My new build - Q9300 under $1500

[b0nk3r]

Hi guys, I've been visiting this site for a while just to keep up to date with the latest hardware and news. Now I finally need to build myself a new computer so I registered for an account here and began with a wishlist on newegg. I would appreciate it if you could take a minute or two to look at my wishlist and state your opinions.

This system will be used for work purposes and some media, such as watching movies. I will do lots of multitasking and handling of very large files (100mb-1000mb). Performance is key in terms of data processing. As you can see I have an inexpensive video card because I do not plan to do any gaming. However, I do need 2 DVI outputs for dual monitor support. I chose the P5E motherboard because when the WD Velociraptor hdd's come out I will set up RAID0 and maybe later in the future I'll decide to upgrade to DDR3 memory.

If I could minimize costs but stay in the same performance range, are there any other motherboards, memory, or psu's that you would recommend?

Link to wishlist:
https://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion...Number=8957708

A peek of the major components:
ASUS P5E LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel Motherboard
XFX PVT84JUDD3 GeForce 8600GT XXX 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 SLI Supported Video Card
OCZ GameXStream OCZ700GXSSLI 700W ATX12V Power Supply
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300 Yorkfield 2.5GHz LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80580Q9300
G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ

Thank you in advance,
Ryan

[Boy'nBlack]

Your wish list is secure to me, and as noted in the URL. Make it public.

What you want though can be had for $750. You want two of these for $1,500? It's an option.

[b0nk3r]

Originally Posted by Boy'nBlack

Your wish list is secure to me, and as noted in the URL. Make it public.

What you want though can be had for $750. You want two of these for $1,500? It's an option.

Whoops, fixed the link.

And you're right I could probably buy 2 for $1500, but you should notice in my wishlist I have 2 monitors that bump that price up :). But really the main focus is the choice of components that makeup this system is what I want to hear opinions about.

Thanks

[Boy'nBlack]

Thank you! I can read it all now.

Man, got great stuff there. Love the case, card, most of it. My only comments are to cut down on costs. Obviously, the displays are most of it by far.

What I find expensive are the following:

• Power supply. You've got a $150 unit, which isn't bad, but cheaper are just as good. The Antec Earthwatts are strong units and hold prices half of the listed. Aim for 500-600W in these
• Memory is much cheaper than that. DDR2-6400 should be bought under $50. The market dictates that for sure, but $75 with $35 rebates (3 months later) isn't rare. If this is timing and needs done now, I probably can't help. But I stocked up on CAS4 DDR2 that ended up to be $25 for each 2G set...$75 up front. Here's some OCZ Plats for about $50...no rebate needed.
• The board is really overpriced. Check out what the P5K-E can do. The one I have has "P5K Deluxe" under a white sticker, and purchased open box for under $100 shipped and taxed

I can't firmly argue about too much else. I did order a 2.66Ghz x3350 Xeon, twice, for $289 a pop though. I haven't shopped it out in a while, but that's the price you're looking at currently for a 9300. Lucky, and early shopping...not your fault. If you want a good deal in quads though, check out the Q6600's. Really nicely priced! There's still very little that a nice dual core wolfdale won't choke down and spit out. The cpu I leave as an option.

I can't find fault in the Acers, and the price is really attractive. They'll be about like the Samsung 225BW's I'm using...yet cheaper by far. In work and play, they more than suffice. Great deal(s)! I hold Acer highly in their monitors.

[theburan]

After rebate that power supply isn't too bad, actually. On the same note, if ocz is still using fsp as the oem for those psu's, you might want to look for something different, as those fsp epsilon built units have known issues with being out of the atx spec when it comes to ripple.

On that same note, I'm using a 700w fsp epsilon that last time I checked was the same psu in blue, and it works great.

Thirdly, you can get a corsair tx650 for 80 after rebate over at zzf: CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX TX 650W Power Supply Retail at ZipZoomfly.

Any way you go, I'd take a look at zzf for your psu, they just seem to be cheaper than newegg there.

[Boy'nBlack]

Just a note, OCZ has learned long ago. FSP got one power supply right in their lifetime, and the PowerStream was it. If you can find one...that's a keeper. If not, it's been a Seasonic. Still a great unit.

Watch the Corsairs too though. You want the Seasonic builds, and not the others. Corsair has one Seasonic build, and the rest are the common knock-offs. The TX is a knock off...

[screwballl]

For the motherboard, there are others that are cheaper that can do the same or better. Look into some Gigabyte Boards, they pretty much always have the onboard RAID chips and have since the P965 days.
That power supply is over-priced, you can find the same wattage with a Corsair or Antec for cheaper. As for a "knock off", it is still Corsairs name and they still have the same full warranty as the rest of the units so do not be scared off by this. I have seen less problems with these so called "knock off" Corsair units than I have with some of the higher end Antec Neo or TruePower series PSU's. Silverstone may also be worth looking into.
The memory you have listed is a bit pricey, you can go with some cheaper memory and still get the same quality.
Qtherwise the build looks great!

[theburan]

Originally Posted by Boy'nBlack

Just a note, OCZ has learned long ago. FSP got one power supply right in their lifetime, and the PowerStream was it. If you can find one...that's a keeper. If not, it's been a Seasonic. Still a great unit.

Watch the Corsairs too though. You want the Seasonic builds, and not the others. Corsair has one Seasonic build, and the rest are the common knock-offs. The TX is a knock off...

I wouldn't call being a CWT built psu's knockoffs. They're very nice units.

[garetjax]

Originally Posted by Boy'nBlack

Just a note, OCZ has learned long ago. FSP got one power supply right in their lifetime, and the PowerStream was it. If you can find one...that's a keeper.

You've got that right! I own three OCZ PowerStream's of the same model (see link) and they've been excellent performing PSUs. I have had zero problems with them, unlike the Antec TruePower 550w power supplies I used to use which fried two soundcards, three floppy drives, and a hard drive.

Newegg.com - OCZ PowerStream OCZ520ADJSLI 520W ATX12V 2.01, BTX, EPS12V Power Supply 100 - 240 V - Power Supplies

[qazwsx]

out of curiosity, have you got a 64 bit operation system already? you'll need a 64-bit one to use all 4gb of your RAM.