computernewbie

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http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202Hi ya'll, im pretty new to buildin a comp, need some hints and tips if you got any for me, thanks


APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE:
Month from now

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: gaming, gaming, gaming, surrrrfing the internet? gaming.... gaming, what else is to say?

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Any suggestions would be appreciative!!! im not sure if a keyboard, mouse need diff ports or do they come with every computer, moniters come compatible with all computers too or do they differ in ports?

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: newegg.com, tigerdirect.com

PARTS PREFERENCES: most likely will use a intel i7 920 with a X58 MB, any suggestions are appreciated

MONITOR RESOLUTION: the bigger the better? <-- hehe not sure on this part, any pictures or differences between the resolutions

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: im new to building a computer but i'd want to fit it with water cooling, as its quiter and more efficient


Some parts i thought of using

Intel i7 920

ASUS P6T V2

Antec 1200

Any suggestions would be appreciated, i was reading around the articles and i found this
http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/radeon-4770-crossfire,review-31570-13.html

As it suggests, the Radeon 7700 is better than the GTX 280, should i go for the graphics cards? i was plannin on GTX 260 but this seems much better and cheaper, can the MB support crossfire? or is it just better to stick to the GTX 260 or get something better like the GTX 280, things ill be looking for is like any bugs, errors these cards might have, also does Windows and Vista make any difference in graphics? i do belive windows 64 exists?

Yes, well any help would be appreciated and you can mention any items which u think might better suit my needs, thanks

 
So, you have US$ 1500 and want an i7 build for gaming, including every thing (monitor, mouse, keyboard, OK, speakers).

P6T Deluxe v2 $280 (at Newegg)
i7 920 $280
cooler - use the stock cooler. You are not ready to overclock.
RAM: $80 Corsair 6GB DDR3 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145220
Antec 1200 $180
WD 1TB Caviar Black $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284&Tpk=WD1001FALS
Vista Home Premium 64-bit OEM SP1 $100

So far: $1020. You still need PSU,graphics card, monitor, mouse, keyboard , speakers.
You can do all that in $480 but it will involve a crappy graphic card and the net result will be a $1500 piece of garbage useless for gaming.

Let's rethink the whole thing, without the i7 platform and without the Antec 1200, OK?




 
Let's try again.

$219 X3 720 + GA-MA790X-UD4P
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.190734

(or E8400+GA-EP45-UD3P for $167+$115)

4GB DDR2-800 G.Skill $60
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231209

Antec 300 $55
WD 1TB $100
Vista Home Premium 64-bit OEM SP1 $100

So far $534. You still have $966 for monitor, PSU, graphics, mouse, keyboard, speakers. Let's say $166 for mouse/keyboard/speakers together.

You need a monitor, PSU, video card for $800 total.

Acer H243Hbmid 24" 2ms(GTG) HDMI Widescreen LCD Monitor $230
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009167
Corsair 750TX $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006&Tpk=750tx

$470 left for graphics.

You have two very good options iMO:
BFG 285 $335 (and you can upgrade the case to Antec 1200 with the rest)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130446

Or two HD 4890 cards for $230 each:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150359


The GTX 285 is better than the HD 4890, but not by much. Two HD 4890 working together will be WAY better than a single GTX 285. However, you can't have the Antec 1200 and those two cards, it's just too much for the budget. Maybe if you use Windows 7 RC (free download) instead of Vista...
 

computernewbie

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ok, well then un include the moniter, mouse, etc, just get to the important stuff that make the computer run, the price can be 1500+, i dont really wanna run vista because of all its problems, ive had it before and the shitty thing takes 10 minutes to start up, i got so frustraited that i actually kicked the computer, but dont worry, i returned it :p was long time ago...just forget about the price because that seems to get in the way usually... i really do wanna stick to the i7 and the P6T V2, i also need a power supply
 

computernewbie

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and as i mentioned up there, there was an article that said the Radeon HD 7700 doubled can out perform a single Radeon 4890, and the GTX 280, question is, is if i can run crossfire with the P6T V2, and if theres any difference between the radeon and gtx, such as some may have some issues and such.
 
When you say Radeon 7700, do you mean HD 4770?

Yes you can run Crossfire with the P6T V2.

Two HD 4770 cards can beat a GTX 280 or a HD 4890, yes. Good bang for the buck there.

I wouldn't bother with a sound card yet. Try the integrated audio first. Most people are happy with it and never bother buying a sound card. You can easily add it later.
If you do buy one, check out HT Omega and Auzentech. They have better drivers than Creative X-Fi AFAIK.
 

computernewbie

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oh yes sorry, 4770 :p, is there any water cooling that is recommended? i really want something that can really cool down my pc, i live in NY and its going into summer, so naturally im gonna get higher temps, i was hoping i could still prevent that with a bit of water cooling
 
This i7 build includes two factory over clocked gtx 260's.

You want to make sure you flash to the latest bios with that board, and then afterwards download the latest drivers for it.

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/gigabyte-nvidia-sli-motherboard,7463.html <--- Gigabyte: Enable SLI On X58 Boards

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137 $74.99
COOLER MASTER RC-690-KKN1-GP Black SECC/ ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006 $119.99 ($99.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Retail

http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=MB-EX58U3R $185.99 | $170.99 after rebate Free Ground Shipping
GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD3R Core i7/ Intel X58/ DDR3/ CrossFireX/ A&GbE/ ATX Motherboard

http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=I7-920 $265.99 Free Ground Shipping
Intel Core i7 Processor i7-920 2.66GHz 8MB LGA1366 CPU, OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185093 $36.99 Free Shipping*
Scythe MUGEN-2 SCMG-2000 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835154003 $4.99
Tuniq TX-2 Cooling Thermal Compound - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127430 $174.99 ($154.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
MSI N260GTX-T2D896-OCv4 GeForce GTX 260 896MB 448-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127430 $174.99 ($154.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
MSI N260GTX-T2D896-OCv4 GeForce GTX 260 896MB 448-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227381 $94.99 ($74.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
OCZ Platinum 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail
Free OCZ 8GB flash drive w/ purchase, while supplies last

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827118030 $25.99 Free Shipping*
Sony Optiarc Black 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD/CD Rewritable Drive - OEM | New 24X burner from Sony Optiarc

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.186064 Combo Discount: -$20.00 Combo Price: $154.98
Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Hard Drive - OEM
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit for System Builders - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236050 $149.99 ($129.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
ASUS VW224U Black 22" 2ms(GTG) Widescreen LCD Monitor w/ HDCP Support 300 cd/m2 1000:1 (ASCR 5000:1) Built in Speakers - Retail

Total: $1,464.87 | $1,349.87 w/mail in rebates
 
i7 build (gtx 275 or gtx 285 or gtx 295) = Red LED Theme...psu, case fans :sol:

You want to make sure you flash to the latest bios with that board, and then afterwards download the latest drivers for it

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/gigabyte-nvidia-sli-motherboard,7463.html <--- Gigabyte: Enable SLI On X58 Boards

http://www.coolermaster-usa.com/product.php?category_id=1665&product_id=2912 <--- more pics and specs of the case used in this build

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119196 $109.99
COOLER MASTER Storm Scout SGC-2000-KKN1-GP Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811998123 $6.99
APEVIA CF12SL-URED 120mm Red LED Case Fan - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341022 $74.99 ($49.99 after $25.00 Mail-In Rebate)
OCZ Fatal1ty OCZ550FTY 550W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Modular Active PFC Power Supply - Retail

http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=MB-EX58U3R $185.99 | $170.99 after rebate Free Ground Shipping
GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD3R Core i7/ Intel X58/ DDR3/ CrossFireX/ A&GbE/ ATX Motherboard

http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=I7-920 $265.99 Free Ground Shipping
Intel Core i7 Processor i7-920 2.66GHz 8MB LGA1366 CPU, OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233029 $39.99 Free Shipping*
XIGMATEK Dark Knight-S1283V 120mm Long Life Bearing CPU Cooler - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835154003 $4.99
Tuniq TX-2 Cooling Thermal Compound - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130475 $249.99 ($229.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
EVGA 896-P3-1170-AR GeForce GTX 275 896MB 448-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231247 $94.99 Free Shipping*
G.SKILL 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136152 $24.99 Free Shipping*
LG Black 22X (CAV) DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X (CAV) DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 22X DVD±R DVD Burner - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.186064 $20.00 Combo Price: $154.98
Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Hard Drive - OEM
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit for System Builders - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236050 $149.99 ($129.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
ASUS VW224U Black 22" 2ms(GTG) Widescreen LCD Monitor w/ HDCP Support 300 cd/m2 1000:1 (ASCR 5000:1) Built in Speakers - Retail

Total: $1,363.87 | $1,283.87w/mail in rebates

*Same build as above, but with a gtx 285 video card.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130480 $329.99 ($309.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
EVGA 01G-P3-1180-AR GeForce GTX 285 1GB 512-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

Total: $1,443.87 | $1,363.87 w/mail in rebates

*Same build as above, but with a gtx 295 video card and OCZ Fatal1ty 700w psu.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130473 $589.99 Free Shipping*
EVGA 017-P3-1294-AR GeForce GTX 295 1792MB 896 Bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341023 $124.99 ($99.99 after $25.00 Mail-In Rebate)
OCZ Fatal1ty OCZ700FTY 700W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply - Retail

Total: $1,753.87 | $1,693.87 w/mail in rebates
 

computernewbie

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is the Coolermaster more worth it than the antec 1200? sorry i am kinda new.... what is the 120mm fan for? i was hoping to put in water cooling, does that mean i should still put in some air cooling?

 

daidalas

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skip out on the watercooling. that case (cm storm scout) is made for air cooling and it does it very well. also quite portable. good buy.
 

computernewbie

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hmm, i do find the antec 1200 much sexier...can i always change the blue led lights to green? if thats even possible, do the cases come with built in LED lights?
 


I added that red LED case fan to give that case some more cooling not to mention it goes with the red LED case fans that case comes with...and the red LED psu.

As far as the Antec 1200...it's a great case. I wouldn't mess with water cooling. Prime fps with the i7 920 is achieved at 3.4Ghz. You can easily go to 4.0GHz on air, but for what little gain is made it wouldn't be worth it. Stick with 3.4GHz and your good to go.
 


Vista 64 SP1 is where it's at these days. It's a entirely new Vista...not to mention it beats the crap out of XP SP3 for gaming these days....DX10 and more fps with the newer games. Google it. Even the updates these days favor Vista over XP. You would be crazy not to use Vista 64 SP1 if you plan on gaming. Later on move over to Windows 7...but for gaming these days XP is deadsville.
 

Helloworld_98

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^DX11 in SP2 aswell.

also vista SP2 might come upto speed with XP SP3 in general apps so I wouldn't count vista out and XP64 has driver issues whereas it is a lot rarer with vista64.
 

philipV

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This is an i7 build with a factory overclocked 4890 (the fastest single graphics card ((You only need 2 if you get a 30" monitor))). Also will you be overclocking? If you won't be then you don't need a cpu cooler and compound.

CPU - Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202
$280

RAM - OCZ Platinum 6GB DDR3 1600 (Is 6GB too much or too little?)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227381&
$90 ($20 MIR)

MB - Asus P6T SE
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131386
$210

GPUs -

Sapphire Radeon HD 4890 1GB OC Edition
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102831
$260 ($20 MIR) <<-- Prices are dropping

Case - Antec 1200
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129043&Tpk=Antec%201200
$180

CPU Cooler (You only need this if you are going to overclock) - ZALMAN CNPS9900LED 120mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118046
$75

PSU - CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006&Tpk=Corsair%20750W
$120 ($20 MIR)

DVD - LG Black 22X
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136152
$25

Compound - ARCTIC COOLING MX-2 Thermal Compound
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835186020
$8

HD - Samsung Spinpoint F1 HD102UJ 1TB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152101
$80

Total - 1268 ($60 MIR)

Ways to save money:
Get an Antec 900 or 300. (With a 300 it will cost $130 less while a 900 is $80 less.)

Do you need an OS? If so then Vista Home Premium 64-Bit OEM for System Builders is $100.

 

computernewbie

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Eh, i am new-ish...so i guess ill go with air for now, if anything i can most likely switch to water if its a big deal, any articles on the i7's idle/load temps ?
 

Helloworld_98

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what it says on the box, it's made of pure copper not an alloy or whatever.

but to be honest for a bit more either get a coolermaster v8 or drop down to an akasa nero or xigmatek dark knight.
 

computernewbie

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oh yes i read a post about the ZALMAN, pure copper allows for more heat conversion, the bad part, ofcourse its heavier than alluminum, so i dont want it to pop off my CPU or anything....
 


If you go up top to these forums there's a temp guide under the over clocking forum for cpu's. Also that Xigmatek HS paired with decent thermal compound like Arctic Cooling MX-2, Arctic Silver 5, Tuniq or OCZ Freeze will work just fine for good clocks along with a case that has decent cooling. That Antec 1200 your looking at is a good one, and about the best of them all for cooling/airflow is the Cooler Master haf for $150 @ newegg.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/overclock-core-i7,2268.html <---check this article out.