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2007-05-18 17:58:38
Havok
Nymphomaniac Treatment Specialist
+302|6926|Florida, United States

Ok, as the subject says, I'm building my first custom computer with parts from Newegg.  So far, I have compiled this list of parts and I need you all to do a few things for me:

1. Tell me if it will all work.
2. Tell me if I'm spending too much or there are better parts for a similar price.

So, I have...

NZXT Zero Black/Silver Aluminum ATX Full Tower Computer Case
EVGA 122-CK-NF68-T1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard
FSP Group (Fortron Source) FSP700-80GLC ATX12V/ EPS12V 700W SLi Power Supply 90 - 264V CE,UL,CSA,TUV,NEMKO
New PSU --> SILVERSTONE ST75F ATX12V / EPS12V 750W Power Supply 115 - 240V
Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor
EVGA 768-P2-N831-AR GeForce 8800GTX 768MB 384-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card
CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
Western Digital Caviar SE WD3200AAJS 320GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
Western Digital Raptor WD1500ADFD 150GB 10,000 RPM 16MB Cache Serial ATA150 Hard Drive
Creative 70SB046A00000 7.1 Channels 24-bit 192KHz PCI Interface Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty Professional Series
SAMSUNG 906BW Black 19" 2 ms (GTG) DVI Widescreen LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 2000:1 DC
LITE-ON Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 20X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD Burner with LightScribe
LITE-ON Black 16X DVD-ROM 52X CD-R 32X CD-RW 52X CD-ROM 1.5MB Cache SATA Combo Drive
SAMSUNG Black 1.44MB 3.5" Internal Floppy Drive Model SFD321B/LBL1
ZALMAN CNPS9500 AT 2 Ball CPU Cooling Fan/Heatsink
Logitech X-530 70 watts RMS 5.1 Black Speaker System
New Speakers --> Creative Inspire P7800 90 Watts 7.1 Speaker
Razer Diamondback Plasma Blue 1600 dpi Gaming Mouse
New Mouse --> Logitech G5 2-Tone 6 Buttons 1 x Wheel USB Wired Laser Mouse
Microsoft Windows Vista 64-Bit Home Premium for System Builders Single Pack DVD

I already have a G15 keyboard, so I don't need another one of those.  The price (as of right now) for all of those parts is $2,364.75 $2,452.75, and I'd like to keep it under $2,500 if possible.  Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to answer me a few more questions:

(1. and 2. are above)
3. Is it incredibly complicated to install all of these parts?  I assume all of these come with some kind of installation manual, but I could be wrong.
4. How do I apply thermal paste to the CPU.  Do I just rub a small amount of it on the surface of the CPU?
5. Are heatsink fans hard to install?  I frequently hear problems that the fans don't always fit properly, and I'm trying to avoid as many problems as I can.
6. Will the Serial ATA 150 10K RPM harddrive work with my power supply and motherboard?  I know the specs on the mobo said it will accept ATA 100's, but it didn't say anything about 150's (nor did any other 680i mobo's I researched).
7. Since I may plan to SLI the 8800GTX in the future, will my power supply suffice, or will I need a new one when I plan to upgrade?


Those are my main concerns.  I was planning on getting one of ATI's DX10 cards when they released, but seeing how the 2900XT is having issues competing with the 8800GTS, I think I'll stick with nVidia for now.  I'm planning to proceed with this purchase around the 23rd of May (my last day of school), so I'd like some advice before I continue.  Do you think this rig will run Crysis on high settings by the time it's released?  I suspect it will, but I'd like to be certain.

Thanks to all who supply helpful responses.  Karma will follow to those who help.

Last edited by Havok (2007-05-23 12:23:04)

2007-05-18 18:05:08
gCASEy200
Banned
+40|6530|L-town MA
yes, that does look lika a decent set up, but it wont run cysis on high, maybe medium, but from what ive told, dual 8800gtxs barely play the game on high...
2007-05-18 18:06:54
Havok
Nymphomaniac Treatment Specialist
+302|6926|Florida, United States

gCASEy200 wrote:

yes, that does look lika a decent set up, but it wont run cysis on high, maybe medium, but from what ive told, dual 8800gtxs barely play the game on high...
Eh, if that's what it'll take, I'll upgrade it later.  This thing is costing a fortune already.
2007-05-18 18:09:11
gCASEy200
Banned
+40|6530|L-town MA

Havok wrote:

gCASEy200 wrote:

yes, that does look lika a decent set up, but it wont run cysis on high, maybe medium, but from what ive told, dual 8800gtxs barely play the game on high...
Eh, if that's what it'll take, I'll upgrade it later.  This thing is costing a fortune already.
yes i see your concern, but i wouldnt go with the 150gig raptor, go smaller if you can, less expensive, i had the same one, had many problems with it, they replaced it, and still had mayn problems but thats just me..i personally cant tell the diference between a 7400rpm and a 10,000 rpm but
2007-05-18 18:11:25
gCASEy200
Banned
+40|6530|L-town MA
and ya, get a G5, no razor shit
2007-05-18 18:13:34
Havok
Nymphomaniac Treatment Specialist
+302|6926|Florida, United States

gCASEy200 wrote:

Havok wrote:

gCASEy200 wrote:

yes, that does look lika a decent set up, but it wont run cysis on high, maybe medium, but from what ive told, dual 8800gtxs barely play the game on high...
Eh, if that's what it'll take, I'll upgrade it later.  This thing is costing a fortune already.
yes i see your concern, but i wouldnt go with the 150gig raptor, go smaller if you can, less expensive, i had the same one, had many problems with it, they replaced it, and still had mayn problems but thats just me..i personally cant tell the diference between a 7400rpm and a 10,000 rpm but
I just looked up prices and with a rebate, the 150GB is about $170, but some 74GB are about $140.  I'll pay $30 to double up on harddrive space.  Thanks for your input though.

gCASEy200 wrote:

and ya, get a G5, no razor shit
The Razor is slightly cheaper and has one more button.  And I prefer the look of the Razor .

Last edited by Havok (2007-05-18 18:17:30)

2007-05-18 18:17:39
-botivix-
Damn
+23|6977|Not Scotland Anymore!

gCASEy200 wrote:

and ya, get a G5, no razor shit
Shit? The razor f'ckin owns.
2007-05-18 18:18:25
gCASEy200
Banned
+40|6530|L-town MA

-botivix- wrote:

gCASEy200 wrote:

and ya, get a G5, no razor shit
Shit? The razor f'ckin owns.
ive had both, i personally like the g5 a shitload more and the g7 is decent to, just needs to charge, always forget
not a fan of the razor
2007-05-18 18:21:59
MECtallica
Member
+73|6755|jalalabad
3. Is it incredibly complicated to install all of these parts?  I assume all of these come with some kind of installation manual, but I could be wrong.
For the most part, it's actually PRETTY EASY, to install all the parts, you just have to be EXTREMELY DELICATE! THERE ARE SOME SHARP PARTS!

most motherboards come with manuals. and there are a few sites showing how to install parts. ALWAYS REMEMBER TO GROUND YOURSELF, DISCHARGE ALL STATIC ELECTRICTY

4. How do I apply thermal paste to the CPU.  Do I just rub a small amount of it on the surface of the CPU?

get articsilver 5, put a little dab (about the size of 1.5+ grains of rice) on the processor, and thats it. if you get extremely high temps, you might need to spread it around with a credit card type object, or put more/less
5. Are heatsink fans hard to install?  I frequently hear problems that the fans don't always fit properly, and I'm trying to avoid as many problems as I can.

they aren't too hard, but some can be tricky, my current HSF was a little hard to get on, not forcefully but the way each clip attaches to the plastic holder thing, some CPU fans/hs require a lot of work to install, like removing the plastic brackets and such.

6. Will the Serial ATA 150 10K RPM harddrive work with my power supply and motherboard?  I know the specs on the mobo said it will accept ATA 100's, but it didn't say anything about 150's (nor did any other 680i mobo's I researched). serial ata= SATA, so the powersupply should work, and I really don't know about your mobo supporting sata 1.5, try to find a sata 3gb/s with 10krpm? also the wikipedia article shows 1.5gb/s drives should work with 3gb/s but just to be absolutely safe get the 3gb/s, because 1.5gb/s is older tech.

7. Since I may plan to SLI the 8800GTX in the future, will my power supply suffice, or will I need a new one when I plan to upgrade?

you will definately need a power supply with more watts and ampage, if you plan on overclocking, which I think you will, it consumes more wattage.





Also if any of my information is wrong please notify me in the topic or PM, I'm not a certified tech guy, I'm a 16 year old red-head living in missouri

my notes also

I would recommend a higher quality PSU with more reviews and such, and cut down the optical drives maybe? 70$ for two drives is kind of , hmmm, pricey? the extra cash could goes toward something else, like a power supply >_>.

I don't know if the 6420 conroe is better than the 6600 but they are somewhat close when OC'd

if you are most definately going SLI stick with the 680i, but if not for a long time go 650i

Last edited by MECtallica (2007-05-18 18:24:50)

2007-05-18 18:23:24
RoosterCantrell
Goodbye :)
+399|6731|Somewhere else

The Razor's random "may not turn on when computer boots" crap gets old quick...
2007-05-18 18:33:48
Havok
Nymphomaniac Treatment Specialist
+302|6926|Florida, United States

Thanks for the advice MECtallica.  Do you have any PSU's or optical drives that you would recommend?  I'm sure I can find a better harddrive on my own, but I lack the understanding of finding a decent PSU or disk drive.  If you (or anyone) could, I'd prefer a drive that is both CD and DVD with the ability to burn both CD's and DVD's.  I don't know how many watts a good PSU should have.
2007-05-18 18:36:22
san4
The Mas
+311|6939|NYC, a place to live
That looks like a kick-ass system. The only issue I see is maybe 2GB ram isn't enough for something so high-end.

Lol @ installation manuals. I've never seen a really good one, and the vast majority are terrible. If/when you run into problems, you will probably want to get online. If you've got another machine you can use to search for answers, that would be very useful.

I've never used Vista and I hope I never have to. I don't like what I've heard about it, though. If you don't have to use Vista, I would stick with XP. Just my personal, totally uninformed view.
2007-05-18 18:44:51
MECtallica
Member
+73|6755|jalalabad
well most PSUs at 700-1000watts+ or most definately "high quality" and sufficient  for SLI 8800GTXs and overclocking, but most names that come to mind for me are antec, thermaltake. (that are great, experienced makers of power supplies) and sometimes newegg doesnt always have the best computer parts, but a majority.

also 64bit vista is just ergh, just do 32bit.

I'm also not a big fan of using optical drives, my basic 3 year old dvd drive and cd drive do all my installations fine. also with games mini images seem to work better than having the game in the drive, AND are 100% quieter .

Last edited by MECtallica (2007-05-18 18:47:33)

2007-05-19 01:33:00
kylef
Gone
+1,352|6744|N. Ireland
Case: If you are getting such a good system, get such a good case. Go for something more sturdy like a P182 or Stacker 832.

Motherboard: Quite nice again, although I was hearing BIOS problems in the latest revision. Perhaps that's all changed though - I suggest you do some research.

PSU: PSU is the most important part of your system, and I've never even heard of that brand in any high-end systems. I don't recommend it, go with something beefier, like a Seasonic or Antec or something.

CPU: Nice. I recommend you overclock it to at least E6700 speeds.

Video: That is a nice 8800GTX! Go for it.

RAM: I have the same stuff and it works wonders.

Hard Drive(s): Generally quite nice. You might fill 320GB quite quick with media etc but other than that, they are a nice set of drives.

Sound Card: Very nice, I've read good reviews too.

Monitor: Samsung really do make quality monitors. One of my friends has almost the same one and I LOVE it!

DVD-RW: Lightscribe SATA ftw.

Floppy: Lose it! You don't need it. At all.

CPU Fan: Quite nice although with such an extreme system, I'd have loved to see something better.

Speakers: Don't. You are getting an amazing sound card, and speakers that even cost less than it. These are budget 5.1 and will NOT sound as good as Creative's proper 5.1 range, if necessary lose some stuff, just don't get these. You have an amazing soundcard, don't let it go to waste.

Mouse: I like it, but I recommend a G5 or even a G7 if you are into gaming mice.

OS: Love it
2007-05-19 05:25:41
Zimmer
Un Moderador
+1,688|7007|Scotland

G5 or G7. Trust me, they are better.
They are made for the contours of someones hand, unlike the Razor which is just a plain old mouse with a good DPI ( but not as good as the G5 or G7 ).
2007-05-19 05:55:24
kylef
Gone
+1,352|6744|N. Ireland
I love them, but aren't they designed for right-handed people? I'd rather go with the G5 solely for fear of wireless dropping out in a game. And the cost:performance ratio for a wireless gaming mouse isn't exactly the best.
2007-05-19 05:58:49
Bertster7
Confused Pothead
+1,101|6832|SE London

Very nice looking system.

gCASEy200 wrote:

yes, that does look lika a decent set up, but it wont run cysis on high, maybe medium, but from what ive told, dual 8800gtxs barely play the game on high...
That's bollocks. It'll run Crysis just fine. Someone has been listening to untrue internet rumours.
2007-05-19 06:16:22
ghettoperson
Member
+1,943|6900

Zimmer wrote:

G5 or G7. Trust me, they are better.
They are made for the contours of someones hand, unlike the Razor which is just a plain old mouse with a good DPI ( but not as good as the G5 or G7 ).
I wub G5's. I actually like the feel of them a lot more than the G7, plus wireless mice are FTL.
2007-05-19 07:02:58
Cerpin_Taxt
Member
+155|6454
Why do you have 3 optical drives? You can cut that rig's price in half (well, almost) and still retain the same performance.

Last edited by Cerpin_Taxt (2007-05-19 07:03:24)

2007-05-19 07:55:38
=Karma-Kills=
"Don't post while intoxicated."
+356|6835|England

Bertster7 wrote:

Very nice looking system.

gCASEy200 wrote:

yes, that does look lika a decent set up, but it wont run cysis on high, maybe medium, but from what ive told, dual 8800gtxs barely play the game on high...
That's bollocks. It'll run Crysis just fine. Someone has been listening to untrue internet rumours.
I agree.

What developer is going to launch a game that only 0.000000000001 % of the audience can play? Yeh i heard BF4 is gona need Quad Sli, 2 Quad Core processors, 16GB RAM... but hey at least it looks pretty.

Havok - that will easily run Crysis.

http://www.crysis-online.com/Informatio … uirements/

A 7600GT is reccomended for Crysis, a 6200 minimum FFS!

Last edited by =Karma-Kills= (2007-05-19 07:57:41)

2007-05-19 08:00:37
SEREMAKER
BABYMAKIN EXPERT √
+2,187|6819|Mountains of NC

Your Brother could help you

https://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i175/Markdeejay/untitled2.jpg
https://static.bf2s.com/files/user/17445/carhartt.jpg
2007-05-19 08:12:14
Zimmer
Un Moderador
+1,688|7007|Scotland

ghettoperson wrote:

Zimmer wrote:

G5 or G7. Trust me, they are better.
They are made for the contours of someones hand, unlike the Razor which is just a plain old mouse with a good DPI ( but not as good as the G5 or G7 ).
I wub G5's. I actually like the feel of them a lot more than the G7, plus wireless mice are FTL.
How so? Because you lose 0.00001 reaction time on the mouse? Or because you are scared it is going to stop connection sometimes?
First of all, the time it takes for the mouse signal to reach the G7 pod is incredibly so small. So small a human being could NOT notice.
Second, I have never, ever had a wireless drop out. It has NEVER disconnected itself from the wireless connection. No wires = nicer, cleaner and no stupid hassle.
2007-05-19 08:25:11
Cerpin_Taxt
Member
+155|6454
The G7 needs a forward button. I also don't like the idea of having to manually switch out the battery packs. I'd prefer a charging dock like my current MX700.
2007-05-19 08:31:44
Havok
Nymphomaniac Treatment Specialist
+302|6926|Florida, United States

Well I'd like to thank all those who have posted useful information.  For those of you who suggested changing out certain parts for a better brand, could you give me a few examples of better products?  I like the look of the Stacker 832 case, but it's $100 more than my selected case, and I fear that if I get it, I won't have enough money left over to change out other parts.

Also, would this be a better system of speakers?
2007-05-19 08:37:32
Hurricane
Banned
+1,153|6881|Washington, DC

Zimmer wrote:

ghettoperson wrote:

Zimmer wrote:

G5 or G7. Trust me, they are better.
They are made for the contours of someones hand, unlike the Razor which is just a plain old mouse with a good DPI ( but not as good as the G5 or G7 ).
I wub G5's. I actually like the feel of them a lot more than the G7, plus wireless mice are FTL.
How so? Because you lose 0.00001 reaction time on the mouse? Or because you are scared it is going to stop connection sometimes?
First of all, the time it takes for the mouse signal to reach the G7 pod is incredibly so small. So small a human being could NOT notice.
Second, I have never, ever had a wireless drop out. It has NEVER disconnected itself from the wireless connection. No wires = nicer, cleaner and no stupid hassle.
What he said. People who fret about wireless mice are probably the same people who fret about drinking bottled water because it MIGHT have a MINISCULE TRACE AMOUNT of carcinogens from the plastic.

 

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