Advice/Comments on the new gaming PC build...

[newbiegaMER]

Hi All,.

I am a newbie both to the world of gaming and computer building. I have played the call of duty series at a friend's place and

got totally into it. Now I want to build my own gaming machine with a budget of ~1000 - 1200 USD without the monitor and OS. I

did a bit of research hoping that I would easily find what I need but the number of combinations and price ranges that are out

there are just too overwhelming. So, I was hoping to get a little bit of help from all the experts here


I would be looking to build a machine that I can scale up to 3 monitors with atleast one capable of HD. Support for the bluray

disc and neat audio. I am not into that much of gaming yet but atleast would like to play call of duty and would like to leave room

to scale if I get too addicted.


Here are the list of hardware that I am considering. Any advice and help will be much appreciated.

Processor:

Intel Core 2 Duo E8500 Wolfdale 3.16GHz 6MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115036 -- 188.00

Motherboard:

ASUS P5Q-E LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131296 -- 178.49

Graphics Card:

After reading all the forums, I would like to do crossfire and would prefer a HDMI ready card. I filtered the search at
newegg and finally chose a 2Gig card. The HDMI support for this is via adapter. I am not sure if will have any problem playing HD video.

SAPPHIRE 100270SR Radeon HD 4850 X2 2GB 512-bit (256-bit x 2) GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102809 -- 289.99

Memory:

I was hoping to get a 4Gig 1066 - single dimm but the QVL doc at asus.com does not show any. Will there be a problem if I go

for a single dimm?

CORSAIR DOMINATOR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145214 --- 109.84

Hard Drive:

Western Digital Caviar Green WD10EADS 1TB 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136317 -- 135.49

Case:

Not sure if this case and PSU would be a right fit. Please advice if I can save a few bucks here.

APEVIA X-TELSTAR-RD Red/ Black Aluminum ATX Full Tower Computer CaseNo Power Supply

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811144182 --- 195.99

PSU:

CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with

Core i7 Power Supply

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006 --- 159.99

Optical Drive:

Sony Optiarc Black 5X Blu-ray DVD-ROM 12X DVD-ROM 32X CD-ROM SATA Internal 5X Blu-Ray DVD ROM & 12X DVD Burner

Model BC-5100S - OEM

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827118020 -- 122.99

I am not sure if there is any extra cooling needed if I plan to OC and also if the PSU I selected would be good enough. I am

planning on getting a samsung 22 inch HD screen and the 64 - bit vista. Please advice if any of the above would be a wrong or

an over configuration.

Thanks in advance!!

 

[jsc]

You will need a better than stock Cpu cooler. One of the popular choices is the Xigmatek HDT S-1283 with the backing plate.

PSU is more than good enough.

 

[fullmetall]

Everything seems stable and fine to me, Get your S1283 cpu cooler and the Retention Bracket, then the thermal compound and your set to go.

I dont really look into corsair all that much for ram, usually g.skills or ocz reapers at 1066 but, im sure
those will do fine.

 

[newbiegaMER]

Thankyou guys!!! Yah I will look into one of the CPU coolers... Regarding RAM, Is it OK to get a 4GB single dimm @ 1066. The QVL at asus.com does not have any 4Gig @ 1066 but it has one @ 800. Is the later one good enough leaving room for expansion if I need to go for 8GB later.