[Guttboy]

Hi Everyone,

Well I am going to take the plunge and build my first computer BY MYSELF! (with help and advice from all of you!)

Let me start by saying that I do NOT need cutting edge components. I have to stick to a budget and would like everyone's advice. I would like to purchase everything from one vendor to make things easier...Newegg is probably my first choice as I have had a lot of success with them. I have never purchased anything from TigerDirect but I get a lot of emails from them....

.

I am electing to go the Intel route because my last AMD had some issues with an RC Plane simulator that I use and they acknowledged that there were some problems with AMD chips (not entirely sure why but it loaded extremely slow vice my intel laptop). I also have a security camera setup that the company recommends using Intel.

Here are the things that I would like this computer to be able to do:

1. Be able to transfer my VHS, 8mm, and Digital 8 home movies onto DVD for archival purposes.
2. Store my security camera video and archive it as necessary to DVD. (Axis 207W network IP camera) link .
3. Capture television and be able to stream it to my iPhone...OrbLive would be my program to do this (the streaming to the iPhone).
4. Play some video games.....my favorite was America's Army and I hear they are coming out with a new version soon....this would be an occasional use as I use my PS3 for gaming otherwise.
5. Surf the net (of course!)
6. Store my photos, music, documents etc and would like to have the option of hooking up an external HDD as well.
7. Need a decent card reader for my SD cards from the digital camera.
8. I will want to be able to overclock the PC once it is built and running stable. Not hardcore liquid/dry ice

but air cooling is just fine with me! I really enjoyed overclocking my rig in the signature...very fun!

I can recycle a keyboard (USB), mouse (USB), microphone, and monitor from my other computer in the siggy.

I have a Soundblaster X-fi Extreme Gamer PCI sound card that I liked and perhaps I could "recycle" it as well.

I only have Standard Def TV coming to this room from DirecTV...the other rooms all have High Def and are on DVRs. This room is essentially independent from them and I will not be using this PC to view things on the other rooms TVs.

I will need an operating system and am pretty sure I will have to go the Vista route but am not sure what version to go with (Premium? 32 bit? 64 bit?). All my other computers (2 desktops and one Dell laptop) are running Windows XP Pro.

Core 2 Duo, Quad Core, etc....my head spins!

I will probably use the old computer in the signature to try the Folding at Home. I have read a little bit about it here in the forum and seeing that Alzheimer's runs in my family it would be nice to contribute to something worthwhile seeing that that computer will just be sitting in the closet otherwise!

EDIT: BUDGET-----> would like to keep it under $750.00 the more under that the ability to get another monitor for dual monitors would be nice.

Thanks again everyone! I appreciate the advice more than you know!

 

[Acreo Aeneas]

Well I'm sure we can help you out.

First off...

Are you okay with buying parts online?

How much are you willing to spend? What's the maximum amount you're willing to dish out?

 

[error10]

Just a couple of notes:

You probably want to go with an inexpensive quad core like the Q6600, since you're going to be doing so much video work.

TV tuner cards are cheap and will handle your analog cable, VCR and etc. Make sure the tuner card has inputs matching the outputs from your A/V equipment or you'll have to buy some converters (but you're probably familiar with this already).

 

[ddanko12]

maybe:
q6600 for CPU
and would a 4850 be enough for GPU?

 

[meticadpa]

Budget please

 

[procpuarie]

how much are you willing to spend?

 

[crazypip666]

Quote:

Originally Posted by error10 Just a couple of notes: You probably want to go with an inexpensive quad core like the Q6600, since you're going to be doing so much video work. TV tuner cards are cheap and will handle your analog cable, VCR and etc. Make sure the tuner card has inputs matching the outputs from your A/V equipment or you'll have to buy some converters (but you're probably familiar with this already).

I don't see him say anything about doing video work. Archiving and streaming video certainly doesn't require a quad core.

 

[error10]

Quote:

Originally Posted by crazypip666 I don't see him say anything about doing video work. Archiving and streaming video certainly doesn't require a quad core.

Compressing and re-encoding it for archival certainly will benefit from a quad.

 

[Guttboy]

I am sorry folks.....I forgot to put the budget in there....

I will go up and EDIT the post with it in there.

I would like to keep it at $750.....

I have no issues buying parts on line...I like NewEgg particularly....

As for the video editing....as was mentioned earlier by someone, it will be solely for archival purposes and being able to make a DVD so that the family can watch our home stuff.

Apologize for not putting this in the first post

* If I can make a PC that can handle this for under $750 then I would like to be able to have dual monitors for the future. And I would also like to be able to play America's Army (new version)...thats about the only video game that I have enjoyed as of late.

 

[unreachable]

https://secure.newegg.com/WishList/M...spx?ID=9723092

Add the proper TV tuner for 100$ and that's 750!

All the items I selected all had at least 5 eggs so they're good quality.

Good luck in your budget build

 

[kazakia]

CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819116072 E5200 $84
RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231122 2x2Gb G.Skill $40
Mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813128358 GA-P45-UD3P $136
PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371019 Antec 500w $40
HDDs: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822152052 500GB x2 $110
Case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119152 cm590 $60
GFX: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814131125 HD4850 $144
CPU Cooler: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835233003 Xigmatek S1283 $37
OS: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16832116488 Vista x64 $100

Total: $751 Before $40 MIR

Extremely fun to OC with the mobo cpu and cooler cobo.

 

[Darz]

Needs a dvd drive kazakia

 

[Guttboy]

Hi Folks....thanks for the responses so far!

Kazakia...very comprehensive list! Much appreciated!

1. How much of a difference would I see between the Q6600 and the E5200?
2. How much can I "reasonably" OC either one?
3. Nitty Gritty....I will need some thermal paste too I assume.
4. Upgradeability in the future?
5. I could most likely can my DVD drive from the Gamerig as it has a CD and DVD drive on it.
6. Vista 64 bit Premium....is there much difference between Ultimate and Premium?

I noticed 2 x 500 GB drives......why would I want to do that as opposed to a single terabyte one?

Also could I put on another ESATA drive in the future for more storage?

I already have an ATI TV Wonder Pro Remote Control Edition, I am not sure if that will fit the bill for archiving my movies...thoughts?

Thanks again!!!! Oh btw....that cooler master case looks nice and well within budget.....will the Power Supply be able to support all the equipment? Looks as though I have the potential to put a bunch of fans on that rig.

Finally, are all the appropriate cables in any bundle? Do I need to look for more? Remember this is my FIRST build and I dont want to mess up!

Truly appreciate the time and help folks!

 

[kazakia]

1. After the E5200 is OCed to around 3.6Ghz+ it will be on par with the Q6600 in gaming. And unless you want to do some CPU intensive stuff there is no need for a Q6600 with a $750 budget
2. You could OC the Q6600 to around 3.6Ghz and the E5200 to that speed aswell most likely higher. People have got their E5200s to 4.0Ghz. IT is one of the most OCable chips around which makes it so popular.
4.I'm not sure what you mean by upgradeable but there are 2 extra ram slots so you could go 8GB int he future and power to go for more HDDs and fans.
6. Premium is basically Ultimate with a few less features but those features arent the most important part of Vista. You'll live without them. You can search it up on google cause i don't remember the exact differences. x64 is so that you can use 4Gb and more RAM.

2x500 in RAID0 will give you the same storage capacity as a 1TB drive but at much faster speeds.

And yes the PSU is good enough for that rig and some minor upgrades. You won;t need extra cables but you may want to buy zip ties for the cables and you will need thermal paste. All the cables should come with the components e.g. sata with the motherboard.

 

[Guttboy]

Thanks Kaz!

Hmmmm....a lot to think about! When I was refering to upgradeability I was thinking about expandability and you nailed that ??? for me. So in the Raid0 you have 1 TB but it utilizes both of the drives some how? I will read up on that one for sure. I have zip ties already due to all my home theater stuff.....

So The E5200 is a good chip.....the question now is.....

Would it behoove me to consider spending a little more money and going with the Q6600?. I have the FUNNY feeling once I get this puppy up and running I will be "bitten" by the PC gaming fun again!!!!....tad bit addicted earlier in life...ask the family...LOL.....

How much of a difference is between the two? If the Q6600 OC's well additionally...perhaps that may be the way to go???

 

[kazakia]

If you have the money go for it if not the E5200 is going to be just as good when gaming.

 

[Guttboy]

Would that MOBO be good for both? It says on the "egg" that it will accept quad cores.

As far as the Q6600.....just where would I see the benefits? I am still on a single core mentality as I have never had a dual or quad.

It has been a bit since researching but I was told by a guy at work that you would see big benefits when multitasking. Not sure what multitasking I would be doing. If I were playing a game I would not be archiving videos and vice versa.

How successful with that combo would the OCing on the quad go? Would getting 3.6 or above be feasible and stable? With the right tweaks how high could it get?

As far as the case goes....the Cooler Master 590 vs the Cooler Master 690:

It looks as if the 690 has the provision for an eSATA port on it while the 590 does not...am I reading this correctly? I could potentially use an external SATA drive in the future. It also appears that the 690 has NO upper vents to allow heat to escape.

Thoughts on one vs the other? If I start OC'ing I would like to have the better of the two for heat dissipation.

I noticed that both the cooler master cases have the PSU on the bottom. To me this seems counter intuitive as we all know that heat rises....is this a big issue?

-------------

Right now my planning stage has swapped a bit of direction here....perhaps my budget will go up...it usually does...LOL....I think that (based upon opinions here) that perhaps the Q6600 might be in the mix now. IF...I would see a marked improvement over the dual core E5200.

Comments and recommendations GREATLY APPRECIATED!

 

[Galeon 7]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guttboy Thanks Kaz! ...So in the Raid0 you have 1 TB but it utilizes both of the drives some how? I will read up on that one for sure....

Raid 0 is just having two hard drives. They aren't combined in anyway. If you put data on the second and your OS on the first, then you pull across both hard drive busses at the same time. If you have only one drive with all on it, you have only one buss to pull all information. Hence half the speed. Like the difference between a 4 lane freeway and a two lane blacktop. BTW, if you put your OS on the first drive, put your pagefile.sys on the second drive, for the same reason.

 

[Bazmecc]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Galeon 7 Raid 0 is just having two hard drives. They aren't combined in anyway. If you put data on the second and your OS on the first, then you pull across both hard drive busses at the same time. If you have only one drive with all on it, you have only one buss to pull all information. Hence half the speed. Like the difference between a 4 lane freeway and a two lane blacktop. BTW, if you put your OS on the first drive, put your pagefile.sys on the second drive, for the same reason.

how exactly do you put the OS on one drive, and data on the other in RAID 0?

 

[Galeon 7]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bazmecc how exactly do you put the OS on one drive, and data on the other in RAID 0?

Whenever you save use the second drive, not the default location on the first. Just directory out the second drive. BTW Tweakui among other programs will allow you to change the default location of your My Documents folder...to the second drive.

ie, using Word (1st drive) save your docs to the second drive. When you open up the doc, you pull across both busses at the same time, rather than pulling both program and doc across one buss, one drive.