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My first build - feedback on my proposed parts?

I

imported_Salamander

Senior member
I'm going to do my first build early next year. The computer will be used for video editing, moderate gaming (e.g., occasional game of Half Life 2), web surfing, and general applications. My proposed parts are as follows:

Antec P180 case
Antec NeoHE 500 PSU
ACEDVio video capture card
Creative Labs Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty FPS Soundcard
Plextor PX-755SA DVD/CD burner
ASUS DVD-E616A2 BK DVD ROM/CD reader
Sony MPF920 Black floppy drive
Western Digital Raptor 150GB HD (OS and applications)
Seagate 300GB SATA HD (storage - mostly for vide editing)
Intel D975XBX2 mobo
Intel Core Duo E6700 processor
Zalman CNPS9500 LED CPU fan
Crucial 2GB Kit - DDR2 PC2-6400 (CT2KIT12864AA80E) memory
ATI video/graphics card - don't know which one yet
Zalman VF900-Cu Video card fan
Windows Vista OS

I'm interested in ideas for a graphics card. I use Vegas Video for my video editing work, I don't do any graphics creation as part of that, so I don't need to worry about that for the graphics card.

I'm also interested in feedback on my memory choice - is it compatible with the mobo and processor?

Any feedback?
 
No need for the fancy-pants sound card.

Do you plan on overclocking?

Looking at your parts, I assume you want something quiet (seeing this on SPCR also tipped me off), in which case it would be prudent to stay away from Seagate drives. Perhaps a WD5000KS or Samsung HDxxx drive?
 
Originally posted by: Howard
No need for the fancy-pants sound card.

Do you plan on overclocking?

Looking at your parts, I assume you want something quiet, in which case it would be prudent to stay away from Seagate drives. Perhaps a WD5000KS or Samsung HDxxx drive?
Click to expand...

I don't plan on over clocking - but I'm willing to have the capability to do so in case I change my mind. Given my video editing, I need the system to be stable - hence my hesitation on overclocking.
 
Overclocking doesn't cause instability, overclocking too much does. I would be shocked if an E6600 couldn't OC higher than E6700 speed without retaining complete stability. That's only an 11% overclock (guaranteed or I throw myself off a cliff 😉), but the E6700 costs 65% more than the E6600.

Heck, for an E6600 clocked at E6700 speeds, you wouldn't even need DDR2-667, DDR2-590 would suffice (667 has much more headroom and most 533 would make it there).
 
Originally posted by: Howard
Overclocking doesn't cause instability, overclocking too much does. I would be shocked if an E6600 couldn't OC higher than E6700 speed without retaining complete stability. That's only an 11% overclock (guaranteed or I throw myself off a cliff 😉), but the E6700 costs 65% more than the E6600.

Heck, for an E6600 clocked at E6700 speeds, you wouldn't even need DDR2-667, DDR2-590 would suffice (667 has much more headroom and most 533 would make it there).
Click to expand...

I've never overclocked before, but I'm willing to consider it.

 
Originally posted by: Salamander
Originally posted by: Howard
Overclocking doesn't cause instability, overclocking too much does. I would be shocked if an E6600 couldn't OC higher than E6700 speed without retaining complete stability. That's only an 11% overclock (guaranteed or I throw myself off a cliff 😉), but the E6700 costs 65% more than the E6600.

Heck, for an E6600 clocked at E6700 speeds, you wouldn't even need DDR2-667, DDR2-590 would suffice (667 has much more headroom and most 533 would make it there).
Click to expand...

I've never overclocked before, but I'm willing to consider it.
Click to expand...

oh wow, you should. The possiblities are almost endless and the performance you gain is very nice!
 
Like Howard said, getting an E6600 and overclocking it to E6700 speeds will not cause system instabilty. People here will be more than willing to give you overclocking tips, and point you to guides written for people new to overclocking. Try Googling some right now - just make sure it's a semi-recent article.
 
I play Half-Life 2 off an on - and a few other somewhat less graphically intense games. Sometimes I'll play every night a bit, then I may go several weeks without. Depends on what else is going on.
 
Waaaaay overpriced on the 6700. Get the 6600, overclock it just even a little, downgrade the RAM to 667, and you're laughing. VERY FAST that way. Then use that money you save and get a better monitor, 22" widescreen. Totally.
 
Here are my thoughts.

Case: This is going to be largely subjective but I personally can see using a Antec on a build like that. The steel and plastic construction leaves Antecs looking and feeling a bit lacking compared to a high-end Lian Li or Silverstone, or Coolermaster. Take a look at the Lian Li PC-7B (similar price) and the V1100 (similar features).

PSU: The NeoHE is a good PSU but they have had some corners cut in comparison to Seasonic's own units (Seasonic builds the NeoHE). I would change the Neo to a Seasonic S12/M12 or Enhance. Here is the 430 watt S12 -- the 380 watt version would do just as well but is currently out of stock.

Soundcard: Drop it altogether and use the HD-Audio on the Intel board.

Floppy: For the love god why??

CPU HS/F: I'm assuming you are looking at Zalman largely for the noise. If thats the case you want the "AT" version of the 9500 for 4 pin PWM fan; the LED 9500 uses a standard 3-pin fan that may not be controllable with the Intel board.

Video Card: I see you said ATI but if you are open to nVidia cards consider this Gigabyte 7950GT. The performance is there and it includes a Zalman VF-700 stock.
 
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