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My 1st Core 2 Duo Build!

L

Lokan

Senior member
It's that time again; the upgrade bug has bit me pretty hard and I'm liking what I'm reading about the Core 3 Duo's. I haven't built a PC with an Intel chip since I switch to AMD back on the Athlon 800mhz's years ago.

Some quick back round info. This rig will be used for gaming (MMO's, FPS, RTS, you name it) and of course the basic net browsing/office work. With that said, I'm fairly certain I've settled on this build.

I'd love some feedback though! Anything negative, positive, etc. I'm buying 2 of everything as I'm outfitting my wife's PC with the same stuff; our budget is right around 3k, so this hits it with shipping. All is being ordered via newegg as they haven't let me down and their prices (on everything together) seem right inline with everyone elses. However, if you know of another site, please list it!

As for that, the items I'm most concerned with is the PSU. I've had good luck with Antec but I see a lot of people talking about Seasonic, Fortran, etc. I really like the idea of Modular cabling and for $70, the ones I have linked below fit the budget. If 500w isn't enough juice though, please please say something. I'd hate to make that mistake.

Oh, also, I doubt I'll be OC'ing at all. If I do dabble in it, it will NOT be aggressive, so please don't factor aggressive OCing into the mix when looking at this build. I'm much more of a "stable" person.

The only other thing I can find fault with is the Mobo not having PATA slots. I have 1 CD rom, 1 DVD/CDRW and 1 DVDRW drive. I'll need to get some converters for that but I didn't list them.

Thanks in advance, and please write whatever thoughts you may have. Anandtech forum users have always signed off on my previous builds in the past and I've never had issues. The one time I did, it was because someone cautioned the PSU might not be enough and they were right; so hence the reason I'm here again. On to the build!

Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 CPU
Gigabyte S3 Motherboard
2GB DDR2 800 G.Skill RAM
Antec SP2.0 500w PSU
eVga GeForce7950GX2 Video Card
Western Digital 7200rpm 16MB SATA 3.0Gb/s HD

That's it! The cases and all the other options are being recycled.

One LAST question that just game to mind though. I have Windows XP Pro before any Service Packs were released. Is there anyway to get a slipstreamed CD on the cheap so that I won't run into the Hard Drive space limit? I know there's a way to do the slipstream, but I can't figure it out. 🙁 Thanks!
 
Go for something better than an SPII. It's not the juice, a 450W is plenty for that, it's the build quality. It's cheap for a reason, you'll need to spend more.

The motherboard has 1 IDE port, so you can use 2 of those drives.

If you're not overclocking hard then just get 667 RAM, maybe even 533.
 
Quick response, thanks!

Bob, I saw some of your posts in other threads and noted you're very outspoken on PSU's. How much money are we talking for a better PSU and can you recommend any that have modular cabling? Also, according to a PSU calc that was listed from another thread, the CPU plus all my extra drives needed roughly 480w; which is why I went for 500w.

As for the RAM, won't slower ram increase latency? I've never used DDR2 before, so if you (or anyone for that matter) could provide a reason as to why I should use slower ram, then I can definately shave some money. However, everything I've read so far indicates DDR2 800 is the speed to "get" for these CPU's.

I do want to thank you for the PSU cautionary word, do you have an alternative suggestion by any chance?

Edit: After looking a bit more, I found these two PSU's. Are they really worth the $30-40 price difference? I'll definately defer to your experience, just want to make sure.
Enermax Liberty 500w ($109)
OCZ ModStream 520w ($99)
 
I would go for more then 500w.
My Enermax Liberty 500w was'nt sufficient to power my overclocked GX2 and Opteron 170 plus all the rest.
 
Baked; for the MB, to shave some money. If you price all those, with shipping, I'm close to $2920; now that I may need a higher wattage PSU, the pricing is even more of a concern. I'll look into the Enhance PSU though, the price is nice (though I can't tell from that link if it's modular. Any other suggestions/ideas?
 
Buy a cheaper video card and wait for the next revisions or DX10 cards. It's very very unwise IMO to buy a 7950gx2 this late.
 
I need that class of video card. One of the reasons we're upgrading is so that we can play games at much higher detail levels. We have 7800GTX cards and they don't have enough throughput to keep details level high during larger raids in mmo's.

Keep the advice coming please! I'd definately like to hear my about the PSU situation.
 
If you need to buy from Newegg, the Masscool PS-PSU460 is perfect unless you plan to add another 7950GX2.

If mild OCing is up your alley, DDR2-667 is fine. 533'll work too, but I don't know how far the average 533 sticks go.
 
I don't "need" to buy from newegg, it's just that to simplify matters, ordering everything from one etailer, they seem to have the best prices.

As for the PSU, it says that both the +12v are 18a. I've read in numerous places (don't have links handy) that 20a is the minimum for that rail; is that incorrect? Also, the price seems nice but I've never heard of Masscool, are they reputable? As for the RAM, 667 is really the speed to go? How agressive would the OC need to be? And I guess, more to the point, how hard would it be? 🙂 Thanks again for the advice!
 
Actually, buying everything from newegg almost never leads to the cheapest build.

For your rig, you need a combined max of at least ~21A on the +12V rail(s). The combined max of the PS-PSU460 is 32A so there's a ton of headroom. It's built by Seventeam, a reputable OEM, and the unit received an excellent review at jonnyguru.com. Unfortunately, jonny removed the old reviews which were tested differently (but the unit is no less superb).

533 is the standard memory speed of the C2D. With the E6600 (and staying 1:1), you hit 2.66GHz at DDR2-667 speeds, and 3.2GHz at DDR2-800 speeds.
 
So if I'm understanding this correctly, 533 is the base speed to be at to run the CPU at it's base ghz speed? For instance, if I don't plan to OC at all, 533 is the way to go? If I plan to OC a bit (to say, 2.66ghz cpu speed), then get 667 ram, and if I wanted to try for 3.2ghz CPU speed (faster than the $1k core 2 extreme?), get the 800 speed ram? If that's correct, there's a decent amount of money to be saved on the ram.

As for the PSU, if what you're saying is correct (and I believe it to be), then wouldn't the Antec PSU be sufficient? The reason I like that one is because it has the modular cables (I HATE cable clutter! 😀)

If I'm understanding what you're saying, I definately need to rethink the ram purchase. Also, who would you consider as a reputable etailer that would be a cheaper alternative to newegg? I've been shopping with them since 2000; so I'm 'out of the loop' in that respect.
 
Bob already told you that the SP2-450 had sufficient power. It's just not that great a unit.

Memory can also be overclocked. I'd bet a dollar that all 533 memory could make it to 667 just fine (perhaps with a small bump in voltage).

(no particular order)
newegg
mwave
zipzoomfly
ewiz
xpcgear
jab-tech
coolerguys
tankguys
chiefvalue
directron
provantage
 
Thanks for the list! I'll start checking around now.

As for the PSU, I know it had the power, but no one can say why it's not a "great unit". Is Antec's name worse than it used to be? I always thought them to be reliable. Thanks for all the help; this has been extremely enlightening. Looksl ike I can save about $70 on the ram if I don't care to OC!

The only ram question is; if I don't OC and get DDR2800 insteat of 533/667, will I see a speed increase, or is the higher speed ram useless because of the CPU speed?
 
Originally posted by: Lokan
I need that class of video card. One of the reasons we're upgrading is so that we can play games at much higher detail levels. We have 7800GTX cards and they don't have enough throughput to keep details level high during larger raids in mmo's.

Keep the advice coming please! I'd definately like to hear my about the PSU situation.
Click to expand...


that's BS if I've ever seen it...MMOs are much much more reliant on your CPU than GPU. Unless you're playing some MMO based on the FEAR engine :roll:
 
Well, the wife plays EQ2 and has to set the details down to extreme performance to get smooth gameplay. I'm sorry you don't believe that, but I've seen it. She's running a 3800 a64 with a 7800gtx and has to turn the details down and particles off during raids or she hitches like crazy. It does the same on my pc too (granted, it's slower, so that's expected). I really don't see a reason to make the claim I made; how does it effect you all? One of the reasons for this video card expense is because I've seen screen shots with fraps running where a guildmate has a similar PC (they just OC'd the cpu to 3.2ghz though) with the same card running at 60+fps; hence the reason for this upgrade.
 
your video card is perfectly fine. Eq2 is a CPU hog. The C2D will make it all good. BTW I think EQ2 is a pile of crap...especially since it has some really bad graphics for how slow it runs. That's just me
 
While I agree with you about the game; the graphics are far superior to most MMO's. I play WoW, which would run on a graphing calculator if blizzard could figure out how to render night elf females on it. I disagree with you about the card and eq2 though. While it may not be as taxing as something like FEAR, it definately wants a decent GPU.

edit: d'oh, forgot, the video cards MUST be upgraded, they're agp :/
 
Originally posted by: Lokan
While I agree with you about the game; the graphics are far superior to most MMO's. I play WoW, which would run on a graphing calculator if blizzard could figure out how to render night elf females on it. I disagree with you about the card and eq2 though. While it may not be as taxing as something like FEAR, it definately wants a decent GPU.

edit: d'oh, forgot, the video cards MUST be upgraded, they're agp :/
Click to expand...


a 7800GTX is plenty for any MMO. It's all in the CPU for those games since they don't use alot of special effects that take advantage/need a good GPU. I'd go for something like an x1900xt or even an x1800 which will be super. I'm just of the mindset that a 7950gx2 is way too expensive to justify when there are supposed to be new cards releasing very soon.
 
The reason that antec aren't loved at the moment is that they have issues with cheap capacitors. They also run the fan slowly to keep the noise down which exacberates the problem as it means the capacitors heat and cool off more than they should, causing swelling and then shrinking. All told they don't tend to age well.
 
Fire, thanks! I switched it out with the seagate 320gb (which was 70 bucks cheaper). Appreciate the heads up!

Dredd, I'm not a fan of ATI. I've been burned by them in the past with two cards (one wasn't directly related to ATI but the company that produced the board). For that reason, I stay away from them. With that said, This card needs to last me for a bit AND, the brand I'm getting is eVga which has the step up program. If nVidia releases a D10 card in 90 days, I'll be able to "trade up". If that doesn't work, there's always Ebay. Thank you for your comments though, and I appreciate the input immensly, but the video card isn't something I'm considering switching.

That said, I've revamped my list with a different PSU (which I'm sure no one will agree is a good one ;D), different RAM (I *hate* reading all these reports of incompatible ram. I hope the patriot ram I've selected works. I emailed their support to see if they've tested) and I switched the mobo to the ASUS P5B (non deluxe, don't need wifi build in or firewire/etc). Still have everything at just under $3k. That said, he's a new list; please comment if you can!

Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 CPU
ASUS P5B Motherboard
2GB DDR2 800 Patriot Memory (PDC22G6400LLK)
eVga GeForce 7950 GX2 Video Card
Hiper 530w PSU (link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16817128006).
Seagate 320gb 7200rpm 16mb cache w/ NCQ (link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16822148140)

 
Originally posted by: Bobthelost
The reason that antec aren't loved at the moment is that they have issues with cheap capacitors. They also run the fan slowly to keep the noise down which exacberates the problem as it means the capacitors heat and cool off more than they should, causing swelling and then shrinking. All told they don't tend to age well.
Click to expand...

Thank you for that information! That's exactly the type of warning I was looking for! You'll also see I've gone away from them as a choice right now.
 
Originally posted by: Lokan
Fire, thanks! I switched it out with the seagate 320gb (which was 70 bucks cheaper). Appreciate the heads up!

Dredd, I'm not a fan of ATI. I've been burned by them in the past with two cards (one wasn't directly related to ATI but the company that produced the board). For that reason, I stay away from them. With that said, This card needs to last me for a bit AND, the brand I'm getting is eVga which has the step up program. If nVidia releases a D10 card in 90 days, I'll be able to "trade up". If that doesn't work, there's always Ebay. Thank you for your comments though, and I appreciate the input immensly, but the video card isn't something I'm considering switching.

That said, I've revamped my list with a different PSU (which I'm sure no one will agree is a good one ;D), different RAM (I *hate* reading all these reports of incompatible ram. I hope the patriot ram I've selected works. I emailed their support to see if they've tested) and I switched the mobo to the ASUS P5B (non deluxe, don't need wifi build in or firewire/etc). Still have everything at just under $3k. That said, he's a new list; please comment if you can!

Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 CPU
ASUS P5B Motherboard
2GB DDR2 800 Patriot Memory (PDC22G6400LLK)
eVga GeForce 7950 GX2 Video Card
Hiper 530w PSU (link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16817128006).
Seagate 320gb 7200rpm 16mb cache w/ NCQ (link: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16822148140)
Click to expand...


It'll be more than 90days for an Nvidia release and I can gurantee it'll be faster than the 7950gx2 and almost assuradly not be such a power hungry thing. Also you should check with your motherboard about compatability with the 7950gx2.
 
According to the threads in the mobo forums, as long as the bios get's updated the 7950 has no problems on the ASUS board; and out of the box it still posts and boots, just runs slow until you flash. Thanks for the heads-up on that one though!
 
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