New Gaming System Please Help =(

[wakko22]

Hello all,

I'm about to build my 2nd gaming rig and I would love some of your opinions/suggestions to help me with my build. My last rig lasted me well over 6 years and I am hoping this new one can do the same. I've read countless hours of reviews and I am still stump! I plan to do some slight overclocking but nothing to the extreme. Thank you for your time!

Here's a few components I am having the hardest time picking.

CPU ------------> Quad Core Q6600 (got as a gift)
Motherboard -> ASUS P5Q PRO or GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3R
Memory -------> Corsair Dominator PC2 8500 4gb or
OCZ Reaper PC2 8500 4gb
Video Card ---> EVGA GTX 260 Core 216 (stock or ssc?)
PSU ------------> PC Power & Cooling 750w (bought already)
HSF ------------> Zalman 9700 (or something else)
Case ----------> Antec 300

 

[Why_Me]

Hello all,

I'm about to build my 2nd gaming rig and I would love some of your opinions/suggestions to help me with my build. My last rig lasted me well over 6 years and I am hoping this new one can do the same. I've read countless hours of reviews and I am still stump! I plan to do some slight overclocking but nothing to the extreme. Thank you for your time!

Here's a few components I am having the hardest time picking.

CPU ------------> Quad Core Q6600 (got as a gift)
Motherboard -> ASUS P5Q PRO or Gigabite UD3P
Memory -------> Corsair Dominator PC2 8500 4gb or
OCZ Reaper PC2 8500 4gb
Video Card ---> EVGA GTX 260 Core 216 (stock or ssc?)
PSU ------------> PC Power & Cooling 750w (bought already)
HSF ------------> Zalman 9700 (or something else)
Case ----------> Antec 300

The UD3P runs DDR3 which is throwing money out the door right now. And seeing how you already have that 750w psu...no reason to put it to better use like Crossfire. Those cards are going down in price, so later on you can pick another one up and run Crossfire with this build. The case has alot more room than the Antec 300 wich is a bit tight of a fit for running dual video cards. Try this....

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137 $89.99
COOLER MASTER RC-690-KKN1-GP Black SECC/ ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128358 $134.99 ($114.99 after $20.00 Mail-In Rebate )
GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

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

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102801 $199.99
SAPPHIRE 100259-1GL Radeon HD 4870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231209 $43.99 Free Shipping*
G.SKILL PI Black 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319 $79.99 Free Shipping*
Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

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/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116488 $99.99 Free Shipping*
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit for System Builders - OEM

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835186020 $6.99
ARCTIC COOLING MX-2 Thermal Compound - Retail

 

[rescawen]

Get HAF case from cooler master and oc ur q6600 to 3,2ghz and wait for the ATI 4890 to come

 

[theAnimal]

Edit: Beaten to it.

 

[wakko22]

Oh cool. Thank you for all the replies! So the consensus is pretty much that gigabyte ud3p > asus p5q pro? I guess it doesn't hurt to change! Anything else?

 

[xthekidx]

Yep UD3P is better.

+1 for why me's build. If you can afford it, buy two of these instead and xfire, it'll be faster than a single 4870. At $120 its a good deal:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127401

 

[Why_Me]

Yep UD3P is better.

+1 for why me's build. If you can afford it, buy two of these instead and xfire, it'll be faster than a single 4870. At $120 its a good deal:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127401

+1 for the 4850's.... why didn't I see that

 

[xthekidx]

This is the same model of cooler that Why_Me listed, but it cools just slightly better because it doesn't have the nickel plating on it (gets like 1 maybe 2 C cooler on a high overclock). The nickel plating is just marketing...makes it look cooler I guess and it gets the "Dark Knight" name.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233003
Then buy the backplate separately, it costs less right now that buying it bundled...and you get a $10 rebate!! woohoo! $30 is a great deal for that cooler+backplate, its one of the best coolers out there and beats other $60+ coolers.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233019

 

[xthekidx]

that deal just ended. Go with the Dark Knight now, unless you want to wait 6 weeks for the rebate to make the cooler+backplate $2 cheaper

 

[Onus]

Another +1 for Why_Me.
Get only one graphics card now; you can always add another one in Crossfire later if you need it. If you don't, you just saved some money.

 

[theAnimal]

What resolution?

 

[xthekidx]

Hmm... I thought I saw him say he was using a 24" monitor, but maybe that was a different thread. If you aren't using a large monitor then you can just get 1 4870 like jtt283 said. If you are gaming at 22" or larger I think you should go with dual 4850's though.