# new build...and HELP!



## weezymagic (Apr 5, 2008)

Hey guys, call me weezy. I'm new to the site unlike i am with pc's.
that was my intro.
now for the post...

I am going to start building a new gaming pc soon. Im new to building computers so i would like reviews, comments, etc. Im sorry if i make a dumb compatibility mistake but i think im good. 

Motherboard - ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe AM2 NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI MCP ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail *is this compatible with the processor? new egg has it in a combo but the mobo is socket AM2.*

Processor - AMD Phenom X4 9600 Quad Core Processor HD960ZWCGDBOX - Black Edition, 2.30GHz, 4MB Cache, 1800MHz (3600 MT/s) FSB, Agena, Quad-Core, Retail, Socket AM2+, Processor with Fan

Sound Card - Razer Barracuda

Video Card -  EVGA 01G-P3-N809-AR GeForce 8800GT AKIMBO 1GB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail
EVGA dual slot cooling design technology

Ram - (2) G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail 

HD - (2) Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 (Perpendicular Recording) ST3500630AS 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM 

Keyboard - Razer Lycosa

Mouse - Razer Lachesis

Case - Thermaltake Black Kandalf LCS Full-Tower ATX Case with Clear Side, Front USB, FireWire, Audio Ports and Built-In Liquid Cooling System

Optical Drives - My friend is giving me a dvd reader/writer and a cd reader/writer. They are both practically new but i forget the specs on them.

Power Supply - I don't know what my wattage is b/c im a n00b and cant find the chart that tells me how to calculate it.

Monitor -  Acer AL2223Wd Black-Silver 22" 5ms Widescreen LCD Monitor with HDCP Support 300 cd/m2 800:1 Built in Speakers - Retail
Windows Vista Certified

Speakers - Logitech Z-5500 THX Certified 5.1 505-watt Dolby Digital & DTS Hardware Decoding Speaker System

TOTAL PRICE ~~~~ (minus the mouse, keyboard, and sound card b/c they're already purchased) 1719.90

This pc will be for heavy gaming and all around use. remember, this is my first go so im sry if i messed up...
any comments are much appreciated and please look at the blue by the mobo


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

i have moved you to building section which is for advice on components for a new build


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## weezymagic (Apr 5, 2008)

thx, i wasnt sure where it went


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

i don't know much on amd but i don't think it supports that cpu i think it's the AM2+ boards that support it
i also don't think it supports pcie v2.0 video cards
psu you will be in the corsair 650+ region


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## Fourth Stooge (Mar 11, 2008)

This is a good news/bad news thing. In terms of CPU support, here is Asus' site on that:
http://support.asus.com/cpusupport/cpusupport.aspx?SLanguage=en-us&model=M2N-SLI Deluxe

The M2N-SLI Deluxe will support that CPU with BIOS version 1302 or newer. Several people in Newegg's reviews of the board say they are using Phenom's (some don't state which), but at least a couple are using the 9600. However, if you get a board with a BIOS older than 1302 you will have some work. You'll need to install an AM2 processor to boot the system and flash the BIOS to the latest version. Then pull out the AM2 processor, install the 9600 and you should be okay. So, it's a roll of the dice unless you have an AMD x2 CPU laying around for emergencies. However, as was stated that board is not going to play well with a PCIE 2.0 video card. 

The other issue is the motherboard itself. I'm looking at that same board for a x2 5600 system since it has everything I need, including enough fan headers. However, there are numerous complaints about the failure rate of the board. Worse, a number of them are not the initial quality when you can send the thing back to Newegg, but rather the board not wanting to boot after a few months. I've been using Asus in most of the builds I've done since Micronics went the way of the dodo, but the number of complaints I'm seeing has given me a pause. And my luck with troublesome stuff is generally pretty good. An alternative is the Gigabyte M57SLI-S4. I haven't figured out which one I'll ultimately use or if I'll wind up with one of the newer AMD-based boards just because they are there.

As far as the power supply, eVGA's specs say 400 watts minimum and 22 amps on the 12v rail. There are people here that have forgotten more about power supplies than I'll ever know, but my preferences are Corsair, Seasonic (makes Corsair PS's), PC Power & Cooling and Antec. There are some good deals and rebates on quality power supplies these days. Since your links were to Newegg, I just pulled up their main power supply page and there were several quality units including a Corsair 550, PC Power 610 and Antec 650 all in the $90 - $120 range after the discounts or rebates. Since eVGA is saying 400 watts minimum, I wouldn't dip below 550 or so and I always err on the larger size. 

Corsair 550

PC Power & Cooling 610

Antec 650


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## Fourth Stooge (Mar 11, 2008)

Reading my own response it is not clear, but the Gigabyte M57SLI-S4 is not PCIE 2.0 compatible, either. If you are sold on the Phenom chip and that or any other PCIe 2.0 card, take a look at the Asus M3 series, Gigabyte GA-MA7xx series boards or a DFI based on the AMD 770 or 790 chipset. 

If plan to stick with the M2N-SLI Deluxe and some other video card, the next potential gotcha is whether the motherboard will work with the G. Skill memory. I looked earlier and did not see it on the known-compatible list I have for the motherboard. That does not ensure it will not work, but those motherboards have been known to be picky about DRAM.


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## weezymagic (Apr 5, 2008)

heres my situation...
i have liked amd over intel for a number of years so i want an amd cpu. phenom is the best amd cpu, if im not mistaken. and nvidia, imo (after reading a bunch of reviews), seems to be better for the money. im not set on a motherboard other than id like sli so i can add a graphics card later on.
could you suggest a few boards or sites to look at. i think you did already but it was a bit confusing.
this is gunna be a heavy gaming pc that i want near top of the line for under 2000


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## Fourth Stooge (Mar 11, 2008)

Looking at your preferences and what you want to accomplish, we may be at a point of no return for right now. Your best bet might be to wait a bit. Here are the problems:

The only AMD platform that currently supports PCIe 2.0 is based on the AMD 7xx chipset.
The AMD 790 chipset supports Crossfire, not SLI.
The Nvidia 590 SLI chipset supports SLI but not PCIe 2.0.

Here are your options:

Move forward using an AMD 790-based motherboard like one of these.
Pros: Available now​Cons: SLI is out the window. If you want to keep your options open you'll need to move to an ATI-based video card and use Crossfire later.​Thoughts: This boils down to how deeply you are committed to piggybacking video cards. One consideration is that given how quickly video card technology is changing, by the time you decide to Crossfire/SLI you will probably be better off replacing the existing card with a single upper-end card available at that time. Incidentally, if you abandon the idea of dual video cards completely, you might consider an AMD 770-based motherboard. Depending on the motherboard you pick, it may support DDR2-8500 (1066) memory (note the DFI board is still DDR2-6400).​
Switch to an Nvidia 590-based motherboard like one of these.
Pros: Available now, supports SLI​Cons: Does not support PCIe 2.0, which means you need to pick a different video card. Since it looks like that will be the standard of performance cards from now on, this puts a cap on your future upgrades. Using a Phenom may involve a BIOS upgrade that could involve needing a x2 CPU to do.​Thoughts: This boils down to how seriously you want to SLI, how quickly you want to do it and what your long-term expectations about this build are. Its upgrade path, particularly in video cards, is going to be limited.​

In any event, if SLI is a consideration, you probably need to move away from the M2N-SLI Deluxe or any other Nvidia 570-based motherboard since they use a x8 bandwidth in SLI mode, not the full x16 like the 590s.

Sorry this is so complicated, but the addition of PCIe 2.0 with the Crossfire/SLI situation make putting together a top-notch system a bit confusing right now.

Again, keep in mind I an not a gamer which is why I am not making any judgments about what is the better way to go right now.


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## weezymagic (Apr 5, 2008)

ok, thank you for all the info...it is much clearer now.
i think ill go with the amd 7xx chipset so that i can dual video cards and have the PCIe 2.0 slots because PSIe 2.0 seem to be a growing standard for video cards.

with this decided, i think im goin to stay with phenom 9600 and a zotac 8800gt until i save for a 9800gx2

mobo choice this one
and this for a graphics card

ive got good reviews on both. 
would this be a good starting point?


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## Fourth Stooge (Mar 11, 2008)

The only thing I want to make sure I made clear was that the AMD 790 chipset boards will do crossfire, not SLI. That means ATI-based cards if you want dual, connected cards. Two Nvidia cards connected are not going to work.

That said, a 9800gx2 essentially achieves the goal of SLI (and probably more) without the need for SLI. If you are heading in that direction, beef up the power supply to the 700-watt or more area. I did a quick look at eVGA's 9800GX2 and it recommends a minimum of 600-watts and 28 amps on the 12v rail. Corsair has a new one in that range here that has a $40 rebate, and here is a link to some others. Keep in mind, these show my brand bias on the subject of power supplies. I'm sure my search criteria didn't catch some others that are good. Seasonic has a 700-watt that does not show up here because Newegg's search range started at 701. Seems like since the economy got weak there are some good deals on power supplies. 

With that, you are now beyond what I can help with. I can't say I've heard anything bout Zotac, but then again I didn't know anything about Palit until recently and I'm probably going to wind up with one in my next build.


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## weezymagic (Apr 5, 2008)

ive heard good things about both zotac and palit.

i really like nvidia because i have used them more. i am unsure as to what im going to do about video but i may start with one mid range nvidia card and upgrade to a high end nvidia card. 
i know that the 9800GX2 will DESTROY anything that crosses it. and the 8800gt will OC decently enough for the time being.


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## Aus_Karlos (Mar 10, 2007)

For graphics 8800GT will do wonders for you. Since the release of the 9800GX2 they've dropped in price. You can probably get a 20% OC on the 8800, ive managed to get that with my 8800GTS (640mb) Runs Crysis in Very High with 30fps.

For Motherboards a great brand is ASUS, altho i dont really know what they make. Im a Gigabyte person.

For a PSU, Silverstone, Thermaltake are exceptional in my opinion. Make sure you take care when buying one, dont just look at how many watts it has. Get a SPu with a min of 54A on the 12v. That way you have room to upgrade.


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## weezymagic (Apr 5, 2008)

whats the dif between the 8800 gt/gts/gtx/ultimate?
would 8800 gt be the best choice for me?

also, whats ur opinion on amd phenom 9600?


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## Aus_Karlos (Mar 10, 2007)

gt, gts, gtx all stand for something different on each card. They could be Different Core, memory clock speeds and memory bus type (256-bit, 320bit) The GT has an equal balance and has the performance for money.
Im not much of an AMD fan, they've kind of gone down hill, Intel amt is the gaming CPU, (It used to be AMD)


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## weezymagic (Apr 5, 2008)

ive heard they're (intel) more for apps than games.

for $235, i can get either...
AMD Phenom 9850 BLACK EDITION 2.5GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 2MB L3 Cache Socket AM2+ 125W Quad-Core Processor - Retail
or
Intel Xeon E5405 Harpertown 2.0GHz 12MB L2 Cache LGA 771 80W Quad-Core Processor - Retail 

im thinking that amd will be the better buy for gaming. am right or missing something?


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## Aus_Karlos (Mar 10, 2007)

That AMD is better Yes, But the new Intel Core2 Duo's are more for gaming now, and so are the extreme editions.


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## weezymagic (Apr 5, 2008)

*Processor* – AMD Phenom 9850 BLACK EDITION 2.5GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 2MB L3 Cache Socket AM2+ 125W Quad-Core Processor – Retail

*Motherboard* – GIGABYTE GA-MA790FX-DS5 AM2+/AM2 AMD 790FX ATX Ultra Durable II AMD Motherboard - Retail 

*Case* – ThermalTake Kandolf LCS

*Graphics card* – ZOTAC ZT-88TEY2P-FSP GeForce 8800GT 1GB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

*Sound card* – RAZER Barracuda AC-1 7.1Gaming Soundcard

*Hard drive* – (2) Seagate Barracuda ES.2 ST3500320NS 500GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

*Ram* – (2) GeIL Esoteria 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail

*Optical drive* – SAMSUNG Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 20X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe - OEM

*Keyboard* – RAZER Lycosa Standard Gaming Keyboard - Retail

*Mouse* – RAZER Lachesis Gaming Mouse - Retail

*Headset* – RAZER Barracuda hp-1 gaming headphones

*Speakers* – Logitech Z-5500 505 Watts 5.1 Speaker - Retail

*PSU* – APEVIA See-Through ATX-AS500W-BK ATX12V 500W Power Supply 115/ 230 V CB IEC 950/ TUV EN 60950/ UL 1950/ CSA 950 - Retail 

*Monitor* – Acer P223Wwd Glossy White 22" 5ms Widescreen LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 2500:1 - Retail



How's it look now?:4-bounce::4-bounce::4-bounce::4-bounce:


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## Aus_Karlos (Mar 10, 2007)

Take out the sound card, That Gigabyte motherboard has a built-in Hardware one 8.1 sound i think. (It doesn't hinder CPU as it has a hardware Chip to do the processing)
That will save some money...

Get a better PSU. A good brand, Thermaltake or SilverStone. With 36A/+12v min (Last time i checked the Silverstone 550W was about $150-180 AUS Dollar.

Im iffy about the Brand of Graphics card, Not the model 8800GT. Go for a company thats well known like ASUS. (But it will do, some other brands are good but if you buy from a well known brand you are guarantied quality) 

Other than that its a great setup for getting you into the world of gaming. 
I would class this PC as a High-End gaming machine.
Good job!!!

Note: For the OS stick with XP


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

forget the apevia you need a quality 650w or better
this one is on special and the best value
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817256006
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171024
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371011


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## weezymagic (Apr 5, 2008)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817256006
silverstone 750 watt - $119

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130319
evga 8800gt 512mb - $209

the sound card was a steal and already got it and it wont hurt having it.

thx for all the help guys and i cant wait to build this beast.


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## weezymagic (Apr 5, 2008)

y cant you edit first of all and second...i put the wrong vcard...i meant this one
 EVGA 01G-P3-N809-AR GeForce 8800GT AKIMBO 1GB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail $284.99

also, is my RAM good. i will be overclocking and extreme gaming. do i need more? better? different?


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## weezymagic (Apr 5, 2008)

ok...ive changed my setup again and will be ordering in a month or around there...

Processor – AMD Phenom 9850 BLACK EDITION 2.5GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 2MB L3 Cache Socket AM2+ 125W Quad-Core Processor – Retail
Motherboard – MSI K9A2 Platinum AM2+/AM2 AMD 790FX ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
Case – ThermalTake Kandolf LCS
Graphics card – ASUS EAH3870X2/G/HTDI/1G Radeon HD 3870 X2 1GB (512MB x 2) 512-bit (256-bit x 2) GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
Sound card – RAZER Barracuda AC-1 7.1Gaming Soundcard
Hard drive – (2) Western Digital Caviar RE2 WD5001ABYS 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
Ram – G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail
Optical drive – SAMSUNG Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 20X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe - OEM
Keyboard – RAZER Lycosa Standard Gaming Keyboard - Retail
Mouse – RAZER Lachesis Gaming Mouse - Retail
Headset – RAZER Barracuda hp-1 gaming headphones
Speakers – Logitech Z-5500 505 Watts 5.1 Speaker - Retail
PSU – SILVERSTONE SST-ST75ZF ATX 12V 2.2 & EPS12V 750W Power Supply 100 - 240 V OCP,OVP,SCP,NLO - Retail
Monitor – Dell 22” widescreen flat panel



cant wait to boot up and OC. then dominate in gaming.


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## Aus_Karlos (Mar 10, 2007)

Very good choice.


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