New Gaming Rig

[buzter]

The last system I built was 3 years ago, so I am behind on the newest tech.

My budget is about $1500 without a monitor.

I want to have a 8800 GTS, 2 gigs of ram, and I prefer intel over AMD.

Any suggestions on specific case, PSU, gpu, cpu, ram, mobo, sound card, etc would be greatly appreciated. I don't need a monitor, keyboard, or mouse.

 

[blamb425]

will you be o/c'ing?

 

[buzter]

I plan to pretty much just run things at stock speeds.

 

[blamb425]

E6600
680i
2GB G. Skill DDR2 667 RAM (don't get 800, it's only gonna take more money out of your pocket for similar performance)
8800GTS

go from there

 

[buzter]

Case: Thermaltake Armor Series VA8000BWS Black Aluminum / Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case - Retail -- 149.99

DVD: SAMSUNG 18X DVD?R DVD Burner With 12X DVD-RAM Write Black E-IDE/ATAPI Model SH-S182D/BEBE - OEM -- 30.99

Floppy: NEC Black 1.44MB 3.5" Internal Floppy Drive - OEM -- 6.99

HDD: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS (Perpendicular Recording Technology) 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM -- 84.99

Graphics: BFG Tech BFGR88640GTSOCE GeForce 8800GTS 640MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 OC HDCP Video Card - Retail -- 419.99

Sound: Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer 7.1 Channels PCI Interface Sound Card - Retail -- 79.99

PSU: Antec True Power Trio TP3-550 ATX12V 550W Power Supply with Three 12V Rails - Retail -- 99.99

RAM: CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X2048-6400C4 - Retail -- 199.00

Mobo: ASUS P5N32-SLI Premium/WiFi-AP LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 590 SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail -- 214.99

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 Conroe 2.13GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6400 - Retail -- 218.00


-------

Total would be 1504.92, but mail in rebates total about 160:

25 on the case
30 on the GPU
30 on the sound
20 on the PSU
50 on the RAM

-------



This was off an old guide I read on sharky, but I made a few changes. Using this as a base, what suggested modifcations would you make to this?

 

[secretanchitman]

Originally posted by: buzter
Case: Thermaltake Armor Series VA8000BWS Black Aluminum / Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case - Retail -- 149.99

DVD: SAMSUNG 18X DVD?R DVD Burner With 12X DVD-RAM Write Black E-IDE/ATAPI Model SH-S182D/BEBE - OEM -- 30.99

Floppy: NEC Black 1.44MB 3.5" Internal Floppy Drive - OEM -- 6.99

HDD: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS (Perpendicular Recording Technology) 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM -- 84.99

Graphics: BFG Tech BFGR88640GTSOCE GeForce 8800GTS 640MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 OC HDCP Video Card - Retail -- 419.99

Sound: Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer 7.1 Channels PCI Interface Sound Card - Retail -- 79.99

PSU: Antec True Power Trio TP3-550 ATX12V 550W Power Supply with Three 12V Rails - Retail -- 99.99

RAM: CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X2048-6400C4 - Retail -- 199.00

Mobo: ASUS P5N32-SLI Premium/WiFi-AP LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 590 SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail -- 214.99

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 Conroe 2.13GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6400 - Retail -- 218.00


-------

Total would be 1504.92, but mail in rebates total about 160:

25 on the case
30 on the GPU
30 on the sound
20 on the PSU
50 on the RAM

-------



This was off an old guide I read on sharky, but I made a few changes. Using this as a base, what suggested modifcations would you make to this?

case: your choice

dvd: your choice, plenty to choose from anyway

floppy: you really need this? get a usb floppy instead...

hdd: good choice

video: good choice...xfx/evga/bfg are all good

sound: up to you, but i personally wouldnt get an x-fi...

psu: people will suggest other brands, but im fine with antec

ram: good choice, g.skill is a good alternative

mobo: this is a good board, but why pick the nforce 590? go with the nforce 650/680...

cpu: good choice. there are price cuts coming for intel core 2 duos in late april (i think 22nd), so if you want, you could hold out for those...


overall good picks!

 

[buzter]

What is bad about the x-fi? Should I cut the sound card entirely and stick with on-board?

Could you suggest a good 650/680 mobo that is in the same price range?

The price drops, how large do you expect them to be? These rebates are going to expire on the 9th and 10th of this month mostly.

Is the g.skill a lot cheaper than the rebated corsair?


Thank you very much for the input, I really appreciate it. Like I said, the above was based off an old "high end" guide that I read.


Edit: With the decision not to overclock, will the retail HSF be sufficient cooling? Will it also be sufficiently quiet? My old P43.0E had a high pitch whine that drove me mad.

 

[buzter]

How is ASUS P5N32-E SLI LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail for a mobo?


vs a friend suggestion of:

MSI 975X Platinum V.2 LGA 775 Intel 975X ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

 

[s44]

For $1500, I'd scratch the sound card and SLI mobo and get the GTX instead. If you're running the CPU at stock, there's no need for DDR2-800 either; the ~$100 DDR2-667 should do fine.

Also I'd take an Antec Solo before the Armor but that's personal preference.

 

[bamacre]

I would get a board with an Intel chipset. Gigabyte (S3 or DS3) or Asus P5B.

SLI is just bad all around, forget it. Intel cpu and Intel chipset is the way to go.

I don't know why people are suggesting expenisve memory, he said he's not going to OC. Even with cheaper memory, he could get a mild OC.

Pick up some great cheap memory...
http://shop4.outpost.com/product/4565617

E6600 cpu.

640MB 8800 GTS video.

Stick with onboard audio.

PSU, I would suggest a Seasonic 500w, Corsair 520W, or Enermax Liberty 500w.

May I suggest a SATA DVD burner? Thinner cable, and they are cheaper now.

If you don't spend all the $1500, don't worry. Prices are low right now, especially for the memory. Tuck some back for a 12 month upgrade on the video card and/or cpu (quad core).

 

[buzter]

My plan has changed to cut the sound card entirely and change the cpu to E6600. That CPU says it has a 1066 FSB. This might be a stupid question, but why should I got for the 667 clocked DDR ram?

I don't plan on running SLI, so I have no problem dropping the SLI enabled mobo, but is there any specific reason to go with an Intel chipset over an nForce board? If so which chipset should I be aiming for?

 

[buzter]

I should also qualify that any money saved is going towards the 30 inch monitor fund down the line.

 

[bamacre]

You cannot get a more stable system than one with an Intel cpu and Intel chipset.

667mhz DDR2 memory is dirt cheap right now. You really only need 533mhz DDR2 in dual channel mode to get the 1066mhz FSB (533 x 2 = 1066).

If you want a 30in LCD, then you may want to consider SLI, or something, because gaming at 2560x1600 is going to take a lot of horsepower.

 

[mushroom3]

dont get sli, get a gtx

 

[bob4432]

if needed drop the down in cpu a bit and get a 8800gtx

 

[buzter]

Case: Thermaltake Armor Series VA8000BWS Black Aluminum / Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case - Retail -- 149.99

DVD: SAMSUNG 18X DVD±R DVD Burner With 12X DVD-RAM Write, LightScribe Technology Black SATA Model SH-S183L - OEM -- 38.99

Floppy: NEC Black 1.44MB 3.5" Internal Floppy Drive - OEM -- 6.99

HDD: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS (Perpendicular Recording Technology) 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM -- 84.99

Graphics: BFG Tech BFGR88768GTXOCE GeForce 8800GTX 768MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 OC HDCP Video Card - Retail -- 579.99

PSU: Antec True Power Trio TP3-550 ATX12V 550W Power Supply with Three 12V Rails - Retail -- 99.99

RAM: CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X2048-6400C4 - Retail -- 199.00

Mobo: MSI 975X Platinum V.2 LGA 775 Intel 975X ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail -- 149.99

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6600 - Retail -- 308.00

Total 1612.93
Rebates:
25 on case
30 on 8800GTX
20 on PSU
50 on RAM


Total after rebates: 1487.93
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My friend suggested that MSI mobo, but I see people suggesting the DS3 a lot. What is the difference between the 965P and 975X?

Between MSI 975X Platinum V.2 LGA 775 Intel 975X ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

and
GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3 LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

Which will better serve my needs?

 

[Icepick]

Originally posted by: s44
For $1500, I'd scratch the sound card and SLI mobo and get the GTX instead. If you're running the CPU at stock, there's no need for DDR2-800 either; the ~$100 DDR2-667 should do fine.

Also I'd take an Antec Solo before the Armor but that's personal preference.

I chose the Antec Solo too and couldn't be happier. It's nice looking, feels solid and has a ton of great features.

 

[buzter]

I'm leaning towards the solo now too. It's only slightly cheaper after rebates, but I don't think that I really need a full tower. What about the Antec P180 though, would having the PSU on the bottom make for better temps overall? It's only slightly more than the thermaltake would be post rebate.

 

[buzter]

The solo is out. The 8800GTX will not fit without dremel work from what I read on some forums. Going to stick with the armor.

 

[Icepick]

Originally posted by: buzter
The solo is out. The 8800GTX will not fit without dremel work from what I read on some forums. Going to stick with the armor.

That sucks. Thanks for the info! Guess I'll be skipping the 8800GTX then.

 

[bob4432]

Originally posted by: Icepick

Originally posted by: buzter
The solo is out. The 8800GTX will not fit without dremel work from what I read on some forums. Going to stick with the armor.

That sucks. Thanks for the info! Guess I'll be skipping the 8800GTX then.

i don't the the high end gpus are going to get smaller, so that was sure a dumb design issue....no way i would let a case et in the way of stuff that really matters....

 

[Boyo]

I would dump the PSU. ANtec doesn't have a great track record lately. Go with Enermax, Seasonic or Corsair. Actually get the Enermax Liberty 620W for your 8800GTX.