My First Computer AKA I have no idea what I'm doing.

[Flamingsupernova]

YAY! 100th post!

 

[zekrahminator]

lol, did you just get a job for promoting rosewill cases

No, I'm saying that from personal experience. I payed $40 expecting a box of thin sheet metal to show up at my doorstep. I got a quiet, well built case that had plenty of space/ventilation and was easy to work with.

I'm definitely using more Rosewill cases in the future .

But not the power supplies, I hear those go up in a day .

 

[Flamingsupernova]

kewl. well i live in australia, and i dont think theyre here..yet

 

[NewbieBuilder]

Hey people, it's about a month now, and happy me. I love being asian and getting money on family reunions, I got 400 dollars!!! So, I decided to try and find some better parts....Care to take a look?

Sigma Luna Case - $90

Maxtor 320gb HDD - $70

LiteOn DVD Drive - $34

ViewSonic 20" Widescreen Monitor - $200 -> $180 Mail-in rebate

12' DVI-D M to M - $9 The monitor doesn't come with the DVI-D cable...

Gigabyte 6100 Motherboard - $80

Sapphire x1950pro 512mb - $175 -> $155 Mail-in rebate

Rosewill 600w PSU - $75

Cyber Acoustics 4.1 Black Speakers - $28

Microsoft Keyboard and Mouse - $22

Ethernet cable... I need help with this

G. Skill 2GB (2 x 1gb) - $85

Microsoft XP Pro - $140

Aero Cool 120mm Fan - $15

Athlon 64 X2 4600+ (65w)
+
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi - $180

CS:Source - $28 I want a game toooooo... =]...


Total $1191

Grand Total $1340-ish

Umm...Some of these items maybe be completely absurd and are a stupid choice and you may think in your mind that I'm a total idiot but o.k that's fine...Just help me out then. Tell me what you think I should trash and what I should get.

Oh and, for the ethernet cable I have no idea what to get.

Edit : aha...I accidently posted it without all the links...

 

[Kursah]

What are your plans with this build? OC? Gaming? General use?

I recommend you do some more researching on those components and also research their closest competitors so you know you can get the best bang for your buck. Looks to be a decent build, but without your goals for this system, hard saying if you're getting the right stuff or not.

 

[NewbieBuilder]

Ah, right sorry sorry, this computer is meant for gaming and I spent a month checking these parts and thats what I came up with, I just wanted some feed back from you guys.

 

[Casheti]

Spill the beans!

 

[Wile E]

@NewbieBuilder

I wouldn't get the Maxtor drive, personally. Get the Seagate instead. More Cache, more platter density, faster and a better warranty.
Seagate Barracuda 320GB: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148140


As for ram, and since Mail in Rebates seem ok with you, try these instead. Geil PC-6400, but at CAS 4 timings, instead of CAS5 on the G.Skill(There's also a CAS4 G.Skill kit for $5 more than the one you picked out)
GeIL: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820144062
G.Skill: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231087


I also suggest this mobo instead, the Biostar TForce 550, both cheaper AND a much better overclocker. More than a few people have their Brisbane core X2 3600+ at 3Ghz or more with them.
Biostar TForce 550: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138026

 

[NewbieBuilder]

For the ram, I would like to ask what is the difference between cas5 and cas4...As I have no idea what they are could you explain.

And, goodness 3Ghz+? I have never overclocked before so I'm going to have to do some reading if I want to overclock... Not sure if I should get that MB or not

I'm going to have a look over the stuff you recommended, I will definitely change the hdd though

 

[Wile E]

CAS4 has a lower latency than CAS5, so it performs better. Less delay between commands.

And definitely get the Biostar, there are many here that can help you to overclock. Myself included. My Brisbane is at 3Ghz as well.

That said, you may want to get this cpu instead, and save some money for a better video card and/or better cpu cooling. Get this and overclock it, and it will be faster than the 4600+ you picked, and like I said, we can walk you thru it.
Athlon 64 X2 3600+ Brisbane: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103036

And for a good cheap cpu cooler.
Arctic Cooling Freezer 64 Pro: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185125

Grand total $89, which leaves you with $25 extra to spend elsewhere.

I actually also found a better video card for you for about the same price.
SAPPHIRE Radeon X1950XT 256MB: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102067

Spend the extra $25 on the PSU, like this one, perhaps.
OCZ StealthXStream 600W: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341010

 

[NewbieBuilder]

Goodness...1.9 ghz to 3 ghz? Never knew that could be done... You're definitely going to have to walk me through this...I am pretty skeptical that I can even overclock that high...

And, wow thats a nice graphics card, although, reading the reviews it runs pretty hot...

Also, what is the difference between that psu and the one I currently chose?

O.K, yeah...It's $10 more but hey, if it'll run at 3ghz I'm fine with that...

 

[Wile E]

Goodness...1.9 ghz to 3 ghz? Never knew that could be done... You're definitely going to have to walk me through this...I am pretty skeptical that I can even overclock that high...

And, wow thats a nice graphics card, although, reading the reviews it runs pretty hot...

Also, what is the difference between that psu and the one I currently chose?

O.K, yeah...It's $10 more but hey, if it'll run at 3ghz I'm fine with that...

It may not run all the way to 3Ghz, but it will likely get close. Even if it doesn't make it, it is almost guaranteed to run higher than the 4600+ you originally chose. Either way, it's less money for better performance.

The psu I chose for you supports more power on the 12v line, right where you want it most, and is generally of a higher quality.

 

[NewbieBuilder]

Ah ic...thank you for your input...I'm ordering my parts tomorrow and if anyone else has any suggestion or comments to add please do so! And actually it isn't cheaper x]..you raised my price by $10 so I probably won't be getting that other psu although, if the one right now can't run it then I guess I will just have to buy it then.

Man, it's going to be a pain in the ass with all those mail-in rebates............

 

[zaqwsx]

No, I'm saying that from personal experience. I payed $40 expecting a box of thin sheet metal to show up at my doorstep. I got a quiet, well built case that had plenty of space/ventilation and was easy to work with.

I'm definitely using more Rosewill cases in the future .

But not the power supplies, I hear those go up in a day .

I got a rosewill 500w psu and have been using it for more than a year with no problems!

 

[NewbieBuilder]

Hopefully mines will last at least a year and will continue working after a year...

Ahaha...Due to my lack of experience and doubtfulness in my own ability, I'm going to stick with my original build, thank you for your input though.......I am just extremely afraid I might regret this, especially since it's my first build...

 

[NewbieBuilder]

Crap...I press quote instead of edit...it's a bit hot and I'm a bit tired... ><

 

[anticlutch]

Nothing wrong with Rosewill PSU's... I have a 550w PSU from them and it's pretty decent.

 

[Wile E]

Well, all is fine and well if you don't want to overclock, but I suggest the better ram and video card at least.

 

[NewbieBuilder]

Well, just ordered my parts 2 hours ago...

So if it takes 1-2 days for processing and 3 days for shipping...it'll be here by thursday or friday right...or am I wrong and it's going to come on wednesday...

I'm bad with dates o-o''...

 

[bruins004]

Sorry for being late (maybe too late).
I do not post on the weekends, but here is a useful guide I put together ( http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=30822 ).

Well I hope you can learn some basics from this.

 

[NewbieBuilder]

Finally my parts are here, time to start building! Is it normal to be extremely hyper?

 

[mello_newf]

Have fun and take your time!!!

 

[NewbieBuilder]

Lol, isn't this awesome? My psu is dead =]...Never will i buy from rosewill for psu's

 

[mello_newf]

What happened did it go up in smoke?

 

[NewbieBuilder]

I decided to give it a test run, so I plugged it into the wall and hit the switch.....Nothing happened...So, I remove the psu from the case and go to another room, since I was suspecting the plug there was dead...Same deal, fan doesn't even move or budge...Going to go to Fry's and buy myself an Antec psu...