Help neede for a noobie

matt6r · 13 Dec 2008 at 11:20

Hi everyone, My names Matt

, and his is my first post. I am planning to build my son a gaming computer (my first attempt) for playing COD4, crysis and Guild wars.
I have been reading through the threads till my eyes have gone fuzzy, and you guys go so in-depth about builds it's got me a bit confused.
I've got a GTX260 graphics card, a WD caviar blue 250gb HD,a Jeantec 700W psu, and a DVD read/write.
Now I need a mobo, cpu and 4gb of memory.

Do I go Q6600 quad core or stick with a good dual core?

Do I use an Abit pro or an Asus P5, or a gigabyte?

What memory should I use?

Should I upgrade XP to vista 64bit?

Aarggh! :confused:

Please help, I am gratefull for all your advice and views.
Cheers, Matt.

matt6r · 13 Dec 2008 at 12:21

Thanks for the quick replies.
I am unsure about the mobo chip sets, do I want p35 or p45?
I thought I'd go for the quad core because more stuff will be available in the future to make use of it. I know that dual core are fastest for games now, but that will change in the future?
Memory has this behind it eg; CL5 (5-5-5-18) What am I looking for?
Matt.

matt6r · 13 Dec 2008 at 18:56

So I think this is what I want to go with my GTX260 -

Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - Retail
(£155.24)
Asus P5Q Pro Intel P45 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
(£103.49)
G.Skill 4GB DDR2 PK PC2-8500C5 (2x2GB) CAS5 Dual Channel Kit (F2-8500CL5D-4GBPK)
(£73.59)
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Basic SP1 64-Bit - OEM (66G-02141)
(£71.29)
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775)
(£18.39)

What are your views?

matt6r · 13 Dec 2008 at 19:59

Ok cheers.
What do I want to look for in memory to go on the P5Q mobo.
The RAM lists timings and voltages, what do I want?

matt6r · 14 Dec 2008 at 10:17

Is it worth going for the Asus P5Q-E over the P5Q pro?

matt6r · 15 Jan 2009 at 14:47

Well I've finally bought all the bits (I think).
Asus P5Q-E mobo
Q6600 quad core
Akasa 965 cooler
4gb Patriot viper exteme 800htz cl4 RAM
Nvidia GTX260 graphics card
Jeantec 700W psu
WD blue caviar 250 HD
Vista ulimate 64-bit
dvd drive
standard packard bell ATX tower case (may need bigger one, or one with better cooling options?)
I've read through the guide at the start of this thread, which is very good, but is there any other suggestions or advice before I start the build?
I'll be back to get advice on installing the vista and drivers for SATA etc

matt6r · 17 Jan 2009 at 05:49

hp7909 said:
You sure everything will fit & get sufficient cooling? Do yourself/rig a favour & get this

Got a bigger case now with 4 fans

Gonna start the build on Wednesday.

I can't see any thermal compound supplied to assemble the cpu to the mobo and cooler, what should I get?

Will it be a noticable improvement if I use 8gb of RAM rather than 4gb?

Cheers.
Matt.

matt6r · 17 Jan 2009 at 18:24

Thanks for all the advice, its been a big help, and yes blackberries, he'd better appreciate it

I've looked at the processor but it hasn't got any thermal compound pre-applied?
I cant see any on the cooler either?

matt6r · 17 Jan 2009 at 20:32

Now I've had another look , and re-read the book I think I see what you mean.
The lid that closes on the processor has a window in the top (there is a cover cap there to remove, which had me confused!) where the cooler mounts, and the cooler has a light grey pad on the base which is soft - so that thermally conects the cooler base to the top of the processor.
Excellent, I'm good to go :cool:

Thanks.