My first build...lookover please??

[M_U_M_P]

Case (http://www.ebay.com/itm/290525089205?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649)-Antec Sonata IV

Processor (http://www.ebay.com/itm/AMD-Phenom-II-X4-Processor-965-CPU-3-4GHz-AM3-125W-BOX-/220589220159?_trksid=p4340.m263&_trkparms=algo%3DSIC%26its%3DI%26itu%3DUCI%252BUA% 252BP%252BFICS%252BUFI%252BIIUM%26otn%3D5%26pmod%3 D150575719368%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D2885456502620613 832)-AMD Phenom II X4 965

Motherboard (http://www.ebay.com/itm/220814537603?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649)-Gigabyte GA990 FXA-UD3

Hard Drive (http://www.ebay.com/itm/130574274776?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649)-Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB SATA3 6Gb/s HDD

Disk Drive (http://www.ebay.com/itm/280733333878?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649)-LITE-ON, Part #: IHAP322-98
PLDS Lite-On iHAP322 22x DVD±RW Drive - (Double-layer) - DVD-RAM/±R/±RW - 22x 8x 16x (DVD) - 48x 32x 48x (CD) - EIDE/ATAPI

Memory??--I need recommendations..im looking for a fair performing, and fair priced memory..

Video Card--I need an up to date suggestion...Im not to sure, but I was thinking that the GEForce GTX460 from EVGA would be a good choice?

Keyboard/Mouse/Monitor--not picky at all right now.




Is there anything that I may have overlooked?..
Also, are all my choices compatible?..



Keep in mind this is my very first build and I am fairly new to the scene...and I just picked these parts at random through my readings...seemed to be fairly good parts, but someone with more knowledge may steer me in the right direction..

If there is anywhere that I could change something for the better, such as price to performance ratio...please let me know...I am just worried about bottle-necking because I don't have much knowledge of the compatibility other than the socket types...



Thank you so much, any and all information will be very much appreciated!
Any hints or suggestions to my build will be very helpful!

[RickyTick]

Can't go wrong with this ram kit. 8gb for $52 is hard to believe.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231314

The GTX460 is great, but I'd prefer stepping up to the GTX560 Ti if possible.

Everything looks great.

[M_U_M_P]

Thanks for the tip I will propably end up going with the 560. What do you know of the motherboard? I read that gigabyte was a good choice, but is this model sufficient? I just chose it because of the available ports and what have you..any other suggestions, or is this one okay?

[RickyTick]

The board is fine. Gigabyte makes great stuff.
BTW, it's only $150 at Newegg, and it has free shipping. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128514

[M_U_M_P]

Alright man, I really appreciate it. Thanks for the better price:)

I haven't done any price scouting yet, I just used eBay to make my rough list up, I am not familiar with Newegg much yet, so eBay was just easier to compile my list, but now I will be looking all around the web for better prices.

Thanks again, I will be ordering my parts this coming weekend, and I'm sure I will be back for help lol:))

[RickyTick]

Check out
www.newegg.com
www.tigerdirect.com
www.amazon.com
http://us.ncix.com/

[M_U_M_P]

I found this card while looking for prices, it's a zotac geforce 570....would that be a good choice as well??

Video card on sale... (http://http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500200)

[RickyTick]

I found this card while looking for prices, it's a zotac geforce 570....would that be a good choice as well??

Video card on sale... (http://http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500200)

You're link is broken.
I assume it was this.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500200
That would be a great card. It shows out of stock though.

This one is really close in price, plus it comes with a great game.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814162070

Crap...it's now out of stock too.

[M_U_M_P]

Price isn't that big of a hindrance..I just want something decent and I am a first timer and don't know what to look for exactly..any tips?

[RickyTick]

Then it really depends on what type of gamer you are. If you really want to play the latest shooter games like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, or Battlefield 3, or Crysis 2, then you should invest in the GTX570. If you're a casual gamer that's not overly concerned with playing these games at max settings, then get the GTX560 Ti.

I like these:
GTX560 Ti
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130604
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127578

GTX570
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130595
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127582

[M_U_M_P]

I am not too concerned with these games in particular, but I do want it to handle whatever I may throw at it..I just don't want to be disappointed..

I'm also thinking about the i7..any particular model I should check out?
I seen one on newegg for 315$, and I think it was the 2600k sandy bridge..better choice than the original phenom I picked?

Also, will the new choices be okay with the mobo I picked??

[RickyTick]

The i7-2600k is much faster than the X4 965. But if you go that route, it requires a different motherboard.

[M_U_M_P]

Can I use a PCI Express-2.1x16 video card in my giga-byte mobo? It says its 2.0x16...

The video card im thinking about now is this one-

HIS IceQ Turbo--Radeon 6950 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161372)


Would that be a good choice?




Everytime I think I have found the right card to order, Newegg runs out of stock...
I was going with the Sapphire 6950 before now...it ran out..


I suppose my main question is, does the 2.1 mean that its not directly compatible...I read that if they arent directly compatible they will still work, just on the 1.0 PCI...


I want it to work effectively...are there any specifics as far as compatibility that i need to look out for with my Gigabyte mobo?

[RickyTick]

Looks like Newegg has that video card back in stock now. It will work fine on that motherboard. That particular card is the 2gb variant of the 6950. You really only need the 1gb version. You could save a few dollars on that.

[M_U_M_P]

ok guys i ordered all my parts last week.

they arrived early last week, all except my case, which didnt arrive til just yesterday. so i spent many hours last night after work putting everything together.

i have everything working up until the part where i need a CD drive...


Somehow i managed to order an IDE style drive instead of a SATA=/ Either way, my new SATA drive is on its way.



I have one question though...when i boot my computer, and it is loading up, there are no beeps at all...i can get to the BIOS screen and everything, but it refuses to beep...
any ideas?



thanks again guys.
I will post my exact build when i have a few more minutes=]

[RickyTick]

Sorry, I should have caught that. You're first post listed the optical drive and it clearly says IDE. My fault.

I wouldn't worry too much about beeps. Get the optical drive and get Windows loaded.

[M_U_M_P]

My setup is as follows, might I add that it is working flawlessly:)

My windows experience Index scores are all above 7, aside from my hard drive score which is a 5.9. I will post exact scores when I get home.

Motherboard-Gigabyte 990XA (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128510)

Processor-Phenom II (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808)

Graphics Card-Sapphire 6950 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102949)

Memory-Ripjaw (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231314)

Hard drive- WD 1TB (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284)

Optical Drive-Liteon 24x SATA (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106334)

Operating System-windows 7 64bit (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986)

Keyboard/Mouse-Logitech Combo (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823126195)




That's it:) everything came up to a little over 1000$, for a nice system:)

I haven't got to test it out alot yet, but I know it plays WoW at 62 fps on ultra/maxxed settings.

[RickyTick]

Awesome!! :)

[M_U_M_P]

I forgot my case!

I have the antec sonata IV with the 620W power supply.

I am using a samsung flatscreen HD tv for my monitor and I love it!

Looks beautiful in 1024x768:)


Here is a pic of the first boot with windows 7 in.



http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/cc264/M_U_M_P/1318371075.png