My first build! :D

[Mookie]

Within the next few months I will be purchasing the parts needed to complete my first build. I have asked quite a few people about the pros and cons with many different items but I would like to ask YOU what your opinions about this build are. My budget is roughly $1000-$2300. I'm building this computer mostly to play games these include, crysis, combat arms, and WoW.

I am not to sure if these part are compatible so if you see any problems please say so. :]
I would also like to ask, why do alot of people prefer corsair ram over kingston?


Here is my build.

Case:NZXT LEXA S LEXS - 001BK Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply

Mobo: GIGABYTE GA-MA790X-UD4P AM3/AM2+/AM2 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard

CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition Callisto 3.1GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 80W Dual-Core Processor

HDD: Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive


RAM: Kingston 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM ECC Registered DDR2 400 (PC2 3200) Dual Channel Kit Server Memory Model KVR400D2D8R3K2/4G (buying two of these so 8GB)

Pri Optical: SONY Black 18X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM SATA DVD-ROM Drive Model DDU1681S-0B

Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer 7.1 Channels 24-bit 96KHz PCI Interface Sound Card

Video Card: ASUS EAH5970/G/2DIS/2GD5 Radeon HD 5970 2GB 512 (256 x 2)-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Dual GPU Onboard CrossFire Video Card w/ Eyefinity


Speakers: Logitech S-220 17 Watts 2.1 Multimedia Speaker System

OS: Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit for System Builders w/ Tech Guarantee

I will be using the same monitor, mouse and keyboard from my old computer. :P
The price comes out to a little over $1600 at the moment.

[jdeb]

I am not an AMD expert but I would change the ram to http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231166.

[wwkennedy]

Windows Vista instead of 7?

[EDIT: And a 7.1 sound card with 2.1 speakers? If you have $700 leeway, you could easily afford Windows 7 and a 7.1 setup rather than Vista/2.1. You may also want to make sure that video card will fit into a mid tower case. Also, for $5 more, you could get a Caviar Black 750GB instead of 640GB.]

[EDIT 2: 7.1 systems may be hard to find. You could get a 5.1 with 5 star (egg) reviews at Newegg for like $89 + shipping.]

[Mookie]

Alright I've changed the RAM to what you recommended though I hope 4 stick will not take up alot of space.


I was plannning to run Vista SP1 rather than Windows 7 because I have NO experience with Windows 7 and have never even seen what it's like.


I'll take a look for some speakers that match the compacity of my 7.1 card.

As to cases, I wasn't sure what "mid" meant.

Would you recommend any bigger cases that you think would be MORE than enough space? (better safe then sorry)

Thank you for taking your time and helping with this guys.

[ryuk999]

If your already used to vista.. It's not that much of a change, atleast from what I saw. The only things changed were beneficiary ^_^ like areo stuff. So far I've seen no problems with it.

[David M]

Scrap the idea of the Logitec S-220's. Having excellent sound makes a huge difference for games.

As far as speakers go, I have a pair of 5.1 Turtle Beach headsets for around $100 http://www.turtlebeach.com/products/akr8/home.aspx that I think sound better than my Logitec Z-5500 5.1 system for around $350. These headsets are not a gimmick. Having three speakers in each ear cup makes a big difference. http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/sp...s/224&cl=us,en Plus of course with the headphones you get the microphone which is helpful (necessary?) in many multiplayer games.

As far as your monitor goes, I would not get anything less than a quality 1920 x 1200, 24 inch monitor. Don't sell your system short by putting Volkswagen tires on a Porsche system.

[wwkennedy]

Some good full tower cases:

Antec 1200

Cooler Master HAF 932

Those are probably the 2 most used full tower cases. I know a lot of people that swear by the HAF 932.