New PC for gaming

[alyph]

Hi, I'm trying to make a new mid-level PC for gaming. Here's what I've come up with so far:

CASE -- Thermaltake Armor Series VA8000BWS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811133154

POWER -- CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 620W
http://www.newegg.com/product/Produc...82E16817139002

CPU -- AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ ADX6000CZBOX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103773

FAN -- ZALMAN CNPS 9700 NT 110mm 2 Ball Ultra Quiet CPU Cooler
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835118020

MB -- ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131011

MEM -- G.SKILL 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231122

VIDEO -- EVGA 768-P2-N831-AR GeForce 8800GTX 768MB
http://www.newegg.com/product/Produc...82E16814130072

HDD -- Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822136073

DVD -- PHILIPS 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe 2-Tone SATA
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827248011

I have keyboard and mouse already, and will use my Vista 32bit for a short while.

Any one has any suggestion about it and is there anything missed? Actually there's still a few stuff I haven't decided on.

1. I don't know much about this G.Skill memory. I chose it since it looks like the best rated 2*2GB ram on newegg. Anyone know how its quality is or have better suggestion? ( I know I can't use full of 4G in vista 32, just leave it that way temporarily) Maybe it's better to go with CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB)?

2. The case looks OK. But is there any other better ones in terms of cooling and ease of installing? E.g. how about antec 900? (although i don't like its looking too much)

3. I choose AMD CPU because it's kinda cheaper than intel and the quality should not be compromised too much... but this configure should work well for 64bit system and SLI right?

4. Anyone knows if this power supply works well for SLI (I'm not going for SLI currently but may do so later)

5. CPU cooler, HDD and DVD burner are all randomly chosen (based on review rating anyways). Hope somebody to give better suggestion, especially for that PHILIPS DVD burner, which I don't know anything about it at all...

Thanks!!

[backithink]

i would go with a lite-on dvd burner the cpu should come with a heatsink which should work fine unless you plan on oc'ing that and using after market heatsink voids warranty.... which unless your are ocing you dont want to do... that and people around here suggest seagate drives. 320 gb is at a price premium now too get the most gb for your $.. careful with your evga card... chances are you wont have this problem but i had to rma mine it likes to black out randomly... did the same thing with my 8400 its not an over heating problem nor drivers just bad cards...... course i may be and probably am the exception. go with the corsair memory its good stuff..... i am using the xms and have had no problems


lol this is all info i have learned since coming here.... kinda neat

[Cricket]

Originally Posted by alyph 1. I don't know much about this G.Skill memory. I chose it since it looks like the best rated 2*2GB ram on newegg. Anyone know how its quality is or have better suggestion? ( I know I can't use full of 4G in vista 32, just leave it that way temporarily) Maybe it's better to go with CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB)?

G.Skill RAM is okay to use but I think Corsair XMS RAM is better quality.

Originally Posted by alyph 2. The case looks OK. But is there any other better ones in terms of cooling and ease of installing? E.g. how about antec 900? (although i don't like its looking too much)

Case choice is gonna be up to you though since you're the only person who knows what you like. If you don't like the way the Antec 900 looks, avoid it. The Thermaltake Armor case is fine. Most modern cases have pretty good cooling now and most mid-tower cases are about the same as far as assembly goes. Just avoid micro-ATX cases (poor cooling and hard to work with) and you'll be fine.

Originally Posted by alyph 3. I choose AMD CPU because it's kinda cheaper than intel and the quality should not be compromised too much... but this configure should work well for 64bit system and SLI right?

AMD CPUs are fine as far as quality goes, but performance wise they're a step behind Intel at the moment. I imagine the CPU you've chosen should work fine with a 64 bit OS and SLi...but make sure you understand what you're getting into if you do go with a 64 bit OS. It tends to take a back seat to 32 bit OS's in terms of software and driver support.

Originally Posted by alyph 4. Anyone knows if this power supply works well for SLI (I'm not going for SLI currently but may do so later)

When it comes to SLi and power supplies you must get a certified SLi power supply from the lists on this web page if you don't want power problems later on.

Originally Posted by alyph 5. CPU cooler, HDD and DVD burner are all randomly chosen (based on review rating anyways). Hope somebody to give better suggestion, especially for that PHILIPS DVD burner, which I don't know anything about it at all...

No need to get a CPU cooler if you're getting a retail AMD CPU. It comes with the proper heatsink already and you must use that heatsink if you want to keep the 3 year warranty.

I'd get a Seagate HDD (have had the least amount of failures with this brand over the 10 years I've been building computers) and a Lite-On, NEC or LG DVD burner...my first preference is Lite-On.

Cricket

[alyph]

Thanks guys, so if I go with Intel CPU, is this combination OK?

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 Conroe 3.0GHz 4M shared L2 Cache
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115028

MB: Intel BOXD975XBX2KR LGA 775 Intel 975X ATX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813121059
or ASUS P5K3 DELUXE/WIFI-AP LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131181
which one is better?

[alyph]

And also any better quality video card suggested? I just want something stable, and I'm not going for over clocking.

[Cricket]

Originally Posted by alyph Thanks guys, so if I go with Intel CPU, is this combination OK? CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 Conroe 3.0GHz 4M shared L2 Cache http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115028 MB: Intel BOXD975XBX2KR LGA 775 Intel 975X ATX http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813121059 or ASUS P5K3 DELUXE/WIFI-AP LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131181 which one is better?

The ASUS would be the better choice...the Intel uses an older chipset (older technology).

Originally Posted by alyph And also any better quality video card suggested? I just want something stable, and I'm not going for over clocking.

I would stick with the EVGA video card. They're the company that works closest with NVidia since they produce the engineering samples that are sent out to all the other video card manufacturers. They're basically NVidia's house brand video card maker.

Cricket

[alyph]

Thanks again!! I'm trying to finalize everything. But does anybody know if I can use DDR2 800 memory with this mother board ASUS P5K3 DELUXE/WIFI-AP LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131181)? since it says the standard memory is ddr3? I just hope to have some upgrading space so choose this board, I'm still using ddr2 for now though.

[Katreat]

I think the P5K3 is only for DDR3 memeory. I would stick with a basic P5K or one that gives you extras like WIFI that you need. DDR3 is still very new and very expensive. I seriously doubt you will need to move that direction in the life of your MB. I figure by the time DDR3 becomes mainstream Intel will probably be on a new socket and new chip sets will be out to take advantage of its speed. So I would save DDR3 for your next build.

Kat

[pctime1]

I think AMD Athlon 64 X2 6400+ 3.2GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Processor is better .

[Katreat]

Originally Posted by pctime1 I think AMD Athlon 64 X2 6400+ 3.2GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Processor is better .

Well, from all accounts the 6400 is 10-15% slower than the E6850 which is 5% (give or take) faster then the E6750. So that puts the E6750 about 5-10% faster than the 6400. Add to that the fact that the 6400 is a 90nm processor that draws over 125 watts and runs very hot and I dont think the numbers support your statement. Dont get me wrong, I like AMD and think it was great that they produced the 6400 because it gave an upgrade path for people with an investment in the AM2 socket, but to say it is better when all testing says otherwise is kind of a stretch.

http://www.digitimes.com/mobos/a20070723PD205.html

If you really want to stay with AMD I would recommend the new 65nm 5000+. It is not faster than intel either, but from all reports it is an OC'ers dream.

http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/10/...ker/index.html

Face it, both companies make great processors and both will probably be fast enough for most people. But if you read the numbers and the reviews one has to be the leader at any given time and right now Intel holds that position. I am hoping AMD hits a home run with their new quad cores and takes the lead away, competition is good for the consumer, but only time will tell.

Kat

[backithink]

if i had it to do over again i would not buy the +6400 its really not worth the price yet... i would get the +6000 or the +5000


dont get me wrong i love the thing but the .2ghz over the +6000 is not worth it at all for the price difference

[Katreat]

I missed one of your posts earler regarding the E6850. It is a very fast CPU but personally I dont think it is worth the price over the E6750. You are paying $80 or so for a very small gain in speed. I would recommend going with the E6750 if you are going duel core. If you feel like spending an extra $80 I would move to the Q6600. It is not as fast but probably more future proof and will shine on multi-tasking.

Kat