Attempting My First Build

MAttOE88 · 07-30-2009

Hello everyone.

I've spent a great deal of time learning as much as I can about computer hardware lately as I've decided to build my own machine. I am, sadly, very inexperienced and with little knowledge and understanding of the technology I use everyday. So below I've listed the items I believe would make up my dream PC. I ask those more knowledgable to look over the list, and perhaps even correct mistakes I've made. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Case- Antec Sonata III 500W 0.8mm Cold Rolled Steel $110
Mother Board- ASUS P6T $240
Processor- Intel Core i7-920 (8mb L3 Cache, 2.66 GHz) $280
Memory- Patriot Viper 6GB DDR3 Tri-Channel SDRAM at 1600MHz $93
Video Card- NVidia GeForce GTX275 127 GB/s Bandwidth 896MB Mem $240
Hard Drive- 750GB SATA 3.0GB/s, 32MB cache $60
Sound Card- ASUS Xonar Essence STX $80

I would love to cut some cost if possible. I will be using this machine for extensive video editting as well as some casual gaming (the Oblivions and Fallouts of the gaming world), so if I've over-exagerated my needs anywhere in there please let me know. I'm also slightly worried about compatibility issues, as I know nothing about such. Is this all I would need to get this machine up and running?

Comments welcome and appreciated.

Thank you,
MAttOE88

Callisto · 07-30-2009

Hi. Everything looks good. That case looks alright and it does come with a good Antec 500w psu, so it would have no problem powering the 275, but if you think you might want to get another one in the future for SLI, it might be in your best interest to invest in a better PSU now.

If you shop from Newegg, this combo will save you some money, and it has the same P6T motherboard and the i7, and it comes with slightly better RAM.

Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, Digital Cameras and more!

If you want to save some more money, you can drop the sound card as you will not hear a noticeable difference between it and the onboard sound unless you have a really good set of speakers backing it up.

And you are also missing a disk drive.

Cobracon · 07-30-2009

The Antec 500 watt PSU doesn't meet the minimum requirements for the +12 volt power demand (40 amps @ +12 volts) required by the system when using a GTX 275 GPU. The i7 CPU will put an additional demand on the PSU, also. Get atleast a 650 watt Corsair. Make sure (by enmailing the manufacturer) that the GTX 275 card will fit the case. It's a very long card and might interfere with the HDD's or the HDD cage.

Yup, the soundcard is superfluous, and really not needed. As has been previously mentioned, you've omitted an optical drive. I noticed you don't have a monitor listed either, and I would recommend a Sansung 23".

You will surely get some conflicting opinions from AMD/ATI fanboys, but in a year or two the i7 system (with the upcoming software upgrades) will have left the current best AMD/ATI system in the dust. Take that to the bank.

Last, I'd download Win 7 RC for the Operatingn System as it's a BMF. I dual Boot it with XP Pro, and though it's taken some getting used to, I like it.

MAttOE88 · 07-31-2009

Wow, thank you both very much for your quick and helpful responses.

A quick search yielded a 750w corsair PSU for what looked like a pretty good price, marked down to $120 on Newegg. That seems like it would get me going alright.
(link) Newegg.com - CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Power Supplies

EDIT: Now that I know I'll be purchasing a seperate PSU, I was looking back at the original case I had in mind: RAIDMAX SMILODON ATX-612WB Would it work just as well? I only ask because it's a bit cheaper.
Newegg.com - RAIDMAX SMILODON ATX-612WB Black 1.0mm SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Foldout MB Computer Case - Computer Cases

I'll be dropping the sound card as suggested, and sending an email to Antec to make sure the video card will fit alright. I also like the look of that combo Callisto, and greatly appreciate you bringing it to my attention.

Doing the research and learning about all this stuff in the brief amount of time I've allotted myself has definately stressed me a bit, and you both have alleviated much of that with your help. So again, thank you both.

MAttOE88

apena7 · 07-31-2009

Which operating system are you running?
If you are running Windows XP 32-bit, then 6GB of RAM would be overkill as it can only utilize 2GB maximum. Vista Home Premium 32-bit supports a maximum of 4GB of RAM, and Vista Home Premium 64-bit will support up to 16GB of RAM.
Just looking out for your wallet

Callisto · 07-31-2009

I don't think he is running an OS yet since his pc is not yet built. A 32-bit OS can actually recognize around 3.5GB of RAM max.

If you have not yet chosen your OS, I would suggest using the 64-bit Windows 7 RC Windows 7 Release Candidate for the time being, and then you can purchase the retail version this October. It is a great OS, I personally have not had one problem running it daily.

As for the case, the RAIDMAX case would allow more room since it is physically larger than the Antec. If you want to be sure that the card will have sufficient room to fit and to allow for cooling, then you want to go with a full tower. Maybe something like this one.
Newegg.com - XCLIO Windtunnel Fully Black Finish 1.0 mm SECC Chassis ATX Full Tower Computer Case - Computer Cases

apena7 · 07-31-2009

Originally Posted by Callisto

I don't think he is running an OS yet since his pc is not yet built. A 32-bit OS can actually recognize around 3.5GB of RAM max.

True, a 32-bit OS can recognize around 3.5GB of RAM, but Windows XP 32-bit will only effectively use 2GB. Adding anything more would be a waste of money. However, if MAttOE88 goes with your suggestion with Windows 7 64-bit, then by all means, add the RAM!

07-30-2009	#1
MAttOE88 Bronze Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 3 PC Experience: Beginner	Attempting My First Build Hello everyone. I've spent a great deal of time learning as much as I can about computer hardware lately as I've decided to build my own machine. I am, sadly, very inexperienced and with little knowledge and understanding of the technology I use everyday. So below I've listed the items I believe would make up my dream PC. I ask those more knowledgable to look over the list, and perhaps even correct mistakes I've made. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Case- Antec Sonata III 500W 0.8mm Cold Rolled Steel $110 Mother Board- ASUS P6T $240 Processor- Intel Core i7-920 (8mb L3 Cache, 2.66 GHz) $280 Memory- Patriot Viper 6GB DDR3 Tri-Channel SDRAM at 1600MHz $93 Video Card- NVidia GeForce GTX275 127 GB/s Bandwidth 896MB Mem $240 Hard Drive- 750GB SATA 3.0GB/s, 32MB cache $60 Sound Card- ASUS Xonar Essence STX $80 I would love to cut some cost if possible. I will be using this machine for extensive video editting as well as some casual gaming (the Oblivions and Fallouts of the gaming world), so if I've over-exagerated my needs anywhere in there please let me know. I'm also slightly worried about compatibility issues, as I know nothing about such. Is this all I would need to get this machine up and running? Comments welcome and appreciated. Thank you, MAttOE88

07-30-2009	#2
Callisto Gold Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: United States Posts: 216 PC Experience: meh...	Re: Attempting My First Build Hi. Everything looks good. That case looks alright and it does come with a good Antec 500w psu, so it would have no problem powering the 275, but if you think you might want to get another one in the future for SLI, it might be in your best interest to invest in a better PSU now. If you shop from Newegg, this combo will save you some money, and it has the same P6T motherboard and the i7, and it comes with slightly better RAM. Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, Digital Cameras and more! If you want to save some more money, you can drop the sound card as you will not hear a noticeable difference between it and the onboard sound unless you have a really good set of speakers backing it up. And you are also missing a disk drive.

07-30-2009	#3
Cobracon Deceptively Clever CC&BW Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: North of Hurricane Bay & South of Tornado Alley "Stuck-in-the-Middle", MS. Posts: 1,464 PC Experience: D'OH!! *&^%$#@!	Re: Attempting My First Build The Antec 500 watt PSU doesn't meet the minimum requirements for the +12 volt power demand (40 amps @ +12 volts) required by the system when using a GTX 275 GPU. The i7 CPU will put an additional demand on the PSU, also. Get atleast a 650 watt Corsair. Make sure (by enmailing the manufacturer) that the GTX 275 card will fit the case. It's a very long card and might interfere with the HDD's or the HDD cage. Yup, the soundcard is superfluous, and really not needed. As has been previously mentioned, you've omitted an optical drive. I noticed you don't have a monitor listed either, and I would recommend a Sansung 23". You will surely get some conflicting opinions from AMD/ATI fanboys, but in a year or two the i7 system (with the upcoming software upgrades) will have left the current best AMD/ATI system in the dust. Take that to the bank. *Last, I'd download Win 7 RC for the Operatingn System as it's a BMF. I dual Boot it with XP Pro, and though it's taken some getting used to, I like it.* __________________ "Have you scanned the RAM timings for Operator's Headspace?? Too much real estate between the audio collectors will block the connection which allows proper operation of your computer." *__Cobra* PCHF best helps those who best help themselves. *PC Guru you say.........? Are you suuuuure about that?*

07-31-2009	#4
MAttOE88 Bronze Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 3 PC Experience: Beginner	Re: Attempting My First Build Wow, thank you both very much for your quick and helpful responses. A quick search yielded a 750w corsair PSU for what looked like a pretty good price, marked down to $120 on Newegg. That seems like it would get me going alright. (link) Newegg.com - CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Power Supplies EDIT: Now that I know I'll be purchasing a seperate PSU, I was looking back at the original case I had in mind: RAIDMAX SMILODON ATX-612WB Would it work just as well? I only ask because it's a bit cheaper. Newegg.com - RAIDMAX SMILODON ATX-612WB Black 1.0mm SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Foldout MB Computer Case - Computer Cases I'll be dropping the sound card as suggested, and sending an email to Antec to make sure the video card will fit alright. I also like the look of that combo Callisto, and greatly appreciate you bringing it to my attention. Doing the research and learning about all this stuff in the brief amount of time I've allotted myself has definately stressed me a bit, and you both have alleviated much of that with your help. So again, thank you both. MAttOE88 Last edited by MAttOE88; 07-31-2009 at 06:55 PM.

07-31-2009	#5
apena7 Bronze Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 29 PC Experience: Some Experience	Re: Attempting My First Build Which operating system are you running? If you are running Windows XP 32-bit, then 6GB of RAM would be overkill as it can only utilize 2GB maximum. Vista Home Premium 32-bit supports a maximum of 4GB of RAM, and Vista Home Premium 64-bit will support up to 16GB of RAM. Just looking out for your wallet

07-31-2009	#6
Callisto Gold Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: United States Posts: 216 PC Experience: meh...	Re: Attempting My First Build I don't think he is running an OS yet since his pc is not yet built. A 32-bit OS can actually recognize around 3.5GB of RAM max. If you have not yet chosen your OS, I would suggest using the 64-bit Windows 7 RC Windows 7 Release Candidate for the time being, and then you can purchase the retail version this October. It is a great OS, I personally have not had one problem running it daily. As for the case, the RAIDMAX case would allow more room since it is physically larger than the Antec. If you want to be sure that the card will have sufficient room to fit and to allow for cooling, then you want to go with a full tower. Maybe something like this one. Newegg.com - XCLIO Windtunnel Fully Black Finish 1.0 mm SECC Chassis ATX Full Tower Computer Case - Computer Cases Last edited by Callisto; 07-31-2009 at 10:03 PM.

07-31-2009	#7
apena7 Bronze Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 29 PC Experience: Some Experience	Re: Attempting My First Build Originally Posted by Callisto I don't think he is running an OS yet since his pc is not yet built. A 32-bit OS can actually recognize around 3.5GB of RAM max. True, a 32-bit OS can recognize around 3.5GB of RAM, but Windows XP 32-bit will only effectively use 2GB. Adding anything more would be a waste of money. However, if MAttOE88 goes with your suggestion with Windows 7 64-bit, then by all means, add the RAM!

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