A few questions on a potential build...

[1969iggy]

OK, i will try to use the right format, but first a few questions.

Should i get Window 7 32 or 64 bit? I assume the answer depends on the technology chosen, but so far as i can tell the Processor can handle 64 bit, but i didn't see a stat for the mobo.

Also, this system is intended for Video editing (from a digital HD camcorder) to make DVDs for Grandma and the like, so a lot of intense crunching is likely.

I also would like to network it with my X-box 360, and use it as a media serve (right term?).

My budget is in the $1000 range, but that can increase with time. Especially if i build it so that components are added rather than upgraded (like a 2nd video card, or 2nd hard drive, rather than a new mobo....)

So, is it worth buying a LGA 775, or will that quicky put me behind in terms of power and speed?

Here is what i had in mind. (including some questions or comments on why...)

Case:COOLER MASTER RC-690-KKN1-GP Black SECC/ ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail -> I picked this because it seems to be big on the inside, have lots of fans, a good newegg rating, and I wanted a bigger power supply.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.273732


PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power ... - Retail -> I picked this bigger power supply because I don't want to be power hungry down the road, and this seems to meet the minimum for anything i could imagine in the near future. The graphics card asks for min 550W, and the Sonota 3 comes with a 500.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130434


Motherboard:GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail -> This is the recommendation currently for LGA 775 on this mesg board. Seemed like a great choice.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128358


CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80570E8400 - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115037


RAM: G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-8500CL5D-2GBPK - Retail -> I have 2 of these, for a total of 4 sticks of 1GB each. I have read that 4 x 1GB is better than 2x2GB and that you can only use 2.75GB to 3.5Gb of memory anyway. Is that still true in Windows 7? If I can use more, i'd get more, or get 2x2GB so i can easily expand later.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231144


Graphics card: EVGA 896-P3-1255-AR GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail -> This seems to be a behemouth, but do i need it for what i want? Can i add another one down the road if i want a 2nd monitor (or to use the Samsung HDTV for a monitor)>

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130434


Sound card: None, on-board is good enough.

Hard Drive(s):Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive -> I may wanta second one later down the road. Do all hard drives have to be the same size and speed?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.273732


Optical Drive(s): TBD, either a Blu-Ray reader, DVD writer or just a DVD Writer. Not sure, but the DVD writers are cheap, and Blu Rays, not so much. If i can use the BluRay to watch movies on my Samsung, i'd get one for sure...


Monitor: TBD, i have a 46 inch Samsung LN46A630 that i'd like to use at least some of the time, and an old 19 inch crt that i can still stand.

Speakers: I have crappy speakers hooked up, good enough for me.

Operating System: Windows 7 (32 or 64 bit?)

The stuff listed is about $1000 including shipping when it's in my cart. that includes the $149 for Windows 7 minus the $10 rebate.

All other rebates are gravy if they work (there are two $10 and on $20 rebates, with one of the $10 rebates maybe being usurped by the $30 rebate on the graphics card if i act quickly...)

The biggest question is, which OS do i buy? 32 or 64 bit?


Wow, a lot of info... thanks for any responses. I look forward to buying and building, it will be my first!

[Barrister73]

The biggest question is, which OS do i buy? 32 or 64 bit?




General consensus is to go with 64. You are only able to utilize about 3 Gig of Ram with 32 bit. That's probably enough for today's programs, but you aren't building this to be "good enough for today".

MRR

[The Wise Monkey]

For video editing, I would recommend going for an i7 quad core - this should help a lot with rendering times.

[RickyTick]

I would make the following substitutions
CPU i7-860 $290
Mobo P55 $170
Ram 4gb (2x2gb) of DDR3-1600 $86
GPU HD5770 $160

Everything looks fine, and Windows 7 64-bit would be great.

If you want Blu-ray, get a PS3. It has a great blu-ray player, and of course you can game on it too. :D

You don't need a second gpu in order to run 2 monitors, plus that 5770 has an hdmi connector for your TV.

All versions of Win 7 come with Media Center, so it will work as an Extender for your Xbox360. It works very well by the way, and you can stream Netflix on it too. Very cool. :D

Hope that helps.

[1969iggy]

Can i use this setup to run it as a DVR and record TV if i plug cable into it? I assume i'd need some kind of TV tuner/card.

Also, a 2nd HD to do this well?

Thanks for all the help!

Scot

[1969iggy]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202

Intel Core i7-920 Bloomfield 2.66GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor - Retail

$1 less and a new chip (and good newegg reviews)?

Also which Mobo? I found several with $169.99 and the support for the i7-860. If i upgrade to the i7-920 (if it actually is an upgrade) which Mobo? None have a 5 star rating, not that it means much what the rating is, so long as it works!

[1969iggy]

There are no Intel Mobos with 5 stars and more than 15 reviews... so i guess a 4 star review is pretty darn good. Just goes to show you can make some of the people happy all the time, and some people happy all the time. But rarely can you make all the people happy at once.

[1969iggy]

Can you use different size and manufacturer of Hard drives, or only get the same size and model?

[1969iggy]

Here it is in the new format...

The cost went from $1000 inc. Shiping to $1150. I added a Blu-ray reader and upgrades the CPU, Mobo and GPU. Well worth it IMO based on what i've read.


Case:COOLER MASTER RC-690-KKN1-GP Black SECC/ ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power ... - Retail

Motherboard:GIGABYTE GA-P55-UD4P LGA 1156 Intel P55 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail <- This seems like the "standard" for this setup, it it isn't let me know.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.276272


CPU: Intel Core i7-860 Lynnfield 2.8GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80605I7860 - Retail <- ONly one model, so i know this is what you meant.

RAM: G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBNQ - Retail


Graphics card: SAPPHIRE 100283L Radeon HD 5770 (Juniper XT) 1GB 128-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail <- I picked this one as (a) it seemed like it fit the bill and (b) came with a $20 discount on Windows 7. If one of the other 5770's is better, let me know.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.275655.14-102-858


Sound card: None, on-board is good enough.

Hard Drive(s):Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

Optical Drive(s): LG Black Blu-ray Reader & 16x DVD Burner - Bulk SATA Model UH08LS10K LightScribe Support - OEM -> I can't imagine a computer that i can't use to play Blu-Rays on my TV... if i do get this hooked up to my TV. I may change my mind and grab a cheap $30 DVD reader/writer. But for all the money I'm spending, it seems like $70 to add Blu Ray to it seems pretty good.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136174

Monitor: TBD, i have a 46 inch Samsung LN46A630 that i'd like to use at least some of the time, and an old 19 inch crt that i can still stand.

Speakers: I have crappy speakers hooked up, good enough for me.

Operating System: Windows 7 64 bit

[RickyTick]

Looks great!!

[1969iggy]

It's up and running... (I"M POSTING FROM IT NOW!)

I have had it crash a few times... i get a video driver error, sometimes it tells me it recovered and sometimes not... i've come back to find it powered down 5 or 6 times now. One time the screen went funky, Very strange verticle lines and then i had to hard power it down...

What is the best way to make sure the drivers are up to date, and then trouble shhot?

THanks for any help you can provide...

[1969iggy]

I changed from PCI to PEG (PCI Exp) in the bios for primary video, but i didn't think this mobo had video on it, so not sure if that will change anything. I'll leave it on when i go to work and see...

BTW, when i find it powered off, it comes back up very quick... but the power light is off and no fans, so i know it's actually been off...

Sometimes no error, a few times the "your computer shut down abnormally..." or whatever that message is.

[The Wise Monkey]

Are you sure that it isn't just hibernating or going into standby? Try turning these features off in the power settings.

You can also try re-installing the video drivers if you are having some display problems.

[1969iggy]

I don't know what "hybernate" means in computer terms, but my computer isn't inactive if i'm downloading things or copying large folders into a back-up...

Maybe that's what it was.... we will see soon!

Thanks!

[1969iggy]

Thanks guys! That seems to have been it. It turned off again when it re-booted for some windows updates, but that is to be expected... Funny how it's always the little things, like forgeting to turn the power supply back on after you move the computer from where you built it to where it will "live" from then on. that took me 15 minutes to figure out and took 30 minutes off my life when it wouldn't power on.