First Build

[Wake08]

Hey Guys

I would really appreciate suggestions on the following first build I have planned. I am not a gamer and do not plan to over clock much if at all, maybe just to play around for educational purposes. I just want a really quick computer that will last me a few years. Total price is about 1200 and I am wondering if you guys think this is overkill for what my needs are. I would certainly like to spend less money for the same performance. If you guys think any of these components are overkill and I could use something cheaper without compromising performance or quality please let me know and maybe suggest an alternative. Or if you think you could build the same level of performance computer for less, I challenge you to enlighten me. Thanks in advance.


E6600

P5B-E- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16813131070

Antec Solo Case- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16811129018

2gb Corsair XMS2 PC5400- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16820145015

Corsair 520w power supply- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16817139001

Gigabyte 7600gt silent pipe- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16814125025

2x WD or Seagate 320 in Raid 1 (I know everyone has there preference but I think I will go with whichever is chepaer when i buy. Good idea or do you guys have suggestions?)

I could use suggestions for a good DVD Burner and a DVD-rom

So what do you guys think?

 

[UMfanatic]

mind if I make a suggestion on your ram, go with the patriot extreme it has a 40 dollar rebate, and is just as good especially for over clocking, plexter, lite-on both make good burners, LG makes a good Dvd rom, the seagates are some of the best HDDS their are plus their customer service is excellent, plus I would suggest an enermax liberty 500w psu it will save you 10 bucks plus is just as good if no better than the corsair, might I suggest a gigabyte S3 or DS3 motherboard

 

[Wake08]

UMfanatic, thanx for the quick reply and the suggestions. I am going to look into those dvd drives. As far as the motherboard I just went with ASUS because I have heard that they are relatively easy for a newbie and that ASUS has good customer support and manuals compared to most brands and with this being my first build I figured I could use all the help I could get. If i dont plan to overclock do I need the DDR2-800 you suggested or is the corsair I have okay since the corsair seems to be cheaper.

 

[John]

Enermax Liberty warranty: 1 year
Corsair HX warranty: 5 years

$10 goes a long way.......

http://www.jonnyguru.com/forums/showthread.php?t=103

Lite-On has a new SATA DVDRW for $35 so buy two of them since they are inexpensive.

 

[UMfanatic]

Plextor is the best, lite-on is the best for the money, I just find ASUS to be a bit priecy, well you do not need XMS2 ram, if you do not plan on overclocking I would go with DDR2 667, but save your money and do not go with the XMS2, and the PSU I recommened is on sale for the holidays for 104.99, and will work for your setup just fine

 

[LOUISSSSS]

-i suggest getting 1 x 74gb 16mb raptor as your boot drive for better overall system response either on top of your 2 x 7200.10 setup or maybe just have 1 of them as they seem to be pretty reliable anyways
--if u want it to last you for a while, you might want to invest in a Lian-Li or silverstone case. their build quality is top tier while antec is noticeably worse in quality
-if you're not a gamer, why not something lower end where u can spend that saved money on something else. or if u need the 7600gt, get http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130062 and then add on your own aftermarket cooling. like the hr-03 or vf700 its truly very quiet

 

[oynaz]

I like your choice of CPU, mobo and GPU.

There is no reason to get expensive memory like the Corsair XMS2 if you do not plan to overclock. It is money down the drain. Get some cheap, decent memory instead.

Most people do not need both a DVD burner and a DVD rom. Unless you have some specific need, ditch the ROM. NEC makes some nice burners which are reasonably priced.

You CPU is overkill. A decent 400 watt PSU would be plenty.

Raid 1? I think a better, though a bit more expensive, solution is to get a NAS and some backup software (I use SyncBack. Its free and nice).

 

[secretanchitman]

i would say an nec 3550A (7170 now or something) is a good choice for a dvd-rw.

you have a good list and a great computer ahead of you.

 

[Roguestar]

Does anyone else think that if he's not a gamer and not going to overclock that this is a bit excessive? An E6600 and expensive RAM and C2D-supporting motherboard is not what you need for an educational system with a bit of browsing, word processing and whatnot. As for whoever suggested a WD Raptor, they're insane. No-one needs a WD Raptor in a computer like that. Not to mention it's hella expensive.

I think the C2D bug has bitten a lot of people are we're all a little too hasty to recommend it for anything. For this guy a AMD X2 3800+ on socket AM2 with 1Gb DDR2 is well enough. A GeForce 7600GS will run anything he needs plus won't be too bad in games.

 

[Operandi]

Thats a great list of hardware there.

The Corsair PSU is built by Seasonic so it's very good (better then Enermax in my opinion) but 500 watts seems a bit overkill for someone that won't but running high-end gaming video cards or overclocking. If I were building that machine I would opt for a 330 or 380 Seasonic S12.

XMS RAM is not a very good value for the money, go with this Corsair Valueselct instead.

Lastly stick with passive Gigabyte card you selected the stock heatpipe based heatsink performs great, and is silent (obviously). If you are looking for quiet 7600GT there is no reason to look at any other cards.

 

[Wake08]

Hey guys thanx for all the replys. I really appreciate the suggestions.

Operandi - I think the gigabyte card is a good choice too. The reviews said it was a great card and really quiet which is definitly something I was looking for.

To Everyone-- Just a quick comment about the XMS2. The reason I chose the ddr2-667 XMS2 was that after rebate its pretty much the same price as any value level ram. In some cases its even cheaper. For example the ram Operandi suggested is only 2 dollars cheaper. Just trying to give some rationale for why I went with the XMS2 after doing alot of research on ram.


It seems like the power supply is an area that I went a little overboard. I am going to look into the suggestions you guys made.

 

[Operandi]

Its a great card.

To see how the card would far in "worst case scenario" I shut off all the fans and closed up the case and ran ATI Tool's artifact test. Even after several hours and nothing but a Seasonic S12 providing air flow the card stay well below 70C. With 4x 80mm 1200RPM NMB (very slow and very quiet) fans the card would stay in mid to high 50C range under load.

For the RAM this Geil is a very good deal, nice heatspreader and very good specs. Geil may not have the reputation of Corsair or Crucail but they have been in the RAM business for awhile now and have worked well for me.