first budget final build sheet - good? bad?

[turdfurguson]

I just wanted to get some final comments or suggestion about this pc a friend wants me to build for him. I took some of the suggestions from my last post and changed some things around. Basically, my friend wanted me to build him a computer that would play majority of games (setting dont matter much though) and do normal day-to-day stuff, and will be able to upgrade in the future. But he wanted me to do it while keeping the price around $700 including monitor. As you can see though I'm a little over but he's ok with it. Just as a heads up though - I selected the video card I did to be used as a placeholder as I explained the situation with DX10 and all of that to him and he agreed he will be getting a better one in the near future. I do have one specific question though, the motherboard selected says it will work with Pentiums. Thats all recent Pentiums right (Pentium D)? Thank you for your input.

http://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/wishlist/PublicWishDetail.asp?WishListNumber=4752772

[Pride]

It looks to be a pretty solid Comp.

But if i may suggest a few things

I would say try to get a better PSU like maybe a more name bran or something i myself am not very good with them either but im sure someone else will beable to post some better brand names/suggstions

The mobo seems to be a decent one. But for that kind of money you should beable to find one that is solid and around that price that is SLI compatible. It's not essential no biggie but it is nice to have that choice.

The CPU is nice but pDs tend to get hot so make sure you have ample air flow/cooling. The socket is also good of course because LGA 775 is the same socket as C2D which would be a nice upgrade.


Also i dont think that ram will work with that mobo. The mobo takes DDR2 800 ram and the ram you have picked out is DDR2 677



I know he wanted a monitor. But if he doesnt mind using an older monitor or a CRT then it would be a great idea to take out the monitor and put that money into the computer as well. It depends on the persons preferences though of course.

[jer888]

that psu IS a good brand but just a thought, if you are planning on upgrading soon you may want somthing with more juice, so you dont have to buy a new PSU too

dont worry about SLi mobos, unless your friend comes into alot of money that he wishes to blow, stick with a single card

that ram will be fine, you dont need DDR2 800 unless you are overclocking

[Pride]

that psu IS a good brand but just a thought, if you are planning on upgrading soon you may want somthing with more juice, so you dont have to buy a new PSU too

dont worry about SLi mobos, unless your friend comes into alot of money that he wishes to blow, stick with a single card

that ram will be fine, you dont need DDR2 800 unless you are overclocking


Im not doubting what you say is true. But i never have heard of that brand of PSU so i wasnt sure.

Also i said sli wasnt a big deal but it is in no way an exspensive thing to do....infact in the LONG run could save someone money as 2 lesser cards can often be better than 1 great exspensive card.

[Panama Red]

Nice looking selection of parts but I have a couple of suggestions. When your friend gets ready for a vid card upgrade he may find he needs a larger capacity psu. At 400 watts, that one is just barely enough to handle the 350 watt minimum requirements of the present vid card. Think I'd go for something in the 500 - 550 watt range from someone on our Good list (Gen Hdw Sticky threads). A Corsair or XClio would be good options.

You may want to rethink the burner. Buying an oem will save you money but you won't get any software with it. Go for a Retail Liteon burner and you'll get the Nero Burning Software and Power DVD. Save you grief in the long run.

[jer888]

Im not doubting what you say is true. But i never have heard of that brand of PSU so i wasnt sure.

Also i said sli wasnt a big deal but it is in no way an exspensive thing to do....infact in the LONG run could save someone money as 2 lesser cards can often be better than 1 great exspensive card.

i would have to disagree. It is an even GREATER waste of money in the long run. Lets say you start with one card, then a year later the next gen of cards are out but you have to buy the same card you already have so your putting money into something that is already outdated. Ok so then you have your two cards with s small performance increase from when you only had one. Great... Then 6 months later your two cards will no longer run games at decent settings. Then You have to throw out TWO cards (your money).

Lets say you went with one better card. 1 year later next gen cards are out. Your card is starting to show its age but still will run games. Then another 6 months- a year go by and you can no longer run games at decent settings. Ok, buy a new, next gen card (not an outdated card).

I guess my point is that computer parts are poor of enough of an investment (because they depreciate so quickly) , but buying aged or outdated parts is even worse.

[Mr.Ferrari]

That 400w is from FSP a reliable company. And will be fine for your system.

The Processor is OEM, meaning you will need to invest in a heatsink, and you will lose the standard 3 year warranty. I would definitely go retail. The money saved is usually not worth it.

And swap that LG for a nice Lite-On retail.

Im not a big fan of that board...the DS3's were good overclockers but VERY finicky. I would suggest something along the lines of a P5B.

[turdfurguson]

Thank you all for your suggestions and help.

You may want to rethink the burner. Buying an oem will save you money but you won't get any software with it. Go for a Retail Liteon burner and you'll get the Nero Burning Software and Power DVD. Save you grief in the long run.

I picked this burner for a couple of reasons. First I have one on my pc and so far its been good to me. And second, He has the retail versions of both Nero and Power DVD so there is no need to spend the extra money on stuff he already has.

The Processor is OEM, meaning you will need to invest in a heatsink, and you will lose the standard 3 year warranty. I would definitely go retail. The money saved is usually not worth it.

Hmm....Well I didn't really consider the whole warranty thing. I'll mention that to him. But as far as it being OEM. I have a Tuniq Tower on the way so I was just going to give him the cooler I have on my CPU or, at the very least, I have a brand new stock Intel HSF I never used that he could have.

But anyways, thanks all.

[doubledragon5]

That Pentium D is a solid buy. I use it in my youngest machine lots of power for a low end cpu. I would get the retail it is only $14 more and comes with the stock heatsink/fan and warranty....

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116001R