Yet another spec check thread...

TheBoar · 25 Apr 2007 at 00:26

Right, apologies for the massive photo. I've got about 1100 quid or thereabouts to spend on a new pc, but it has to include everything; monitor, peripherals etc. (though not the O.S)

I'm pretty new at this (the first and only time that I built a pc was 3 years ago now) and want a powerful machine for gaming, photoshop, and some video editing. With that in mind, what do you guys think of this spec? Have I made a stupid mistake anywhere? Anywhere that I could save a few quid?

semi-pro waster · 25 Apr 2007 at 09:32

Welcome to the forums, it all looks pretty good. Minor changes only I'd think, I'd change the DVDRW to a SATA one, maybe an NEC or Samsung and I'd drop the second as unnecessary, at least initially. You are unlikely to need the floppy disk drive if you want to save another few pounds although occasionally they are still handy for flashing hardware.

The most notable area where you could save money is that of the motherboard, the Gigabyte DS3P is about £20 cheaper but overclocks brilliantly and is a revision of an earlier model (the DS3 unsurprisingly) so all bugs should have been ironed out plus it is also upgraded with some new features over the original.

Oh and you could get the Gainward Bliss 640mb 8800GTS which is cheaper than the EVGA but doesn't come with such a long warranty.

TheBoar · 25 Apr 2007 at 12:17

Cheers for that. I've dropped the second optical drive as you suggested and switched the first to a SATA. I had heard that the Quad GT was a great board for overclocking, and I don't mind paying an extra 20 quid if it's worth it, but if you think that I can get similar or equal performance from the DS3P then I might change that out too.

Cheers Again...

semi-pro waster · 25 Apr 2007 at 12:27

No problem, the Abit is a good board I believe but I don't know as much about it as I do about the Gigabyte and it's capabilities so that is my primary reason for suggesting it as an alternative.

steve258 · 25 Apr 2007 at 12:37

If you intend to overclock I with a decent mobo I don't see why you can't go for E6320 instead and get a decent air cooler with the saved cash from floppy drive and 2nd optical.

Also going for 320Mb version of 8800GTS will save you £50 and still very decent for the native resolution of that monitor.

Otherwise all is good

TheBoar · 25 Apr 2007 at 13:40

Indeed, I might swap down to the E6320 and get a nice cooler, any recommendations? I was looking at the scythe ninja, as I've heard good things about it, but I know next to nothing about these things...

Plus, I want the system to be "sort of" futureproof, and although the 320mb 8800GTS are nicely priced and have decent performance in current games, I think that they will start to show their age pretty quickly once (if?) DX10 Games start appearing....

steve258 · 25 Apr 2007 at 13:45

The most popular coolers around here are probably the Noctua NH-U12F, Tuniq Tower, Scythe Ninja, Thermalright Ultra-120 (needs seperate fan), and the cheap & cheerful Freezer 7 pro.