I need help / mentor for a new build.

[Blade70]

First I would like to say I am learning quite a bit of information from lurking in the shadows and reading. I really need help especially on the MOBO.
I have not "Gamed" before so I am therefor not sure of my path forward. I just want a killer machine for pictures, video, and music burning. Most of the time I just browse the internet and do some office work on this "I want" Computer build.

I am having trouble with MoBo"s but think this is the best bet for me.
ASUS P5B Deluxe/WiFi-AP LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16813131028


Processor..... Intel Core 2 Duo E6600
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16819115003


Memory
CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16820145590



Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS (Perpendicular Recording Technology) 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16822148140


Monitor
Acer AL1917ABMD Black 19" 8ms DVI LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 700:1 Built in Speakers
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16824009083

LITE-ON Black 16X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 16X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD Burner with Replaceable White Front Panel
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16827106046

I still need to decide on a case and a PSU.
I do want to use my old hard drive which is IDE and one of my used Cd writers also IDE.
Key boards, mouse and speakers will take care of themselves.
Gonna run XP for awhile longer but would like to start playing with Vista some, Dual Boot?

I need to know the compatibility of this and is this the most bang for the buck.
Specific questions I have are.
1. Mother board. Did I pick the correct one? Oh and I do know it has WiFi.
2. Case? I do not like noise or vibrations.
3. PSU Physical fit, with cable lenths, and of course rated high enough with very little noise.

Subtotal: $991.96

I would like to see and know more about this gaming stuff. I might be too old..... 43.

FWIW I am in eastern NC.

All recommendations thoughts welcome.

Blade70

[doubledragon5]

The mother board and CPU you picked are a very good choice.. They are highly recommended around here these days.. I don't see an video card in your list.. The MB does not have on board video so you need to choose one.. EVGA makes good quality cards and I would suggest something like a 7950 GT or GS. As far as case and psu it all depends on what you like.. I personally like one with a lot of fans for good cooling of my parts.. What ever psu you choose make sure it is of good quality, because a bad one can take your whole system in one bit.. You this link when deciding on what psu to purchase...

http://forum.pcmech.com/showthread.php?t=131195

Use this link when first assembling your new build when parts are ordered and you ready to proceed..

http://forum.pcmech.com/showthread.php?t=168456

[Mr.Ferrari]

Good start. Gaming builds require a heavier emphasis on video cards. Since you said yourself that gaming is non-issue you have two choices. Buy a cheap ~$50 video card or buy a cheaper motherboard with onboard video.

-The P5B-VM is a great choice for this, however it has no onboard WiFi. If you go the video card route, I would choose a low end ATI X1050 or X1300 without hypermemory.

-And downgrade the memory to Corsair Valuselect DDR2 667 2GB . The XMS is overkill.

-Case: Some good "quiet" cases would be the Antec NSK4400 and the Antec SOLO.

-PSU: Best quiet powersupplies would be made by Seasonic. You dont need any more then 380w.

[flanzig1]

If you don't need WiFi, could drop done to the regular Deluxe board and could go with the Corsair Value Select if not going to OC. Both changes will save money and not performance.
Noticed no video card selected. If looking for a starting gamer, the Nvidia 7600GS series should do you fine.
For cases look through Neweggs selection with their search engine. Should find something you will like. Some of the better case brands are Antec/Thermaltake/LianLi/CoolerMaster.
We can help figure a PSU after you get a final shopping list of parts.

[Blade70]

Read this in another post and thought it was a good idea. I would love to save a hundred bucks but I am ready to get machine running and would settle for saving 60 to 70 and have a spare processor. Until the price drop on the 6600. Will the Celeron-d work on the board I have selected?
ASUS P5B Deluxe/WiFi-AP LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819112206

I will start working on video cards next, as well as Cases.
Looking forward to more comments

[Blade70]

This is a little more difficult than I thought.

http://www.newegg.com/Special/Rebate.aspx


Using the above link I selected "Video Cards" and rebates greater than $25. I got a bunch of hits and still do not have a clue. I looked at the recommended cards but I am still overwhelmed with a lack of knowledge on my part.

My goal here is to spent less than $130 dollars and get the most bang for the money. If that is a $50 card then fine if it is a $132.00 card then that is fine too. I just need for some of you that know to recommend and link me to it on Egg. I plan to stick with the board listed above.

[jer888]

heres the EVGA 7600 GS

standard =72.00 after rebate

you said you were looking for quiet, so why not- heres the passive cooled version

Passive =100.99 after rebate

you shouldn't need anything more powerful then that since you are not gaming

[glc]

If you aren't gaming, instead of a lower end Nvidia, I'd suggest an ATI X1xxx series card - just don't get Hypermemory. There are several under $100 that have passive cooling too. The X1xxx series have AVIVO which will help with video work.

[Blade70]

Read this in another post and thought it was a good idea. I would love to save a hundred bucks but I am ready to get machine running and would settle for saving 60 to 70 and have a spare processor. Until the price drop on the 6600. Will the Celeron-d work on the board I have selected? Looks like it will to me. I wanted to order some of these parts today so as to get the weekend deals.
ASUS P5B Deluxe/WiFi-AP LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819112206


Looking forward to more comments

[glc]

Sure - a socket 775 Celeron-D will work fine on any P965 board. It will do Internet and office work just as well as a high end processor, the only place it may slow you down is if you are hitting it real hard with CPU-intensive tasks. For 36 bucks, go for it.

[chuck4456]

No need to rush. It's almost April. Price drops are nearby. I'd wait and get the E6600. If you use that Celeron now, when it's E6600 time, you'll have to go thru all that swappage with the CPU and heatsink again PLUS you'll probably have to do a REPAIR INSTALL of your OS. Your not to old to game. In fact, you are at the right age. Things will be slowing down for you in a few more years - you are middle aged! I'd stick with the E6600 plan. Forget about dual boot and just stick with XP. Plenty of time to try VISTA, if it sticks around long enough. The best dollar-for-dollar video card is the SAPPHIRE X1950XT. It's DX9, but you've got plenty of time for DX10 as well. It can play anything. It also has killer renderring capabilities which will be beneficial to your editing need. Your original plan isn't bad. Do this:
E6600
P5B
SAPPHIRE X1950XT
2 Gigs CORSAIR VALUE SELECT DDR2667 will roll.
along with your other stuff. You'll need more than a 380 watt PSU. Check the PSRT#2 and look for models highlited in bold blue. I'm partail to PC POWER&COOLING, but there are lots of very good ones.
That's about as simple and straightforward as it can get. Should be all you need. If you need some more help, this is the best place to find it.

[Blade70]

I needed to get a computer up and running and went with the following. If it is not what I want then I will try again. Chuck I did not get your post in time. You gave me the answers I was looking for. Would like to talk more with you.


13-131-028 MB ASUS P5B Deluxe/WiFi-AP P965 775
17-159-058 PSU COOLMAX|CUG-700B 700W RT
26-193-018 MS ROSEWILL|RM-1830 WRLS 800DPI USB
14-130-073 VGA EVGA 256-P2-N550 -T2 7600GT R
20-145-590 MEM 1Gx2|CORSAIR TWIN2X2048-6400 R
20-233-009 FLASH 2G|CORSAIR CMFUSB2.0-2GB R
23-126-017 KB&MS LOGITECH|DELUXE 250 DESKTOP %
35-100-007 CPU THERMPASTE|ARCTIC SILVER5 3.5G%
35-118-003 CPU FAN ZALMAN|CNPS9500 AT RTL
22-148-140 HD 320G|ST 7K 16M SATA2 ST3320620AS
27-106-046 DVD BURN LITEON|SH-16A7S-06 BK R
24-009-100 MNTR ACER|LCD19" 5MS M AL1917 WABD
19-112-206 CPU INTEL|CD 331 2.66G 775 256K R
11-119-068 CASECOOLERMAS|CAC-T05-UW BLK RT
21-103-116 FD 1.44MB|SONY MPF920 Black % 1
12-104-150 CABLE HD|IDE SATA 18" 2H RED%

To be honest I did not have a clue when It came to the Video Card.
Did not know about the issues with the CPU and Xp issues when swapped.

Still I need a machine up and running now.

Blade70

[Alaron]

Your list looks solid to me. The only thing I would suggest swapping is the PSU. CoolMax units are not very high quality.

For your setup, 700w is overkill. You would be fine with a quality 450w unit. This FSP would make a great addition: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817104954

[glc]

It's no big deal swapping a CPU and loading the multiprocessor HAL.

If there is any way to exchange that PSU, do it. Coolmax PSU's are garbage.

[Blade70]

Just letting you guys know I have it all put together and running XP. I appreciate the comments. Wow is it fast compared to to my last machine. The only issue I have now is that the HD. I initally partioned the HD 50% for C:. I was NOT given the option to set up the second half of the HD D: After getting XP loaded and all disc ran I noticed I only had a C: drive. It was reporting the exact size requested. The other half did not show up. Rebooted from CD and intialzed or formatted the second half and without the opportunity to not install XP on the second half it did. The only problem with this is the fact that I have set up the other one just like I want it. But the bare bones install on the second half of the HD boots first. I wanted it gone so I formatted the second half. Cool no problems. Restarted computer and the first boot that shows up is the one that i deleted. How can I make it go away with out formatting the whole drive. To sum up I show two XP's on boot up and the default one is deleted. The one that I want to keep is on the first partition C: which is the second option.
How do I make the other one go away or move the alternate option?

Other than that I am rocking even with the Pentium D. I do not see how it can go any faster with duo core 2 6600 but we will see when the prices come down.

Blade70

[glc]

You would be best off wiping the drive and starting over - and this time use Disk Management in Windows to set up the second partition.