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07-07-2010, 02:49 PM
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#1 |
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Posts: 21
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Building my first PC- Need Advice/Help/Suggestions-
I am going to be attempting to build my first PC- My budget isn't high, but what I want to accomplish is a decent PC that is easily upgradeable to a gaming quality PC.
Let me break down what I have picked out so far- I am kind of lucky as I have the following already and wont have to pay extra for it: Seagate Barracuda ES.2 ST3500320NS 500GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive 89.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...a%20ES.2%20500 2x ORSAIR 2GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 Desktop Memory Model VS2GB1333D3 G 46.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...emory%202%20gb Now here is what I picked out: COOLER MASTER Elite RC-310-BWN1-GP Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 29.99 after Rebate http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-203-_-Product Cooler Master 120mm Blue LED Case Fan - (R4-L2R-20AC-GP) 6.79 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=ATVPDKIKX0DER Gigabyte Micro ATX Motherboard GA-H55M-S2H $86.24 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...=AKJJGJ0JKT8F1 Intel Core i3-530 Clarkdale 2.93GHz 4MB L3 Cache LGA 1156 73W Dual-Core Desktop Processor BX80616I3530 114.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...k=BX80616I3530 CORSAIR CMPSU-450VX 450W ATX12V V2.2 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply $49.99 after MIR http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-003-_-Product Like I said I like that motherboard for the on-board HDMI, as I really want to start this off as a PC to playback High Definition video to my HDTV- But when I have a little more money in the future, I would like to add a BLU-Ray drive and a Good GPU for Gaming- I'll pick up a cheap DVD/RW drive in the meantime. Before buying the Operating system I am only looking at about $300 (if we dont count the $200 I am already in for the Hard drive and Memory)- Any thoughts/suggestions here (I am sure I am forgetting something)? As this is my first attempt at this, I am open to all suggestions- Will this system be sufficient for what I want it for? And is it sufficient enough for the future planned upgrades? Thanks in advance for the help- |
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07-07-2010, 04:09 PM
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#2 |
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Member (5 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2010
Posts: 21
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I am also considering this motherboard:
GIGABYTE GA-H55-USB3 LGA 1156 Intel H55 HDMI USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-437-_-Product Its only an extra $40 and will be better in the long haul- |
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07-07-2010, 04:32 PM
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#3 |
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Member (9 bit)
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Oregon
Posts: 329
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Here's an option from ASUS too, and it's a P55 instead of the H55
ASUS P7P55D-E LX LGA 1156 Intel P55 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131634 The only issue I see with your other specs is the PSU may be too weak for a high end GPU further down the line. The Corsair 650TX is a great deal right now - only $10 more than the 550VX and it will handle a single HD 5870.
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Main PC: ECS P55H-A | Intel Core i5-750 OC @ 3.3GHz | Corsair 550VX | 2 x 2 Gb G.Skill Ripjaws 1600 | 2 x Sapphire HD 5770 Crossfire | WD Caviar Black 640Gb | OCZ Vertex 2 120Gb SSD (Steam apps) Portable gaming rig: MSI 880GM-E43 | AMD Athlon II X3 450 Rana 3.20, Core unlocked and OC @ 3.68 GHz | Antec Earthwatts Green 430 | 2 x 2Gb G. Skill Ripjaws 1600 | HIS HD 5770 | WD Caviar Blue 250 Gb Laptop: Dell Alienware M11x R1 | Intel Core 2 Duo SU7300 OC @ 1.7 Ghz | 4 Gb RAM | NVidia GT335M | ADATA 128 GB SSD http://www.xfire.com/profile/orbrit/videos/ |
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07-07-2010, 05:15 PM
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#4 |
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The P55 doesn't have onboard video. I'd look at one of the Asus P7H55 boards.
Also note that you have a server hard drive designed for RAID. It will work fine in a workstation, but it's not ideal. You don't need to buy that case fan, the case comes with it already. |
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07-08-2010, 08:20 AM
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#5 |
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Member (5 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2010
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Is it general opinion that ASUS is a higher quality board then Gigabyte?
Thanks- |
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07-08-2010, 09:11 AM
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#6 |
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Member (5 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2010
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I am also thinking I will go with this power supply-
CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...orsair%20650TX |
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07-08-2010, 10:07 AM
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#7 | ||
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Techphile.
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: San Francisco Bay
Posts: 5,959
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Quote:
Motherboard Brand Rating Quote:
What Power Supply should I get? How many Watts? Who made it? Guide Inside.
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Asus P8P67 WS Revolution | Intel 2600K @ 4.7 GHz | Win 7 Pro 64 |8 gigs Corsair 1600 | Two Diamond 6990's in Crossfire| Corsair AX1200 | Thermalright Silver Arrow | Western Digital Black 2TB 64 meg cache | Lian-Li PC-A71B | Logitec Z-5500 | Three Asus 26" VW266H monitors running under Eyefinity | Last edited by David M; 07-08-2010 at 10:35 AM. |
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07-08-2010, 02:32 PM
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#8 |
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Member (5 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2010
Posts: 21
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Thoughts on going with this Power Supply to save cash?
Rosewill Green Series RG700-S12 700W Continuous @40°C,80 PLUS Certified,Single 12V Rail,ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V v2.91,SLI Ready,CrossFire Ready,Active PFC"Compatible with Core i7, i5" Power Supply http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817182191 Its only 54.99 with the $15 off Promo code- |
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07-08-2010, 02:44 PM
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#9 |
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I don't trust Rosewill. If you are trying to cut costs this can be trusted:
Antec BP550 Plus 550W Continuous Power ATX12V V2.2 Modular Active PFC Power Supply http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371016 |
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07-08-2010, 02:58 PM
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#10 |
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Member (5 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2010
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I am going to stick with the Corsair-
Here is what I am thinking now- Case COOLER MASTER Elite RC-310-BWN1-GP Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119203 PSU CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139005 MB GIGABYTE GA-H55-USB3 LGA 1156 Intel H55 HDMI USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813128437 CPU Intel Core i3-530 Clarkdale 2.93GHz 4MB L3 Cache LGA 1156 73W Dual-Core Desktop Processor BX80616I3530 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115222 $379.52 shipped- + I will get $30 in Mail in Rebates- Unless any major concerns here, I think I am ready to order- Thanks for everyone's help and advice- I am sure I will be back with more questions as soon as I have everything- |
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07-09-2010, 09:11 AM
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#11 |
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Member (9 bit)
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Conneaut, Ohio
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looks fine to me.
you said in your OP that you wanted to eventually upgare it to a 'good' gaming machine. i know you have a budget, but unless anyone here says otherwise (glc in particular) i would recomend going with an i5, else you might find yourself upgrading the processor too. im not so sure how well an i3 will handle gaming tbh. i see many good reviews on the chip (the i3 530) and they say it overclocks easily.
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"Hacking is not just a skill, it's an attitude" The Rig: i7-870 - Asus p7p55d-e PRO - 4gb A-Data G-Series - 1TB WD Caviar Black Sata 6gb/s - 2x Asus GTX 460 in SLI - Corsair 850w Power - Antec 1200 case |
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07-09-2010, 09:55 AM
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#12 |
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Member (5 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2010
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I wont want anything "top of the line" but something decent enough to run current games on average settings-
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07-09-2010, 10:25 AM
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#13 |
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The i3 will game just fine.
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07-13-2010, 09:26 AM
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#14 |
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Member (5 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2010
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I am starting with 4gb of ram (2x 2gb)- When I do add a GPU in the future would I need to add 4gb more?
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07-13-2010, 11:12 AM
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#15 |
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Not necessarily.
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07-13-2010, 03:52 PM
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#16 |
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Member (9 bit)
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Conneaut, Ohio
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GPUs have their own built in memory, you prolly wouldnt ever need more than 4gb ram unless you are running alot of really heavy programs, like autocad on top of crysis while watching a video and converting another one. you might want to go with an i7 980x if your doing that much though /sarcasm
4gb ram is plenty for any average computer user. even hardcore gamers rarely need more than that. |
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07-13-2010, 07:02 PM
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#17 |
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Member (5 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2010
Posts: 21
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I have everything assembled, but when I turn the power on it seems like everything is going to boot, the cpu and case fans start moving, a few lights turn on on the MB, then it goes off.... and then it tries again, and goes off.... . It is stuck in this cycle and I cant figure out the problem-
Any suggestions? |
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07-13-2010, 07:58 PM
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#18 |
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Member (5 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2010
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Nevermind I figured it out..... Obvious Rookie Mistake on my part-
Didnt know there was a separate location on the MB for CPU power....... Plugged that in and everything works fine. Now I just need an OS. |
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07-13-2010, 08:08 PM
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#19 |
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Member (5 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2010
Posts: 21
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I wouldn't want a Builders edition of Win7 would I? I just want the normal full edition?
Also, should I go with 64 bit edition? |
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07-13-2010, 11:17 PM
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#20 |
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All you need is the OEM version - no need to spend extra money for the full retail version. If you want to be able to use all 4gb of ram, you need 64 bit. Think about it - you ARE the builder!
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07-14-2010, 09:49 PM
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#21 |
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Member (5 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2010
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Alright I got my Windows 7 disc- I go through the install and when it asks to select a drive to install it in, nothing shows up in the list-
I search around in the bios for where to format drives and create partitions, but I cant find anything- (I am only familiar with Dell machines) So basically I think I need to configure my Harddrive? Any tips/suggestions? Thanks everyone- |
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07-14-2010, 10:10 PM
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#22 |
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Go into the bios and make sure the SATA controller is enabled and in the IDE emulation mode. The other option is to set it to AHCI, and have the AHCI driver ready on a USB flash stick. When you see the press F6 prompt to install 3rd party storage drivers, do it and put the flash stick in.
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07-14-2010, 10:12 PM
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#23 |
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Member (9 bit)
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Conneaut, Ohio
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you wouldnt be able to format/partition a hard drive in bios, if it is not detected in the attached devices list or on your boot up order list in bios, make sure you have it connected to the mobo AND have power to it. if you do, then it might be a bad drive.
edit: on the note of format/partition, a new HDD will come partitioned to a single drive at the capacity it is listed. windows takes care of the formatting. |
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07-14-2010, 10:22 PM
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#24 |
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Member (5 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2010
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Would this be easier if I had a normal Harddrive and not a sata drive desigened for Raid?
I dont have a flash stick or anything- If that works, it should be easy to configure the Sata harddrive as a slave or secondary hard drive? This is more confusing then I expected- Last edited by hendunesia; 07-15-2010 at 08:24 AM. |
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07-15-2010, 07:06 PM
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#25 | |
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Member (5 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2010
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Quote:
When I try AHCI, I dont see where to press F6 to prompt an install- During Windows 7 installation I can browse for a device driver, I copied all of the AHCI type drivers I could find on the Motherboard Disc and those didnt work- I dont even know if I am on the right path here or not, but I am having no luck at all- |
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07-15-2010, 09:28 PM
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#26 |
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Member (5 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2010
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I googled and found instructions on how to format and partition the drive using command prompt before you start the windows install......
I am all good to go! Big Thanks to GLC, Nikon, David M, and Orbrit for the help, couldn't/wouldn't of done it with out ya. |
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