Could you guys help me in building a computer please? :x

[Evolv]

Computers are easy to build. Everything plugs right in. Trickiest part is putting on the thermal paste for the cpu and heatsink, but you can look up videos on youtube for how to do it.

With new i7 builds, it's best to have 6Gb of tri-channel ram. 12Gb is way overkill, nothing can use up that many resources. In today's computer world, it's not practical or necessary.

The 965 is a waste of money. The 920 is just as fast as the 940 and 965 Extreme Edition processors when overclocked, and it overclocks pretty much just as well. So if your husband is into overclocking, it is the processor of choice.

Currently Nvidia is leading with the GTX 295. Plus, their cards consume less power and don't through off as much heat compared to ATI. Two GTX 285's will destroy anything in terms of gaming. And it's a good idea to invest in a good monitor. If you're going to run two 285s, then its best to have a monitor with a resolution of 1900x1200 or higher, to take full advantage.

And the Killer NIC is a waste of money. Your internet connection and speed really depends on your ISP.

 

[Clover]

Oh thanks guys Almost almost done! ^_^



On Vista, is it necessary to buy it for a better gaming computer, or over all enjoyment? Because I've been hearing bad things about Vista, and out XP seems to be working great- is it worth that extra money? :x


Oh, and the monitors, we recently bought a HD LG flat screen for $500 something- and we hate it with a passion..it looks so ugly :/ it has a watery looking picture, it looks like the people on TV have spiky heads, double picture inside when you look close.. Our old junker TV was so much better :/

We thought it might be a bad TV so we went back- but all the HD TVs are like that.. But if i buy a new monitor- will it look the same? :/

Oh..if it won't look the same ..how much do you think a monitor would cost?


you guys are being a great help thanks


Oh, and the building thing...how much would you reckon it would cost to hire someone to build it and install everything for me?

I'm sure i can figure out how to do it, but if its cheap like..under 100$ i might consider it

Oh ( >< ) and soundcards..i don't know if i missed it but did anyone say anything about if i need to buy a sound card too? I've been told that generally the sound cards that come with computers are not good..and i plan on buying a surround sound speaker set for gamers Amazon.com: Used and New: Logitech G51 Surround Sound 5.1 Speaker System (Black)

Would i need a good sound card to take advantage of these speakers? ( if they are any good..everything i thought was good has turned out to be crap )

Oh, and on warranties, should i bother to buy any extended? We take pretty good care of our stuff..besides the time i split milk on his x-box a couple years ago.. ( hey i need my milk, I'm only 20 )

 

[septic]

I'm sure i can figure out how to do it, but if its cheap like..under 100$ i might consider it

Your still money ahead if you have someone build this for 100 or 200. I paid a builder 100 and he gave me 1yr. free tech support. Does your husband have a game that he really enjoys now? Make sure it will run on 64-bit OS(operating system). You will need a 64-bit OS to take advantage of anything over 3 gigs. Your current XP OS is probably 32-bit. When Vista first came out it had quite a few problems that have been worked out over time. RAID is multiple hard drives and the builder can strike and split programs on multiple HD's making them load faster. RAID for back-up as Kmote mentioned earlier...no. Use an external hard-drive and unplug it from the computer before getting on the internet for back-up. Trying to install an SLI system (2 video cards) can get tricky on the driver (software) install part. At least is was for me on my formats. Whatever you decide stay with the I7 motherboard platform IMO. What's especially nice about building your own is having all the cd's to format(rebuild) in the event of an attack... and the price too ofcoarse. Take the remaining money and put into a 12 month CD twice and in two years you'll have enough to build another system that will do circles around whatever you build today.

 

[Clover]

Oh, well he is looking forward to playing Empire total war, Operation flashpoint 2, and Crysis..um gosh... ( just got over feeling like a noob- and now is back to feeling like one : P)

If a video game is to old will it still run on a 62-bit thingy? :x

Oh, i don't mean to double post ><

But dose anyone know where i might beable to find someone who installs all the parts i buy?
Would i beable to walk into a store like Best Buy, and give them the parts and a bit of money, and they put everything together?

I would really like to save the extreme money..but iv been doing research on all this stuff for literaly 10 hours so far today- at least..im just so mentally depleted :/

 

[septic]

As far as those specific games someone else will have to tell you. I play bf2 and don't think bf2 is multi-threaded to utilize the function of both my cores. If you give a ruff location of your whereabouts one of the forum admins may be able to suggest a builder.

 

[Clover]

Oh, Columbus Ohio


:happy:

If i do end up buying these parts...could i order them from a sales-tax free state? Because Ohio's sales tax is like 6% >_>

 

[chesirecat1701]

well, it's good to see that your goin to get something nice for your husband,

but just because you have 3k doesn't mean you have to spend it all.

If I had an extra 3k I would both my new computer built and my car paid for

anyways, if your spending anything over $1000 you'll be going i7,

One thing you want to ask yourself is how much you/your husband game or do really graphically demanding work,

by far the GTX 295 is the fasted single PCI-E slot GFX card around but will you really put the $500 of graphics power to use?

Just something to think about.

Now the list already up are on the right track, just need to optimize this for you,

I'm just asking you to think about the money really, because times are tight around here,

I'm 17 and cash flow isn't great, lol

well I'm sure the good people here will have you buying what you need in no time

good luck

 

[bkolk]

Oh, and the building thing...how much would you reckon it would cost to hire someone to build it and install everything for me?

I'm sure i can figure out how to do it, but if its cheap like..under 100$ i might consider it

Consider my earlier post, using IBuypower.com, you choose the components and they put everything together, check that it works and then ship it to you pre-built.

 

[septic]

using philbar71 recommendations (accept get one 295 video card and 2 cd drives)I'm comming up with $1900 using Cyberpower's link on home page. $1600 for IBUYpower with no OS!! and neweggs Newegg.com - Antec Twelve Hundred Black Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case - Computer Cases
I would stay with a full tower case and not try to fit all this stuff into a mid tower case
Newegg.com - CORSAIR CMPSU-850TX 850W ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Active PFC Power Supply - Power Supplies
Newegg.com - Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound - Thermal Compound / Grease
Newegg.com - BIOSTAR TpowerX58 LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Intel Motherboards
Newegg.com - OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Triple Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Desktop Memory
Newegg.com - Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor - Processors - Desktops
Newegg.com - ZALMAN CNPS 9700 NT 110mm 2 Ball Ultra Quiet CPU Cooler - CPU Fans & Heatsinks
WARNING not sure if the cpu fan will fit the motherboard?in fact it does NOT! thanks for looking into it gt7sanremo
Newegg.com - EVGA 01G-P3-1285-AR GeForce GTX 285 SC Edition 1GB 512-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards
ok I take that back....thats the second place I've read about the inadequate driver issue with the 295
Newegg.com - Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit for System Builders - Operating Systems
Newegg.com - LITE-ON Black 22X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 22X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 22X DVD Burner with LightScribe - CD / DVD Burners

Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - Internal Hard Drives
ruffly $1,650 before shipping not sure for you on the tax. IL is one of the three states that is required to pay tax.

 

[Evolv]

using philbar71 recommendations (accept get one 295 video card and 2 cd drives)I'm comming up with $1900 using Cyberpower's link on home page. $1600 for IBUYpower with no OS!! and neweggs

Huh? Why would you want a build without an OS? But anyways, Philbar's build is better. That cpu cooler won't work with an i7. I don't know why you have two optical drives listed, and the last one is IDE.