My First PC Build - advise needed

[joen14]

Hi All,

I'm wanting to build my own pc for xmas just need some advise really. It will be my first build and I want to make sure it all goes smooth and a good futureproof pc is built. It will be mainly used for gaming. I have about £900 to spend (but willing to go over / under this). I dont require a screen, keyboard etc but i do require a operating system. Please could you advise what the best possible setup i could get for my money is?

Many thanks

 

[semi-pro waster]

Welcome to the forums, this is still fairly well under the budget but offers a very good system with a lot of overclocking potential as well. The remainder of the budget could be used for changing the case and/or getting another hard drive.

Corsair HX 520W ATX2.2 Modular SLI Compliant PSU (CMPSU-520HXUK) £57.99
(£68.14) £57.99
(£68.14)
OCZ 2GB (2x1GB) PC2-6400C4 Dual Channel Platinum Revision 2 XTC Series DDR2 (OCZ2P800R22GK) £31.99
(£37.59) £63.98
(£75.18)
Abit IP35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £69.99
(£82.24) £69.99
(£82.24)
OcUK GeForce 8800 GT 512MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail £149.99
(£176.24) £149.99
(£176.24)
Antec P182 Super Midi Tower Case - No PSU (Gun Metal Black) £74.99
(£88.11) £74.99
(£88.11)
Arctic Cooling MX-2 Thermal Compound £3.99
(£4.69) £3.99
(£4.69)
Western Digital Caviar SE16 400GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (WD4000AAKS) £44.99
(£52.86) £44.99
(£52.86)
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64-Bit Edition DVD - OEM - 1Pk (66I-00788) £59.99
(£70.49) £59.99
(£70.49)
Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - OEM £135.99
(£159.79) £135.99
(£159.79)
Samsung SH-S203NBEBN 20x20 DVD±RW Dual Layer Serial ATA Lightscribe ReWriter (Black) - OEM £15.99
(£18.79) £15.99
(£18.79)
Noctua NH-U12F CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2/LGA775) £33.99
(£39.94) £33.99
(£39.94)
Sub Total : £711.88
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
City Link Parcel Next Day (Delivered Mon-Fri)
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £12.95
VAT is being charged at 17.5% VAT : £126.85
Total : £851.68

 

[ramsden]

Similar to above really,

maybe wait a few weeks for the GFX card updates. What size screen do you use

 

[joen14]

Hi. Thank you for the above. I currently use a 20" screen.
Should i wait a couple of weeks before purchusing this pc, is there new hardware being released shortly? Will it make much difference?

Many thanks,

 

[semi-pro waster]

I don't think there is anything coming out in the immediate future that will affect the recommendations that much apart from possibly the new 8800GTS but I don't know how the supplies will be or indeed what the slated release date is yet.

 

[joen14]

thanks for the above. So is the above setup the best i would get for my budget, worth buying and will it play all the latest games in the future? sorry about all the question but I'm new to this scene and would appreciate any help

Also, is it worth buying another 2gb of ram to make 4gb? As this is my first build, would the above be quite simple to put together and build?

Cheers

 

[semi-pro waster]

Either of the specifications above is pretty close to being the best you can get for the money I think, most of the changes between the two are down to personal preference as much as they are because of a significant difference in performance.

Both specifications already have 2gb Ram included if you check the prices of the 2gb kit on its own.

PCs are pretty simple to put together generally, Corsair have produced a decent guide which has been linked to in this forum a few times, a quick search should find it.