First Time Builder Seeking Help.

I've been planning these parts for two weeks and have been refining the list ever since, but more input from pro's can never hurt. I was wondering if anyone would mind giving some pointers? Are these parts compatible? Are they good parts? Is there anything else I should invest in? Is this a good system to have for when Vista finally comes out? Any help would be great. I plan on using the computer for alot of graphic design, especially Adobe products, and I guess a little gaming. Thanks alot!

$933.30

EPoX EP-9NPA+ SLi Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 SLI ATX AMD Motherboard -
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813123246

AMD Athlon 64 3700+ 1GHz HT Socket 939 Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103539

CORSAIR XMS 1GB 184-Pin DDR SDRAM System Memory - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145488

NEC 16X DVD±R DVD Burner Black IDE/ATAPI Model ND-3550A - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827152058

eVGA Geforce 6800GS CO SE 256-P2-N389-AX Video Card - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130271

Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 120GB 3.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148106

Antec TRUEPOWERII TPII-480 480W Power Supply - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817103929

Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835100007

COOLER MASTER Centurion 532 RC-532-SKN1 Black Computer Case - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119094

Jam it back in, in the dark.

For starters, you might want to go with an nVidia card, seeing how your mobo choice is an NVIDIA nForce4. Secondly, you might want to get a good HeatSink Fan.

I should also add that if you want to upgrade to Vista, you might also want a DirectX 10 card (None of which are out yet). So your best bet is to get a fairly cheap video card now, and hold out until they start producing the DX10 cards.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Stealth

For starters, you might want to go with an nVidia card, seeing how your mobo choice is an NVIDIA nForce4. Secondly, you might want to get a good HeatSink Fan.

I should also add that if you want to upgrade to Vista, you might also want a DirectX 10 card (None of which are out yet). So your best bet is to get a fairly cheap video card now, and hold out until they start producing the DX10 cards.

Alright, I've got a heatsink, is the particular one I chose alright? What about the new videocard, is it any better? It's nVidia, it's SLI ready...is that any cooler? I'm rather...excited.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

I don't have any advice on the parts, but here's a few pointers on the actual build:

• Make sure that everything goes in the right way. I ruined one of my RAM slots by putting it in backwards my first time.
• If at all possible, ignore the plastic spacers for mounting the motherboard. If your motherboard comes with copper spacers, use them. They're tons easier to install than the plastic spacers.
• Be careful with the edges of the case. VERY careful. The case I bought didn't have rolled edges, so when I went to install the faceplate for my motherboard's connectors, I sliced my fingers GOOD.
• Take it slow. It's your first build, so don't expect to be done under an hour. Install the motherboard and PSU, and boot her up. Install the CPU, boot her up. Install RAM, boot it up. Install the video card and boot it. Install the hard drive and boot it again. In other words, boot after each step to make sure that you've done it right. You'll get a beep code after each step up to the actual hard drive, but it should change after each part installed.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Superb choice of case, by the way. That will make your job as easy as possible.

AMD processors come with a good heatsink/fan. Unless you plan on overclocking your CPU, you won't need any additional cooling for it. You may wish to add a case fan to the side to help in any cooling you might need, it is positioned in a good place to help keep the GPU cooler. Plus, that only adds like $5 at the most to your price.

As for your choice of power supply, that's a bit pricey. Thermaltake makes a fantastic PSU that I put into a Centurion 5 case that has been working perfectly since we got it.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817153023

It's also about $30 cheaper and it's not like you are losing performance, Thermaltake is a great brand.

The mobo seems to be overpriced for the performance you get too.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131569

This one is about $50 cheaper.


I guess it would help us to know if you have any special needs. If you just want to stick some parts together and go, you can definitely save some money on this machine. If you're looking for massive customization, lots of overclocking and such, you might need some upgrades in places.

I was speaking idiomatically.

All i'd suggest is that, if there is a RAM compatability list for your motherboard, look it up. I don't know about EPoX boards but several ASUS motherboards are pretty strict when it comes to what RAM they like. You'll probably be fine with what you have but i'm just a bit wary of such things ever since that type of memory gave me trouble one time.

Most amazing jew boots

Originally Posted by BlueMikey

Superb choice of case, by the way. That will make your job as easy as possible.

"...."

I guess it would help us to know if you have any special needs. If you just want to stick some parts together and go, you can definitely save some money on this machine. If you're looking for massive customization, lots of overclocking and such, you might need some upgrades in places.

I removed the heatsink from the list and that's about it. I kinda like that the current mobo is SLI ready, just in case I ever decide to get a second video card in the future. I also decided to stick with the original power supply simply because I trust it more and spent a good two hours comparing power supplies until I narrowed it down to the Antec.

As for my requirements, I really just want to use my new computer to play tons of music, burn CD's, play Half-Life 2 and FEAR, and use Adobe products. I'm going to be attending the Art Institute of Dallas, so I definitely think a computer that can properly handle graphics is a huge benefit.

FELIPE NO

You would be better off with an X850 XT video card. The Fortron PSU linked to below is a better deal than the Antec that you chose. As for the motherboard, is there any reason why you chose the Epox? The DFI NF4 SLI-D is a better board. Also, there isn't really any reason not to get an SATA hard drive. A good one would be one from te Samsung SpinPoint series.

Video card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102688
PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817104954
DFI motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...2E16813136158R (It's a refurb, but you can find the same board on Newegg for $164 new)

Also, if you're seriously considering buying an additional video card for SLI, you're going to need a more powerful PSU (500W+) with dual 12V rails. I recommend the Fortron Blue Storm or the Seasonic S12 500W and 600W.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

I don't know if I'd go with any Sony-brand CD/DVD-related products what with that whole rootkit thing, although at this point it may be more of a preference than a real concern.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by Magic

I don't know if I'd go with any Sony-brand CD/DVD-related products what with that whole rootkit thing, although at this point it may be more of a preference than a real concern.

I'd be preference more than anything else, since quite a few of their drives are nothing more than BenQ models. As for the videocard, I'd suggest eVGA's 7900GT. Why from that company in particular? Well, their step-up program is pretty convenient if a new card you want becomes available up to 90 days after you bought this one. That and their warranty is one of the best around, with everything except you intentionally damaging the card being covered.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130281

Like on the reviews on Newegg's page for it says, it provides 7800GTX levels of performance for far less. And take it from somone with the older card, if I could go back and get this one, I would because of the smaller size and cooler temperatures. BTW, unless you're running FEAR at insane resolutions, it'll run with the works nice and smooth.

How ya doing, buddy?

My only real complaint is your HD choice. No, not the brand, the size. Given the price differences between something of that size and something about twice that, if your motherboard supports ATA/133, go for a bigger drive. You won't regret it.

Also, see if you can bump up the processor speed a bit. 3000+ is good, but if you can go higher, go for it.

...oh, there's something missing...thermal compound (aka thermal paste). You'll need that to put on the CPU for heat conduction between it and the heatsink/fan. Usually CPUs don't come with any, so buy yourself some. You don't want your CPU frying.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Maybe he can future proof the machine as much as possible and pick up a 3800+?

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

By the time a computer part winds up on the market, it's already obsolete.

For a processor, just go with the best that you can afford, which unless you're Megalith, it's not the top of the line, but usually a couple notches down.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by Sir VG

By the time a computer part winds up on the market, it's already obsolete.

True, but you don't want to be saddled with something that's already half-extinct from the get go. That's why you tell folks to avoid getting AGP boards or cards.

Quote:

For a processor, just go with the best that you can afford, which unless you're Megalith, it's not the top of the line, but usually a couple notches down.

Megalith has a Beowulf cluster in his basement. Why lie.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Quote:

Megalith has a Beowulf cluster in his basement. Why lie.

And it's cooled with b33r and insulated with Crunchy Oaty O's.

FELIPE NO

Haha...well, I would go for the 3000+ Ghz, but I'm kinda on a budget. I definitely don't want to spend more than $900 on this bad boy, but that's still alot considering my original budget was $600. You guys are really giving me good ideas, and I like that you're helping me lower the price slightly. I'll be looking through all the suggestions as soon as I get back from work, and see if I can refine the list some more.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Well, when it comes to building a computer it's not about being cheap, but being cost-effective. Some parts can be upgraded easier than others if you decide to put more money in. But stuff like a CPU and HD are usually the most expensive to upgrade later (and upgrading a CPU is a total pain in the ass). You can always add on a second HD later though.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Originally Posted by Sir VG

My only real complaint is your HD choice. No, not the brand, the size. Given the price differences between something of that size and something about twice that, if your motherboard supports ATA/133, go for a bigger drive. You won't regret it.

I have to disagree with you there...the Seagate 7200.8 and 7200.9 don't seem to be very good drives. The 7200.8 was just terribly unreliable and kind of slow, and the 7200.9 doesn't seem to be a big improvement.

Actually, if you're looking for a sub-160GB hard drive, the old Seagate 7200.7 was quiet, fairly fast, and had bulletproof reliability. I don't know if you can buy them anymore, though, and they're an old design, so they might lose on speed and features.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

I've got a quick question on installing SATA2 drives? How is it different then IDE drives?

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

You plug the SATA cable from the drive into a header on the motherboard. Then you plug the SATA power connector from the PSU in the drive.

And to the person who said that CPUs don't come with thermal compound, the 3000+ he's getting will come with a thermal pad.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

That's it? sweet - what about master/slave jumper settings, do I have to worry about those?

And my EVGA E-Geforce 7600 GT CO, it's a PCI-e card, do I need a pci-e power cable from my psu?

And is a thermal pad = thermal compound?

Most amazing jew boots

You can just take the jumper out of the slave drive, and it should be auto-detected as a slave. Whichever drive you want to be the master needs to have its jumper set to master, though, and this includes SATA drives.

You do need a PCI-e connector from your PSU, but if your PSU doesn't have one, you can buy a 4-pin molex to PCI-e adapter.

And a thermal pad is a kind of thermal interface material, but thermal pads perform much worse than most pastes, such as Arctic Silver 5 or Ceramique.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Fuck - so I bought a PSU withough PCI-e... Oh well, looks like I'll be hunting for a computer shop that sells one of those things then.

Most amazing jew boots

The GeForce 7600 GT doesn't need an extra power connector, and I don't think that any current SATA hard drives need the special power connector yet. You shouldn't need to worry. ^^

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

whee Makes my life soo much easier

Jam it back in, in the dark.