Please help ready to have a seismic event and posts are tapdancin' on the fault line!!!

[HghLndrSwrd]

I will start with what I have ordered:

Antec Sonata Case
Gigabyte GA-SINXP1394
Intel P4 3.06
Kingston Hyper X PC2700 512 x2
120GB Seagate Barracuda Sata
Sony 48x CDRW
Sony Dual Format DVD/+-R&RW
Samaung FDD
Audigy 2 Platinum
ATI AIW9700 Pro
WinXP PRO

This stuff will be here any day from newegg. I had a pretty good feeling about everything until I actually read the reveiws on the video card at newegg. I know bad call, read reviews first. I had seen some reviews on the card including the link from here and they all raved about it. Now I see that some people are having nothing but problems. I came here because I feel that I can trust the Anand forum a lot more than the potpouri at newegg. This is my first attempt at building and I am officially freaking out. Any tips or suggestions on how to maximize the experience without pulling my hair out would be apprecitated. BTW I will shave my head ahead of time if that is all of the advice I get. However, I am hoping some of you seasoned veterans can help me out or at least minimize my apprehension.

Thanks

P.S. Ultra bummer is that it is exchange only no refund if I am up the proverbial creek without a source of motile force.

 

[react]

I am getting the nv35 as soon as it comes out I can't stand the shimmering (wavey lines) effect on my 9500pro. But if you don't get those effects then its a great card

 

[Smilin]

You're fine, good card.

Just remember two facts about people with computer problems:
They tend to speak up more than the ones without trouble
They often are their own problem (sad but true)

Before your stuff arrives, search around here a bit. There have been several decent build guides.

My two tips:
Double check your jumpers on all devices before you start - I've had too many that were not set to the factory defaults they were supposed to have.
Take "boot breaks" from time to time.. ie get the mobo, cpu and cooler running then boot. Add memory and video, boot again etc... It will save you much time and hassle if you get a bad component.

Have fun!

 

[CurtCold]

1st tip, and general rule, even though your super stoked, just take your time installing and configuring your new machine. Make sure everything is properly seated and connected properly to avoid probs later.

2nd That's going to be one sweet computer you have there, have fun!

 

[HghLndrSwrd]

Thanks a lot you guys are just what the doctor ordered. I appreciate your time in answering my post and helping me refocus.

Thanks Again!!!

 

[TechBoyJK]

Get a killer set of headphones and enjoy your audigy 2 platinum. I got one and I love it. Pure sounds.

 

[Smilin]

Originally posted by: TechBoyJK
Get a killer set of headphones and enjoy your audigy 2 platinum. I got one and I love it. Pure sounds.

You know, that's no joke. I went from a sb live 5.1 to an Audigy 2 just becuase I wanted a bit more performance out of EAX in my games (*cough* *shitty ut2k3* *cough) and I didn't really expect to hear much difference. I was way wrong..that low signal to noise ratio makes a huge difference. I had always just chocked that low hiss up to having a sound system in a room with so much electronics. Not so apparently.