PC Build help

[y2dom]

In march i am going to start gathering the components to build my new pc.

iv'e had a quick look over at OC and come up with this spec,
can anyone tell me what they think of it.

AMD Phenom Quad Core 9600 (Socket AM2) - Retail

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-204-AM&groupid=701&catid=6&subcat=1033
£137.99
£162.14 inc VAT

Asus M3A32-MVP Deluxe AMD 790FX (Socket AM2+) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-254-AS&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=808 115.99
£136.29 inc VAT

Corsair 4GB DDR2 XMS2 PC2-6400C5 TwinX (2x2GB)
£59.99
£70.49 inc VAT
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-136-CS


Akasa Ultra Quiet 500W Paxpower Active PFC ATX2.2 PSU - Black Nickel
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-024-AK&tool=3 £44.99
£52.86 inc VAT

HIS ATI Radeon HD 2600 Pro iSilenceIII 512MB DDR2 HDTV/Dual DVI/HDMI (PCI-Express) - Retail http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-082-HT

£49.99
£58.74 inc VAT



The pc is mainly going to be used to watch HD content, video encoding..

The reason i have chosen a Dual Core is i dont really wanna touch the pc too much for a few years.
Also the reason i choose ATI, is because apparently it lets you do Full screen video on a 2nd moniter in Vista, unlike Nvidia.

Any recomendations would be good if you feel i could do better or save a bit of money..

Thanks,

Dom

 

[Stu DemonD]

I understand about the ATI Crossfire, something that has put me off going down the nVidia SLi route on my next build.

The gfx card seems a bit low spec, but then again, do you do gaming?

I am also not an AMD fanboy either.

Will you want to be overclocking anything at all?

Also, HD content - as in .mkv files from your HDD? If so, you will need a fast SATA2 drive with high cache - my machine I am on now struggles with 1080p rips.

Also, mem seems high latency - but then they are 2GB sticks.

 

[y2dom]

Thanks for the fast reply.

I dont play games on the pc, just on the consoles i have.

Ive had AMD for years now, but a pc friend of mine keeps suggesting Intel.. I have yet to compare prices.

HD content (.mkv files) play fine on my current AMD 754 Athlon 64 3400 fine at the moment, giving me HD resolution on my TV, but HD DVD's do not play, if i burn the disc to the pc, it plays very jumpy and no sound.

Could you recommend better Ram?

It dosent have to be from OC, i was just using that to browse for parts.

 

[soap_dodger]

Personally, I would go for:

Intel Quad 6600:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-172-IN&groupid=701&catid=6&subcat=793

and Abit IP35 Pro:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-135-AB&tool=3

Great for overclocking, have a mate who got the Quad up to 3.8 Ghz on a stock Intel cooler.

 

[Stu DemonD]

Same setup as I am after soapy that board only £101.99 this week as well :spin:

 

[soap_dodger]

Same setup as I am after soapy that board only £101.99 this week as well :spin:

I'm "gellous" lol

You should easy get it up to 4 Ghz with a Freezer Pro or similar.

Anyways, back to the OP, forgot to add, I would go for a Corsair PSU. Will make cooling better with the abilty to remove cables you don't need and is decent quality.

 

[Stu DemonD]

I was going to use the Thermalright Ultra-120 for cooling.

As for mem, why not 4 1GB sticks of faster 4-4-4-12 stuff?

 

[y2dom]

I have just been looking over the spec you posted up, i am going to take a few ideas, if you dont mind..?

Going to get a few prices together.

Is OClockers the best place to buy pc parts? or is there cheaper places?

 

[Stu DemonD]

I tend to use eBuyer as well, have a business and personal account with them.

 

[ashw90]

I prefer SLi over Crossfire myself... but maily because im only 17 and cant really afford stupid amounts of money on a pc yet. Crossfire seems to be the better option performance wise, but for value, i think SLi is the way to go. Plus dual 8800GTX are sooo nice <---my next upgrade i hope xd

you could try here... www.cclonline.com i always use them. pretty good priced, some cheaper than ebuyer some not. never had a problem with them though. Orders are always on time and always correct and ive used them ALOT. Cant fault them at all