First Build Ideas

[Hitch Itch]

HI All,
First post here,
I going to build my first comp for the wife and im looking for some experienced advice.

The comp will be mostly used for things like quick books pro, dvd burning and light gaming. I already have my gaming rig, so this one I want good with other tasks.

I couldn't pass up new eggs deal, for $20. I got 2 gigs of ocz ddr2 800 sli ready memory and a evga 8600gts card. I bought 2 sets so now Im ready with 4 gigs ram that I can bump from 800 to 1066 and I have 2 8600 gts ready for sli.
Im thinking of the same mobo that my game rig has, the evga 680I, works well for me any ideas?
Now for all the things Im not sure of
case, I want something with room, I was thinking cooler max cosmos 1000 ? I dont really want to spen more then what the cosmos cost cosmos 1000
cheaper is good to, the cosmos seems a little pricey, Do I need all that or is there a cheaper alternative that will serve me well
What about a PS, this cooler master 650 watt ps seems like a great deal for $50. Cooler Master ps
cpu, Im an Intel guy, I have heard allot of good about the Core 2 Quad Q6600 Q6600
Or do I go with the Core 2 Duo E8500 E8500

As far as cooling goes, I dont do much over clocking if any, Do I want a cheaper water cooler or a fan set up? what way has less noise?

I do have a budget so I cant get crazy

Well this will be a good start, ANY and ALL help/ideas/wisdom will be greatly appreciated

Tx

Ken

 

[Blain]

1. The memory that you just couldn't pass up is rated for 2.1v
Which is over the standard of 1.8v

Since you've locked yourself into that memory, make sure and research your MBs carefully. You want to search and find out if the OCZ 2.1v modules have issues with the MB you're looking at.
Don't simply take... " Works fine for me" as gospel. Remember, you're looking for potential problems not smooth running combos.

I've owned a Cosmos 1000. It's a huge monster case that is very heavy, with nothing in it!
Are you hooked on the Cosmos size... looks... what?
Case options in your price range, for roomy size in silver and weigh far less are the X-JUPITERS-AL, GZ-FA2CA-AJS and PC-V1100APIIC.
If you like "Black" there are other choices.

I would forget about yesterday's news Q6600. Get the 45nm E8500 or the E8400 to save some $$.

Don't cheap out on your PS. It will be with you longer than almost any other component.
The PC Power & Cooling 610W is a high quality PS that's a bit more. What you save from an E8500 to the E8400 will about make up the $$ difference.

 

[Hitch Itch]

tx for the info Blain, Nothing steering me twards cosmos other then I heard good things about it, (very large, insulated inside, no tools required) I do Really like the idea of NO TOOLs Required, seems like a nice feature to have. In the End all I want is a good quality case, with working room.

I just found this PS Thermaltake

I think this might be better then the other one I had posted



Ken

 

[Blain]

Get your brain away from pure wattage ratings... Go for the PC P & C 610W.

Seriously... I ended up paying $90 after rebate for my Cosmos. If I had it to do over, I would pass, even at $90. The thing is just too much.

"No Tools" isn't all it's cracked up to be. Think about it... How often do you change parts after a system is done?
I've dealt with many cases over the years. I've just about come to the conclusion that standard old optical bay mounts are the best.
In some cases "No Tool" designs don't hold components tight enough. Hot swap drive bays are one example.

 

[DSF]

It sounds to me like you're drooling over specs without any idea what kind of equipment you really need.

Define "light gaming." That's the only aspect of your rig that should push you into high-end Core2 territory, and you already have a gaming computer.

 

[Hitch Itch]

THis comp will be for my wife, Office work, quick books/ms word etc, she plays games at times, nothing like cod 4, my something like EA's spore or even a far cry 2 single player, she doesn't go online multiplayer and she doesn't require super high monitor res, probably something like 12x10 res.

She is currently using an older dell xps 410

 

[DSF]

So then why SLI graphics (not to mention that SLI-ing two old cards is a waste), overclocking RAM and a middle to high-end processor?

 

[Denithor]

Go read the "NOTICE - PC builders" and "Attention System Builders" threads at the top of this forum. Then post back here with your expected uses, budget, and parts you already have.

For now, 2x8600GTS in SLI is going to suck in most of today's games. It won't even be as strong as a single 9800GT and your wife won't enjoy FC2 with that setup.

The OCZ memory was nearly free -- unfortunately, as in most things, you get what you pay for. Memory rated for performance at 2.1V often needs that level of power just to boot -- and most motherboards default to 1.8V so the memory may not even allow you to start up. Hope you've got some other memory to get into the BIOS to bump up the volts.