Need input from pros before I buy (system specs)

O

OBSESSION

Weaksauce
Joined
Jun 10, 2004
Messages
78
Normally I spend weeks researching things to death before making a system purchase. However, my existing game rig died Saturday with what may be a failed mobo or CPU. So now it's time for an emergency upgrade!

I will use this computer 95%+ for games. I had an upgrade budget in mind of $1000, and this list has gone over budget. I want good quality, reliability, and performance. I will probably not overclock at all. Or if I do, it will be very minor.

Feel free to make suggestions/alterations to the listed components. I hope to order no later than tomorrow.

New components (prices/specs from Newegg)

Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 Conroe 2.13GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6400 - Retail
Model #: BX80557E6400
Item #: N82E1681911500
($217)

ASUS P5B Deluxe Socket T (LGA 775) Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
Model #: P5B Deluxe
Item #: N82E16813131045
($183)

(2x) CORSAIR XMS2 1GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Desktop Memory Model CM2X1024-6400 - Retail
Model #: CM2X1024-6400
Item #: N82E16820145153
($276)

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 (Perpendicular Recording) ST3250620AS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
Model #: ST3250620AS
Item #: N82E16822148144
($80)

BFG Tech BFGR650PSU ATX 12v 2.0 / EPS 12V 650Watts Power Supply - Retail
Model #: BFGR650PSU
Item #: N82E16817702003
($110)

BFG Tech BFGR88640GTSE GeForce 8800GTS 640MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card - Retail
Model #: BFGR88640GTSE
Item #: N82E16814143074
($450)

Existing components that will be reused

Case - Antec P160 with front 120mm fan
Optical - Lite-On DVD+/-RW
Optical - Lite-On CR RW
Drive - WD Raptor 36GB (will use as internal backup drive, or game drive)
Sound - Creative Labs X-Fi Platinum
FD/Card - Mitsumi Floppy/Card Reader combo

I chose the 8800 for longevity and the fact that it is one of the few cards that will support DirectX 10. Otherwise, I would have spec'ed a 7900 for almost half the cost.

I chose the E6400 over the E6300 because the performance gain seemed justified for the slight increase in price. Though I'm over budget, so I may have to reconsider. The mobo was chosen based on posts and reviews I've seen. Though it is one of the more expensive boards out there.

Let me know what you think.
 
Harddrive: $95 320gb Seagate linky
Motherboard: $135 Gigabyte GA-965G-DS3 linky
ram: $209 2gb G.skill DDR800 linky
Powersupply: $145 Seasonic 600w linky
gfx card: $450($430 after mir) EVGA 8800GTS

now for my reasoning

The 320gb Seagate was only $15 more than the 250gb version, so your getting an extra 70gb of space for only $15.
The p5b deluxe is a waste of money if you have no intention of using the 2 pcie-x16 slots which are only good for cf or sli with hacked bios. The gigabyte DS3 is a great value motherboard and it is a proven overclocker which is irrelevant.
The ram you said you weren't going to overclock so there's no point in paying a premium for ram that is for overclockers. The g.skill ram will allow for a small overclock which should be fine for you.
The BFGtech powersupply is crap it simply isn't quality and here's a rare useful newegg opinion on the powersupply that proves why it's shit:
Cons: This PSU is NOT suitable for use with 8800GTX's because of very poor design choices... the PCIe power cables have a none-bendable 3.5 inch section just below the power plug which causes them to extend beyond the side of any normal pc case making it impossible to use the side panel without modification.

Other Thoughts: BGF tech-support doesn't seem to care about their foolish design choices with this power supply & suggested I buy a larger case, however I have a full tower Lian-Li & they don't come a lot bigger! If you are considering an 8800GTS/GTX, avoid this (and all) BFG power supplies. Captante
The seasonic powersupply on the other hand is quality and very quiet. The 600w version was only $15 more than the 500w and we all love a bargain.
I changed the GFX card to EVGA because EVGA has very good tech support and is fairly lenient when it comes to what you can and can't do with the card. :)

Anyways enjoy your system and stick with the e6400 its a great chip :)
 
$180 - Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 Conroe 1.86GHz
$100 - Foxconn P9657AA-8KS2H Socket T (LGA 775) Intel P965 Express (review)
$210 - G.Skill 2GB (2x1GB) DDR2-800 F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ
$430 - eVGA 640-P2-N821-AR GeForce 8800GTS 640MB 320-bit GDDR3 ($450 - $20MIR)
$80 - Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250620AS 250GB 7200RPM SATA300 16MB Cache
$70 - Antec SmartPower 2.0 SP-500 ATX12V 500W Modular PSU (w/ SmartFans)
=======
$1070 + tax and shipping

Sorry, thats the best I could do without the XClio 500W, lol. If you could raise your budget a bit, I'd go with the Corsair 520W PSU (made by Seasonic), the Gigabyte DS3, and the 320GB Seagate, like b0b suggested above. I just wanted to get the build closer to your original budget number, hehe.

I agree that the P5B Deluxe is a waste of money. I also a gree that the E6400 is a better choice, but your budget doesnt allow it. Even if it did, the E6300 is just as good, because it can OC past 3Ghz too. I recommended the Antec PSU because I have two and they're great. Although, I've heard recently that Antec had a bad run of PSUs, so they're RMA'ing quite a bit right now. Though the flaw has been corrected, theres still a possibility of bad stock beign out there. The Corsair would be a better choice, though. The Foxconn can OC pretty well, and is a solid board, imo.
 
Thanks for the replies, guys. I've been banging my head on the desk all day trying to figure this out (not getting ANY work done) knowing I have no rig to go home to tonight. I want to iron out the spec list and get this sucker ordered!

Yes, I need to trim some costs. I will likely go with either the E6300 or E6400. It's really not much more for the E6400. My $1000 budget is not set in stone. My wife didn't even balk when I told her of the above $1300+ price list.

I'm having an issue with the mobo right now. When I built my existing rig, MSI was the overall favorite, and it was a known brand. Asus has been around "forever" and is a known brand, but you pay big bucks for them. I like the price of the Foxconn, but I've never heard of the brand before. I'm the type of person who is very leery of no-name or unknown brands.

My original intent was to get a mobo capable of SLI in the future. But... in all honesty, I don't know if I'd ever get a second card. My wife put a second 7800GTX in her rig in September, and the second card cost nearly as much as the first did when she built the rig a year and a half ago! I would probably just buy a faster single replacement card instead of buying a second card.

I'm also not sure if I should spend the ~$425 for a 8800 now, or half that on a 7900 (or other lesser card) and go for a DirectX 10 card later when the GPU prices come down... and games come out that use DX10.

Argh! Decisions, decisions...
 
Sounds like you've got a good wife :p Anyways what resolution are you gaming at? The Foxconn are a quality motherboard + it is good to try new things.With the 8800GTS at least you've got that futureproofing of Directx10 but if you don't want to spend that kind of money your other option is the x1950xt which is around $250 :)
 
I would problably stick to the ASUS P5B Deluxe Socket T (LGA 775) Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard seems to be the best for overclocking and reaching the FSB 500 but:
NO Crossfire support so forget about what I just said.
 
Youri Carma said:
I would problably stick to the ASUS P5B Deluxe Socket T (LGA 775) Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard seems to be the best for overclocking and reaching the FSB 500 but:
NO Crossfire support so forget about what I just said.
Click to expand...

That board has crossfire support and the OP isn't interested in overclocking.
 
Nor am I interested in Crossfire. ;) I'm an nVidia guy. (For no good reason. I just stick with what I know, and nVidia has never done me wrong.)

There is a slight chance I'll want to do some minor overclocking, particularly if I get the E6300. But if I wind up with a mobo that doesn't support any overclocking, it won't kill me. I certainly don't need a mobo that is going to push the cpu to the limit, as I have no plans to ever do that.

Edit: To answer the resolution question, I have a Dell 2004WFP and I run at native resolution for the LCD. Which is 1680x1050 I believe. My 6800 runs that fine now. The only game that makes it choke is Oblivion.
 
OBSESSION said:
Nor am I interested in Crossfire. ;) I'm an nVidia guy. (For no good reason. I just stick with what I know, and nVidia has never done me wrong.)

There is a slight chance I'll want to do some minor overclocking, particularly if I get the E6300. But if I wind up with a mobo that doesn't support any overclocking, it won't kill me. I certainly don't need a mobo that is going to push the cpu to the limit, as I have no plans to ever do that.

Edit: To answer the resolution question, I have a Dell 2004WFP and I run at native resolution for the LCD. Which is 1680x1050 I believe.
Click to expand...

then get the 8800GTS and be happy.
 
OBSESSION said:
Thanks for the replies, guys. I've been banging my head on the desk all day trying to figure this out (not getting ANY work done) knowing I have no rig to go home to tonight. I want to iron out the spec list and get this sucker ordered!

Yes, I need to trim some costs. I will likely go with either the E6300 or E6400. It's really not much more for the E6400. My $1000 budget is not set in stone. My wife didn't even balk when I told her of the above $1300+ price list.

I'm having an issue with the mobo right now. When I built my existing rig, MSI was the overall favorite, and it was a known brand. Asus has been around "forever" and is a known brand, but you pay big bucks for them. I like the price of the Foxconn, but I've never heard of the brand before. I'm the type of person who is very leery of no-name or unknown brands.

My original intent was to get a mobo capable of SLI in the future. But... in all honesty, I don't know if I'd ever get a second card. My wife put a second 7800GTX in her rig in September, and the second card cost nearly as much as the first did when she built the rig a year and a half ago! I would probably just buy a faster single replacement card instead of buying a second card.

I'm also not sure if I should spend the ~$425 for a 8800 now, or half that on a 7900 (or other lesser card) and go for a DirectX 10 card later when the GPU prices come down... and games come out that use DX10.

Argh! Decisions, decisions...
Click to expand...
Foxconn has been around for a while, making mobos and components for mobos amongst many other things, but just recently started branding a full mobo under their name. They're one of the largest interconnect manufacturers in the world. So chances are, you'll get a piece of foxconn in whichever board you buy :p

If I were you, I'd go with the Gigabyte DS3 (since your budget is flexible). Its much cheaper than the P5B Deluxe and can OC just as high (even though you don't plan on extreme OCing). I'd only get the Foxconn if my budget couldnt afford the extra $35 bux.

I agree with you. SLI isn't worth it. There should always be a single card solution that will outperform an older SLI setup. And as you've witnessed semi-first-hand... its not a cheaper upgrade solution (as opposed to selling your old card and getting a faster single card). I'd go for the 7950GT and upgrade it in about 6 months, when the refresh for the DX10 cards come out. The main reason is because there arent any games that use DX10 yet.
 
im a giant noob but im in the same boat as you when it comes to everything from budget to wife.

I agree with your choice of the e6400, tomshardware has a nice breakdown of cost vs performance and it seems to be the best (I dont plan on doing any OCing either but it doesnt hurt to have the option especially considering how high you can oc the 6400 on stock cooling)

the 8800 seems like a waste to me, you wont notice a difference in todays games and you can always buy a new dx10 card in a year. Especially with a $1000 budget, your system is giong to have bottlenecks in different areas so why throw money away?

G.skill ram scares me a little as some newegg people report issues with intel based mobo's and personally ide rather not deal with the headache of RMAs (even if newegg makes it simple, it still better to have no problems at all). Ive decided to go with the buffalo firestix for $245, ive heard nothing but great things. They are out of stock atm, but mroe should be arriving soon.

get one of the recomended PSU's, you can save some bucks too.

Im going the "cheapo" route on the mobo, getting a biostar for ~$100. There are a bunch of ~$135 mobo's that will give you the same performance as the one you picked.


whoever mentioned the extra 70gb HD for another $15 pisses me off, Its so hard to resist falling in that trap. but personally ive got to call it quits somewhere
 
For the mobo, I suppose it all boils down to warranty and user reviews. Since I haven't found any threads here that say "stay away", I suppose it can't be all bad. I'll give the Foxconn and perhaps the Gigabyte a second look and drop the Asus from my list.

I'm still undecided on GPU. I was discussing this with my wife last night (god it's nice having a wife who's a gamer too!) and we came to this conclusion: If I spend $225 now on a 78XX or 79XX, it will STILL cost me ~$450 to get into an entry level 88XX card in 6-12 months. So I'll have spent $600-700 for $400 worth of performance. Or I could just spend the $450 now and get the same performance without spending money on a lesser card first. *shrug*

Yeah, I know the trap. Buy this HD for $XX more and get XXGB extra. But then you could just spend $XX more than that, to get XXGB. And then you could just spend... and on and on it goes. I try to pick a drive based on cost-per-GB and what fits my budget. Hehe... I remember when hard drives hit the "great" price of $1 per MB! ;)

(Heck, I remember my first PC that had two 5.25" floppies and NO hard drive at all. And my first computer had a tape cassette!)
 
To help offset the cost of the new dx10 card, you could definately sell the 79XX or whatever lower card you choose as the stopgap.
 
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