Opinions on AMD Phenom II 940 Build

[muhsheesuh]

This was my first build and I wanted to build something for some moderate gaming including Starcraft 2 and Diablo 3 to be released. I originally wanted to make an i7 build but the cost difference of $250+ really turned me off. I would rather sacrifice a little in the CPU and upgrade the rest of my build to better parts instead of picking a great CPU but running it with cheaper not-as-good parts. I also plan on overclocking the CPU to 3.6ghz as I hear that is the sweet spot for these processors.

Mobo: Asus 790GX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131331 $138.99

CPU: AMD Phenom II 940
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103471 $210.00 (-15$ from combo)

Memory: 4gb 2x2gb GSkill DDR2 800 Ram
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231122 $42.99

GPU: EVGA Gtx 260
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130433 $194.99 (184.99 after rebate and -$15 combo with CPU)

PSU: Antec EA650 650W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371015 $64.99 (-$15 combo with PSU)

Case: Antec 900
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129021 $94.99 (after -$15 combo with PSU)

HDD: WD Black Caviar 640 gb
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319 $79.99

CPU cooler: XIGMATEK Dark Knight
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233029 $39.99

Thermal Paste: OCZ
$5.99


Total: 904.89

Also not as important:

Monitor: Samsung ToC 24'' T240D
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001280 $329.99

Total including monitor:$1,202.91


So how do you think I did? I'm actually totally new to building computers and although I've only spent about 3 days researching my friend did help me out quite a bit. I'm open to any suggestions for changing the build but would like to keep the build around the $900 mark not including the cost of the monitor.

 

[Outlander_04]

I'd be inclined to go with a 720 be , am3 motherboard and ddr3 which probably has better support in the future .
You wont lose much if anything in gaming .

I havent bought a CPU cooler for a couple of years , and I know that xigmatek gets rccommended a lot on this forum but I saw this yesterday and I wonder if maybe there are better cheaper choices .

www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=15387&page=1


I think your gfx card is at the bottom end of what you will need for a 24 inch monitor . A better choice could be a crossfire mb and a 4870 512 . Its close to the 260 in performance and adding a second one is a possibility

 

[xthekidx]

Go for this combo:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.182239

Just get the regular S1283, not the DK
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233003

For a 19x12 res monitor you should go for something like this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102830
and then you can add another in xfire later

You really should get a 750w PSU so you can xfire
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006

If that puts you over budget then you can consider a cheaper case like this one:
http://cmstore.coolermaster-usa.com/product_info.php?products_id=109 <====refurbished, means its just as good as a new one but half the price. Usually they get sent back for a bad fan or untapped hole.

 

[sseyler]

Check out the 23" ACER monitor that has 1080p resolution. It will fit movies better with its 16:9 (instead of 16:10) aspect ratio. It's also over $100 cheaper than the Samsung you chose and it has exceptional picture quality. I bought one and am COMPLETELY satisfied with my purchase. I would also recommend trying to find a better deal on the GTX 260. For a lower price, you should be able to find a GTX 260 sp216 or an HD 4870 1GB.

$179 HD 4870 1GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125256

$175 GTX 260 - 216
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814143173

Both of these cards are better options than what you chose. Please don't get drawn into buying a card for $20 more when it just gives you a slight overclock. It's a total waste - overclocking your video card is simple and the speeds that manufactures sell overclocked models aren't all that much higher than stock.

Monitor:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009162

 

[xthekidx]

This is the best deal going on a GTX 260 that I am aware of:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127409

 

[ferrari91169]

Dang, that's really close to my build actually. I'll actually post my specs below, and I'll tell you, I couldn't be happier.

Mobo: AsRock A790GXH/128M
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157156 $94.99

CPU: AMD Phenom II 940
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4330959&CatId=3496 $189.99

Memory: 8GB 4x2GB OCZ Platinum Edition DDR2 800
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227291 $92.99

GPU: EVGA GTX 275
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4571250&CatId=3775 $249.99

PSU: Antec EA650 650W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371015 $79.99

Case: Antec 900
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129021 $109.99

HDD: Western Digital Caviar Black 500GB 32MB/7200RPM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136320 $64.99

Total = $889.93 (without taxes and shipping which were probably another freaking $100 for taxes and not sure for shipping.)

And then of course I already had all my other stuff. I actually had the HDD too, but I went ahead and added that above. I have two other HDD's though, one 500GB and one 250GB, as well as two external 500GB HDD's. I also already had my LG 22x DVD-Drive that ran me about $23 when I got it I think. And I also bought an extra case fan for my Antec 900 that was like $10 total...and I think that's it. I was kinda bummed when I was buying a new PSU a couple days after I purchased my case and I saw that it had exactly what I needed as a deal...the deal you got actually...I kinda didn't like that the least bit. I also missed another deal I could've had, I think it was a CPU-PSU or CPU-GPU, or something, that would've made my AMD Phenom 940 cost about $160 instead of $190...that was also a little annoying...I really need to pay a lot more attention.

The reason I got some stuff from Newegg and some from Tiger is because I live in Cali so Newegg charges me tax, and for some stuff that gets to be a lot. For instance, the CPU I could've gotten at Newegg for like $260 total I think it was, whereas I could get it from Tiger for $189.99 plus $1.99 shipping, so $191.98 total. I'll save money when I can. About the same amount price difference for the GPU as well. $251.98 on Tiger and something like $290 on Newegg. I really hate Tiger personally and their packaging is horrendous, as well as shipping speed, but I gotta do what I gotta do. After taxes and shipping that price ($890) could easily go up...also didn't include things like my DVD Drive (~$25) which I would've bought if I hadn't had one so take that up to $915. Didn't include my other HDD's either but I wouldn't have purchased more than one anyway, so having those was just a bonus. Actually, the other 500GB one was actually an external but it's amazing what can happen to an external drive case when a heavy object decides to freefall onto it from about six feet up. Needless to say the case was destroyed and I had a new internal drive...YAY!! Didn't include the other $10 fan either, so I'd say $925 after that. If you could find these items with the same deals I'd highly recommend it. I've loved it since day one, and I think you'll especially like the GTX 275 over the GTX 260...I think it'll really benefit your 1920x1200 monitor if that's what you decide to get. I currently have a 22" 1680x1050 monitor but am planning to upgrade to a 24" 1920x1080 Acer that someone else mentioned.