my first build

[whitedragon]

hi all im new here and this is my first pc build iv just got the case this is it
case (http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e378/mantis2/drac.png)
here is the spec
* Black gaming case
* 500W ATX 20pin PSU
* Front USB and audio
* see through side window, LED fan and grill
* 4 x 5 1/4" external drive bays
* 2 x 3 1/2" external drive bays
* 4 x 3 1/2" internal drive bay

Specification

* Dimension: 200mm(W)x440mm(H)x500mm(D)=7.9"x17.3"x19.8"
* Fits All standard ATX motherboard and Micro ATX motherboards
* 4 open 5.25" drive bays
* 2 open 3.5" drive bays
* 4 hidden 3.5" drive bays
* A total of 10 bays
* Built in 2 front USB 2.0+Audio Output
* Acrylic Side Window
* Special Designed Shutter Style Air Exit for better and silent performance
* This case comes with an ATX 500watts power supply
* Toolless Thumb Screws
dont know what the board will be yet but it will be AMD and SLI so any ideas welcome thanks

[Katreat]

Welcome to PCMech :)

You need to post make and model number for the PSU and............ a budget. Hard to help without a number to start with. Also, what will the computer be used for?

[whitedragon]

well ill post the make and number as soon as i know what it is lol budget well to start with around £500 all in and as for use i use my pc as a tv/dvd player and for games hope that helps a bit

[ChoboSeki]

Why SLI? SLI is useless.

[whitedragon]

SLI is useless??? explain plz in a way that a noob can understand lol

[Freakitchen]

SLI is the term used for running two nVidia video cards together. SLI needs a LOT of money throwing at it to become viable. £500 isn't a particularly large budget for a gaming computer, and you'll have to make some concessions. You should definitely get the single most powerful card you can afford - this will beat two lower-spec cards running together in SLI.

The PSU that comes with that case will be junk. And it's only a 20 pin ATX 1 unit, which is unsuitable for modern builds.

Are you sure about wanting to build an AMD system? Am perfectly happy to recommend parts for one, but Intel's Core 2 Duo processors outperform AMD's processors at the moment. It's a push-pull process, and at the moment, Intel has the edge.

[whitedragon]

well £ 500 to get it up and running then ill just upgrade as i need to and i said AMD as the bloke in the pc shop recommend it and he said a 500 watt psu would be fine

[Freakitchen]

If the guy you're taking advice off is a retailer himself, then don't expect impartial advice. He probably has his own set of products to push. Most of us here don't have an agenda, though! As I said - AMD processors are fine, but you'd be getting better value for money at the moment with Intel. Let us know what you decide.

Regarding the power supply, around 500w is fine. But there's more to look at than this....not least the quality of the unit and the internal specifications. You'll be paying around £50-£60 for a quality ~500w ATX2 power supply by itself - did your case+PSU even cost that by itself? Modern systems require ATX 2 units, and I'd put money on that not being one. Most case manufacturers aren't interested in bundling quality PSUs with their cases - it would make the price prohibitive.

[whitedragon]

no the case was £37 with p+p

[Freakitchen]

Then you will need to buy a new power supply. Exactly which one depends on what parts you choose. Keep the one that comes with the case around if you ever need a test unit. Don't feel too bad about wasting money - that PSU probably only cost you about £5!

Have a browse on www.overclockers.co.uk and www.ebuyer.co.uk for parts. If you do choose to build an Intel system, then it would be a good idea to wait until the end of this month when some new processors are being released and others reduced in price.

[whitedragon]

i use ebay thats were the case come from i was just looking at Motherboards but i dont know whats the best one

[Freakitchen]

I wouldn't use ebay for computer parts. Far too easy to receive substandard or defective parts, and then have no comeback when it comes to returns/refund. Stick to a decent vendor - I've just been browsing ebuyer for you, and their prices seem to be very competitive at the moment. Here's a list to get you started

Core 2 Duo E6300
http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?action=c2VsZWN0X3Byb2R1Y3Rfb3ZlcnZpZXc=&product_uid=112704
(in a few weeks this will be replaced with the E6320 - same price and double the cache)

Corsair 2GB DDR2-667
http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?action=c2VsZWN0X3Byb2R1Y3Rfb3ZlcnZpZXc=&product_uid=98691

Antec 500w ATX 2.0 PSU
http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?action=c2VsZWN0X3Byb2R1Y3Rfb3ZlcnZpZXc=&product_uid=120377

nVidia 7600GS video card
http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?action=c2VsZWN0X3Byb2R1Y3Rfb3ZlcnZpZXc=&product_uid=121570

ASUS P5B motherboard
http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?action=c2VsZWN0X3Byb2R1Y3Rfb3ZlcnZpZXc=&product_uid=113965

Seagate 7200.10 320GB
http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?action=c2VsZWN0X3Byb2R1Y3Rfb3ZlcnZpZXc=&product_uid=115418

Lite-on DVD-RW
http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/products/index.html?action=c2VsZWN0X3Byb2R1Y3Rfb3ZlcnZpZXc=&product_uid=122955

Total price is £475 including VAT and delivery. You'd need to get an operating system also.

[whitedragon]

thanks for the links and i have xp pro OS so no probs or if i wanted to use it i also have suse linux 10.2 as well lol

[whitedragon]

is this ram good or bad thanks
ram (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Corsair-XMS2-TwinX-2GB-2x1GB-PC5400-CAS4-DDR2-NEW_W0QQitemZ330086380289QQcategoryZ172QQcmdZViewItem)

[Freakitchen]

That RAM is fine - but note that the stuff I linked to is actually CHEAPER from a reputable vendor.

[whitedragon]

yeah but i dont have credit cards and from what i see you need one to buy from there or id use ur links

[Freakitchen]

Here's a list of the accepted payment methods at ebuyer

http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/help/index.html?rb=26723468191&action=cGF5bWVudF9tZXRob2Rz

They accept Paypal, if that's any use to you.

[whitedragon]

no i dont have paypal thats y i use ebay alot i can use postal orders

[Bullitt]

I'm no expert by any stretch of the imagination, but I do have 2 rigs under my belt and I can't say enough good about NewEgg for computer parts. And they take checks. But I'm not sure how it works for blokes in the UK as far as if it's practical or not due to shipping.

But if it is at all doable, NewEgg is a computer builders best friend. They really stand behind what they sell.

Bullitt

[Freakitchen]

I'd consider buying from Newegg if they shipped to the UK, but they don't, so I can't! I believe they don't ship outside of the US at all, though there was talk of this changing a while back.

[Bullitt]

Huh. I didn't know that. That's kinda wierd behaviour for a business that is all internet.

How about ZipZoomFly? Do they ship internatioanlly?

B.

[GraemeM]

I'm no expert by any stretch of the imagination, but I do have 2 rigs under my belt and I can't say enough good about NewEgg for computer parts. And they take checks. But I'm not sure how it works for blokes in the UK as far as if it's practical or not due to shipping.

But if it is at all doable, NewEgg is a computer builders best friend. They really stand behind what they sell.

Bullitt
Newegg is only in the States as far as I know. They don't even ship to Canada (unfortunately). They told me they won't even sell to a Canadian if he has it shipped to the States. Then again, this was over a year ago.

I'm not sure what's good in the UK, but search around the net for reviews of online retailers. I bought most of my stuff on TigerDirect and NCIX. NCIX may ship to the States, you can take a look. TigerDirect seems to have some UK based store: http://www.misco.co.uk/indexuk.asp?

Anyways, I definately wouldn't recommend Ebay for anything other than the odd small part. I bought a power supply on Ebay, although it worked out okay, I wouldn't do it again.

Also, definately buy a better power supply. I bought an (expensive) no name power supply, and had multiple problems with it. It's now been replaced with a quality Antec unit. A bad PS also puts other parts of your system at risk. .

[GraemeM]

Also don't necessarily count out local shops. While most places cater to more mainstream computer users, I've found that there's usually a small computer store around with a good builders selection with prices similar to those online. I bought a high end sound card, high end harddrive, my good PS, as well as other parts, locally.

[whitedragon]

hi ok the board im useing is the K9N 4 SLI Platinum costs £95 i found a good little shop not far from me heres a link board (http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2006/07/26/msi_k9n_sli_platinum/1.html)
so new P.S.U will be needed but the case is nice

[Bullitt]

Hey White Dragon:

I picked almost the same board for my new build I'm working on right now. New Egg delivered all the parts yesterday so I'm hoping to build it this weekend. I was vacilating between the AMD vs. Intel build for awhile. All my prior builds have been AMD, but as I plan on attempting serious overclocking, and I needed 4 IDE devices, I made the switch to Intel and the P6N board. I kinda feel disloyal to AMD, but so many posts on so many message boards have touted the Conroe chip, I had to give it a go.

My core components are as follows:

Gigabyte 3D AURORA Black Aluminum ATX Full Tower Computer Case
MSI P6N SLI Platinum
Gigabyte GV-NX73T256P-RH GeForce 7300GT
Corsair 620W Power Supply
Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz
Corsair XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit
(2) Western Digital Raptor X 150GB 10,000 RPM Serial ATA150 Hard Drives in Raid 1
Sony 16X DVD±R DVD Burner
Zalman 9700 CPU Cooler

[Katreat]

Competition is good for the consumer. I personally like the flip flop between intel and AMD. The CPU market sould be a buyers market for the next year or so as they push each other ahead. You are not being disloyal, you are just letting AMD know that if they want your buisness they need to step it up a notch. It is nice that we all have a choice these days between two quality products.

Kat

[Freakitchen]

If you've switched from the Intel build to an AMD system, consider this motherboard.

http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/112086

SLI support, in my opinion, is unnecessary.

Though if you're buying from a local computer store, your choices will be limited to what they are able to supply. If they do not supply ASUS motherboards, then MSI are a decent alternative.

[whitedragon]

hmm they can get me what ever i want is asus better then the board im getting?

[Freakitchen]

In post #12, I specced out the system I would build if I were in your position. See if they can't provide those parts for you. I would rather have an ASUS than an MSI motherboard due to the consistent reliability of the former.

[LeftyAce]

I second the ASUS recommendation, and would like to add that it's REALLY annoying to end up with a sub-standard motherboard. My first build wouldn't turn on, and after much frustration, it was determined that the motherboard (made by DFI) was dead on arrival; if you go with ASUS, you'll avoid some unnecessary frustration and get stellar tech support.

[whitedragon]

hmmm thanks ill look into ASUS boards see whats what thanks for the grate advice
hows this board look ASUS (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Asus-M2R32-MVP-Crossfire-Motherboard-DDR2-Socket-AM2_W0QQitemZ330080524696QQihZ014QQcategoryZ108971QQcmdZViewItem)

[Freakitchen]

I'd say a crossfire motherboard is unnecessary. Crossfire technology, the running of two ATI graphics cards together, is only really necessary if you have a LOT of money to throw at a gaming machine.

Don't forget that you have to decide on whether you're going for an Intel, or an AMD build, before you chose a motherboard.

[whitedragon]

im doing an AMD as i can get the chip New!!! Athlon 64 X2 4200+ 2.2 Ghz Windsor Retail - Socket AM2 for £74.50 this is the place i use have never had a prob with them ADMI-LTD (http://stores.ebay.co.uk/ADMI-Ltd_W0QQcolZ4QQdirZ1QQfsubZQ2d999QQftidZ2QQtZkm)

[Freakitchen]

From that particular ebay seller, the most appropriate motherboard would be this one

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Asus-M2N-E-SLI-nForce-500-DDR2-Motherboard-Socket-AM2_W0QQitemZ330095396364QQihZ014QQcategoryZ108971QQcmdZViewItem

Normally I'd have recommend the standard M2N-E, without SLI, but this seems to be the closest match.

[whitedragon]

hey thanks for that think ill go for that one

[whitedragon]

ok after advice iv had from ppl here.i am now thinking of useing the new intel chip as follows
chip (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-147-IN&groupid=701&catid=6&subcat=793)
i dont know what board to use as ppl have said that SLI is a waste of time .
but i do want to play a game called spellforce 2 witch needs a 3ghz cpu

[Freakitchen]

Good idea to go Core 2 Duo - with the price drop and the new processors like that one, AMD can't offer much competition.

'Traditional' game minimum specs mean nothing these days with the introduction of multi-core CPUs, and indeed, ones that depend more on architecture than clock speed (the C2Ds are an example of this). I would, however, suggest you go for the E6320 processor - it has double the L2 Cache of the E4400

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-145-IN&groupid=701&catid=6&subcat=793

I'd strongly recommend the ASUS P5B motherboard for a C2D system.

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-151-AS

Take a look back at my post #12 - these are my recommendations and they still stand - apart from the CPU.

[whitedragon]

so even if they say it needs a 3 ghz cpu that 1.86ghz will still run it ?

[whitedragon]

pc shopping list

Intel Core 2 Duo E6320 "LGA775 Conroe" 1.86GHz (1066FSB) £118.
Asus P5B (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £82.42
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler (Socket 775) £17.61
Corsair 1GB DDR2 Value Select PC4200 Dual Channel Kit (2x512MB) (VS1GBKIT533D2) £35.24
Asus GeForce EN7600GS TOP Silent HTD 512MB DDR2 HDTV/DVI (PCI-Express) £86.94
Antec TruePower Trio 550W PSU £64.61
tot £404.82
well the list is done so how dose it look

[Bullitt]

Don't forget the Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Paste.

What kind of case are you getting?

[whitedragon]

iv got the case look at #1 yep found that Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Paste. on ocuk thanks i did forget that

[glc]

If the processor is a retail box, not OEM, you don't need that cooler or the Arctic Silver. It will come with a heatsink/fan assembly ready to go.

[whitedragon]

yeah but is that heatsink any good intel i have found tend to put rubbish heatsinks in lol

[doubledragon5]

Those heatsinks are fine.. If you use any other with that retail cpu and something goes wrong you void your warranty..

[glc]

The Intel heatsink is far from being rubbish.

[whitedragon]

cool then thats one thing off the list lol thanks

[LeftyAce]

The intel heatsink is currently holding my friend's C2D at 20 degrees C.....far from rubbish :-)

[glc]

The Intel compound is every bit as good as Arctic Silver too.

[Bullitt]

Wow Lefty Ace!

That's 68 degrees Fahrenheit! My room is warmer than your buddies CPU!

I take it it's not OC'd?

[LeftyAce]

It's not overclocked.....and that 20 number is at idle. Under load it gets into the thirties. The C2D is very cool running :-)

[whitedragon]

well thats good that will save me a bit of cash to goto the new monitor thanks for the info .i just hope that this cpu will run my games ok

[doubledragon5]

That processor will handle any game you have, and then some...

[whitedragon]

thats good news im not a big game player but i do like to play some games

[whitedragon]

ok an update after getting al the advice iv gone for this
Asus P5B (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 "LGA775 Conroe" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - Retail
Corsair 1GB DDR2 XMS2-6400C4 TwinX (2x512MB)
BFG GeForce 7300 GT OC 256MB DDR2 HDTV/DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail

as for the cpu i got an atrix 650 watt extreme power ATX 2 so im on my way just got to order the bits now

[LeftyAce]

That ram is overkill unless you plan to overclock; regular Corsair Valueselect DDR2 667 is fine.
Everything else looks good aside from the powersupply. Get one of the brands from the recommended list: http://forum.pcmech.com/showthread.php?t=131195

You don't need over 500 watts for this system. In fact, with that video card you could get away with 450W, but if you want some upgrade headroom, a 500W unit would be fine.

[whitedragon]

well to late for the psu as iv got it now but as for the video card its temp till i can get a better one as that chip aint cheap lol ill take a look at the ram thanks i thought that would be good ram ppl say its grate but ill look at the other thanks

[Jimmy0]

Might also want to get a DVD drive and a HDD (unless you already have them).

[whitedragon]

yeah i do lol only prob is my hdd are ide so ill have to upgrade to satta and i have a dvd rw

[LeftyAce]

How much did you spend on the PSU, and is it possible to return it? You're risking your other expensive components with a dodgy psu.... unfortunately the PSU is an incredibly important part to spend the money for a quality unit.

Nothing wrong with the 800 speed ram, just trying to save you some $$ where it doesn't make a difference.

[Jimmy0]

I would suggest either a

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-078-SE&groupid=701&catid=14&subcat=768

or a

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 500GB
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-084-SE&groupid=701&catid=14&subcat=768

depending on how much storage you need. :)

[whitedragon]

thanks ill prob go for the 500 gig and plus that mobo has 1 ide socket i think

[whitedragon]

How much did you spend on the PSU, and is it possible to return it? You're risking your other expensive components with a dodgy psu.... unfortunately the PSU is an incredibly important part to spend the money for a quality unit.

Nothing wrong with the 800 speed ram, just trying to save you some $$ where it doesn't make a difference.
well it wasnt cheap it was £55 but i got it for £40 from a little pc shop in town . its not a rubbish one

[Freakitchen]

I personally would not trust an Atrix power supply - regardless of the wattage or how much you paid for it. For reference, Newegg has a couple of ATRIX units - one of them is badged Atrix / ColorsIT, the latter being one of the worst power supply makers around. I'd consider returning it and purchasing something from a known quality brand. The specs on the 550w unit they stock don't look especially good - the +12v Rails are quite light on the amps, whereas the +5v Rail has a lot. To me, this screams an old ATX 1 design that has been re-done for ATX2 compliance.

[whitedragon]

hmm well this is it the one i have
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e378/mantis2/DSCF4047.jpg
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e378/mantis2/DSCF4053.jpg
dont tell me this is a bad one

[Freakitchen]

Owch, those amp ratings are even worse than on the 550w unit I looked at. I'd be willing to bet the actual power output of that unit is nowhere near 650w. The fact that it's see-through doesn't fill me with confidence either (flashy power supplies tend to be poor quality). The look of the innards are telling though - lots of glue blobs and bent capacitors - NOT the sign of a quality unit. I'd seriously consider replacing it - I initially recommended an Antec 500w Earthwatts which would be a solid choice.

[whitedragon]

ok thank you

[whitedragon]

Owch, those amp ratings are even worse than on the 550w unit I looked at. I'd be willing to bet the actual power output of that unit is nowhere near 650w. The fact that it's see-through doesn't fill me with confidence either (flashy power supplies tend to be poor quality). The look of the innards are telling though - lots of glue blobs and bent capacitors - NOT the sign of a quality unit. I'd seriously consider replacing it - I initially recommended an Antec 500w Earthwatts which would be a solid choice.
yeah that one would be fine but i cant use that place as i dont have a credit card so i found this one
psu (http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-018-OK&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=456)

[Freakitchen]

That's a new one for me. The specs look decent, but brand power is key in PSU world and there's very little info available on Huntkey. Go for something with a bit more history behind them - this Antec is seasonic made

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-062-AN&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=103

If you can't buy from ebuyer, why can you buy from overclockers? As far as I know, you need some kind of plastic for both.

[whitedragon]

That's a new one for me. The specs look decent, but brand power is key in PSU world and there's very little info available on Huntkey. Go for something with a bit more history behind them - this Antec is seasonic made

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-062-AN&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=103

If you can't buy from ebuyer, why can you buy from overclockers? As far as I know, you need some kind of plastic for both.
oc take the solo card i have most place's dont im lucky oc dose