Building a PC Help!!

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Hey guys
First of all i am not a expert with computer hardware and what not so bare with me plz ;)
Anyways i would like to build a pc starting with this tower http://www.ciao.com/Antec_Performance_II_SX1040BII_SOHO_File_Server__10129386
Where would i start, whats a real good motherboard etc, and i will probaly need to upgrade my psu and such but sweet as
Money isnt a problem but plz mention money prices and what not
Thanks
 
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If you are not an expert with building PC's, are you the one going to build it?
 
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Nah, I just want to know what parts and what not to buy and from where also wouldnt be a hurt then a friend of mine will put it together
 
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I know this is a little late, how far have you gotten with this build?

If you havent started yet, take a look at this, it's something I suggested to someone else here.

Are you sure you really want that case you picked out? Just asking.

Motherboard: ASUS Striker II Nse Nforce 790I LGA775 DDR3 3PCI-E16 PCI-E1 2PCI eSATA 1394 GBLAN SLI

CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 Quad Core Processor LGA775 2.83GHZ Yorkfield 1333FSB 12MB

CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U12P LGA775 AM2 Heatsink Heatpipe Cooler W/ NF-P12 120MM Fan

RAM: Corsair XMS3 TR3X6G1333C9 6GB DDR3 3X2GB DDR3-1333 CL 9-9-9-24 Triple Channel Memory Kit

Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 1500GB 1.5TB SATA2 7200RPM 32MB Cache NCQ

DVD Writer: Samsung SH-S223Q/BEBN Black DVD+RW 22X8X16 DVD-RW 22X6X16 DL16X/12X Lightscribe SATA

Video Card: EVGA E-GEFORCE GTX 280 602MHZ 1024MB 2.214GHZ GDDR3 PCI-E Dual DVI-I HDCP HDTV Out Video Card

PSU: Silverstone Strider ST85F 850W SLI Ready ATX12V 24PIN Modular Power Supply Active PFC 8PIN PCI-E

Case: Coolermaster CM 690 Mid Tower Black ATX Case 5X5.25 5X3.5INT No PS Front USB Sound Firewire & eSATA
http://www.coolermaster.com/products/product.php?language=en&act=detail&tbcate=17&id=2908

The total for this system is roughly $2500.00 Canadian XE

or maybe go with the newer Intel i7 cpus but I think a that setup would be quite a bit more then the above. But If you wanna see a i7 system I could prob throw a parts list together.
 
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1) If you're looking for gaming, duel core processors are better. I suggest the E8500. (Save your money for a year or two down the line, then get an quad core, in my opinion)
2) DDR3 is a waste of money unless you're buying a Core i7.
3) Only i7 support triple channel, so when you buy triple channel with that processor, you are actually getting a duel channel plus an extra stick.
4) FSB of 1333 in your processor does not mean you need RAM running at 1333. Triple channel means you're RAM is running not 1333 but at 4000 mhz (1333*3). So, with a 1333 FSB on your CPU, you would want at least 667 RAM, but 800 is recommended as slightly faster RAM is better (also allows for CPU overclocking).
5) Your case comes with 2 fans. I hope you plan on buying extras.
6) 850 W is more than you need for your PSU. 500 would be a low, and 600 would be a safe number. 850 is a bit much.
7) ATI makes better video cards right now. Better and cheaper.
8) That first case you posted is for servers, not regular desktop PCs.
 
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1. The E8400 is cheaper but you get the same overclock.
2. If you've got the money, go for a GeForce GTX 2x0, they're the best single-GPU cards on the market right now. The 260 is the same price as the Radeon 4870 but is technically superior hardware. ATi has been cheaply manufacturing their cards for a while now, compensating with ridiculously high operating frequencies when they wouldn't otherwise be needed. I'm sure they'll catch up though.
3. A 750W PSU will give you more room to grow in the future.
 
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Spunky might want to back up his claims at some point, until then stick with the Ati cards.

I have a HD4870 1GB OC'd in a pretty solid rig and there's not a ****in thing I can't do with it- and that's not even the best card they make. Why would you exclude dual GPU cards just to make your argument stronger? Oh that's right, to make your argument stronger. The HD4870x2 2GB GDDR5 is the best (Non-3D work) video card out, hands down, no questions. IF you have the cash get one, if not- the card I have chops pretty hard aswell. I have also had NO PROBLEMS (even when overclocking) with it, the product is solid and reliable- comes with excellent support, excellent accessories (including HDMI adapters with 7.1 audio output) and excellent drivers with all the tweaking options you could ever want.

There really is no argument here )v(ajin Vegetto.

Also: http://www.madshrimps.be/vbulletin/f22/crysis-aa-performance-ati-hd4870x2-vs-nvidia-gtx-280-a-56778/
 
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Spunky, last I checked, you can't overclock the multiplier. Therefore, no, the 8400 will not overclock higher than an 8500. The 8500 is about $20 more than the 8400 and it gives you a .5 greater multiplier. The 8600 is $100 more than the 8500 and also gives you .5 more above the 8500.

My roommate is running an 8500 with a Radeon 4850 with only a 450 watt power supply, and he has no problems. A 600 watt PSU is fine. You'd only need to upgrade if you went with a Crossfire set up, and then you would want at least 800.
 
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This is a system I will be building for one of my cousins probably in the next couple of days, just waiting on the parts. It's pretty decent.


Case: Coolermaster CM 690 Mid Tower Black ATX Case 5X5.25 5X3.5INT No PS Front USB Sound Firewire & eSATA

Motherboard: ASUS P5Q-E ATX LGA775 P45 DDR2 3PCI-E16 2PCI-E1 2PCI SATA2 Sound GBLAN eSATA 1394

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Dual Core Processor LGA775 3.0GHZ Wolfdale 1333FSB 6MB Retail

Heatsink: Noctua NH-U9B 4 Heatpipe Cooler W/ NF-B9 Fan & Thermal Paste

RAM: Corsair XMS2 TWIN2X2048-6400C4 2GB 2X1GB PC2-6400 DDR2-800 CL 4-4-4-12 240PIN Dual Channel

Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 3.5IN 500GB SATA2 8.5MS 7200RPM 32MB Cache NCQ

DVD-Writer: Pioneer DVR-216DBK Black 20X SATA OEM DVDRW No Software

Video Card: HIS Radeon HD 4850 ICEQ4 Turbo 512MB GDDR3 PCI-E Dual DVI-I HDCP HDTV Out

PSU: Silverstone Strider ST60F 600W ATX12V 24PIN Modular Power Supply W/120MM Fan Active PFC

Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP Professional 32bit OEM

Total price after tax $1,316.00 Canadian

But if your more into gaming (I assume you are) I would change at least the following:

Video Card to a HD 4870 or HD 4870 X2

PSU to a 700W or 750W if you go with the HD 4870 X2
 
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If you read around Tom's Hardware, Spunky, you would see that they rate ATi above nVidia. I don't feel like finding the link. It's practically a consensus at this point. The X2 is the best video card on the market (Tom's even had an article calling the X2 the best card out there right now). The 4870 vs the 280 series usually have the 4870 slightly on top or tied.
 
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Oh I know. The Radeon 4800 series does well on all of the benchmarks. They're definitely in the lead as far as raw processing power goes. But they've fallen wayyy behind in every other department. That's all I was saying.

Nvidia is manufacturing superior hardware that doesn't require ridiculous operating frequencies or two GPUs to do well. I'm not questioning who's in the lead as far as performance goes. Both the Radeon 4800 series and the GTX 200 series will display pretty much anything you can think to throw at them, but Nvidia is pushing ahead with superior technologies.
 
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They've got superior technologies but they don't have the best card on the market?

In what way are they superior then?
 
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Warren, illiteracy is curable. It really is. Don't be afraid.
 
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I think Spunky is arguing that nVidia tends to have less powerful cards, but better design in their video cards (512-bit, etc). ATI, on the other hand, still use 256-bit but pack on more of everything else to level the playing field and in some cases pull ahead. Hence, nVidia has 'superior' technology.

I don't think it's a fair arguement since ATi is the only GPU manufacturer using GDDR5. Besides, the evidence is in the benchmarks. Screw what the specs say.
 
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Fair enough, but Nvidia does technically produce superior hardware for the most part (since you're right about GDDR5, I forgot all about that). ATI compensates for everything they lack with high operating frequencies and dual GPU cards. That's all I'm saying. Whatever works for them is cool though I guess.

At the end of the day, whatever gets the job done works. The selling point should be the features they offer like PhysX and CUDA for new Nvidia GPUs (which means developers will start actually using PhysX now that it's going mainstream thanks to Nvidia :)), or DirectX 10.1 for ATI cards (which developers aren't really using but they might soon). Both the Radeon 4800 series and the GTX 200 series will run any game maxed out. I just like how Nvidia is constantly coming up with amazing ideas like USA and PhysX for GPUs.
 
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If I remember the article I read on CUDA, ATi and nVidia are planning on working together to make it an industry standard. Bad news for Aegis.

nVidia has a duel GPU card as well (GeForce 9800 GX2). ATI has two, that's not exactly a common offering of either company. nVidia is coming out with another duel core of their 280 GTX in January, so at that point, they will be tied.

Like I said, they are both pushing technology in terms of quality and quantity but in different order.
ATi used to have a reputation for pure quality and not quantity, but that is changing. nVidia had a reputation for quantity and not quality, but again, that is changing.

It doesn't matter very much who you choose.
 
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The 9800 GX2 was a mistake for Nvidia. Same price as a GTX 280 but the 280 outperforms it. I honestly don't know why they thought a dual GPU card would be a good idea, unless they hadn't made plans for the GTX 200 series (which I'm sure they had by then).

A dual-GPU GTX 200 would be amazing, I hadn't heard about that yet. Their goal while designing the GTX 280 was to double the performance of the 8800 GTX, so I can't wait to see the benchmarks for a dual-GPU version with all of the improvements they've made. O_O

Edit: Oh and I forgot, new GeForce GPUs support OpenGL 3.0. :)
 
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nVidia does not support OpenGL 3.0.

And OpenGL isn't very popular anymore anyway.
 

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