Building my own system - Spec advice please

wiffmaster

Hello everyone,

This summer I'm planning on building my own computer, but it's the first i've ever built myself.

Here are the specs:

1 x Microsoft Windows Xp Home SP2 OEM -Single Pack

1 x Benq 1620Pro 16x16x Dual Layer DVD R/RW Internal Black - Retail Kit

1 x Western Digital WD2000JD 200GB Serial ATA150 7200rpm 8mb Cache- OEM

3 x Tricool Fan/80mm

1 x Antec Black Tx640b Mini Tower 400w Atx

1 x Sony OEM 3.5 Floppy Drive Black

1 x Corsair (TWINX1024-3200C2PT) 1024MB (2 x 512MB Matched Pair), DDR400 / PC3200, non-ECC, Unbuffered, CL2, Lifetime Warranty, Silver Heat Spreader

1 x BTC BCE5232IA 52x32x52x Int IDE CDRW + 7in1 Memory Card Reader Retail Box

1 x AMD (Winchester) Athlon 64bit 3200+ 939pin 512kb L2cache 90nm Retail Boxed Processor With 3 Year Warranty and Fan Included.

1 x GIGABYTE GA-K8VT890-9 SKT939 PCI-E DDR400 ON-BOARD AUDIO RETAIL BOX

1 x XFX GEFORCE 6600 PCI-E 128MB DUAL DVI *Passive Cooling*


Basically, i'd like your advice on what you think about these specs. Are there any obvious incompatibilities which are likely to cause problems?

I plan on using the system for gaming (although not 'hardcore'), as well as folding, and other day to day tasks. I hope the computer to last for about 3/4 years before any serious upgrades are needed - hence why I chose a PCI Express motherboard.

Any advice greatly appreciated,
Wiffmaster.

Gobbles

Id use a different motherboard, and if you are a gamer, id select a video card with active cooling.

wiffmaster

Thanks, i'll take your advice on the graphics card. Just wondering why you think I should use a different MB - is there a problem with the model I selected? What makes would you reccommend?

Thanks.

Mt_Goat

wiffmaster wrote:

Hello everyone,

This summer I'm planning on building my own computer, but it's the first i've ever built myself.

Here are the specs:

1 x Microsoft Windows Xp Home SP2 OEM -Single Pack

1 x Benq 1620Pro 16x16x Dual Layer DVD R/RW Internal Black - Retail Kit

1 x Western Digital WD2000JD 200GB Serial ATA150 7200rpm 8mb Cache- OEM

3 x Tricool Fan/80mm

1 x Antec Black Tx640b Mini Tower 400w Atx

1 x Sony OEM 3.5 Floppy Drive Black

1 x Corsair (TWINX1024-3200C2PT) 1024MB (2 x 512MB Matched Pair), DDR400 / PC3200, non-ECC, Unbuffered, CL2, Lifetime Warranty, Silver Heat Spreader

1 x BTC BCE5232IA 52x32x52x Int IDE CDRW + 7in1 Memory Card Reader Retail Box

1 x AMD (Winchester) Athlon 64bit 3200+ 939pin 512kb L2cache 90nm Retail Boxed Processor With 3 Year Warranty and Fan Included.

1 x GIGABYTE GA-K8VT890-9 SKT939 PCI-E DDR400 ON-BOARD AUDIO RETAIL BOX

1 x XFX GEFORCE 6600 PCI-E 128MB DUAL DVI *Passive Cooling*


Basically, i'd like your advice on what you think about these specs. Are there any obvious incompatibilities which are likely to cause problems?

I plan on using the system for gaming (although not 'hardcore'), as well as folding, and other day to day tasks. I hope the computer to last for about 3/4 years before any serious upgrades are needed - hence why I chose a PCI Express motherboard.

Any advice greatly appreciated,
Wiffmaster.

My only real question is; What is your budget?

Otherwise I would recomend the following changes;

* NEC Black IDE 16X Dual Layer DVD Burner Model ND-3520A

* Antec Solution SLK3000-B Black (no Power Suply) (Get another 120mm fan for the front)

* Antec SmartPower 2.0 SP-500 ATX12V 500W Power Supply This power supply will work better and be more future proof for further upgrades if desired.

* Do you really need a CD burner as the NEC I mentioned will serve you well for both CD and DVD writing?

* Gigabyte boards are just not the best and have a poor history around here.
MSI K8N Neo4-F Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 ATX AMD Motherboard

* Any 6600GT (not the plain 6600) since you mention gaming and as mentioned above w/ active cooling.

RiversCuomo

May I recommend the Leadtek 6600gt? I've did a lot of research in the 6600gt's and the Leadtek came out on top.

wiffmaster

Thanks for all the excellent advice.

My budget is around £650, or $1200 US.

I'm not a real hardcore gamer, so maybe the 6600GT would be a little too far (and expensive)?

I'll probably change the DVD writer for an NEC one, I had chosen an NEC originally, but they were out of stock. I like having 2 optical drives as I copy lots of CDs (to use in the car), so dual drives easier. One drive also has a card reader built in, which is useful.

As for the case/PSU issue; it seems much more expensive to buy a case and a PSU separately (at least $100 more), and i'm already on a tight budget. So that's why I bought a case/PSU combined. Originally I had a 350W combo, but someone said this would be too little and I needed a 400W. Is 400W still too little though?

Thanks for the MB advice, i'll change it (and have a look at the model mentioned).

Cheers.

madmat

You can always stick with the case you've chosen and upgrade to a bigger PSU on down the road and set the 400w aside as a backup in the event you need it.

As to the 6600 vs the 6600GT I'd say to get the GT, it's not that much more expensive and will likely prevent you from wanting to upgrade the videocard within the next 6mo.s after the new crop of games come out and you discover the vanilla 6600 makes them just too ugly to play due to dialing down the details or lowering the resolution.

It's all a balancing act on the edge of a sword, do you spend 30 or 40 bucks more now on this or that or spend 160 bucks a few months down the road to buy an upgrade on top of the money you spent on the lesser part to begin with?

wiffmaster

Ok, thanks.

I'll probably do exactly what you suggested on the case/PSU side of things.

I'll also look for the GT cards, and see if I can afford them. I'll check out the Leadtek mentioned above.

wiffmaster

Just checked, and I can stretch to a 6600GT for my budget. It's a Leadtek one as well.

Can't find the MB mentioned above, but have found some Foxcomm ones which look suitable - anyone have any views on this make.

Thanks.

Jimborae

Well here's my first go, all these parts are from Komplett.co.uk, a very good shop.

Items in Shopping Cart -- to buy now
Qty Your Price Total

In-Win X710G(B) Full Tower ATX Black Case w/430W PSU, Lcd Panel, USB 2.0
Article number: 308856
Stock status: 6 stocked £49

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NEC DVD recorder ND-3540A IDE Black OEM
Article number: 309415
Stock status: 100+ stocked £35

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2 x TwinMOS Speed Premium PC3200 512MB CL2.5 Winbond BH-5, 32*8/16chip, 400mhz, 184-P
Article number: 309097
Stock status: 17 stocked £80

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Maxtor DiamondMax 10 200GB SATA 8MB 7200RPM NCQ
Article number: 302257
Stock status: 50-99 stocked £68

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EPoX EP-9NPA+, nForce4 ,ATX, Socket-939 S-ATA, GbLAN, Firewire, PCI-Express X16
Article number: 308693
Stock status: 14 stocked £69.99

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AMD Athlon 64 3200+ 2.0GHz Socket 939, 512KB, BOXED w/fan
Article number: 307202
Stock status: 50-99 stocked £129

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Club3D GeForce 6600GT 128MB GDDR3 PCI Express, VGA, DVI, Tv-Out, Retail
Article number: 307935
Stock status: 20 pcs 2005-05-31 (unconfirmed) £124.5

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Microsoft Windows XP Home SP2 Software English OEM
Article number: 303203
Stock status: 50-99 stocked £58

---

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Sony Floppy Drive, 3,5" 1,44MB Black Floppy Drive Internal
Article number: 114711
Stock status: 24 pcs 2005-05-30 (unconfirmed) £7

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eMagic USB2 Multi Card Reader 3.5" Black ,for CF I/II,SM,MMC/SD,MS,xD
Article number: 303341
Stock status: 50-99 stocked £15

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Surcharges: 0
Total: £635.49


Plus £12 P&P that makes a grand total of £647.49

Mt_Goat

Jim

Great job! I think that would make them an excellent system.


wiffmaster

The system Jimborae listed is a great system for what you have to spend and included the more important features you listed. He even found some components that I didn't see or think of as well as having the inside track on local pricing. You can still add a DVD-ROM ater on as it won't cost much. And you can still copy with only the ond drive for now, it will just take a little longer.

wiffmaster

Thanks for going to all that effort Jimborae, I really appreciate it.

Looks like a very good system, and it's cheaper than buying it from ebuyer, so i'll seriously consider it.

The case looks good as well with the LCD and 430 W supply, but does the power supply have SATA power connectors, or will I have to buy an adaptor?

Thanks.

Jimborae

I would be very surprised if it didn't but I think the motherboard comes with sata power adaptors.

On a seperate issue I definitely recommend that you buy major components from somewhere like Komplett rather than Ebuyer, cos if something goes wrong their customer support a million times better. They have an official support forum on Hexus.co.uk so you can always contact them there. Ebuyer have nothing, not even a phone number!

wiffmaster

Thanks Jim,

I've saved the system you specced on my Komplett account. The only thing I changed was I added a cheap CD RW, only £16, so worth while.

I'll order it as soons as my AS exams are over!

Thanks again everyone.

Mt_Goat

That power supply comes with 2 SATA cannectors and looks to be of a new design according to their web site. http://www.in-win.com.tw/uk/product/IW_ISP.html

Tom's Hardware had a decent review of the case.

Jimborae

wiffmaster wrote:

Thanks Jim,

I've saved the system you specced on my Komplett account. The only thing I changed was I added a cheap CD RW, only £16, so worth while.

I'll order it as soons as my AS exams are over!

Thanks again everyone.

Cool, glad I could help, now just make sure that you get that thing folding once it's been built & join Team 93 with the rest of us here.

wiffmaster

Thanks for the info + review mtgoat.

Will join FAH when it's set up - my old P3 isn't much good at folding (that must be the understatement of the year), and the P4 is a family machine and rest of family isn't keen on the idea of it running at full load 24/7.