Re: First Home-Built PC

On Aug 4, 8:34 pm, "Dave" <no...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
"Ethan" <ethanhe...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message

news:73789b5b-373f-4c6d-b382-fbf6e85b20b6@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Hi! I am looking to build my first DIY system, and I just want to make
sure that it will perform decently. I'm looking for a mid-range system
that won't break the bank. What do you think about the components
below?

Western Digital Caviar SE WD3200AAJS 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard
Drive

Great start

BIOSTAR A770 A2+ AM2+/AM2 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard

Interesting choice, going with an AMD chipset with an nvidia graphics card.
But it should work great.  And I'm not suggesting you change this.  It is a
good choice, just "interesting"  :)

XFX PVT84JYDF3 GeForce 8600 GT 512MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16

Awesome

Antec earthwatts EA380 380W ATX12V v2.0 Power Supply

OK, I'm not 100% sure on this.  If any 380W power supply will handle this
rig, the earthwatts series, made by Seasonic, is the safest bet.  I'd feel
better if that power supply were slightly larger though, like around 450 or
500W.  You don't need something huge, but 380W might not be much of a margin
above necessary power requirements.  You could bump up to the 500W version
of this same power supply.  But of course, it costs a little more.

AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ Windsor 3.0GHz Socket AM2 125W Dual-Core
Processor Model ADX6000CZBOX

Is this retail?  If not, you will need a cooler for it.

Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit English for System
Builders 1pk DSP OEI DVD

OK

CORSAIR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual
Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X4096-6400C5

Overkill.  I'd suggest you drop to 2GB of RAM (1 stick), and use the money
saved to upgrade to the 500W version of your power supply.  You won't miss
the extra RAM (really!) and you can always add more RAM later, but it's a
bit harder to change the power supply if you find it isn't adequate.

COOLER MASTER Elite 330 RC-330-KKN1-GP Black SECC ATX Mid Tower
Computer Case

nice

(Link:

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumbe...
048)



I can get all these with rebates for $569.93 + shipping. What do you
think?

You obviously did your homework.  I have a feeling if you went with your
original list, no modifications, you'd probably be very happy with the
results.  But again, if it was my build, I'd go with a slightly larger power
supply and less RAM to start with.  On a side note, what monitor are you
using?  I hope it's something decent, like a 19" or larger LCD.  :)  Oh, and
you don't mention a DVD burner.  If you are buying one, make sure that it
comes with some version of Nero *7* (even the cheapie essentials), as
previous versions don't work on Vista.  Something like the following, for
example.  -Dave

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106265

Wow! Thanks for the great suggestions, everyone... I've upgraded the
power supply to 500W of the same brand, dialed the RAM down to 2gb,
and the OS to 32-bit. The CPU is retail, and it comes with a heatsink
and fan... I think I'm going to wait until I have it all installed to
see how much room there is for a more elaborate cooling system. Great
suggestion for the DVD burner, as well... I was just going to bring
over my old DVD drive that wasn't a burner, but for $30 I'm happy to
free up an additional IDE slot so I can bring over both my original
hard drives. Here's the updated list (I think this link works):

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=8579052

Thanks again for the great pointers!

Ethan
.

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