Spec check me plz (i'm a bit rusty)

[tommot82]

I am buiding a new rig for my old man. I have not built anything for about a year and so would appreciate a spec check:

This is predominantly going to be an office rig but with "half decent" gaming oppertunities. I doubt i will convince him to clock it at all.

OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) PC2-6400C5 Dual Channel Vista Gold Series DDR2 (OCZ2G8004GK) £49.99
Asus P5KC Combo Intel P35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 & DDR3 Motherboard £72.99
Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - OEM £134.99
Zalman CNPS7500-CU CPU Cooler (Socket 478/754/939/940/AM2/LGA775) £23.99
Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 500GB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (ST3500320AS) £65.99
Pioneer DVR-215BK 20x DVD±RW SATA Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - OEM £17.99
Antec Sonata III Piano Black Quiet Case - EarthWatts 500W PSU £66.99
Dell E228WFP 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Black £169.99
BFG GeForce 8600 GT OC ThermoIntelligence 256MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail £67.99
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64-Bit Edition DVD - OEM - 1Pk (66I-00788) £59.99

Total=£730.90

I am Not 100% sure of:
RAM
CPU cooler
Monitor or
GFX

I have gone for the P35 P5KC to give the option of a future DDR3 upgrade
The monitor was specced because i was comparing the build to dell systems (this will be his first NON Dell system). Thoughts?
Ram: worth getting PC8400 (bearing in mind it isnt oign to be clocked).
Cooler: I have always liked the zalman flowers and the freezer 7 i have is defo noisier

All opinions appreciated.

 

[BillytheImpaler]

How much does all that cost, £731? The CPU cooler is OK but a bit overpriced IMO, as it's not that much better than the Freezer. I don't know if that Seagate HDD is still experiencing firmware issues, as there was a serious performance problem when they launched.

That graphics card won't be all that good for gaming. I suppose it's better than integrated, but it certainly won't be enough to play new games.

PC2-8400 is not worth it at all.

 

[tommot82]

Sorry i forgot to add the total price. £730 total.

I doubt he will be playing all the latest games (although he did love far cry).

any recomendations for HDD and/or GFX card?

 

[BillytheImpaler]

I'm assuming that it's 730 excluding VAT.

 

[tommot82]

I like the idea of the better spec ATI card thanks

Why the Geil RAM over the OCZ?

Why the C2D instead of the quad?

I MUCH prefer ASUS to Abit. Only downside i can see to the ASUS board is the ICH9 is ICH9R on the Abit.

Would the full size ninja fit? case/ board?

 

[tommot82]

Here is my current revision. any thoughts?