Solid system build? (1st go)

[xanthippus]

'lo all, (Budget - Not over £1300 = $2500)

Got some free time at the moment and I've decided to build a new gaming system (although my current Radeon 9700 will forever be remembered fondly). Will never need to use SLI or Crossfire (i'm a one card guy) but may learn how to over-clock and hence still need a decent motherboard. In some ways I think this is not an ideal time to buy, R600 not all that far away and Penryn going into production before the end of the year...but hey, i've waited 4 years already!!! .

I intend to get a motherboard that supports 1333MHz in the hope it will cover Penryn (but I know that is a shot in the dark), and if R600 is really that much better I can always purchase it later.

Take a look at my system below, have I made any major mistakes? (I.e. another company that does the same part better and for less????) ALSO....any tips for any low price items I might need....special non-static screwdrivers? X number of cable ties? etc etc (i.e. silly little things you only know you need through experience)

Antec 900 Ultimate Gaming case
Intel Core 2 DUO E4300 1.80GHz
Asus P5N32-E SLi nForce 680 (Socket 775) Motherboard
GeForce 8800 GTS 640MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI
GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC6400C4 800MHz DDR2 4-4-4-12
Seagate Barracuda 320GB SATAII 7200.10
GameXstream OCZ 600W Powersupply
Samsung SH-182MRSMN 18x18 DVD±RW Dual Layer Lightscribe ReWriter

Thank you for any advice you can offer, all views will be carefully considered.

N.b. Should I buy my own fan to cool the CPU?

 

[deusex]

And also a little thing - your budget

I would switch to the Seagate Barracuda 320GB SATAII 7200.10 - It is one of the fastest 7200RPM Drives available , and unbelievable stable too.

The legendary GameXstream by OCZ (comes in 600/700W flavors, but for this build, a 600W is fine) is a exceptionally stable and solid PSU, all rigs with a core 2 duo/ 8800gts should look to it as a standard.

Otherwise, its a fine build.

 

[xanthippus]

Cheers Deus,

Have now edited my post to include budget, although it reflects the higher limit I can spend, don't need/have to go that high, it is not so much money at the fore front of my mind, but a sensible balance between performance/price and see what I am left with.

I have taken note of the hard drive and power supply you suggest, does anyone else believe these are better parts then those already listed? ...Deus isn't a crazy guy who is about to destroy my build ?

 

[Wonderwill]

And also a little thing - your budget

I would switch to the Seagate Barracuda 320GB SATAII 7200.10 - It is one of the fastest 7200RPM Drives available , and unbelievable stable too.

The legendary GameXstream by OCZ (comes in 600/700W flavors, but for this build, a 600W is fine) is a exceptionally stable and solid PSU, all rigs with a core 2 duo/ 8800gts should look to it as a standard.

Otherwise, its a fine build.

I have the WD he mentioned, and it seems really fast; is the Seagate better?

 

[deusex]

Addicts "ain't" crazy - only crazy about technologyXD

To WonderWill, The Seagate is slightly faster, but I mentioned it because it
features NCQ, and utilizes green technology.

The WD is also a good drive, but I have a feeling most of us would go with Seagate from experience and tests.

 

[matrixinc]

N.b. Should I buy my own fan to cool the CPU?

Yes, if you plan to overclock. The Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro for $18.50US on ewiz.com.

I would also go ahead a get the arctic silver for $2.19US.

 

[Wonderwill]

Addicts "ain't" crazy - only crazy about technologyXD

To WonderWill, The Seagate is slightly faster, but I mentioned it because it
features NCQ, and utilizes green technology.

The WD is also a good drive, but I have a feeling most of us would go with Seagate from experience and tests.

Yah you're right. On newegg the Random Access is faster for the Seagate. Man I should have gotten it instead...

 

[deusex]

Hey Mate, don't worry, live and learnXD

Xan - if you stick with a flat 2K budget, you'll get the most out of it, just like me - An E6600 would be a better choice then.

 

[xanthippus]

Changed my system to reflect your suggestion Deus, thank you for the input.

2 additional questions.

1) With the Antec 900 I have heard the PSU is located on the bottom and that sometimes the power connectors from the PSU are not long enough to reach the motherboard and you have to buy non-standard ones to overcome this....anyone know if that will be a problem with the GameXstream OCZ 600W Power supply?

2) Bit of a silly one, but just to check, Duel DVI on the 8800 GTS means I simply plug in two DVI connectors for 2 monitors to get both working? The motherboard doesn't come into play for duel monitor support?

 

[deusex]

I have the p180B, which is also BTX-ish layout, and the GameXstream 600W doesn't have any trouble reaching to the Mobo.

 

[skyguy]

I used to have the OCZ.....it has LONG cables so no worries there.

Every drive that's fried on me was a Western Digital. My Seagates run like a dream.

Good build specs!

 

[deusex]

I second AND third that HD evaluationXD

 

[xanthippus]

Cheers guys, put my mind to rest about a potential cable/motherboard issue.

 

[xanthippus]

Might still be a better motherboard though for my needs?

Want one that has Firewire, Giga bit LAN interface, 8+ USBs, good quality 7.1 onboard sound, 1333 FSb and at least 3 PCI Express (Graphics card, TV Card + 1 spare for future use). Out of the boards that can support all this, which one also is best for other features (i.e. friendly support for over-clocking/additional system info/+ great consumer reviews).

 

[cutthroat]

Basically you have described every 680i based motherboard, with the exception of the extremely expensive Asus Striker Extreme, they are the same. And none of them outperform each other. Nvidia released reference boards to the companies who basically just put thier own sticker on them. Nvidia does not allow them to drastically change the boards anymore.

 

[xanthippus]

k, as long as i'm not missing anything

In that case the issue of the motherboard now seems closed.

Cheers Cutthroat