Puressence
In Runtime
- Messages
- 137
- Location
- Walnut Creek, CA
Hey all,
A little backround. I am currently on a Dell laptop since my Dell Desktop recently died on me. Needless to say, I have been unable to game for the past month or so and am looking to get back into it. I was initially thinking of going the cyberpower or ibuypower route, and actually found these forums while trying to research the different components that I wanted. After reading through many different posts, I realized that the only way I could get full 100% customization was if I were to build the computer myself. Also, it appears that members here have recommended to others that they build themselves vs going the cyberpower route. This will be a huge undertaking for me, but it is one that I want to take on. Hopefully you guys will be willing to help me as I have seen your willingness to help others like me. My computer will be used for light to moderate gaming. I want components that will last me for the next several years, with moderate upgrading along the way as needed. I do have a few questions as well as a few desires as to what I want with my system.
I have been looking at the Coolermaster 932 HAF and think that is the route I want to go.
As the title says, I would like to go with the Intel Core i7 920 2.66. I may do a slight overclock, but certainately do not need to have the fastest cpu. I am looking for stability over speed. Water cooling was something that I was looking at and aspire really seems to know his s**t in that regard, but I think that with my needs/desires, I could be happy with air cooling.
OS- Windows Vista PRO 64-bit Question on that - I have a copy that came with my laptop. Would I be able to install that on my new system? Or is that a one copy for one computer type of deal?
RAM OCZ, G.skill, corsair 6gigs RAM is not my expertise so I am open to suggestions.
HDD I looked at the WD velociraptor and wonder if you guys think I need it. I also read some solid state reviews and am not sure if that would be a better route for me. I'd like to have a fast drive for OS and games, and possibly a 7200 drive for my files and "junk"
GPU I would like to stick with the Nvidia side of things. Ive been looking at the gtx 285 or 295. I understand that gtx 295 in SLI is overkill for todays needs. I am also hearing those cards run hot. Are 2 gtx 285 in SLI better than one gtx 295? Perhaps I go with One gtx 295 and upgrade to 2 WAY in the future should games require it. Just wanted to throw that out there......food for thought and all that.
PSU I'd pick probably a 700-850 Watt PSU from the list that's been stickied.
And of course I'd get some sort of DVD ROM drive, but I have been focusing on the other components first.
Last thing, and its hard to admit this, but I want this thing to light up like its the fourth of July. I've seen a lot of youtube videos of people and their flashy cases, and I want that lol. Cold Cathode here I come.
Anyhow to sum it all up, I'd like a system that won't be bottlenecked anywhere. I want it to run stable and cool. Games I play include Microsoft FSX, Counterstrike Source, and Warcraft 3. I know that this system should have no problem with these games. I was limited on what I could play b/c I was on a Pentium 4 System. I'd like to get into some more "modern" games. My budget is relatively flexible. I know that the components I am interested in are going to cost a fair amount of cash. I'm looking at spending anywhere from about $1800 to $2200. Again, there is flexibility here. If I can spend less than that, great. If I need to go slightly over, then so be it. I just would like the "techies" to play around with the info that I have given.
Thanks All,
Puressence
A little backround. I am currently on a Dell laptop since my Dell Desktop recently died on me. Needless to say, I have been unable to game for the past month or so and am looking to get back into it. I was initially thinking of going the cyberpower or ibuypower route, and actually found these forums while trying to research the different components that I wanted. After reading through many different posts, I realized that the only way I could get full 100% customization was if I were to build the computer myself. Also, it appears that members here have recommended to others that they build themselves vs going the cyberpower route. This will be a huge undertaking for me, but it is one that I want to take on. Hopefully you guys will be willing to help me as I have seen your willingness to help others like me. My computer will be used for light to moderate gaming. I want components that will last me for the next several years, with moderate upgrading along the way as needed. I do have a few questions as well as a few desires as to what I want with my system.
I have been looking at the Coolermaster 932 HAF and think that is the route I want to go.
As the title says, I would like to go with the Intel Core i7 920 2.66. I may do a slight overclock, but certainately do not need to have the fastest cpu. I am looking for stability over speed. Water cooling was something that I was looking at and aspire really seems to know his s**t in that regard, but I think that with my needs/desires, I could be happy with air cooling.
OS- Windows Vista PRO 64-bit Question on that - I have a copy that came with my laptop. Would I be able to install that on my new system? Or is that a one copy for one computer type of deal?
RAM OCZ, G.skill, corsair 6gigs RAM is not my expertise so I am open to suggestions.
HDD I looked at the WD velociraptor and wonder if you guys think I need it. I also read some solid state reviews and am not sure if that would be a better route for me. I'd like to have a fast drive for OS and games, and possibly a 7200 drive for my files and "junk"
GPU I would like to stick with the Nvidia side of things. Ive been looking at the gtx 285 or 295. I understand that gtx 295 in SLI is overkill for todays needs. I am also hearing those cards run hot. Are 2 gtx 285 in SLI better than one gtx 295? Perhaps I go with One gtx 295 and upgrade to 2 WAY in the future should games require it. Just wanted to throw that out there......food for thought and all that.
PSU I'd pick probably a 700-850 Watt PSU from the list that's been stickied.
And of course I'd get some sort of DVD ROM drive, but I have been focusing on the other components first.
Last thing, and its hard to admit this, but I want this thing to light up like its the fourth of July. I've seen a lot of youtube videos of people and their flashy cases, and I want that lol. Cold Cathode here I come.
Anyhow to sum it all up, I'd like a system that won't be bottlenecked anywhere. I want it to run stable and cool. Games I play include Microsoft FSX, Counterstrike Source, and Warcraft 3. I know that this system should have no problem with these games. I was limited on what I could play b/c I was on a Pentium 4 System. I'd like to get into some more "modern" games. My budget is relatively flexible. I know that the components I am interested in are going to cost a fair amount of cash. I'm looking at spending anywhere from about $1800 to $2200. Again, there is flexibility here. If I can spend less than that, great. If I need to go slightly over, then so be it. I just would like the "techies" to play around with the info that I have given.
Thanks All,
Puressence
