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Phædrus2401 · 06-23-2009, 07:07 AM

Avoid nForce stuff. Also EVGA doesn't make the best motherboards. Look for Asus or Gigabyte boards. I recommend the Asus P5Q line of boards. I have a P5Q Pro and it's very nice.

That coolermaster case costs way too much for what you get... Go with an Antec 300, Antec 900 (I have one and it's very nice), or Smilodon case.

Corsair makes some of the best PSUs for the price. I'd personally get a Corsair CMPSU-650tx.

The E8400 is a very nice CPU, and it's a good choice. I'm getting an E8500 (the "middle child" of the E8x00 line) myself.

Kingston RAM is alright but the best brands are G.Skill, Corsair, and OCZ, I think. Mushkin RAM is good too, they usually have really nice specials.

I dunno about that Samsung 1.5TB drive. First off, do you *need* 1500GB? Unless you're storing hundreds of movies and songs I don't see how you'd use all of it. In any case, the best brands for HDDs are Western Digital and Seagate, and Seagate has been having quality control issues lately, so go for a Western Digital Caviar 500GB/1TB drive.

If you're going to buy an aftermarket CPU cooler the best-known brand is Zalman, and you'd want either the 9500A or the 9700. Personally, I think they charge a little too much compared to their competition. I'm using a Thermaltake V1 which is $10 cheaper than the 9500A and my CPU, which is overclocked by .9GHz, runs at room temperature (with Arctic Silver 5 and an Antec 900 case with side fan).

Anyway, what you posted will work, but it isn't all the best parts for the money. I hope I've helped point out better parts and brands.

06-23-2009, 07:07 AM	#3 (permalink)
Phædrus2401 Hardware Tech Team Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: New Orleans Posts: 3,775 OS: Vista Ultimate x64 SP1 + Ubuntu 9.04 My System	Re: Please help with my build Avoid nForce stuff. Also EVGA doesn't make the best motherboards. Look for Asus or Gigabyte boards. I recommend the Asus P5Q line of boards. I have a P5Q Pro and it's very nice. That coolermaster case costs way too much for what you get... Go with an Antec 300, Antec 900 (I have one and it's very nice), or Smilodon case. Corsair makes some of the best PSUs for the price. I'd personally get a Corsair CMPSU-650tx. The E8400 is a very nice CPU, and it's a good choice. I'm getting an E8500 (the "middle child" of the E8x00 line) myself. Kingston RAM is alright but the best brands are G.Skill, Corsair, and OCZ, I think. Mushkin RAM is good too, they usually have really nice specials. I dunno about that Samsung 1.5TB drive. First off, do you need 1500GB? Unless you're storing hundreds of movies and songs I don't see how you'd use all of it. In any case, the best brands for HDDs are Western Digital and Seagate, and Seagate has been having quality control issues lately, so go for a Western Digital Caviar 500GB/1TB drive. If you're going to buy an aftermarket CPU cooler the best-known brand is Zalman, and you'd want either the 9500A or the 9700. Personally, I think they charge a little too much compared to their competition. I'm using a Thermaltake V1 which is $10 cheaper than the 9500A and my CPU, which is overclocked by .9GHz, runs at room temperature (with Arctic Silver 5 and an Antec 900 case with side fan). Anyway, what you posted will work, but it isn't all the best parts for the money. I hope I've helped point out better parts and brands. __________________ Good PSU brands: Corsair, SeaSonic, CWT, PC Power and Cooling, Thermaltake Toughpower, CoolerMaster Real Power Pro On 80+ Certification - PSU Information and Selection - Power Supply Myths You don't get what you don't pay for.