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Building a Gaming PC


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#1
sierradelta

sierradelta

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New here...thought someone could look over what I am thinking about building in the coming months. Please let me know if you see any compatibility issues. I am trying to build a gaming platform, and I plan on buying it over a month or two to spread the cost out. I am looking for performance, not a cheap PC. But I wont turn away deals either. Any suggestions for improvement will be GREATLY appreciated!


CPU - AMD Phenom 9950 2.6g Quad-Core
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16819103291


Motherboard - ASUS M3A79-T Deluxe AM2+/AM2 AMD 790FX ATX
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813131339


Video Card - EVGA 01G-P3-1284-AR GeForce GTX 280 SSC Edition 1GB
http://www.newegg.co...001G-P3-1284-AR


Memory - QTY 4 - mushkin XP ASCENT w/ eVCI technology 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16820146789


HD - Western Digital Caviar Black WD5001AALS 500GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s
http://www.newegg.co.....0WD5001AALS 5


Sound Card - Creative 70SB046A00000 7.1 Channels 24-bit 192KHz PCI Interface Sound Blaster X-Fi
http://www.newegg.co.....24-bit 192KHz


Power Supply - COOLER MASTER Real Power Pro RS-750-ACAA-A1 750W
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16817171024

Case - I do not know....Any help???? I don't like flashy lights or colors, something tasteful and not a huge tower would be great.


If I am missing something or you have a better suggestion, please let me know...

Thanks ahead of time for all your help!

-SD

Edited by sierradelta, 16 November 2008 - 02:35 PM.

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#2
kamille316

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Hi sierradelta, welcome to Geeks To Go!

First of all, I would like to ask the reason why you went with AMD, it seems like the rest of the components you selected are high-end, I'm wondering why you didn't go with Intel. Intel right now has better high-end processors and I will usually recommend AMD only if you are in a tight budget.

A few other questions:
1) What is your budget?
2) You are missing the OS and DVD-drive, will you be needing those still?
3) Any reason why you want a sound card? The on-board sound is pretty good and I suggest you try on-board first and buy the sound card later on if you are not satisfied.
4) Will you be overclocking? Do you have any experience with overclocking?
5) What are your uses for this computer? Are you set on getting a Quad core processor?

I also suggest you save your money and accumulate the amount you need to buy the computer all at once. Prices go down and technology changes rapidly that something you might have in mind now might not be that good in a few months. Also buying it all at once will save you money in shipping. Another thing would be that if a component is DOA (dead on arrival) then you have 30 days (from the day you purchase) to return it to the store, after that you'll have to go through the manufacturer that takes a few days (weeks or months even) to get it replaced.
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#3
sierradelta

sierradelta

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You hit the nail on the head on the buying at once idea, I didn't even think of the DOA possibility. To answer your questions:

1. I plan on spending roughly 1500 on the computer. I am not adding in peripherals. I can go higher and of course lower.

2. Haven't decided on OS. The optical drive, hmmmmm, I don't care about Blue Ray....Got a PS3. Any ideas for these two?

3. I didn't know the onboard sound was any good....I'll try that first. The games I play most are FPS's, MMORPG, and FSX.

4. I have never O/Cd before. I understand the concept. I just figured I'd buy something fast enough already. But I am not against O/Cing.

5. I want a pure gaming PC. I have a laptop and a Dell E510, Pent 4 3ghz, 2g Memory, Ok Video Card....these two can run anything else I want.

Ok so now about the CPU:

I guess I am behind on my views of AMD. I just looked at some stats for the two processors and you are solid in thinking Intel is on top right now. So let me suggest this CPU.

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 Yorkfield 2.83GHz 12MB L2 Cache LGA 775 95W Quad-Core
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16819115041



I guess I need some bad@$$ cooling case, and a monester fan on my cpu, especially if I do decide to OC the CPU.

Hopefully I answered your questions or listened to your advice.

Oh and this MoBo

ASUS RAMPAGE FORMULA LGA 775 Intel X48 ATX

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813131284
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#4
kamille316

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2. Haven't decided on OS. The optical drive, hmmmmm, I don't care about Blue Ray....Got a PS3. Any ideas for these two?

I suggest going with Vista Home Premium 64-bit, its pretty stable now after SP1 and also since you have a new computer, you shouldn't experience the lag that some people do. Since you already have a Blu Ray, I suggest to stick with a cheap DVD burner.

3. I didn't know the onboard sound was any good....I'll try that first. The games I play most are FPS's, MMORPG, and FSX.

I don't think you'll have any problem with the on-board sound unless you're an audiophile and work a lot with music and the like. Try on-board first and if you don't like it, we'll happily recommend a better one for you.

I guess I need some bad@$$ cooling case, and a monester fan on my cpu, especially if I do decide to OC the CPU.

This is a personal preference, I too don't like fancy lights on my computer as I sleep in the same room and also I am not very strong so a heavy case is out of the question. The case in my build list is just so that I know I'm not going overboard however that case is very nice but it does have that red LED fan at the front and its also a bit heavy. Try to find one you'll like and just make sure the video card will fit.
For overclocking the CPU, make sure you get a nice aftermarket heatsink like the Xigmatek HDT-S1283 with the Retention Bracket.

Oh and this MoBo
ASUS RAMPAGE FORMULA LGA 775 Intel X48 ATX
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813131284

This board is too pricey and it supports Crossfire only and since you selected an Nvidia video card, you won't be able to take advantage of the Crossfire configuration. I think going with P45 board will be sufficient. Go with an Asus P5Q Pro or the Gigabyte EP45-UD3P. Though if you want to stick with this board, it should work with the rest of components I suggested.

Here's the build list:
Coolermaster HAF 932 - $159.99
Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3P - $129.99 (with a $20 Mail-In Rebate)
EVGA GTX 280 SSC Edition - $434.99 (with a $30 Mail-In Rebate)
Mushkin XP 4GB Ascent (2x2GB) - $112.99 (with a $20 Mail-In Rebate)
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 - $319.99
Samsung 22x DVD burner black - $24.99
Western Digital Caviar SE16 640GB - $74.99
Corsair 750W - $119.99 (with a $20 Mail-In Rebate)
Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit OEM - $99.99
Total is: $1477.91 before Mail-in-Rebate

To save some money, get a cheaper case and also you can get a cheaper non-overclocked GTX 280. I would also like you to know that the new Intel i7 Quad Core processors are out but it is only supported by one type of motherboard (x58 chipsets) because it can only be installed on a motherboard with an LGA 1366 socket. This will be a bit pricey though (expensive processor, motherboard and RAM) but if you want something really new then you could wait for the prices to go down.

Hope that helps.
Kamille

Edited by kamille316, 17 November 2008 - 05:11 PM.

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#5
sierradelta

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A HUGE thanks to you Kamille. I want to say a couple things about your picks. One, I looked everywhere for a cool looking case and found nothing, but then you find one I really like. It looks very gamey. Also the P/S is awesome too. It auto detects volts and hertz, which is cool because I live in Italy (US Military) and I hate wondering if I switched the input volt selector. And of course one rail, no fuss. I will look into all these further before pulling the trigger on this PC. Im excited though, and nervous. I have helped build a PC before, but never solo'd one. Wish me luck.

Thanks again,
-SD
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#6
kamille316

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I really like that case now, one negative thing about helping people pick their parts is that it makes me want to build a new one for myself :)
If you have any other questions feel free to ask and don't forget to read our stickied topic about how to build a computer :)

Kamille
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#7
kamille316

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If you want the new Intel i7 Quad Core Processor, I can try and change up the build I made, maybe by the time you have enough money to build, the components are a bit cheaper.
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#8
Candu

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Just a quick point about that case.

Despite having lots of fans it is lovely and quiet, however it is missing dust filters so your system will quite quickly fill up with all the crap that it is going to hoover up.

Best thing to do is to get the case anyway and then go to the shop and buy some black tights. Cut bits of the tights up and stretch them over the outward face of all of the fans that blow air into the case (not the huge mahoosive one on the side!)

Dust filters made cheap and easy! (You can also use stuff like tumble dryer sheetd for this but I prefer thickish tights as you can get them in black which will blend in with the rest of the case, and I get to go to the shops and buy tights, which is nice....)
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