Have a Heart, Help a Noob

I realize this has probably been asked countless times over the history of the gamespot pc forum, but I have to ask again.Me and a friend are building a PC for college, sort of an experiment in our joint computing knowledge. (and, I need a gaming computer. it works out). Since I'm funding the project, I get to pick out the goods.So here's the problem - I'm trying to build a rig that will run me between 1100 and 1500 dollars. But since I've never built a computer before, I'd really appreciate some help.A) The first computer we ever got sucked more dust into its cooling fins than I knew we had in the house. Finally it overheated so much that something decided to stop working. Since that, I've been paranoid about overheating. Antec 900 looks like a really nice case, plenty of cooling, but it's a little pricey. Our current home computer came with a 500W power supply and only cost 100; the 900 doesn't and costs 120. Is it worth it, or is that much cooling not necessary on a mid-range gaming system?B) Assuming 1500 as the top price range, how big of a power supply does one need?C) I know that when LCD's were first introduced, gamers didn't like them because of the delay, the duller colors, and the lack of virtual depth. Have the problems improved, or is a CRT still the way to go for gaming?Any help you guys can give would be very much appreciated, and I'm sure as I get past the basic stuff and into the mobo, video card, and such, I'll have more questions for you.Thanks. Have a Heart, Help a Noob
A.) get what ever case that looks like it has enough fans and good airflow. Raidmax Smilodon case keeps my system real cool, my cpu idles around 25C and it is over clocked from 2.5-3.5. So its good. Lots of fans lots of room and looks cool. the green one is better BTW.B.) A good 600 watt around $150 would be good for you. i like my thermaltake powersupply, it runs very nice. But there are other options. C.) Get a LCD, save on space. They run fine. If your in a dorm room, which are tiny as hell i swear my bedroom @ home must be 3 times bigger then my dorm room.Wait to get the 4870x2 which comes out soon for your graphics card. The E8400 would be good for you since you guys are gona use it to do some gaming and if you can learn to overclock(which isnt hard after some trial and error) you can crank that bad boy up to 4Ghz. You will want a upgraded cpu heatsink, i have a Asus vapor bearing cpu heatsink that works very nice, keeps overclocked cpu @ 25 Idle, and 40 most extreme. For your graphics card, i reccomend a gigabyte, they are very n00b friendly and are very high quality. You don't need a ''crossfire'' board 1 graphics port is good. So i would spend at the most $120 on your motherboard. oh yea make sure if you get the E8400, that your motherboard supports 45nm proccessors.Harddrive, western digital makes a good 7200 rpm, 3.0 ghz/s drive. Reccomend 500 gigsumm since you have a lot of money might as well go with 4 gigs, OCZ, G Skill are both pretty good names. For instructions on how to build(its fairly straight forward, color cordinated, gigiabyte gives you some instructions with the mobo that are very helpfull) you can search in youtube, ''how to build pc'' Have a Heart, Help a Noob
Thanks a ton, man.Two questions: A) How much would that cost, and B) will that run pretty much anything comfortably? (well, excluding crysis.)
no that would kill crysis bro and well$400 gpu 4870 x2$300 monitor anything at target or bestbuy will work$100 hdd western digital, 7200 rpm, 3gb/s$100 memory OCZ, G Skill are good$50 cpu fan asus vapor bearing, or lot of people like artic freezer 7(its cheaper)$100 mobo gigabyte whatever, make sure it supports 45nm processors, look in specs$85 case i reccomend raidmax simolodon $170 cpu$50 keyboard and mouse$100 power supply maybe a tad more or less. thermaltake has done me well ~ $1300 with shipping. I reccomend using newegg because they aren't half bad and very relieable. Pretty good prices.
Awesome. Thanks a ton for the time and the help. Again, I'm guessing I'll run into some more issues as I try to piece everything together, so keep an eye out.And if anyone else has any suggestions and ideas, I'm all open.
Just to have a second voice to back this up, that build he suggested is awesome.I thought I'd just get a little more specific on the mobo/cpu/powersupply to help you out though.[url=http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130181]MSI P45 Mobo[/url] I know the other guy reccomended Gigabyte, but this is a great mobo, and it's the only P45 that's $100(none cheaper either)[url=http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115037]Intel E8400[/url] I think he said this earlier, but he didn't put this in his overview[url=http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371010]Antec 650W PSU[/url] it's $100(great discount right now) and it has the 6+2 PCI-E connector you'll need for the 4870X2. Oh and a great bonus, it's modular! Meaning you can disconnect the cable you don't need. That's my 2 cents :D EDIT: I just HAD to recommend this LCD monitor. [url=http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009094] Acer 22'' Widescreen[/url]. This is an amazing monitor for a great price. I'm using the exact same one right now.
Just make sure you get a PSU with good wire management. As much as I love Corsair for their high quality PSU's, their wire management is horrible. I prefer Ultra X3 with detachable cables, or another PSU along those lines.
Thanks!What do you guys think as far as casing? I was going to go with the Antec 900 and the Antec 650W Neopower supply. Like I said earlier, I live in fear of overheating, and the 900 has a 200mm fan on the top and three 120mm's.
So, it wasn't until I clicked the link that I realized your recommended power source was the one I just asked about...
antec 900 are aight, get a Antec 1200 its like a bigger version of the 900 i guess
All right, motherboard is one of the things that I have absolutely no idea on. What makes a good motherboard?
And, can I get a link for the graphics card?
the graphics card isnt out yet next month is when it comes out
[QUOTE=''Elann2008'']Just make sure you get a PSU with good wire management. As much as I love Corsair for their high quality PSU's, their wire management is horrible. I prefer Ultra X3 with detachable cables, or another PSU along those lines. [/QUOTE]Corsair has modular PSU's, and trust me, they are better than the Ultra PSU's. Don't knock Corsair, just because you did not want to pay extra for a quality modular unit.While I hear Ultra has gotten better, they used to be nothing more than a fire hazard, and I still would not trust them in my PC.
[QUOTE=''Archebius'']All right, motherboard is one of the things that I have absolutely no idea on. What makes a good motherboard? [/QUOTE] I linked you to a good mobo up top too. I have the CPU/motherboard/and PSU on my first post EDIT: Also, the PSU I recommended is modular(as other people have said to get)
Alright well I took the liberty to of making a list of computer parts to buy. Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail Model #:Nine Hundred Item #:N82E16811129021 Return Policy:Limited 30-Day Return Policy In Stock $139.99-$20.00 Instant$119.99 Update GIGABYTE GA-EP35C-DS3R LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Dynamic Energy Saver Ultra Durable II Intel Motherboard - Retail Model #:GA-EP35C-DS3R Item #:N82E16813128082 Return Policy:Limited 30-Day Return Policy In Stock Mail-in Rebate
$139.99 $139.99 Update SAPPHIRE 100243L Radeon HD 4870 512MB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail Model #:100243L Item #:N82E16814102748 Return Policy:Limited 30-Day Return Policy In Stock $284.99 $284.99 Update CORSAIR CMPSU-520HX 520W ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 Power Supply - Retail Model #:CMPSU-520HX Item #:N82E16817139001 Return Policy:Standard Return Policy In Stock Mail-in Rebate
$139.99-$20.00 Instant$119.99 Update Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80570E8400 - Retail Model #:BX80570E8400 Item #:N82E16819115037 Return Policy:Processors (CPUs) Return Policy In Stock $174.99 $174.99 Update OCZ Platinum Revision 2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model OCZ2P800R22GK - Retail Model #:OCZ2P800R22GK Item #:N82E16820227139 Return Policy:Memory (Modules, USB) Return Policy In Stock Mail-in Rebate
$49.49 $49.49 Update Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3500630AS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM Model #:ST3500630AS Item #:N82E16822148136 Return Policy:Limited 30-Day Return Policy In Stock $79.99-$5.00 Instant$74.99 Update NEC Display Solutions ASLCD203WXM-BK Black 20.1'' 5ms Widescreen LCD Monitor - Retail Model #:ASLCD203WXM-BK Item #:N82E16824002337 Return Policy:[LCD] Limited Non-Refundable 30-Day Return Policy In Stock $279.99 $279.99 Update LG 20X DVD盧 Super Multi DVD Burner Black ATAPI / E-IDE Model GSA-H55NK - OEM Model #:GSA-H55NK Item #:N82E16827136117 Return Policy:Standard Return Policy In Stock $23.99 $23.99 Update LG Black IDE DVD-ROM Drive Model GDR-H30NK - OEM Model #:GDR-H30NK Item #:N82E16827136126 Return Policy:Standard Return Policy In Stock $16.99 $16.99 Update Scythe S-FLEX SFF21F 120mm Case Fan - Retail Model #:S-FLEX SFF21F Item #:N82E16835185006 Return Policy:Standard Return Policy In Stock $29.99-$10.00 Instant$19.99Subtotal:$1,305.39TO cover a few of your questions the antec 900 case is well worth the extra cash, it provides superior cooling and has room for an extra case fine to cool the GPU. Its a great case for a gaming computer.
How much better are we saying the 4870 x2 is? Because, I need to have this thing built before the 23rd. Is it honestly worth waiting for?
if you really want 4870 x2, you can buy a crossfire motherboard and make hd4870 crossfire. That would be a total killer. Though i must say 4870 x1 is just fine. It will max games except crysis.
Well, you could up your motherboard and throw 2 4870's in Crossfire. That is basically what the 4870X2 is, but crossfired 4870's would a little more expensive, and honestly doesn't perform quite as well.EDIT: and unless you wanted to put out ALOT of money for an X48, then you won't get both cards at x16(it would be be x8 x8 or x16 x8 )
if your trying to keep under $500 you shouldn't really get the 4870 X2. Besides a 4870 is more than enough for a resolution of 1680x1050.