I finally am deciding to build my first PC, so I have done a lot of research on practically every component. I would really appreciate any advice/ideas for this build. PC Use/Purpose: Lots of gaming, school work, internet, some Photoshop. I might experiment with some overclocking, but probably nothing major. Budget: ~$1500, lower the better ) Case: Coolermaster Wavemaster (Silver) 129.99 -I love this case! I know it has some cooling issues, but see below http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811119023 Fans: (4) Panaflo 80mm Low Speed Fans 23.96 -These will replace the three case fans, as well as the custom top mount fan option that the Wavemaster has http://www.hardwarecooling.com/product_info.php/cat/48_80/prod/493/Panaflo_80mm_Low_speed_Fan Powersupply: SeaSonic S12-500 129.99 -Is this a good choice? I am debating between this and the Enermax Liberty 500W. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817151024 Motherboard: Gigabyte GA965PDS3 Processor: Core 2 Duo E6600 -I am buying the combo deal from ClubIT 479.00 http://clubit.com/product_system_detail.cfm?itemno=UPG30003# Arg, they are sold out! I hope they restock soon..... Memory: CORSAIR XMS2 2GB 189.00 -This seems to pair well with the DS3 motherboard http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145590 Video Card: BFG 7900GT OC 196.00 -I already bought this, I got it for a great price at Best Buy Any heat or noise issues I should be worried about? Sound Card: I already own an Audigy 2 Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 (Perp Recording) 250GB 16MB Cache OEM 79.99 -This will run in SATAII, right? Also, I am worried about some heat issues from this HD. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822148144 DVDR: NEC Silver DVDR 29.19 -I have to match my silver Wavemaster! http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16827152060 DVD-ROM: Same as above. I am buying two NECs. Fan/Temp Control: Cooler Master Aerogate III 7.99 http://svc.com/ald-v03-us.html Keyboard: Saitek PZ30AU Black 104 41.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16823175103 Mouse: Logitech G5 Laser 45.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16826104191 Mousepad: FLEXIGLOW FGMPXRBL X-Raider Pro Mouse Pad 14.99 -Do you think the blue light would be annoying after a while? I heard its a great pad though. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817114131 Thermal Paste: Artic Silver 5 5.99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835100007 Subtotal: 1380.00 Estimated Shipping: 70.00 Total: $1450.00 Other thoughts -Will it be worth investing in new heatsink/fan for my CPU and for my Video Card? I know the Wavemaster is not the largest case, so I am worried about buying giant coolers. However, I do want my PC to run cool and quiet! -Any possible compatibility issues? -Any tips for a first time builder? Thanks a ton to anyone who gives me any advice!
In my humble opinion most things look good. You choice of peripherals is very good. I dont like that case. But then again its personal opinion. As you have already highlited its cooling inefficiency are you sure you dont want a different case? The cpu is a great choice, although i dont know much about the new core 2 mobos so i couldnt comment on it. You have a solid set of ram there, although personally i'd go for low latencies like this set, which is only $10 more... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820231065 Good graphics card. Both psus look good, although for the same price you could get the ocz gamexstream 600W, which is also very good... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817341001 erm...what else is there i'm not sure about the fans, the link is broken and from their name they sound like they could be loud. Someone else may suggest better fans but i like the antec tricool fans cos they're silent at low speed, and have great air throughput at high speeds. (although they're loud at high speed as well.) It is worth getting 3rd party hsf on the cpu and possibly the gpu as well. For the cpu i hear that the zalman is really good. (see below) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835118003 and this is also good i think http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835186134 and for the gpu this would be great: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835118001 i think thats all i have to say. It should be a v nice rig I dont think you should be very worried about hd heat, its not like its a raptor. If you are just point a fan at it. Although i dont know why you like that case so much.
I fixed the link for the fans. I also changed them to the low-speed version. I was under the opinion that the Panaflo low speed fans were some of the quietest around. Is that not true?
I like that case purely for cosmetic reasons. I have never seen a case that looks that good, in my opinion. It is also very well built, being made out of solid 3mm aluminum alloy.
i will say get the liberty.... i m owning one right now and its working like a charm... because u only have to plug in the cables that u need so its better for cable management and yep ur hard drive will run in SATA2 because its a sata2 hd lol 3.0gb transfer = sata2 ur gfx card is a pretty good one... easy to overclock and i m also owning one right now.... it gets a lil hot compare to other cards but its alright... i cranked it up to 570 /1600 without any problem so i gess if i get a better cooler it will work even better
I dont know anythings about that fan manufacturer, i was just pointing out that their name "power fan" or whatever it was made it sound as though it was going to be very loud. I have never heard one of their fans. They may be very quiet indeed.
The low speed version pushes 24CFM and only 21DB noise. I am a bit worried about only 24CFM. I will have two of them sucking air into the case, one pushing it out the back, and one sucking it out the top. I am considering getting a Zalman for the GPU, since that will probably be my hottest running component. Should this be efficient enough cooling?
Erm...i think you may want to consider more powerful fans. That airflow should be fine, but you overclock at all you'll be pushing out lots of heat. 120mm fans are much better and the lack of any spaces for them i would consider a major problem with the case. Having said that 4x 80mm fans should be sufficient, but not brilliant. Also you should consider a cpu cooler as/more important than a gpu cooler. edit: I find you'r liking of the case surprising as i think it is quite ugly. Have you seen it in real life, or just pictures of it? Do you not like any of the lian li, or thermaltake cases?
I haven't seen it myself, but I have talked to several people who have owned the case. Personally, I think it looks amazing. My room has lots of silver components, I like the front door design, and the blue led is a nice accent. I have looked into other cases, but they all look suped up, with large fan grills and side windows. My criteria for a case: -Simple design, yet elegant and pleasant to look at -Silver aluminum -Front door to cover optical drives I don't mind these two Thermaltake cases, but I still prefer the Wavemaster. http://www.xoxide.com/tttsunami3.html http://www.xoxide.com/thermaltake-soprano-case-silver-2.html
oh well. Everyone has there own personal opinion. Personally i love side windows and this is my favourie case. http://www.thermaltake.com/product/Chassis/fulltower/armor/va8003swa.asp It looks great in my opinion and has a stylish, not over the top window. Plus it has great cooling, with 1 front intake 120mm fans which cools the HDs directly, 1x80mm top exhaust fan, 1x120mm & 1x80mm fan back exhaust and a giant 250mm side fan which cools the mobo and basically all components. But to each his own. That is a very well known case that you like and i'm sure cooling with be ok. Good luck with your first build. I also will be building my first pc fairly soon so i know how you're feeling. (I feel nervous and excited by it)
Cases to consider: Thermaltake Tsunami VA3000SWA Silver All aluminum made Modern Dream Tower Chassis Computer Case - $105.99 ABS Stealth CS-05A2s Silver Aluminum ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - $119.99 COOLER MASTER Praetorian 730 RC-730-SSN1 Silver Aluminum ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - $130 If you want to consider SLI for that 7900GT: Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 1066MHz FSB 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor - $369.99 ASUS P5NSLI Socket T (LGA 775) NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI Intel Edition ATX Intel Motherboard - $119.99 Total Price: $489.98 I would recommend this power supply as well: OCZ GameXStream OCZ600GXSSLI ATX12V 600W Power Supply - $119.99 Fast 18x DVD burner, isn't silver however: SAMSUNG Black 18X DVD+R/DVD-R Burner - $32.99 Memory with faster timings: G.SKILL 1GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) System Memory - $96.49 (x2) = $192.98
The Seagate 7200.10 drives are great, very fast. I havn't seen any heat issues from them..don't seem any hotter then previous Seagate drives. In fact I plan on getting a 320gb version to replace my WD in a few months.
