first time building my own pc

Dalius · Oct 14, 2007

Hello. I am building a mainly gaming-based rig. This is my first time putting a PC together part by part, and I'm pretty excited.

CPU: Intel 2 Quad 6600 (http://www.ncix.com/products/i...ku=22211&promoid=1019)
MOBO: Gigabyte GA-P35C-D3SR (http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=24248)
RAM: Crucial Ballistix PC2-6400 2x1GB (http://www.ncix.com/products/i...ku=24641&promoid=1019)
PSU: Corsair CMPSU-620HX (http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=19831)
CASE: Antec Nine Hundred (http://www.ncix.com/products/i...ku=21123&promoid=1019)
HD: Segate Barracude 7200.10 320GB (http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=18409) for OS
Segate Barracuda 7200.10 500GB (http://www.ncix.com/products/i...ku=18413&promoid=1019) for Backup
DVD: Samsung SH-S203B (http://www.ncix.com/products/i...ku=24649&promoid=1019)
VID: EVGA E-GEFORCE 8600GTS (http://www.ncix.com/products/i...1-AR&manufacture=eVGA)

I plan on also getting a Samsun 22" 226BW Monitor... but I've heard good and bad things about it.

Any recommendations on the build/monitor? Thanks in advanced!

andylawcc · Oct 14, 2007

everything looks good as long as they are under your budget.

my slight concern is the choice of Video Card, which is pretty good at it's price point, but seems a bit of an oddball given the high-caliber specs of the rest of the component.
yes, the next step up would be the 8800-series which is at least $200 more (CAD or USD, take your pick ;p). If you are fine with that, you are good to go. (alternatives: the older ATI 1950Pro and 7900GS perform a bit better than the 8600GTS at a lower cost. the only drawback is the lack of DX10, which I personally could care less about if you don't plan to go Vista)

and no opinion about the monitor

Dalius · Oct 14, 2007

I was really just going to upgrade to the 8800 series after the revisions come out on November 12th. Also, evGA has a step up program so I can upgrade to the 8800 quite easily and not pay a lot of money extra!

andylawcc · Oct 15, 2007

frankly, the 8600GTS is a solid choice. I myself bought the 8600GT over the 7900GS (out of stock everywhere) and 1950Pro (wasn't cheap enough until recently) and it ran UT3 demo quite alright on my Athlon X2 4000. The 8600GTS just looks a bit out of place with the rest of your system.

again, anything higher than the 8600 would mean more $$$, and I don't think the new 8800 series would be any cheaper than the current ones.

so it comes down to what kind of resolution and graphics quality you are expecting. The 8800 or ATI 2900 can certainly last you for a while - if you don't mind paying for it.

Dalius · Oct 15, 2007

i actually heard that the revised 8800s being launched november 12th are going to introduce some price cuts but i could be wrong.

andylawcc · Oct 15, 2007

Originally posted by: Dalius
i actually heard that the revised 8800s being launched november 12th are going to introduce some price cuts but i could be wrong.

that won't be surprising, since the consumers must have some sort incentive in getting the older model than the new one.
this is speculative, but I can go far out and say [Jim Cramer style] that the slightly older 8800 model will NOT have a price cut until Jan 08 after the Xmas shopping season.

so buy NOW!!!!!

Dalius · Oct 15, 2007

andylawcc · Oct 16, 2007

in your first post it was the Gigabyte GA-P35-D3SR (link didn't work tho)

then, the last post was also the Gigabyte GA-P35-D3SR.... how did you downgraded? ;p

anyway, at this point I guess you should seek a second opinion, since i have only provided you with a one-sided story and no one else has contributed yet. i could be wrong, since I've just got back into the PC building scene.

Dalius · Oct 16, 2007

Haha not sure... I somehow managed to stay under budget though!

It's hard getting advice though cuz everything has different opinions about it... but its appreciated

myocardia · Oct 16, 2007

Originally posted by: andylawcc
in your first post it was the Gigabyte GA-P35-D3SR (link didn't work tho)

then, the last post was also the Gigabyte GA-P35-D3SR.... how did you downgraded? ;p

No, in his first post, he was considering a GA-P35C-DS3R, the one with 6 RAM slots, two of which are DDR3. It's ~$30 more expensive than the non-C version, which only has four RAM slots, all of which are DDR2.

edit: And that looks like a killer build to me. I chose the GA-P35C-DS3R, but I wasn't buying either RAM, hard drives, or a video card, so it made sense in my case.

seemingly random · Oct 16, 2007

Originally posted by: Dalius
Any recommendations on the monitor?

This may overload the casual browser but it's a damn good primer.

As far as the rest, there are other threads which have an almost identical build - you must have picked a good one.

MarcVenice · Oct 16, 2007

His build is pretty much perfect when it comes to getting bang for buck. The case can change from person to person as it is all about taste. The PSU is a little overkill though. And personaly I'd rather have a samung t166 500gb spinpoint, since it runs quieter, cooler and performs the same or better then the seagate 500gb HD.

seemingly random · Oct 16, 2007

Originally posted by: MarcVenice
I'd rather have a samung t166 500gb spinpoint, since it runs quieter

Me too - in a quiet pc. Just about any GPU with a spinning fan is not going to be quiet - it'll cover up any hd noise. I agree about the heat factor in samsung, wd vs. sg though - gave up on sg long ago.

As for psu, at least a Corsair is selected - too big, but then I gave up long ago trying to point out the unnecessarily large psu's used. I had an amd+nf4 mb(power hungry)+gtx8800 build which never used more than 350w. The future-proof rationalization seems overdone. It would be interesting to have a poll about what components have actually been reused in new builds.

MarcVenice · Oct 16, 2007

520hx would be better. You do want some headroom, because the PSU will run less hot like that.

seemingly random · Oct 16, 2007

"You do want some headroom"

Yes. I'm not sure how much is needed: 10, 20, 50, 100%? The heat will cause higher fan speeds but this usually happens when gaming which usually involves fairly high audio levels. Most quality psu reviews have shown stability 5-10% above the rated output.

For this build, the Corsair 450 would be plenty but it doesn't have modular cabling.

An alternative is the Seasonic 430 or 480 (no modular cabling) but this is nitpicking.

MarcVenice · Oct 16, 2007

Well, if you never went above 350w, but you apparently did come close, do you not want 150w of headroom? Thats about 50%. Did you take efficiancy into consideration? I think it's possible to argue that the sweetspot is somewhere around 400-500w, qaulity units of course. I'd rather have 500w with a overclocked q6600 and a 8800 then 400w though. And it isn't so much about the noise, it's about keeping your PSU healthy as well. They all detoriate over time, but the less strain you put on them, the less they detoriate.

Dalius · Oct 16, 2007

Hey guys, I went with the 520W Corsair instead.

Thanks for all the help! Can't wait to build this baby!

seemingly random · Oct 16, 2007

Originally posted by: seemingly random
I'm not sure how much is needed: 10, 20, 50, 100%?

Seems silly to quote myself but, it appears that this question was answered here by Yellowbeard whose job entails knowing these things. It looks like psu's shouldn't be used at over 70% rated output for an extended period.

Billy Idol · Oct 16, 2007

Pretty much the same build I've been contemplating. I agree with the changes, also. (non C version of mobo, 8800 instead of 8600, 520hx instead of 620.)

For my own personal curiosities would anyone hesitate to suggest a 450/550VX? Are the cables that much of a pain? At his vendor the differences aren't too great after rebate but at another it might be enticing.

450VX: $85.97 = $75.97AR
550VX: $104.99 = $94.99AR
520HX: $124.99 = $104.99AR
620HX: $164.99 = $134.99AR

Edit for example:
550VX = $79.99 AR @ newegg
520HX = $109.99AR @ newegg
for those of us paying with monopoly money USD.

seemingly random · Oct 16, 2007

Some cases have cubbyholes to tuck away unused cables, though modular cabling is certainly convenient.

Don't have any experience with the 80plus vx models but there have been many positive reviews - iirc, there might be a problem with noise on 550.

As far as prices, I happen to know that buy.com has the hx520 for <$100 but prices can change daily so better to check online when ready to order. I've had problems with Corsair rebates. A $10 rebate is insulting considering the time and effort involved.

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