First time homebuilt computer specs and checklist.

[newcomputerbuilder]

Hi, This is my first post here, so if I do anything considered a no-no please tell me.
Anyway I am building my first computer for gaming, and would like to spend somewhere in the neighborhood of $400-$550.
I think I have all the parts I need, and want to make sure before I buy that all the parts will work smoothly.
O.K Here goes,

AMD Phenom II X6 1090T 3.20 Ghz

ASUS M4A88T-M AM3 Socket Micro ATX

ASUS ENGT430/DI/1GD3/MG(LP) GeForce GT 430 Video Card - 1024MB, DDR3, PCI-Express

Cooler Master HAF 922

WD Caviar Blue 500Gb SATA 3

Cooler Master 750W ATX Power Supply

Corsair Vengeance Blue 8Gb DDR3 1600mhz (dual channel)

Cheapo-ASUS DVD-CD drive

I probably need a better motherboard, but have no idea where to look. Thanks

 

[adgjlsfhk]

Please add links so I can see exactly what you are getting. Also add what type of gaming you are doing. For general advice, I would go with an I3 or I5 CPU. This will increase performance a lot without increasing price. Go with an H61 mobo. You also only need about a 500 watt psu.

 

[g-unit1111]

The biggest no no is the Phenom II 1090T - go with the i3-2120 and an H67 instead, something like this:

Motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131783
CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115077

I also wouldn't recommend a Cooler Master PSU either - this would be a better choice:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139020

And the Geforce 430 would be a huge bottleneck if you try to run any sort of games on high or ultra. If you want a low budget card get a Radeon 6770:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102937

 

[newcomputerbuilder]

O.K First I have to explain something, you will probably not know what this "game" is but Its popular with the military and FAA, Its called Xplane its a flight simulator and can use everything you've got on your computer, and I'd like to be able to use it at near max settings. www.x-plane.com/desktop/system-requirements/ Do you think an i3 could handle it? (not a big fan of Intel they are big time price gougers to me).

 

[g-unit1111]

O.K First I have to explain something, you will probably not know what this "game" is but Its popular with the military and FAA, Its called Xplane its a flight simulator and can use everything you've got on your computer, and I'd like to be able to use it at near max settings. www.x-plane.com/desktop/system-requirements/ Do you think an i3 could handle it? (not a big fan of Intel they are big time price gougers to me).

An i3-2120 will outperform a Phenom II 1090T easily, check this article out: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-fx-pentium-apu-benchmark,3120.html

You could always go with an i5-2400 just to be on the safe side: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115074

 

[newcomputerbuilder]

An i3-2120 will outperform a Phenom II 1090T easily, check this article out: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-fx-pentium-apu-benchmark,3120.html

You could always go with an i5-2400 just to be on the safe side: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115074

What about an EVGA GeForce GTX 550 Ti 2048 MB GDDR5? Oh and it has to all work with ubuntu linux, if that complicates things.

 

[g-unit1111]

What about an EVGA GeForce GTX 550 Ti 2048 MB GDDR5? Oh and it has to all work with ubuntu linux, if that complicates things.

I use that card and it's OK - if you can get a better 560 or 560TI that's what I would recommend.

 

[newcomputerbuilder]

2 final things Is the EVGA card better than the ATI. Can you suggest the best card you know of? And will everything work with 64 bit Ubuntu Linux?
Thanks for being so helpful.

 

[g-unit1111]

2 final things Is the EVGA card better than the ATI. Can you suggest the best card you know of? And will everything work with 64 bit Ubuntu Linux?
Thanks for being so helpful.

The ATI is definitely better than the low-end EVGA card. I don't really use Ubuntu so I can't help you there.