Help With Build

[Oatmealman15]

Hey all I need help with my build. I have about $1400-$1500 to spend for a good gaming computer, and that includes the monitor and hopefully OS as well because I dont have anything right now. Thanks

- Matt

[Jamie Nixx]

Gigabyte P35C, $149.99
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400, $239.99
EVGA 8800GT $229.99
Corsair XMS2 MEMORY 2GB $33.00
Corsair HX520w PSU $114.99
Antec 900 case $94.99

Prices are from newegg.

I am sure you can find a HDD, Monitor and Optical drive to fit your needs ;)

[iiiprimeiii]

i built same build that jamie just gave u but with a beefier video card. great computer, very fast.:eek: :D

[Oatmealman15]

Would you recommend a 400gb hard drive or go higher since the prices are not much higher? And sorry I am somewhat new to this, is an optical drive required?

[shyster]

You at least need an optical drive to put the OS onto the computer, I guess you could take it out after that but that would be a pain.

[Oatmealman15]

Ok heres what I added to that list

HD
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16822136076
Monitor
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16824009094
OS
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16837116194

How does this stuff look? I still need to get a mouse/keyboard and basic speakers. Other than that is there anything else that I need? .. like modem\router or anything else?

[Oatmealman15]

What type of optical drive should I get Shyster? or anyone else? :)

[RickyTick]

Oatmealman. By Optical drive, he means a DVD player. You'll need that for loading software on your pc and such. You can get a really good DVD player/recorder for around $35.

Hard drives are not very expensive these days either. If you like to load a lot of pictures and videos on your pc, then get the largest HD you can afford. They fill up fast.

[RickyTick]

Oh, I forgot.

A really great DVD R/W is the Samsung SH-S203B.

[Jamie Nixx]

Optical drive = CD Rom/DVD/DVD RW etc.

No need to buy basic speakers, you can get some really good ones that are not expensive such as the Logitech x-530 5.1 surround sound speakers, they are awesome for gaming and music and the Woofer is just :eek:

Monitor is very good btw.

[Oatmealman15]

Ok cool thanks a lot! I think the only other thing i need is a keyboard and mouse, unless i need the modem and router and such? With the stuff being OEM does that mean I need to buy extra cables? Oh and I saw that the Antec 900 seems to suck in a lot of dust\pet hair is it worth getting filters? :)

[Oatmealman15]

Alrighty well I think ive got everything, I post again to make sure no one has any other ideas.

Case
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16811129021
Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16813128048
Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16814130319
PS
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16817139001
Processor
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16819115037
Memory
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16820145175
HD
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16822136076
Monitor
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16824009094
Optical Drive
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16827151153
Speakers
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16836121126
OS
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16837116194

Minus the keyboard\mouse that puts the total around $1375 after rebates... so not bad I think.. lol let me know if theres something to be changed or better :D Thanks

[Jamie Nixx]

Nothing wrong with that at all mate, that will be a nice build.

The only thing maybe that can be added which will give you a bit of extra power is the 512MB GTS, but tbh, its not that much better than the GT.

Everything else is fine, the monitor is nice etc

[RickyTick]

That's a great build.

Did you mean to choose the Superclocked version of the 8800GT? Just curious.

[Oatmealman15]

Ha no I didnt thanks for pointing that out so I can change that and save a bit of money :D Thanks a lot for the help guys. One last question.. do I need to get a modem and\or router for my computer?:confused:

[Oatmealman15]

Ok about ordering parts.. There are a couple of mail in rebates that are running out... pretty much end today and I would like to take advantage of that, but I wouldnt order everything today. Is it bad to order stuff at different times and just keep it sealed and sitting for a bit?

[shyster]

It is not bad, but it could be troublesome if you had to return something later. It would mean having to go through the maker (intel, evga, asus, etc.)instead of the retailer (newegg). Neweggs customer service is outstanding, but as for makers customer service they seem to be all over the map. If you were going to order some parts now the things that are most likely to have problems and possibly need to be RMA'd would be the motherboard, hard drive, and possibly the ram. The motherboard and hard drive being the two big ones.

Also depending on what deals they seem to be recurring, for example corsair has been running their $30 MIR on their RAM for at least two months now, I only know as far back as two months since that is about when I started looking into building. So basically my point is, deals are almost always happening if you just keep your eyes open, so even if you miss one, another will probably be along shortly. That being said, if you see a really good deal, you might want to jump on it since it may not come back, especially a clearance or something simlar.

As for needing a modem you will need to order one, if you are using dial up or dsl I believe. Motherboards do not come with phone jack slots. However if you are using or planning to use cable you do not need anything extra as motherboards generally come with a LAN cable that you can stick your cable internet line into.

A router is something you make a judgement call on. Do you need to link up multiple computers under one cable or dsl connection? Do you just need a few computers hooked up for a network, even if they are not sharing an internet? Those would be the main questions I can think of right now that would help you decide if you need a router.

[RickyTick]

Like Shyster was saying, it kinda depends on the return policy of where you're buying this from. You don't want to sit on the parts too long and not have the option of returning them if there is a problem.

If you're on dial-up, then you'll need a modem. They're pretty cheap.

If you're using cable or dsl, then they will provide a modem that you can hook to.

If you're going wireless, then you'll need a router such as a Linksys WRT54G. If you're using this pc for gaming, then the wireless is probably not your best choice. It tends to have some lag issues at times and disconnects on occasion.

Hope that helps.

[shyster]

Ricky,

Does DSL not use a phone jack to connect anymore? I thought that was the whole reason it was slower and crappier.

[RickyTick]

Yeah, it does go through a phone jack, but it still has to go through an external modem, that should be provided by the DSL Service Provider.

[Oatmealman15]

Alright thanks a lot, and ya that makes sense about the whole rma situation. And I think it would be wise to order almost everything together to make sure everything is in working order.. So basically all it is now is when to pull the trigger and getting myself to do it haha :p

[chunkylover53]

Sorry to jump in late if you have already discussed, but is that an upgrade version of XP you have on your spec list? I assume you want XP home OEM full version below.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116056

I thought you said in your first post that you didn't have anything already, so upgrade version won't work, but again I might have missed another discussion.

[Oatmealman15]

Ok cool thanks. I have a question about OEM parts, Im going to order an OEM hard drive, and speakers. Are there other parts\cables that I will need to purchase for those things?

[Oatmealman15]

Ok I know this is probably a stupid question but are these the exact same thing?

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3636566&Sku=CP2-DUO-E8400&SRCCODE=GOOGLEBASE&CMP=OTC-GOOGLEBASE

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16819115037

[The Wise Monkey]

Yes, they are. :)

[chunkylover53]

Are there other parts\cables that I will need to purchase for those things?

That's hard to say for sure, but I'm gonna go with no. I looked at the specifications of your mobo on newegg, and it looks like it has 4 SATA cables, so you should be good to go on the drives (both HD & optical). Gonna go out on a limb and say the speakers will come with at least the basic wires that you will need, even if they are OEM.