Doombot

So here's what I have so far. I have a few more questions to ask after the list if you all wouldn't mind answering them.

Purchased: SAMSUNG 2253BW Black 22" 2ms(GTG) DVI Widescreen LCD Monitor with HDCP Support 300 cd


Purchased: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz 6MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor - Retail


Purchased: ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler - Retail


Purchased: Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail


Purchased: Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound


Purchased: BELKIN F8E093 Anti-Static Wrist Strap - Retail


Purchased: American Recorder CO-53108 Anti-Static Glove

Tomorrow I'll order this:

ASUS P5E LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

VANTEC Nexstar 3 NST-360U2-BK Aluminum 3.5" USB 2.0 External Enclosure

This is out of stock

CORSAIR DOMINATOR 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail

However I may just get it somewhere else.

I haven't decided on the graphic card yet. My recommendations are for a 8800 GT or a 8800GTS. I several choices at newegg but I don't know which one I should get. I'm a online gamer who plays some shooters (Bioshock, Portal, Half Life 2) and will be playing Spore and Fallout 3 when it comes out. Based on what I have so far, what would be a good fit? I'll also be using two monitors. The 2nd one is a 4 year old LCD monitor.

For the powersuppy... what voltage should I get? 750W? Higher?

Will I need more fans than what's supplied in the Antec computer case?

For my harddrive. Should I go with 10,000 model with a smaller storage size for my 1st/Main Hard Drive since that's where my programs will be and let the second hard drive be my storage / scratch disk for Photoshop? Is it even that much of a issue in difference of performance?

Thanks in advance.

ps. I see a few different versions of Vista out there. I don't need the one with all the bells and whistles. For someone that wants to run a 64 bit os which version should I get? Thanks again for all the help so far.

blackduck30

Your video card is really dependant on your budget, if you can afford the 8800GTS then go with that but make sure it is the G92 chipset version, it should say so in the description, if not the 8800GT is still a nice choice and I run an MSI version and have been very happy with it.

Power supply, have a look at these two

PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad (Crossfire Edition) EPS12V 750W Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, CE, CB, RoHS - Retail $149 or $159

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...ame=701+-+800W

This is a good buy at the moment for $139

SILVERSTONE ST85ZF ATX 12V 2.2 & EPS12V 850W SLI Certified Power Supply 90V ~ 264V (Auto Range) - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817256007

as for drives your choice also, the 10K Raptors are very popular so maybe a 150G raptor for your OS and a nice 16mb cache 250G seagate for storage

Western Digital Raptor WD1500ADFD 150GB 10,000 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 1.5Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM $170

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822136012

or the pretty version with a window for an extra $5

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822136011

and a seagate 250G

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250410AS 250GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM $65

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148262

or

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 (Perpendicular Recording) ST3500630AS 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM $100

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148136

as for your OS , Vista home premium is not a bad choice

video card links

8800GTS (G92) the G92 is a faster chipset than the original 8800GTS

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148136

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814127325

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130337

8800GT ( G92 )

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130319

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814127329

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150254

I think this might be an alternative to the dominator
I have not try'd it as i usually always stick to Corsair

OCZ Reaper HPC 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail $135 ( after rebate )

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820227289

tomas.termit

Regarding to DDR3 mems.
I do not think that DDR3 are worst then DDR2. The same situation was when DDR2 came on market. I think still is better have a space for upgrade as buy brand new motherboard when upgrade will be required. The same is with processors. ASUS's gamblers motherboards have no support for 4core processors (few of them). In present is useless buy DDR3 due to their price, but in near future prices will fall down.

Doombot

Thank you BlackDuck for that list (and to the others with their advice of course).

I purchased this motherboard: ASUS P5E LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

That should allow me to purchased DDR3 Ram in the future but for now I'm going to try to stick with that Consair suggested below.

I purchased one of the recommended power supplies. The one not chosen had low reviews and since this is my first build I want to limit the potential issues. So I got this: PC Power & Cooling S75QB EPS12V 750W Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, ULC, CE, CB, RoHS - Retail The high reviews reassured me.

For the primary hard drive, I went with the recommendation again and got this: Western Digital Raptor X WD1500AHFD 150GB 10,000 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 1.5Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM Once again, the high reviews were reassuring especially with it's customer service award.

I'm still weighing my options with the graphic card and the secondary harddrive may be purchased with a few weeks. That's something I can wait on if needed since I hope to be able to access my old data. Audio files can play just fine via a USB connection.

I do have a further question about Vista. It appears that some versions of Vista 64 will work with one computer. Normally that's not a issue since I don't wish to install it on multiple computers. But if I change the motherboard will I be forced to install a new version? It's something that I heard and I just want to see what the truth is.

So what version of Vista do you think I should get?

Thanks everyone for the help so far. It's been very helpful.

blackduck30

No problem Doombot, always happy to give advice.

I think you will be happy with your choices.

As for vista, from what i can tell from the licensing agreement you might have to purchase another copy if you went with OEM over retail, altho I think there may be a clause if your motherboard fails and you can not get the same board.
I have changed out a failed board with an OEM XP and rang MS and they let me reactivate it but don't take this as standard proceedure.

Best bet is to call MS at least then you get it straight from the horses mouth

linderman

Vista has VERY strict rules about upgrading >>>>>> if you change motherboards I guarantee you will be buying another copy


XP was not that strict >>>>> the retail versions were actually very loose on hardwarte restrictions compared to vista


hell; I have seen some guys thrown into activation by driver upgrading

hopefully in the future they will "fix" that foolish annoyance same with the trouble cloning your hard drives ........... last time I tried, you cant clone with vista

blackduck30

Thanks for clearing that up Linderman, as always a wealth of information

linderman

Blackduck sure has steered you in the direction of some very high performance components for the right price >>>>> you will enjoy that rig !

Doombot

I agree. Anyone can quote top dollar systems but those look like a nice balance of performance and price so good job! =)

Thanks for the information on Vista, Linderman. Would you mind posting a URL from Newegg so I'm sure to get the right one? Is there a version in your opinion that just had 'too much' in terms of features? Which version do you prefer?

Thanks in advance.

1 g0t 0wn3d

I have to disagree...i threw this motherboard in my hp and all it needed was a repair install

Doombot

Well... I'm down to just the memory. The DDR2 1066 4Gig memory that I want is out of stock and will be for at least another week. Looking for 2 (2 Gig) setups.

Any recommendations on another memory choice to use with this motherboard?

ASUS P5E LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

Thanks in advance. =)

blackduck30

I have not used it personally but i have heard good things

CZ Reaper HPC 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail $105 ( after rebate )

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820227289

Doombot

I thought I should post my final purchase list in case it might help anyone else. I believe (minus the monitor) this all fell under 1500.00 with the various specials and rebates. Thanks again for all the help and I suspect I may have a question or two as I assemble it over the next couple of days.

I'm still waiting on the secondary hard drive and I want to see what the sound sounds like before I get a sound card. If the sound from the motherboard is ok then I'll just stick with that.

OCZ Reaper HPC 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail

Microsoft Windows Vista 64-Bit Home Premium for System Builders Single Pack DVD - OEM (The SP1 version was out of stock) I'm taking the chance that I won't be upgrading the motherboard so that's why I went with this version of Vista.

American Recorder CO-53108 Anti-Static Glove With a top hat and cane, I'll look stylish.

MSI NX8800GTS 512M OC GeForce 8800GTS (G92) 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail Free Witcher PC game w/ purchase, while supplies last

SAMSUNG Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 20X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe - OEM

Rosewill RTK-015 15 Piece Standard Computer Tool Kit - Retail

Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

BELKIN F8E093 Anti-Static Wrist Strap - Retail

PC Power & Cooling S75QB EPS12V 750W Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, ULC, CE, CB, RoHS - Retail

Western Digital Raptor X WD1500AHFD 150GB 10,000 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 1.5Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

ASUS P5E LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

VANTEC Nexstar 3 NST-360U2-BK Aluminum 3.5" USB 2.0 External Enclosure - Retail

Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz 6MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor - Retail

Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound - OEM

ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler - Retail

SAMSUNG 2253BW Black 22" 2ms(GTG) DVI Widescreen LCD Monitor with HDCP Support 300 cd/m2 DC 8000:1 - Retail

blackduck30

looks like a solid build there, I am sure you will be happy

One thing i do suggest is take the time to make your case wires nice and tidy and hide as many as you can, route them so they are neet and out of sight. makes the case look neet and tidy and helps air flow

linderman

are you sure you want a 64bit windows OS ????? do you already have 64bit programs ?


if not you want a 32bit Vista OS

linderman

I must be one hellva unlucky guy then / I have been thru vista hell




one system I sold had a motherboard that wigged out a week after I sold it / the customer didnt want to wait for his motherboard to be RMA'd so I replaced his board with another one >>>> but different model; one I had in stock

then I couldnt get activation approval >>>>> so I had to use a new copy of vista with the motherboard

the hard drives are now even kept in vista's hardware algorithm(inventory) / so a dud hard drive replacement now counts against your changes


just good ole fun; right


see what happens when you change video drivers 4 or 5 times you will love it


Vista Ultimate seems alot less strict though, probably worth the extra few bucks during the life span of the computer >>>>>> which is about two times longer than life span of a mosquito


I just hope MS softens as times goes on with vista >>>>>

linderman

Nice system specs on the final build / alot of muscle for the money


I hear alot of good things about the OCZ reaper memory >>>> i would not hesitate to give it a try!

Doombot

It was more so I could use the 4 gigs of ram (and maybe 8 in the future) and to have options for the future. I already got it so hopefully it wasn't a huge mistake.

markdude

These two boards appear to be almost identical except the PCI-E slot on the second one says x1x4 electrical. What is the diff ?
I have a E8400 DUo core chip, and am selecting a mobo to replace my old one. Do these mobos have 5.1 sound like a soundblaster ? Why would the center and sub output be shared , isnt the sub suposed to be LFE only ? does it matter, since the sub can bypass higher freqs with a tuning knob ?

markdude

SO how did your build work out wiht that mobo and CPU ? I plan on doing the same type setup. Are you liking your mobo and CPU choice ? any suggestions about setting it up, BIOS, etc ?