Rate my rig - please

[surfnron]

This rig is for graphic manipulation and multi-tasking. I'm not planning on overclocking. I need a rock stable machine that should last me at least 5years, (unless I get the bug again). I guess it would also be nice if everything was compatable...
I'm worried about something creating a bottleneck, or getting one component that's way over what I need. The best part is that I'm still under budget.
CASE: COOLER MASTER Praetorian 730 RC-730-KSN1 Black Aluminum ATX Mid
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16811119085

MOBO: ASUS A8N-SLI Premium Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 SLI ATX AMD Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16813131540

PROCESSOR: AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+ 1GHz FSB Socket 939 Dual Core Processor
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16819103562

VIDEO CARD: ASUS EN6600/TD/256 Geforce 6600 256MB DDR PCI Express x16
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16814121179

POWER SUPPLY: Antec TRUEPOWERII TPII-550 ATX12V 550W Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16817103931

MEMMORYCZ 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered Dual Channel Platinum System Memory Model
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820227210

HARD DRIVE:
Update Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 ST3120813AS 120GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16822148106

HEATSINK: Thermaltake VENUS 12 80mm Ball Cooling Fan/Heatsink
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16835106038

OPTICAL DRIVE: BenQ Black IDE DVD Burner Model DW1640
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16827101651

CARD READER: Atech Flash PRO-9 11-in-1 USB 2.0 Internal/External Card Reader
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820176813

THERMAL COMPOUND: Arctic Silver Ceramique Thermal Compound
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16835100009

Did I forget anything?
You guys have been a great help so far in pointing me towards the right stuff - I would have been MONTHS trying to figure what I need w/o your help.
Thanx again,
Ron

 

[ofiraltarasy]

i would get an EVGA grafics card b/c the warrentie is coverd even if you frie it overclocking it and also the Heatink isnt that good you should get http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835109122

 

[ofiraltarasy]

and also the PSU http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817104982 get that one

 

[johnnqq]

coming from a guy who still didn't make his own grig...look at a different psu. antec is good, but there are better choices than the truepower now. i've heard stories that arctic silver needs to be replaced every 6 months because it eventually losses effect. what kind of cpu hsf is that??

http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=37&threadid=1723066&enterthread=y
take your pick. the 7000 and xp90 are good cheap choices.

 

[munchow2]

First off, no rig will last you 5 yrs. If you mean will it run properly then yes, in 5 yrs time it will probably be able to run a number of applications sufficiently although very slowly.

Anyway let's begin:

case: doesn't matter

mobo: you could alternatively choose a DFI Lanparty if you are into OCing. I find ASUS doesn't give quite enough OCing options. I don't have the A8N premium myself so you might want to consult people who have both these motherboards.

processor: great

video card: please choose a better card. The 6600 is near the bottom of this generation's graphics cards. A 6800 GT or X800XL should be the minimum for a good new computer. For not much more, a 7800GT would be a better buy.

PSU: fine

memory: fine

HDD: you might want to get a bigger hard drive but that is up to you. Usually 250 GB+ is a good number.

Heatsink: It would be better if you got an SI-120 + medium speed 120mm panoflo fan. It would be a very good cooling solution.

The rest: fine

MISC: Do you have a monitor?

 

[chrisrod01]

What the use of this system?
why are u getting a sli motherboard with a 6600 nvidia ?

 

[ofiraltarasy]

did you say i still dont have a rig

 

[surfnron]

Thanx all -
munchow2 - I have a monitor, mouse, speakers, etc, just need the "box".
chrisrod01 - this is for working on large graphic files & multitasking. I probablly won't oc, but I would like to be able to use it around 5 years. I guess I need to use a better vivio card, so now I'm looking at the ASUS EAX800XL/2DTV/256 Radeon X800XL 256MB DDR PCI Express x16 Video Card. Also probably will get the XP-90 heatsink and a fan.
Ron

 

[Soccerman06]

I dont know on what exactly you meen by "large graphic files" and "graphic manipulation" but if its anything like autoCAD or some engineering programs, you should be looking at FireGL or Quadro series graphics cards instead of gaming cards. Anyways, if this is for actual work purposes and using graphics, you need to upgrade your video card atleast every other year just to keep up with the programs.

 

[surfnron]

It's for photo editing, but I will be working with multiple 8 meg files at the same time.
Ron

 

[Budmantom]

Nice rig, the best thing is that in 2+ years if you decide that you need more power upgrading the cpu and gpu won't be a problem, you'll be able to get a 4800x2 and 7800gtx dirt cheap.


Tom

 

[Rike]

Originally posted by: johnnqq
i've heard stories that arctic silver needs to be replaced every 6 months because it eventually losses effect.

Yup, I've heard those stories too, but my experience with using AS5 on several heatsinks says it's totally bogus. Reduced performance on an air HS over time is has way more to do with dust on the HS reducing air flow than anything happening with the interface material.