build rate..rate please!

[robxpark]

Hey guys. please rate my first build!

Case: Rosewill Challenger

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition

Video Card: EVGA GTS 450

Ram: CORSAIR XMS3 4GB (2 x 2GB)

Mobo: GIGABYTE 880GA-UD3H

PSU: OCZ OCZ600SXS2 StealthXStream 2 600W

Hard Drive: WD Caviar 500GB Serial ATA HD 7200/16MB/SATA-3G

CD Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST 24X Internal DVD Burner

 

[BoomerD]

What's the PC going to be used as? Gaming? Word processing? Graphics and editing?

With tomorrow's Sandy Bridge release, I wonder why folks are buying the Phenom II processors?

 

[Operandi]

Case is bit ugly, I would go with an entry level Lian Li or Antec.

You have a 600 watt PSU for a system that unlikely to ever exceed 250 watts. I'm using a 370 watt PCP&C Silencer with a Phenom II X6 and overclocked GTS450, under Prime95 and Furmark max AC draw is 329 watts.

Asus drives tend to be loud in my experience, I've been using LG drives for the last couple of years with great results.

 

[fffblackmage]

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition

I think Phenom IIs will continue to stick around for a while for really-low-budget builds.

Ram: CORSAIR XMS3 4GB (2 x 2GB)

Hope this just uses 1.5V.

PSU: OCZ OCZ600SXS2 StealthXStream 2 600W

Should be ok, but there are better alternatives. I would would have picked up a better quality 500W PSU.

Hard Drive: WD Caviar 500GB Serial ATA HD 7200/16MB/SATA-3G

This is a very questionable choice. I don't think WD released any new fast 500GB HDD models lately, and the old ones are pretty slow by today's standards. I had the old WD5000AAKS (Caviar Blue) and those are slooooow - slower than today's 5400rpm HDDs.

 

[Patrick Wolf]

Asus drives tend to be loud in my experience, I've been using LG drives for the last couple of years with great results.

And my experience is just the opposite. My 1st (and last) LG drive, the GH24NS50, died after precisely 1 year and I almost never used it. It wasn't very quiet either. The 24B1ST I have now is noticeably quieter and I've had an ASUS drive before (reader only) which I loved and is now being used in my mother's PC.

 

[Davidh373]

The only two choices you made right are the UD3 Motherboard and the Challenger case.

I'd give this build (for any purpose besides office work) a 4 out of 10. Should have done more research. Here are my points

OCZ PSU - really cruddy, overpriced PSU.

Phenom II X4 - Really outdated, could have done twice as good with the i5 2500K releasing tomorrow. If you didn't want to wait, the i5 760 would have been the next best thing.

Corsair XMS3 - 1.65V

GTX 450 - hopefully you'll be playing in 720p or below, because newer games are going to run horrible at 1080p

WD Caviar series - Is this that old one from a few years back? If not, still a bad choice for the price.

ASUS DVD - well, I guess you cant really go too "wrong" with a DVD drive, but yeah.

 

[mfenn]

Well, 1.65V is OK for current-generation AMD, but of course that does limit its future portability.

OP, what is your budget? You could have an i5 2300 system for literally $30 more. Needless to say, the Sandy Bridge system would dominate a Phenom II while running cooler and quieter.