Questions about building a gaming computer

[HunterHod]

Hey everyone, i've finally decided to build a new gaming computer and have 1500 dollars at my disposal. I'd like to get the best computer for my money, and already have a low priced list of components.

My list of components:

Mboard- GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard

Psupply- Antec neopower 500w sli cert. modular

Graphics- EVGA 512-P3-N976-AR GeForce 9800 GT Superclocked Edition 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16

HD - Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

CPU- Intel Core 2 Duo E8500 Wolfdale 3.16GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80570E8500 - Retail

Case- LIAN LI PC-65 USB B2 Silver Aluminum ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

RAM- mushkin 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model 996587 - Retail

OS- Microsoft Windows Vista Home Basic SP1 64-bit English 1pk for System Builders DSP OEI DVD - OEM

I'd like to run a RAID 0 array with the harddrive, I know its a ridiculous amount of memory but i do alot of torrents, and this will be my only computer for many years.

I'd greatly appreciate any suggestions that you all could offer, please let me know if i am bottle-necking any parts and what parts i could upgrade.

Thanks

 

[baron5]

welcome to TF!
just a couple of things, ditch the mobbo and pick up the newer version which is the EP45-ds which is the newer intel chipset p45 which offers alot better overclocking for that e8500. but i would prefer u get this mobbo anyway Newegg.com - BIOSTAR TForce TP45D2-A7 LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Intel Motherboards biostar have great quality motherboards better than gigabyte for overclocking, so get that. im guessing in raid0 u want 2x1tb hhd's? to me that seems like a **** of alot of dont even use up my 320gb, but hey if u need it, i guess theres no much u can do, and putting it in raid will make it faster but be aware that it could fail and ull loose all ur data. other thing is swap the ram to a pair of gskill black edition PI's good set of ram at a great price. also add in a xigmatek rifle 120mm cooler if you are overclocking.

one more thing, vista basic? might as well just get premium, but its up to u...

 

[meat_helmet]

Also, if you can spend a bit more (cause what you have listed shouldnt be near $1500) you should change the video card to an HD 4850, or even 4870. Do you game alot? What do you mostly use if for?

I have a similar power supply, and while it is quite good, there is better out there. The Corsair vx550 might be better, however, it may be more expensive and it is not modular so you might have already made the right choice.

 

[Peter.Cort]

the biostar doesnt have onboard raid support to my knowledge, so go with a ds3r from gigabyte. unless youre going to use a raid card

 

[maroon1]

I suggest changing the 9800GT to 9800GTX+
Newegg.com - ASUS EN9800GTX+ DK/HTDI/512M GeForce 9800 GTX+ 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards

This one uses a better cooler and it cost only $159.99 after MIR

 

[Peter.Cort]

or even a 4850/4870/gtx260 if you're looking for a lot of power in gaming situations.

 

[HunterHod]

Thanks so much for the feedback everyone. I've taken all of the suggestions into account and here is the current build i cam up with:

Mboard- GIGABYTE GA-EP45T-DS3R LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

Psupply- Antec neopower 500w sli cert. modular

Graphics- ASUS EN9800GTX+ DK/HTDI/512M GeForce 9800 GTX+ 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

HD - Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
_____/\_____
will use this as storage(i.e. videos, music, programs i do not use often)

Fujitsu MBA3147NC 147GB 15000 RPM SCSI Ultra320 80pin Hard Drive - OEM
Fujitsu MBA3147NC 147GB 15000 RPM SCSI Ultra320 80pin Hard Drive - OEM
_____/\_____
Will use these 2 harddrvies for a RAID 0

CPU- Intel Core 2 Duo E8500 Wolfdale 3.16GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80570E8500 - Retail

Case- LIAN LI PC-65 USB B2 Silver Aluminum ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

RAM- G.SKILL PI Black 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory

OS- Microsoft Windows Vista Home Basic SP1 64-bit English 1pk for System Builders DSP OEI DVD – OEM
Cooling- XIGMATEK HDT-S1284EE 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler

I want to be sure that all components are compatible with one another and that i'm not bottle necking anything.

Any additional suggestions would be greatly appreciated, Thanks again!

 

[Peter.Cort]

you'll need to get a scsi card to run the drives. and they aren't cheap, unless you have one already. and also you'll need to have it be a RAID SCSI card which is even more expensive.

 

[meat_helmet]

you'll need to get a scsi card to run the drives. and they aren't cheap, unless you have one already. and also you'll need to have it be a RAID SCSI card which is even more expensive.

Yeh even eBay SCSI cards go for hundreds of dollards, IMO its not worth it.

 

[HunterHod]

Thank you for your response. This is all still new to me, I appreciate your patience.
Will i still need a scsi card with the GIGABYTE GA-EP45T-DS3R LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard that Peter.Cort suggested? i understand that with the previous i would have needed a raid card, but i was under the impression that this motherboard supported a raid 0 array.
I'm a very heavy gamer, and am set on having the RAID 0 array for its performance. Is there any way that i can implement a RAID 0 and avoid having to buy a scsi card?

Thanks again