1st build - initial planning stage

[Konnetikut]

This will be my first computer build - I've been running through countless forums to arrive at this initial proposal for a quiet build (which may or may not happen, not confirmed yet)

budget is approx. $1500CAD
supplier is NCIX.com

here we go.

Antec P182
Corsair HX520
? Asus P5K Deluxe WiFi/AP
? Intel E6600
Scythe Ninja *
Crucial Ballistix PC2-8500 2x1GB
EVGA 7900GS KO
Thermalright HR-03
Western Digital SE16 500GB (WD5000AAKS)
Sondigo Inferno 7.1 Sound Card **
Logitech X-230 2.1 Speaker System **
? Pioneer DVR-212D
Arctic Silver 5 3.5gram
+ some fans***

? - Is Asus P5K (or any P35 motherboard) at least just as good as P5B was? Should I stay safe with the more mature P965 chipset?
? - Should I wait on this build for the July 22 Intel pricedrops? If I do, should I take the Q6600 at that time or the E6850 that will come out?
* How's the Ninja doing? Still top on spcr's list? Is the mounting system too problematic?
** I know nothing about sound systems and other related components - I just feel that this would be a good investment.
*** depending on whether NCIX get's the Nexus 120mm fans back in stock, I will get either those or the Yate Loon fans. Should I get the D12SL-12 or the D12BL-12? the ball bearing version is about 2 dollars more expensive (5.69 vs 3.59) but the dBa rating is slightly lower.
? - the Pioneer DVD drive could make my system an IDE free environment, but it's not completely necessary as I already have a 111D.

I'm assuming that the 7900GS KO will run fine passively on the HR-03. I don't game much anyway.

[Plissken]

Antec P182 Corsair HX520

Awesome combo for quiet

EVGA 7900GS KO I don't game much anyway.

Depending on how much you game, you might want to step down to passive 7600GT, or up to passive 8600, or even to 8800GTS which isn't too bad (for me).

Is Asus P5K (or any P35 motherboard) at least just as good as P5B was? Should I stay safe with the more mature P965 chipset?

I think this depends on how soon you want to upgrade. Either go cheap with P965-DS3 and save $125, or go with the P5K-D, because it's only $30 more than the P5B-D. Also depends if you want RAID, firewire, etc.

To get better advice you should list what you want to do with the PC, and if you plan to overclock. Have fun!

[ck8-04]

If you don't plan on overclocking, get the Intel DP965LT or the DP35DPM. Intel boards are known for stability and quality. I have a D975XBX2 myself and this is the best motherboard I have ever owned. Every component used on this board is high quality (audio codec is made by Sigmatel and not some crap company like Realtek like most Taiwanese mobo manufacturers would use). I have also owned a few other Intel boards from the P3 and P4 days and never had a problem with them. Intel boards also don't come with all that crap that Taiwanese manufacturers include just so their boards look good but people never use (i.e. 4 RAID controllers or fancy LEDs).

You should definitely wait for the July 22 price drop. The prices after that drop are insane. You should get a quad core. You can OC a lower speed dual core to the E6850, but you can't somehow magically add 2 more cores to a CPU.

Ninja is fine except for the mounting problems with 775. I was originally going to buy that cooler, but opted for a Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme. It has no problems cooling my E6700 passively.

Creative's X-Fi series sound cards are the best cards for gaming. Only gripe I have with them is the amount of bloat the drivers come with. I sold my X-Fi and used the onboard sound on my D975XBX2. Never looked back. My system feels so much lighter without all the crap that Creative drivers install. There are other sounds cards also, but I'm sure others can point you in the right direction.

The DVD drive should be fine since a lot of P35 boards come with a 3rd party IDE controller.

The HR-03 will cool your 7900GS fine passively. I use a HR-03 passively on my 7950GT and I game everyday.

[Konnetikut]

thanks for all the input so far.

1) Yes, I will overclock.
How much remains to be seen - my current setup (see signature) has very limited overclocking options and hasn't really contributed much to my learning.

2) I probably should step down to a 7600GT passive - after all, the most recent game I've actually bought is Warcraft III. lol. What's the most graphics intensive game that you could play comfortably on a 7600GT? how about 7900GS KO or 8600?

3) Motherboard.
I don't see either a P5B-D or a P5K-D on sale at NCIX.
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php? ... orcatid=27

Requirements:
Firewire
eSATA
4-6 USB
ps/2 keyboard

- What's the use of dual gblan?
- I need to do more research on RAID to see if I need/want it or not.

4) Thermalright Ultra 120
The only problem is that many people say that you need a high CFM fan to cool effectively using an ultra 120. Is is possible to passively (or actively with a low CFM fan) cool a moderate overclock with this?
another option: NH-U12F?.... hmmm

edit: just reread the recommended/reference articles and saw that the ultra 120 has problems with the closed flange (ie. nexus/yate loon) fans - since I don't have a hacksaw or a dremel and the ultra 120 only dominates with a fan, maybe i'm better off with a ninja.

[SilentShoe]

thanks for all the input so far.
1) Yes, I will overclock.
How much remains to be seen - my current setup (see signature) has very limited overclocking options and hasn't really contributed much to my learning.

overclocking should be better with the new p35 chipset, they have reached higher fsb than p965.
i would suggest going with a asus p5k or p5k-deluxe
although it is relatively new chipset, you probably will not need to o.c right away, by the time you do, bios revision should be out to help improve o.c.

2) I probably should step down to a 7600GT passive - after all, the most recent game I've actually bought is Warcraft III. lol. What's the most graphics intensive game that you could play comfortably on a 7600GT? how about 7900GS KO or 8600?

passive 8600GT or 8600GTS by asus or gigabyte are not a bad choice,
saves u the cost of buying an hr-03

3) Motherboard.
I don't see either a P5B-D or a P5K-D on sale at NCIX.
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php? ... orcatid=27

by "-D" he means deluxe, so p5b-deluxe or p5k-deluxe. seeing as your going for ddr2 ram, make sure you dont accidentally get the p5k-d ddr3 version.
there is also a gigabyte board that supports both ddr2 and ddr3, i 4get what the exact name is.

regarding price drops, you could wait for it and either save more on the e6600, up to an 6650 or like u mentioned q6600 e6850, depends on your budget of course.

a SATA dvr will reduce clutter in your case, if you plan on buying a new dvr, might as well go for sata, they are usually $5 more than ide versions.

otherwise looks like a good system.
hand on for a bit, read up to see what kind of price drops there might be and then get ready for your silent pc

[Konnetikut]

alright - seems like the only way to go is to wait for the July pricedrops.

Asus passive vga cards are out of stock, so....
Gigabyte 8600GT Passive (includes supcom) looks like a good choice - is it worse, equal, or better than the 7900GS? (disregarding dx10 capabilities)
Also, what is HDCP and do I want it? (8600GTS) tried googling and wikipedia but didn't help me much.

I'm almost set on the P5K Deluxe now.