Building My First PC

[DarK_AssassiN]

I know there are alot of topics like this but I really could use some help. I know a little about PC components but have never even thought about buidling one till now. My current PC is over 6 years old and I think it's time for a change.

My price limit it around $2,000 for the computer (I'm 16, so I don't have much money. I can wait and just keep working to get more money if I have to.) I want to build something that is good for gaming, but also for designing (3D Modelling and Photoshop type stuff). I've been looking around, but I've never spent this much on a computer, and I'm just worried I'm going to buy the wrong things. So can anyone help?

I have an idea of kind of what I want below, but I'm not sure whats good and whats not.
This is what I've got so far:
Case - Something big but not to heavy with good airflow
PSU - OCZ GameXStream 850-Watt (good?)
Mobo - No idea... currently have an Asus which I like
CPU - Intel Dual-Core?
HDD - At least 200gb
RAM - 2gb Corsair
Pri Optical - CDRW
Sec Optical - DVDRW
Sound Card - Creative X-Fi
Video Card - nVidia SLI (don't know what cards though)
FDD - FDD?
Keyboard - Logitech G15
Mouse - Just got a Logitech G5
LAN - I don't know..
Monitor - I'm getting an HDTV for my 360/Computer/TV use later this year
Speakers - Headset for now (5.1 later)
OS - Vista when it comes out, and XP (I've got XP covered).
Extras - Ummm... right now I just want to get the PC done

[glc]

Why do you want SLI? It's your money, but it's mostly marketing hype.

[mevensen]

Originally Posted by DarK_AssassiN I know there are alot of topics like this but I really could use some help. I know a little about PC components but have never even thought about buidling one till now. My current PC is over 6 years old and I think it's time for a change. My price limit it around $2,000 for the computer (I'm 16, so I don't have much money. I can wait and just keep working to get more money if I have to.) I want to build something that is good for gaming, but also for designing (3D Modelling and Photoshop type stuff). I've been looking around, but I've never spent this much on a computer, and I'm just worried I'm going to buy the wrong things. So can anyone help? I have an idea of kind of what I want below, but I'm not sure whats good and whats not. This is what I've got so far: Case - Something big but not to heavy with good airflow

Look into Lian Li, Cooler Master, and Thermaltake full towers. Also check about the Antec 900, which alot of people seem to like. Some are heavier than others, but really, if you want big, I wouldn't have too many illusions about picking up and moving it often.

PSU - OCZ GameXStream 850-Watt (good?)

Good. Who knows if it'll be enough if you're talking SLI DX10 boards...

Mobo - No idea... currently have an Asus which I like

Asus have some nice boards, but if you're serious about an SLI setup, you need to look at the 680i chipset mobos for the highest performance/feature set. Be warned, though, most of those boards have some type of glitch currently (some with SATA/RAID performance/stability, etc.), but new drivers seem to be helping. These boards are also still at a premium pricepoint.

CPU - Intel Dual-Core?

Good choice, your budget will determine what you can get. But almost any of them are good choices. Some people say 6300 for OCing, others 6400. 6600 is solid and a very good performer. Above that (6700/X6800), you're losing in the price/performance department. Quad core is too new for your purposes, probably.

HDD - At least 200gb RAM - 2gb Corsair Pri Optical - CDRW Sec Optical - DVDRW

No real comment here. Need more specifics about choices of these.

Sound Card - Creative X-Fi

Audiophile? If not, try on-board sound first, it's pretty good now on many mobos.

Video Card - nVidia SLI (don't know what cards though)

Unless you're SLIing two 8800s, you're better off with one 8800 than any other NVIDIA/ATI product in dual GPU configuration (SLI/Crossfire). If you are serious about spending >$1000 on video cards (two 8800's), you'll need a premium mobo (one with two true 16x PCI slots) and premium PSU (8800s are power hogs, don't know if 850 will support well enough, each 8800 requires two PCI power connectors). Truth be told, you're probably going outside of your budget in this direction.

FDD - FDD?

As in do you want one? I still build with one, just in case. But with bootable CDs, BIOS from USB, etc. I think the utility is waning rapidly. I think I may just be too old school to give them up yet.

Keyboard - Logitech G15 Mouse - Just got a Logitech G5

OK.

LAN - I don't know..

Any decent mobo you get will have onboard NIC. If you're talking about establishing a LAN, do you mean which router/switch/etc. to use?

Monitor - I'm getting an HDTV for my 360/Computer/TV use later this year

So you'll use an old monitor until then?

Headset (5.1 later)

In that case, I'd definitely go with onboard sound to start, and save some $$$. Even with 5.1, depending on the quality of the speakers/system, onboard may be good enough.

OS - Vista when it comes out, and XP (I've got XP covered). Extras - Ummm... right now I just want to get the PC done

Don't be in too much of a hurry. As I suggested, some more specifics of what you intend to buy will be helpful, as there may be compatibility issues (e.g. mobo and RAM).

[DarK_AssassiN]

Well, I won't be building for a couple months so things may go down in price and new technology could come out. I'll start looking into more specifics, but thanks for that post, it helped alot.

And about the sound card, yea I'm an audiophile :P I play guitar and listen to music 24/7 pretty much. I also want to have the surround sound for my 360. I'm going to save my Creative Audigy 2 ZS and hold out on the X-Fi till I get my surround sound... this way I can put more money into other things.

Also, is SLI really just hype? I used to have a friend that worked in a computer store that got alot of good deals... he switched to SLI and he noticed a BIG difference in gaming and some other things (mostly gaming).

[newbuilder14]

Really? Noticed a big difference? I know someone who got less FPS while gaming with SLI, but slightly better rendering quality. SLI is cool (I'll admit), but GLC is probably right.

[blue60007]

I compared a single 7900GTX to two of them:
http://www23.tomshardware.com/graphi...=518&chart=198

A couple games saw 0 performance boost, one did see some hefty boosts (Oblivion) and the others saw some boost, but not tons.

The 8800 series vs 7900GTX's in SLI comparison:
http://www23.tomshardware.com/graphi...=518&chart=198

The 8800 series beat up the 7900's pretty well across the board. The 8800 series (one of them) costs the same if not less than the 7900GTX's and still beat it.

The only places where you are going to see substancial boosts are in benchmark numbers - but those are useless, do you play a benchmark?

[DarK_AssassiN]

Well, should I build my new PC leaving that option open (SLI) incase I ever do decide to go with it? In the future I'm sure many games will start to take advantage of SLI...

[DarK_AssassiN]

Ok, I've a little more specific (and with links, and tried to make it easy to read ). How's this:

Case - Thermaltake Armor Series VA8000BWS
PSU - OCZ GameXStream OCZ850GXSSLI ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 850Watts Power Supply
Mobo - Need help picking this out... (I do like Asus though)
CPU - Dual-Core Intel, but what kind?
HDD - Western Digital Raptor WD1500ADFD 150GB 10,000 RPM 16MB (one for now, another one later)
RAM - CORSAIR Dominator 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel
Pri Optical - SONY Black DVDRW/CDRW
Sec Optical - SONY Black DVDRW/CDRW
Sound Card - Current sound card for now (Audigy 2 ZS)
Video Card - eVGA 640-P2-N821-AR GeForce 8800GTS 640MB 320-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card
FDD - NEC Black 1.44MB 3.5"
Keyboard - Logitech G15
Mouse - Taken Care of (Logitech G5)
LAN - Taken care of (and using mobo to connect to)
Monitor - Getting HDTV later, current monitor will do.
Speakers - Headset for now (5.1 later)
OS - Vista when it comes out, and XP (I've got XP covered).

For this I have decided to wait until at least May (which is about 4 months away) giving me time to save up more money. This is my first REAL build (my current computer I've only upgraded to stay right behind everything), and I want to make it good, because I'm tired of upgrading and having problems with my current one. So any thoughts/suggestions/comments on what I've chosen?

Quick-Note: I have no idea what motherboard/processor to get since I know absolutely nothing about them (besides the obvious). That I need help picking out...

and so far this all comes to: $1535.18 I expect it will probably go over $2000 after mobo and processors + other little things for the build.

[newbuilder14]

Motherboard: Asus P5B Deluxe
CPU: Core 2 Duo E6600

or

Motherboard: Asus P5B
CPU: E6300

Either one will work great, just a matter of a bit more performance in the first setup.

[blue60007]

May? You'll probably have to reconsider choices again in May. Things change very quickly. Things like the case, PSU, drives, etc won't change too much. But, there will likely be a bucketload more processor and video card choices that you'll have to consider.

[DarK_AssassiN]

I realize that things will change, but I want to get an idea of what exactly I want so when those new options do come, I know how to choose a little bit instead of not knowing (like right now).

[newbuilder14]

Well, you can make a very basic list now - something that supports quad cores - I believe most 975x/P965 boards do - but you should double-check that before you buy or prepare to buy. Also include a pretty hefty power supply so that you can easily upgrade when you need to. (550w minimum I suppose).