# Need some suggestions on new system



## konradinho (Jun 4, 2007)

Hello all;

It's been a while since I've built a system and need some help. Since my old Dell just died, I decided to build a new system, and since I'm already building a new comp... might as well be something good. Here is where I might need some help: video card, CPU and mobo. 

I'd like ths system to run on Vista (lappy already runs vista and networking the two would be much easier..), run the most current and demanding games and do the usual. :wink:

Just FYI, I have no preference when it comes to ATI vs Nvidia or AMD vs Intel. Money is not that big of an issue, but plz don't go too nutz :tongue: 

OK, waiting to hear your sggestions.


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## Jaymie1989 (Mar 25, 2007)

Hi,

I would get an Nvidia and an Intel CPU and maybe for the MoBo a Foxconn or Asus.

Im not going to pick them out because maybe im not the best person to do that.

I would get the Intel Core 2 Duo 2.66GH'z and the Nvidia 8600GTS and the MSI 945P Neo3-F i945P for the MoBo.

Thats just what i am planning on mine.

just make sure that your PSU is good enough.

Jay:wave:


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## Skaarj (Aug 2, 2007)

This is what i have put together for my PC. I shall be buying these parts soon 

LITE-ON Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X 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
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16827106073

NZXT LEXA BlackLine Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16811146038

Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD3200AAKS 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16822136074

Acer AL2216Wbd Black 22" 5ms DVI Widescreen LCD Monitor with HDCP support 300 cd/m2 700:1 - Retail (dont know if you need a new monitor )
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16824009094

EVGA 320-P2-N811-AR GeForce 8800GTS 320MB 320-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card 
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16814130082

mushkin 550150 ATX12V 750W Maximum Power; 650W Continuous Power Power Supply 115/230 V - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16817812005

mushkin 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16820146694

GIGABYTE GA-N650SLI-DS4 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16813128044

Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 Conroe 2.66GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16819115029

Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium DVD - Retail (idk if you need vista or if you already have CD)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16832116142

With monitor and vista it comes to $1,608.90 (this price includes shipping)
Without the monitor and vista it totals up to $1,388.91 with shipping.

But i dont know how much shipping will be for you because I notice you are from Europe.


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## TheMatt (May 9, 2006)

I like it a lot, and really don't have any suggestions at all other than consider going with 2 GB of RAM instead of 4 GB and getting tighter timings:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146567

Also, to improve airflow in the case throw in one of these below the video card:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835888309


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## Skaarj (Aug 2, 2007)

That case cooler takes up a PCI slot in the motherboard right?

EDIT: I dont quite understand the timings on the Ram Sticks. What do they mean?


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## TheMatt (May 9, 2006)

Tighter timings (lower numbers) equate to better performance, especially the first number, the CAS latency.


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## Skaarj (Aug 2, 2007)

Then i probably should replace the current stick i have ordered with these

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820141241


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## Skaarj (Aug 2, 2007)

BTW, the case looks sexy


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## konradinho (Jun 4, 2007)

Wow, thanks for all the replies. It all looks great. I have actually looked at the video card you mentioned. I never had an Nvidia card installed on any system I owned, but I figure there's a first time for everything. 

The video card looks great, the case too (although I already have two around the house so I will probably end up using one of those), PSU great, and I agree about the memory. Having two gigs is enough to run Vista and all other apps at full performance. I know vista uses a lot of it, but it also caches much more than xp. 

Anyway, I was looking at the Samsung monitor instead of the Acer. 
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001096
But I guess that's just a matter of preference, unless anyone has some problem with this monitor. 

As far as the mobo, what do you think of this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813127030

Anyway, thanks a lot for all the suggestions 

K.


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## Skaarj (Aug 2, 2007)

Hmm in fact i upgraded by video card from the original build i posted.

I'm now going with this card (nVidia FTW):

EVGA 640-P2-N821-AR GeForce 8800GTS 640MB 320-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card 
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130071

As said in another post, the 320MB video card will show its age very fast, especially with all the new games coming out. It is a good investment to just go ahead and get the 640 from the get-go.

Oh and I like the Acer monitor because of its price. Its a great price for a 22" in my opinion. 

EDIT: I made a small upgrade to my monitor, it is still Acer, still 22" but it costs about $20 more.
The difference here is that this monitor has build-in speakers, whereas the original Acer and the Samsung monitor posted did not.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16824009102

Oh, and it has a higher contrast ratio than both the original Acer and the Samsung. And is a lot cheaper than the Samsung.

Acer (Original) $219.99
Acer (w/ Speakers) $239.99
Samsung $319.99 =/


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## Skaarj (Aug 2, 2007)

OFF TOPIC

Based on your user name is your real name Konrad?


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## TheMatt (May 9, 2006)

Thats OK, but for the price you can go with the P6N Platinum. I would go with an nVidia chipset so you have the option of SLI later.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130081


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## kodi (Jun 30, 2004)

Re the Monitor, google the samsung then the acer and read some reviews on them, the consensus is that the samsung is a better monitor.
I have an Acer with speakers and they are not good at all so i don't use them,apart from that I am quite happy with my Acer


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## konradinho (Jun 4, 2007)

Skaarj said:


> OFF TOPIC
> 
> Based on your user name is your real name Konrad?


Yup, sure is. 

As far as the monitor... my friend has a Samsung, only it's a 19" and is very happy with it. Hence my enthusiasm towards that particular one. I know it's a few extra bucks, but hey... if I don't spend it on me, it'll probably be spent by the woman. :laugh:

Hmm, I remember times when things like choosing a video card was such a simple choice. There was not much to choose from, so you were happy with what you got. Now all this choice out there... and not to mention of the size these things now. They seem to take up half the space and create half the heat in the darn case. 

Anyway, just for comparison... if I piced ATI instead of Nvidia, which one would it be? Are Nvidia cards simply more popular these days? Or are they actually better (although I would imagine this would just be user preference)?


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## TheMatt (May 9, 2006)

A word of advice - don't go ATI for DX10 just yet. The ATI X1950 series was great, but the HD 2000 series has a pipeline flaw that seriously impacts performance. Take a look at Toms Hardware VGA charts 2k7:

As you can see, the HD 2600XT falls quite short of the 8600GTS:
http://www23.tomshardware.com/graphics_2007.html?modelx=33&model1=858&model2=854&chart=318

And the HD 2900XT falls behind the 8800GTS 640MB and even behind the 320MB:
http://www23.tomshardware.com/graphics_2007.html?modelx=33&model1=857&model2=707&chart=318


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## Skaarj (Aug 2, 2007)

> Yup, sure is.


That's awesome  my name is Conrad lol.

as far as the monitor is concerned, ill stick with the acer because of its low price. And im gonna go with the cheaper Acer and buy some extra speakers based off of what Kodi said


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## TheMatt (May 9, 2006)

I have the 20" version of that monitor and love it. One thing though - you will probably have to turn down the brightness so it doesn't hurt your eyes. :laugh:


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## Skaarj (Aug 2, 2007)

Should come bundled with sunglasses imo lol


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## TheMatt (May 9, 2006)

:laugh:

Yeah. If you go into Auto adjust and select Text, it will turn down the brightness so its good. I was very satisfied, not even a single dead pixel so far.


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## konradinho (Jun 4, 2007)

Hmm, thanks for the advice Matt. It's not that I'm some kind of ATI fan or anything, it's more of the fact that apart from the first two computers I ever owned (where Nvidia had their pre-installed cards) I had ATI installed. But to be honest, the last good card from ATI that I was honestly happy with was the 9700. I got that card around the time that it came out. But maybe it's time for change. I want something that will just run anything you throw at it. At least for some time, until some game with some amazing AI comes out and will need 5 gigs of video mem just to get it goin  hehehe

As for the mobo... couple of questions.
1. don't both the boards have nVidia chipsets?
2. what is the advantage of SLI?
3. I see some mixed reviews on that board. Considering I never owned an MSI board (usually ABIT, Gigabyte or Asus) I don't know much about them.


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## TheMatt (May 9, 2006)

The P6N has the nForce 650i chipset. The Gigabyte N650-SLI is another good board, I own that one.

As for video cards, ATI did really well with the X800 and X850 series, as well as with the X1650 and X1950 series. But in an attempt to implement superscalar shader execution into their pipelines, the messed up and now shader operations must be executed in groups of 5, meaning if 4 are waiting to be executed, they have to wait for a 5th one to come along. This seriously hinders performance.

Go for the 8600GTS. MSI has an 8600GTS OC that is double-slotted and has a very good stock cooler.


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## konradinho (Jun 4, 2007)

Could you please explain to me what SLI means and what it does? When it comes to video cards I'm a bit of a newb. There was a time when I was interested in all this and I was pretty up to date, but since I haven't played many games for a while (new job left me with no time...) I kind of feel out of the loop. 

Also, how would you compare the performance of these games on a computer to a console (XBOX 360 or something)?


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## TheMatt (May 9, 2006)

I would have to estimate than the Xbox 360 is about equal to something between the 8600GTS and the 8800GTS in graphics power.

SLI basically allows two cards to run in parallel and *theoretically* double performance, however it is never actually that. SLI is for two nVidia cards that have the same GPU chipset. The ATI equivalent is Crossfire which is actually a lot more complex. I will explain that if you want.


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