My First Gaming PC Build

[PnyK1d]

Hi Guy Heres my list of parts and im wondering if eveytings is correct in the kinds of parts of buying here it is.

ASUS A8N-SLI Deluxe
From Frys


RAIDMAX Scorpio ATX-868WBP Black 0.8mm Japanese SECC ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 420watts PS2 ATX12V Power Supply:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811156135

80GB SATA Seagate Barracuda 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148107

XFX 7600GT 256MB:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150141

CORSAIR ValueSelect 1GB (2 x 512MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM Unbuffered DDR 400:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145440

AMD Athlon 64 3500+ Venice 2000MHz HT:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103533


Microsoft Windows XP Home With SP2 - OEM:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16837102059

[jayb1234]

The PSU in that case will NOT work for that build. It is only ATX with a 20 pin main connector and from a lousy maker.

A decent PSU alone will cost more than that case and psu does.

If you must have that case try to get it without a power supply, or just toss the one it comes with.

You need an ATX 2.0 unit with a 24 pin main from a quality maker like Antec, Enermax, or FSP.

The Antec TPII 550W would be good and is SLI certified in case you want to add a second video card in the future.

If you don't plan on using SLI later, you can save some cash by getting the non-SLI version of the motherboard.

[PnyK1d]

The PSU included with the case is a 24pin if you look at the pics, and if im wrong i know the asus a8n-sli deluxe has the so called "EZ Plug" the will allow me the plug a standard 4 pin connector, to the mobo that will give me enough power. BTW I am buy two 7600gt's.
PSU provided is just a temporay one just to hold me up until i get more money for a sli certified one, but I think that 420 watt PSU will hold out for the Mobo(w/ SLI) for a bit.
I belive I need a second opinion.

[freakitchen]

I belive I need a second opinion.

JayB is entirely correct. Even though the included PSU has 24 pins, its of low quality, and is NOT ATX2 that is required for a PCI-Express build, let alone an SLI. Budget for an Sli Certified power supply right now, such as the Antec Truepower II 550w.

In my opinion, it would be a mistake to purchase 2 7600GTs. They would be out-performed by a single higher spec card, such as the 7900GT.

FK

[glc]

You are spending good hard earned money on expensive components, and it is foolish to trust them all to a junk power supply. It's like putting bald recapped tires on a $50,000 car and driving it 100 mph.

[PnyK1d]

Okay thanks guys for the suggestions and info. i now plan to purchase the
Antec TRUEPOWERII and 1 XFX GeForce 7900 GT, instead of using the provided PSU and two 7600gt's. buying 1 7900gt is a lot cheaper, not to mention i've reaserched and the one 7900 does outpreform 2 7600's, thanks agian guys.

[786ARS]

if ure going with 1*7900 GT, then u cand downgrade to a non sli mobo.

[PnyK1d]

i do plan to purchase a second 7900gt in the following two months after building my pc.(probably will have it up in by the end of the next 2 weeks.

however i found this power supply instead
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817374001
was wondering if it's any good. trying to save a little more $$$.

oh yeah, im not sure if this is relivent, but as my build being as a gaming pc, it wont be on 24/7. i know quite a few people who leave it on ALL DAY!(just for a IM program) therefore i am driven to buy a lower priced PSU, knowing the outcome will be somwhat lower preformance, dont get me wrong but, is it really necesary to get a top of the line PSU for a PC that will only be used 3-4 hours a day?

[Mr.Ferrari]

It wont matter if you leave it on all day or not. It is a gaming pc and even for that 3/4 hours it will be put through alot of stress.

If you really want to keep single gpu and are strapped for cash, throw that psu away and get this one.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817104954

But remember, it will not power 2 of those cards. When you upgrade, plan on upgradeing the psu as well.

Just fyi, DirectX 10 cards are comeing out in September. Its your choice entirely, but I wouldnt spend too much money on sli right now and have something that will still be outdated.

Once again the games probally wont have too much of an advantage of dx10 until atleast a year, so where you go with that is your decision entirely.

[PnyK1d]

Keeping up to date with technology today is just plain expensive

[freakitchen]

Mr Ferrari is right about the power supply. InWin don't make quality units, and the Antec Truepower has better specs (more amps on the 12v rails, for instance). It's also SLI certified, and if you plan on adding another 7900GT, this is a vital specification.

FK

[glc]

Trying to save $30 on a power supply when you are playing with $300 video cards is just plain old false economy. If you buy a high performance car that requires premium gasoline, are you going to try to save 20 cents a gallon and put regular grade in it and possibly blow holes in your pistons?

[jfk]

I never understand why people will spend SSSSOOOO much on the PC components and then try to save a few $$$$ on the PSU. If you're even CONSIDERING going with an SLI rig, buy an approved PSU from the certified list up front. It will be cheaper than having to replace it down the road when you add the second card. Even if you are only going with one card, get a QUALITY PSU. It's the heart of your system.........

[Ghost(BOO!)]

Originally Posted by jfk I never understand why people will spend SSSSOOOO much on the PC components and then try to save a few $$$$ on the PSU. If you're even CONSIDERING going with an SLI rig, buy an approved PSU from the certified list up front. It will be cheaper than having to replace it down the road when you add the second card. Even if you are only going with one card, get a QUALITY PSU. It's the heart of your system.........

most newbies to the pc world don't think a good psu is any different then a bad one because in their eyes it gives the same kind of power no matter what psu it is and don't know that a bad psu can damage their whole system. Every newbie I've ever met say the same thing to me about power supplies, "Why does it matter?", and then after explaining to them why it matters they feel a sense of relief that they did not purchase a 20 dollar psu.

[jfk]

Originally Posted by Ghost(BOO!) most newbies to the pc world don't think a good psu is any different then a bad one because in their eyes it gives the same kind of power no matter what psu it is and don't know that a bad psu can damage their whole system. Every newbie I've ever met say the same thing to me about power supplies, "Why does it matter?", and then after explaining to them why it matters they feel a sense of relief that they did not purchase a 20 dollar psu.

I agree, but after it is pointed out to them several times in threads (not just here but in other threads we've had) that they STILL want to save a few $$$.

[Mr.Ferrari]

I think its just because they find no "performance" in the psu. Like XXXmhz clocks with gpu's and super gazillion ghz fast cpu's, they just dont see whats the point in a A brand 420W psu and a B prand 420W psu.

Its not too linear to them until someone explains why. Gives ya a headache sometimes..

[glc]

Just like the old game they used to play (maybe still do) with stereo amplifier outputs. 200 watts PMPO (peak music power output) is about the same as 20 watts RMS. Can sure make a cheap piece of crap amp sound like it's good, rating it PMPO.

[PnyK1d]

Thanks again guys for the PC lesson. Okay sorry to edit my components again, but i just purchased a MaximumPC magazine and i read that the PNY 6800gs give you the best bang for your buck, however i looked On newegg for it and didny find any. So I found this

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150130

its a lot cheaper than a one 7900 so i plan on getting 2, is this card any good for SLI? and would I be able to play the latest games like Prey for instance w/ two of these in SLI? and would these outpreform some of newer cards on the market today? and if it does, and i purchase the 2 what power supply could you guys reccomend me to use?

[blue60007]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130028

Get ONE of those...it'll outperform two of those and is roughly the same price (one powerful card is better than two weaker cards at the same value). And if you don't get an SLI board, then you don't need a SLI-Certified PSU (doesn't mean you can cheap out on the PSU now, but you could get a less watt version of a quality PSU...) and that might save you a few bucks. Or keep the SLI board and SLI-Certified PSU and upgrade later to two cards later.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817103931

[PnyK1d]

well just how good is the preformance of two of those in SLI, or better yet what are the best budgest SLI cards I can buy? I want to REALLY utilize the SLI for i've already bought the mobo and case.

[blue60007]

Didn't find any numbers, but it looks like they were having the same debate over at THG:
http://forumz.tomshardware.com/hardw...ict189582.html

[freakitchen]

In my opinion, SLI is best used for two things. Firstly, for the creation of an absolutely top-of-the-range system by purchasing two of the very best cards avabilable. As the second (very expensive) card gives only a small increase in fps over just one, this can only be done where money is no object.

The second use for SLI is as an upgrade option. Purchasing an SLI motherboard and Certified Power Supply - but only one card initially - allows for the addition of a second some time in the future, ususally when that card has decreased significantly in price.

Of course, if you DO want to play with SLI right now, there's nothing stopping you. I simply thought I'd give you what are (in my humble opinion) the facts. Since one higher-spec card will outperform two lower-spec cards in SLI, I personally wouldn't go the latter route on a new build.

FK

[jfk]

Originally Posted by PnyK1d well just how good is the preformance of two of those in SLI, or better yet what are the best budgest SLI cards I can buy? I want to REALLY utilize the SLI for i've already bought the mobo and case.

It's NOT as good as a single 7900GT. Period. If you "want to REALLY utilize the SLI", then you REALLY need to spend some $$$. You are better off getting ONE 7900GT as blue mentioned than two of the cards you picked out. The price is the same and your performance will be better. Then, as Freak mentioned, you can add another 7900GT down the road as they get cheaper. Using SLI with low end cards is ridiculous, as ONE higher performing card will beat it. Put it this way....there are several SLI systems in people's signatures on this board. At least some use 6600's, and 6800's. My SINGLE X1900XT card will smoke those systems both in benchmarks and real world performance. Listen to what Freak and Blue have told you.....if you want SLI and don't want to spend a bunch of money, get one GOOD card now and add another twin to it later OR pony up and spend a bunch now for two good cards. Otherwise, don't bother.

[blue60007]

Yep, unfortuntately, doing SLI the right way will costs lots of $$$ (big plus for nVidia!).

[PnyK1d]

okay i gess ill go on my fist desion w/ a 7600gt,(ill just get one though) i saw bench marks saying it can play doom 3 on a 1280x1024 res.(full sett. w/ 4x aa) and get 35.3 fps, on one video card.
IS 35 FPS a good frame rate to be playing at?
If not what is a smooth rate to be playing at?(really want this qestion answered)

also I read that SLI cand be used with any card as long as its the same gpu. does that mean you could pair a 7900gt w/ a 7600gt in SLI? just curious.

thanks.

[glc]

No, the cards must be the same series - the only thing you can pair with a 7600GT is another 7600GT.

[PnyK1d]

hi guy i was wondering if this PSU is a good choice http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817103929
would it run two 7600gt in SLI w/ my Asus A8N-SLI DLX. or should I just stick to the 550 watt version?

[freakitchen]

It's a good Power supply, but not SLI Certified. No point saving a few dollars now if you'd have to get rid of it when you add a second card. Stick with the 550w version.

FK

[blue60007]

35fps isn't too smooth. It'll be choppy. I'd say 45-50fps at the least.

[jfk]

Originally Posted by PnyK1d okay i gess ill go on my fist desion w/ a 7600gt,(ill just get one though) i saw bench marks saying it can play doom 3 on a 1280x1024 res.(full sett. w/ 4x aa) and get 35.3 fps, on one video card. IS 35 FPS a good frame rate to be playing at? If not what is a smooth rate to be playing at?(really want this qestion answered) also I read that SLI cand be used with any card as long as its the same gpu. does that mean you could pair a 7900gt w/ a 7600gt in SLI? just curious. thanks.

The 7600 will be okay. Not great but not bad. Personally, I'd still get a 7900 myself. Basically, 35 FPS is about what the human eye can discern. It's right on the borderline of being "choppy" or "stuttery". I would not consider that good performance. You will need to turn down some settings in the game (or get a higher performing card) to get more playable fps. I generally want at LEAST 45 fps in games to avoid the stutters, and prefer even more.