# Building My First PC



## twistedtwit28 (Feb 13, 2010)

I have a good amount of experience upgrading computers and replacing components, but this will be my first time putting a computer together from start to finish. I've put a lot of time into picking out components that will be compatible, but I just wanted to get some confirmation from people who have more experience with this.

The basic idea was to put together a computer that would have a good amount of processing power and RAM and alot of interfacing options. I've also left 2 unused memory ports for the option of upgrading up to 16 GB at some point in the future. I've also tried to keep everything SLI compatible in case I ever want to add a second graphics card, including having a strong enough power supply.

I want this computer to be able to read and burn all optical media including blu ray, be fully functional with 1080p HD, and play most current games at a decent FPS, even if that means bringing down the graphics settings. I'm planning to run Windows 7.

Will this system work?

*Motherboard:*
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5521712&CatId=4720

*Processor:*
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4959972&CatId=4728

*Video Card:*
http://underbid.com/product/567-506...Dual_DVI_HDTV_HDMI_Supp_4140099.html?ref=base

*RAM:*
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...KILL Ripjaws Series Memory F3-12800CL9D-8GBRL

*Hard Drive:*
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicat...tern Digital Caviar Green WD10EADS Hard Drive

*Optical Drive (Primary Write):*
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicat...725-3600&srkey=Pioneer BDR-205 Blu Ray Burner

*Optical Drive (Primary Read):*
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicat...=L12-1368&srkey=HP BD240I Blu Ray Combo Drive

*Power Supply:*
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4256917&CatId=2535

*Case:*
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112253

I'm also a little worried that the power supply may be more than what I'll need, cooling, and fan noise.

I'd appreciate any advice. Thanks!


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## jobob1 (Jan 15, 2009)

Looks good except the power supply and I would get a better video card. 
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3438609&CatId=2533 I would get an ati 5000 series card. Also newegg is a better place to get everything.


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## twistedtwit28 (Feb 13, 2010)

So I don't need more than a 750 W power supply then?

How does this *graphics card* look?
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5625658&csid=_23

I was planning to purchase from newegg.com. I just found tigerdirect's site easier for browsing and had more detailed specs.


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## emosun (Oct 4, 2006)

Yea definitely get a better power supply. Skip the 9600 and the sli idea , sli isn't really worth the cost at all. It's about 100% the cost for a 20% increase in speed. Not to mention two 9600's in sli won't really be that great either. definitely go for somthing in the ati 5 series.

Also to save a bit of cash skip that lain li case too , it's most definitely overpriced. stick with antec's cases as there very good quality and are priced fairly.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The P55 will do SLI and Xfire but because the slots are not x16, x16 the performance of 2 cards will suffer whaen used in SLI mode the slots run at x8, x8 speed 1 larger card is better then 2 cards.

If you happen to be near a MicroCenter store> http://microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0317378

I've also found the Asus P7P55D series to be a more stable motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...mpareItemList=N82E16813131405,N82E16813131404


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## twistedtwit28 (Feb 13, 2010)

wrench97 said:


> The P55 will do SLI and Xfire but because the slots are not x16, x16 the performance of 2 cards will suffer whaen used in SLI mode the slots run at x8, x8 speed 1 larger card is better then 2 cards.


wrench97, maybe I'm reading the specs wrong, but I believe 2 of the P55's PCI slots are X16. Am I missing something?

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5521712&CatId=4720

So, definitely an Asus motherboard over Gygabyte? I'll look at the ones you suggested, thanks! 

And thanks for the Micro Center tip. I'll see if I can find one in my area. :grin:


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The slots are x16 in size but when using 2 cards they will only run at x8 speeds. some boards will only run them at x8, x4 speeds.
Tiger leaves that little tidbit out of the specs you'll find on the Gigabyte site or Newegg site under the specs tab.


> Expansion Slots
> PCI Express 2.0 x16 1 x PCI Express x16 slot, running at x16 (PCIEX16)
> 1 x PCI Express x16 slot, running at x8 (PCIEX8)
> Note: When dual graphics cards are used in 1st and 2nd PCIex16 slots, SATA3 / USB 3.0 (Marvell 9128 /NEC USB 3.0 Controllers) will work at normal mode.


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...-_-Motherboards+-+Intel-_-GIGABYTE-_-13128409


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## twistedtwit28 (Feb 13, 2010)

Ah, gotcha... That's disappointing.

The Asus motherboards you recommended look good. Little disappointed that they don't have the USB 3.0 ports in the back... but I guess if that's ever an issue, I can get a PCI card with USB 3.0, right?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The P7P55D-E has USB 3.0> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131620

Or a a add in card will work.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

4GB of RAM is more than enough.


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## twistedtwit28 (Feb 13, 2010)

Okay, so I'm gonna switch to this *motherboard*

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...Deals-_-na-_-na&AID=10521304&PID=3342876&SID=

and this *videocard*

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...7&cm_re=Radeon_HD_5770-_-14-161-317-_-Product

Also looking at this *case *because of the Antec recommendation:

http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product.php?id=Njkz

Thanks for the recommendations, guys!

Also thinking of adding in one of these 3 1/2 drives, more for the media disk ports than the floppy. Any problems here?

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4115642&CatId=630

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4248725&CatId=630

Also, a bit confused about the power supply. Jobob1 recommended a 750W power supply and emosun said: _"Yea definitely get a better power supply."_ What exactly was wrong with the power supply I chose, was it just more powerful than what I need, or is there a quality issue with that brand?

Thanks!


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## twistedtwit28 (Feb 13, 2010)

How do you know if the rear panel ports of the motherboard will match the back of the case?


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

Kingwin PSU's are not good quality. SeaSonic & Corsair are top quality units. Using a low quality PSU only leads to trouble and perhaps damage to other hardware.
Good choice on the Mobo. 
Your case link goes to Antec's home page but any Antec case is good quality.
I prefer Sapphire or PowerColor for ATI chipped GPU's. 
The Mobo will come with an IO plate to match the Mobo ports. Remove the one that comes with the case and snap the new one it place.


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## twistedtwit28 (Feb 13, 2010)

Tyree, I'm not very familiar with the ATI manufacturers (this will be my first ATI video card). Thanks for the info. Here's what I'm thinking right now as far as a *video card*. It's ATI 5000 series, and fully supports HD, which I want for the blu ray playing (1080p support with HDMI port). Also has 1 GB memory which I think is nice.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5642515

And I'll go with the *PSU *that was recommended:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicat...ffiliateID=X3Th4gZi_iQ-_NDrpdJx4h5rlUPdwjd14Q


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

That's a 5670 card not a 5770?

Go with the Sabrent card reader/floppy drive.


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## twistedtwit28 (Feb 13, 2010)

wrench97 said:


> That's a 5670 card not a 5770?


Yeah, the Saphire 5770 

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5316255&CatId=3669

takes up two ports instead of 1, so I thought I'd go with the 5670 for the extra space. Is that a mistake?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

It's a lot less powerful card then the 5770, and will allow you to drop the Power Supply down some more.


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## twistedtwit28 (Feb 13, 2010)

Wrench97, you mentioned that you liked PowerColor in addition to Saphire for ATI video cards. Here's a Saphire 5770 that takes up only 1 PCI port and has HDMI. Not sure if it supports blu ray 1080p, but I'm guessing it does. However, it only has 512 MB of memory, and got a bad review on NewEgg because of it. Am I better off with this or another 5770 card? I'd prefer not to take up more than 1 slot with a single card if possible.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...131328&cm_re=5770_hdmi-_-14-131-328-_-Product

And don't I want some extra power from the PSU anyway for any future upgrades?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

That card will only take up one slot in the rear of the case but internally it will block the slot next to it anyway.

On the -e board all you will be blocking is a PCIe x1 slot there are 2 other x1 slots do you have any plans to use all 3 of them? You could also use the second PCIe x16 slot for x1 if needed.

The advantages of the dual slot card exhausting the air out the back far outweighs the disadvantage of blocking the x1 port if you don't need it.


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## twistedtwit28 (Feb 13, 2010)

You make good points, wrench. I suppose I won't need more than 2 PCIx1 slots. At the moment, I'm only planning on adding a tv-tuner card.

What do you think of these cards, or do you suggest something else?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...858&cm_re=saphire_5770-_-14-102-858-_-Product

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...873&cm_re=saphire_5770-_-14-102-873-_-Product

Thanks!


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

The 100283-3L would be my choice, I like the cooler better.

The Hauppauge cards are all I've really used.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...mpareItemList=N82E16815116033,N82E16815116028


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## twistedtwit28 (Feb 13, 2010)

Yeah, I heard good things about the Hauppauges as well. I think I'll go for one of those.

I liked the cooler for the 100283-3L better as well, but I wasn't sure if there were any other significant differences I was missing.

Thanks so much for all the advice, Wrench. It has been very helpful and I appreciate it. I think I'm about ready to place my NewEgg order. Hope everything goes well.

Thanks again! :wave:


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Let us know how the build goes.


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## twistedtwit28 (Feb 13, 2010)

Will do!


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## twistedtwit28 (Feb 13, 2010)

Got all my components. I'm going to build it tomorrow!


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## twistedtwit28 (Feb 13, 2010)

I built the computer on Saturday, I installed the OS and component drivers/software and tweaked the BIOS on Sunday, and I used my free time today to make recovery discs, install some more software, and partition the hard drive and set up a backup partition. Still learning Windows 7, but I like it so far.

The build itself went fairly well. I had a bit of trouble with the CPU heatsink (the snaps weren't quite long enough to fix into the motherboard, so when you snapped one in another would come out).

I just ordered a high def monitor, 23" with built in webcam and mic (I've been using an old monitor for setting up the computer). Still need to get a new keyboard, mouse, and speakers, and I want to get Microsoft Office. Outside of that, it's all set up and I couldn't be happier. It runs like a dream. Now I can't imagine ever getting a PC I didn't build myself, though I think this one will last me a LONG TIME.

Thanks to everyone for all your help. I really appreciate it!


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Good to hear all went well, the pins on the heat sink are a pain and you have to push harder then you think but they have to all be tight, that's why I like to set them up outside of the case so you can see the bottom of the board and ensure they're all the way through.


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