Do I have what I need and will it work together?

[Guest]

So I'm building my PC from the ground up, and I want to make sure I got all the parts I'll need and it'll fit together before I go off spending my money.
I will be using the Windows 7 64-bit as my OS.

XION AXP Gaming Series Mid-Tower
ASUS M4A88TD-M Motherboard
AMD Phenom II X2 HDX550WFGMBOX Processor
Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 ST31500341AS Hard Drive
XFX HD-485X-ZNFC Radeon HD 4850
Creative Labs X-Fi XtremeGamer PCI Sound Card
Power Up 550-Watt Power Supply with 120mm Cooling Fan
Lite-On IHAS22406 Internal DVD Writer

As well as 4 GB (2GB sticks x2) of DDR2 RAM from Crucial. Please tell me what you think, will it work, is it decent, etc.

 

[xxsk8er101xx]

Is this a gaming computer or one to use word with? Because it's a bit overkill on word.

 

[Guest]

It's a gaming PC, and as time goes on, I'll spend more on better parts for upgrades, but this is just where I want to start now.

 

[xxsk8er101xx]

Just some suggestions.

Read reviews on those parts make sure there isn't a common problem.
The motherboard you chose uses DDR3 not DDR2
I highly suggest that you do not get the seagate 1.5tb drive but instead get the newer Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 ST31000528AS 1TB drive http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148433 .

I'm not sure if you need the sound card. Lots of the onboard motherboards have decent onboard sound. I wouldn't bother until afterwards if you feel the onboard isn't good. That's up to you though.

good luck!

It's a gaming PC, and as time goes on, I'll spend more on better parts for upgrades, but this is just where I want to start now.

 

[Guest]

Just some suggestions.

Read reviews on those parts make sure there isn't a common problem.
The motherboard you chose uses DDR3 not DDR2
I highly suggest that you do not get the seagate 1.5tb drive but instead get the newer Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 ST31000528AS 1TB drive http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148433 .

I'm not sure if you need the sound card. Lots of the onboard motherboards have decent onboard sound. I wouldn't bother until afterwards if you feel the onboard isn't good. That's up to you though.

good luck!

What's so good about the new Seagate Barracuda that makes it better than the older version, with that much less space as well?

Also, since I'm still new at this, would this be a suitable replacement for the motherboard I was looking at?
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5019773&Sku=M452-6066
Or can someone suggest something better, still inexpensive, that runs DDR2. It will run my Phenom II processor and fit in the tower, but only has 8 GB RAM available and only has 4 USB drives...

 

[xxsk8er101xx]

There are known problems with those 1.5tb drives and that is why they're cheap. What makes the one I chose, the 1tb - newer is the 7200.12 coding vs the 7200.11 on the 1.5tb drive. Difference is likely just a more refined firmware and less platters so less heat and noise. Maybe even slightly faster.

The board you picked out has a Socket AM2+ so it's older and will not support socket AM3 processors. I would suggest you stick with DDR3 so you get the latest technology.

Just as I thought your processor is a AMD HDX550WFGMBOX Phenom II X2 550 Dual Core Processor - 3.10GHz, Socket AM3, 6MB Cache, 2000MHz (4000 MT/s), Retail CPU w/ Fan so it needs a motherboard with a AM3 socket which will likely have DDR3 on it.

What's so good about the new Seagate Barracuda that makes it better than the older version, with that much less space as well?

Also, since I'm still new at this, would this be a suitable replacement for the motherboard I was looking at?
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5019773&Sku=M452-6066
Or can someone suggest something better, still inexpensive, that runs DDR2. It will run my Phenom II processor and fit in the tower, but only has 8 GB RAM available and only has 4 USB drives...

 

[Guest]

There are known problems with those 1.5tb drives and that is why they're cheap. What makes the one I chose, the 1tb - newer is the 7200.12 coding vs the 7200.11 on the 1.5tb drive. Difference is likely just a more refined firmware and less platters so less heat and noise. Maybe even slightly faster.

The board you picked out has a Socket AM2+ so it's older and will not support socket AM3 processors. I would suggest you stick with DDR3 so you get the latest technology.

Alright, thanks for being able to explain your reasonings and help me out with finishing it up.

So everything else is fine, just need to upgrade to DDR3?

P.S.

Bah, DDR3 is expensive... -Grumbles-

 

[xxsk8er101xx]

With what you picked out you need DDR3 RAM.

if you really want DDR2 you just need to find a cpu, mobo, and ram combo that will work.

Good luck!

Alright, thanks for being able to explain your reasonings and help me out with finishing it up.

So everything else is fine, just need to upgrade to DDR3?

P.S.

Bah, DDR3 is expensive... -Grumbles-

 

[Guest]

Best answer selected by Eskimow.