide any tips that you may have learned along the way!

Anti-static Wristaband
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16899888207
7.99

Thermal Compound
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100007
5.99

CPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115041
319.99

Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128336&Tpk=GA-X48-DS4
224.99

Heatsink
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=27130&vpn=NH%2DU12P&manufacture=Noctua
59.99

Ram
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145217
279.99

Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129021
109.99

Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139007&Tpk=Corsair%201000HX
259.99

Fan
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185005&Tpk=SFF21E
14.99

Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136260
279.99

Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102768
549.99

Blu Ray / DVD-RW
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136133
149.99

Already have Monitor (27”), Keyboard, & Mouse

Total Cost at Newegg = $2,305.72

 

[jpdykes]

The motherboard doesn't need a second graphics card. You can add one later when they are 50% cheaper this time next year....

 

[etavoa]

The motherboard doesn't need a second graphics card. You can add one later when they are 50% cheaper this time next year....

Great! Thanks for that answer. Another concern I have is that this unit is going to run really hot. Are there any other techniques to help cool it down and keep it quiet? As per my last message, any other tips on putting this thing together would be very much appreciated.

 

[aevm]

OK, 50% cheaper is a bit too optimistic IMO. I'm guessing 30%, after which it will disappear. They will stop making it when it stops being profitable.

I believe you can also add a HD 4870 1GB to that system and get good results, not just a HD 4870X2.

Download GPU-Z and use it to check the temperature of the video card.

Catalyst 8.10 (that's ATI's driver) offers controls to adjust the fan speed. Increase the speed if the temperature is higher than you'd like.

The Antec 900 comes with fan controls. Switch them to high while playing 3D games, if the temperatures in GPU-Z are high.

IIRC you can add two more fans to the Antec 900, over the 4 it comes with. Few people do that because the Antec 900 does a great job already, but I see you've already ordered an extra SFF21E. If really necessary add a second one too. Check if there really are two free fan mounts first, OK? I don't have an Antec 900 here right now to check. More fans mean more noise too, so don't go overboard with them.

How to build a PC: Google some tutorials on the Web. E.g. http://www.buildeasypc.com/
Or go to Amazon's site or the public library and search for Scott Mueller.

 

[aeiouandxyz]

i could be wrong, but i think your cpu hsf is for am2 socket, not lga775. this would be a good cooler for your cpu.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118223

 

[aevm]

I hate to shoot down your idea, man, but I have to:

1. The Noctua NH-U12P is for LGA775 too.
2. It's better than the Zalman 9500A.
3. The OP has already bought it.

@etavoa: this review might help a bit during installation.
http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.aspx?i=3268&p=2

 

[aeiouandxyz]

It's cool, I just didn't see that the cooler was for 775 too. Most coolers I've seen are compatible for both 775 and am2/am2+ sockets.

@etavoa your build is great. I'm envious lol.

 

[aevm]

Me too