A new build (looking for recommendations)

sweavesweave boston
edited October 2008 in Hardware
Hi all
i'm building a new computer for a friend and i've been assembling a parts list for him
he has about a $1200 budget and will be using the computer for a bit of everything. some video editing, some gaming and so forth.

here is what i have so far

case = Nzxt Tempest
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146047

cpu = intel e8400
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115037

hard drive = seagate barracuda 500 gb

power supply = pc power and cooling silencer 750 quad
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703009

video card = one of the geforce 9 series (no sli)

cpu cooler = the thermalright ultra
http://www.thermalright.com/new_a_page/product_page/cpu/tb120/product_cpu_cooler_tb120.html?art=MTQyMywxLCxoZW50aHVzaWFzdA==

ram = ocz brand (ddrX depening on motherboard choice)

what i need help with are motherboard recommendations as i haven't kept up with changes in a while.
my main concern is wether to go with the p35 or x38 chipsets and also if ddr3 is really worth it at this point or not

thanks in advance for your help

Comments

  • fatcatfatcat Mizzou Icrontian
    edited October 2008
    I smell a Thrax a coming...

    components you've picked so far look good, although I would go with this case Antec 900 which is king of the hill.
  • BuddyJBuddyJ Dept. of Propaganda OKC Icrontian
    edited October 2008
    Consider these boards:

    Biostar TPower I45: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138118

    GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128358

    DFI LANPARTY DK P35-T2RS: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813136043

    For what you are doing, stick with DDR2. Also, consider spending a little more to get an E8500 or higher processor.
  • sweavesweave boston
    edited October 2008
    fatcat wrote:
    I smell a Thrax a coming...

    components you've picked so far look good, although I would go with this case Antec 900 which is king of the hill.

    i had actually looked at the antec 900
    both cases are very similar
    i think the only difference is that the tempest has 3 (?) more fan than the antec and that the antec has firewire on the front panel whilst the tempest has esata.

    i'm a bit worried about the antec and larger video cards however since the tempest is a bit roomier.
    has anyone tried that case with longer cards?
  • sweavesweave boston
    edited October 2008
    Buddy J wrote:
    Consider these boards:

    Biostar TPower I45: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138118

    GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128358

    DFI LANPARTY DK P35-T2RS: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813136043

    For what you are doing, stick with DDR2. Also, consider spending a little more to get an E8500 or higher processor.


    thanks :)
    i had looked at the GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P before
    and might actually go with that
  • bwmurchisonbwmurchison Murfreesboro Tn
    edited October 2008
    I have the antec 900 and it is an amazing case for cooling. space is a little bit of an issue with crossfire/sli but nothing too bad. and i absolutely love bottom mounted psu's, and the reviews on newegg say its better then the 900 and if thats the case its a pretty good case lol
  • LeonardoLeonardo Wake up and smell the glaciers Eagle River, Alaska Icrontian
    edited October 2008
    Yeah, you'll find many Antec 900 fans here, including me.
    I have the antec 900 and it is an amazing case for cooling...its better then the 900
    ??? Missed a few keystrokes?
  • bwmurchisonbwmurchison Murfreesboro Tn
    edited October 2008
    Leonardo wrote:
    Yeah, you'll find many Antec 900 fans here, including me. ??? Missed a few keystrokes?


    nah man idk why it didnt show it but here is my full post:
    I have the antec 900 and it is an amazing case for cooling. space is a little bit of an issue with crossfire/sli but nothing too bad. and i absolutely love bottom mounted psu's, and the reviews on newegg say its better then the 900 and if thats the case its a pretty good case lol
  • sweavesweave boston
    edited October 2008
    sooo the 900 is better than the 900? ;)
    eitherway thanks for the reply
  • LeonardoLeonardo Wake up and smell the glaciers Eagle River, Alaska Icrontian
    edited October 2008
    Sweave, I apologize. My head was hurting over the 900 vs. 900 issue, so I didn't even think to comment on your proposed system. Motherboards. It's becoming very close to Socket 1366 introduction. You could wait for that, but prices will be higher and bugs won't be worked out.

    For Socket 775, the P35 chipset is a proven winner. X38 has now matured and is also very good. DDR3? Well, if you plan on upgrading again within the next couple of years, DDR3 would make sense. If you will keep your new system for two years without a motherboard upgrade, you might as well just stick with DDR2.

    Will you be overclocking? That would make a difference in the boards we would recommend.

    BTW, I've never been as satisfied with any motherboard as the Gigabyte Socket 775 boards I'm using now. My second pick would be either Asus or DFI, but then, I'm a helpless overclocker.
  • sweavesweave boston
    edited October 2008
    hmmm no he wont be overclocking i believe
    i know its close to the 1366 intro but he does need a computer in the next two weeks (as his old one died a few days ago) and i'm planning on talking to him about it.
    the cons are building it now would be older tech but then again it is reliable tech
    on the otherhand as you said the new tech will be more expensive.
    i believe he is thinking of upgrading every two years or whatever.
  • sweavesweave boston
    edited October 2008
    k so gonna recommend either the GA-EP45-UD3R or the ud3p motherboard for him
    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128359&Tpk=GA-EP45-UD3R
    (both are the same except one has 2 pci2 slots and the other has one)

    as far as i can tell i think the true black will fit this motherboard without any problems (it isnt on the compatability list but that doesnt say much really) but i was wondering if anyone could confirm this for me with some real world measurements if they have them.

    i'm using the tuniq (huge) tower on my ga-dq6 and all i had to do was remove the crazy cool fin which this mobo doesnt seem to have anything similar too so i think it should be okay.
  • LeonardoLeonardo Wake up and smell the glaciers Eagle River, Alaska Icrontian
    edited October 2008
    Well, with that explanation, X38 or P35 would serve him well. Unless you find a very good deal on DDR3, I don't see a problem with 4GB of 1066 DDR2. For my computers, I prefer RAM quantity over speed usually. Your case selection is very good, however you might want to consider the Antec 900. It looks to me though, that the Tempest is somewhat of a copy of the 900, or at least influenced by it. Either would be good cases. Your PSU selection is very good. He'll be able to use that in future upgrades without a hiccup. I think the CPU heatsink selection is definitely overkill. Save him some money but get top notch performance and low noise with either the OCZ Vendetta 2 or the Sunbeamtech Core Contact Freezer. (Actually, the V2 has become very popular and it's price has risen from what it used to be.)

    Buddy J's motherboard selections are excellent. If no overclocking and no SLI though, you could save your friend some money with very good, high quality boards at or under $100. In that category, here are a couple solid options:

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128337
    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128345
    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128359

    Of the three I linked, I think the best value is with the third one. It's $104 after $15 rebate. It also has three PCI slots, which would give your friend flexibility with add-ons.

    EDIT: Ah, we posted simultaneously concerning the UD3R. :)
  • _k_k P-Town, Texas Icrontian
    edited October 2008
    The UD3R is pretty much the best for the dollar right now plus you get the raid and the faster native memory speeds. Recommend the Sunbeam right now, on sale at newegg currently. The V2 I really like. Both come with really nice fans, be careful you will get cut during install. The V2 at newegg is 50, same price as Microcenter if you have any close to you...the V2 can be improved if you get a back plate for it. That PSU is over kill, go with the 610 and save some money(~$40).
  • sweavesweave boston
    edited October 2008
    thanks guys
    well i talked to him again today and we pretty much have the pieces marked out
    chose the ud3r
    he isnt going to oc or sli and doesnt ever think he will so no problems there.
    got the e8500 cpu since it came as a combo deal with the motherboard :)
    he picked out a 1tb western digital caviar hard drive which i was fine with but i do prefer seagate myself :)
    he chose a evga 9800gt card.
    as far as ram goes i picked out the ocz ddr 800 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227267) reaper.
    i told him about the psu and how he can use that well into the future without any problems.
    he had one psu/case combo deal picked out which i vetoed (it was some no name psu...)

    thanks for your thoughts on the cpu cooler :)
    i started having doubts about the true black since he isnt going to oc so a lesser one would be a good idea indeed.
    we decided to install the stock one at first and see how it goes and if he needs it i told him we can easily isntall one in the future.

    going to scan over everything first thing in the morning and then give him the okay to order everything

    all in all i the total comes out to about $860 which is below the original $1200 budget we had :)
    time to convince him to invest in neon, and leds and stuff then

    frankly he is rather giddy with the build since it's going to be his first home made unit as opposed to a pre-built dell or whatever.
  • LeonardoLeonardo Wake up and smell the glaciers Eagle River, Alaska Icrontian
    edited October 2008
    he is rather giddy with the build since it's going to be his first home made unit as opposed to a pre-built dell or whatever
    Hey, that's reason enough in my book to be excited! He's coursed now. No more bland appliances from the big brands and store shelves!
  • sweavesweave boston
    edited October 2008
    okay update time.
    we built the pc last night and everything went off without a hitch.
    the tempest had plenty of room to spare and the pre-drilled holes in the case were great for routing cables.
    on the other hand the great and awesome pc power and cooling psu does come with a lot of cable and a lot of lonnnnng calbe so we had to tuck, tie, and hide a lot of stuff :)
    i walked him thru how everything is connected and had him connect a bunch of items in as well so he seems to have a pretty good idea of how things are done so he should be able to do minor maintenance and upgrade work fairly well.
    one con with the tempest is that you have to remove the front panel if you're going to add drives which i think is a bit of a pain but overall it's not something you're going to be doing too often so meh.
    the only doa component was the top rear exhaust fan on the case which isnt too much of an issue and he will be getting that replaced asap.
    the problems started when we tried to install the os (vista) and for some reason it would not install. it would get past the loading files screen and where it's supposed to start giving you options for what to install we would just see the fancy background image and get no prompts whatsoever.
    luckily he had an copy of xp lying about so we installed that and it began formatting the 1tb harddrive to ntfs...... was going to take forever and it was 1am so we called it a night.

    i must say i do like the revisions they made to the gigabyte ud3r motherboard over my dq6 which i got last august. the heatsinks weren't in the way like that one and the audio block was moved over a bit so that it wasnt right in between other components making it a pain to install.
  • BuddyJBuddyJ Dept. of Propaganda OKC Icrontian
    edited October 2008
    Glad everything worked out well and that we were able to help. Your friend has a great rig now. Good job!
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