Need advice for new build

[itspace]

hi everyone, short time lurker, first time poster here.

so as the title says i'm looking for advice on improving my new computer. This is my first time building a computer so i dont know much but i have been looking around the internet and learning about whats good and whats not.

I'm mainly going for an all purpose computer, would like to do some gaming and homework and such... more emphasis on gaming =D

my price range is about 1500$ including monitor before tax. i live in canada. so this is what i have so far:

Antec Sonata III case with earthwatt 500w psu
Intel q6600 cpu
Gigabyte p35c ds3r mobo
Crucial ballistix pc26400 ddr2 800 ram(2x1gig)
eVGA 8800gt video card
Western digital se 500gig HDD
Samsung sh203h dvd writer
Windows vista 32 bit
keyboard/mouse
Samsung syncmaster 206bw 20 inch widescreen lcd
total: ~1500$

so mainly i want something that will last me for a while and i might try oc'ing but nothing too extreme. any and all help will be much appreciated

 

[Denithor]

Welcome to the forums!

Looks like you've really done your homework there, that's going to be a nice rig indeed when you're done.

Really the only thing I would suggest is to get an e2180 instead of the q6600 (save about $170 or so) and overclock it to 3GHz (easily done on that setup). For most applications, including games, an overclocked e21x0 chip is more than enough power currently. This time next year you should be able to get a fast Penryn quad for $150-200 at about the time quads really start to be utilized by a wider spectrum of programs. That will give you enough power to last several years before needing a serious upgrade.

 

[Roguestar]

^ Good suggestions :thumbsup:

Go for the cheap 'n' cheerful overclocker for now until more things start using quad core, by when you can have saved up for a better one .

Welcome to the forums. Points for good research and a truthful "short time lurker" statement!

 

[cozumel]

And use the money you save from the CPU to get Vista x64 and maybe with with 4GB of RAM. If you're gonna be gaming in between your schoolwork then you will need the RAM with x64 to be futureproof. Right now Crysis needs 1.5GB as a minimum requirerement.

 

[DSF]

I wouldn't get the P35C-DS3R for two reasons.

1) With the system you've outlined, it doesn't look like you need 8 SATA ports or onboard RAID. No need to pay for them.

2) The P35C is a combo board that takes either DDR2 or DDR3. Again, this is a feature that isn't really worth paying the extra money for.

I also agree with the recommendation to wait on the quad-core processor for now. The way you plan to use your computer, you aren't going to see much benefit for it in the immediate future.

Looks like a pretty good system though!

 

[itspace]

awesome thanks for the advice guys, but i have 2 question/concern

1. i have never oc'ed before so if i didn't have to i dont really want to. when i said i wanted to try oc'ing it wasn't going to be anytime soon but sometime in the future. so with that in mind should i still go for a C2D instead of quad core? i guess saving for the penryn is a good choice, but if i get a better cpu now, then several years later the second gen of penryns gonna be out so i could get those... dunno.

2. what mobo do u recommend? i want something that will last a while and i chose the p35c cause it has the ddr3 compatabliity. i dont wanna switch mobos that often.

more feedback is welcomed!!

 

[Denithor]

1) There is an excellent guide to overclocking C2D chips. This is actually very easy to do and yields dramatic improvements in available power. And if you only push it up to its highest stable point on stock voltage, you basically get a boost in performance without the exta heat/stress on the cpu that come from extra volts. There are lots of people willing to help with any questions you have on this topic.

2) I would recommend either the abit IP35 for $100 (after $25MIR) or the Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L for $90. Both of these boards will have all the features you probably need and offer full native support for the Penryn quad-core processors launching next month. EDIT: IP35 has firewire while DS3L does not.

There is really no need to worry about DDR3 at this point, that will not be priced right until Nehalem launches this time next year and requires the new memory format.

Basically, get one of these boards and a cheap-n-easy-to-overclock e2180 (also available from Mwave cheaper than at Newegg, just pick it in the CPU options drop-down menu). OC to ~3GHz and you are set for a year (at least).

At that time, if you need more power and/or more programs are actually using four cores, you will be able to pick up a Penryn quad for about the cost of the money you saved on this chip versus the Q6600 (and you can then resell the e2180). And then you are good for probably about 2 years (or more), when you will need a full system upgrade (making the jump then to DDR3/DDR4/whatever is out and reasonably priced).

I do like the suggestion of spending that extra money to pick up four gigs of DDR2 and Vista64 which will also help with longevity of the system.

 

[cozumel]

Personally, if you are changing mobo I would be going with the GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3R - $128 as it has an ICH9R southbridge which will offer you RAID for any future upgrade while the DS3L does not.

 

[Tpain]

The abit p35 pro got a really good review from AT. It comes with a program uGuru that is suppose to make OCing really easy. That's all just things I have read and I'm a total noob too. Also did you look at the antec 900. Some stuff I read said that it is important to have air intake from the front. Two 120s in the front and a 200 on the top seems really good to me. I have not seen that modle you are talking about though either. Cheers and beers.

 

[itspace]

about vista 64... what are the advantages of having a 64bit os vs 32 bit? i know there is a 64 bit xp but there is very little support for it and its been a few years. granted that 64 bit is probly where the futures gonna be, will i need it for the next several years?

also, will there be any compatablility issues with hardware or software?? i read somewhere that youtube doesn't work with 64 bit vista?? whats up with that?

for the mobo i'll probly change it to the p35 ds3r or the ds3l

for cpu, i guess getting quad right now isn't the best time to do it, but i want somehting thats going to be good enough at stock and maybe oc it later when i feel like experimenting... so maybe a e6750?

sigh... oh the choices... the choices!!

 

[Denithor]

Well, first off, let me lay that rumor to rest: I just finished watching the "Two girls one cup" video on youtube that's getting so much attention and everything played just fine.

The biggest advantage right now with 64-bit is the ability to use 4GB+ RAM on a computer. 32-bit operating systems can only "address" 4GB total (system, video, sound, etc) so with a video card in there XP will typically only recognize/use 3.2-3.3GB if you have 4GB installed.

I play mainly WoW and FPS games (Battlefield, FarCry, etc) and everything runs totally smooth on 4GB.

The P35-DS3R is a nice board but the IP35 has the same features (ICH9R for raid and firewire) and sells for $95 after MIR. Better deal to me.

Quads are seriously overrated right now, maybe in a year you will need one, therefore my suggestion to get an e2180 and OC. The OC process is completely painless with these processors, you typically can go into the BIOS, set the fsb to 300, save changes & reboot, and it will load up with e2180 running at 3GHz.

If you aren't willing to OC right away, I would recommend the e4600 as a good mid-level cpu. 2MB cache and 2.4GHz stock is plenty of performance for day-to-day use (and most gaming as well) and you can still expect to get this one up to 3GHz+ when you do decide to OC it. The e4600 is about $140-150 so you still save $40-50 versus the e6750.

 

[DSF]

Originally posted by: Denithor
If you aren't willing to OC right away, I would recommend the e4600 as a good mid-level cpu. 2MB cache and 2.4GHz stock is plenty of performance for day-to-day use (and most gaming as well) and you can still expect to get this one up to 3GHz+ when you do decide to OC it. The e4600 is about $140-150 so you still save $40-50 versus the e6750.

Or even an E4500, which is 2.2GHz and $30 cheaper. It all depends on where you want to balance out price and performance.

 

[itspace]

alright thanks guys, especially denithor for all the input

i'm gonna get vista 64 bit go up to 4 gigs of ram and get a cheaper cpu now, and later upgrade to penryn when thats cheaper

again thanks for all the help!

 

[Roguestar]

Originally posted by: itspace
i read somewhere that youtube doesn't work with 64 bit vista?? whats up with that?

There's a nice little discussion going on here at the moment:
http://forums.anandtech.com/me...id=27&threadid=2127565

And for the record I've never had trouble with the flash or shockwave plugins for Vista x64, youtube works fine for me.

 

[Denithor]

Good choices and enjoy your build!

Report back once done with a performance update and feel free to post with any issues during assembly/installation/etc.