Take a look at my first build please!

[mainiac]

Hello,
Well I finally finished piecing together my first computer. I will be using it mainly for gaming purposes, but will also use it for the internet and other general things. Here it is (any components that say dell mean I am using the parts from my old dell computer the specs of which can be found here http://reviews.cnet.com/Dell_Dimensi...0529709.html):

Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor – Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115003

Motherboard: ASUS P5B-E Socket T (LGA 775) Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131070

Case: COOLER MASTER Ammo 533 RC-533-SWN1 Black/Silver Aluminum+Plastic front bezel; SECC
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119098

Optical Drives: DELL 1.CD: 48x (CD)/ 16x (DVD) 2. DVD+RW 48x/32x/48x

Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD2500KS 250GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0 GB/s
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822144701

Power Supply: Antec True Power Trio TP3-550 ATX12V 550W Power Supply with Three 12V Rails 100 - 240 V UL, CUL, FCC, TÜV, CE, C-tick, CCC, CB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371002
(I changed the power supply from Hiper->Antec)

Modem: dell

Speakers: dell

Sound Card: motherboard

Video Card: SAPPHIRE 100189L Radeon X1900GT 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 VIVO PCI Express x16 VIVO HDCP Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102022
(Changed the video card from GeForce 6800GS -> Radeonx1900gt)

Memory: Memory: Kingston 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820134046
(I changed the memory from 800->667)

Monitor: Dell


This is what I am expecting to put in my pc. This will be my first build, so any and all help is appreciated. My main concern has to do with compatibility. Especially when it comes to the memory and the power supply (as these were the hardest to determine if they are compatibile with the rest of the hardware.

[Cricket]

I don't think I'd use a Hiper power supply...just don't know enough about them to feel comfortable using one.

Do you really need a modem?

And do you plan to overclock? You'd only need DDR2 800 if you're going to overclock. If not, DDR2 667 will work fine.

The rest of the parts look okay.

And please don't start any more new threads concerning this new build...keep everything in this thread.

Cricket

[mainiac]

What Power Supply would you reccomend?

[newbuilder14]

Since Cricket hasn't replied yet I can answer that question:

Anything from the "good list" in the General Hardware forum would be a great list. Look out for brands such as Antec, Enermax, Fortron Source/Sparkle, Seasonic, etc.

[coreywhite]

You mentioned that this PC was going to be used mostly for gaming. In that case, you may want to reconsider that video card, which seems to be a little bit light (especially considering the rest of your build). You have chosen an e6600 CPU, which is a fantastic processor, but you should know that if you want the best gaming performance for your money you would be better off spending more on the video card and cutting back on the processor. An e6300 or e6400 with a better video card (x1950pro, 7900gt, 7950gt, etc.) would probably be the best bet. Or, if you don't want to cut back on the CPU and don't want to spend any more money, you can currently get the Sapphire X1900GT for less money than that 6800gs, even though it should definitely outperform it.

[mainiac]

Well I already passed my quota of $1,000 ($1,008). But money isn't as cheif a concern as quality is. I don't mind spending some money, but I am not rich unfortunately. Of the two graphic cards producers (ATI & Nvida) which is better? In the market right now what is the best video card (for gaming) that isn't to expensive?

[newbuilder14]

Honestly, the X1950Pro from ATI is the best bang for the buck card in that performance range - wish I could have that card myself. Not that nVidia is bad, I like my 7600GT.

[mainiac]

I was looking at the specs and decided to change the video card, and it turned out to be cheaper. Also, just making sure that I have the right amount of cooling. From the looks it seems that I have: a heatsink and fan for the processor, 1 120mm fan on the case, a fan for my hard drive, 1 120mm fan for my hard drive, and a fan on the video card. Do you think anything else (memory in particular) will need some kind of cooling? (Keep in mind that everything but the fan for the hard drive comes with the hardware so I am not sure about the quality of the fan)

[Mr.Ferrari]

Swap your hard drive out for this better one:
Seagate 7200.10 250Gb

And swap out your memory for some of this:
2gb Corsair Valueselect PC-5300

Swap your powersupply out for one of these for the same $$$:
Xclio Greatpower 600w

[mainiac]

Well for the hard rive I was looking at that one as well but it comes at a toss up between the perpendicular recording for the Seagate model and the whisper quiet for the WD. I was just wondering which is better to have and why, since both hard drives cost the same.

As for the memory they are roughly the same price and are the same quality. I picked Kingston because of the name really, just wondering if corsair is is just as good as Kingston?

I switched out the power supply, thanks for the tips!

[Cricket]

Originally Posted by mainiac Well for the hard rive I was looking at that one as well but it comes at a toss up between the perpendicular recording for the Seagate model and the whisper quiet for the WD. I was just wondering which is better to have and why, since both hard drives cost the same.

Seagate HDDs have a 5 year warranty and do perform slightly better than Western Digital HDDs. And it's sort of luck of the draw when it comes to how quiet a HDD is...I've gotten several of the same make and model HDD to install in several computers at the same time and some HDDs would be noisier than others and some would be almost silent. This has happened with IBM (when I used to use them), Maxtor, Seagate and Western Digital.

Originally Posted by mainiac As for the memory they are roughly the same price and are the same quality. I picked Kingston because of the name really, just wondering if corsair is is just as good as Kingston?

Currently I'd say Corsair is better than Kingston in terms of quality. I've had lots of Kingston RAM go bad over the years and have yet to have 1 stick of Corsair go bad. I stopped using Kingston about 2 years ago after a rash of ValueRAM sticks went bad in a bunch of builds I did. Since I switched to Corsair I haven't gotten a call about RAM related problem yet.

Cricket

[mainiac]

Ok after looking over the specs again I changed both the memory and the hard drive. Thanks for all of the help so far, the advice has been really helpful. I was just wondering if it mattered if I used the Cd and DVD+RW from my old computer (compatability wise). Here is the site to see the specs: http://reviews.cnet.com/Dell_Dimensi...0529709.html

One other thing I forgot to as has to do with the operating system: Can I use the system (Windows XP Home Edition) that came with my Dell? It says that it's a reinstallation cd, and to only use it on a dell computer. I just don't want it messing up the computer if i try to put it on.

[Cricket]

Originally Posted by mainiac One other thing I forgot to as has to do with the operating system: Can I use the system (Windows XP Home Edition) that came with my Dell? It says that it's a reinstallation cd, and to only use it on a dell computer. I just don't want it messing up the computer if i try to put it on.

No, you won't be able to use the reinstallation CD on the new computer. You'll have to buy a new copy of WinXP for the new computer.

Cricket

[piXel]

Originally Posted by newbuilder14 Honestly, the X1950Pro from ATI is the best bang for the buck card in that performance range - wish I could have that card myself. Not that nVidia is bad, I like my 7600GT.

Agggrrhh these trends with what people say, 7600 GT is a nice card the 7900 GT and 1950 pro really are no different of course on specific games one out performs the other but really they are around the same and the XFX edition on ebuyer is 10 pound cheaper then the PRO so when i built my PC i went with the 7900 and i like the look of it more aswell.

[mainiac]

Well I just bought the parts thanks to all for all of the help! I probably wouldn't have been able to do it without this forum. Thanx and happy holidays.