Need help for first build

M

mhbmk

New Member
As the topic states, this is my first stab at a diy. I went on Newegg and found a starter deal that gave me about 85$ off, which keeps me in the 1000-1200 range which is where I want to be. Any suggestions? I'm shooting for an all purpose PC - gaming, movies and mixing music. Not trying to kill my PC for games tho, just Starcraft II next month, Bioshock, Orange box, ect. big name titles. Feel free to break up the combo if you can keep me in my target range.

Combo:
{
mobo: ASUS Socket AM3 AMD 785G HDMI ATX Motherboard (Model: M4A785TD-V EVO) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131398&cm_re=M4A785TD-V_EVO-_-13-131-398-_-Product

CPU: AMD Phenom II X6 1055T (Thuban) 2.8GHz 6 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Six-Core Desktop Processor (Model: HDT55TFBGRBOX) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103851&Tpk=HDT55TFBGRBOX

RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Dual Channel Desktop Memory Kit (Model: F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277&Tpk=F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL

Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 1TB 7200RPM 32MB cache SATA II 3.5" Internal Hard Drive (Model: ST3100528AS) – OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148445&cm_re=Seagate_Barracuda-_-22-148-445-_-Product ***This one makes me nervous, don't know how good it is, but it's part of the combo.***

Power Source: OCZ ModXStream Pro 700W ATX12V v2.2/ EPS12V SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80Plus Certified Modular Active PFX PSU (Model: OCZ700MZSP) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341018&Tpk=OCZ%20ModXStream%20Pro%20700W

Case: Thermaltake Element G Black ATX Mid Tower Computer Case (Model: VL10001W2Z) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133086&cm_re=Thermaltake_Element_G_Black-_-11-133-086-_-Product
} 614$
**the rest of the stuff is not in the combo:

video card: GIGABYTE GV-R485OC-1GH Radeon HD 4850 1GB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125236

audio card: Creative 70SB088000004 7.1 Channels PCI Express 1x Interface PCI Express Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102024 ***maybe I'll skimp on this and use the onboard. But if I'm going through all the trouble to get 1080p I might as well get a card right?***

Optical Drive: LITE-ON Black 4X Blu-ray Disc Reader SATA Model iHOS104-08 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106326

Screen: ASUS VH232H Glossy Black 23" 5ms Widescreen Full HD 1080p LCD Monitor w/Speakers & HDMI http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236079

total comes to 1,016$. Help a newbie out?
 
not bad, i would advise against the seagate, but since it comes in the package just spend $100 a year from now when it goes for a dump (keep regular backups) and replace it with a Western Digital.
That video card is a bit dated, i'd go for the 5750 or 5850 at a minimum (and they dont cost too much more)
Audio - why bother, you've already got 8-channel built in

Congrat's on your first build - it'll be lots of fun once you're done.

What are you using for an OS? Did u factor that into your build price? Aside from that just keyboard & mouse!
 
thanks for the reply RC, I was thinking Ubuntu for the OS, and with the money I'd save kicking out the audio card I can definitely afford a better video card. come to think of it, that would have been intelligent to begin with :D Well that's why I'm a noob. I figured the X-fi was worth something, but I also read reviews that said developers weren't using it for newer games anyway.
 
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mhbmk said:
thanks for the reply RC, I was thinking Ubuntu for the OS, and with the money I'd save kicking out the audio card I can definitely afford a better video card. come to think of it, that would have been intelligent to begin with :D Well that's why I'm a noob.
Click to expand...

well remember windows game might not work in wine which is a program the run windows games in ubuntu
 
mhbmk said:
thanks for the reply RC, I was thinking Ubuntu for the OS, and with the money I'd save kicking out the audio card I can definitely afford a better video card. come to think of it, that would have been intelligent to begin with :D Well that's why I'm a noob. I figured the X-fi was worth something, but I also read reviews that said developers weren't using it for newer games anyway.
Click to expand...

IMO, it is worth having a sound card. I have used onboard sound and I did not care for it at all. I guess my X-fi card spoiled me. It just sounds a whole lot better and has more options.
 
Here's the replacement I decided on for the VC: SAPPHIRE 100297L Radeon HD 5830 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card w/ ATI Eyefinity

and I dropped the audio card, bringing me roughly back to my starting point. Thanks for the help!
 
memory said:
IMO, it is worth having a sound card. I have used onboard sound and I did not care for it at all. I guess my X-fi card spoiled me. It just sounds a whole lot better and has more options.
Click to expand...

Is it worthwhile to get an X-fi USB? Much cheaper, but there must be a reason for the price?
 
sweet, ubuntu will treat you well

there's other (and newer, better, more advanced) options for windows emulation than WINE, infact i've had no luck getting anything new to work in wine lateley.

you won't be playing super high intesity video demanding games emulated in linux, but you'll probably have fun until you're ready to throw windows 7 on it.

That video card is a great choice, sapphire makes great stuff, i usually use them for my mid-range gaming builds.
 
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