New PC, Some Advice Please

Discussion in 'Hardware' started by JakeyC, May 22, 2008.

  1. JakeyC

    JakeyC Private E-2

    Hi guys just got a new job which means i will be earning enough to go all out on a new pc, these are components i have selected, they may seem all out but i also want this pc for lastability not just high end gaming, i can salvage the PSU, CD-ROM and Floppy off my current rig so i was just wondering how you guys think this will be overall, any problems etc

    thanks alot

    Gfx Card: http://www.epctechuk.com/index.php?target=products&product_id=30399
    £150

    CPU: http://www.ebuyer.com/product/131950
    £140

    Mobo: http://www.ebuyer.com/product/141244/show_product_specifications?spectype=extended
    £82

    RAM: http://www.crucial.com/uk/store/listparts.aspx?model=DG33TL
    £59
     
  2. JakeyC

    JakeyC Private E-2

  3. Bold Eagle

    Bold Eagle MajorGeek

    Like the CPU as I recently bought one....;-). The RAM is top notch imho but your board will take either the DDR2 or DDR3 but it means if you want to get 4Gb you will have to buy 2x2Gb (you will need to have a 64Bit OS for 4Gb of RAM do the google and find out the fact for yourself). Hope you are thinking of the Crucial Ballistix (or Tracer) from micron I love there RAM and they get top awards. If you are thinking of the 4Gb I would seriously consider XP as Vista still seems plagued with bugs and almost seems like another ME imho and some experts are saying stay with XP until the later OS in 2010.

    For MOBO's and Video Cards here are some reference sites:

    http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/Components,1/Motherboards,2/

    http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/Components,1/Graphics-Cards,4/

    Have a bit of a look around especially on the Intel P35 Express / Intel ICH9R MOBO Shootouts.

    PSU is arguably one of the most important components of any PC what is your old one....will it be up to the task?
     
  4. Bold Eagle

    Bold Eagle MajorGeek

  5. Bold Eagle

    Bold Eagle MajorGeek

    Okay here is a good review and I do trust these guys:

    http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/476/1

    Wow 4 x DDR2 and 2 x DDR3 that does look good.

    Final point you can buy direct from Micron (Crucial) and with the US Dollar and exchange rate they way they are it works out cheaper for me to buy parts from the US than it does to buy them here in Australia!!!! Cut out the middle man.
     
  6. JakeyC

    JakeyC Private E-2

    wow thanks for those replies couldnt of asked for more, so yea i agree on the vista point, not a fan myself, will look into xp 64bit, my current PSU is 650 i think i will check again though

    that cpu does really look good, and will last me for ages before i think of upgrading
     
  7. JakeyC

    JakeyC Private E-2

    how about my current windows xp professional (not 64 bit) with 3.5 gb of ram instead, just under the 4gb marker!
     
  8. JakeyC

    JakeyC Private E-2

    just like to add another question, why does it appear that this card is made by so many different companies, i did a google image search for "geforce nvidia 8800gtx" i counted 5 different cards all with the same description, its so annoying lol
     
  9. Bold Eagle

    Bold Eagle MajorGeek

    OS is up to you just as long as you are aware that you wont get the full potential of 4Gb without a 64Bit OS (so many dont realise this).

    The "geforce nvidia 8800gtx" is basically the "chipset" of the card just like P35 is the chipset used on that Gigabyte board. SO you must be careful here because although you may have 5-10 or even 20 using that chipset there will be good manufacturers and not so good. Look for nVidia 8800gtx shootouts to see which manufacturer keeps producing the better reviews and go with them.

    Something like this:

    http://www.hardwarezone.com.au/reviews/view.php?cid=3&id=2132

    Try and find at least 10 articles and then look for the underlying trend (which is the better brand) and then look for prices.
     
  10. Bold Eagle

    Bold Eagle MajorGeek

  11. JakeyC

    JakeyC Private E-2

    thanks again for those replies Eagle, really helped me, ive still got about a month and a half before i get my first pay, so thats alot of fien tuning im sure i will be back here asking you some more, thanks mate!
     
  12. JakeyC

    JakeyC Private E-2

    Hey i just wanted to say im pretty much set on what to buy now, found all my parts, im going to go for the 8800gtx also, a bit more cash but hey its going to last! also going to throw in a 500gb HDD (7200rpm)
    HDD: http://www.ebuyer.com/product/141471
    £52
    my dad wanted to know the comparsion between building one yourself, this being my second home build, and buying in a shop or online store, well heres my closest match: http://www.novatech.co.uk/novatech/specpage.html?PC-XLEAVU
    they only differences being my pc will feature a bigger hdd, twice the ram, but not vista.

    nice saving lol over 500! still they have to make the profit, i would sell for that price also!

    thanks Eagle for your help
     
  13. Bold Eagle

    Bold Eagle MajorGeek

    Well the HDD looks nice but would 2 x 250Gb in a stripped array (RAID0) be better gives you twice the data transfer rate but a bit more knowledge is required.

    Tell your dad if you buy a "pre-built" you will only receive their warranty (generally one year from my one and only pre-built purchase) and have to deal with them within that one year if anything goes wrong. But if you buy the parts themselves you will generally get at least 3-5 years warranty (different parts will have different warranties) and be able to deal with the individual manufacturers (you wont have to send your whole PC away to get it assessed.....just the part).

    Assess the different brands of 8800gtx as there can be big differences in HS (cooling) and DDR.

    Good luck and have fun
     
  14. hankyknot

    hankyknot Corporal

    You also have to remember that as a system builder they have to provide support. I know from experience that your profits can get eaten up very quickly by a "demanding" client even to the point where you make a loss on a system.
     
  15. JakeyC

    JakeyC Private E-2

    ye i looked through all your links Eagle and found the leadtech to be a good choice, due to the overclocking capabilities, obviously all the cards are running stock and perform almost exactly the same, dont know at what point i will be overclocking, but its always nice to know your card is a good choice, i also liked the look of the sparkle card with its unique cooling system, sadly that brings with it more power consumption and a lesser choice for overclocking, good reads non the less. About the HDD's, i already have another 100gb HDD which i plan to put on as the slave so i think i will just be sticking to one new HDD

    thanks again great help:)
     
  16. JakeyC

    JakeyC Private E-2

    just a quick question, i found the document to my current psu and i remembered that its only 500w, however after doing 3 online psu calculators the highest recommended wattage was 430, here is exactly what will be in my computer

    1x 8800gtx
    1x q6600 quad core
    3x ddr2 6200
    1x 7200rpm 500gb HDD
    1x CD-ROM
    4x Max Active USB Ports, Most likely 2 though
    1x 120mm case fan

    the motherboard is also a Gigabyte GA-P35C-DS3R Socket 775
    http://www.ebuyer.com/product/131173/show_product_specifications?spectype=extended

    Saves buying a new one for the sake of 100 watts or so!

    thanks
     

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