Build for My Friend

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JonMooring

Golden Member
Aug 30, 2004
1,047
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My friend is finally kicking the Dell to the curb and letting me build him a new computer. He had a $2000 budget, including building fees (paid to me in a new heatsink :D), so here it is:

Cooler Master Praetorian
510W PC Power & Cooling
DFI LanParty UT NF4 Ultra-D
AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+
Thermalright XP-90 (x2, one for me :D)
2x1GB OCZ Platinum PC3200
EVGA GeForce 7800GTX
2x160GB Samsung SpinPoint SATA II
NEC 16x/8x DL DVD-RW

Throw your opinions in there! Everything is being bought off of NewEgg, only place I shop new online :) I know some of you guys will bash the system, but what can I do?
 
D

daftpunkit

Senior member
Aug 18, 2005
267
1
76
people are gonna say "nay" to the case and suggest Antec P180 or something less flashy, but if your friend wants flashy, then please him by all means, it's his computer.

The rest looks good.
 
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Crescent13

Diamond Member
Jan 12, 2005
4,793
1
0
Ok, I'll go through part by part.

CASE: good
PSU: get an OCZ Powerstream or Modstream
MOTHERBOARD: I would either get the Evga Free MoBo deal or the cheaper DFI board and mod it to the SLI-DR.
CPU: It's good, but if you can save some money elsewhere (like on the PSU maybe), then get a x2 3800+
FAN: If you have to get it right now, then get the XP-90C, but if you can wait a bit, get the CNPS9500 (I'll find a link soon), it is supposed to cool about 2 degrees C cooler than water :D
RAM: looks good
GRAPHIC CARD: great
HARD DRIVE: Get Samsung hard drives, they support SATAII
DVD BURNER: looks good
 
mindwreck

mindwreck

Golden Member
May 25, 2003
1,585
1
81
Everythings looks fine. the tsunami isnt' my case of choice but thats up to him. thats a pretty hefty buliding fee especially for a friend. I usually charge 0 or 10 bucks max
 
S

Snooper

Senior member
Oct 10, 1999
465
1
76
I generally stick to a free meal (home cooked or out to eat) as a building fee for friends and family. If that.
 
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JonMooring

Golden Member
Aug 30, 2004
1,047
0
0
Originally posted by: mindwreck
Everythings looks fine. the tsunami isnt' my case of choice but thats up to him. thats a pretty hefty buliding fee especially for a friend. I usually charge 0 or 10 bucks max
Click to expand...

His dad is paying for a good chunk of it, we're filling holes to get every bit out of his deep wallet and push it as far to $2000 as we can :p And it comes out to about $2050 shipped actually
 
J

JonMooring

Golden Member
Aug 30, 2004
1,047
0
0
Originally posted by: Crescent13
Ok, I'll go through part by part.

CASE: good
PSU: get an OCZ Powerstream or Modstream
MOTHERBOARD: I would either get the Evga Free MoBo deal or the cheaper DFI board and mod it to the SLI-DR.
CPU: It's good, but if you can save some money elsewhere (like on the PSU maybe), then get a x2 3800+
FAN: If you have to get it right now, then get the XP-90C, but if you can wait a bit, get the CNPS9500 (I'll find a link soon), it is supposed to cool about 2 degrees C cooler than water :D
RAM: looks good
GRAPHIC CARD: great
HARD DRIVE: Get Samsung hard drives, they support SATAII
DVD BURNER: looks good
Click to expand...

Can't wait for the 9500, would if we could :( As far as the Mod/Powerstream, I've heard the Fortron outperforms. And what's wrong with the Ultra-D? It's the low-end compared to the two SLI models =X Are Samsung drives comparable in price to the Seagates? I have 2x160GB Seagates and personally love them :D
 
C

Crescent13

Diamond Member
Jan 12, 2005
4,793
1
0
Originally posted by: JonMooring
Originally posted by: Crescent13
Ok, I'll go through part by part.

CASE: good
PSU: get an OCZ Powerstream or Modstream
MOTHERBOARD: I would either get the Evga Free MoBo deal or the cheaper DFI board and mod it to the SLI-DR.
CPU: It's good, but if you can save some money elsewhere (like on the PSU maybe), then get a x2 3800+
FAN: If you have to get it right now, then get the XP-90C, but if you can wait a bit, get the CNPS9500 (I'll find a link soon), it is supposed to cool about 2 degrees C cooler than water :D
RAM: looks good
GRAPHIC CARD: great
HARD DRIVE: Get Samsung hard drives, they support SATAII
DVD BURNER: looks good
Click to expand...

Can't wait for the 9500, would if we could :( As far as the Mod/Powerstream, I've heard the Fortron outperforms. And what's wrong with the Ultra-D? It's the low-end compared to the two SLI models =X Are Samsung drives comparable in price to the Seagates? I have 2x160GB Seagates and personally love them :D
Click to expand...


No no, I'm not saying there is anything wrong with that DFI ultra, I'm saying you could save money by getting the lower end and modding it to a board even more powerful than the ultra. You could use that money to get an x2 3800+. I know, everybody loves seagate, I only recomended samsung because they support SATA II and from what I've heard, are just as good or better than seagate. you can get 2x160 GB SATA II samsungs.
 
J

JonMooring

Golden Member
Aug 30, 2004
1,047
0
0
Originally posted by: Crescent13
Originally posted by: JonMooring
Originally posted by: Crescent13
Ok, I'll go through part by part.

CASE: good
PSU: get an OCZ Powerstream or Modstream
MOTHERBOARD: I would either get the Evga Free MoBo deal or the cheaper DFI board and mod it to the SLI-DR.
CPU: It's good, but if you can save some money elsewhere (like on the PSU maybe), then get a x2 3800+
FAN: If you have to get it right now, then get the XP-90C, but if you can wait a bit, get the CNPS9500 (I'll find a link soon), it is supposed to cool about 2 degrees C cooler than water :D
RAM: looks good
GRAPHIC CARD: great
HARD DRIVE: Get Samsung hard drives, they support SATAII
DVD BURNER: looks good
Click to expand...

Can't wait for the 9500, would if we could :( As far as the Mod/Powerstream, I've heard the Fortron outperforms. And what's wrong with the Ultra-D? It's the low-end compared to the two SLI models =X Are Samsung drives comparable in price to the Seagates? I have 2x160GB Seagates and personally love them :D
Click to expand...


No no, I'm not saying there is anything wrong with that DFI ultra, I'm saying you could save money by getting the lower end and modding it to a board even more powerful than the ultra. You could use that money to get an x2 3800+. I know, everybody loves seagate, I only recomended samsung because they support SATA II and from what I've heard, are just as good or better than seagate. you can get 2x160 GB SATA II samsungs.
Click to expand...

Hard drives updated :) However, saving $10 on a lower DFI model doesn't give me the cash for a 3800+ :p :( Single-core should be fine for him since he's a hardcore gamer and that's about it
 
T

twitchee2

Platinum Member
Dec 29, 2004
2,135
0
0
i would sugest the segate 7200.8s they are roughly the same price and are based on the 133gb platter which make them almost as fast as raptors. higher density=speed
 
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birdpup

Banned
May 7, 2005
746
0
0
Since the DFI LanParty was chosen, I assume you will overclock this system for your friend and that you know enough about building computers to not require feedback on your build.

The copper material in the heat sink is not necessary over the aluminum one. I believe the temperature difference is a maximum of 3C.

I assume the NEC is the 3540 model.

For that build fee, I hope you will teach your friend how to build the machine as you do it.

The processor bothers me a little. An AMD64 3200+ is typically used for mid-level or "just-higher-than-budget" builds. $2000 is a lot of money to spend to only be getting a 3200+. At least get a 3700+ ($290) with a 1MB L2 cache or the cheapest X2 ($480). The 3700+ can overclock well.

Some people like Seagate while others like Samsung. Samsung drives are supposed to be quieter and Samsung has developed excellent products lately, overcoming Sony's reputation in my opinion. Seagate's 5 year warranty only quarantees a replacement refurbished hard drive, lost personal data still needs to be replaced on your own.
 
J

JonMooring

Golden Member
Aug 30, 2004
1,047
0
0
Originally posted by: twitchee2
i would sugest the segate 7200.8s they are roughly the same price and are based on the 133gb platter which make them almost as fast as raptors. higher density=speed
Click to expand...

+$20 per unit does not equal same price :D Can't afford it, sorry :( As you can see, I'm being a little greedy with the RAM, but if his dad can afford it and my friend won't notice the difference between great parts and really great parts, who cares? :D :p
 
J

JonMooring

Golden Member
Aug 30, 2004
1,047
0
0
Originally posted by: birdpup
Since the DFI LanParty was chosen, I assume you will overclock this system for your friend and that you know enough about building computers to not require feedback on your build.

The copper material in the heat sink is not necessary over the aluminum one. I believe the temperature difference is a maximum of 3C.

I assume the NEC is the 3540 model.

For that build fee, I hope you will teach your friend how to build the machine as you do it.

The processor bothers me a little. An AMD64 3200+ is typically used for mid-level or "just-higher-than-budget" builds. $2000 is a lot of money to spend to only be getting a 3200+. At least get a 3700+ ($290) with a 1MB L2 cache or the cheapest X2 ($480). The 3700+ can overclock well.

Some people like Seagate while others like Samsung. Samsung drives are supposed to be quieter and has Samsung developed excellent products lately, overcoming Sony's reputation in my opinion. Seagate's 5 year warranty only quarantees a replacement refurbished hard drive, lost personal data still needs to be replaced on your own.
Click to expand...

Very good to know! With the cash saved on the heatsinks I can probably upgrade the CPU like you suggested :) we were thinking 3700+ SD originally, but then decided to go 3200+ Venice and o/c. But I think I'll take that advice!
 
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Crescent13

Diamond Member
Jan 12, 2005
4,793
1
0
okay, the rig looks nice now! Yeah I never thought that you would only get ten extra dollars :eek:. I agree with birdpup, a 3200+ is too little for a $2000 computer now that I think about it. 3700+ or X2 3800+ would do nicely. Make sure you get some 92mm panaflos for those xp-90's.

EDIT: or theese since you are buying off of newegg.
 
Ricemarine

Ricemarine

Lifer
Sep 10, 2004
10,507
0
0
Originally posted by: JonMooring
Vantec > Panaflos? I had a couple of Panaflo mediums in the cart
Click to expand...

Vantec are louder than panaflos... But remember to tell your friend your computer is most likely going to be louder than a usual computer :D (or that's what happened to me... Had to switch to a nexus 92mm real silent cause M1A was still loud)

Everything else looks fine... Don't change a thing.
 
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Crescent13

Diamond Member
Jan 12, 2005
4,793
1
0
Originally posted by: birdpup
Originally posted by: JonMooring
Vantec > Panaflos? I had a couple of Panaflo mediums in the cart
Click to expand...

I prefer the Thermaltake SilentCat's
Click to expand...

sorry, I searched and didn't see any panaflo's on the website so I thought that would be the next best thing. Those thermaltakes only have 50CFM, whereas the panaflo's have ~120. Seems like an easy choice for me.
 
C

coomar

Banned
Apr 4, 2005
2,431
0
0
i have a panafolo 92mm tornado, a thermaltake 92mm silentcat and a 120mm silentx fan

the tornado pushs a lot of air, best to use a fan controller

the silentcat is pretty decent, i use it for exhaust (its decently quiet)

its hard to hear the 120
 
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