This post was just to get some other feedback and oppinions on building a desktop to do these things: -Dual Boot Vista Ultimate 64bit and Mac OS X -Have the power to run minimal-latency, professional audio recording and production -Be relatively proficient in running games -utilize Intel's i7 processor Now, I looked around on newegg and amazon to put together this scratch list of parts that I might want to get. If anyone can check this to make sure that: the parts are compatible, what would be a better deal, or any other suggestions. Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 49.99 Newegg.com BIOSTAR TpowerX58 LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard 269.99 Newegg.com Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor 299.99 Newegg.com Corsair TR3X6G1600C9 XMS3 6 GB 3 X 2 GB PC3-12800 1600MHz 240-Pin DDR3 Tri-Channel Intel Core i7 Memory Kit 289.99 Amazon.com Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD3200KSRTL 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive (x2) 159.98 Newegg.com Western Digital Caviar SE WD1600AAJS 160GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive 41.99 Newegg.com EVGA 01G-P3-N972-TR GeForce 9800 GT 1GB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card 169.99 Newegg.com HT OMEGA STRIKER 7.1 Channels 24-bit 96KHz PCI Interface Sound Card 89.99 Newegg.com Broadway Com Corp P4-OKIA600-BLACK 600W ATX Power Supply 34.99 Newegg.com Acer X223Wbd Black 22" 5ms Widescreen LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 2500:1 169.99 Newegg.com D-Link DGE-530T 10/ 20/ 100/ 200/ 1000/ 2000Mbps PCI Gigabit Desktop Adapter 1 x RJ45 21.99 Newegg.com AZiO BTD603-132 USB 2.0 Bluetooth Adapter (Class 1 v. 2.0) 14.99 Newegg.com Logitech G11 Silver & Black 104 Normal Keys 29 Function Keys USB Standard Gaming Keyboard 58.99 Newegg.com Microsoft 72R-00002S 4 Buttons Bluetooth Wireless Laser Notebook Mouse 5000 31.99 Newegg.com Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate SP1 English NA DVD 267.49 Newegg.com APPLE Mac OS X v10.5.4 Leopard (New version) 109.95 Newegg.com Microsoft Office OneNote Home and Student 2007 59.99 Newegg.com Symantec Norton Internet Security 2009 - 1 User/3 PC - Small box 59.99 Newegg.com ALTEC LANSING FX4021 46 Watts 2.1 High Style Stereo System 99.99 Newegg.com BYTECC PCIE 1394a + USB 2.0 Combo Card Model BT-PEU2FW 36.99 Newegg.com SIIG JU-91RW12-S4 9-in-1 USB 2.0 Card Reader/Write + Floppy 54.99 Newegg.com SAMSUNG Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 22X DVD Burner - OEM 24.99 Newegg.com LG Black 6X BD-R 2X BD-RE 16X DVD+R 6X Blu-ray DVD-ROM 4MB Cache SATA Internal Blu-ray Burner 6X Blu-ray Disc Burner & HD DVD-ROM Drive Model GGW-H20LK - OEM 229.99 Newegg.com Sorry if this is a really long list or its hard to read. Thanks for any help!
Is there any reason to get such a small third hard drive? You would get better storage for the money if you used two larger drives, and it would cost very little extra to change that 160GB to a 250. The graphics card is also absurdly overpriced. The HD4850 1GB is a far better performer for the same price: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102802 Though I'm not entirely sure why you feel you need 1GB of video memory, as that is primarily only required for playing games at a resolution of 1920x1200 or greater. You have also chosen a very poor power supply, one that is likely to go bang and destroy the rest of the PC. Use this one instead: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139001 520W is plenty of power for your system but you need a unit that can provide it in a stable and reliable manner. I would also recommend against getting Norton Internet Security, the later versions are an absolute system hog and are known to cause all sorts of problems. Instead, I recommend ESET Personal Security.
Thanks, I'm extremely new to computer hardware and everything. Also, I don't quite understand ddr3 tripple channel. Does that mean I NEED 3 sticks of RAM or will two work?
Two will work, but at a greatly reduced speed, which will reduce the speed of the i7 in encodes. For games it won't matter, but since the i7 processor is slower than the Core 2 Quad in games anyway, that's not the reason you should be buying i7. In games where the CPU frame rate limit is actually a problem (so you can forget the benchmarks where i7 gets 150fps versus the 120 of the C2Qs, that's irrelevant), the i7 920 only performs around the same performance as a Q6600, the slowest Core 2 Quad. Since you're paying $860 for the CPU, RAM and Motherboard when a Socket 775 fast Core 2 Quad will set you back no more than $550 for an equivalent specification, you need to strongly consider whether you really need i7 or not. Additionally, it is imperative you get 6GB of DDR3 for good performance if you stick with it. For reference, the fact that Core 2 Quads use DDR2 does not slow them down, except as I say, in encoding applications.
