Need a Build from $700-$900

I would suggest you use NCIX.com since they do price match or Directcanada.com since they are quite cheap and don't charge for shipping. Also, if they are not located in the same province as you live in, you will save PST.

Also, if you do not oc, I'd suggest some DDR2-667 so you can save some money and not change your performance.

DirectCanada.com

Intel E6550 194.26$
Asus P5B 121.72$
Corsair XMS2 DDR2-667 91.14$
Corsair 520HX 109.18$ (99.18 after MIR)
EVGA 8600GTS 178.88$
Apevia X-Discovery 73.44$
Western Digital 250gb SATAII 68.99$
Windows Vista Home Premium 64bit 121.12$

Total 958.73$ + GST (57.52$) = 1016.25$
If you don't take more than the basic insurance, that is ur final shipped cost. I took the freedom to change the PSU to another one which is of high quality and to change the HDD for a cheaper one from a major brand. To save more, you could go with a Cooler Master Centurion 534 case, but that would only save you 20$ and you'd lose the look which I think you liked. Then again, you could go with an Antec Sonata III case and use the PSU which comes with it. It is not as high quality as the Corsair one, but it is an Antec Earth Watts 500Watt, for 122.97, it saves you almost 60$, so you get to about 950 with taxes.
 
martyvice said:
Or would this one be better?

http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.php?PageTag=&page=file&memx_menu=FramePreconfigDetail.php&id=25

$100 cheaper, not sure how the 2600XT and the 8600GT compare. Or the E6550 and the X2 5200+.

I heard the Athlon processors heat up much more and use up more power though.
Click to expand...


I would stay away from AMD right now, maybe in the future they will regain their strength, But for now Intel is the way to go.

If you can not afford the system Kilauea posted, then I would go with that pre built system I posted. It is totally upgradeable, so you can always upgrade as you can afford it.
 
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I agree Kilauea's build is good for the money, but to be honest I have a problem ordering online. Thus why I picked memoryexpress. I also would prefer to pick it up in person.

But I'll definatly look into it, never heard of that site before, but it looks good.

And as for the case, I don't care about looks at all, just as long as it's good for cooling.
 
Well look at this build I just came up with:

CPU:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.php?PageTag=&page=file&memx_menu=EmbedProductDetail.php&DisplayProductID=10660&SID=220632

Motherboard:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index....ctDetail.php&DisplayProductID=8610&SID=220632

RAM:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index....ctDetail.php&DisplayProductID=8743&SID=220632

Video Card:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index....tDetail.php&DisplayProductID=10119&SID=220632

Case With Power Supply:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index....tDetail.php&DisplayProductID=10402&SID=220632

OS:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index....ctDetail.php&DisplayProductID=9699&SID=220632

Thermal Compound:
Artic Silver 3.5g $9.99

I also included Assembly for $40, so they assemble it and becasue of that I get a 1 year warranty.

Total came out to $912

Didnt include a hard drive as that would have brought it up too much, Can I use my current 160GB IDE hard drive, will my mobo support it?

Also do I need thermal compound? or does it come with it?
 
The ram you have listed is not listed as being supported by that motherboard. Does that mean it will not work in it? No, just means it's not listed. If they are going to build it, then let them worry about that. :) It should be fine.
 
Did you say you wanted to do some video editing? Are you going to need a firewire 1394 connection to a video camera? If so that motherboard will not work. It has no firewire connections.

Oh yeah, forgot. Your existing HD will be fine with it. But you will have to reformat it before installing windows. And if they are going to build the system, will they let you use an old HD?

Make sure you format it before taking it to the store to be installed, you don't want them messing around with your info.

The CPU you selected comes with a fan and it has it's own thermal paste already on it. Is that the best solution? No, but it will be fine.
 
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No I won't be doing anything like that. That motherboard is a high quality one though right.

I've heard many good things about it.

Will I be able to hook up my IDE hard drive to it though.

Edit: And really, the memory isn't supported?

It says it's DDR2 667 in the side columm.

IS it because it says 675 in the description?

Edit 2: So it's better to apply your own thermal paste? if it doesn't make that much of a difference then I'll just leave it.
 
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The 667 is supported, but the model number of your ram was not. Sometimes that is a big deal, especially with Asus boards, but I hear Gigabyte is not as picky, so it should not be a problem.

I would only change the thermal paste if you start having overheating problems. Usually the paste that comes on it is fine. But if you were to do any overclocking I would strongly suggest you change it out.

I prefer gigabyte motherboards, so you will not hear a bad word from me about your choice.
 
One more thing, are you going to re use your existing optical drive? If not then you will need to add that to the price, but they are very cheap, a good one will cost around $30 USD.

Umm.. forgot to ask, do you know the speed of your existing HD? If it is a 5400 rpm drive then I would get a new one. Those are so slow it's not funny. You need at least a 7200 rpm drive with a Western Digital 10,000 rpm raptor being the fastest. But those cost a bit much right now.

I would suggest this one, I love WD drives, and I am not a fan of seagate. But that's up to you.

http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.php?PageTag=&page=file&memx_menu=EmbedProductDetail.php&DisplayProductID=5968&SID=220632
 
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martyvice said:
Well look at this build I just came up with:

CPU:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.php?PageTag=&page=file&memx_menu=EmbedProductDetail.php&DisplayProductID=10660&SID=220632

Motherboard:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index....ctDetail.php&DisplayProductID=8610&SID=220632

RAM:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index....ctDetail.php&DisplayProductID=8743&SID=220632

Video Card:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index....tDetail.php&DisplayProductID=10119&SID=220632

Case With Power Supply:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index....tDetail.php&DisplayProductID=10402&SID=220632

OS:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index....ctDetail.php&DisplayProductID=9699&SID=220632

Thermal Compound:
Artic Silver 3.5g $9.99

I also included Assembly for $40, so they assemble it and becasue of that I get a 1 year warranty.

Total came out to $912

Didnt include a hard drive as that would have brought it up too much, Can I use my current 160GB IDE hard drive, will my mobo support it?


Also do I need thermal compound? or does it come with it?
Click to expand...
A 512mb 8500GT would be a better preformer. Anyhow up to you. You just moving from a 512 down to a 256mb good luck
 
A 512mb 8500GT would be a better preformer. Anyhow up to you. You just moving from a 512 down to a 256mb good luck
Click to expand...

No man, you will barely see any difference between 256MB and 512MB version

I would get the 256MB since it is cheaper..........
 
How does the 8600GT compare to DX9 cards. Is it on par with a 7950GT??

Because a 7950GT is much more expensive than a 8600GT.
 
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