first build, neet crit

[jeverett87]

Im totally new here. I was looking for a place to post my current build to get some criticism. The situation:
Im a marine currently deployed to Al Anbar in iraq. Im getting ready to come home just in time for the summer, and now its time to put together that dream computer ive always wanted. Im not new to the computer world, matter of fact, its what i do for the marine corp. Im looking for a system that is going to be able to tackle some serious gaming when i get back since ive got nine months to catch up on. Money isnt too much of an issue (single + no bills + taxfreecombatpay = win) but im trying to stay under $3500. Im sure once you guys see what ive got you can probably find better for cheaper. Hey, if you can suggest an entirely better system, go for it! im all about it! tear this thing apart!

From what ive seen in this forum everyone seems to lean towards Intel over AMD. Maybe Iraq has kept me out of the loop, but this setup currently rocks AMD. All the parts were pulled from newegg except for the case and the accessories tied to it. The case is made by Koolance and comes prefabbed with a water cooling kit (pump, resivoir, radiator). The water blocks are also pulled straight off their site. This is the entire thing, monitor keyboard mouse speakers and headset all included in here. Currently my only real concerns with this setup is Vista x64 sucking.

KOOLANCE PARTS (http://koolance.com)
PC3-720BK, Black $319.99 (case http://www.koolance.com/shop/product...roducts_id=166)
CPU-300-V10 (CPU), [3/8", 10mm ID] $40.99 (cpu water block http://www.koolance.com/shop/product...roducts_id=115)
RAM-30-V06 (Dual DDR/DDR2/SD) $49.99 (ram water block http://www.koolance.com/shop/product...roducts_id=251)
VID-282-V10 (GeForce 8800GTX) $99.99 (water block for 8800gtx http://www.koolance.com/shop/product...roducts_id=405)
Adapter, AMD Socket 940 AM2 $11.99
Tubing Adapter, 6-10mm, Pair $10.99
10 ft Tubing, Clear PVC 10mm (3/8") ID $12.90
10 ft Tubing, Clear PVC 6mm (1/4") ID $9.90


Total: $592.21 w/ shipping (thats just the case and water cooling parts listed above)

motherboard - $190
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131011
ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce 590 SLI MCP ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail

processor - $230
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103759
AMD Athlon 64 X2 5200+ Windsor 2.6GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Processor - Retail

power supply - $170
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817153039
Thermaltake W0106RU Complies with ATX 12V 2.2 & EPS 12V version 700W Power Supply 100 - 240 V CE, CB, TUV, FCC, UL, CUL, and BSMI certified - Retail

vid card - $560
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130072
EVGA 768-P2-N831-AR GeForce 8800GTX 768MB 384-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card - Retail

memory - $390
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231112
G.SKILL 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail


primary hdd (OS/games) - $210
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822136012
Western Digital Raptor WD1500ADFD 150GB 10,000 RPM 16MB Cache Serial ATA150 Hard Drive - OEM

storage drive - $90
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822136003
Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD3200KS 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

optical drive - $34
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827151136
SAMSUNG Black 18X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 18X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2M Cache IDE DVD Burner With LightScribe Technology - OEM

sound card - $80
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16829102006
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer 70SB073A00000 7.1 Channels 24-bit 96KHz PCI Interface Sound Card - Retail

monitor - $200
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16824001088
SAMSUNG 941BW Black 19" 4 ms (GTG) DVI Widescreen LCD Monitor - Retail

keyboard - $45
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16823175103
Saitek PZ30AU Black 104 Normal Keys 4 Function Keys USB Wired Standard Eclipse Keyboard - Retail

mouse - $77
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16826104015
Logitech MX Revolution 931689-0403 Black 7 Buttons 2 x Wheels USB RF Wireless Laser Mouse - Retail

speakers - $35
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16836121123
Logitech X-230 32 watts RMS 2.1 Black Speaker System - OEM

headphones - $15
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16826106931
Logitech Extreme 3.5mm Connector Supra-aural PC Gaming Headset - Retail

Card Reader - $15
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820300901
LINKSKEY LKA-CR15B 19-in-1 USB 2.0 Black Card Reader/Writer - Retail

Cooling Accessories - $36
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835100007
Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound - OEM X 2 - $12

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811999125
Thermaltake A1910 80mm Blue LED Case Fan - Retail X 4 - $24

OS - $120
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16832116204
Microsoft Windows Vista 64-Bit Home Premium for System Builders Single Pack DVD - OEM

total from newegg - $2,585.15 w/ shipping

grand total:$3177.36
$105 in mail in rebates

[glc]

You are out of the loop. Core 2 is kicking AMD's butt. Before Core 2, AMD was a better performer than Netburst.

Wait till May at the earliest to get parts - Intel is readying a big price reduction and there will be more DX10 cards out by then.

I'd like Mr. Ferrari to comment on your choice in liquid cooling gear. Liquid cooling is really not necessary and your money is better spent on upgrading and optimizing other components.

Semper Fi - be safe, Marine!

[jeverett87]

ive still got a month to work it out and put in an order. plan is for it to get there the same time I do. Im definetly checking out Intel boards and processors now.

My reasoning behind the water cooling is that the computer is more than likely going to be kept in a secretary aka big metal box. I cant really see a way to get good airflow to the computer. I may canc the water cooling for now just to see how it goes, and then if need be get an koolance exos kit.

semper

[eaglestrike7339]

as long as you don't jam it into the back, this shouldnt be a horrible problem. Ive heard my share of liquid cooling horror stories, so i might go against that.

Its not really my area, but would you consider SLI? It might take a more expensive board, and maybe a few other parts, but with 2 high end cards, graphics would kill.

Though i think GLC said somewhere that SLI on an intel board was more trouble than it's worth, but hey, if you have a bit of time to get the bugs out, you could have one helluva rig.

[glc]

One high end card will do just fine - SLI just isn't worth the minimal improvement.

Intel boards to look at are the Asus P5B series. We are recommending Corsair XMS2 DDR2-800 CAS 5 ram for it, Seagate 7200.10 16mb cache SATA drives (VERY close to Raptors in speed), Lite-On SATA DVD burners, and Corsair power supplies for 8800GTX. Hopefully the ATI DX10 cards will be out soon to give Nvidia some competition.

End of April, the Q6600 quad core will be in the low to mid $500's and the E6700 will be in the low to mid $300's. You need one of those to handle a 8800GTX without throttling.

Mr. Ferrari has some good liquid cooling recommendations - and none of them involve kits, it's roll your own with specific parts.

[jeverett87]

yeah the water cooling thing does concern me, but it may be the best solution in my situation.

my plan was wait until the 8800gtx is a lot less expensive, than pop another one in there, thats why i went with a mobo supports dual 16x pci-e.

[glc]

Some games actually perform worse in SLI than with one card.