Need help picking parts out for up to 2k Custom PC!!

[Shawn48]

To give a idea on what I want to do one my 2nd Custom build, I'm looking for:

- Full size Tower
- Water Cooled
- Sli with 2 Radeon or Geforce cards?
- AMD brand CPU
- What MOBO would be best for this new project
- 2 X 150MB Seagate HD
- PSU? WATT?
- 2 gig Cosair Brand RAM
- New Keyboard
- New Mouse
- Sound Blaster sound card
- Sound System

I'm looking for ideas on everything listed!

Thanks!

[jer888]

skip on the Sli, your wasting your money

water cooling isn't easy, and it isn't cheap but from what I know, the only way to make a decent loop is to make it yourself, not buy a kit

[Shawn48]

You mean just the tubing?? I could go both ways..With or without SLI.. I know that it improves FPS on games a lot. What Video card would you suggest? I like the Radeon X1900..

[LeftyAce]

I know that it improves FPS on games a lot.

Not true; the improvement is significantly less that 2X at best....some put it closer to 1.4-1.6, and some games apparently run worse on two cards (not designed to know what to do with the extra chip). Regardless of the performance boost, one next-gen card always beats two of the previous generation that are in SLI, so save some money, don't get an SLI motherboard, and plan to upgrade video cards more often if you require top level performance.

I'm an nVidia guy, but that's just because they have much better linux driver support. The recommendation right now, ATI or nVidia, is to get a lower level "place holder" card and wait 'till some more DX10 compatible cards come out. Right now nVidia's geForce 8800 is the only one, and as you might imagine, it's very expensive. ATI's competitor is coming out early this summer, so prices will drop and choices will go up. I'd recommend a geForce 7600 for now...will play games at decent settings, and won't break the bank while you wait for an upgrade. If you prefer ATI, I believe the 1900 is comparable, but I saw GLC recommending an 1800 for a placeholder recently, and that would of course save you some more money. ATI gurus may have suggestions on this.....

[Mr.Ferrari]

Proper watercooling is a project in itself. I suggest you first get the computer built and bug free before you decide to go on with it. A custom setup is the only way to go. No pre-made kits.

[SuprchargdMazda]

Originally Posted by Mr.Ferrari Proper watercooling is a project in itself. I suggest you first get the computer built and bug free before you decide to go on with it. A custom setup is the only way to go. No pre-made kits.

I think Swiftech's kits are pretty good, only watercooling 'kit' I'd ever go with. Much better to go custom and pick your own parts to meet your particular needs though.

[glc]

The recommended ATI placeholder is the X1650 Pro or XT. SLI is Nvidia only, dual ATI is Crossfire. NEITHER one is worth it.

[jer888]

Originally Posted by xbit_11 - AMD brand CPU

About the only thing getting a AM2 board has going for it now is that socket AM3 processors will work with it. Intel's core 2 duo's are on top right now, so you may want to reconsider.

[Shawn48]

Thanks for all the information guys..i've been gone so I haven't been able to write ya'll back..

Ok, I decided to Scratch the SLI idea, and cut a lot of stress by scratching the Water cooled idea..

Tell me what you think about these:

Video card - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130082

Processor - (I don't know the performance difference between a Socket 939 and a AM2 Processor, but I'm guessing the AM2 has better performance?) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103759

MOBO -

HD - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148215

PSU - I'm not really sure what kind of Power the system is going to need, but I figured around 700 Watt? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817153039

RAM - 2 GB of OCZ http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820146970

And I'm still looking for a Tower... Tell me what u guys think, and is everything Compatible?

All of that comes out to be around $1300

[glc]

Then why did you choose a SLI motherboard?

That's the wrong Seagate - you want a Barracuda 7200.10, not a ES. The ES is for servers.

[Shawn48]

ohh..i thought it was just SLI compatible, and have the option to do either. I'll keep looking..

[LeftyAce]

Yes, you'd have the option to do SLI later, but one of the arguments against SLI is that you spend extra on the motherboard and don't see a significant benefit. If we've successfully steered you away from SLI, don't waste the $$ on an sli board :-)

AM2 is the new standard for AMD processors, so that's definitely the way to go.

*EDIT* Wait a minute. Why are you going with an AMD system right now? The Intel C2D chips will kill a similarly priced AMD system.

[Shawn48]

See, I don't know that kind of stuff lol. That's why I ask you guys for help. I'm still learning this stuff. I've been busy with school and stuff so I haven't had much time to research all of the new products! I remember everyone telling me that AMD processors are better than Intel when i comes to gaming...

[LeftyAce]

No problem, just wanted to make sure there wasn't some other reason to keep in mind. AMD no longer rules the roost in gaming (at least for now). Here's a comparison of a whole bunch of Intel and AMD processors.

http://www23.tomshardware.com/cpu.ht...=694&chart=170