Spec Advice Required

Kilkus · 4 Jan 2008 at 13:39

Hey all, this is my 1st post here on these forums so bear with me.

I've decided to build my own computer for the first time and i need some spec advice, the computer will be used for work with 3DS Max 9/2008, Zbrush 3, Photoshop CS3 mainly and will be running it on Vista 64.

Ideally i'd like to spend around the £700 mark but can go a little over if needed. I'm mainly looking for lots of RAM and a Quad core processor, its not going to be used for gaming so the graphics card is not a huge issue as long as it can surport a 22" monitor and maybe give 3DS max a little boost in the viewports.

So far i've come up with this, which leaves me with just a gfx card to choose, i'm just looking for some advice and maybe changes to what i've selected.

Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - Retail £139.99
(£164.49) £139.99
(£164.49)
Antec Sonata III Piano Black Quiet Case - EarthWatts 500W PSU £61.99
(£72.84) £61.99
(£72.84)
Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound (3.5g) £5.99
(£7.04) £5.99
(£7.04)
Pioneer DVR-212DBK 18x DVD±RW SATA Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - OEM £17.99
(£21.14) £17.99
(£21.14)
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775) £14.99
(£17.61) £14.99
(£17.61)
Belkin F5D7000UK 54Mbps Wireless Desktop PCI Network Adapter £14.99
(£17.61) £14.99
(£17.61)
OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) PC2-6400C5 Dual Channel Vista Gold Series DDR2 (OCZ2G8004GK) £69.99
(£82.24) £69.99
(£82.24)
Belinea 2225S1W 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Black/Silver £119.99
(£140.99) £119.99
(£140.99)
Western Digital Caviar SE16 250GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (WD2500AAKS) £37.99
(£44.64) £37.99
(£44.64)
Abit IP35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £72.99
(£85.76) £72.99
(£85.76)
Sub Total : £556.90
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
City Link Parcel Next Day (Delivered Mon-Fri)
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : FREE
VAT is being charged at 17.5% VAT : £97.46
Total : £654.36

Many thx in advance

Stuart

melbourne720 · 4 Jan 2008 at 13:43

Welcome to the forums. Looks good, I'd get a Tuniq Tower to cool that quad though. Get something like a 2400 Pro for graphics if you're not too bothered about games, there is a fanless one I got from here recently.

Also, get 2 hard drives, and get bigger ones if you can afford it.

Kilkus · 4 Jan 2008 at 14:06

Ok i've changed over the coller to a tuniq tower and upgraded the harddrive to a 500gb version, i go just over budget but thats ok.

Spec as follows:

Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - Retail £139.99
(£164.49) £139.99
(£164.49)
Antec Sonata III Piano Black Quiet Case - EarthWatts 500W PSU £61.99
(£72.84) £61.99
(£72.84)
Pioneer DVR-212DBK 18x DVD±RW SATA Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - OEM £17.99
(£21.14) £17.99
(£21.14)
Belkin F5D7000UK 54Mbps Wireless Desktop PCI Network Adapter £14.99
(£17.61) £14.99
(£17.61)
OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) PC2-6400C5 Dual Channel Vista Gold Series DDR2 (OCZ2G8004GK) £69.99
(£82.24) £69.99
(£82.24)
Belinea 2225S1W 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Black/Silver £119.99
(£140.99) £119.99
(£140.99)
Abit IP35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £72.99
(£85.76) £72.99
(£85.76)
Tuniq Tower 120 CPU Cooler (Socket 478/754/939/940/AM2/LGA775) £27.99
(£32.89) £27.99
(£32.89)
Sapphire ATI Radeon HD 2400 XT SILENT 256MB GDDR3 HDTV/DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail (11116-00-20R) £39.99
(£46.99) £39.99
(£46.99)
Western Digital Caviar SE16 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (WD5000AAKS) £55.99
(£65.79) £55.99
(£65.79)
Sub Total : £621.90
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
City Link Parcel Next Day (Delivered Mon-Fri)
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : FREE
VAT is being charged at 17.5% VAT : £108.83
Total : £730.73

Still seeking any advice or opinions

thx again

melbourne720 · 4 Jan 2008 at 14:15

I was thinking of this gfx card, that'll save you a tenner:-

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-134-AS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=939

You could drop to Geil RAM to get back under budget:-

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-058-GL

Kilkus · 4 Jan 2008 at 14:24

I'll stick with the OCZ ram as don't mind being a little over budget, i'm also thinking of overclocking the system a little so i gather the OCZ would be better for that, but then again thats why i'm here asking for advice.

maybe it might be worth spending a few extra pennys on gfx and grabbing something like a
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-164-SP&tool=3

melbourne720 · 4 Jan 2008 at 14:59

I didn't think you would be gaming...?

Kilkus · 4 Jan 2008 at 15:03

Well you know better to be prepared

on another note tho, would that card be a better choice than the:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-141-SP&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=404

or am i better to go for an nvidia card, i really have no idea about gfx cards so help with this would be greatly appreciated.

thx again

melbourne720 · 4 Jan 2008 at 15:06

Depends how much you want to spend. Ati are running the mid range well with the 3850 Pro and the 3870 XT. High range is nvidia with the 8800 GT, then the 8800 GTS 512MB (very important that last bit) then the 8800 GTX. Pick the card from that lot that corresponds to the price you don't mind paying. I went for a 8800 GT, but I am a keen gamer.

edit: I also have a 22" monitor like yours. So if my card can cope with that res then yours should too.

Kilkus · 4 Jan 2008 at 16:02

ok this is what i'm gonna go for a i think

Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - Retail £141.99
(£166.84) £141.99
(£166.84)
Antec Sonata III Piano Black Quiet Case - EarthWatts 500W PSU £61.99
(£72.84) £61.99
(£72.84)
Pioneer DVR-212DBK 18x DVD±RW SATA Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - OEM £17.99
(£21.14) £17.99
(£21.14)
Belkin F5D7000UK 54Mbps Wireless Desktop PCI Network Adapter £14.99
(£17.61) £14.99
(£17.61)
OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) PC2-6400C5 Dual Channel Vista Gold Series DDR2 (OCZ2G8004GK) £69.99
(£82.24) £69.99
(£82.24)
Belinea 2225S1W 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Black/Silver £119.99
(£140.99) £119.99
(£140.99)
Abit IP35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £72.99
(£85.76) £72.99
(£85.76)
Tuniq Tower 120 CPU Cooler (Socket 478/754/939/940/AM2/LGA775) £27.99
(£32.89) £27.99
(£32.89)
HIS ATI Radeon HD 3850 Pro 256MB GDDR3 TV-Out/Dual DVI/HDMI (PCI-Express) - Retail £89.99
(£105.74) £89.99
(£105.74)
Western Digital Caviar SE16 250GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (WD2500AAKS) £37.99
(£44.64) £37.99
(£44.64)
Sub Total : £655.90
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
City Link Parcel Next Day (Delivered Mon-Fri)
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : FREE
VAT is being charged at 17.5% VAT : £114.78
Total : £770.68

i believe thats everything i need, i'm guessing all the connectors and wires will come with the case and hardware. or is there anything else i need to order