First build, looking forward to it - any advice?

[inertiat]

Hi,
I've been researching building a computer for about a month now (good components and how to install them, flashing the BIOS ect), and have come to the point where I think I'm ready to order my stuff. I'd like a bit of feedback first, though, just to make sure everything is fine.

I have a 22" monitor and play at 1080x1650.
My PC will be mainly used for gaming, but I also do some light VFX and graphic design work. A Quad-Core isn't really an affordable option for me now in terms of performance, so I'm sticking with Dual Core until prices comes down.
I'm buying from Ebuyer UK. Main reason for this is because they seem to have the best prices around, a good reputation (bought with them before and only had good experiences) and ordering everything from one supplier will make my life a bit easier (though I would order from another if they were cheaper and reliable).
I'd prefer to stick with Intel because I know most about them (AMD, integrated memory controllers, what?!). I'd also like to stick with an nForce motherboard because I aready have an 8800GT and would like to stick in another one, which will give me a better performance/price ratio than buying an expensive card that can beat 2 GTs in SLi.
I plan on sticking with default speeds, but would potentially look at overclocking in the future if I needed a boost, but it's definitely not the be-all end-all.
I'd like to order my parts on Monday (30th June), though I am tempted to order them now for tomorrow
Oh, and I'll be using XP 64

Here's my spec:

ASUS P5N-D 750i motherboard
Core 2 Duo E8400
Arctic Freezer 7 Pro (decided to use this instead of stock Intel heatsink, in case I do decide to overclock in the future, and won't have to go through the hassle of putting on a better heatsink)
Corsair HX 620W modular PSU
500GB Seagate HDD, 7,200RPM, 32MB cache
OCZ 2x2GB Platinum 800Mhz RAM 5-4-4-18 or Corsair 2x2GB 800Mhz RAM 5-5-5-18 (OCZ has better latency, but it's at a higher voltage - which should I go for? I'm more interested in stability than overclocking, so probably the lower-voltage Corsair?)
Optiarc DVD RW Drive with LightScribe (LightScribe is a plus for me)
Coolermaster Dominator 690 (already ordered, really like it, so I'm definitely sticking with it)
4x 120mm Hiper Fans (Exhaust: 2 in top plus stock fan at back. Intake: 1 on side over Northbridge, 1 on bottom, plus stock front fan)
Hiytek 6 Fan Controller (only because I don't know if there would be enough slots on the PSU for 6 fans, and I don't know how to link the fans together to fit into only one PSU slot - any suggestions?)
2x 8800GTs - allready have one in my current PC, love it, but would like a little extra performance (GTs in SLi look very effective), so it's more cost-effective to buy another than a single card.
Also, an anti-static wrist-band and a small tool kit, plus a cheap floppy drive for BIOS, though I'll probably just use a memory stick for convenience.

With the 2 GTs the price comes in at about £850, which is fine for my budget (£1000 max, but the lower the better. It'd like to keep it at under £900).
Any pointers or advice would be gratefully received. My main points are which RAM to go with and also how to daisy-link the fans so they will go into just one slot in the PSU - would I need to buy extra cables (splitters?) for that? Also, would it be worth installing the optional fan onto the Northbridge (apparently it gets quite hot)? The maunal says ifyou do and use a CPU cooler with a fan as well it could destabilise the CPU, so would the case fan over the Northbridge be enough? There's also the option to install a 80mm fan under the CPU but I think I'll leave that.
Cheers :thumbsup:

 

[MarcVenice]

I'm just trying something here, but let's say you buy a cheaper motherboard: http://www.ebuyer.com/product/143176 Saves you £31. Get this PSU: http://www.ebuyer.com/product/132563 saves you £27. Thats £58 saved. Now, assuming a 4870 costs £175 and assuming you need a £100 8800gt. So a HD4870 costs £75 more, but you can save £58 on the PSU and MOBO. The HD4870 is just a wee bit slower then a single HD4870, if it scales correctly, but sometimes the HD4870 is equally fast, or a very tiny bit faster. Hmmm, hmmm, I think it's something worth considering, single card versus dual cards, especially since you can sell/re-use your old 8800gt.

You won't have a 750i mobo, and 'only' a 550w, non modular PSU. But that's not rly important, coz you don't really need a 750i mobo or a 620w PSU when not sli-ing?

Not sure how good those fans are, perhaps spend a little extra on some scythe kama fans? Rest of the build looks pretty solid.

 

[inertiat]

Thanks for the advice Marc, that's a good point about SLi. I've thought about that before, but if I get the 2 GTs I know I'll stick with them for a decent time. The GT in Sli gets about 46FPS in the Crysis bench wheras the 4870 gets about 35. If I didn't have the GT I'd probably go with the ATI card, but seeing as I have one I might aswel double it up. Thanks for the tip though. I'll look at some better fans

 

[inertiat]

So which RAM should I go for? I'm leaning more towards Corsair now because of the voltage; would having a voltage of 2.1 be a problem?

 

[modoheo]

A lot of mobo's have trouble firing up the first time with high voltage RAM like that - they can run it, but many require a BIOS adjustment to reset the RAM voltage to that level, which of course you can't do unless you can fire up the mobo. So unless you have a stick of old low voltage RAM laying around that will get the mobo to post so you can make the adjustment, you could have a problem. I don't know of any reason not to always go with nice low voltage RAM (like G.Skill 1.8 volts).

 

[inertiat]

Cheers. Yeah I think I'll leave the OCZ stuff then. It's my first build so I just want everything to go smoothly. I'm dreading powering on my PC when I've hooked everything up - what if it doesn't work! lol ahwel it should be a fun prject anyways. Thanks for the advice