Building my first PC on my own - overlook?

[bonesred]

I've built one in the past with help from a friend, but I'm on my own on this one and was wondering if I could get confirmation that everything here will work together and that it's a good fit for what I need.

I'm building this for 70% graphic design/multi-tasking and 30% gaming. I wanted to be under 550$ and already have 4 gigs of corsair DDR2 PC 6400 ram and a 9500gt from my last computer.

This is what I put together on new egg,

core 2 quad q9550 - 219$
GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - 135$
This combo, http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.242609 - 50$


Then a WD 320 gb HD for 50 and samsung DVD/CD burner for 30.

 

[amdfangirl]

Unless you OC you don't need the P45.

 

[bonesred]

Well, I've never overclocked before, but if it isn't too difficult I would like to do it. What would be a better option if I don't OC?

 

[amdfangirl]

Well you could go with a cheaper option like the G41. It can still OC, just not as well (you get what you pay for)

P45s usually have higher quality parts tho.

 

[shortstuff_mt]

That motherboard is a waste for your system. It supports crossfire (ATI graphics cards), not SLI (Nvidia graphics cards). You might as well just go with something like the GA-EP43-UD3L and put the money toward a real power supply. That Rosewill PSU is a POS. No active PFC, 72% efficiency, and low 12v Amp rating are a dead giveaway of a ticking time bomb.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.253270 (Q9550 + GA-EP43-UD3L combo) $289.98

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.245592 (Antec 300 + EA430 PSU) $89.94

Edit: You could save even more money without sacrificing any performance by going with an AMD build.

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor - Retail $189

GIGABYTE GA-MA770-UD3 AM2+/AM2 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail $74.99 - $10 MIR

 

[bonesred]

Hm -- maybe I will go the AMD route, both of my past rigs have been AMD and they've treated me well. They say it's comparable to the i5? Will 450w be enough? There is a small combo deal with that case with a 550w supply.

The AMD setup with the suggested case and power supply would put me at about 450 still, so I could invest a bit more. Perhaps upping that mobo a bit?

Thanks to both of you!

 

[shortstuff_mt]

The EA430 is a high quality PSU that will power up to a HD 4850. Will you be upgrading your 9500GT anytime soon? I don't really see any reason to upgrade the motherboard. The more expensive models just add options like a second PCI-E slot for crossfire, which doesn't do you any good with your Nvidia GPU.

 

[bonesred]

I just purchased the 9500gt, so although I could probably afford to upgrade it I'd take a hit unless I can sell it for a decent price (I was in a rush to be able to play Dead Space and stupidly paid 100 for it at BB).
Perhaps I'll just save the extra money and put it toward a new GPU in the future, unless it'd be worth adding another 2 gigs for 6 total.

Or perhaps a faster HD considering I will be transferring and saving a lot of big files?

Thanks again everyone, here's where I'm at --

Antec Three Hundred Black + 450w power supply, http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.245592
GIGABYTE GA-MA770-UD3, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128376&cm_re=gigabyte_770-_-13-128-376-_-Product
AMD Phenom II x4 955, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103674&cm_re=phenom_ii_x4_955-_-19-103-674-_-Product
WD HD 500g, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136073

And some generic DVD/CD burner, 4 gigs of corsair PC2 6400 ram and 9500gt from current rig.

 

[shortstuff_mt]

Your motherboard supports dual channel RAM, so it's best to use an even number of RAM sticks. 6GB isn't a good idea on your build. You also need to keep in mind that you need to use a 64-bit OS to fully use 4GB of RAM.

The new Samsung F3 hard drives are faster and cheaper than that drive.

SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM $49.99

 

[bonesred]

Okay I understand, and I'll be on Windows 7 64bit so should be okay there.

I guess that settles it then. I'll just set aside the money saved for a new GPU sometime. Thanks guys, will purchase today.

 

[bonesred]

This may be a very stupid question, but in the past I've always been told to pair ATI and AMD - is there some kind of performance increase as opposed to Nvidia and AMD?

EDIT: Is the motherboard suggested even compatible with the Phenom II 955? The 955 is AM3 and the mobo says it supports AM2 and doesn't say anything about Phenom II,

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128376

 

[shortstuff_mt]

There is not really any benefit to pairing ATI and AMD. An Nvidia GPU will perform just as well on an AMD system as it will on an Intel system. No worries there.

Yes, the motherboard does support the Phenom II X4 955. The version 1.0 board supports it starting with BIOS version F5 released on 03-25-09.

http://www.gigabyte.us/Support/Motherboard/CPUSupport_Model.aspx?ProductID=2978

The version 2.0 board supports the 955 starting with BIOS version FD released on 08-12-09.

http://www.gigabyte.us/Support/Motherboard/CPUSupport_Model.aspx?ProductID=3097

 

[amdfangirl]

This may be a very stupid question, but in the past I've always been told to pair ATI and AMD - is there some kind of performance increase as opposed to Nvidia and AMD?

EDIT: Is the motherboard suggested even compatible with the Phenom II 955? The 955 is AM3 and the mobo says it supports AM2 and doesn't say anything about Phenom II,

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128376

It is usually good for pair AMD and ATi if you intend to use Crossfire.

Most Am2+ mobos support Phenom II.

I would imgine the latest retail boards will have the new BIOS.

 

[jsc]

While you are waiting for your parts to arrive, take a look at the first part of this thread:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/261145-31-read-posting-boot-problems

It's primarily a troubleshooting guide, but the first part of the thread contains a checklist that covers the common mistakes that people make during a build.

 

[bonesred]

Thanks for the link jsc. I had planned on following a youtube video.. this will be helpful.