First Build! Gaming Computer under $1000

[playnine9]

UPDATED:


Here is the system that I'm planning on building so far:

I got a different case that includes a 500-W power supply, graphics card, and added Windows XP.

My question is will the RAM i've chosen match up with the Motherboard?

Here is something the motherboard specs says:
Notice: Only DDR2-800 memory supporting JEDEC approved 1.8V operation with timings of 5-5-5 or 6-6-6 is supported on Intel Desktop Boards based on Intel 965 Express Chipsets.

The RAM is DDR2-667, not 800. Also, I'm not sure if the timing is going to match with the notice aboce.

Do I have to move up to this to get it to work? :
CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145590


$100
Ultra Grid ATX Mid-Tower Case with Front USB and Audio Ports and Ultra V-Series 500-Watt Power Supply
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...Tab=0&NoMapp=0

$76
CORSAIR ValueSelect 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Desktop Memory - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145098

$120
ASUS P5B LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131030

$65
Western Digital Caviar SE WD2500JS 250GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822144417

$35
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
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827106046

$150
EVGA 256-P2-N624-AR GeForce 7900GS 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 KO Video Card - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130056

$226
Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115003

$90
Windows XP
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16832116056

Price:
$862

[LeftyAce]

If you need a super computer, upgrade the processor to the e6600

That ram is overkill; Corsair ValueSelect DDR2 667 ram will be fine as long as you don't plan on overclocking.

We highly recommend ASUS motherboards. They're consistently the most stable, and are very beginner friendly. Take a look at the P5B line.....choose one with the features you want/need.

You should get a SATA DVD drive for compatibility reasons: here's one that comes with Nero software. Lite On is reliable and well priced: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827106046

Retail processors come with a heatsink and fan, which you must use to preserve the 3 year warrenty; you don't need the Freezer7.

If you can fit it into your budget, you might consider upgrading the video card to one of the nvidia 8800 series cards. The 8800GTS is 280 on newegg.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130082

We generally recommend Seagate harddrives, because they have one of the longest warranties in the business (5 years). http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148142

You need an operating system. Right now we recommend sticking with XP, as Vista has too many wrinkles that still need to be worked out. Pick up an oem copy from newegg; they're around 90 dollars.

*EDIT* Ok, I've run the numbers, and this will fit into your budget:
CPU: Intel C2D e6600 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115003
MOBO: Asus P5B: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131030
HDD: Seagate 7200.10 250GB: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148142
DVDRW: Lite On SATA Retail: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827106046

VideoCard: Same as you had above. For an additional 80 dollars, you could upgrade to the 8800 series...

PSU: Corsair HX520 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139001
Windows XP HOme: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16832116056

Price: $918 plus whatever you need to spend on a case.

If you pick a case that comes with two or three fans, there's no need to buy extras.

[playnine9]

Hey,

Thanks for the quick response.

I took your advice on the DVD drive and the motherboard. I forgot about SATA and the Asus Mobo has everything I need with the stability.

I've changed my RAM to Corsair ValueSelect 667Mhz as you said and I think it will work fine :
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145098

The only issue with the motherboard is using my RAM. I think with the Inteal P965 Express chipset, I need to have a specific timing (think it's 5,5,5 or 6,6,6) to get some benefits and I didn't want to fool around with that. Do you think the RAM I've chosen will work?

I do like the processor I have for the price. How much of a difference do you think it will make? This is a big decision and I want to make the right one

My case doesn't come with fans; I bought it because it's cheap and has 3, 80mm fan slots. The fans I bought are really cheap and buying 10 is actually cheaper than buying 3, believe it or not

I've found the price to be $831 w/ E4400 Processor and $917 w/ E6600 Processor

Do you think the $86 difference is worth it? Should I use that $80 for a better GPU like the 8800GTS instead?

[LeftyAce]

That ram will work; I've put that exact kit into 2 builds with P5B motherboards, and both are running fine.

The processor's a close call. I would still say get the e6600 rather than upgrading the video card, mainly because upgrading a videocard later is easier than upgrading a processor.

I can't seem to find a side-by-side comparison of the two CPUs, but the 6600 has twice the onboard cache and a higher clock speed, both of which should give a significant performance boost.

*CORRECTION* I mis-remembered the price of the video card you have listed (the 1950). The price difference between it and an 8800 is more than $150. (I was remembering the comparison between the 512 MB version of the saphire card vs the 8800. Sorry).

With that in mind, definitely spend the 80 on teh processor rather than 150 on the vid card.

If you can afford to do both, it might be worth it; here's a comparison of the two video cards running Flight Sim. http://www23.tomshardware.com/graphi...=707&chart=291



Maybe someone else has a good comparison?

[playnine9]

Thanks so much,

I have heard of tomshardware.com but never used it or knew what it was. Seems like a pretty valuable tool! Maybe I'll fork out the dough and do both, since it'll be best in the long run.

Guess that means a few more hours overtime

Thanks again for the help.

[LeftyAce]

Yeah, unfortunately it doesn't make much sense to upgrade the video card without also upgrading the processor to the 6600. The 4400 will probably bottleneck the more powerful card.

Glad I could help.

[playnine9]

Here is the system that I'm planning on building so far:

I got a different case that includes a 500-W power supply, graphics card, and added Windows XP.

My question is will the RAM i've chosen match up with the Motherboard?

Here is something the motherboard specs says:
Notice: Only DDR2-800 memory supporting JEDEC approved 1.8V operation with timings of 5-5-5 or 6-6-6 is supported on Intel Desktop Boards based on Intel 965 Express Chipsets.

The RAM is DDR2-667, not 800. Also, I'm not sure if the timing is going to match with the notice aboce.

Do I have to move up to this to get it to work? :
CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145590


$100
Ultra Grid ATX Mid-Tower Case with Front USB and Audio Ports and Ultra V-Series 500-Watt Power Supply
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...Tab=0&NoMapp=0

$76
CORSAIR ValueSelect 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Desktop Memory - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145098

$120
ASUS P5B LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131030

$65
Western Digital Caviar SE WD2500JS 250GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822144417

$35
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
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827106046

$150
EVGA 256-P2-N624-AR GeForce 7900GS 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 KO Video Card - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130056

$226
Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115003

$90
Windows XP
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16832116056

Price:
$862

[freakitchen]

Regarding your RAM - that statement is specifically for users running DDR-800 RAM - it does not mean that DDR2-667 is not supported. What you've picked out is fine.

Your biggest problem is that the power supply in the case you picked is a poor quality unit. For that kind of system, I'd recommend you pick up a case without a power supply and buy a quality unit separately. I'd strongly suggest the Corsair unit that LeftyAce linked to in post 2.

Everything else looks good - but I'd recommend you go for a Seagate hard drive with 16MB of cache, which will give you a speed boost over that WD. A 7200.10 model would be my suggestion.