Brand New Build

Hello,

I remember there used to be a thread in this forum which related to new builds and I think you could post your stuff there - but I can't seem to find it since the forum switched about a bit - and I haven't been on in a good long while. If this is in the wrong place or should be in a set thread - then do move/merge it and I apologise.

First of all, my budget is around £700/$1,280. I'd like to be hitting just below that - as dancing on the border line of the budget is always a risky move.

Anyway, I took a wild decision that I'm going to build a new system. I know how to put the bits and pieces together, but I'm not so brilliant at the buying element - where the small details usually catch me out and I'm sat with two pieces that don't click together.

I've strung together three important parts and I consider this my start to the new build - I've decided against a dual core system as Intel don't seem to offer the speed that I want, in dual core standard - AMD I've looked and I've decided to stick with Intel.

This is the processor I've opted for:

Intel Pentium 4 660 3.6Ghz Socket 775 800Mhz 2mb Retail Boxed

This is the RAM I've opted for:

TWIN2X2048-6400 2x1GB 240-Pin DIMM XMS2-6400 CL5

This is Storage: 2x

Maxtor 6V160E0 160GB SATA300 7200rpm 8MB Cache - OEM

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Now, that's all I've got so far. First question I should ask is - do they all work with eachother? I've run them briefly past a few people who seem to think it would work, but I like to be sure as I don't want a repeat of the hard drive incident....(long story)

If they do, then all is well - if they don't then it's back to the drawing board. The next problem I'm having is with a motherboard, I can't see to find one that will support 800Mhz RAM, most hit 533Mhz and that's as good as they get.

I want to get the most out of the RAM (obviously) but at the same time, I don't want to blow most of my budget on a motherboard.

Secondly, a graphics card. The one I currently have is pretty poor and I haven't really kept up to date with graphics cards - I find it quite hard to do so, to be honest. As they just seem to come up with new ones all the time and it's confusing as to which ones are the best.

I found this one:

Asustek GeForce 7600GT 256MB DDR2 PCIE 2xDVI-I HDTV

And it seems pretty good, but I would need a second, third, or possibly fourth opinion.

I aim to be playing demanding games like Battlefield 2 and others - so I want a card that won't shirk in terms of performing and 256mb is most likely where I want to be - although I've had this 128mb and it has served me well for many years.

As you've probably gathered - I'm a big "n00b" in this area but I thought I would ask advice of those who really know. If you can suggest a better piece of hardware than the ones I've suggested - then feel free. The same applies to picking criticism with anything I've listed.

The Processor, Storage and RAM come to: £453/$828

Don't quote NewEgg as they don't deliver to Ireland/UK.

Thanks for any help - very much appreciated.

 

I'm going to keep talking until I meet some sort of friend...

Does this work:

Processor:

http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/87125

Motherboard:

http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/104754

Memory DDR2 Ram:

http://www.dabs.com/ProductView.aspx?Quicklinx=43N8

Graphics Card:

http://www.dabs.com/productview.aspx?Quicklinx=40JS

Storage:

2 x

http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/102294

Or have I gone mad...again.

 

Yes. All of that will work together.

The motherboard seems like a little bit overkill, but I don't know what you are going to use this computer for.

 

Thanks Wyatt.

It is definitely overkill - it's one of the only boards I found that supports the 800Mhz on the RAM.

To yourself or anyone else that may know - is that graphics card decent enough or could I do better for the same sort of money? Also, what is 'bus width' on graphics cards? I've noticied that it is only 128mb on that card in particular.

 

"is that graphics card decent enough"

What games do you like to play? And what resolution/detail level do you like to run it at?

 

Halo, Call Of Duty 1/2, Sim City.

Possibly going to venture into something like Battlefield 2

To be totally honest, I just basically want a graphics card that's going to play most of the games that come out in the next couple of years - I don't really want to pick and choose games because my graphics card won't support them. Although I understand why you're asking.

At the same time, I don't want a card that's going to eat up resources - if there's a better card for a similar price then that could work as well.

1024x768 is the preference usually - with probably, just about better than average graphic settings.

I have a Power Supply left over and I was wondering whether it would run the computer...It is:

http://www.hipergroup.com/English/products/hpu-4m480.html

I would have two SATA drives, as mentioned above. However, I've noticed that the SATA connections on the power supply are 15 pin and the 'connectivity' of the actual drives are 7 pin. I assume this means that they wouldn't connect?

There are 4 Peripherals and only two drives to go in (DVD/RW & CD/RW) - So that wouldn't be an issue.

If I can also ask, why is there a PCI Express connector built into the Power Supply? I'm not so sure about the connectivity of graphics card in particular.

Appreciate the help, once again. Thanks.

 

Well, in your case, I'd say a 7600GT would be a good choice. However, I doubt that it will last for 2-3 years. In a year or so, you may want to upgrade the graphics card, which might be a better choice than going all out right now and spending $300+ on one.

I've not heard of the Power supply company, but if it works as it says, then that one should be fine.

I don't know about the SATA connectors, but I think there is only one standard, so it should be fine.

As for the PCI Express video card, it will need a connection from the power supply. It is a new type of 6-pin connector. Actually there are only 4 wires, but there is room for 6.

 

These are two images from Wikipedia, of the SATA connectors - which look very different:


A 15-pin Serial ATA power connector.


A 7-pin Serial ATA data cable.

Article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SATA

I can upgrade the graphics card if need be - My aim was just to have a good card for now, as opposed to building this system and putting a graphics card in that was only slighter better than this one.

In terms of updating - I'm not really sure how it works. This motherboard I currently have is on a 2.8Ghz limit, so I'm stranded on it at the moment - However, in regards to that motherboard I have chosen, what is the limit? Is there a Ghz limit or is it totally dependant on the socket type and processors that come out in that socket type?

 

As for the two cables, the first is a power connector. (comes from your power supply) The second is a data cable. (goes to your motherboard) You need both of them. Your power supply is fine. There is only one standard for SATA power connectors.

No one can know what the limit will be on that motherboard. As long as Intel keeps making chips on that socket type AND Asus keeps updating the BIOS for your motherboard to support those chips, there isn't really any physical limit.

http://support.asus.com/cpusupport/cpusupport.aspx?SLanguage=en-us&model=P5WD2-E Premium

Also, you do know that the motherboard you have chosen supports Crossfire, which is ATIs version of SLI? Meaning, you might want to go with an ATI video card, or get a motherboard with SLI instead (or save money and get one without SLI or Crossfire).

 

Here is a suggestion:

Pentium D 805:
http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/107617

This processor is a dual core processor that is easily overclockable. Read this article by Tom's Hardware: http://www.tomshardware.com/2006/05/10/dual_41_ghz_cores/

Abit AW8:
http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/91856

Motherboard that supports 800Mhz FSB and is much cheaper.

Then take the money you saved on the CPU/Motherboard and get a better video card. Something like a 7900GT:

http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/106255

 

First of all, thanks for going out of your way to get the links.

I haven't ventured into the world of overclocking as of yet - my main gripe has always been fear of the processor getting too hot and obviously things going wrong from there.

However, that processor you mentioned seems to have a ridiuclous knack for over-clocking - I've never seen such accelerated overclocking, to be honest. And thus grows my interest.

If I was to go for it, then I would set my heights at 3.8Ghz - something about putting water inside an electronical box doesn't exactly appeal to me - although I understand it has very nice results.

- Does overclocking deteriorate the processor's life-span?
- Does overclocking require much power? I understand that running things at higher speeds and so on requires a better and more powerful power supply - but in terms of electric coming through the wall and a monthly bill - will it affect that much? Obviously I don't want a surprising bill at the end of the month.
- What does overclocking actually improve? I understand it makes the computer faster, but does it just improve clock speed or anything else?

In regards to the motherboard - the 800Mhz I was referring to was the speed for the RAM, not to the processor. Incase I'm not making any sense, the DDR2 RAM runs at 800Mhz and the Memory supported for the motherboard you provided is as follows:

Memory

* Four 240-pin DIMM sockets
* Supports Dual channel DDR2-667/533 Un-buffered Non-ECC memory
* Supports maximum memory capacity up to 8GB

My assumption was that the 667 & 533 were the maximum supported speeds of the RAM that you could run - but I'm not 100% sure of that.

Obviously if that is the case, I want to get the most out of my RAM.

I was told that if the bus speed of the processor matched the same speed of the RAM (i.e. both 800Mhz) - then the system would operate more smoothly. This isn't something I have really banked on, it was something I read - can that be confirmed as true or rubbished?

Ebuyer doesn't give specs of the processor you provided - but has it a FSB of 533 or 800? Intel specifies both on it's website so I'm a bit unsure.

Very nice graphics card by the way - could still be a potential choice. I assume it works on XP despite it saying that it's OS is Vista.

 

http://www.abit-usa.com/products/mb/techspec.php?categories=1&model=279

ABit says the motherboard supports 800Mhz RAM. I would guess the specs on Ebuyer are wrong.

As to the CPU, I believe it is 533Mhz, but if you are overclocking, you will be pushing it to 800Mhz easily.

In any case, I would go for the Abit motherboard, since it is much cheaper and supports both the Pentium D 805, and the Pentium 4 660 you listed earlier.

 

Original:

Asus P5WD2-E Premium 975 x LGA 775 2 X PCI-E 16x
Intel P4 3.6Ghz
2 GIG DDR2 800mhz
2 x 160GB SATA
CD/RW
DVD/RW
256MB Graphics Card
Not Including Casing Or Cooling

£779.34

Proposed:

Abit AW8 MAX LGA775 FSB1066 PCI-E DDR2 Retail Box
Intel P D 2.66Ghz (Clocked at 3.8Ghz)
2 GIG DDR2 800mhz
2 x 160GB SATA
CD/RW
DVD/RW
256MB Graphics Card
Not Including Casing Or Cooling.

£676.86

Ah yes. Somehow I can see where you are coming from now. As does my wallet.

I suppose when you add shipping, casing and cooling - it sort of begins to hit home.

I'm pretty easily swayed at the moment as I haven't bought one thing yet - but after totting things up there, going for the budget pro and clocking it seems more realistic than the 3.6Ghz ever did.

Next up, a look at cases and cooling. If I am going to go ahead and overclock the processor, my mind will force me to have a good case and cooling - otherwise I'll be afraid to leave the room without worrying about the thing heating over - I'm stupid that way.

 

I just read the, what is, excellent guide to overclocking on here and I have to say it's put me into a stage of doubt.

Whilst I believe I could muster the 3.8Ghz via oc'ing, and put a decent cooling system in place - I'm not sure that overclocking of that extreme (2.66Ghz > 3.8Ghz) is right for me. It starts running into checking temperatures of cases, adding more fans, changing the fans spin cycle speed and so forth - at such a huge leap in clock speed - I'm not sure I would ever be settled with it.

However, I haven't turned totally against the idea of overclocking. If I was to go with the original 3.6Ghz and possibly overclock it to up and around 4Ghz - That is an increase (0.4Ghz) I could find myself being comfortable with - Now, I'm not sure how easily "over-clockable" (or even if it is at all) that Processor is, but I've read that a few people have overclocked it to 4.1Ghz and beyond. So here's to hoping...

As I touched on before, this obviously leads to financial implications for me, but I'm sure that can be worked around with some extra scrounging and/or lightening the load of the computer.

The above probably sounds like I'm set in absolute stone about what I'm going to get - However, I'm just sort of trying to get closer to making the right decision, for me. If you have any views or opinions - I'd love to hear them as you clearly know your stuff.

 

Well, if you want to overclock, I would say go with the Pentium D 805 because they seem to overclock much better than other Pentium CPUs. If not, then the 660 would be a good choice.

If it were me, I would go with an Athlon 64 3700+ San Diego or an Athlon X2 3800+ or 4000+. And PC3200 DDR RAM and an Athlon 64 motherboard from somebody like Asus, Abit, Gigabyte or MSI. Everything else should work just fine. I don't know if it will save you any money going with this kind of system, but it will probably give you a little better performance for the same amount of money.

 

Cheers once again Wyatt, for your advice.

I was advised elsewhere to possibly wait until next month and get the Conroe...

I'm thinking 2.4Ghz, which at estimated prices won't differ much from the 3.6Ghz processor I've been ranting and raving about in the thread. Although the motherboard I picked should have the right allowances for a Conroe (1066 FSB & Same socket) - it doesn't specify on Asus' site that it will run Conroe - where as it does on some of it's other motherboards. So I'm a bit unsure there.

I'm hopeful of going on with Intel - from what I have seen I would prefer Intel - but if costs continue to rise (i.e. I need a more expensive motherboard than the one I have chosen), then I will seriously have to think about AMD and how the cheaper prices (which are set to fall lower still, after Conroe is released) make it a much more realistic system. In saying that, I would like DDR2 which AMD won't be able to support until it's next release - which I read is in December?? That's probably too far away.

 

I've put this together thus far, the only things I'm missing are a motherboard and CPU Cooler - I was wondering if someone could recommend either or.

--

Motherboard:
Processor: Intel Core 2 DUO E6600 "LGA775 Conroe" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - Retail (CP-128-IN)
CPU Cooler:
Memory: Corsair Memory TWIN2X2048-6400 2x1GB 240-Pin DIMM XMS2-6400 CL5
Graphics Card: XFX 7900GT 256MB DDR3 DUAL DVI PCI-E
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 400GB ST3400620AS SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (HD-083-SE)
CD Drive: Sony CD-RW/DVD Combo 52x32x52x16x Internal OEM Black
DVD Drive: Samsung SH-S182D 18x18 DVD±RW ReWriter (Black) (CD-078-SA)
Case: Thermaltake VB1000BWS Soprano SuperMidi Tower - Black (CA-015-TT)

--

I've heard of the Ultra 120 and Scythe Ninja - but as far as opinions go - I don't have any.

Alternatively, the motherboard has to have a few things. I'll be using Ram which is 800MHz - so obviously it'll have to support that speed of memory. Preferably it would have 4 slots for RAM.

PCI Express Graphics Card, Supports Conroe, Supports IDE (optical drives) & SATA (hard drive) - with 3 or more PCI slots - and of course it must be overclock friendly.

As far as I'm aware - only three motherboards support the Conroe:

- Intel D975XBX Bad Axe

- Asus P5B Deluxe/WiFi-AP

- DFI Infinity 975X

Apparently the DFI is the best overclocking board of the three - but I was wondering if you could pass on your knowledge on the three - so I can get it the whole lot ordered and spend the next week and a bit waiting around for it to arrive.

Cheers.