First build ever, need help

[jagdawg88]

My old comp is showing its age so I'm gonna try building a new system for the first time. It will be used primarily for gaming as well as the usual internet/music/movies and some multitasking. I am not going to be keeping anything from the old system.

My budget is 1200-1300 not including monitor. I am going to get a 22in monitor on its own so that is not included. After doing some research I'm thinking about Intel dual-core and 8800gtx, but am open to other options. I plan to run stock speeds, but possibly overclock in the future. I also plan on going with dual monitors (keeping my old 17in lcd). I'm in the US (WA state)

Here is a rough idea what I'm looking at. Prices all from newegg btw.

Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
$140

GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
$100


EVGA 768-P2-N831-AR GeForce 8800GTX 768MB 384-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
$530

CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 620W Power Supply - Retail
$170

Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 Conroe 2.66GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6750 - Retail
$200

G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
$80

LITE-ON 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with 12X DVD-RAM write and LightScribe Technology Black
$32

Windows Vista
$112

Seagate 320gb
$80


Total is about 1400. I can probably cut some costs by getting some components somewhere else. Please let me know if there are better options and/or compatibility issues. Thanks in advance for any input.

 

[jagdawg88]

anyone?

 

[bamacre]

Your list comes to about $1445, a little more than your budget, isn't it?

I made some changes...

Antec Nine Hundred Ultimate Gaming Mid Tower Case
$120.00
http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/...jsp?ProductCode=140146

Corsair 520W SLI Certified Modular ATX Power Supply
$100.00
http://www.buy.com/prod/corsai...loc/101/203270716.html

GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35
$100.00
http://www.newegg.com/product/...p?item=N82E16813128059

Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz
$278.00
http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/....jsp?ProductCode=80864

G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800
$80.00
http://www.newegg.com/product/...p?item=N82E16820231098

Seagate 320GB Serial ATA/300 16MB Buffer
$70.00
http://shop1.outpost.com/product/5296757

LITE-ON 20X DVD±R DVD Burner
$32.00
http://www.newegg.com/product/...p?item=N82E16827106055

XFX PVT80FSHF9 GeForce 8800 GTX 768MB GDDR3 w/ Free Lost Planet
$530.00
http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/...jsp?ProductCode=321102

Total Price: $1,310.00 + some shipping

You just have to shop around for better deals. Doing all your shopping at NewEgg, especially trying to stay under a budget, will no doubt hurt your system's performance.

Also, I switched your PSU to the 520W, you don't need the 620W. The above config won't even hit 400W under full load.

 

[LightningRider]

Well everything is compatible but...

I would get a Western Digital over a Seagate 7200.10.

The 500GB go for about ~$100 if you find deals. The WD runs cooler and quieter and performs better.

Also I'd get the 64 bit version of Windows Vista. For gaming and general usage, the 64 bit is a better choice, and will save you from upgrading if you want to go 4GB of RAM in the future or use 64 bit apps. For upcoming games, you may want 4GB as well.

I'd also consider maybe dropping down to an 8800GTS and getting a Q6600 instead of the E6750. A lot of upcoming games will use quad cores and while you can always OC a quad, you can't grow more cores on a faster clocked dual core chip.

You could probably get the 520W version of that Corsair PSU and still be fine, especially if you dropped down to a GTS. If you get the GTS and you decide later you wish you got the GTX, then you can use EVGA's step up program where you pay the difference between two cards and upgrade. That only works in the first 3 months of purchase though.

Anyways other than that it looks alright.

 

[MarcVenice]

In games gpu is more important then cpu. The e6750 will be plenty fast for games and won't bottleneck the 8800gtx. I mean, it's not that weird to pair a amd x2 3800+ @ 2.6ghz or higher with a 8800gtx.

 

[jagdawg88]

520W sounds like it will be enough. If I do go with the quad, would the ddr2 800 be enough to do a small overclock in the future? My budget seems to be going a little higher as well.

Thanks for all the feedback.

 

[bamacre]

Originally posted by: jagdawg88
520W sounds like it will be enough. If I do go with the quad, would the ddr2 800 be enough to do a small overclock in the future? My budget seems to be going a little higher as well.

Thanks for all the feedback.

Considering the Q6600 only needs 533mhz (2 x 266mhz) memory to run at stock speeds, yes, DDR2 800 will be plenty.