First Self-Built Computer

[Transmaniacon]

Hi guys, been visiting here for a while, and the information here is fantastic. My current desktop is showing its age, and I have therefore decided to upgrade this winter, and would like your opinions on my hardware choices, and hopefully if there are any conflicts, you guys can enlighten me. This will be a gaming/multimedia computer, and not gaming as in Crysis on High, but just something that will run current and future games well. Heres what I have chosen:

Motherboard:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128358

CPU:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115036

RAM:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146731

Hard Drive:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148288

CPU Cooler:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835186134

Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005

Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811156063

I chose the dual core processor because of the higher clock speed, and therefore better performance in today's games. I have never tried over clocking, but here that the motherboard and CPU both will provide good results, should I feel the need. The case is something I spent a lot of time choosing, I originally had an Antec 300 picked out, but decided on the Smilodon because it looks nicer, has similar cooling ability, and with the fold away motherboard panel, I think it will be more user-friendly for a new computer builder.
I will probably hold off on the video card at the moment, I have one that should be fine for a little longer, but am looking at the ATI HD4850 when I do upgrade.

So, what do you guys think? I think the actual components are good choices, my main concern is making sure everything will work together, the PSU isn't too big for that case? Which is the best way to orient the CPU cooler in the case, and what kind of airflow system should I aim for? If you have any better suggestions for me, I would love to here them. Thanks,

- Nick

 

[ajcroteau]

That's a great first system. The only caviot is it's Crossfire only. But if you become an ATI loyalist, shouldn't be a problem.

LOL, the specs on my first system were as follows:

486DX33
4 Meg Of Ram
40 Meg (not Gig) Hard Drive
no soundcard
no cd-rom drive
some crap video card, i think at that time memory was still shared so that video card didn't have onboard memory.
some flimsy cheap case
mono-chrome monitor (I kid you not)
... oh can't forget the 3.5" floppy disk drive.

it came installed with DOS 6.22 and Windows 3.1... and nothing else... LOL.

The hard drive was IDE and motherboards just barely started coming out with onboard IDE. Unfortunately, this motherboard didn't have that, so it also came with a seperate IDE controller card.

Everything was 16-bit ISA, no pci yet...

...and this was about oh... 15 years ago.

Computer's have come a long way haven't they.

 

[Transmaniacon]

Yea I do not have plans of running SLI, I have been hearing its not as great as crossfire, and if I ever did switch to NVidia, I would probably invest in a 280 and not need more than one.

 

[jitpublisher]

My 486/33DX had a 3.5 AND a 5.25 floppy drive.
To the OP, nice build. Enjoy it!

 

[3lvis]

All solid parts.

I would consider is upping the wattage on your PSU to 750 for $20 more. This will give you the headroom to upgrade to any videocard you want.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

Also, consider going with the 640 GB HD for $10 more. Not gonna find 140 GB cheaper then $10.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148335

Most of the compatibility issues are between motherboard and ram. You've picked some nice 1.8v (JEDEC standard) modules, so it shouldn't be an issue.

 

[Transmaniacon]

Thanks for the suggestion, having the stronger power supply is a good change, and I will upgrade to the 750 watt corsair model. And 10 dollars for an extra 140 gigs of space is a steal, thanks for the heads up .

 

[Transmaniacon]

I have been thinking about things, and I dont think I will ever need to get anything larger than the HD4850, due to screen size. I have recently purchased a very nice 19" 2ms Samsung LCD Monitor, and don't forsee upgrading anytime soon, that being said, I should see good performance from the HD4850 and this made me rethink my power supply choice. I was talking a friend to a friend who mentioned the modular design is incredibly helpful, it reduces clutter and improves airflow. I found this corsair modular 520 watt power supply, and am wondering if this is sufficient for me needs? I used an online power calculator and it told me even with 2 HD4850 in crossfire, I would only need 380 watts. This power supply http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139001 has great reviews, but I just want to make sure it will be strong enough to eventually support 2 HD4850 in crossfire, in addition to the above hardware.

I can also bundle with this memory http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145184 and save some more money. Is this memory comparable to the mushkin?

 

[kurtyboh]

yeah that corsair seems to be pretty solid. and +1 to running crossfire if it came to it. some of the top games will chunk out the graphix even on a 19", not cuttin down on the 4850 at all but you may want to consider it an option for the future.

also a lot of the psu calcs are on the light side since the calculator is checking your system at 80% if your running at 100% your gettin close to the top end, then take in to account that your psu is prob 10-20% fluctuation (because of efficency) and you may have some issues.. if it isnt rock solid. so i'd only get the 520 if youre not planning on ever running crossfire bump up to min 550 for crossfire most likely 600.

 

[Transmaniacon]

You make a good point, ill bump it up to the 620 watt and then I will be set for crossfire when I am able to pick up a second 4850.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139002

 

[Transmaniacon]

I am looking forward to ordering my parts soon as I finish up exams. I have decided to upgrade to the new G.SKILL PI Black 4GB RAM, as it has better timings and is cheaper =).

Cable management is probably going to be a priority for me...I like things neat, so I was planning on getting the modular corsair 620HX. However, I was reading and saw that the Antec 300 has a spot along the drive bays to tuck extra cables, and I was wondering if its adequate. If so, I could save 40 bucks and get the 650TX.

Also, the new G.Skill RAM is pretty tall, and my CPU cooler is pretty big, has anyone had any clearance issues with the Arctic Cooler Freezer 7 Pro on Gigabyte boards?