Lightroom - Photoshop PC - first time builder $1000-1200 budget

[tekbud]

I'm a first time builder and don't really no where to start. My wife and I are getting very serious about photography and have recently invested in both Photoshop CS4 and Lightroom2. We're currently running these apps on a laptop and know that has to stop. time for a new PC build!! Thanks to all for your help in advance. I plan on purchasing an NEC LCD2490WUXI-BK 24-Inch Widescreeen LCD Monitor in addition to this build. I don't have any gaming plans for this rig, but if the shoe fits I may be persuaded to try a few.

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: (ASAP) BUDGET RANGE: (example: US$1000 - 1200)

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: (Adobe Lightroom 2, Photoshop CS4, light gaming)

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: (NEC LCD2490WUXI-BK 24-Inch Widescreeen LCD Monitor, Altec lansing sound card and speakers from old Dell dimension 8200?)

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

PARTS PREFERENCES: by brand or type (Intel)

OVERCLOCKING: Maybe

MONITOR RESOLUTION: (1920x1200)

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: (Will be in the bedroom so a fairly quiet pc would help.)

 

[tekbud]

After doing some more research I've decided to change the monitor that I plan to purchase to a HP LP2475w. Should save me some money and allow me to creep up towards that $1200 mark for this build. Thanks again!!!

 

[tekbud]

No responses?? Am I doing something wrong? Need more info?

 

[Yoosty]

Option #1 Combo
1. ASUS P6T: $239.99 Free Shipping*
2. Intel BX80601920: $279.99 Free Shipping*
3. OCZ Technology, Inc. OCZ3G1600LV6GK: $99.99 Free Shipping*
4. Intel Intel BunnyPeople: $19.99 Free Shipping*

Combo Discount: -$81.99
Combo Price: $557.97
$10.00 Mail-In Rebate Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.216527

Case
COOLER MASTER HAF 922 RC-922M-KKN1-GP Black $119.99 Free Shipping*
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197

HDD
Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM 32MB $74.99 Free Shipping*
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319

DVD Burner
SAMSUNG Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD Burner $26.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151187

Graphic card u]
EVGA 896-P3-1173-AR GeForce GTX 275 FTW Edition $269.99 ($249.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130479

Would suggest this PSU.
CORSAIR CMPSU-750HX 750W Modular Active PFC Power Supply - Retail $164.99 Free Shipping*
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139010

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

Here is a Review on it.
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/coolers/display/core-i7-coolers-roundup_18.html

You will also need this 8-pin Power Extension cable. It is needed on most Bottom mounted Psu cases.
1ST PC CORP. 12" 8-pin EPS extension cable Model CB-8M-8F - Retail $7.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812706004

Also a good thermal compound and compound remover.
Noctua NT-H1 Thermal Compound - Retail $9.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608008

Tuniq TR-1 High Performance Thermal Material Remover - Retail $6.99 ($1.99 after $5.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835154006

SubTotal for Option #1 and extra items you need. Before Operating System, Keyboard and Mouse
$1006.90 without figuring Shipping costs and Mail in Rebates.

Now to the Operating System. My suggestion would be to download Windows 7RC and then buy the full version when it comes out. You should get the 64-bit version, but if that is too much of a chore, then go with Vista Prem. 64-bit.

Download Link for Windows 7 RC
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/get/download.aspx

But if you want an OS, would suggest Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit for System Builders - OEM $99.99 Free Shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116488

Now on your Keyboard, do not know if you want Wired or Wireless (Bluetooth, RF or IR) so went with this one below.
ABS M1 Heavy Duty Professional Gaming Mechanical Keyboard - Retail $44.99 Free Shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823224001

Logitech MX518 8 Buttons 1 x Wheel USB Wired Optical 1800 dpi Gaming-Grade Mouse - Retail $39.99 Free Shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826104178

SubTotal
$1006.90
$ 84.98 Kb/Mouse
$1091.98 before adding in Vista Prem. 64-bit Oem @ cost of $99.99

Hope this helps you out some for your upcoming Build.

 

[tekbud]

Thanks for the start: I had started putting together this build - any recommendations to get the price down some? From what i've read I don't think I need that expensive of a video card (but I could certainly be wrong) I like the idea of having two internal hdd and one external for easy backups of our images too. I really don't need anything more than a mid-sized tower I hope.

1
Seagate 1TB 3.5" External Hard Drive
Item #:N82E16822148405
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$97.99
1
CORSAIR CMPSU-550VX 550W Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply
Item #:N82E16817139004
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
-$12.00 Instant
$20.00 Mail-in Rebate Card
$104.99
$92.99
1
HIS Radeon HD 4830 H483QS512P Video Card
Item #:N82E16814161267
Return Policy: VGA Standard Return Policy
-$20.00 Instant
$20.00 Mail-in Rebate
$119.99
$99.99
1
Antec Three Hundred Black Computer Case
Item #:N82E16811129042
Return Policy: Limited Replacement Only Return Policy
-$10.00 Instant
$69.95
$59.95
1
Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Internal Hard Drives
Item #:N82E16822136284
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
-$15.00 Instant
$109.99
$94.99
1
LITE-ON 22X DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model iHAS222-06 LightScribe Support
Item #:N82E16827106288
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$28.99
1
Western Digital VelociRaptor 300GB 3.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Internal Hard Drive
Item #:N82E16822136322
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$229.99
1
OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory
Item #: N82E16820227365
Return Policy: Memory Standard Return Policy




Intel Core i7 920 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor
Item #: N82E16819115202
Return Policy: CPU Replacement Only Return Policy




Intel Intel BunnyPeople Gift
Item #: N82E16800995071
Return Policy: CPU Replacement Only Return Policy




ASUS P6T ATX Intel Motherboard
Item #: N82E16813131359
Return Policy: Limited Replacement Only Return Policy
-$59.00 Instant
-$81.99 Combo
$10.00 Mail-in Rebate Card
$698.96
$557.97
Grand Total: $1,262.86

 

[Yoosty]

Ok, lets see what we can come up with.

1) Stay with this Combo.
1. ASUS P6T: $239.99
2. Intel BX80601920: $279.99
3. OCZ Technology, Inc. OCZ3G1600LV6GK: $99.99
4. Intel Intel BunnyPeople: $19.99

Combo Discount: -$81.99
Combo Price: $557.97
$10.00 Mail-In Rebate Card

2) COOLER MASTER HAF 922 RC-922M-KKN1-GP Black is a Mid Tower with good airflow which you will need.

3) Would suggest either these two cards, but XFX for its Lifetime warranty and free shipping on both.

HIS H485QT512P Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 $99.99 ($79.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate) Free Shipping*
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161244

XFX HD-487A-ZHFC Radeon HD 4870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 $149.99 Free Shipping*
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150394

4) HDD's
2 x Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache @ $74.99 ea and free shipping.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319

1 x Western Digital Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache @ $94.99 and free shipping.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284

The VelociRaptor is not worth the price, compare to the newer Sata II HDDs', save the 229.99 for other items.

5) PSU, would go with this one since you will be running 3 HHD's to be on safe side.
CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W $109.99 ($99.99 after $10.00 Mail-In Rebate Card) Free Shipping*
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

Subtotal $1111.90 w/ Haf 922 & XFX graphic card. Before adding in misc. items and before Shipping costs and MIR's.
MIRs'. subtotal @ $20.00

Subtotal $1111.90 w/ Haf 922 & HIS graphic card. Before adding in misc. items and before Shipping costs and MIR's MIRs'. subtotal @ $40.00


Misc. Items
KB/Mouse @ 84.98
CPU Cooler @ 36.99
8-pin Power Extension @ 7.99
Thermal Compound @ 9.99
Thermal Cleaner @ 6.99 before MIR
Msc. items subtotal + 146.94 before shipping costs and MIR's.

OS your choice, either Free Win7 64-bit RC.
Or Vista Prem. 64-bit oem 99.99 plus free shipping.

NewEgg free shipping is usually 3 day by UPS. That is why I tried to find you most of the parts you need with Free Shipping. Specially Cases, HDD's, Graphic card and etc, etc etc.

Hope this helps.

 

[rockyjohn]

Yosty - both builds were excellent

tekbud:
On graphics card, I agree with Yosty that you should go to the faster graphics card than you had. Its a shame to build such a nice system - and you said you may try gaming, and then cripple it severly for gaming for want of a few dollars more on the graphics card. I especially like the HIS 4850 he recommended - the 4850 is the mid to high end for mainstream gaming (although not for enthusiast gaming) and that card is the top of the line in performance and not in price. See this review:

http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php?id=2709&cid=3&pg=10

Note however that HIS has two versions of the Turbo overcharged models and the one for sale by newegg is the slower one (only the core clock is overclocked - and only a little over the reference design - 650MHz vs. 625MHz) so it will not be as fast as the one used in the review - but still a very good video card.

I would not be surprised if after a little gaming you wanted to move up to the card Yosty first recommended.

Like Yosty I am also not a fan of the raptor drives. But if you are willing to spend $230 on one, and want speed, you might want to consider moving up to a SSD - perhaps the Intel X-25M 80GB for about $300.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820167005

There are a lot of issues with SSDs from other vendors - although some appear to be solving performance issues - but you need to do a lot of reading before substituting for the Intel model.

I understand your concern for backups. Did you consider using RAID 1 - mirroring - for internal drives to keep a "constant" backup? You could do it with just 2 drives if you mirrored the entire drive - O/S, applications, and data - or use 3 drives - one for O/S and applications (not backed up since you would have the original software discs - or for downloaded software just burn a one time disc) and then RAID for the data only. Both have advantages and disadvantages.

 

[tekbud]

Yosty - both builds were excellent

tekbud:
On graphics card, I agree with Yosty that you should go to the faster graphics card than you had. Its a shame to build such a nice system - and you said you may try gaming, and then cripple it severly for gaming for want of a few dollars more on the graphics card. I especially like the HIS 4850 he recommended - the 4850 is the mid to high end for mainstream gaming (although not for enthusiast gaming) and that card is the top of the line in performance and not in price. See this review:

http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php?id=2709&cid=3&pg=10

Note however that HIS has two versions of the Turbo overcharged models and the one for sale by newegg is the slower one (only the core clock is overclocked - and only a little over the reference design - 650MHz vs. 625MHz) so it will not be as fast as the one used in the review - but still a very good video card.

I would not be surprised if after a little gaming you wanted to move up to the card Yosty first recommended.

Like Yosty I am also not a fan of the raptor drives. But if you are willing to spend $230 on one, and want speed, you might want to consider moving up to a SSD - perhaps the Intel X-25M 80GB for about $300.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820167005

There are a lot of issues with SSDs from other vendors - although some appear to be solving performance issues - but you need to do a lot of reading before substituting for the Intel model.

I understand your concern for backups. Did you consider using RAID 1 - mirroring - for internal drives to keep a "constant" backup? You could do it with just 2 drives if you mirrored the entire drive - O/S, applications, and data - or use 3 drives - one for O/S and applications (not backed up since you would have the original software discs - or for downloaded software just burn a one time disc) and then RAID for the data only. Both have advantages and disadvantages.

Thank you both for your considerate input. I am a console gamer from way back, but your right, i do have the feeling that i may have to try a game or two on this new "photo editing" system. ;-)

As far as the hard drives go, how would I raid the internal drives? I could certainly see putting all of our photo images on a set of internal drives in a raid 1 configuration and keeping the system drive with just the apps as you mentioned. This sounds like a great idea. Is this set up with software mirroring or hardware?

How about the lightroom catalog? I've heard of separating that from the drives where the photo images are stored. So i guess that would sit on the c:\ drive and I could just run a weekly backup to the other drive.

I would be plenty willing to stick with 7200 rpm drives. I was just thinking that drive contention seems to be a slowdown in many systems and with lots of images, raw files, etc. i thought that might slow us down.

also - as far as the miscellaneous options yoosty presents - how many of these items do i need? I just want to make sure I have my complete list of parts prepared before pulling the trigger on this. One last item - the video card you are recommending should work well with the HP LP2475w monitor i plan to get too right?

thanks again!

 

[rockyjohn]

Theoretically the HIS 4850 with max resolution of 2560x1600 should work with your monitor with a resolution of 1920x1200. However I have no experience with them so maybe someone with the actual experience can respond.

If you do need to step up I would go with the HIS 4870 IceQ brother of that 4850 - $145(AR)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161265

 

[tekbud]

Okay so here's my new list. I'm about ready to pull the trigger and want to be sure i'm not missing anything. Thanks again to everyone for your help. I've gone a bit over budget so if i'm missing any combos i should be aware of let me know. Let me know what you think!

2
Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Internal Hard Drives
Item #:N82E16822136284
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy -$15.00 Instant $219.98
$189.98
1
COOLER MASTER HAF 922 RC-922M-KKN1-GP Black Computer Case
Item #:N82E16811119197
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy -$10.00 Instant $129.99
$119.99
1
LITE-ON 22X DVD±R DVD Burner Black E-IDE/ATAPI Model iHAP222-06 LightScribe Support
Item #:N82E16827106282
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy $24.99
1
HIS Radeon HD 4870 H487QT1GP IceQ 4+ Turbo Video Card
Item #:N82E16814161265
Return Policy: VGA Standard Return Policy -$20.00 Instant
$20.00 Mail-in Rebate
$184.99
$164.99
1
StarTech 8" EPS 8 Pin Power Extension Cable
Item #:N82E16812200124
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy $7.99
1
Western Digital Caviar Black 640GB 3.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Internal Hard Drive
Item #:N82E16822136319
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy $74.99
1
CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply
Item #:N82E16817139006
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy -$60.00 Instant
$10.00 Mail-in Rebate Card
$179.99
$119.99
1
GELID Solutions TC-GS01 Thermal Compound
Item #:N82E16835426001
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy $7.99
1
ENCORE ENLWI-G(2) TPCI Standard Universal Add-in card Compliant with PCI 2.0 Wireless Adapter
Item #:N82E16833180030
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy -$10.00 Instant $17.99
$7.99
1
HP LP2475w Black-Silver 24" 6 ms (GTG); 12ms Widescreen LCD Monitor
Item #:N82E16824176104
Return Policy: Monitor Replacement Only Return Policy -$60.00 Instant $594.99
$534.99
1
ASUS P6T ATX Intel Motherboard
Item #: N82E16813131359
Return Policy: Limited Replacement Only Return Policy


Intel Core i7 920 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor
Item #: N82E16819115202
Return Policy: CPU Replacement Only Return Policy


Intel Intel BunnyPeople Gift
Item #: N82E16800995071
Return Policy: CPU Replacement Only Return Policy


OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory
Item #: N82E16820227365
Return Policy: Memory Standard Return Policy -$59.00 Instant
-$81.99 Combo
$10.00 Mail-in Rebate Card
$698.96
$557.97
Grand Total: $1,811.86

 

[shortstuff_mt]

The build's looking pretty good! You went back to an IDE DVD burner, though. You'll want to ditch it for a SATA model.

SAMSUNG Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD Burner - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151187 $26.99

 

[rockyjohn]

I think that is an excellent system, althoughI see you are substantially over your original budget. While it is a good price for what you are getting - especially since it includes 3 HDs and a $534 monitor, I just wanted to check to see where you might trim a little - not that I engourage it.

One to consider, a 650w PSU would be more than ample to drive that system, but would be a little light to handle an upgrade to crossfire on the 4870 video card. While that is a very good mainstream card in itself, should you decide later to go for more gaming power, the easiest, most cost effective solution would be to add anothe and then it would be good to have the extra 100w. The 650w brother of the PSU you have would save $30:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005

That's about the only place I can see to trim without substantially affecting performance in some way - e.g smaller hard drives or different monitor.

What did you decide to do about your OS?

Also, I noted that the HSF previously listed by Yoosty has been eliminated. The stock HSF that comes with the PSU should be adequate for runnng the CPU at stock speeds, but you should consider getting the upgrade before doing any OC - if you are.

 

[Yoosty]

Another question on why you choosed this cable over the one I suggested.

Your Choice
StarTech 8" EPS 8 Pin Power Extension Cable
Item #:N82E16812200124
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy $7.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812200124

My suggested cable
1ST PC CORP. 12" 8-pin EPS extension cable Model CB-8M-8F - Retail $7.99
Item#:N82E16812706004
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812706004

The reason I suggested this Cable, if you look at both. You will see that it has a Sleeve that protects the wires in the cable so when running the cable through the case case cable management system it will not snag and cut into any of the wires.

 

[rockyjohn]

Want to purchase monitor for $387 plus shipping - for a savings of about $134

http://www.onsale.com/ttsvr/p/5023302?dpno=7612981&store=onsale&source=BWBPRICEGRAB&srccode=cii_5784816&cpncode=20-24653755-2

I don't know anything about the vendor - but they get 4.5 of 5 stars from Tech Bargains.

http://techbargains.pricegrabber.com/search_getprod.php/masterid=88692266/search=LP2475w/st=sort/qlty=n/sort_type=price

I don't know where you were thinking about getting it. Of course some recommend buying the monitor from local vendors to make it easier to return if you have pixel or other issues. And I have no idea how long this sale might last. I am just full of no ideas today.