[Asuko]

Ok, so I came up with a concept setup for a rig. This is going to be my first one so a friend though it a good idea that I put this up.

In no certain order:
CD/DVD burner
Tower
HDD
Monitor
Video card
Power supply
Speakers (I know there are speakers on the monitor but these are shiny-er, I mean shinier)
Arctic Silver thermal compound
RAM
Motherboard
CPU
DVI-D cable (since the monitor comes with none)
Surge Protector (can't forget one of those)
I have a mouse and keyboard already.

I made this setup with the idea of future proofing. I'm thinking of adding a TV tuner and RAID 1 later on. I'm going to use a copy of Windows XP and Vista if I care to play Crysis on this.

So, how does it look?

[haloboy100]

Looks good to me, it's a lot like my rig, meaning you can run anything

By the way, what the hell is newegg?

[Ashrak]

dualcore CPU?


and those speakers? you dont like sound much do you

[Asuko]

Budget constraints... I would have added a quad-core and 5.1 surround but I would be getting ahead of myself. This has to fit inside a dorm. I'm glad the total price is better than I thought, around $1,300 with shipping.

[CP5670]

The only thing that looks out of place is the monitor. You definitely want something better than that; it never hurts to skimp on something else and spend more on the monitor. The HP LP2065 or W2207 are pretty good bets, in different ways. The 24" Soyo on the OfficeMax site is also worth a look. It has an MVA panel but still has a lower price than most other 24" screens.

The other stuff is mostly fine. The OCZ memory will work at its rated speeds but you can get somewhat better stuff for the same price. The equivalent G.skill pack was good, last I checked (Crucial Ballistix also used to be good but the newer ones suck). The Corsair 550VX is also a better buy than that Antec PSU and costs the same.

[haloboy100]

How come i always see CP5670 whenever there is a rig thread?

[Bob-san]

Feedback? Hold your horses on the CPU. Bigger monitor to go along with the bigger LCD--an 8800GT or 9600GT would do fine on a 20". Next--Arctic Cooling MX-2 instead of Arctic Silver 5--$1 and better temps. Also, with the motherboard--does it have an onboard Firewire connector?

[BloodEagle]

I'll try and forgo the usual Intel, widescreen, and LCD arguments.

• Get a monitor with a 2ms refresh rate.
• Never buy anything from Logitech (and now, sadly, from Labtec).
• The mainboard has only one PATA connector, which appears flimsy.
• The mainboard has a mere two PCI connectors, which is a bad thing.

Also, if you plan on using a microphone, buy a soundcard.

[CP5670]

How come i always see CP5670 whenever there is a rig thread?

I like computer hardware in general. Actually, these occasional threads on it are about the only reason I go into GD at all.

Get a monitor with a 2ms refresh rate.

All the 2ms monitors use TN panels, which means you compromise on image quality to get that speed.

Also, it's the response time you're talking about, not the refresh rate. The refresh rate is fixed at 60hz on almost any LCD available now.

Also, if you plan on using a microphone, buy a soundcard.

The ALC882 chips on modern boards will work well for most people, and microphone usage is no exception. Soundcards still do make a significant difference with the right speakers or headphones but are very much a high end commodity item these days, as integrated audio has improved a lot in the last year or two.

[Asuko]

CP5670, what sort of memory modules are you suggesting? You didn't really specify any. Thanks for the suggestion for the power supply. It puts out 100W less, would that make mush of a difference? I do like how it has plenty of connectors for what I want.

Bob-san, I checked on the GPUs on nVidia.com, 8 series and 9 series. Usually, comparing pixel shaders or texture fill rate is a very good measure of determining performance. I found the 8800GTS 512MB that I chose to be a lot better than I thought.

[Bob-san]

CP5670, what sort of memory modules are you suggesting? You didn't really specify any. Thanks for the suggestion for the power supply. It puts out 100W less, would that make mush of a difference? I do like how it has plenty of connectors for what I want.

Bob-san, I checked on the GPUs on nVidia.com, 8 series and 9 series. Usually, comparing pixel shaders or texture fill rate is a very good measure of determining performance. I found the 8800GTS 512MB that I chose to be a lot better than I thought.

8800GT's can be overclocked quite easily and... well... you get the idea. I hope you take the advice on not getting a Conroe processor because Wolfdale is getting close to being widely available--an E8400 is supposed to run you the same amount as that E6750, but the price is inflated because of the lack of 45nm chips--for now. Intel has to get two more 45nm fabs up and running and we'll see 45nm widespread again.

[CP5670]

CP5670, what sort of memory modules are you suggesting? You didn't really specify any. Thanks for the suggestion for the power supply. It puts out 100W less, would that make mush of a difference? I do like how it has plenty of connectors for what I want.

You're right, it looks like G.skill has several similar packs available now. For stock speeds or moderate overclocks, look for something that can run at 1.8V for best motherboard compatibility. This stuff should be okay. The OCZ sticks have had problems booting on some boards that default at 1.8V, and also run pretty hot. If you want to max out whatever processor you get, this is a good bet and seems to contain the same D9GMH chips that used to be in the normal Ballistix.

The wattage ratings are pretty much irrelevant. The Corsair one has a single, fairly large 12V line, which is preferable to the three rails on the Antec, and is known to have excellent voltage regulation. Antec makes some good and some bad models, although I don't remember which category that one you listed falls into.

8800GT's can be overclocked quite easily and... well... you get the idea. I hope you take the advice on not getting a Conroe processor because Wolfdale is getting close to being widely available--an E8400 is supposed to run you the same amount as that E6750, but the price is inflated because of the lack of 45nm chips--for now. Intel has to get two more 45nm fabs up and running and we'll see 45nm widespread again.

I didn't mention it earlier for the same reason, but it looks like you just need to search around a bit more. It seems to be in stock here and for a pretty good price.

[Asuko]

I checked up on the Wolfdale/E8400. Good stuff but it's unavailable in many places or would take too damn long to ship. I'll keep to the one I have now as it's plenty good and will be great after some overclocking.

*sigh* A budget of $1300 is a tad bit constraining but I'll live.

Now, regarding the memory sticks, I looked at the G.Skill ones. They seem pretty good but I still wonder why 1.8V is preferred. It doesn't specify any certain voltage on the motherboard that I'm going to get so I assume it works across all voltage ranges, no? I'll still take the G.Skill's though; better ratings and many more reviews on it.

[CP5670]

Some boards don't read the SPD chips properly and default to 1.8V until you set it manually, and some of the high voltage memory won't boot at all at 1.8V. In these cases, you have to first boot the board with a different DDR2 stick (can be any old one), increase the voltage and then put the new memory in.

If you're running over your budget, you can certainly go cheaper on the processor, motherboard and/or case and put the savings towards the monitor.

[Ashrak]

I'll try and forgo the usual Intel, widescreen, and LCD arguments.

• Get a monitor with a 2ms refresh rate.
• Never buy anything from Logitech (and now, sadly, from Labtec).
• The mainboard has only one PATA connector, which appears flimsy.
• The mainboard has a mere two PCI connectors, which is a bad thing.

Also, if you plan on using a microphone, buy a soundcard.

i completely do NOT agree with your 2nd point, i have speakers mouse AND keyboard from logitech (2nd set of speakers , upgaded from z-640 to z-5500) and all of the logi stuff has exceeded my expectations.

, i dont agree on 3 and 4 either...


in the age of SATA DVD drives and SATA HDD's you really dont need a PATA port at all.


and what do you need PCI slot for, tell me 3 things that you could use a PCI slot for that would ustify a 3rd NORMAL PCI slot on the mobo.

[Admiral_Stones]

Buy a mac 

[BloodEagle]

Get a monitor with a 2ms refresh rate.

All the 2ms monitors use TN panels, which means you compromise on image quality to get that speed.

It's an LCD monitor, you know.

My mistake on the use of the term 'refresh rate', though. 

• Get a monitor with a 2ms refresh rate.
• Never buy anything from Logitech (and now, sadly, from Labtec).
• The mainboard has only one PATA connector, which appears flimsy.
• The mainboard has a mere two PCI connectors, which is a bad thing.

, i dont agree on 3 and 4 either...

So you think that the PATA connector looks rock-solid, or that there's more than one?

and what do you need PCI slot for, tell me 3 things that you could use a PCI slot for that would ustify a 3rd NORMAL PCI slot on the mobo.

Sound card, TV-tuner, Debug cards, MIDI connector, Suicide Detonation Package, Airflow, etc.

Buy a mac 

No.

[Admiral_Stones]

Of course you do.

[colecampbell666]

My suggestion: By from NCIXUS.com. They have a price match thingy which lets you find the lowest prices on the net. (easy with something like shopbot.com) and use the lower prices. You can save a helluva lot.

I'll show you what I'd get in a while, busy right now.

EDIT: I guess price match is only on NCIX Canada.

[Koth]

Buy a mac 

You would have to pay me to do that.