My first build, parts list

v6z24e

New Member
HI. My name is Eric. I’m new to the forums and am going to attempt my first pc build over the next few months. I’ve read up on a few sites what to look for and got a mod book to read though, so I’m not completely in the dark. I have a friend at work that recommended newegg.com to me for parts, so everything I priced is there.

The PC will be used for net surfing, I-tunes, DVD watching, games, nothing to hardcore, but I want it to last a couple years if possible. I do want to be able to have it run to my HD-TV. A great video card to play games and DVD/Blue Ray movies at top quality is a must. Learning how to build it should save money in the long run if I know what it is capable of and when to upgrade or replace.



Here is a breakdown of what I’m looking to get-
(all going in an Antec Nine-Hundred case that I already bought)


CPU- AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ Windsor 3.0GHz http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16819103773


Cooling- um…look at the case. LOL, do I need it? I will add a CPU fan/heat sink, the Video card has a fan.
----- ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 64 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16835185125

Motherboard- ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe AM2 NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI MCP ATX AMD http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16813131013

Video Card- XFX PVT80GGHD4 GeForce 8800GTS 320MB 320-bit GDDR3 http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16814150173

Sound Card- motherboard has 5.1 on it, will upgrade later if needed
Speakers- have a 2.1 system from old pc, will get 5.1 off e-bay later

OS- Microsoft Windows XP Home With SP2B http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16832116056


Hard Drive- I have a 20gig and an 80gig from old pc, reuse? I was thinking of the 20gig for the OS and adding two new ~150 (one for games, programs, junk, and the other for I-tunes and movies) good idea bad idea? Is the 10k rpm worth the money over a 7.2k?
-----Western Digital Raptor X WD1500AHFD 150GB 10,000 RPM 16MB http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16822136011
----- Western Digital Caviar RE WD1600YS 160GB 7200 RPM 16MB http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16822136062


Optical Drive- Have a external DVD-RW drive and a internal CD-RW from old pc, will add a Blue-Ray later


Monitor, Mouse, Keyboard- Have from old pc, may get a 22” widescreen and gaming keyboard later. No rush though, any keyboard works, and my HD TV will do good for now


Anti-virus, Spam protection- I have no idea in this department. What do you recommend?


Memory- How do you tell what is good? Is the top dollar better than the cheapo kind? I want 4gig total, but will likely buy two 1gig sticks for now and get two more later. Here is what I was looking at-
-----CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820145589
-----CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820145590
----- G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820231098

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What I’d like to know is-

Will these all work well together?

Is this a good build that will last, games and speed?

Is this setup a good mix of max performance without getting the most expensive parts?

Should I look into Video card/Memory cooling units?

What am I forgetting?

Any advise/tips for first build?

I know I don’t have a Power Supply on the list. I have no idea how to understand them yet. What will have enough leads for my rig? Is it possible to run two at once? Good idea, bad idea, overkill, not possible?
ideally something that looks good in side window. This maybe- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817190012

What am I missing?



Thanks for any help.

Eric
 
looks pretty good, and would be able to play most games maxed. For the power supply i would recommend either a Corsair 520w/620w or a OCZ GameXStream 600w/700w. Unless you just have money to blow i would get the $81 set of corsair (im ordering another set :D)

Motherboard- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131013

The new 590sli chipsets are the best but if your not going to use sli the 570 is ok (570- SLI mode x8/x8)(590- SLI mode x16/x16)

Also if you don't plan to overclock the 6000 is a great chip for the price, but if you want to OC then the intel E6550/6750 would be better

The retail will come with a stock heatstink, but aftermarket is better :P

Edit: and one more thing, in order to use DX10 you must have vista... otherwise xp is good
 
imo go with the E6550 on intel's side...easily oceable to like 3.4 ghz w/ a $40 fan, and it's only like $25 more. If you go with intel, get 680i chipset. And go with vista, it's nice, and it's not as bad as everyone makes it sound. And in maybe 1 to 1 1/2 year, vista will be the standard, and you'll have to get it to run DX10. If you're getting a DX10 card, why don't you get a DX10 OS?
 
imo go with the E6550 on intel's side...easily oceable to like 3.4 ghz w/ a $40 fan, and it's only like $25 more. If you go with intel, get 680i chipset. And go with vista, it's nice, and it's not as bad as everyone makes it sound. And in maybe 1 to 1 1/2 year, vista will be the standard, and you'll have to get it to run DX10. If you're getting a DX10 card, why don't you get a DX10 OS?

If you were to get intel..

SLI: 680i chipset (basicly a renamed 590 chip for intel)
Non SLI: a Gigabyte P-35 DS3 or DS3L
 
HI. My name is Eric. I’m new to the forums and am going to attempt my first pc build over the next few months. I’ve read up on a few sites what to look for and got a mod book to read though, so I’m not completely in the dark. I have a friend at work that recommended newegg.com to me for parts, so everything I priced is there.

The PC will be used for net surfing, I-tunes, DVD watching, games, nothing to hardcore, but I want it to last a couple years if possible. I do want to be able to have it run to my HD-TV. A great video card to play games and DVD/Blue Ray movies at top quality is a must. Learning how to build it should save money in the long run if I know what it is capable of and when to upgrade or replace.



Here is a breakdown of what I’m looking to get-
(all going in an Antec Nine-Hundred case that I already bought)


CPU- AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ Windsor 3.0GHz http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16819103773


Cooling- um…look at the case. LOL, do I need it? I will add a CPU fan/heat sink, the Video card has a fan.
----- ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 64 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16835185125

Motherboard- ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe AM2 NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI MCP ATX AMD http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16813131013

Video Card- XFX PVT80GGHD4 GeForce 8800GTS 320MB 320-bit GDDR3 http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16814150173

Sound Card- motherboard has 5.1 on it, will upgrade later if needed
Speakers- have a 2.1 system from old pc, will get 5.1 off e-bay later

OS- Microsoft Windows XP Home With SP2B http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16832116056


Hard Drive- I have a 20gig and an 80gig from old pc, reuse? I was thinking of the 20gig for the OS and adding two new ~150 (one for games, programs, junk, and the other for I-tunes and movies) good idea bad idea? Is the 10k rpm worth the money over a 7.2k?
-----Western Digital Raptor X WD1500AHFD 150GB 10,000 RPM 16MB http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16822136011
----- Western Digital Caviar RE WD1600YS 160GB 7200 RPM 16MB http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16822136062


Optical Drive- Have a external DVD-RW drive and a internal CD-RW from old pc, will add a Blue-Ray later


Monitor, Mouse, Keyboard- Have from old pc, may get a 22” widescreen and gaming keyboard later. No rush though, any keyboard works, and my HD TV will do good for now


Anti-virus, Spam protection- I have no idea in this department. What do you recommend?


Memory- How do you tell what is good? Is the top dollar better than the cheapo kind? I want 4gig total, but will likely buy two 1gig sticks for now and get two more later. Here is what I was looking at-
-----CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820145589
-----CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820145590
----- G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820231098

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What I’d like to know is-

Will these all work well together?

Is this a good build that will last, games and speed?

Is this setup a good mix of max performance without getting the most expensive parts?

Should I look into Video card/Memory cooling units?

What am I forgetting?

Any advise/tips for first build?

I know I don’t have a Power Supply on the list. I have no idea how to understand them yet. What will have enough leads for my rig? Is it possible to run two at once? Good idea, bad idea, overkill, not possible?
ideally something that looks good in side window. This maybe- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817190012

What am I missing?



Thanks for any help.

Eric

The stock cooler for the 6000+ is fine. Unless your planning on heavy overclocking, then upgrade...

HDD - Pretty cheap these days. Excelstor 80GB SataII is $40. No. 10k is not worth it. Most likely you won't even notice that much of an difference, just an heat temperature increase.

OD - Blu day? Incredible. I think it's not worth it though, Blu Ray isn't even big right now. Too expensive and not very useful in the world of cheap modern technology.

RAM - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820144062

That's what I'd get. Great price after rebate.

Anti Virus / Spam - AVG and Avast both offer great free trial programs. Avast trial will suit you for life. Perfect software and program. Great as any other AV.

PSU - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341002

That one or the 620HX is your choice.
 
If you are going to build within few months, I will suggest you come back later since there will be new graphic card and new intel CPU availiable.
 
Thank you for the tips.

The 10K Raptor drive is out then. Way to much more if I'm not going to notice the difference.

I don;t plan on overclocking, Still to over my head and if i get good parts to start with i shouldn't need it, right? For the extra $20 I'll put a good heatsink and fan on the CPU.

As for the Vid card. overkill is o.k., I'd like it to last for a wile without bogging or becoming out of date. The games I'm looking to play are FPS's and real time strategy. Starcraft 2, World in Confect, MoH: Airborne, C&C 3, Bioshock, ect. I'm also worried about the Quality to my T.V. I don;t want it so stutter or anything. When games that i want require Visa I'll do that then. But for now I'm happy with XP on my laptop and will save the money there.

The CD drive- I was just listing for reference. dropping an extra 50ish on an internal DVD-R drive will happen. The Blue Ray comment is more of a next year kinda thing, I just want the CPU to be ready for it.

Will all power supples have enough connectors for this setup? what range watts should i look for? is it possible to overpower it?

Is there a major reason to stay away from AMD, my laptop has it and I've never had a prob so i was just gonna stay with that.

I'm not to worried about price as long as it will last. It will be up and running before X-mas, maybe before Thanksgiving if i get some good checks for my b-day next week.

Thanks again, Eric.

p.s.- What is SLI? Should i look for it? Do i need it?
 
Last edited:
Thank you for the tips.

The 10K Raptor drive is out then. Way to much more if I'm not going to notice the difference.

I don;t plan on overclocking, Still to over my head and if i get good parts to start with i shouldn't need it, right? For the extra $20 I'll put a good heatsink and fan on the CPU.

As for the Vid card. overkill is o.k., I'd like it to last for a wile without bogging or becoming out of date. The games I'm looking to play are FPS's and real time strategy. Starcraft 2, World in Confect, MoH: Airborne, C&C 3, Bioshock, ect. I'm also worried about the Quality to my T.V. I don;t want it so stutter or anything. When games that i want require Visa I'll do that then. But for now I'm happy with XP on my laptop and will save the money there.

The CD drive- I was just listing for reference. dropping an extra 50ish on an internal DVD-R drive will happen. The Blue Ray comment is more of a next year kinda thing, I just want the CPU to be ready for it.

Will all power supples have enough connectors for this setup? what range watts should i look for? is it possible to overpower it?

Is there a major reason to stay away from AMD, my laptop has it and I've never had a prob so i was just gonna stay with that.

I'm not to worried about price as long as it will last. It will be up and running before X-mas, maybe before Thanksgiving if i get some good checks for my b-day next week.

Thanks again, Eric.

p.s.- What is SLI? Should i look for it? Do i need it?

.
 
Thank you for the tips.

The 10K Raptor drive is out then. Way to much more if I'm not going to notice the difference.

I don;t plan on overclocking, Still to over my head and if i get good parts to start with i shouldn't need it, right? For the extra $20 I'll put a good heatsink and fan on the CPU.

As for the Vid card. overkill is o.k., I'd like it to last for a wile without bogging or becoming out of date. The games I'm looking to play are FPS's and real time strategy. Starcraft 2, World in Confect, MoH: Airborne, C&C 3, Bioshock, ect. I'm also worried about the Quality to my T.V. I don;t want it so stutter or anything. When games that i want require Visa I'll do that then. But for now I'm happy with XP on my laptop and will save the money there.

The CD drive- I was just listing for reference. dropping an extra 50ish on an internal DVD-R drive will happen. The Blue Ray comment is more of a next year kinda thing, I just want the CPU to be ready for it.

Will all power supples have enough connectors for this setup? what range watts should i look for? is it possible to overpower it?

Is there a major reason to stay away from AMD, my laptop has it and I've never had a prob so i was just gonna stay with that.

I'm not to worried about price as long as it will last. It will be up and running before X-mas, maybe before Thanksgiving if i get some good checks for my b-day next week.

Thanks again, Eric.

p.s.- What is SLI? Should i look for it? Do i need it?

If no overclocking the 6000 is a great chip for the price, the optical drive i would get a SATA model so you wouldn't have a bulky IDE cable. SLI is the option to run two identical video cards on the same board for more performance.


:confused:
 
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