New Build for Xmas

[SimonFF]

I was wondering what people thought of my next build? Im still to choose what heatsync for the CPU, or should I just go retail?

CPU - AMD Phenom 9700 Quad-Core - skt AM2+ - 2400Mhz
Heatsync - TBD
Memory 1 - OCZ 2GB (2x1GB) PC2-8500C5 1066MHz Reaper HPC Edition Dual Channel DDR2
Memory 2 - OCZ 2GB (2x1GB) PC2-8500C5 1066MHz Reaper HPC Edition Dual Channel DDR2
Motherbord - Gigabyte GA-MA790FX-DQ6 AMD 790FX (Socket AM2)
PSU - Enermax Galaxy 850W EGX850EWL ATX2.2 Modular PSU
Case - Coolermaster Stacker 830 Evolution Silver with Black Mesh
Graphics Card 1 - Gigabyte ATI Radeon HD 3870 XT 512MB GDDR4 TV-Out/Dual DVI/HDMI
Graphics Card 2 - Gigabyte ATI Radeon HD 3870 XT 512MB GDDR4 TV-Out/Dual DVI/HDMI
Hard Disk 1 - Hitachi Deskstar 7K1000 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM
Hard Disk 2 - Hitachi Deskstar 7K1000 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM
Media Reader - Scythe Card Reader & Floppy Drive - Black
Game NIC Card - KillerNIC M1 Gigabit Desktop PCI Network Adapter
DVD Writer - Samsung SH-S203N/RSMN 20xDVD±R, 12xDVD±DL, DVD+RW x8/-RWx6, SATA

Thanks

[Cricket]

Try the retail heatsink before you buy something else.

What OS are you going to use? To make use of 4GB of RAM you need a 64 bit operating system.

Make sure that Gigabyte motherboard supports that quad core processor. The processor is a AM2+ while the motherboard is only AM2.

And does that motherboard support SLi or do you just want to run dual monitors (hence the two video cards)?

I don't recommend Hitachi Deskstar hard drives...they don't have the nickname "Death Star" for nothing.

I heard that NIC isn't worth the money as it's performance ain't that great.

Samsung make great LCD monitors but their drives are very unreliable. You might want to get a Lite-On, LG or NEC optical drive instead.

:) Cricket

[SimonFF]

Hi, thanks for that. Im going to use Vista Ultimate 64-bit, and the motherboard supports the AM2+ and SLi.

Haha with the HDD's, anyone got a good brand to use?

Well that will save me some cash taking out the NIC then! And thanks for the heads up on the drives.

[Lespaul20]

Unless you are overclocking I'd stick with the retail HSF.
I think you Power supply might be a bit much. Have you looked that the Corsair 620W?
Forget the PCI NIC. Your onbaord will work just fine.



Again I type slow.

[Devastator]

Here's a good 1TB drive:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148274

Are you sure you really need that much storage? You could save yourself some money.

[shadowpr]

I would recommend getting a 2x2gb instead of 4x1gb. That would just help with stability.

[SimonFF]

Im going to mirror the disks, I have lots of images from my dig cam. Using 750GB just now and only got 150GB free!

Thanks for the input guys!

[Cricket]

You might want to think about using external hard drives to store backups of your digital pictures off the computer. The external hard drives don't see as much use as the hard drives in your computer and should theoretically last longer. I keep backups of all my personal data and digital photos on external hard drives.

:) Cricket

[SimonFF]

Good idea, thanks!

[flanzig1]

You have 2 ATI video cards on your list and SLI is for Nvidea video cards. To use the ATI cards, you would need a Crossfire comparable motherboard.

[SimonFF]

doh meant crossfire!

[SimonFF]

Ok looking at changing the HDD to 1TB Seagate ST31000340NS Barracuda ES.2, SATA II, 7200 rpm, 32MB Cache, 9.5 ms and the DVD drive to NEC AD7170S Serial ATA 18x18 DVD±RW Dual Layer ReWriter.