Input on PC Build

[CarvedMercury]

Ok, this is will be my first PC built. I'll be buying all the components in the UK, and so far for everything I need its cheapest at ebuyer. My PC will mainly be for gaming, and watching some video/movies. I've got a price limit of about £750, but thats a limit, not a target and I'm aiming for value. I'll be reusing my OS (Windows XP 32 Bit), 5.1 speakers, CD/DVD drives, and that's about it. I've read through the recommended components guide in this forum and know a bit about components available however some items are not available or bad value in the UK. Don't currently know anything about putting PC components together, but will obviously have to find that out later. I've never overclocked before, but I'm interested in trying it and will likely in future so components that are easy to overclock would be better.

Case and PSU: Coolermaster Elite 330 Black Case With CM eXtreme Power 650W PSU *SPECIAL OFFER*

Most of the PSU+Case deals had pretty poor PSUs but this PSU seems solid and the case seems to be popular.

*edit* However from all the negative reviews and complaints about the power supply and it's fan (could I get some info on this), I think this might be a good alternative Hiper 580W Type-M Black PSU with Coolermaster Elite 330 Black Mid Tower Case again.

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-EP43-DS3L P43 Socket 775 8 channel audio ATX Motherboard

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Socket 775 (3.0GHz) 1333FSB 6MB L2 Cache Retail Boxed Processor

Price-to-performance seems to favor E8400 as the gain doesn't look that big, also read it overclocks very similarly. Is Q6600 worth considering?

CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling AC-FRZ-7P Freezer 7 Pro Socket 775 Processor Cooler

Again was reccomended and cheap, is this more sort of useful addition because CPU runs hot, or will I be able to overclock a fair bit with it?

Graphics: Sapphire HD 4870 512MB GDDR5 Dual DVI HDTV Out PCI-E Graphics Card

Will I be able to run two monitors, 17" and 22" from this?

Hard Drive: Samsung HD753LJ 750GB Hard Drive SATAII 7200rpm *32MB Cache* - OEM

What's the difference between OEM and normal?

RAM: Corsair 4GB Kit (2x2GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 XMS2 Memory Non-ECC Unbuffered CL5(5-5-5-18)

Front Case Fan: Hiper 120mm HiperFlow Chrome Blade Case Fan With Blue LED - 3pin Adaptor with Screws

Case doesn't come with one, is cheap and I thought why not.

Monitor: LG W2252TQ 22" TFT Monitor 1680x1050 10000:1 300cd/m2 2ms VGA/DVI Black 3 Years Onsite Warranty

I like LG monitors, however is DVI worth £20 over the LG W2242S

Also, slightly off-topic, bought a Razer Deathadder, for MMO/FPS gaming - good choice or not?

Thanks in advance for any help!

 

[disports]

i hope you checked out the sticky at the top of the forum. it should give you a start on what parts to get. since you're mostly gaming, the e8400 is fine as most games utilize only two cores. you should be able to run your two monitors off your video card. the ram is fine, although g.skill has been recommended often and i am currently using it also. there is also a lcd monitor sticky in the video cards and graphics forum, you should check that out. oem hard drives don't come with the cables (i.e. sata cables), but usually your motherboard comes with extra so you'll be fine. i would suggest not buying a case with a psu, but that's up to you.

 

[disports]

4850 might be better for you resolution

 

[CarvedMercury]

Originally posted by: smithrwon
4850 might be better for you resolution

Better value for money right? So I should get a 4850 and upgrade earlier instead of spending the extra on a 4870?

I want to be able to run CoD4, WAR, and possibly try Crysis, as I may as well with an expensive gfx card. I'm not concerned about running max settings on everything, but just maintaining smooth framerates (would prefer not to sacrifice quality though).

i hope you checked out the sticky at the top of the forum

Yeah I've done that.

the ram is fine, although g.skill has been recommended often and i am currently using it also

G-Skill was one of those things I couldn't find, and the Corsair was reasonably cheap.

i would suggest not buying a case with a psu

What do you think of the alternative PSU?