Computer Build Advice

tonyb

bobman1235 wrote: »

Why would you suggest that? Putting together a PC is pretty easy if you have all the parts in front of you. Pretty much everything fits together in only one way.

Yes,but certain things work better with certain parts, a marriage of parts if you will. Aside from that,if you've paid attention to the OP's other posts, he doesn't seem to be a hands on guy...no offense to the OP. Give Sami a ring,he can guide you on what parts will work for what you want your computer to do,and can build it for you if you like, or take the shot yourself,up to you.

MacLeod

bdaley6509 wrote: »

The I7 destroys the Phenom II in pretty much everything...from gaming to productivity.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/overclock-phenom-ii,2119-7.html

Also...the I7 930 is $199.00. For thirty or forty bucks difference, it's well worth it IMO. I could be wrong...I've been wrong before.

http://www.microcenter.com/search/search_results.phtml?N=4294966995

Just you wait til I get home. Ill show ya. We'll have a battle of the benchmarks!

polkatese

Tony brought up a good point on compatibility between parts.

So, to recap, PC, you need to clarify those questions above, mainly budget, usage, comfort level in building it yourself, and OS need.

AMD, Intel, Republican, Democrat, Liberal, Conservative, Islam, Catholics, Mormon....did I miss anything?

vc69

AsSiMiLaTeD wrote: »

I could not disagree more on going with Dell over building your own. You may get similar specs with a comparable price, but the quality of components in a Dell are no where near what you can build on your own

I don't want to start any crap, but that is a pretty ridiculous statement.

Home-builds are fun. If you have a particular function/need to fulfill, then home built can be the way to go. Think HTPC, where there is no need for a lot of proc power and you can narrow down your components to fit a specific need. But for the casual user or even the power gamer, a well thought out Dell order will actually save you money. Not to mention the warranty.

I work with thousands of computers of all kinds. Dell is my choice for everything except highly specialized boxes and (Pro) multi-media production.

The make a quality product and I save money.

zeppage2

build your own
you will gain valuable knowledge
use that 500GB as your C drive
buy a second HD for music, video, etc.

know that when you buy online, you might sacrifice convenience for price if anything arrives DOA or your memory is incompatible

look for a PSU that has low db's when in idle, noisy PSU's can be very annoying

John30_30

That list looks fine. The video card should make you happy using the TV as a 2nd monitor. Look for some youtube tutes on assembling your own kit, or if your uncle is going to do it, get him a case of some good beer- for after it boots up the 1st time.

Some don'ts if you do it- don't build it on a plush carpet or any area where static can be generated. If that's even a hint of possible, get an anti-static wrist strap.

Do I not see a heatsink/fan on your list? Get the biggest, baddest one you can for that style board that you can still fit the other components in and around. AMD's historically run hot. If there's not a factory film of silver paste on the sink, just a dab is all you need on the CPU. Too much defeats the purpose.

Don't try to force anything. I like to do a build in the early to midday. I've screwed up trying to get one built in the evening when I was dogtired and forgot something utterly obvious.

Also, just skip all the AMD vs. Intel debate. Everyone has their prefs, like Fords and GM. Their build architectures and piping are radically different, so it's almost like apples and oranges.
That's why the motherboards aren't interchangeable. Never have been.

polkatese

Yep. That has been my experience too Kevin.

I started my career in IT Desktop support (not really by choice, but because I like to build PCs, electronic kits build, etc. etc.) It was fun for sure, and later on I drifted away from building SOTA PCs that became an expensive door stopper after a couple years, to just buy it from Dell to get all the support I need if any part failed (and they do fail at some point). It is the nature of electronic parts. So, it boils down to bragging right to own SOTA in the first year of ownership, then it becomes a story that a mobo that used to cost $400 is $100 six months later.

bdaley6509

MacLeod wrote: »

Just you wait til I get home. Ill show ya. We'll have a battle of the benchmarks!

LOL...don't worry about it. They are both good and I'm sure there are pleanty of benchmarks that favor both...good luck OP on your decision.

ryanjoachim

Unless you're a "power" user, the average Dell is a great machine for you. They're sturdy, dependable (for the most part) and fairly affordable.

I'm the tech at a middle school (800 kids from 11-14yrs old) and we are almost dell-exclusive for our 200+ desktops and 120 or so laptops. They go through a big beating every day, and we still have some from 2003 that still work just fine (granted they're slow as hell, but they still work).

On the other hand, building your own PC is one hell-of-a-lot of fun. Also, when something goes wrong with the hardware in the future, you have a much better understanding of what is in your comp and how to replace something.

PhantomOG

I find it humorous that people can lay blame for so many PC "problems" to what brand of microprocessor is inside. I have *never* come across a faulty CPU. Heatsinks/fans/power supplies/motherboards/memory/video cards/hard drives/etc sure. CPU's? Not so much.

polkatese

ryanjoachim wrote: »

They go through a big beating every day, and we still have some from 2003 that still work just fine (granted they're slow as hell, but they still work).

Upgrade them to WIN7 and extra RAM, it breathes new life again.

That's what I did with my Dimension 8400 (2004), and I was pleasantly surprised in how fast and reliable it becomes again.

zeppage2

PhantomOG wrote: »

I find it humorous that people can lay blame for so many PC "problems" to what brand of microprocessor is inside. I have *never* come across a faulty CPU. Heatsinks/fans/power supplies/motherboards/memory/video cards/hard drives/etc sure. CPU's? Not so much.

word

aside from the occasional bent pin (user caused, no doubt), CPU's are very resilient

Fongolio

PhantomOG wrote: »

I find it humorous that people can lay blame for so many PC "problems" to what brand of microprocessor is inside. I have *never* come across a faulty CPU. Heatsinks/fans/power supplies/motherboards/memory/video cards/hard drives/etc sure. CPU's? Not so much.

In that context, I stand corrected. I have seen both AMD and Intel heatsink fans fail. In all cases the AMD cpu core got so hot damage occured. In only one case have I seen an Intel chip destroyed because of fan failure and that was a Pentium 1 chip. Intel motherboards seem to shut down faster when overheated cpu's are detected.

I am using water cooling on mine now and even overclocked from 3 GHz to 4 GHz the core is still at just above 50 degress idle and as high as 57 under heavy load. Enough can't be said about the importance of good cooling.

zeppage2

and poorly applied thermal past is also a culprit in overheating

Fongolio

zeppage2 wrote: »

and poorly applied thermal past is also a culprit in overheating

Absolutely! I almost always nix the stock stuff and apply Arctic Cooling. Lately I've been using MX-3 with tremendous results.

zeppage2

Fongolio wrote: »

Absolutely! I almost always nix the stock stuff and apply Arctic Cooling. Lately I've been using MX-3 with tremendous results.

and it is funny that one would refuse to add a $10.00 tube of paste to a cart filled with $500-1000 of components:eek:

j allen

Unless I'm mistaken, you may want to check the compatibility of your cpu and the socket on that board. It looks the processor requires an am3 socket, and the board is am2+. If I'm not mistaken, you can plug it in anyway, but there's no benefit to that processor over a cheaper am2 or 2+ processor without having the am3 socket on the motherboard.

renowilliams

PerfectCreture,If you want a suggestion on a case to use,I was very happy with my Cooler Master HAF 932 case. Here are some pics of my build

http://www.flickr.com/photos/renowilliams/

I had some fun with this build

wz2p7j

PC:

Try this forum for building a computer:

http://forum.pcmech.com/

Once you figure out all the components you need it only takes a couple hours to build and configure the unit.

Chris

Kex

polkatese wrote: »

Tony brought up a good point on compatibility between parts.

So, to recap, PC, you need to clarify those questions above, mainly budget, usage, comfort level in building it yourself, and OS need.

AMD, Intel, Republican, Democrat, Liberal, Conservative, Islam, Catholics, Mormon....did I miss anything?

Reported, for discussing politics and religion, both forbidden on C.P.

wz2p7j wrote: »

PC:

Try this forum for building a computer:

http://forum.pcmech.com/ ...

That link seems to be having some issues right now ... maybe it'll work later.

Edit: nevermind, it's working now ... must have been a glitch in the Matrix, or a Steve Jobs moment, or something.

Sherardp

I think your build looks good so far. I would change two things though. I would actually swing for the Phenom II X4 CPU and go with a Western Digital Caviar Black instead of the Blue. Look into the Phenom II 945 or 955. Prices are very good since the release of the new 6core chip. Everything else should be good to go. Also make sure you get a tower that has great airflow.

Building PC's is a ton of fun, and there's so much knowledge to gain. I spend most of my time on the darkside with crackz and other projects. FYI your new CPU will come with thermal paste on the chip so no worries there. Once you decide to overclock then you can step up to different coolers, and paste. I love AS5 or OCZ Freeze, good stuff.

PerfectCreature

Oh yeah I forgot about the cpu to the motherboard part. Its suppose to be am asus mother board....
Anyway. So I should get liquid cooling and a big cpu fan?
Thanks.
Also I should use the arctic compound.
What else?
Thanks.

exalted512

MacLeod wrote: »

I'll be glad to. I'm on my Droid phone at work now so I can't link to all of them but once I get home I'll be happy to post plenty of benchmarks comparing the $170'ish AMD Phenom II's up against the $300'ish Intel i7's.

If you had an iPhone you could do it from your phone:p:p
-Cody

zeppage2

asus boards have strict memory compatibility, be warned

Sherardp

If your a newb to building I would not go water cooled. Just go air for now with a good thermal paste. Here are some good ones.

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/7038/thr-41/Innovation_Cooling_Diamond_7_Carat_Thermal_Compound_-_15_Grams.html?tl=g8c127s754

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/9633/thr-68/Arctic_Cooling_MX-3_Super_High_Performance_Non-Conductive_Thermal_Compound_4g.html?tl=g8c127s769

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/3774/thr-16/Arctic_Silver_5_High-Density_Silver_Thermal_Compound_-_35_Grams_AS5-35G.html?tl=g8c127s447

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/6924/thr-40/OCZ_Freeze_Extreme_Thermal_Conductivity_Compound.html?tl=g8c127s454

PerfectCreature

I was told that about ausus....
Hm...I may do some looking around then on a better mother board that is close to what I have.
I will also check out Dell tonight and see what they have for me to customize...
Anyone done cyber power pcs?
They run about as much as dell, and you can customize more freely...?

AsSiMiLaTeD

PhantomOG wrote: »

I find it humorous that people can lay blame for so many PC "problems" to what brand of microprocessor is inside. I have *never* come across a faulty CPU. Heatsinks/fans/power supplies/motherboards/memory/video cards/hard drives/etc sure. CPU's? Not so much.

That's basically exactly what I posted, except with the name calling

PerfectCreature

In the process of looking at dell and cyber power....

AsSiMiLaTeD

vc69 wrote: »

I don't want to start any crap, but that is a pretty ridiculous statement.

I didn't say Dell was crap, but if you're of the opinion that the parts inside a mass produced PC are of that same quality as one you can build yourself then there's really nothing for us to discuss.

For about the same price as you can buy a Dell with comparable specs you can build a machine with better components. By 'better' I don't mean that the Dell will break down in a week and the home built will last a decade - but in terms of things like overclocking and future upgradability and in many cases even down to the capacitors taht are used on the motherboard, you're going to be able to get a better PC by building it yourself.

Dell is out to make money, they're going to put the cheapest parts in the PC that they can which allow maximum profit while still delivering a set amount of performance. Ever tried overclocking a Dell? I have, on several friends setups, it ain't pretty. Pop open your Dell and tell me how many solid caps are on the motherboard. Etc Etc.....

You can do better by building it yourself. It's the same reason that we're all into this audio hobby. Sure I could buy a HTIB, but I'm going to get better sound if I pick all my individual components and do it myself.

PerfectCreature

Very well said.
That is true, while a HTIB sounds nice, they really can't run bounds with a hand picked to your tastes set-up.