[Solved] Confirming Parts for my first New System build/gaming PC

Following the New Build outline:

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Within the next month or two
BUDGET RANGE: approx $800

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Programming in both Unix and Visual Studio, Gaming, streaming video such as Hulu and Netflix Instant Streaming and regular video play such as movies, standard school and work applications (Word, Excel, MINITAB and Multisim, etc), regular Internet use (IM, e-mail, forums, etc).

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Have keyboard and mouse that are usable now, may upgrade later after build.
Also have 160Gb hard drive that is more than enough for now, will look into an upgrade later.
Currently have brand new Rosewill RP600V2 Power Supply and a new Rosewill Wind Knight Gaming ATX Mid Tower Computer Case from Newegg as the first parts for my build.

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: newegg.com

PARTS PREFERENCES: Prefer to stick with DDR2 RAM, not too worried about getting DDR3. Choice of motherboard reflects this.

OVERCLOCKING: Maybe SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Maybe

MONITOR RESOLUTION: As of the moment, I'm not 100% sure yet, but since the desktop I'm replacing with my build still has an old CRT monitor, any flat panel with at least 1024x768 is a good start, possibly up to 1600x1200?

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Possible change. Found a Newegg bundle that has the motherboard and graphics card I was looking into, which also includes a Core 2 Quad processor:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.271392

RAM: Kingston HyperX 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 Desktop Memory Model KHX8500D2K2/4G - Retail

Just looking for any advice as necessary, any suggestions to brand change (ASUS vs GIGABYTE motherboard, for example).

Message edited by oren naveda on 10-13-2009 at 04:36:29 AM

Reply to oren naveda

That bundle will work with Unix. I would only change the graphics card to 9800GT.
More compatible with Unix.

Message edited by evongugg on 10-13-2009 at 03:52:48 PM

Reply to evongugg

Add this DVD-RW:

PLEXTOR Black 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 24X DVD/CD Writer LightScribe Support - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6827249054

Message quoted 1 times

Reply to evongugg

The motherboard you chose will do Crossfire, but not SLI.
You might want to change the video card to ATI, if you are planning on Crossfire.
Nvidia is preferred on Unix. Better drivers.

Message quoted 1 times
Message edited by evongugg on 10-13-2009 at 04:19:58 PM

Reply to evongugg

evongugg wrote :

The motherboard you chose will do Crossfire, but not SLI.
You might want to change the video card to ATI, if you are planning on Crossfire.
Nvidia is preferred on Unix. Better drivers.

Well Crossfire and SLI are both huge 'maybes', more like an unlikely scenario but I didn't want to rule out anything definitively in case anything changes, but to be honest I won't do Crossfire or SLI, and by the time I do I can probably get a much better motherboard.

However, I realized when I mentioned using Unix that I forgot to mention a detail.
When I get the computer running, I plan on one of two options: 1) Running two separate partitions, one Ubuntu and one Windows 7, or 2) running a full Windows 7 and using VirtualBox to run a virtual Ubuntu system.

I don't use Unix much outside of programming in Unix. It's not that I don't like it, I do, I just grew up using Windows systems and am still more comfortable using them. But I want at least a virtual partition if not a real partition for Ubuntu so that I have the option to use it without dedicating myself to one operating system over another.

Message edited by oren naveda on 10-13-2009 at 08:07:34 PM

Reply to oren naveda

evongugg wrote :

Add this DVD-RW:

PLEXTOR Black 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 24X DVD/CD Writer LightScribe Support - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6827249054

And thanks for the recommendation, I forgot to mention that I will be needing a new DVD/CD drive. That Plextor drive is right at the price I was looking for, so it'll probably be perfect.

Reply to oren naveda

If you will be running win 7 then the ATI 5750 is comparable to the 9800 but is ready for DX11 at the same price. The ATI 5770 is not much more expensive and almost as powerful as the nvidia 260. Both of the 5700s have 1GB RAM and that 9800 only has 512MB, which generally means turning AA and maybe some other memory intensive features off to get good frame rates.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814102859
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814161306

Message quoted 1 times
Message edited by dndhatcher on 10-13-2009 at 09:45:39 PM

Reply to dndhatcher

Best answer

how about these CPU+GPU+MB?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.265477
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814150436
total 413.98$ that costs less.
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.273112
and the same card, 439.97$ which costs a bit more.
both are better builds that allow you more future proof builds

Reply to Daggs

you can take the first gpu from DNDHATCHER's suggestions and replace mine so you get in both build lower price then the triple combo

Reply to Daggs

dndhatcher wrote :

If you will be running win 7 then the ATI 5750 is comparable to the 9800 but is ready for DX11 at the same price. The ATI 5770 is not much more expensive and almost as powerful as the nvidia 260. Both of the 5700s have 1GB RAM and that 9800 only has 512MB, which generally means turning AA and maybe some other memory intensive features off to get good frame rates.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814102859
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814161306

I definitely also like the addition of the HDMI ports, which the nvidia ones lack.
Though DVI is still a likely option.

I think I may have changed my mind about my mobo, gpu, and cpu. Thanks.

Message edited by oren naveda on 10-14-2009 at 03:09:26 AM

Reply to oren naveda

If I were to stick with the nvidia graphics cards, would a 9800 GT 1Gb be a better choice than the 9800 GTX+ 512Mb?

I'm also looking at eVGA or BFG for the actual card, I've seen some deals from some brand called Sparkle, but I've never heard much of them before, though they do have a 9800 GTX+ 1Gb, whereas I can't find an eVGA or a BFG 9800 GTX+ 1Gb, only 512Mb.

Message edited by oren naveda on 10-14-2009 at 02:47:18 AM

Reply to oren naveda

http://www.tomshardware.com/review [...] 387-7.html
According to the chart, a 9800GTX is a significant increase over a 9800GT. Not sure if the extra RAM would be worth it.

Reply to dndhatcher

There is a somewhat more expensive (not too bad, listed around $190) BFG card that might be worthwhile
BFG Tech BFGEGTX260MC896OC2DE GeForce GTX 260 OC2 MAXCORE 55 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

And it's actually on sale right now at BestBuy for $170, which would be $20 cheaper plus I could pick it up in store.

Reply to oren naveda

GTX260 should be ~30~50% faster than a 9800GTX+. Pretty good value at that price.

Message edited by dndhatcher on 10-14-2009 at 03:15:16 AM

Reply to dndhatcher

Doing some number crunching, by switching from my original combo planned to the above suggested AMD Phenom II, GA-MA790GPT and sticking with the EVGA 512-P3-N871-AR GeForce 9800 GTX+ 512MB, I would be sitting at $418.98, which is a savings of $41.

So with the price difference between the BFG - NVIDIA GeForce 260 GTX from BestBuy and the 9800 GTX+ I was planning on getting from newegg being $35, I could spend just about the same amount of money as I was planning for my first build and greatly increase my graphics capabilities.

Sounds like a good plan, no?

Reply to oren naveda

Ok so right now I'm sitting at $453.98 for the motherboard, CPU, and graphics card.

That leaves me 346.02 for RAM and my monitor, plus a possible sound card.
With the change in motherboard, I do need DDR3 instead of DDR2, and I would like 4GB, and if possible something Kingston brand. Recommendations?
Scratch that, the Kingston HyperX 4Gb(2x2Gb) DDR2 1066 RAM I was looking at is only $6 cheaper than an equivalent Kingston HyperX 4Gb(2x2Gb) DDR3 1333 RAM. So that should take care of RAM.

Message edited by oren naveda on 10-14-2009 at 05:02:22 AM

Reply to oren naveda

Original Idea

GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
$134.99 newegg.com
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 Yorkfield 2.83GHz LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80569Q9550 - Retail
$219.99 newegg.com
EVGA 512-P3-N871-AR GeForce 9800 GTX+ 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
$134.99 newegg.com
Kingston HyperX 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 Desktop Memory Model KHX8500D2K2/4G - Retail
$99.99 newegg.com
Combo Discount
($30.00) newegg.com
Shipping
$10.64 newegg.com

Total $570.60

New Idea

GIGABYTE GA-MA790GPT-UD3H AM3 AMD 790GX HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
$114.99 newegg.com
AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor Model HDZ955FBGIBOX - Retail
$189.00 newegg.com
BFG - NVIDIA GeForce 260 GTX OC MAXCORE 55 896MB GDDR3 PCI Express Graphics Card
$169.00 bestbuy.com
Kingston HyperX 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 Desktop Memory Model KHX1333C9D3K2/4G - Retail
$105.99 newegg.com
Combo Discount
($20.00) newegg.com
Shipping
$7.87 newegg.com

Total $566.85

I have to say for those prices and knowing that the 2nd choice would be much faster and w/ superior graphics, it's hands-down a no-brainer. In my opinion, the 2nd setup wins. Outside of those items, I only need a new monitor, DVD/CD drive, and possibly a new mouse and keyboard. But the choice of those components don't factor into the initial decision.

I forgot about a sound card.... Crap. Lol

Message edited by oren naveda on 10-14-2009 at 06:02:23 AM

Reply to oren naveda

Don't worry about a sound card.
Onboard sound is good these days.

Reply to evongugg

http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system [...] A_Edition/

$799

Pre-built. Pay shipping and enjoy! Very good company, Using a computer now that I have had for over a year and a 1/2 without problems, Even put your own OS on it.

Unless your just triyng to build your first build like me, then I think it should be a "Save till your able to get a REALLY good one and then build it!" kinda deal.

Message quoted 2 times
Message edited by dantrona on 10-14-2009 at 04:32:13 PM

Reply to dantrona

dantrona wrote :

http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system [...] A_Edition/

$799

Pre-built. Pay shipping and enjoy! Very good company, Using a computer now that I have had for over a year and a 1/2 without problems, Even put your own OS on it.

Unless your just triyng to build your first build like me, then I think it should be a "Save till your able to get a REALLY good one and then build it!" kinda deal.

It has a throw away piece of trash 9500GT graphics card. Would still have to buy a decent graphics card to make that prebuilt computer game decently.

Reply to dndhatcher

dantrona wrote :

http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/system [...] A_Edition/

$799

Pre-built. Pay shipping and enjoy! Very good company, Using a computer now that I have had for over a year and a 1/2 without problems, Even put your own OS on it.

Unless your just triyng to build your first build like me, then I think it should be a "Save till your able to get a REALLY good one and then build it!" kinda deal.

Well this started out as me attempting to fix up the first desktop I ever had, which was a budget eMachines. The first thing I did was buy the power supply, and that had a REALLY good bundle deal with a tower, so I got both.
But the eMachines was such a piece of junk that the motherboard fried when I attached the power supply. So instead of just fixing up my old computer, now I'm building a new one. Can't use the old processor because it's outdated, and the RAM is 1 stick of 512Mb DDR. I'm keeping the 160Gb HDD though. You can see how 4Gb of DDR3 RAM, a 260 GTX card, and an AMD Phenom II is FAR superior and fits well into my budget.

And it is my first build.

Message edited by oren naveda on 10-14-2009 at 07:52:55 PM

Reply to oren naveda

CPU
Intel Core i5-750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819115215
199.99

MOBO
GIGABYTE GA-P55-UD4P LGA 1156 Intel P55 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128400
169.99

RAM
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBNQ
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820231193
85.99

VIDEO CARD
your choice of Nvidia gtx 260
~179.99

is it just me or did the gtx260's go up in price?

HDD
SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD502HJ 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822152181
54.99

DVD
PLEXTOR Black 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6827249054
44.99

Total = 735.94 before shipping and taxes

sorry, dont have time to look for bundles right now, but im sure you can find some good ones to save some green

Reply to scubba85

Rather than a GTX260, why not a $160 HD 5770 so you get DX11, 3 monitors, etc.

Message quoted 1 times

Reply to dndhatcher

dndhatcher wrote :

Rather than a GTX260, why not a $160 HD 5770 so you get DX11, 3 monitors, etc.

I'd kinda like to stick with nvidia, I like their products, and I don't think I personally need more than 1 monitor, and if I did it would only be 2 at most.

As for your suggestion, scubba85, I wouldn't mind some of those parts, except for the fact that my $800 budget also has to include the price of the flat panel monitor (I REALLY don't want to stick with my old CRT, it's too bulky and a nuisance). So since right now I'd be sitting right around 570ish, that leaves me approximately $230 for a monitor, which should be enough to find a decent 20-23". Don't need anything too big.
But I would like something with HDMI. To plug my 360 into if I ever need a portable screen for it.

Message edited by oren naveda on 10-14-2009 at 08:38:19 PM

Reply to oren naveda

well if we take out the hdd since its not in your lists and if we replace the 260 with the 9800gtx =-)

CPU
Intel Core i5-750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819115215
199.99

MOBO
GIGABYTE GA-P55-UD4P LGA 1156 Intel P55 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128400
169.99

RAM
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBNQ
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820231193
85.99

VIDEO CARD
PNY VCG98GTXPXPB GeForce 9800 GTX+ 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814133246
129.99

DVD
PLEXTOR Black 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6827249054
44.99

Monitor
Acer H213H bmid Black 21.5" 5ms HDMI Full HD 1080P Widescreen 16:9 LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 ACM 20000:1 Built-in Speakers -
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6824009157
159.99

total with shipping before mail in rebates = 806.56
total with shipping after mail in rebates = 786.56

with combos and rebates you could probably squeeze the gtx260 into your budget , or maybe even a hdd instead =-)

EDIT: my bad didnt know my links wernt working 0.o

also you could save a bit on a cheaper dvd burner, just make sure to get one that does dvd-rw and dvd+rw
and there is cheaper ram to be had but im no expert on that either
OH and the monitor i posted had speakers, so this one might work better and its cheaper

Acer P224Wbd Black 22" 5ms Widescreen LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 10000:1 (ACM) - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6824009174

Message edited by scubba85 on 10-15-2009 at 04:53:52 AM

Reply to scubba85

For an LCD monitor: http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Sync [...] B0012TVEOY

Its a decent monitor, 700:1 contrast ratio, Able to go up to 1680x1050@60Hz
You can also bump down the resolution to 1280x1024@75Hz if you want to, but i wouldn't. I personally own this monitor and have had it for oh, at least 6 months and nothing has happened to it.

Reply to dantrona

Edit to previous post...also, where ya at OP?

Reply to scubba85

I'm not sure what you mean.
Do you mean where am I at On Price?

Reply to oren naveda

Just wondering what you input is, so that we can tweak/change the build to fit your budget and preference

Reply to scubba85

Gotcha.
Well actually, that last build I submitted with the 260 GTX, the Gigabyte board, and the AMD phenom II sounds like a good setup. It's not too expensive and fits in my budget and leaves enough for a monitor, it has a great graphics card so that when I game I can do it right, and the DDR3 is a step up from the DDR2 system I originally suggested, which means it should be faster overall and it's about the same price as my first idea.

And I do have a preference towards nvidia in terms of graphics, but I don't want anything from brands I don't know like Sparkle. Preferably EVGA or BFG if I can.
The monitor I want to have an HDMI port.
As for a hard drive, if down the line I decide to get a new one I'll probably like something roughly around 500Gb so that it can store much more music, videos, and pictures, but I don't think I'll need a Tb.
For a disc drive, I want something that can write both CDs and DVDs.

Reply to oren naveda

Well that build is definitely better then any e-machine =-)

I havent done an amd build since the my last socket 939, so someone else will have to perfect this build, but it looks pretty good to me. I would suggest dropping a bit of cash on a 7200rpm modern hard drive. If you have an older one that is slower than 7200rpm you will notice a difference in the newer one.

Reply to scubba85

Well I noticed that the suggested 500GB, 7200RPM HDD was only 54.99, so if I save enough money on my monitor, I can likely afford to get a new HDD.

Reply to oren naveda

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