First off, thanks for all of the information that I have been able to gather by reading through many of the posts. I am planning on building a new pc, since the one I built about 4-5 years ago is on its last leg. I am currently running an AMD64 3200+ with an MSI mobo and 2gb of ram. I was originally planning on building another AMD, as I have been very pleased with how it has performed. However, after reading through a bunch of the threads, I think I have been sold on the Intel Q6600. I do a fair amount of gaming, though very few FPS, so the most graphic intensive games I play are usually sports games like Madden or FIFA. I do a lot of multitasking with many aps running at once (usually web/photoediting/music/movie/etc.). I don't plan on doing any overclocking, but I do want a build that will hopefully last another 4-5 years before getting too outdated. I don't have a firm budget, but I am hoping to keep it under $1000 (but am willing to go a little over if it is worth it). After many hours of research, here are the components I think I have decided on, but I would certainly appreciate any recommendations. CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115017 Mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128359 Video: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102770 RAM: NO CLUE!!!- I would certainly appreciate some help on this. Is there a difference between DDR2 800 & DDR2 1066? Would both work on this mobo? PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139001 Case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146041 HDD: ? looking for between 500gb-1tb - any recommendations? DVD: ? again, any recommendations Am I missing anything? Does this look like a good build for what I do? I would certainly appreciate any suggestions you experts might have. It has been awhile since I last built a pc, so I'm a little nervous about trying it again, but the results are always worth the effort. Hopefully things haven't changed too much since I last put one of these together . Thanks in advance for any advice you all can offer!!! Cheers!
I forgot to mention that I am planning on switching over to Vista. I am a student, so I got a good deal on the academic version, but unfortunately it is the 32-bit. Should I be concerned about this or is there not much benefit in going to the 64-bit?
It's the other way round, there is no benefit to using 32-bit Vista over XP, reduced performance, added incompatibilities, and very limited RAM usage. You really ought to try and trade-up to 64-bit or stick to XP. Your component choices are excellent, no problems there at all. I'd go with this RAM, Hard disk and DVD drive: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145184 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136073 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136152
Thanks for the input! As far as Vista is concerned, I noticed that I can get the 64 bit on newegg for a good price. My only concern with going 64 bit is being unable to use a lot of the software I have accumulated over time. Will this be a problem, or is most of it compatible (ie. Adobe photoshop elements, etc.)? In regard to memory, what is the difference between DDR2 800 Ram and DDR2 1066 Ram? Thanks again for the help (I made most of my selections based on your posts in other threads)!
I forgot to ask - would I be okay going with the 450W Corsair PSU, or should I stick with the 520W? I definitely like the price of the 450W better, but I am a little paranoid about PSUs.
Vista can emulate 32-bit software perfectly well, it's only drivers that cause you issues in that department, and new hardware tends not to have any issues. All Corsair's Power Supplies are first class, even the little VX 450W puts out more power than a typical 700W unit actually does. The VX450 will have no issue powering that system.
