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NiteMare

NiteMare

NiteMare

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Joined
20 Mar 2007
Posts
52
Hi Guys

Been reading through the forums for the past few weeks but this is my first post, and its another one of those 'help me with my spec please!' :D

I am trying to put together a resonably priced good performance system that will see me going for the next few years - mainly for games and watching movies.

I already have a graphics card, After a recent review in CustomPC magazine I then saw the Connect3D X1950 in the offers of the week a few weeks back ago and so snapped this up at £135.11 including vat :) (I know its not DX10 but I thougt I could always upgrade later or even add a 2nd card when prices drop further)

I am fairly happy with the following list of components but would welcome any comments: -

CPU: Intel E6600
Motherboard: Asus P5B Deluxe
Hard Drive: 320GB Seagate Barracuda 7200.10
PSU : Corsair HX 520W
CPU Cooler: Artic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro

Then i start to get a bit stuck: -

RAM : 2GB DDR2 6400 - What brand?

Case: I like the look of the Lian-Li PC7B but cant find the plus II version (with 2x120mm fans)

I was considering the Akasa Eclipse but by the time you add the cost of fans in its a bit more than I wanted to spend!

I also like the look of the Thermaltake Tsunami Dream but am worried that the build quality might be a bit plasticy!

OS: I was going to go Vista but having read so many bad things recently I am now leaning towards XP Media Centre?

Other: DVD/Monitror/Mouse/Keyboard - Suggestions please

Anything else I have forgotten?

Having already spent £135 on my graphics card I would like to spend £800-900 tops on the rest!

Thanks
 
Thanks for the quick response

DVD: I have penciled in the Samsung Super Writemaster S182M as this got a good review in on old Computer Shopper mag i had lying around!

Memory: Noticed the prives have gone up since yesterday when the OCZ, GuIL and G.Skill were all £117!, I will pencil in the OCZ as at £119 is the middle ground ;)

What about OS is it worth getting XP Media Center now or should I bite the bullet and go for Vista?
 
Thanks for the feedback

I am still undecided on the Vista/XP issue but apart from that how does this look, its slightly more than I wanted to spend but I dont want to skimp on anything and then regret it later!

CPU: Intel Core 2 DUO E6600 "LGA775 Conroe" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - Retail (£191.51)
HDD: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB ST3320620AS SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (£61.09)
RAM: GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC6400C4 800MHz Ultra Low Latency DDR2 Dual Channel Kit (GX22GB6400UDC) (£117.49)
MOBO: Asus P5B Deluxe (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard (£122.19)
PSU: Corsair HX 520W ATX2.2 Modular SLI Compliant PSU (CMPSU-520HXUK) (£70.49)
COOLER: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler (Socket 775) (£16.44)
DVD: Samsung SH-182MRSMN 18x18 DVD±RW Dual Layer Lightscribe ReWriter (Beige,Black,Silver) - Retail (£22.31)
CASE: Lian-Li PC-7 PLUS Aluminium Midi-Tower Case - Black (£58.74)
SCREEN: Samsung SM-226BW 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Silver/Black (£270.24)
 
Thanks for that masslac, gives me a a bit more confidence as ive seen your comments in a few other posts and your opinions seem to be well regarded :)

What are your thoughts on OS should I go with XP Media Centre or Vista Home Premium?!
 
OK just about ready to press the order button so last chance anything I should change or anything I have forgotten!

I already have gfx card
havent decided on a keyboard or mouse yet so im gonna use my old ones for now and put my old old ones back on my old system!

Intel Core 2 DUO E6600 "LGA775 Conroe" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - Retail £162.99 (£191.51)
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB ST3320620AS SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM £51.99 (£61.09)
GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC6400C4 800MHz Ultra Low Latency DDR2 Dual Channel Kit (GX22GB6400UDC) £99.99 (£117.49)
Asus P5B Deluxe (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £103.99 (£122.19)
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 32-Bit Edition DVD - OEM - 1Pk (66I-00715) £63.99 (£75.19)
Corsair HX 520W ATX2.2 Modular SLI Compliant PSU (CMPSU-520HXUK) £59.99 (£70.49)
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler (Socket 775) £13.99 (£16.44)
Samsung SH-182MRSMN 18x18 DVD±RW Dual Layer Lightscribe ReWriter (Beige,Black,Silver) - Retail £18.99 (£22.31)
Lian-Li PC-7 PLUS Aluminium Midi-Tower Case - Black £49.99 (£58.74)
Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound (3.5g) £5.99 (£7.04)
Samsung SM-226BW 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Silver/Black £229.99 (£270.24)
Sub Total : £861.89
Shipping : £12.95
Vat : £153.10
Total : £1,027.94
 
oh god just decided on Vista over xp and now I gotta choose between 32 and 64 bit!

I thought that the lack of drivers and lack of 64bit software meant that the 32bit version was the better option for your average joe like me?

Also forgot to ask, is the Asus onboard sound going to be good enough, at least short term or should I add a sound card to that order and what would you suggest?
 
To be honest the mobo is the area that I have found the most confusing and so I picked that one because after a lot of web browsing because it has a lot of good reviews (still top choice in custom PC although the Abit AB9 QuadGT close in this months review!) and seems a popular choice with the E6600 so at least im not treading new ground!

Any particular reasons why you thing the Gigabyte might be a better option?
 
The more I search the more I read bad things about vista and games so i'm swaying back to XP, I can always upgrade to vista in a years time when they get all the drivers sorted and the games being realesed will be designed with it in mind!
 
Hi Guys

As i mentioned I picked up the Connect3d X1950XT a few weeks back so hopefully when I get a system to put it in this will keep me going for a while and I can upgrade to a DX10 card later

Also with regards to my Vista or XP dilema I posted a question in the software forum but maybe you can comment: -

What about a dual boot system?

For sake of an extra £70 i could go for a larger HD and a copy of XP home edition?

Is is posible to install an OEM copy of Vista 64bit (OEM) and XP Home (OEM) in dual boot mode on a new build?

Has anyone done this?
Any downside apart from the extra cost?
 
I dont already have the XP disk (apart from the disk that came with my old Evesham system 4 years ago!) so would have to pay the extra £50 for this ontop of a copy of Vista
 
Okay I have been doing some more reading and have found enough favourable comments to say that some of the games that I want to play are working for some people at least! therefore I have decided to bite the bullet and go Vista 64bit :)

Now thats sorted I have another dilema: -

The Seagate Baracuda 500G drive is on offer of the week at £88.11 The 320G I had selected is £61.09 so that only another £27 for extra 180G

Or would I be better off again spending even moreand getting 2x250 or 2x320!

decisions decisions!!!
 
Just sent the order so hopefully will be delivered tommorrow :D

Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64-Bit Edition DVD - OEM - 1Pk (66I-00788) £63.99 1 £63.99
Intel Core 2 DUO E6600 "LGA775 Conroe" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - Retail £162.99 1 £162.99
Samsung SH-183LBEBN 18x18 DVD±RW Dual Layer Serial ATA Lightscribe ReWriter (Black) - OEM £19.99 1 £19.99
GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC6400C4 800MHz Ultra Low Latency DDR2 Dual Channel Kit (GX22GB6400UDC) £99.99 1 £99.99
Asus P5B Deluxe (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £103.99 1 £103.99
Corsair HX 520W ATX2.2 Modular SLI Compliant PSU (CMPSU-520HXUK) £59.99 1 £59.99
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler (Socket 775) £13.99 1 £13.99
Lian-Li PC-7 PLUS Aluminium Midi-Tower Case - Black £49.99 1 £49.99
Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound (3.5g) £5.99 1 £5.99
Samsung SM-226BW 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Silver/Black £229.99 1 £229.99
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 500GB ST3500630AS SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM £74.99 1 £74.99

Sub Total: £885.89
Shipping: £12.95
Total Vat: £157.30
Total inc Vat: £1,056.14
 
Thanks, all the bits turned up at 10:00 this morning which is only 24 hours since I placed the order :cool:

Just double checked everthing seems to be here so now to plan which bit goes where :D
 
Just finished putting the mouting screws into the case an about to unpack the CPU.

I havent got a digi cam at the moment so cant post any picks, I will try and borrow one from work tommorrow!
 
Wow all that packaging and the CPU is tiny, I cant beleive how small it is and how big the stock cooler is! seems a shame to waste it but time to unpack the Freezer 7 Pro :D
 
OK dont need past as Freezer 7 pro has a pre applied patch.

About to try and put the mobo into the case, whats supposed to happen with the sharp metal pieces on the bscking plate? (I have replaced the plate that was in the case with the one that came with the mobo)
 
Also which way should the Freerze 7 pro be mounted? as instrued I put it on with the fan facing the rear of the case put in this position the fan cable wond reach the socket on the mobo!
 
Doh, should have looked at the picture I had the fan nearest the back, forgot that its supposed to blow are across the heat plates towards tha back :o
 
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