Please Check Parts List

sbirtwistle · 20 Aug 2009 at 03:59

Ok, so my first build - been meaning to do this for a while, but haven't had the time or the money.

Today I decided to put together a list of parts. Sadly I'm away on business (in the US) until mid-Sept, so I can't actually build the thing until then. Anyway, I'd appreciate someone with experience here looking over the set up to see if they can spot anything obviously wrong (I am sure there is at least one thing).

Intel Core i7 920 D0 Stepping 2.66GHz
Gigabyte EX58-UD3R Intel X58 DDR3 Motherboard
Patriot Viper 6GB
Coolermaster V8 Performance CPU Cooler
XFX GeForce 9600 GSO 1500MB
Silverstone FT01
Western Digital VelociRaptor 10000RPM 150GB
Dell UltraSharp 2209WA 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor X2
Creative X-Fi ExtremeGamer Sound Card
Sony Optiarc AD-7240S 24x DVD+RW
Corsair TX 850w Silent Power Supply
Intel EXPI9301CT Gigabit PCI-Express Network Adapter
Logitech X-540 5.1 Surround Sound Speaker System

Two things - I have no Bluetooth chipset here, can anyone recommend something basic that will work? Also, I'm slightly over budget, so if anyone has any suggestions (downgrading components etc) without significantly impacting the machine I'd be interested to hear them.

Thanks!

Hughsy · 20 Aug 2009 at 04:02

Tell us your budget and what you exactly need and I am sure I and others will be able to give you a spec to your standards.

jak731 · 20 Aug 2009 at 04:02

What is the PC for?

your PSU is overpowered for your current graphics card, 500W is enough

it is very unlikely you need the Intel EXPI9301CT Gigabit PCI-Express Network Adapter, as the MB will have onboard ethanet that you can use.

SfnX · 20 Aug 2009 at 09:26

jak731 said:
What is the PC for?

your PSU is overpowered for your current graphics card, 500W is enough

it is very unlikely you need the Intel EXPI9301CT Gigabit PCI-Express Network Adapter, as the MB will have onboard ethanet that you can use.

what he said =) ye the psu is very op. but if your gonna use it for gaming then the gpu will kill u abit with todays games, if you can give us your budget we can give u a gr8 deal!

sbirtwistle · 20 Aug 2009 at 13:05

Ok, so I'm looking for a multipurpose machine really:

1. I'm a web developer (part time consulting business), so the majority of what this machine will be used for is work related. Hence the dual monitors.

2. I also have medium term plans to turn it into a bit of a media centre, hooking it up to the TV and playing my stock of video/tv expisodes on it.

3. And I also game. Less than I used to (I work long hours now), but even so I'll be getting the latest games where I can.

The idea was that I'd buy a setup that I could keep upgrading as my finances improve. The first target of the upgrade cycle would be the graphics card

Budget was originally going to be £1000-£1200 (the above is closer to £1400, based on a bit of research). I'm really getting killed by the dual monitor thing, as I expected. I also really wanted a Core i7 and MB so I wouldn't have to worry about upgrading the processor for as long as possible.

Expertise and advice appreciated, and thanks.

Xelene · 20 Aug 2009 at 13:08

If you are away until mid September, then come on here and ask us again when you are back. There is a big shake up coming in the next 2-3 weeks of chips, motherboards and graphics. It's pointless to spec at the moment.

Also, a gaming / work PC is not necessarily the best choice for a media centre - it might be a bit on the chunky / noisy side. If you can run a LAN then one of the consoles (360/PS3) might be the better choice as the box for the TV.

What kind of web development? Server or Client? This will influence display choice and RAM choice. I do client and server web dev as part of my job, and struggle with 4GB RAM - but I like to run a lot of VM's. It's a lot less painful with 12GB. The pure GUI guys need much fancier screens than me tho and they also seem to struggle with RAM.

cmndr_andi · 20 Aug 2009 at 13:13

If I were you, check back closer to the time you want to buy the kit.

I say this because a new line of intel processors (Lynnfield) are launched in September as are a new generation of ATI graphics cards (Rv870). This will likely completely change the specification -as you may want to get one of the new parts, plus the currently available parts will likely be cheaper.

Edit: beaten to it

BIGBC · 20 Aug 2009 at 13:26

Im with the rest of them about coming back closer to the time of the build - prices shifting about a fair bit atm.

The PSU is overpowered, that cooler isnt worth as much as they charge - a Megahalems would cool better and cost less, the sound card and network card are unnecesary - I would prefer to put that money into the GPU, I dont know where other people stand on the Raptors but I dont consider them worth the money and I think if you got 2x500GB in RAID you could get better performance with lower cost (im not certain though).

Best course of action is to come back when you are ready to buy and give us a budget - you will recieve a few options and likely a discussion on which one to choose =]

Xelene · 20 Aug 2009 at 13:37

Just an extra note - if you are set on the Silverstone FT-01 case (it's a nice case) - grab that now, it won't become obsolete - but there's a new FT-02 coming and the FT-01 is becoming harder to find.