Next build questions

[mrbagrat]

I have everything decided except the PSU.

Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 - $322.00
ASUS P5W DH DELUXE - $219.99
CORSAIR XMS2 2GB - $264.00 ($40.00 Rebate)
RAIDMAX RX-630A - $99.99 ($20.00 Rebate) or Antec True Power Trio - $129.99 ($20.00 Rebate)
Western Digital Caviar 250GB 7200 RPM - $69.99
NZXT Apollo BLACK - $69.99 I got a newsletter from Newegg saying that this case had a $20 rebate or something. But it isn't showing up. Anyone else get this?
LG 18X DVD±R Super-Multi DVD Burner - $30.99

The reason I'm apprehensive about which RAM or PSU to get is that I know each is a good brand and a good product, but Antec and Corsair have a much better reputation and renown then Raidmax and Patriot. I know the latter are still great brands, but is it worth paying the extra $5 for the RAM and the extra 30 for the PSU? If it isn't 100% necessary, I'd rather stick with the cheaper option.

[NEvolution]

Get the e6400 - $222.00 and OC that.
Then get the P5B Deluxe - $179.99, which is better and cheaper.
I would go with this PSU: OCZ Gamextream 600W - $134.99
And here's a set of ram that I'd recommend. G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5400) - $219.99

And for GPU, I guess you should get a cheaper set for now and wait for the DX10 prices to settle and for the lower end DX10 cards to release in around February.

HDD and case are pretty much personal preference. And the optical drive almost doesn't even matter.

[mrbagrat]

I had decided to get an E6600 a while ago. Best price/performance ratio. And it has double the L2 cache. I looked at that mobo before but the only reason I didn't choose it was that it doesn't have quad core support for the future. I really don't see how its better: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131045
The Deluxe tops it or equals it in every category except sata connections. And I highly, highly doubt I'll ever need 8 drives.
I'd rather stick with the better DDR2 800. I can afford it.

As for the PSU, do I really need 4 12v rails? It seems overkill to me. If I really need that much, I'd go for the Antec. Unless it'll make a huge difference. Will it?

Yeah, I'm waiting till R600/midline GeForce cards. For now my old MX4000 will have to do.

[NEvolution]

Uh, the P5B Deluxe does have Quad Core Support. Proof
And it overclocks much better than the P5W DH, along with all the other bells and whistles, for a lower price.

And since you have the money, get the 2gb kit of this ram. Link (Team Xtreem DDR2 800MHz TXDD1024M800HC4DC)
They're D9's and they also overclock very well.

And for power, since you're waiting for the R600/Midline G80 cards, then you will indeed need a good power supply with stable rails.
So you should get at least something like this. Link (PC Power & Cooling SILENCER 610W)
A PSU with one stable and high efficiency 12V rail.

You might also want to think about getting a full ATX tower if you do plan on getting a a mid-higher end video card.
Otherwise, your card might end up like this. (Depending on how you orient your drives)


That is a X1900XT in an ASPIRE X-Dreamer II just for reference.

[PopeOfDope]

The P5B is better compared to the P5W DH. The P5B has control over the multiplier of your CPU but the P5W does not, which is detrimental to OCing.
This article compares the 3 ASUS motherboards for core2duo http://techreport.com/reviews/2006q3...d/index.x?pg=1 and the P5B came out on top.

As for RAM, you can't really go wrong with Corsair and I have had good experiences with them in terms of quality. If you are more interested in overclocking, take a look at this graph:



Decide which one has the best price / performance ratio that suits your budget.

For your PSU, the OCZ gamexstream and PC power and cooling PSUs are great. I personally prefer Corsair. A review of their 620 PSU is here http://www.silentpcreview.com/article692-page1.html
It is very efficient, modular and it has a large 120mm fan instead of the traditional 80mm fans so it is much more silent than other PSUs.

One of the complaints certain enthusaists will say that modular power supplies have increased resistance :. bad for overclocking. However the corsair powersupply has a non modular power connector, so you get the benefit of easy cable management and less resistance.

DVD drive: Get this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827106046
It's sata which means better cables and none of that master/slave nonsense.

Hard drive: Just get a seagate 7200.10 drive. Perpendicular recording = faster read/write. Also the 5 year warranty is great.

The case is all up to personal preference. I like Cooler master cases since the airflow in those seems to be good.

[Glynnder]

I have this:

http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/produ...uct_uid=103561
coolermaster case, and its brilliant, nice airflow, spacious, looks great. One disadvantage is the LED on the front is a little bright

I think that'll be about $120

[mrbagrat]

Originally Posted by NEvolution

Uh, the P5B Deluxe does have Quad Core Support. Proof
And it overclocks much better than the P5W DH, along with all the other bells and whistles, for a lower price.

Ok cool. The P5B it is. Will the 965 chipset have any major impact on anything? I did hear that they did better at overclocking what doesn't it have that 975 chipsets do?

And since you have the money, get the 2gb kit of this ram. Link (Team Xtreem DDR2 800MHz TXDD1024M800HC4DC)
They're D9's and they also overclock very well.

I had the $ to go from DDR2 667 to 800. It doesn't even say the price of that-how much is it? I'm on a strict 1500$ budget-that has to include everything, including taxes, shipping, Vista, and eventually the GPU.

And for power, since you're waiting for the R600/Midline G80 cards, then you will indeed need a good power supply with stable rails.
So you should get at least something like this. Link (PC Power & Cooling SILENCER 610W)
A PSU with one stable and high efficiency 12V rail.

Argh...too many PSUs to choose from.

You might also want to think about getting a full ATX tower if you do plan on getting a a mid-higher end video card.
Otherwise, your card might end up like this. (Depending on how you orient your drives)

Now that I saw that picture I will.

Originally Posted by PopeOfDope

As for RAM, you can't really go wrong with Corsair and I have had good experiences with them in terms of quality. If you are more interested in overclocking, take a look at this graph:

Corsair RAM then.

For your PSU, the OCZ gamexstream and PC power and cooling PSUs are great. I personally prefer Corsair. A review of their 620 PSU is here http://www.silentpcreview.com/article692-page1.html
It is very efficient, modular and it has a large 120mm fan instead of the traditional 80mm fans so it is much more silent than other PSUs.

Too many PSU choices. OCZ, Antec, PC P&C, Corsair...

DVD drive: Get this http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...E1682 7106046
It's sata which means better cables and none of that master/slave nonsense.

Isn't liteon that stuff that makes an image on the dataless side of the disk? But sure, for near the same price I'll get it.

Hard drive: Just get a seagate 7200.10 drive. Perpendicular recording = faster read/write. Also the 5 year warranty is great.

this good? Whats the difference btwn the .9 and the .10 at the end of 7200?

The case is all up to personal preference. I like Cooler master cases since the airflow in those seems to be good.

I dunno why, I never really liked their design. At least the onces with the wavy front. But I'll check them out. What are some other good full towers?

Will I really miss the extra cache in the E6600 if I were to go down to a 400 or 300? I mean, I could always OC those. It looks like I need more moolah to get both a full tower and a better PSU.

[NEvolution]

Originally Posted by mrbagrat

Ok cool. The P5B it is. Will the 965 chipset have any major impact on anything? I did hear that they did better at overclocking what doesn't it have that 975 chipsets do?
Not entirely sure.

I had the $ to go from DDR2 667 to 800. It doesn't even say the price of that-how much is it? I'm on a strict 1500$ budget-that has to include everything, including taxes, shipping, Vista, and eventually the GPU.
That's the official site, so it won't show prices. Not sure where you can buy it in the US. Couldn't
find it at Newegg.
Take a look a this in regards to some good ram, and especially the ones with D9 chips. Link
And take a look at the Corsair, G.Skill, Team Group.

Argh...too many PSUs to choose from.
Yea, Silverstone, PC Power and Cooling, OCZ, Antec are pretty good.


Now that I saw that picture I will.
Yup, Full ATX ftw!

Isn't liteon that stuff that makes an image on the dataless side of the disk? But sure, for near the same price I'll get it.
The stuff for printing images is called Lightscribe.


this good? Whats the difference btwn the .9 and the .10 at the end of 7200?
The .10's are faster. Somewhat.


I dunno why, I never really liked their design. At least the onces with the wavy front. But I'll check them out. What are some other good full towers?
Thermaltake Armor.
CoolerMaster Stacker 830

Will I really miss the extra cache in the E6600 if I were to go down to a 400 or 300? I mean, I could always OC those.
Not really, unless you're comparing an OC'ed e6600 with an OC'ed e6400 lol.
Otherwise you could just get an e6400 and use the saved money somewhere else.
It looks like I need more moolah to get both a full tower and a better PSU.
Yup, that's what I'm saving for. A better case and GPU.

Answers in quote.

[mrbagrat]

Since the Lite-on drives are sold out (and from what I've read from various locations don't stay in for very long) I'm going to go with the $45 samsung at the top of the page. I'm also getting the Gigabyte Aurora for my case. Looks great to me, and 3 120mm fans is a nice deal. As for the PSU, I'm getting the Antec. Its antec, after all. You can't beat their reputation.

Now all I need to decide is whether to get the 6400 or the 6300.

[NEvolution]

It would be best to include exact links to what you're getting, in the format:

Product 1: Link
Product 2: Link

And I would have to say go for the e6400. It doesn't cost that much more than the e6300 but it's best for the money.

[mrbagrat]

Now that I have everything I need, thats what I'll do. I just didn't want to keep making a list over and over again-I was asking this on 2 other forums as well.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811233002
GIGABYTE 3D AURORA GZ-FSCA1-ANB Black Computer Case - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145590
CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X2048-6400 - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827151141
SAMSUNG 18X DVD±R DVD Burner With 12X DVD-RAM Write, LightScribe Technology Black SATA Model SH-S183L - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131045
ASUS P5B Deluxe ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...FN1TS2GxLBAjyA
Seagate 320GB 7200 16MB SATA-300 OEM Hard Drive ST3320620AS at TigerDirect.com

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Produc...t=pricegrabber
Corsair HX Series CMPSU-620HX 620W Power Supply at ZipZoomfly

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115004
Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 Conroe 2.13GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6400 - Retail

Subtotals:
Newegg: $840.97
TigerDirect: $106.98
ZipZoomFly: $146.90

Taxes:
Newegg: $60.97
TigerDirect: $0.00
ZipZoomFly: $10.65

Shipping:
Newegg: $22.93
TigerDirect: $6.99
ZipZoomFly: 0.00

Totals:
Newegg: $924.87
TigerDirect: $106.98
ZipZoomFly: $157.55

Rebates:
Newegg: $40 (RAM)
TigerDirect: $20 (Hard Drive)
ZipZoomFly: $15 (PSU)

Grand Total: $1014.40

[NEvolution]

Seems good from what I see.

Not so sure about the power supply as I've never heard of Corsair making PSU's.
I'd rather throw in another $30-40 and get this.
I wouldn't skimp out on the PSU as it's pretty much the most important part in a build.

And what about the GPU?

[mrbagrat]

Originally Posted by NEvolution

Seems good from what I see.

Not so sure about the power supply as I've never heard of Corsair making PSU's.
I'd rather throw in another $30-40 and get this.
I wouldn't skimp out on the PSU as it's pretty much the most important part in a build.

And what about the GPU?

Well its gotten good reviews all around-on sites and by customers. 100% 5 stars on newegg has to say something, then all the review sites giving it praise.

I'm waiting for midrange DX10 cards to come out. Till then I'll cope w/ my MX4000 till then. And 2000.

[PopeOfDope]

Corsair Powersupplies are rebadged Seasonics built with higher quality parts, a different fan and modular cables.
I remember reading a thread on another forum where the guy who made it explained all his part choices and why e.g. the longer than usual power connector to fit those upside down cases, the lack of modularity in the power connector, why he chose that specific 120mm fan etc. Also with the power supply you get a 5 year warranty which is pretty impressive compared to other power supplies.

Antec power supplies have been known to fail a bit http://techreport.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=19257

Also if you are waiting for cheaper DX10 cards and you think you might get an nVidia one, buy an eVGA card right now and use their step up plan when the new cards get release. Basically if you buy a new eVGA card withing 3 months of your initial purchase, you only pay the difference.
Since there isn't much info or benchmarks on the R600 yet, you might be better off waiting until you can compare them then make a decision. Bare in mind that most developers have been working with the 8800 series to make first generation DX10 games so it is likely that the performance of the nVidia cards are better.