£1500 Build, any suggestions?

Azonic-Mantra

Azonic-Mantra

Azonic-Mantra

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Joined
31 May 2007
Posts
24
Location
Essex, United Kingdom
Hi guys,

I've been a lurker for a few years on hear and dreamed of building and owning a decent PC. My last system was a AMD 2.2ghz with a geforece 5400 and ive had to leave pc gaming for a good few years. Awaiting the following order however i may have made a few mistakes / silly purchases and would really appreciate your feedback:

Point of View GeForce GTX 280 1024MB GDDR3 TV-Out/Dual DVI (PCI-Express)
OcUK Value Hanns-G HG281DP 28" Widescreen LCD Monitor
Zalman GT900 Z-Machine Black Case
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 LGA775 'Wolfdale' 3.00GHz (1333FSB)
Asus P5Q Intel P45 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 32-Bit - OEM
Samsung SpinPoint F1 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM
Corsair 4GB DDR2 XMS2 Dominator PC2-8500C5 TwinX (2x2GB) Supplied with Airflow Fan
Corsair TX 650W ATX2.2 SLi Compliant PSU
Zalman CNPS9700-LED CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2/LGA775)
Creative Inspire T6100 5.1 Speakers - OEM (51MF4085AA002)
Saitek Eclipse 2 Illuminated Keyboard - Blue/Red/Purple
Razer Diamondback 3G Flame Red 1800dpi Gaming Mouse
Pioneer DVR-216DBK 20x DVD±RW SATA Dual Layer ReWriter
Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound

Thanks in advance, so excited i dont think i'll sleep for a week
 
Vista 32 bit

Thanks for the reply

What will happen with the 32 bit version, will it not recognise that i have 4gb or simply not require it? Will having 64 bit improve my gaming experience?
 
also, for £1500, don't look at a value monitor. 32bit means memory is shared with gpu and you have 3.25gb. 64bit and all memory is independant and you get full 4 gb, also your cpu is slightly faster under 64bit
 
Thats great information, really appreciate it, i'll change to 64 bit :-)

I've heard nothing but good things about that 28" it seems like a no brainer. My previous monitor was an acer 19" and im not over worried about getting perfect blacks or viewing angle problems. I dont want to start a new thread on this monitor as there is already a huge one, only thing that concerns me is when my partner sees it she may pack her bags and leave :-S
 
I'd:

1) Switch the Corsair 650W for the Corsair HX 620W (modular).

2) Make sure you get a 64bit OS.

3) Get a smaller but better quality screen.

4) Change the GTX280 for a 4870X2

5) On a gaming front, rethink your choice of keyboard and mouse. Razer mice are notorious for reliability (i've had 2 and both have died within 5months of owning them). Instead get logitech MX518 or G5.

6) Change case. That is ridiculously expensive and there are cheaper cases that cool as well/better and look better.
 
This is what I'd get with around £1500.

Gainward ATI Radeon HD 4870 X2 2048MB GDDR5 TV-Out/Dual DVI/HDMI (PCI-Express)

Dell S2409W 24" Widescreen True HD LCD Monitor - Black

Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 LGA775 'Wolfdale' 3.00GHz (1333FSB)

Asus P5Q Pro Intel P45 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard

Lian-Li PC-A17B Aluminium Midi-Tower Case (Black)

Corsair HX 620W ATX2.2 Modular SLI Compliant PSU

Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM

GeIL 4GB (4x1GB) PC2-8500C5 1066MHz Black Dragon DDR2 Dual Channel Kit

Samsung SpinPoint F1 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM

Thermalright TRUE Black 120 CPU Cooler

Creative Inspire T6100 5.1 Speakers - OEM

Logitech MX518 Gaming-Grade Optical Mouse

Pioneer DVR-216BK 20x DVD±RW SATA Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - OEM

Logitech Media Keyboard 600

Scythe S-FLEX 1600RPM Ultra Quiet 120mm Fan

Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound (3.5g) Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound

Total : £1,477.37 (inc vat + shipping).


I swapped the optical drive from a Pioneer DVR-216DBK to a Pioneer DVR-216BK (the model without the D) because the DBK does not read, it only writes.

If you are not planning to overclock then you might want to chose a different CPU, RAM and CPU cooler. Otherwise, the E8400 should overclock very nicely. :)
The Lian Li case will also offer much better cooling.

I also changed the RAM from Corsair to OCZ because I have heard apparently Corsair RAM sometimes causes problems on Asus motherboards, but I am not 100% sure on this. The OCZ is cheaper anyway.
 
Looks like an excellent spec to me. Only 'error' you've made is choosing 32bit Vista instead of 64bit. Also I agree with whoever said you should go for a modular power supply. The TX 650w comes with a huge amount of long leads which you won't use and cable management will be an issue especially in a windowed case.

Nothing wrong with the Zalman case, by all accounts it has superb build quality. Avoid pairing OCZ RAM and Asus motherboards if possible and stick with your Corsair RAM.

A 28" screen will be great for gaming.

Nothing wrong with your graphics card selection the GTX280 is the quickest single gpu card and comes free of the uncertainties of crossfire.

Looks like a great rig you have coming.
 
Thanks! Some great tips from you guys and stuff I would have only found out the hard way. I kinda made up my mind about swapping to a modular psu after speaking to a friend about them, I was considering a Tagan one for futureproofing?

Changing to windows 64 bit however im kinda in love with the Zalman cases so im gonna find it hard to change that, also im sick of plastic cases or cases with plastic parts (bought a thermaltake soprano a few years ago and wasnt impressed by its plastic front)

I have an optical drive already which I should have said.

As you can see im going for the Point of View version of the 280, mainly for the bundle :-) although have to admit i havent heard of point of view before, are they a reliable company, and are there any major differences between them and one from EVGA or similar?
 
This is what I would do. Well not exactly I would personally go quad for future proofing. But most people still say dual is better..

2640_Untitled.jpg
 
Azonic-Mantra said:
I kinda made up my mind about swapping to a modular psu after speaking to a friend about them, I was considering a Tagan one for futureproofing?
Click to expand...

I'd stick with Corsair personally, they are the most popular PSU on these forums and for a very good reason. :)

Azonic-Mantra said:
Changing to windows 64 bit however im kinda in love with the Zalman cases so im gonna find it hard to change that, also im sick of plastic cases or cases with plastic parts (bought a thermaltake soprano a few years ago and wasnt impressed by its plastic front)
Click to expand...

Take a look at the Lian Li cases. They look great and are very well built. They also have good airflow, etc.
 
Azonic-Mantra said:
Thanks! Some great tips from you guys and stuff I would have only found out the hard way. I kinda made up my mind about swapping to a modular psu after speaking to a friend about them, I was considering a Tagan one for futureproofing?

As you can see im going for the Point of View version of the 280, mainly for the bundle :-) although have to admit i havent heard of point of view before, are they a reliable company, and are there any major differences between them and one from EVGA or similar?
Click to expand...

Main difference will be in level of after sales support. Evga and BFG are supposed market leaders in this area. Also bear in mind BFG are bundling Far Cry 2 with their 200 series cards at the moment. I had a POV 8800GTS once it was absolutely fine.

Custom PC mag did a great psu group test a few issues ago. Any psu worth having is tested so it might be worth choosing from their selection:

http://www.custompc.co.uk/labs/604418/psus/products.html
 
Thanks Mike some good advice and tips.

Ive read that the 280 needs something like an 8 pin connector for power? is that part of the corsair psu or will have to use the provided 'temporary solution'?
 
I have a couple of newbie questions again sorry -

with Corsair 4GB DDR2 XMS2 Dominator Supplied with Airflow Fan do you have to fit the fan or is this a bit of a gimmick they throw in? Will i also have to fit the ram in alternate slots and will the fan fit across the bigger gap?

Also my chosen motherboard was out of stock so the sales guys suggested the Asus P5Q-E Intel P45, is there much difference between this and the Asus P5Q? I noticed it has an extra pcie slot, but says crossfire compatable but not sli, will i be able to run 2 x geforce 280s at a later date?
 
Shouldnt be a problem fitting that ram in the p5q boards as it goes in | x | x (x being unused for 2x2gb). I dont know about the airflow fan but i think generally most ram heat spreaders/fans are a tad gimmicky and wont make much appreciable difference. My geil ram runs cool and doesnt have any fan or spreader..

I believe you need an nvidia chipset mobo to run crossfire unfortunately. I have a P5Q-E and a 280gtx and I cant complain. I suppose it does limit upgrading but i figure i will want a new mobo/processor etc before i want a 2nd card..
 
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