- 3,704
If I get bored today, ill part out a wish list on the egg
I built a desktop!
- Thread starter ceiling_fan
- 112 comments
- 5,201 views
- 8,707
- Utah
- ceiling_fan
Any more input?
- 15,799
AMD really have no answer to Intel at the moment, unfortunately. Quad cores will blitz a dual core, only if the program utilizes all 4 cores, which isn't very common at the moment. Most games will actually run better on a dual core. So, you can either go quad and hold out for games further down the road, by which case you'll probably need another upgrade to run them at full detail, or just go dual core now. I myself would just get one of the new 45nm Core 2 Duo's...
Just go with one of reliable brands - Corsair, Geil, OCZ, Kingston, etc and you'll be fine. DDR3 is the bleeding edge in memory at the moment, but its insanely expensive and you'll be fine with good old DDR2-800. There is DDR2-1066 as well if you're willing to expand the budget a little, but really it's not worth it IMO. Keep in mind, if you go with a 32-bit OS (Windows XP) and the full 4GB of RAM, you'll only be able to use about 3.5GB of it.
Well you need to decide on what CPU you want to run first, as AMD and Intel use different sockets you can't just switch one for the other on the same mobo. The Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L is probably the best value for money board around. It runs the Intel P35 chipset and supports the new 45nm Core 2 Duos and up to 8GB of DDR-1066 memory. However, if you want to run multiple video cards you'll have to look for a board with either an nForce chipset or ATI Xpress chipset (depending on what video card you go with). It also only has 4 SATA ports, which might be a problem if you have heaps of SATA drives.
Everyone will recommend the 8800GT because at the moment it's the fastest card for the money. However the ATI HD3870 is roughly the same price and only marginally slower but it has full DX10.1 support unlike the 8-series, hardware playback of 1080p video, uses less power and most importantly, can do HDR+FSAA without nasty hacks like the 8-series.
- 7,956
- BradleyH131
With a 1500$ Budget you'd be looking at Intel and nothing else. Actually these days I wouldn't even look at AMD at all. Intels mid-to-high end processors are so far over AMD now it's not funny. The Q6600 is still a great buy for the price, quadcore, and overclocks quite well.
Q6600 - $249.99
RAM is awesomely cheap now days. 2GB will probably suffice with XP at the moment, but in a year or so when 4GB is more standard, it'll cost next to nothing to get another 2GB anyway.
Corsair XMS2 2GB - $69
I've only had ASUS boards and never had anything go wrong with them. This one has 2 PCIx16 spots so is SLI ready. 4 DDR2 slots for up to 8GB ram. It's better to spend more on a motherboard for expandability and future proofing, cause it's also generally the hardest thing to replace. Also this one comes with Firewire.
ASUS P5N-D - 149.99
Why not? They're so cheap right now. Pick up a 250GB Western Digital with 16mb cache for 69 bucks. If only to install the OS and things on.
Western Digital Caviar 250GB - $69.99
Again. So cheap. Might as well get 2.
2x Samsung 20X DVD-R etc - 58.98
The 8800GT is still the way too go. If budget was no option I'd do the new 9800GX2. But at the moment the 8800GT is an awesome card, and you always have the option of buying another one down the track and SLI'ing if you want some serious performance.
XFX 8800GT - 224.99
If it's PCI yes, though the motherboard (and almost all others) come with at least 6.1 now anyway.
I'd stick with XP SP2 until you get to the point where you're requiring 4GB+ of RAM, then go to Vista 64-Bit.
Microsoft XP Pro with SP2C - 134.99
Get whatever you feel most comfortable with. I personally have had just a basic Microsoft Wireless desktop elite and love it.
👍 Sweet.
I'm not that down with the casing scene, but again it's mostly personal preference. Do you take apart you computer a lot and need railed drive bays? Things like that. But you have to remember that 8800GTs are quite big cards, and a bigger case will be better for fitting things in, and cooling. But I'll let someone else tackle the case.
I think most things run perfectly well on stock cooling. If you're going to be overclocking that's a completely different story. If you're running too hot you can pick up case fans for under 15$ anyway. But if you're going to overclock the CPU any decent amount you'll probably want an aftermarket CPU fan.
Power supplies are kinda like motherboards, you might as well spend up on a decent one that you won't have to replace, than a cheaper one that will struggle with any future power you may need. For example their is no point getting an SLI motherboard, if your power supply will only run 1 PCI-E16 device.
OCZ GameXStream 1010w -194.99
Total - $1152 with $348 left over for case and keyboard/mouse.
- 3,704
https://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/WishList/MySavedWishDetail.asp?ID=6036405
$1,260 taxed and shipped
The case, keyboard, and mouse are just my favorites, so yours will be different. I just put the E6850 in as a place holder, go for the E8400 when they come back in stock. The video card is rock solid, but you are only limited to one with the P35 board thats in there.
The PSU is also good, 50A on the 12V rails is more than enough to power whatever you need, and its modular. Thats why I chose the RC690 case, good airflow and it looks cool too. I own an Antec Sonata case, its simple and it works (and cheap).
The ram is good DDR2, but 4GB may be a waste unless you run 64 bit.
EDIT: Casio beat me
$1,260 taxed and shipped
The case, keyboard, and mouse are just my favorites, so yours will be different. I just put the E6850 in as a place holder, go for the E8400 when they come back in stock. The video card is rock solid, but you are only limited to one with the P35 board thats in there.
The PSU is also good, 50A on the 12V rails is more than enough to power whatever you need, and its modular. Thats why I chose the RC690 case, good airflow and it looks cool too. I own an Antec Sonata case, its simple and it works (and cheap).
The ram is good DDR2, but 4GB may be a waste unless you run 64 bit.
EDIT: Casio beat me
- 8,707
- Utah
- ceiling_fan
Holy crap, thank you guys! 👍 👍
When I build it, I'll post a picture of it with a piece of paper saying "I love GTP- from c_f. And I love Shannon, Casio, and opendriver to bits.
"
When I build it, I'll post a picture of it with a piece of paper saying "I love GTP- from c_f. And I love Shannon, Casio, and opendriver to bits.
"
- 8,707
- Utah
- ceiling_fan
Eric.
Premium
- 8,515
- GTP_Eric
- Ebiggs
Lots of compatibility issues. I was gonna put it on this computer but the guys building it for me told me that you'll have troubles finding drivers and the like.
- 8,707
- Utah
- ceiling_fan
The list is starting to get finalized, thanks to your recommendations.
Casing - Cooler Master RC-690-KKN1-GP SECC/ ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case $80.00
Mobo - Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX All Solid Capacitor Intel Motherboard - $90.00
OR
Mobo - ASUS P5N-D - $150.00
Video Card - BFG Tech BFGE88512GTSE GeForce 8800GTS (G92) 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 $255.00
Power Supply - CMPSU-620HX ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 620W - $165.00
OR
Power Supply - OCZ GameXStream 1010w -$195.00
CPU - Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3.0GHz $250.00
OR
CPU - Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 2.4GHz $250.00
RAM - G.SKILL 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ - $80.00
Optical Drive - 2 x LITE-ON 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model LH-20A1L-05 - OEM $60.00 for two
Misc. - SIIG FireWire 800 3-port (1394b x 2, 1394a x 1) 32-bit PCI Card Model NN-830112-S2 - $48.00
So I'm not sure on the mobo, processor, and power supply. Any other video cards I should look at?
Casing - Cooler Master RC-690-KKN1-GP SECC/ ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case $80.00
Mobo - Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX All Solid Capacitor Intel Motherboard - $90.00
OR
Mobo - ASUS P5N-D - $150.00
Video Card - BFG Tech BFGE88512GTSE GeForce 8800GTS (G92) 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 $255.00
Power Supply - CMPSU-620HX ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 620W - $165.00
OR
Power Supply - OCZ GameXStream 1010w -$195.00
CPU - Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3.0GHz $250.00
OR
CPU - Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 2.4GHz $250.00
RAM - G.SKILL 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ - $80.00
Optical Drive - 2 x LITE-ON 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model LH-20A1L-05 - OEM $60.00 for two
Misc. - SIIG FireWire 800 3-port (1394b x 2, 1394a x 1) 32-bit PCI Card Model NN-830112-S2 - $48.00
So I'm not sure on the mobo, processor, and power supply. Any other video cards I should look at?
- 3,704
Mobo: are you going to be playing games at super high resolutions? If so, you going to want to get the asus, just for SLI
CPU: go for the E8400, some games (maybe most of them) can only use 2 cores. Im not saying the Q6600 is bad, just not suited for the application you might be using it for. Maybe throw a Zalman cooler on it and overclock it? 4Ghz does sound pretty sweet.
PSU: 1Kw is a bit much, and with a single video card, you only really need about 600-700W. Now if your going for SLI, go for a 1Kw
- 17,865
- 509
64 Bit XP would be too much of a hassle; would likely be better to go with 64-bit Vista. Though I'm quite content in my 32-bit XP with 2 gigs of ram.
Gigabyte mobo, OCZ power supply, and the Q6600 would likely be my picks. Why the Q6600? I do more multi-tasking than gaming, so having more cores is a good thing for me versus clock speed as much.
Otherwise, looks fine and pretty damn solid all around, should fly.
Gigabyte mobo, OCZ power supply, and the Q6600 would likely be my picks. Why the Q6600? I do more multi-tasking than gaming, so having more cores is a good thing for me versus clock speed as much.
Otherwise, looks fine and pretty damn solid all around, should fly.
- 8,707
- Utah
- ceiling_fan
After reading Azure's post, I think I'm gonna go with the Q6600. It seems more up my alley. And since I don't intend to SLI, I think I'll pass on the Asus mobo and 1Kw power supply. Regarding the OS, I'm gonna have to agree with Casio and use 32-bit XP and switch to Vista when I start to require 4 gigs of RAM etc.
No other suggestions on the video card?
edit: What about this card?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130072
$290 after rebates compared to $250 for the 8800GTS...
ROAD_DOGG33J
Premium
- 14,130
- IL, USA
- holyc0w1
- holyc0w
This power supply looks pretty good to me
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341002
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341002
- 8,707
- Utah
- ceiling_fan
Does this look good?
- 3,704
Maybe add a CPU cooler? the stock one isn't very good.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835186134
Depends on how much you want to spend really,that one is the low end. Could go for a Zalman for about double the price, but you get better cooling:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118019
Dont know if you want to water cool or not...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835186134
Depends on how much you want to spend really,that one is the low end. Could go for a Zalman for about double the price, but you get better cooling:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118019
Dont know if you want to water cool or not...
- 8,707
- Utah
- ceiling_fan
I should be fine if I'm not going to overclock the CPU, right? If so, I'll get one later, when I start to play around with OC'ing.
ROAD_DOGG33J
Premium
- 14,130
- IL, USA
- holyc0w1
- holyc0w
Were you looking specifically at SATA burners with LightScribe? Either way there are cheaper options, so if you want you can save a couple more bucks. If you are going with two burners, I think it would be better to get different models. If you have trouble ripping/burning with one then you still have the other.
- 7,956
- BradleyH131
A Q6600 will be more than fine on stock cooling, unless as you say, you want to OC. That's not to say that the Q6600 wouldn't benefit from an aftermarket cooler, at least in terms of noise, but it's not going to explode and overheat with the stock cooler.
I think LightScribe is a complete waste of money, I've never used it because it's almost impossible to find LightScribe media here, and they invented something called a pen a while back. If it's the same price as a comparable one without LightScribe then sure, why not, but I wouldn't pay extra for it.
Also something to consider is that, that motherboard only had 4 SATA connectors, with 2x SATA CD drives and 1x SATA HD, leaves you only one left. That may or not affect you, but if you're thinking about putting more HDs and/or SATA devices in then it may be something to think about, possibly getting an IDE burner? (The performance difference is negligible really)
I think LightScribe is a complete waste of money, I've never used it because it's almost impossible to find LightScribe media here, and they invented something called a pen a while back. If it's the same price as a comparable one without LightScribe then sure, why not, but I wouldn't pay extra for it.
Also something to consider is that, that motherboard only had 4 SATA connectors, with 2x SATA CD drives and 1x SATA HD, leaves you only one left. That may or not affect you, but if you're thinking about putting more HDs and/or SATA devices in then it may be something to think about, possibly getting an IDE burner? (The performance difference is negligible really)
- 12,298
- Ealing-London
Looks like what you're going for is very similar to my recent build.
https://www.gtplanet.net/forum/showpost.php?p=2927186&postcount=6
Cost me £640 (although some parts are cheaper now) which would convert to a good price in US$. Well under your budget.
Hope that gives you some ideas. 👍
https://www.gtplanet.net/forum/showpost.php?p=2927186&postcount=6
Cost me £640 (although some parts are cheaper now) which would convert to a good price in US$. Well under your budget.
Hope that gives you some ideas. 👍
- 17,865
- 509
The stock cooler for the Q6600 is fine and is what I used on my roommate's setup. Has run stably for a while now, though I did get an extra case fan to make sure plenty of air was going through the case. Those are plenty cheap though, comparatively.
- 1,395
Like Casio stated, Lightscibe is a big waste of money. I have a Lite-on light scribe burner and have never used the option. The best burner for the money is a SAMSUNG SH-S203B. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151153
When I was having trouble burning DVD's I went to CD Freaks to find one that was really good and the Samsung was recommended.
http://www.cdfreaks.com/reviews/Samsung-SH-S203B-DVD-Burner-Review
It has been a real good purchase so far.
When I was having trouble burning DVD's I went to CD Freaks to find one that was really good and the Samsung was recommended.
http://www.cdfreaks.com/reviews/Samsung-SH-S203B-DVD-Burner-Review
It has been a real good purchase so far.
- 8,707
- Utah
- ceiling_fan
Well guys, I bought it!! I may try to build it during the week, if not, I'll do it next weekend! 
- 8,707
- Utah
- ceiling_fan
Any suggestions/tips before I do it?
- 7,956
- BradleyH131
Build from the outside in. Power supply, optical drives, harddrives, etc first. Then put the motherboard in. Nothing is worse then installing the whole motherboard, processors, ram, and PCI cards, then realising you have to take the thing out cause the HD won't slide in.
- 3,704
livemusic
Premium
- 10,239
- Blumenau, SC
- livemusic81
Also be sure to release the static electricity you might be carrying before messing with it. This might help:
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.5451
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.5451
- 8,707
- Utah
- ceiling_fan
Yeah, I was planning on picking one of those up today. 👍
- 9,637
- Portland, OR
- Jump_Ace
- JUMPxACE
That will be a fine setup dude, everyone here gives great advice 👍 especially Brad and knocking the lightscribe, who wants to wait about 30 min when a sharpie works perfect in 10 seconds? I may pick up the E6850 and get some ddr3 ram when its gets 'affordable' heheh, yea I know it'll be a while I know that, heheh.
Jerome
Jerome
- 3,704
I really do not like scribe just because it takes WAY to long. Yeah, a nice label or picture on the CD looks cool, but it takes too long to do, ive used it maybe 20 times on my laptop, just because I was bored, but when im in a rush, i just use a pen.
