The (new) Official PC building thread!

The last few AMD CPU's I bought had the thermal compound already on the heatsink/fan that came with it.
The last few aftermarket fans I bought didnt come with it already applied.
A friends build, I took the compound off the fan that came with it using alcohol, and put on Arctic Silver for a few °C difference. Since he wasnt an OC'er I only needed stock fan but gave it the good grease anyway.
Hope that helps.

 

So does this thermal grease go on the fan or the processor?

 

Its easiest if you put it on the CPU, the weight from the heatsink/fan will spread it when you lockit down tightly.

 

Heres what I came up with. I need some input on motherboards.

Intel Core 2 Due E6600 $235
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115003

Seagate 500GB SATA Frys $120
http://shop3.outpost.com/product/4697788

Ati Radeon X1650 Pro 512MB PCI Express $119
OR
Ati Radeon X1950 Pro 256MB PCI Express $149
(I do not game, but for $30 more I prefer the X1950, since it will probably have better resale value if I upgrade later. what do you think? is it worth it or will it cause my other components to need to be upgraded?)

Antec P180 case $80

Antec TRUEPOWERII TPII-430 ATX12V 430W Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817103928
Will this be sufficient?

2GB DDR2 800

Pioneer DVR-710

I need advice on a motherboard. I'd like something inline with the other components I've selected. Let me know if a component listed above is inadequate(PSU). anything else I need Fans, etc?

 

@foxdie---
I dont know much about video cards, but I think that PSU is a little weak. 430W is less than most Dells come with nows a days and custom parts need more love than a Dell would.
You asked about fans, I didnt see a link for your case and I'm too lazy to search, but in the details it should tell you how many and what size fan bays it has. The case might come with 1 but you will have to check and see what all is sent with it, you may want more anyway, more are always good unless you buy loud ones.

 

C2D E6600 for $235 WOW. 75 bucks less than I paid for mine. I'm curious to know just how OC friendly the new ones are. I've heard guestimations of around 3.0ghz to 3.2ghz but no actual results yet.

looks like intel is trying to get rid of the 65nm 4M L2 cache chips to make way for their 45nm 6M L2 cache chips. I noticed the 4x20 series chips are starting to show up.

 

thanks for the response. what about the processors fan? it comes with one, but would I need to upgrade to a better one?

 

Not unless you let these guys talk you into seeing how fast it can be OC'd! If that happens, you will really need the bigger PSU and more fans like you asked about B4!!!
Save your money, if you decide to go that route later on, you can always buy one later. Or spend that money now on better video card or RAM.

 

I came across some people recommending this motherboard, Asus P5N-E SLI for use with the E6600.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813131142&ATT=13-131-142&CMP=OTC-17exta6

Is there a better choice for a mobo, since this one appears to be designed for SLI. Can I use an ATi video card with this motherboard? It offers a PCI express x16, but maybe its designed for better preformance with nvidia's??

 

it will work with ati or nvidia PCIe video cards.

that's a good board for the money. there are better mobos that have the nvidia 680i chipset or intel 975 chipset, but they also cost more.

 

Thanks for the response. Im looking into going with an Nvidia card now. I wanted to go with ATi since I can get them for a decent price. I'm looking into a card that can handle Blu-Ray and HD-DVD play back with no problems.

update:
I found this card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130056

Or am I better off with the ATi X1650 for $119?

What makes those mobos better? what should I be looking for?

 

Hi everyone . Today i ordered Cpu , motherboard , 1 optical drive and 1 stick of memory (just for now) on friday im going to order graphic card and 1 hard drive and second memory stick than im gonna be able to run my new pc ! and do some oc ? with what im gonna need some help

 

foxdie,

you can plug in different GPU's here to compare their performances.

it depends on what suites your needs. if you want SLI now or in the future you want an nvidia chip. the 680i is supposedly superior to the 650i in performance and features (you get what you pay for)

the intel 975 is the latest in the line of intel chipsets for socket 775 and is also a good performer, OC'er and very stable. I have heard the second revision of the 965 is also good.

pszczoll,

depending on what memory you ordered, it's always a good idea to order it in matched sets (sequential serial no's) if you want it to run dual channel, especially performance memory. not saying that 2 sticks of the same memory (not bought in a set) won't run in dual channel but there's always that chance.

 

I got 2 exactly the same sticks in my wish list . but my budget for today didnt let me get 2 sticks in a time. but those sticks are packet separately anyway . so its the same possibility that those are not gonna work in dual channel when im gonna get 2 at once . or 1 stick 5 days later

 

matched sets have sequential serial numbers and are assured to run dual channel. even though you're ordering the exact same memory it will not have sequential serial numbers and there may be enough differences that it will not run in dual channel. the risks are higher with performance memory. as a rule of thumb always buy your memory in matched sets. what memory did you buy?

 

Thats CORSAIR XMS2 1GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Desktop Memory - Retail

 

hmm, your call but I would consider sending the single sticks back and getting a matched set. maybe some other members will offer up their opinions/advice. was your budget the only reason you went with cas 5 over cas 4?

cas 4 kit

cas 5 kit

no specials on the Pro right now.

 

Not only my budget was the reason i got that stick of memory. im also going to get ASUS P5B Deluxe motherboard. and on that link with that memory i posted before , there are many reviews that those sticks work with that motherboard and oc' correctly, even if that motherboard needs memory with 1.8v that memory got 1.9v and it works. and i didnt want to get memory with bigger voltage besause i heard on many forums that there is very small possibility that memory with voltage bigger than 2.0 is gonna work on that motherboard correctly.

 

you can set the required voltage for whatever particular memory you are using in the bios. may be that mobo has a problem with memory requiring more than 1.9 volts. I don't know and again it's your call.

 

Im gonna "try" i want to i cant wait when im gonna push the start button of new pc , when im gonna get second stick and if that is not gonna work in dual channel (than im gonna return it) , what memory would u recommend for ASUS P5B Deluxe , for overclocking .