Building Computer, Recommendations?

[STeeLy]

I'm most likely going to build a new computer for myself sometime during the summer after school ends and I was hoping some CPers could give me recommendation on parts.

I'm looking to build a system that can act as a Media Center for me to watch movies. It will also be used for gaming purposes (Mainly Shooters, Flight Sims and the likes of GTA). I may also have to do lots of Video and Photo Editing (the parents... like always). and of course the everyday school work.

I have about a $1000 - $1500 Budget

Monitor, Speakers, Tower (using my current one), Keyboard and Mouse I already have.

So if you could recommend to me any of the following, it would be great.

Power Supply Unit
Processor
Motherboard
Video Card
Sound Card(5.1 compatible)
TV Tuner Card

Thanks a bunch, CP!

[psicodude]

First of all, go to Memory Express (www.memoryexpress.com) to buy your parts. Great prices, and the best salespeople in the city.

If you are comfortable with it, buy an AMD processor. Great performance and cheaper than Intel. Make sure you get a dual core processor for both the gaming and video editing. The second most important thing for your requirements will be the video card. This is also going to be the most expensive part you buy, so do some research. I am an Nvidia fan personally, but get the best that you can afford. I would suggest something with 512mb of ram for gaming.

ONe thing that a lot of people overlook is the power supply. Computers these days are power hogs (especially video cards) so get something decent. 400 Watts if you can afford it.

[photon]

If you can wait, I would since Intel and AMD are going to have a price drop in April (early April for AMD and late April for Intel), and most sources say it's going to be VERY significant.

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu...e-roundup.html

For $1000 - $1500 without a monitor, you can build a pretty impressive system.

And at this point I would highly recommend the Intel Core 2 Duo processors, as their overclocking potential is very impressive and they run quite cool compared to the AMDs, and after this coming price drop the current small price advantage of the AMDs will be gone.

For the power supply, like he said 400W is good, and make sure and get one that is over 80% effecient. This one is highly reviewed, is quiet, and is modular as well (you can remove the cables you don't need instead of stuffing them in a corner).
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.p...ctID=9812&SID=

Sound card, depends on how much you game. If gaming isn't the most important thing, ones like this one are very good:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.p...ctID=9425&SID=
Or any of the cards based on the C-Media Oxygen HD CMI8788 chip. Otherwise a Creative Labs X-Fi for gaming, though I'm holding off at this time to see how it all shakes out since Vista basically changed everything with respect to games and sound cards and 3D sound. And Creative's driver support is horrible.

For TV Tuner, I've read good things about this:
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.p...ctID=9773&SID=

For video card, having owned both ATI and nvidia in the past year, I can say I prefer ATI at this point (better driver support), though nvidia's latest generation 8800 video cards are out while ATI's isn't out yet.
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.p...ctID=9217&SID=
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.p...ctID=9796&SID=
http://www.memoryexpress.com/index.p...ctID=9756&SID=

4GB of RAM for Windows Vista.

[Bobblehead]

Gotta disagree psicodude.

Intel had grabbed the performance/price crown with the Core 2 Duo (and I'd be considered an AMD fanboi - I've actually never purchased an Intel proc, but that will soon change).

I usually go to Memory Express, but if you are willing to be patient then ordering from NCIX is sometimes a better deal if the shipping isn't too bad.

STeeLy, your budget is a bit low to get the good video cards right now. If you are thinking about the Window MCE, then the best ATI-AIW would be your best choice - it has the tuner built in. Optionally, find an N-Vidia card that says VIVO (video in, video out) to get similar options.

Most motherboards have 5.1 audio on board, that will save you a bit of cash. You won't get all the EAX effects (which are a Creative, proprietary technology), but I'm not sure it is worth it to pay extra money for them.

As far as motherboards go, I'm not sure. Asus is always good. I haven't done a lot of research myself quite yet.

And psicodude is right about the PSU - processors are dropping their power requirements but other things like videocards are wanting more than ever.

One other thing - if you want to use this machine for watching TV you should try and find stuff as quiet at possible. Zalman heatsinks are pretty solid.

[BlackArcher101]

double post

[BlackArcher101]

Well... I would say 512mb is considered below the min these days. For editing and especially with running vista, I highly recommend a mininum of 1GB of ram.

I'm not sure how much or what kind of video editing you intend on doing. If you are importing digital video off a camcorder and editing with Adobe Premier for example, then your requirements just jumped up a bit. A firewire connection on the mothboard can be used to import video, you will need min 1gb ram, dual-core processor, and a fast storage system with lot's fo storage. Video takes up a LOT of room on a hard drive while editing. I suggest a large capacity drive in a raid setup. Increases speed, which will be needed if editing large videos.

As for the video card, you could spend your entire budget on it... I wouldn't say it's the most important thing, as it doesn't affect video editing as much as playing games.

Here's something I quickly put together
Processor :AMD Athlon 64 X2 4600+ w/ 2x512K Cache (Socket AM2) 1

$169.95

$169.95

Motherboards :Asus M2N-E SLI w/ DualDDR2 800, 7.1 Audio, Gigabit Lan, 1394, PCI-E x16 SLI 1

$124.95

$124.95

Memory :Kingston 1GB PC2-6400 DDR2 SDRAM 1

$169.95

$169.95

Power Supplies :Antec TruePower Trio 550W Power Supply w/ Triple +12V 1

$109.95

$109.95

Hard Drives 1 :Seagate 500GB Barracuda 7200.10 SATA II w/ NCQ, 16MB Cache 1

$209.95

$209.95

Hard Drives 2 :Seagate 500GB Barracuda 7200.10 SATA II w/ NCQ, 16MB Cache 1

$209.95

$209.95

Video Cards :eVGA e-GeForce 7600 GS 256MB PCI-E w/ Fan, DVI, HDTV-Out 1

$129.95

$129.95

Video Capture Cards :ATI TV Wonder 650 HDTV / Analog TV Tuner, PCI 1

$139.95

$139.95

Sound Cards :Onboard 8-Channel 7.1 Audio 1

$0.00

$0.00

Ethernet Cards :Onboard 100/1000 Gigabit Lan 1

$0.00

$0.00

Operating System :Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium x86 (32-bit) DVD, OEM, 1-Pack 1

$139.95

$139.95

Total: $1488

[worth]

Like photon said, Early April there is supposed to be a price drop in processors. Wait till then for sure to see what it looks like.

My post will probably skew more toward the gaming side, since thats what I do. You may want to consider different video cards and processors if you're into more editing than games.

Compare memory express with www.ncix.com

Memory express won't price match NCIX, but you may find that NCIX is cheaper on some things. Their based out of Vancouver, their shipping rates are reasonable and they are super fast. I'm talking 1 or 2 day shipping.

When I build my rigs, I use a combination of parts from those two places. Oem depot right across from mem express on the other side of macleod trail might also be worth checking out if their still there...haven't been there in a while. They don't have the selection or service, but if you want parts, it's pretty much the cheapest place i've found.

http://www.oemdepot.com/index.asp

You can get a pretty decent setup since you've already got a few parts.

Best PSU money can buy is PC Power and Cooling. But their expensive. Don't skimp on PSU though. A lot of people buy the $30 ones which later fail. Get a half way decent one by a major manufacturer. Silverstone, Antec etc.

PSU - $113
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.p...ufacture=ANTEC

You might want more power if you plan on doing SLI or Crossfire, but with your budget, you probably don't want to spend $1000 on video cards.

I like AMD.
Processor - $303
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=18453&vpn=ADA5200CSBOX&manufacture=A MD

Motherboard - $125
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.p...nufacture=ASUS
or if you want SLI capable board for the future:
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.p...nufacture=ASUS

Video Card - ~$400 if you want a DX 10 card. I would only buy DX 10 now because if this rig is expected to last any length of time new games coming out will want SM3.0 at least and you get the benefit of what dx 10 can do.
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=21406&vpn=640-P2-N821-AR&manufacture=eVGA
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.p...anufacture=XFX

I personally don't think you need to spend $150-$200 on a sound card, Buying a $200 sound car when you have crappy speakers isn't going to do much good. Buy at the level of your speakers.

So that's a grand right there. But you're going to need ram at $200-300. More if you want more than 2 gb.

Optical drive, HHD unless your using your old stuff.

If $1000 is too much for those parts, you can probably find a tuned down 8800 for cheaper, and find a lower processor.

ATI's R600 series are supposed to be coming out soon. Those are ATI's DX 10 cards. Might want to wait to see what they have to offer.

[tripin_billie]

For video card, I would wait until the ATi R600 series rolls out. Those things are going to by monsters (in quality and size..)!

[Vulcan]

This is kind of what I've been thinking of.
Sale prices I've found at NCIX.

1. Windows Vista Premium $133.98

2.LG DVD +RW $36.99

3.Gigabyte GA965P DS3 $149.99
or Asus5PB-E $186.39 [Asus has firewire]
[both good for overclocking]

4.Antec Sonota11 case [comes with 450W power supply] $102.98
[but to be safe I'd rather have 500W and the best rated I've found is the Silverstone St50EF-Plus] about $100

5.Seagate 7200.10 250GB Sata 16MB $85.99

6.Intel Core2 Duo 4400 should be less than $200 when it comes out end of April. Has a 10 times multiplier and should easily overclock.

7. Evga E- GeForce 8800GTS 576MHz 320MB 1.7 GHZ Dula DVI HDCP $349.98
[Make sure you get a HDCP card if you have any plans to use HDTV]
[Also the 8600 GTS and GT are coming in April, also look for the 8500 and 8300. These cards should be priced from $50- $300]

8. Corsair XMS2 PC-5400 1GB 2x512 DDR-675 $99.96

9.Arctic Cooling Freezer7Pro $27.74

10. extra 120mm fan and maybe a 92mm $20

Total comes to about $1208.00 before taxes and shipping and setting it up. Also I haven't included a video capture card

All of this is subject to price changes and compatability. I welcome any comments as this would be the first time I've put something like this together.

[psicodude]

Sorry, I should have been more detailed. I meant 512mb VIDEO ram. Your main system ram should be at least 1 gb. 2gb if you can afford.

There is a lot of great advice in this thread.

EDIT - Add another GB of ram to the system Vulcan posted, and you would have a very solid gaming machine. I have a Sonata case, and they are really awesome. The 120mm fans make a massive difference in how loud your computer is.

[STeeLy]

Originally Posted by Bobblehead

One other thing - if you want to use this machine for watching TV you should try and find stuff as quiet at possible. Zalman heatsinks are pretty solid.

I have a case (Asus Vento 3600) that cuts out quite a bit of the noise actually, so its still pretty quiet.

I see that quite a few people suggests using Vista, is it better than XP or is it just the GUI thats better?

Originally Posted by worth

Optical drive, HHD unless your using your old stuff.

My CD Reader and DVD writer will most likely be the ones I am using now.

Originally Posted by BlackArcher101

Hard Drives 1 :Seagate 500GB Barracuda 7200.10 SATA II w/ NCQ, 16MB Cache 1

I see that Western Digital also has the almost exact same thing at the same price (Western Digital 500GB Caviar RE2 RAID Edition 7200rpm SATA II w/ NCQ, 16MB Cache). Is Segate a better brand or has a better name than Western Digital?

How does AMD Athlon 64 X2 compare to the likes of Intel Pentium D or C2D?

Thanks for all the great advice, much appreciated everyone!

[worth]

Seagate and WD are both very good companies. I use WD but you can't go wrong with either.

[ken0042]

Originally Posted by photon

For the power supply, like he said 400W is good, and make sure and get one that is over 80% effecient.

###. When building a computer the last thing you want to do is cheap out on the power supply. With a cheap P/S- when it goes it usually takes the motherboard with it; if not the CPU and RAM as well. (I've even seen one take out a CD-R drive too.)

[worth]

Also, if you haven't already, sign up for NCIX's newsletter. They send it out every couple of weeks and it is loaded with awesome deals. Video cards and processors regularly go on sale for $20-50 off the regular price plus a rebate.

[Vulcan]

Originally Posted by ken0042

###. When building a computer the last thing you want to do is cheap out on the power supply. With a cheap P/S- when it goes it usually takes the motherboard with it; if not the CPU and RAM as well. (I've even seen one take out a CD-R drive too.)

Here's a calculator to figure out what PS you need.

http://www.extreme.outervision.com/powercalc.jsp

[tripin_billie]

You should also look at http://www.tomshardware.com for some usefull information about the hardware. I was all AMD, but now, I think I might look at an intel chip, but since I won't be building for a while, AMD might be able to keep my heart.

[Shazam]

Bah. Best power supply out there right now is the Corsair HX520/620. I have the 520 and it's dead quiet. Both HardOCP and SilentPCReview loved it.

And no Anandtech links? Here's their latest guide for midrange systems: http://anandtech.com/guides/showdoc.aspx?i=2910

[Bobblehead]

I guess we should keep in mind that according to his description STeeLy is in Ottawa, so Memory Express probably isn't his best option.

[Leon]

For anyone buying a new system be it for FSX, other games or even for other uses, Core 2 Duo is the way to go. Intel's pricings on these CPU's are very aggressive and they are yet to drop further still in Q2 2007. So for a new build, so long as budget allows, Go Core 2 Duo!.

[Shazam]

Since you want a quiet system for media, then I recommend the Noctua fans and heat sinks:

http://www.ncix.com/search/?q=noctua...ice=Max.+Price

And again, I highly recommend the Corsair HX520/620.

You can't just get any ol' video card or motherboard. You need to get ones that don't have fans or have very quiet fans. Many motherboard north/southbridges have very annoying fans on them.