New System Build, Please Help. TY!

[KoalaNYC]

Hey Guys,

I just spent a godawfull amount of time speccing this build. I'm bleary eyed and can't see straight. Can the Guru's out there give me some advice please. Any help would be appreciated. It is supposed to be a mid range gaming rig with room for future expansion (SLI increased HD capacity etc). This will be my 2nd build, 1st one that I will attempt overclocking with. For about $1500 (mostly new egg and including some extra $$$ for the non specified items at the bottom)) I have put together:

Antec Twelve Hundred Black ATX Full Tower Computer Case - Retail
Item #: N82E16811129043

EVGA 132-YW-E178-A1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 780i SLI FTW ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
Item #: N82E16813188027

Western Digital VelociRaptor WD1500HLFS 150GB 10000 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive (bare drive) - OEM
Item #: N82E16822136296

EVGA 896-P3-1260-AR GeForce GTX 260 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
Item #: N82E16814130370

Antec NeoPower 650 Blue 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Certified CrossFire Ready Modular Active PFC Power Supply - Retail
Item #: N82E16817371010

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 Yorkfield 2.83GHz LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80569Q9550 - Retail

2GB DDR2 PC8500 DUAL MEMORY / Kingston KHX8500D2K2/2GR / HyperX Memory Kit TIMES2 for 4GB

Windows Vista (what version and where should I buy it?)

(Some cheap kind of DVD drive.)

CPU cooler recommendations would be great, that will fit on a EVGA 780i FTW motherboard

Did I forget anything?

THANKS!

 

[Tbirdkid]

for the cooler, zalman has always made great ones, just pick one of those that is quiet but runs alot of cfm. so db to cfm range...
As for vista, find a system builder, and order a dvd drive from him, along with a copy of oem vista. not sure if you need ultimate, but its cool to have the extras and it doesnt make sense to skimp there since you didnt skimp anywhere else. as for the dvd drive, lite on has always made good ones, so hop on one of those and let her rip.

 

[the unknown]

For a gaming rig, you're skimping on the GPU in lieu for other components that won't increase your FPS. I'd cut down on other components for a 4870x2 or 280GTX.

HDD isn't important to anything but loads times, and that one is overkill. A WD 640GB will do you very nicely for cheaper.

Also, Hot Deal on that case will save you $20 bucks if you're interested. http://forums.anandtech.com/me...=2230095&enterthread=y

That PSU is good quality, but 650watts will be low if you intend to OC your CPU and add an extra drive with SLi on OCed cards. You probably won't ever get that far, unless you user two 4870x2's or something, but its something to think about.

 

[KoalaNYC]

Originally posted by: the unknown
For a gaming rig, you're skimping on the GPU in lieu for other components that won't increase your FPS. I'd cut down on other components for a 4870x2 or 280GTX.

Good points! The components I chose were primarily based on combo deals and specials combined with user reviews. The only item I thought might be a splurge was the 780i SLI FTW which I though would make it easier for me to overclock safely
and the antec 1200 which I thought would make it easier for me to fit all the parts in it and have room for SLI expansion later.

HDD isn't important to anything but loads times, and that one is overkill. A WD 640GB will do you very nicely for cheaper.

The HD is part of a deal, going for maybe $120. So I think it's a steal and worth it.

Also, Hot Deal on that case will save you $20 bucks if you're interested. http://forums.anandtech.com/me...=2230095&enterthread=y

thanks I checked it out, not valid anymore so NewEgg has it for the same price.

That PSU is good quality, but 650watts will be low if you intend to OC your CPU and add an extra drive with SLi on OCed cards. You probably won't ever get that far, unless you user two 4870x2's or something, but its something to think about.

The PSU and GPU are part of a combo deal:

EVGA 896-P3-1260-AR GeForce GTX 260 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
Item #: N82E16814130370
Return Policy: Limited 30-Day Return Policy
Antec NeoPower 650 Blue 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Certified CrossFire Ready Modular Active PFC Power Supply - Retail

for: $259 after rebate

I was thinking the PSU could handle maybe one additional GPU in SLI if needed down the line?

Anything wrong with my memory choice? 4 1 stick GBs of Kensington ram, about $50 after rebate.

2 of: 2GB DDR2 PC8500 DUAL MEMORY / Kingston KHX8500D2K2/2GR / HyperX Memory Kit

 

[KoalaNYC]

Will the Zalman fit well in an antec 1200 / 780i sli ftw setup?

Any particular OEM builders that you recommend?

Thanks!

 

[shuji07]

KoalaNYC, you're build is almost like mine! Check out my 700-800 gaming rig post ... Except I'm going with the PNY 260 gtx in that combo deal!

 

[shuji07]

Also, that 650watt psu is awesome, it has 3 12v rails with 19amps each; here are the stats:
+3.3V@24A,+5V@24A,+12V1@19A,+12V2@19A,+12V3@19A,-12V@0.8A,+5VSB@3.0A

Please, someone correct me if I'm wrong, but that PSU is plenty for an SLI and OC'D Intel C2D rig.

 

[Roguestar]

^If I were SLIing or Crossfire-ing current generation mid-high end graphics cards I'd want something like the Corsair 750TX to be safe.

I'd avoid that combo and get a Radeon HD4870 and a different PSU.

Order an OEM copy of Vista x64 Home Premium off NewEgg when ordering the rest of your components. I have Vista Ultimate ('cause I got it for hella, hella cheap) and there's pretty much nothing if offers of major interest that Home Premium doesn't already have.

Zalman's coolers are very nice, and perform well enough (I own one) but there are less expensive and better performing coolers around now, like the Xigmatec Rifle 120mm. Zalman aren't the smart money purchase any more, unfortunately.

What voltage does that RAM run at? I'd have recommended the G.Skill 4GB DDR2-800 off NewEgg initially.

SLI-ing anything other than top of the range cards, for ultimate performance right now for massive monitors, is usually a waste of money. Saving money on an expensive motherboard now and getting something more reasonable (Gigabyte EP45-DS3L less than $100) and not getting another [by then mediocre] graphics card would likely get you a single better card two years from now. Consider buying a 4850 compared to SLI 7800GTs.

The CPU is monetary overkill, and quad-core will not really benefit you in gaming. You're still much better off getting a higher clocked (and higher overclockable) dual core processor. Save a whole bunch of money by ditching the Q9550 and getting an E8400.



A lot of the purchases you are making are of sound grounding, I appreciate the principle behind them (and some good bargains by the looks of it) but you are not quite closely following the hierarchy for gaming component performance purchases:

Graphics card > CPU speed > Amount of RAM > Hard drive
You should invest more money in your graphics card before you start to consider purchasing the very expensive and loud Velociraptor, even if you're getting a deal on it. You'll notice very little benefit from the hard drive unless you've already essentially maxed out your graphics card, CPU speed and have like 8GB of RAM in there.