New build, what do you think

[zealit]

Hello,

It's been quite a while I didn't buy anything computer related and it's time to get something new. So here's my list of hardware, tell me what do you think.

Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Dual Core Processor LGA775 Conroe 2.40GHZ 1066FSB 4MB Retail

ASUS P5N-E SLI Nforce 650I SLI LGA775 Conroe ATX 2PCI-E16 1PCI-E1 2PCI SATA2 Sound GBLAN Motherboard

EVGA E-GEFORCE 8800GTS 500MHZ 640MB 1.6GHZ GDDR3 Dual DVI-I HDTV Out HDCP DIRECTX10 Video Card

OCZ Gold XTC PC2-6400 2GB 2X1GB DDR2-800 CL5-5-5-12 240PIN DIMM Dual Channel Memory Kit

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB SATA2 3GB/S 7200RPM 16MB Cache NCQ Hard Drive

Creative Labs Sound Blaster X-FI Xtreme Gamer 24BIT Sound Card 7.1 PCI Retail Box Bilingual

Logitech Z5300E Speakers 5.1 280W RMS 560W THX /W Wired Remote

Thermaltake Toughpower 600W ATX12V 24PIN SLI/CROSSFIRE Ready ATX Power Supply 140MM Fan Active PFC

Antec Nine Hundred Mid Tower Gamer Case 900 ATX 9 Drive Bay No PS Top USB2.0 1394 Audio

Liteon SHD-16S1S-05 16X Black SATA DVD-ROM Drive OEM

Cooler Master Neon Blue LED 120MM Case Fan 3PIN 22DBA 1220RPM 42.734CFM 3PINS (side panel)

Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro LGA775 2500RPM 45CFM

Swiftech MCX159-CU Extreme Duty Chipset Heatsink for AMD & Intel Platform Motherboards (for the NB, they get quite hot when u OC on this board)

Samsung SyncMaster 226BW 22IN Widescreen LCD Black 1680X1050 3000:1 2MS VGA DVI-D HDCP

I'm still not sure about the monitor (heard about the panel lottery) but I heard that even the worst panel (C) with good calibration is still higher quality than alot of other 22inchers.
Is the 8800GTS 640mb ok for 1680x1050?
I plan to OC the processor and the video card.

 

[Blain]

SLI Nforce for an Intel CPU > :thumbsdown:
Stick with an Intel chipset MB.
I don't want to hear that crap about... "But I'm getting a single card now and another in the future".

The future is NOW!
BTW, Your rig is very unique. :laugh:

 

[Roguestar]

Get a better PSU. Seasonic or Corsair, around 500W usually gives you the amperage you want.
Get a more suitable motherboard. Gigabyte P35 DS3R, for example.
Get cheaper, better RAM. Search the hot deals forum or whatever DDR2-800 is on offer on newegg.
Get a better HSF if you're overclocking, check the anandtech cases & cooling reviews.
Consider getting just the X-Fi Xtreme Music and saving some $$$.

 

[zealit]

Ok so I took some of your advice,
Looked at the P35-DS3R and it seems to be quite nice,
gonna get some Ballistix Tracer DDR800 4-4-4-12 (normal version is oos and tracer are +10$)
Won't need the NB cooler anymore, switched the ACF7P with a Tuniq Tower 120

 

[Rike]

Here's your Ram:

http://forums.anandtech.com/me...id=40&threadid=2065342

 

[zealit]

Unfortunately, I live in Canada and ordering at newegg is not possible :/

 

[Rike]

Originally posted by: zealit
Unfortunately, I live in Canada and ordering at newegg is not possible :/

Well, at least you've got the health care thing going for you, sort of. 😉

BTW, your build looks good. You should know that the LEDs on top of the Tracers are BRIGHT! I have a pair myself, and they look cool enough but they are bright!

 

[aCynic2]

My experience with nForce Mobos: I had an MSI P6N SLI Platinum 650i and an old X-45 stick and throttle. I didn't want to buy new stick and throttle since these worked with my Win98 system. However, they don't like nForce. There was a five second delay in response, so I had a choice: buy a PCI USB card, or get new stick and throttle.

I decided to buy a new stick and throttle. The X-52s work fine, but it sucked having to spend another $100 for a new stick and throttle.

I've got an old X-45 stick and throttle for sale now.

If I had known this in advance, I probably would have gone with an intel board.