building a new computer

[dsdavis6]

hi, i am about to build a new pc before i go back to college as i will need to be using it a lot for my course.

i will be ordering it from ebuyer and the plan is to build it around a intel core 2 quad q6600, ebuyer quick find code 124869. i also have my eye on a 8800gts... but i doubt i will be gettin that for a couple months i will probably end up saving a bit more for that.

really im just looking on some advice on the best build i could do around this for a total cost of about £500-£600. i know which disc drives i will be using as i back up xbox 360 games. i also have a via pci card which il need to get in there for flashing my xbox 360. so its mainly the motherboard, ram and psu i need help on... as i said i am kinda on a budget but i would like some over clocking abilities as lets face it thats pretty much why core 2 duo is kickin amds ass atm.

thanks for reading

[Ketxxx]

General spec:

Mobo: AW9D MAX \ IP35 Pro (both very OCable, reliable, priced very reasonably, and most importantly they both use all solid state capacitors)

CPU: E6550. A quad at this stage (and for a good year or more down the line) will largely be useless. A quad only has its merits if you will be doing specific duties that would require a lot of cores, for example 3D modelling or CAD work.

Graphics: A 1950Pro 512MB or 1950XTX 512MB should have more than enough grunt for about a year, their cheap as chips now too.

RAM: 2x1GB kit DDR800 should be your minimum. I would recommend a DDR1000 kit or better though, price differences between an 800MHz and a 1000MHz kit are usually very minimal (£10-20) depending on manufacturer. Its not from ebuyer but This is an excellent DDR800 kit for £85.

[dsdavis6]

hi, thanks for replying... well i was kinda looking at quad core as i was hoping to get something a bit future proof. also i do a lot of compression and i do like to use photoshop whilst playing music and multi tasking in general etc.



heres an image of my shooping cart... theres no graphics card in there... im just going to worry about that in a couple months.

what does everyone think?

[Polaris573]

MSI P35 Neo2-FR is a solid quad core board. It has a good price and overclocking is great but not spectacular.

[DrunkenMafia]

Hey ds, they are some nice parts in that list you have there, it will be a good foundation for uprading..

You will need a gfx card of some decription though while you wait to buy an 8800.. do you have an old one laying around somewhere????

The only weak point I can see in that list is probably the psu, I have never owned one myself but I have heard mixed reports on the quality of them.

Also with your dvd burner, try and get a sata one as you won't need to have those big ugly ide cables in your case then, it looks a lot neater and helps with airflow etc....

[dsdavis6]

hey thanks for all your replies, i havent been able to get on for a while. So i have waited a littloe longer and i am now in a position to get my graphics card with the oc as well as a decent sized monitor im going to look into the mother boards and psu's again, maybe the dvd writer as well. il post once iv rebuilt my list