Lookin' for a place to start...

[RainMaker]

Hello there! Thanks in advance.

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.

• surfing
• "light" gaming (I'm too cheap to buy the new titles, so it'll be the old ones that are finally on sale! )
• downloading
• watching videos
• photo editing
• video editing would be nice too

2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread

• I like to keep it around $800.

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.


4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc, etc, etc, you get the picture.

• no MSI mobos, other than that no preference (although I am liking the looks of the Gigabyte energy efficiency, and the modular aspect of some of the power supplies.)

5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.

• monitor (19" WS)
• mouse, keyboard

6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads.

• I have, and there is SO much stuff out there I need some advice on where to start. I read a review and think that's the one, then I read another review, and think, no this is the one, and then I read another review and...you get the point.

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.

• no overclocking planned

8. WHEN do you plan to build it?

• soon, but if there is a prevailing opinion that I could score some good boxing day deals I will wait. But I am thinking I want to be prepared with some options to snap up.

9. Other comments.

• I am vaguely planning to buy a bigger monitor in the future so would like a video card that is capable of driving something larger. How large you ask? Nothing huge (the room isn't that big) and whatever the card will do.
• I will go for Windows XP, unless there is a compelling arguement for Vista? (Games?)

Again, thanks in advance.

-RainMaker

[Babrbarossa]

Here's a build for 849- if you price compared using this on the items and then used NCIX's price match feature at checkout, you'd save anotehr 50 bucks or more, and another 120 if you re-used your old operating system.

NCIX.com - Buy Intel Pentium Dual Core E5200 Dual Core Processor LGA775 2.5GHZ 800FSB 2MB Retail Box - BX80571E5200 In Canada. ($104)

NCIX.com - Buy Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium Edition 32BIT DVD OEM - 66I-00715 In Canada. ($119)

NCIX.com - Buy ASUS P5QL Pro ATX LGA775 P43 DDR2 1PCI-E16 2PCI-E1 3PCI SATA2 Sound GBLAN Motherboard - P5QL Pro In Canada. ($110)

NCIX.com - Buy Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 3.5IN 500GB SATA2 8.5MS 7200RPM 32MB Cache NCQ Hard Drive OEM - ST3500320AS In Canada. ($65)

NCIX.com - Buy Pioneer DVR-216DBK Black 20X SATA OEM DVDRW No Software - DVR-216DBK In Canada. ($34)

NCIX.com - Buy OCZ Reaper OCZ2RPR800C44GK 4GB DDR2 2X2GB PC2-6400 DDR2-800 CL 4-4-4-15 Memory Kit - OCZ2RPR800C44GK In Canada. Technology&promoid=1061 ($45)

NCIX.com - Buy Scythe Katana 2 CPU Cooler Heatpipe Heatsink LGA775 AM2 S478 S754 S939 S940 W/ 100MM 1500RPM Fan - SCKTN-2000 In Canada. ($25)

NCIX.com - Buy EVGA E-GEFORCE 9800GT 600MHZ 512MB 1.8GHZ 256BIT DDR3 2XDVI HDCP HDTV Out Video Card 512-P3-N971-TR - 512-P3-N971-TR In Canada. $142)

NCIX.com - Buy Coolermaster CM 690 Mid Tower Black ATX Case 5X5.25 5X3.5INT No PS Front USB Sound Firewire & eSATA - RC-690-KKN1 In Canada. ($95)

NCIX.com - Buy Corsair HX520W CMPSU-520HX ATX Triple 12V 40A 24PIN ATX Modular Power Supply 120MM Fan 2X PCI-E - CMPSU-520HX In Canada. ($110)

[rjbarker]

Nice set-up thier....under $900...wow...an E8400 thrown in thier for under 1K....nice!

[Babrbarossa]

Yeah- and if he was going to do any serious overclocking, I might recommend spending another 20 bucks to get higher speed RAM and maybe this beast of a cooler- good price on it- might make up for the fact that it's not s super cooler- very quiet though (but perhaps heavier than one might want):
NCIX.com - Buy Scythe Orochi 10 Heatpipe CPU Heatsink AM2 LGA775 S478 W/ 140MM Fan - SCORC-1000 In Canada.

[rjbarker]

I remember quite awhile ago someone Posting of building a Gaming Rig for a grand and I questioned this.....sh_t...you can :) What the hell have I been doing....hahahahahaha

[RainMaker]

Nice...thanks. Any dissenting opinions? Or alternates that are liked? I see a couple of these components are on sale...what are the odds I can snag a better deal on or after boxing day?

[RainMaker]

Question...Does the modular aspect of the PS make it more expensive than a non-modular type? I see plenty of others for less but want to know if it is comparable? I.e. what should I look for to compare apples to apples?

[confusion]

It really shouldn't cost more to have a modular PS. I'm sure some companies try to oversell this feature for $$$.

That said, I have a modular PS and I love only using the cables I need.

[rjbarker]

There are both pros n cons for Modular vs Single Rail Design.....ensure:
1. The Wattage of your PSU is adequate for your final build.
2. Ensure the PSU has the correct Power Pin connections for whatever GPU you choose
3. Ensure that the Amperage provided by the Single Rail or Multiple Rails is adequate for your GPU
4. Stay away from cheaper PSU's, nothing more frustrating than diagnosing and repairing a PSU problem.

I personally like to ensure I have a "buffer" of 150W or so above and beyond what my System requires....this will ensure longevity of my PSU as well as some additional headroom for future expansion.
PC P&C, Silverstone and Corsair are just a few PSU's that I tend to speak very highly of.

[RainMaker]

Here is another thing I noticed...I have read in multiple places that there is no point using more than 2gb of RAM on a 32bit system. The suggestions above has 4gb of RAM. Is it because it is running 'dual' this works? I.e. the system is only recognizing 2gb but using it twice as fast (to put it crudely)?