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daved9
Newbie
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10. June 2009 @ 15:04 _ Link to this message    Send private message to this user   
My nephew is getting ready to build his first computer and put together the following list of components. They look like a pretty good build to me, but I haven't kept up the the all the advances over the last year or so, so your input and suggestions would be much appreciated.

He plans on using the machine for gaming, hence the two graphics cards. Are all of these components compatible with each other? Do you recommend any different or additional compenents instead of the ones listed?

Case:PSI CycloneX Gaming Tower Case w/420W Power Supply

Power Supply: 750 Watt -- Corsair CMPSU-750TX Power Supply Quad SLI Ready

Processor:Intel Core 2 Quad Processor Q8200 (4x 2.33GHz/4MB L2 Cache/1333FSB)

Processor Cooling: Sunbeam Core-Contact Freezer CPU Cooling Fan System

Motherboard: [SLI] Asus P5N-D Nvidia nForce 750i SLI Chipset w/7.1 Sound, Gb LAN, S-ATA Raid, USB 2.0, IEEE-1394, Dual PCI-E MB

Memory: 8 GB DDR2-800 PC6400 Memory Module

Video Card (x2 because the motherboard supports SLI): Nvidia Geforce 9800 gtx+ 512 mb w/ DVI + TV out vide

Hard Drive: 500gb

CD/DVD Drive: LG 22X Dual Format/Double Layer DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW Drive

Sound Card: Creative Lab Sound Blaster Audigy SE

Speaker System: Logitech X-540 5.1 Surround Speakers + Subwoofer

Monitor: 22" Widescreen TFT LCD Monitor Support up to 1080P with HDCP

Operating System: Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64 bit


Thank you for advance for any tips or suggestions. My nephew and I appreciate it!

Cheers!
Member

2 product reviews
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10. June 2009 @ 21:24 _ Link to this message    Send private message to this user   
Ok looks almost good.
Case: dont really know how good or bad that case is
PSU: GREAT
CPU: Not that good, a faster clocked duo would be a better choice
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115037
or just get a better quad.
FAN: Not bad but a freezer 7 would be alot better for almost the
same price
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835186134
MOBO: Not bad but I wouldnt sli (but if you must not a bad board)
If you dont this is for you
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128359
Ram: youll never use 8 gigs of ram, I doubt youll ever even use 4.
GPU: Uneccissary, 1 4870x2 beats 2 9800gtx+ in graphics, power
comsumption, noise and space. almsot same price
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150349
HDD: Good
cd: good
Sound: good
Speaker: GREAT I plan on gettin some myself
monitor: sounds good, depends on company but you really can go wrong
OS: stay away from 64 bit anything unless you need it, gaming is
actually fastest on xp but vista has DX10. If anything switch
to windows 7 when its finished, untill then vista 32bit or xp
64bit has a whole truckload of compatability issues.

OK......now... your build is looking alittle better than before I would say. Just wait for alittle more feedback untill you buy cause I dont know EVERYTHING..lol but im sure most people will agree to most of the things I said.

This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 10. June 2009 @ 21:25

AfterDawn Addict

4 product reviews
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15. June 2009 @ 10:17 _ Link to this message    Send private message to this user   
Looks like a standard poorly made case. There must be something better you can get. An Antec Three Hundred for example. Getting a case pre-fitted with a PSU is a waste as well, as they're never any good, and add cost.
PSU is excellent, but perhaps overkill for these standards.
CPU is fine, one of the better value quad cores out there.
Cooler could really be better, the Sunbeam is a cheap low-quality approach to the better tower coolers. Go for a proper one like a Noctua NH-U12P if you can afford it. if not, stick with a normal cooler like an Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro.
Motherboard: Pretty poor really. The mistake made is using an SLI motherboard. ALL SLI MOTHERBOARDS ARE BAD. This is nothing to do with SLi, it's just that nvidia can't make chipsets that last, or work properly when they are still functional.
RAM: 8GB? What for?
Graphics: Hardly worth it, last year's graphics card (and therefore overpriced) in SLI, when a single card that costs maybe 30% more than one of the cards would do a much better job than the pair.
HDD: Well great, but which brand? The amount of size you get doesn't really matter to us, we need to know whether the drive you've chosen is good or bad
DVD, Sound card, speakers: Some good choices at long last...
Monitor: Again, that goes for any monitor (and 22" monitors support 1080p, but they do not display it as the resolution is too low. To get full 1080p you need a 24" monitor like the Dell S2409W.

OK. Here's how we remedy this.
CPU: Either stick with the Q8200 you chose, or get one of these: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115057 . That's a reasonably big performance boost for not too much extra cost.
Motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128359 - A decent quality brand and chipset
RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145214 - 4GB of good RAM. 4GB is plenty, even for Vista. If you want more later, just add another set of this, if you must, but I find it difficult to use much over 4GB unless I play GTA4.
CPU Cooler: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835186134
GPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150349 (one card, but it will obliterate the pair of 9800GTX+ cards in SLI)
Case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129042
PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005
HDD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136073

64-bit Vista is fine, I use it. If you're going for a dual graphics build with 4GB of RAM I STRONGLY suggest you use 64-bit Vista or you will have almost no memory registers left for your RAM.



Afterdawn Addict // Silent PC enthusiast // PC Build advisor // LANGamer Alias:Ratmanscoop
PC Specs page -- http://my.afterdawn.com/sammorris/blog_entry.cfm/11247
updated 10-Dec-13
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