New build - first timer.

Dannowoo

Dannowoo

Dannowoo

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Joined
4 Aug 2009
Posts
21
Location
Laahhndahn.
Hi there - long time lurker, first time poster.

I'm off work next week and figured i'd take the opportunity to try building my first rig. My budget is somewhat variable but I would say that £650 is my maximum in order to get it running this side of Xmas.

I'd be really grateful for some feedback on my choices, particularly to ensure that I haven't made any glaring errors, like the wrong RAM/Mobo combo or something.

Here's what I have so far:

BFG GeForce GTX 275 OC 896MB GDDR3 PCI-Express Graphics Card
£163.99

AMD Phenom II X3 Tri Core 720 Black Edition 2.8GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £97.99

Gigabyte GA-MA770T-UD3P AMD 770 (Socket AM3) PCI-Express DDR3 Motherboard
£76.99

Corsair Dominator XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1600C9D Twin3X (TW3X4G1600C9D)
£72.99


OCZ ModXStream Pro 700w Silent SLI Ready Modular Power Supply
£62.99

Thermaltake V9 Case VJ40001N2Z - Black (No PSU)
£57.99

Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (WD5000AAKS)
£39.99

Sub Total : £498.20
+Shipping/VAT : Total : £587.31

I'll be keeping my current monitor for the time being. I'll be running XP until Windows7 is released and I have DVD/CD drives that are adequate. Usage will mainly be mainly gaming - i'm a big RTS, RPG and MMO fan so I tend to prize framerate over anything, but from what i've read, I should be able to crank the settings up a fair bit.

Some specific questions;

I'd like to have a go at overclocking this at some point in the future and I get the impression that i'll need additional cooling at that point. Are there any specifications that I should look for in a case to ensure that I will have enough room?

I checked a few different sites to see how much power I would need and received wildly different recommendations (varying between 450w - 800w). The higher recommendations were, predictably, from websites endorsed by PSU manufacturers but i'd like to play it safe;

Will 700w run everything comfortably? Will it be future-proof, especially once I take the plunge into overclocking?

Should I hold out until payday so that I can afford Windows Vista, or will XP be ok until Windows7?

And the main one: Would you buy different parts and if so, why?

Thanks in advance :)
 
Awesome, thank you. Especially for the HDD faux-pas, I must admit that I didn't pay a lot of attention to the numbers on the storage front.

I'll definitely take a look at the ATi cards. Is changing the cooler an easy task? I'm fairly confident when it comes to building things (motor engineering background), but not so much when it comes to modifying components. I think i'll buy & build to see how loud/hot things run before I make my mind up on this point.

I have a tube of thermal compound that was opened a few weeks back. It hasn't been stored abnormally - will it be okay for use in this or should I play safe and grab a fresh packet?

Could you elaborate a little on 'the usual places'? I could add my MSN details if needed.

Sorry 'bout all the questions, but thanks again for taking time out to answer them. Shall I post my build up once it's done? :)
 
sldsmkd said:
Go and register your serial key NOW. If the worst comes to the worst, I'll burn a DVD of it and mail it to you. I didn't realise it was still open today, hence usual places was intimating torrents :) But yeah get it straight from MS - it's a free OS until March next year basically. Get the 64bit Edition.
Click to expand...


Done & done. Hopefully I can get out of work in time to download it myself, but thanks v. much for the offer. I could save you a stamp (and trade you a blank DVDR) and meet up with you if you're in/near central London :D

I think I love this forum. I've never come across so much freely-available help on the internet.
 
Tr Insanity said:
Edit: Downloads are closed but beta keys are still available :)
Click to expand...

It seems to be downloading for me. Only at 1%, but it's progress ^^

Edit: It could be because I obtained the beta key before the downloads officially closed. Though on closer inspection, the key I got the first time and the key provided when I launched the download don't match. Who knows.
 
cmndr_andi said:
Technically it should be better, but until I see some reviews for it pop up - I couldn't recommend it as a quieter solution.
Click to expand...


Ah ok - I should point out that i'm not trying to save myself a mere £15, more trying to understand these things a little better :)

Windows seems to have downloaded fully, though I had a BSOD pop up while burning the ISO file, thus wasting a DVDR >.<
Can anyone recommend a trustworthy build guide?

I've settled on this little lot (i've taken your suggestions to heart :))

XFX ATI Radeon HD OC 4890 Zalman Cooled 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
£150.98

AMD Phenom II X3 Tri Core 720 Black Edition 2.8GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £97.99

Asus M4A785TD-V Evo AMD 785G (Socket AM3) PCI-Express DDR3 Motherboard
£70.99

OCZ ModXStream Pro 700w Silent SLI Ready Modular Power Supply
£62.99

OCZ Gold 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C8 1600MHz Dual Channel (OCZ3G16004GK)
£61.99

Antec 300 Three Hundred Ultimate Gaming Case - Black (No PSU)
£45.99

Western Digital Caviar Black 500GB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (WD5001AALS)
£43.99

Xilence XPF120R Red Wing 120mm Quiet Fan
£6.89

Arctic Cooling MX-2 Thermal Compound
£4.59

Expect some shots soon!
 
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