Need component advice on new build

[Woggle]

I'm building a completely new computer (minus monitor) on a budget of approximately $1000. I plan to use it for mostly gaming, as well as watching movies sometimes, and classwork and web surfing.

I'd like to be able to play most new games on medium to high settings, such as SC2 and spore, and have room for minor to moderate upgrades later on. With the unlocked multiplier I can OC the 5000+ on a whim if I ever feel the need to, and I'd like the option of being able to use SLI in the future, as an 8800gt will have fallen in price and it'd be cheaper than buying a whole new card (I think, feel free to correct me on this).

So far I've picked out the cpu and heatsink/fan, ram, video card and other periphals:

AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ Black Edition Brisbane 2.6GHz 2 x 512KB L2 AM2 65W 99.99

ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 64 Pro 19.99

XMS2 DHX 4GB PC-6400 DDR2 Memory Kit (Two 2GB) 69.99 AR

e-GeForce 8800 GT 512MB GDDR3 PCI-E 2.0 Video Card 219.99

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 250GB 3.5" SATA 69.99

LITE-ON 20X DVD±R DVD Burner 35.99

Saitek USB Eclipse II Keyboard 49.99

Razer Diamondback 46.79

Vista 64-Bit Home Premium OEM 111.49


I'm not sure about is the motherboard, case, and power supply. I've found a few that look like they fit my goals and budget, but I'm not sure which would be the best, or if there could be any quality or compatibility issues. Recommendations on these components would be helpful.

Motherboards:

ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe ATX AMD Motherboard 129.99

GIGABYTE GA-M57SLI-S4 ATX AMD Motherboard 99.99

BIOSTAR TForce TF570SLI ATX AMD Motherboard 87.99

I'm pretty sure I'll be using the onboard sound, but I know nothing about the chipsets on those boards. I'll probably use whatever speakers or headphones are laying around until I get a surround sound setup. Also, if a case lists that it comes with 2 USB, etc. ports on the front, how are those connected to the motherboard?


Cases

Antec Solo 49.99 AR

COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 CAC-T05-UB 39.99

Noise is bearable, but I'd prefer it to be mostly quiet. As long as it does the job of keeping the computer cool and is easy to work with I'll be happy. Any other case suggestions? (with reviews)


PSUs:

PC Power & Cooling Silencer 610 EPS12V 610W 119.99

CORSAIR CMPSU-550VX 550W 69.99 AR

These are pretty much shots in the dark after reading some guides, playing with wattage calcs and searching on newegg. As far as I can tell they fulfill what I need in the way of power and connectors. The price on the corsair PSU made me uneasy about it's quality, but corsair seems to be very reputable gaging from the sites I've seen.

With the most expensive options above, it comes out to a maximum of $1,020 which works nicely with my budget. Pointing out any omissions or complete oversights before I go and buy all this would be great.

 

[accguy9009]

You really should go with an Intel CPU. I assume you want the Black unit because it is unlocked?

You might look at this

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16819116063



Buy.com has the Corsair VX 550W Power Supply - CMPSU-550VX for $ 67.99 shipped AR. Save another $ 10.00 if you can use Google checkout

http://www.buy.com/retail/prod...egory=Comp&dcaid=15890


This review at Hardocp says it all. I just ordered one today, $ 57.99 shipped AR w/google checkout.

http://www.hardocp.com/article...QyMCwsLGhlbnRodXNpYXN0

 

[BlueAcolyte]

Why are you going with AMD? Especially the 5000 Black Edition... At that price, you could get a E4500 which would blow it far away.

Don't go with SLi... By the time you find another 8800GT, there will be a better card at that price. SLi is only for people who want the performance NOW.

Everything else looks good except for the processor and the motherboard, so my idea is this:

Intel C2D E4500 $125

Gigabyte P35 motherboard $95

This leads you to an upgrade path to a Penryn quad-core or dual. IF you really want a SLi motherboard, then this looks like a good option:

Asus 750i motherboard $156

The 750i chipset is compatible with Penryns and has most features of the 780i chipset.

If you want to save some money, then get the E2160:

E2160 $74

Either way, OC one of those to 3GHz and don't look back.

Dammit, beat again. Anyway, a Corsair power supply is top of the line. Can't beat a Corsair.

They're made with SeaSonic parts.

 

[Woggle]

I fell behind with the glut of new C2D and their performance relative to other processors. I found the 5000 through newegg, looked at it's review on Toms and compared it to the e6420 and e6320 prices ($190 and 200 on newegg right now). I haven't overclocked before and the seemingly effortless multiplier changing (with the freezer pro) appealed to me. I'd rather not run the chance of burning it up with voltage changes.

The Pentium name on other processors around the 5000be price, like that one put me off as I wasn't sure if that was the old netburst or not.

Also I don't intend to overclock right away. I'll probably leave everything at stock until something runs too slow for me (which has to be really slow, ie. <20-30fps), and then overclock.

Do you have a link to an e4500 benchmark? I can't find anything on google about it. I'm assuming the e4500 requires FSB increases to overclock which I've read stresses the motherboard somewhat, and a dead motherboard+cpu is even worse than a dead cpu. I really don't want to blow anything up on my first try with overclocking.

 

[accguy9009]

Here is the way I would go for your build and overclock since it is so easy

[http://www.clubit.com/product_...l.cfm?itemno=CA4830813

http://www.clubit.com/product_...l.cfm?itemno=CA1938263
Save $12 when you check out with any LGA 775 motherboard with promo code: EBL2171938263

Should be $ 161.47 shipped ( unless you live in Cali)

Same parts shipped from the Egg are $ 178.82

Links fixed

 

[DSF]

Originally posted by: Woggle
Do you have a link to an e4500 benchmark? I can't find anything on google about it. I'm assuming the e4500 requires FSB increases to overclock which I've read stresses the motherboard somewhat, and a dead motherboard+cpu is even worse than a dead cpu. I really don't want to blow anything up on my first try with overclocking.

I have an E4500, and it's a very overclockable CPU. At stock settings, it has a low FSB and a high multiplier. Nominally, it's a 2.2GHz chip - 200MHz x 11. By changing the FSB to 266, I have it running at 2.93GHz. 266 is well within spec for any modern motherboard. Heck, Intel's new CPUs all run at 333MHz FSB.

So what does it all mean? I have a 33% overclock on this CPU - as much or more than the Black Edition is likely to give you. On top of that, my E4500 is running below the stock voltage, and it's rock solid stable.

As long as you're sensible, you're not going to fry anything. Read graysky's guide in the CPU forum to learn everything you need to know to start overclocking C2Ds.

 

[Woggle]

accguy, your links are broken. The ellipses in the middle definitely don't seem to be url-ish.

Thanks for the info on e4500s dsf. I didn't know it comes at a low FSB. Barring someone showing up with e4500 and 5000+ BE reviews, I guess I'll go with:

Core 2 Duo e4500 109.99 @ microcenter instore special

GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3L 89.99

The Corsair 550vx is the same price AR as a 450vx so I'll go with the bigger one.

No one has said anything about the case so I'll stick with the Solo, as the coolermaster doesn't have any hard drive noise dampening mounts, and has some sort of funnel stuck on the side panel that might conflict with something or other.

Some of the reviews on newegg and other sites have complained about the eclipse II having problems with keys malfunctioning. I know newegg has an awsome replacement policy, but does anyone know of another backlit keyboard that might not have the same problems?

 

[accguy9009]

Links repaired

 

[DSF]

I think the Logitech G15 might be backlit, but I'm not 100% sure on that.