$1200 Two Week Build!

[JAGX02]

So I'm looking to build a gaming/multimedia PC to replace my OLD Dell Dimension 4300 from 2001. No SLI or Crossfire or anything like that for me.

http://secure.newegg.com/Shopping/ShoppingCart.aspx?Submit=view

CPU: Intel Core i5-760

Processor: Gigabyte UD3

GPU: Palit GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) Sonic 2GB 256-bit

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws 8GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) (Model F3-12800CL7D)

PSU: CORSAIR 850TX 850W ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 80+ Certified

Cooler: ZALMAN CNPS10X Performa (132 x 100 x 152mm)

Case: COOLER MASTER HAF 932 Full Tower ([W]240 x [H]560 x [D]560 mm)

HDD: Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5"

Cable: Nippon Labs 39.4" SATA III Flat Cable with Latch Model SATA3-1M

DVD: SAMSUNG DVD Burner SATA Model SH-S223L LightScribe

Just looking for some feedback from some experienced builders as this will be my first DIY. Firstly I just want to make sure everything is compatible and are quality parts. I'm probably going to do some moderate OC to my i5-760 as well.

I'm not sure if I should get 8 gigs or stick with 4? With the combo I got, it basically costs me about ~$60 more for 8.

And I don't know if I should get a regular GTX 460 or the 2GB version? It seems like it can't hurt for an extra ~$20-30?

Also, with the Zalman, I've heard of issues fitting both into the case and into the Mobo. From the dimensions it looks like it will fit in my large case, but will it end up blocking any RAM slots? I'm not even sure how tall this memory is.

I also have no idea whether I need a latch or left/right angle SATA cable?

And finally, I'm not sure if I should get a better (UD3R, UD4, UD4P) Mobo? I won't ever do SLI but I don't know what else I would use those extra slots PCIE slots for? Keep in mind, I will be using SATA III and USB 3.0 which I think will use up something, I couldn't understand it exactly.

[JAGX02]

Anyone have any ideas?

[Deneb]

I like the processor. Great bang for the buck. The motherboard I listed below should be fine as long as you’re not doing crossfire video. I’m not that knowledgeable on gaming video cards. However the reviews and one you listed over at Newegg do not look that good. I would do a little more research on that. I listed some alternative parts below that are similar to what you posted.

The Zalman cooler I listed costs a bit more but it is made of solid copper. You shouldn’t have any problems with the blocking a RAM slot. On their website they show it taking up a cube of a certain size, but in reality it curves up like a bowl.

The power supply you listed is good but a tad expensive. Check the reviews at Newegg on the Western Digital Caviar Black hard drive. It looks like a lot of those drives are dying on people. In a full-sized case the standard SATA cables that come with the motherboard should work fine.

On lower end motherboards usually you leave the second PCI express 16 slot empty. This is because most of them are 4X and if you populate the second PCI E slot it will drop the speed of the other one down to 4X.

SATA 3 (Serial ATA version 3) (Serial Advanced Technology Attachment). This is your hard drive and DVD burner connections.

USB 3.0 (Universal Serial Bus)

http://www.pcworld.com/article/186566/usb_30_finally_arrives.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sata_3

Intel Core i5-760 Lynnfield 2.8GHz 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80605I5760 $209.00

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115067&cm_re=i5-760-_-19-115-067-_-Product

GIGABYTE GA-P55-USB3 LGA 1156 Intel P55 USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard $104.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128425

Crucial Ballistix 4GB (2 x 2GB) X2 = 8 GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) Desktop Memory Model BL2KIT25664BN1337 $200.00
7-7-7-24 1.65V Dual Channel Kit 9-9-9-25 backup settings

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148323

Antec EarthWatts EA650 650W Continuous Power ATX12V Ver.2.2 / EPS12V version 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC "compatible with Core i7/Core i5" Power Supply $79.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371015&cm_re=Antec_EarthWatts-_-17-371-015-_-Product

AeroCool BX-500 Black 0.8mm SECC Super Mid-Tower Computer Case 109.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811196037

ZALMAN FAN MATE 2 Fan Controller X 4 = $43.88

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118217&cm_re=ZALMAN_FAN_MATE_2-_-35-118-217-_-Product

ZALMAN CNPS9900A LED 120mm 2 Ball Low-noise Blue LED CPU Cooler $74.99
120 MM FAN (5.98 in tall X 5.16 X 3.70 in) 1.609 lbs
with RC33P resistor cable 800rpm ~ 1,300rpm ± 10%
without RC33P resistor cable 1,000rpm ~ 2,000rpm ± 10%
with RC33P resistor cable 18dBA ~ 28.5dBA ± 10%
without RC33P resistor cable 19.5dBA ~ 38.0dBA ± 10%
4-Pin Connector (PWM Control, Auto Restart)
730g

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118046

http://www.zalman.com/eng/product/Product_Read.asp?idx=356

Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound – OEM $9.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100007&cm_re=Arctic_silver-_-35-100-007-_-Product

SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive $89.99
called Acoustic Management (prolly lowers the speed or something) that can be turned on or off with samsungs HD tool.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

StarTech BRACKET Metal 3.5" to 5.25" Drive Adapter Bracket $8.10

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811993004&nm_mc=OTC-Froogle&cm_mmc=OTC-Froogle-_-Accessories+-+Case+/+Rackmount-_-STARTECH-_-11993004

LITE-ON Black 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 24X DVD Writer $21.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106334


CREATIVE LABS SOUND BLASTER AUDIGY SE SOUND CARD, 24 bit, 100 SNL $29.99 – 5 rebate

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102012&cm_re=soundblaster-_-29-102-012-_-Product (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102012&cm_re=soundblaster-_-29-102-012-_-Product)

[JAGX02]

Yea, I saw that card wasn't doing so well, plus the GTX 460 just got a price drop, so I stuck an MSI HAWK in there for now... but someone else told me to look at the HD 6850 too.

The cooler you listed is actually a bit cheaper than the one I did. I'll have to take a look at some performance comparisons I guess.

My PSU is a little overboard, but it's basically the only version of it I could get with the combo I was looking at. Maybe in a few weeks more combos will come out. I was also considering a silver or gold 80+ rated PSU, but idk if that's worth the extra $.

I think our mobos are similarly priced too, but I believe the UD3>USB right?

And I'll have to take another look at my HDD! I only read some reviews that said they were failing due to people trying to RAID them (they have special RAID ones I guess, but I'm not going to be doing that).

Here's my cart atm:


SAMSUNG DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-S223L LightScribe Support

$19.99

MSI N460GTX Hawk GeForce GTX 460 (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card



$15.00 Mail-in Rebate14-127-518

$214.99

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL7D-4GBRM
Item #: N82E16820231303
Return Policy: Memory Standard Return Policy

-$30.00 Instant
-$35.00 Combo


$274.98
$209.98

Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Item #: N82E16822136533
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy

*

Nippon Labs 39.4" SATA III Flat Cable with Latch Model SATA3-1M
Item #: N82E16812816116
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy

-$3.99 Combo

$91.99

ZALMAN CNPS10X Performa 120mm Long life CPU Cooler
Item #: N82E16835118059
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy

*

Nippon Labs Delux 3.5" Internal All In One Card Reader/Writer with USB2.0 & eSATA Ports Model ICR-BB
Item #: N82E16820816001

-$20.00 Instant
-$15.00 Combo


$84.98
$49.98

CORSAIR CMPSU-850TX 850W ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Active PFC Power Supply
Item #: N82E16817139009
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy

*

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL7D-4GBRM
Item #: N82E16820231303
Return Policy: Memory Standard Return Policy

-$30.00 Instant
-$40.00 Combo
$20.00 Mail-in Rebate Card17-139-009

$254.98
$184.98

Intel Core i5-760 Lynnfield 2.8GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80605I5760
Item #: N82E16819115067
Return Policy: CPU Replacement Only Return Policy


*

GIGABYTE GA-P55A-UD3 LGA 1156 Intel P55 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
Item #: N82E16813128412
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy

-$10.00 Instant
-$20.99 Combo
$10.00 Mail-in Rebate Card13-128-412

$348.98
$317.99

Subtotal: $1,1089.00