Help me build my next PC

[outofthe60s]

Hi everyone,
I'm new here and am ready to begin the process of building my next computer. I have been in the computing field for over 25 years but have never ventured into hardware. I've always been a software guy. I have helped a lot of friends fix their computers over the years but have always shrugged my shoulders when it comes to hardware issues. I have just never learned much about hardware. I've always bought name brand computers and have just stayed away from anything else. Just think of everything that I've missed out on all these years.

Anyway, this past week my Dell 8400 began failing. Sometimes it would boot and sometimes not. More often not. I was kind of ticked because it's only 5 years old and I have a Dell C600 laptop that's about 10 years old that still works. My daughter now has it in her room and uses it for email, web surfing and working on a book she's writing. Hey, as long as it still works it's going to be used. Back to my 8400 though. I did some research and figure it is most likely the PSU that is failing. That's what I get for not cleaning my case out. Bad me, I have only cleaned inside the case twice in the past 5 years and the 2nd time was just this week. For all the Noobs like me, take a lesson here and clean out your case frequently. I expect that I'll start a routine of cleaning every couple of months. Experts, please let us Noobs know what you think and how often you clean your cases out. I've done some research and have found out how to test the PSU with a multimeter but the guy at the local computer store said that he'd put it on his tester for free. Even though I've decided to build my next PC, I'm still going to fix the 8400 if I can do it cheaply. I'll just set it up as a file server and/or backup device. Not sure yet. Any thought on a good use for it are welcome.

Since my 8400 failed I just thought it was time to learn more about hardware and what better way to do it than jumping in head first to selecting PC components and building my next PC. I plan on documenting the process here for Noobs to learn from and experts to offer suggestions along the way. For a Noob this can be an intimidating task but maybe reading about someone else going through the process will ease the pain. Rob Williams has done an excellent job of setting up this web site and sharing how to do just what I want to do. However, I've never been one to just follow along. I have to learn and understand what I'm selecting and why. I expect that I'll be asking a lot of questions and hope that everyone can gain something from this build experience.

So, let me bring everything up to where I am now. Before I found this site I had already decided to build my next PC. The question was: HOW? Well, lots of sites will tell you how to assemble the components, some better than others but only a few tell you how to select the components. Of the few that I found using Google, this was the best. Thanks Rob!!! During my research earlier in the week I determined that I needed to select a case and power supply unit (PSU) first. My research lead me to Antec and I had determined that the best bang for my buck would be an Antec Three Hundred case (http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product.php?id=MjQ=) and an Antec EarthWatts 650W PSU (http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product.php?id=NjY=). Why did I select these? Mainly because of high ratings from Newegg and Amazon and they were both on sale at Newegg for a great price. I wound up getting the case for $55 and the PSU for $70 with no tax or shipping. I don't have to pay tax at Newegg but since I live in Washington State I do have to pay tax at Amazon. Bummer. Before I ordered the case and PSU, I had found this site and strongly considered the Antec Sonata III that Rob recommends. I expect that the Sonata is a quieter case but it came with an Antec EarthWatts 500W PSU and for the same price I could get the Three Hundred case and an Antec EarthWatts 650W PSU. One other nice thing about the Three Hundred is that it comes with 2 fans. The only thing that I didn't like is that there is no external 3.5" drive bay. I don't plan on installing a floppy drive so it's not so bad and if I ever wanted to I could get the 5.25" to 3.5" adapter that Antec has.

I would up ordering this last night from Newegg. The sale ends March 15th but I expect that there will be many other sales in the future. Seems like Newegg is always running some pretty good sales.

Anyway, there you have it, my start at building my next PC. I look forward to hearing your feedback and getting help with my next purchases. Off I go to figure out which processor, CPU cooler and motherboard to get. Next stop, the home page of My Super PC to re-read about these items then off to further research on Amazon and Egghead. Any suggestions are highly desired.

Just as a note, here's how I plan on using my new PC:
Sound system for listing to CDs,
Watching Netfilx instant movies when the TV and PS3 aren't available,
Gaming,
Office applications,
Web surfing,
Photo storing and editing.

RobN

[RickyTick]

Great post RobN. I look forward to following along with your build. I hope I can help you along the way.

You frequently mentioned Egghead. I'm going to assume you meant Newegg. :D As far as shopping for pc components, I would sugggest you check Newegg, Amazon, TigerDirect, Zipzoomfly, and Mwave. They all offer excellent product listings, competitive pricing, and good customer service. Some people like to purchase everything from the same place to help save in shipping charges. Check them for deals and specials. I've found that overall, Newegg is better than the rest.

If the Antec 300 and 650 psu was the same price as the Sonata III, then you made an excellent choice. As far as cleaning out my case, I usually do it about every 4 to 6 months, and anytime I open it up for whatever reason.

I'll post up what components I would recommend if this were my build, and you can do some research and make changes if you want to. You didn't mention if you need a new monitor or not, and you didn't specify a budget range, so I'll just throw something together and we'll go from there.

[outofthe60s]

Great post RobN. I look forward to following along with your build. I hope I can help you along the way.

You frequently mentioned Egghead. I'm going to assume you meant Newegg. :D As far as shopping for pc components, I would sugggest you check Newegg, Amazon, TigerDirect, Zipzoomfly, and Mwave. They all offer excellent product listings, competitive pricing, and good customer service. Some people like to purchase everything from the same place to help save in shipping charges. Check them for deals and specials. I've found that overall, Newegg is better than the rest.

If the Antec 300 and 650 psu was the same price as the Sonata III, then you made an excellent choice. As far as cleaning out my case, I usually do it about every 4 to 6 months, and anytime I open it up for whatever reason.

I'll post up what components I would recommend if this were my build, and you can do some research and make changes if you want to. You didn't mention if you need a new monitor or not, and you didn't specify a budget range, so I'll just throw something together and we'll go from there.

Right you are on the Egghead Newegg name. Egghead used to be a retail store. I understand that when they closed up shop that they reopened online as Newegg so I frequently make that mistake. Thanks for catching it. I edited my first post and hopefully caught them all.

Thanks also for the tips on where else to check. I'll bookmark them all.

I look forward to your post on components. I really don't need a new monitor but may wind up getting a wide screen anyway. It will be the last thing though. I also don't really have a budget. My goal is to build a system to meet my requirements without blowing cash on unnecessary hardware. I do want to the ability to expand and upgrade but not go overboard. I am of the school that there's no need to spend money on what you don't need. For example I really like the cases with Plexiglas sides and love the bling of all the lights, but, I'd rather spend the money on something that I can actually benefit from. I really have to say though that it was difficult not going for the bling. :-)

RobN

[RickyTick]

. My goal is to build a system to meet my requirements without blowing cash on unnecessary hardware. I do want to the ability to expand and upgrade but not go overboard. I am of the school that there's no need to spend money on what you don't need.

Exactly. We are all about "bang for the buck" around here, and "future-proofing" to whatever extent is possible.



For example I really like the cases with Plexiglas sides and love the bling of all the lights, but, I'd rather spend the money on something that I can actually benefit from. I really have to say though that it was difficult not going for the bling. :-)


Tough to resist a little bling here and there. :D

[RickyTick]

Try this on for size.

Motherboard: Asus P6X58D
Ram: 6gb (3x2gb) DDR3 1600
CPU: Intel Core i7-930
Hard drive: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB
Optical drive: Samsung SH-S223L
Optional: Lite-On iHOS104-08 Blu-Ray reader
Sound Card: Asus Xonar DX
TV Tuner: Hauppauge WINTV-HVR
Video Card: Radeon HD 5770

Rough estimate of $1350

This puts you into an X58 motherboard with USB 3.0. This is a little pricey, but not too bad, but it's offers excellent future proofing and a lot of room for upgrades.

If you're not interested in Blu-ray right now you could save about $75. You could always add it later if you wanted to.

[outofthe60s]

Try this on for size.

Motherboard: Asus P6X58D
Ram: 6gb (3x2gb) DDR3 1600
CPU: Intel Core i7-930
Hard drive: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB
Optical drive: Samsung SH-S223L
Optional: Lite-On iHOS104-08 Blu-Ray reader
Sound Card: Asus Xonar DX
TV Tuner: Hauppauge WINTV-HVR
Video Card: Radeon HD 5770

Rough estimate of $1350

This puts you into an X58 motherboard with USB 3.0. This is a little pricey, but not too bad, but it's offers excellent future proofing and a lot of room for upgrades.

If you're not interested in Blu-ray right now you could save about $75. You could always add it later if you wanted to.

Looks like an excellent build. I will most certainly investigate each component that you listed. Any thoughts on which CPU cooler to use with the CPU you recommend? Good point on the Blu-ray. I think I'd add it later when needed more. We typicaly watch DVDs on the large screen. I'd probably hold off on the TV Tuner also since I'd only, on occassion, use it. I don't even watch the Netflix instant movies much on my PC but will from time to time. They're so much better on the wide screen and I can use the PS3 to play them.

I'm getting a little ahead of my build but I was thinking about using 2 hard drives and dedicating one for the swap file. Any thoughts on this from anyone?

RobN

[RickyTick]

If you leave out the TV tuner and Blu-ray reader, then use that money for the second hard drive. Excellent idea.

Using the PS3 to watch Netflix on the TV is a much better way. I use an Xbox 360 for Netflix and love it.

[outofthe60s]

Try this on for size.

Motherboard: Asus P6X58D
Ram: 6gb (3x2gb) DDR3 1600
CPU: Intel Core i7-930
Hard drive: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB
Optical drive: Samsung SH-S223L
Optional: Lite-On iHOS104-08 Blu-Ray reader
Sound Card: Asus Xonar DX
TV Tuner: Hauppauge WINTV-HVR
Video Card: Radeon HD 5770

Rough estimate of $1350

This puts you into an X58 motherboard with USB 3.0. This is a little pricey, but not too bad, but it's offers excellent future proofing and a lot of room for upgrades.


So I checked out the Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 LGA775 and the Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 LGA775 that are listed in the My Super Build recommendations and I checked out the Intel Core i7-930 that RickyTick mentioned above. Here are the current Newegg prices for them:
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 LGA775: $167.99
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 LGA775: $259.99
Intel Core i7-930 LGA1366: $294.99

As far as I can tell in my research so far is that the Core 2 chips are older technologies and the i7 is the latest Intel technology and also the priciest. I found an Intel i5 chip that I really like. It's the i5-750. This is a Quad Core chip that is very powerful but at a great price. Newegg has them for $199.99. That's only $32 more than the Core 2 Duo listed above.

There's a lot to learn about all the specs on a CPU and I am overwhelmed with everything. I'm sure it would take me weeks to really get down to the nitty-gritty to figure out the absolute best chip for the buck but hey, thats what this board is here for right, to help us Noobs understand what we are doing. :D

So there it is, I'm really turned on to this i5-750 chip for $200. Can anyone tell me if I'm going in the wrong direction here? Also, if this seems like a good chip for the buck does anyone have a recommendation on a motherboard and cooler?

Off I go to do motherboard research. :)

RobN

[outofthe60s]

I've been looking at motherboards and to be honest I'm just overwhelmed with all the specs. I'm hoping someone can help me out here. These are a couple that I've been looking at:
GIGABYTE GA-P55-USB3 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128425)LGA 1156 Intel P55 USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail - $127.87 including shipping.
GIGABYTE GA-P55A-UD3 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128412)LGA 1156 Intel P55 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail - $124.99 with free shipping.
Both are Newegg prices.

Thanks for any guidance.

RobN

[RickyTick]

Look through this.
http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/18510/4

Plus this
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Productcompare.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=2010200280%2050001314%20107172615%201071749184&bop=And&ActiveSearchResult=True&CompareItemList=N82E16813128412%2CN82E16813128425

With the UD3 on sale and with free shipping, it's a much better deal.

[outofthe60s]

Look through this.
http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/18510/4

Plus this
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Productcompare.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=2010200280%2050001314%20107172615%201071749184&bop=And&ActiveSearchResult=True&CompareItemList=N82E16813128412%2CN82E16813128425

With the UD3 on sale and with free shipping, it's a much better deal.

Wow! Thanks for the TR link. It's good to know that the CPU and motherboard have already been recommended by experts. :)

I think I'm going to go ahead and order the Intel i5-750 and Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD3 motherboard. I also think I'll go ahead and get Cooler Master's Hyper 212 Plus cooler as recommended by the TR. Seem like a great little cooler for $43.

Thanks again for all the help.

RobN

[outofthe60s]

Well, I did it. I went ahead and ordered the CPU, cooler and motherboard. Newegg also had a bundle deal on memory with the motherboard so I went ahead and got that also. Here's what I've ordered so far:

Case: Antec Three Hundred - $54.95
PSU: Antec EarthWatts EA650 650W - $69.99
Processor: Intel Core i5-750 2.66GHz 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor - $199.99
Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-P55A-UD3 LGA 1156 Intel P55 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel - $124.99
CPU Cooling Fan: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus - $32.15
Memory: CORSAIR XMS3 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 - $79.99 since I got it with the motherboard.

Total so far:$562.06

Still to go are the hard drive(s), optical drive, sound card and video card. I'm also going to look for a USB 3.0 memory stick to use with that new motherboard. I plan on keeping private data on the stick in case the computer ever gets stolen.

I already have pretty good speakers (2.1) and a wireless keyboard and mouse so won't be needing those. I also have a 19" flat panel monitor but am seriously considering something bigger in a wide screen, we'll see where I'm at when this build is complete.

[RickyTick]

Souds great. Keep us up to date.

[outofthe60s]

I've been looking at Graphics cards and I really like the card that RickyTick recommended, the Radeon HD 5770. There are quite a few out there to choose from. I definitely want PCI Express 2.0 x16, 1GB memory and 2 DVI connections and would really like to stay under the $200 range. That narrows it down to about 10 to choose from. From all the reviews that I have read the XFX seems to be a well liked brand so I'm considering the "XFX HD-577A-ZNDC Radeon HD 5770 XXX Edition 1GB 128-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150464)". This would be to go on my "GIGABYTE GA-P55A-UD3 LGA 1156 Intel P55 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128412)". The Graphics card is normally $200 through Newegg but is $25 off right now with free shipping. Sounds like a decent deal to me. If someone can confirm that this would be a good card for me I'd really appreciate it. My biggest concern and something that I still don't understand is DDR. My mother board says that is supports DDR3 memory and the graphics card says that is has DDR5. Does the motherboard support extend to the graphics card or is it primarily for system memory? Anyone? Thanks.

RobN

[outofthe60s]

I've also been checking out hard drives and again really like the Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB drive that RickyTick recommended earlier in this thread. Rob also recommends this drive in his MySuperPC site. Everyone seems to love this drive as I find that it is recommended more than others. I think I'll opt to go for the high end drive on this one since its only about $20 more. The high end gives me a 64MB cache compared to 32MB on other units. If anyone has concerns about this drive please let me know soon.

Thanks

RobN

[RickyTick]

I've been looking at Graphics cards and I really like the card that RickyTick recommended, the Radeon HD 5770. There are quite a few out there to choose from. I definitely want PCI Express 2.0 x16, 1GB memory and 2 DVI connections and would really like to stay under the $200 range. That narrows it down to about 10 to choose from. From all the reviews that I have read the XFX seems to be a well liked brand so I'm considering the "XFX HD-577A-ZNDC Radeon HD 5770 XXX Edition 1GB 128-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150464)". This would be to go on my "GIGABYTE GA-P55A-UD3 LGA 1156 Intel P55 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128412)". The Graphics card is normally $200 through Newegg but is $25 off right now with free shipping. Sounds like a decent deal to me. If someone can confirm that this would be a good card for me I'd really appreciate it. My biggest concern and something that I still don't understand is DDR. My mother board says that is supports DDR3 memory and the graphics card says that is has DDR5. Does the motherboard support extend to the graphics card or is it primarily for system memory? Anyone? Thanks.

RobN

iirc, the XFX offers a double lifetime warranty, or something like that. The DDR3 is referring to system ram, whereas the DDR5 is referring to video ram. I don't know the technical distinctions, but I know a smart monkey around here that can better explain it. :)

[RickyTick]

I've also been checking out hard drives and again really like the Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB drive that RickyTick recommended earlier in this thread. Rob also recommends this drive in his MySuperPC site. Everyone seems to love this drive as I find that it is recommended more than others. I think I'll opt to go for the high end drive on this one since its only about $20 more. The high end gives me a 64MB cache compared to 32MB on other units. If anyone has concerns about this drive please let me know soon.

Thanks

RobN

The "Black" drives are a higher performance drives and offers a 5yr warranty as opposed to 3yr for most of the others. I have a Black 640gb and it runs great and is practically silent.

[outofthe60s]

I went ahead and placed the order for the Radeon HD 5770 graphics card and the Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB hard drive . I rounded out the order with a Sony Optiarc 24X DVD/CD Rewritable Drive Black SATA Model, a Creative 7.1 Channel PCI Interface Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer sound card and Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders - OEM. I was going to go with the Asus Xonar DX sound card but it seems that Win 7 64-bit is not well supported yet.

I haven't ordered a second hard drive yet and not sure if I'm going to. I just need to make that determination in a few days. I've been eying a new 24" wide screen monitor though. My wife said that she'd be happy to get it for me for my birthday but that's still 2 months away.

I'd still like to get a USB 3.0 flash drive but will need to figure out what I need to convert the USB 2.0 on the front of my Antec Three Hundred case to USB 3.0. That will probably come later.

So here I am 4 orders later and some components already on their way. The cost was a bit higher than I expected but I probably over spent on an item or two. I do feel like I got a few good deals though. Memory was higher than I originally expected and I got a good deal on what I wound up with. I spent more on a graphics card and sound card than I was anticipating but I also got more bang than I was originally thinking I would.

I'm a little nervous about everything working together and going through the build but I expect that there's plenty of help here if I need. It was just few days ago that I started this adventure and I've learned a lot since then. The biggest thing that I've learned is that I have a lot more to learn. :D

I also want to give a special thanks to 2 key players that helped me do this. Thanks to Rob Williams for this great site and documenting his MySuperPC build and another big thanks to RickyTick for the guidance and encouragement along the way. Thanks guys.

Here's the component list with prices that I paid:

Case: Antec Three Hundred - $54.95
PSU: Antec EarthWatts EA650 650W - $69.99
Processor: Intel Core i5-750 2.66GHz 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor - $199.99
Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-P55A-UD3 LGA 1156 Intel P55 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel - $124.99
CPU Cooling Fan: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus - $32.15
Memory: CORSAIR XMS3 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 - $79.99 since I got it with the motherboard.
Video Card: Radeon HD 5770 XXX Edition 1GB 128-bit DDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support - $174.99
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" - $119.99
Optical Drive: Sony Optiarc 24X DVD/CD Rewritable Drive - $24.99
Sound Card: Creative 7.1 Channels PCI Interface Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer - $64.99

Total Hardware build (so far) $947.02

I also ordered Win 7 Home Premium OEM for $104.99

There it is. I can't wait to get building. As components arrive and I begin the build I'll keep the details posted here.

RobN

[outofthe60s]

Woo Hoo!!! My Case, PSU, CPU, Mobo, Cooler and Memory showed up today. My HD, Optical Drive, Video Card and Audio Card are scheduled to be here tomorrow. Bummer is that I ordered the Arctic Silver 5 last and it may not show up until next week. Hmmm, wonder how good the stuff is that came with my Cooler Master CPU Cooler is? Well, I can at least get the mobo posts in the case and get the CPU on the mobo. I can even get the drives installed in the case tomorrow. I'll need to wait on the cooler, memory, mobo and cards until the Arctic Silver comes though.

Anyone have any recommendations on a monitor? I'm thinking 24" but open to others. Something that has bang for the buck but no garbage. I was really hoping for the $200 range but not sure if that's reasonable.

RobN

[mcucs]

robn, ive been enjoying watching your new build. as im am getting ready to begin one of my own.

just a note as to your question on a monitor... i see you liked the fact that the radeon hd 5770 has 2 dvi ports, so ill asume you plan on using more than 1 monitor.

in my research i found that with the 5770 and eyefinity that 2 monitors will be supported by the radeon 5770 thru the 2 dvi connectors....(or for that matter any combination of the dvi's and hdmi) however if you plan on hooking a 3rd monitor then one of the 3 must be thru the displayport.

not sure if this is a concern or not...however if it is this will be a usefull link to display port monitorshttp://www.displayport.org/consumer/?q=content/devices#pcmonitors

[runningman10000]

Robn, did you install that Coolermaster HSF yet? Can you give any advice/suggestions?

Thanks

[outofthe60s]

Robn, did you install that Coolermaster HSF yet? Can you give any advice/suggestions?

Thanks

Hi runningman,

Thanks for asking. I did get my PC built and it runs great. I had absolutly no problems with it. The biggest deal on the cooler is that I could position it either vertically or horizontally on the mother board. The best bet is to position it so the fan pulls the air from the front of the case and pushes it through the fins and right on out the back of the device where the back case fan is located. My case is actually cool to the touch.

Another point, since the base of the heat sink has the copper tubes running across the aluminum base there are some gaps between the metals. You want to be sure to use enough Arctic Silver 5 to fill in these gaps otherwise hot air will get trapped there. It was a smooth install, just take your time. I would buy this cooler again.

Hope it all works well for you.

RobN

[outofthe60s]

robn, ive been enjoying watching your new build. as im am getting ready to begin one of my own.

just a note as to your question on a monitor... i see you liked the fact that the radeon hd 5770 has 2 dvi ports, so ill asume you plan on using more than 1 monitor.

in my research i found that with the 5770 and eyefinity that 2 monitors will be supported by the radeon 5770 thru the 2 dvi connectors....(or for that matter any combination of the dvi's and hdmi) however if you plan on hooking a 3rd monitor then one of the 3 must be thru the displayport.

not sure if this is a concern or not...however if it is this will be a usefull link to display port monitorshttp://www.displayport.org/consumer/?q=content/devices#pcmonitors

Good point mcucs. For me, the primary reason for wanting two DVI ports is so that I can run one monitor horizontally and another vertically. I like using a vertical monitor for Word and pdf documents while the horizontal works great for Web, spreadsheets and games.

By the way, I ordered an ASUS 24" 2MS HDMI monitor from Newegg to add to this system. It will arrive today. :D

Hope your new build works out as good for you as mine did for me.

RobN

[RickyTick]

AAAAAAHHHHHHH. Another satisfied customer. :D