Good Gaming PC?

[Meithan]

Yes, 100% compatible. The E6600 is in my opinion the best processor one can buy right now if you think price/performance. Gigabyte has known to make reliable motherboards, with tons of included things and devices. That video card should outperform my 7600GT substantially, and it's so cheap! I paid $175 for my 7600GT! EVGA is also a great brand.

Only one question. Some of the links you posted aren't working, so I couldn't check your RAM speed. It should be DDR2-800 or PC2-6400 (or higher). No point in buying slower RAM.

Edit: oh, judging from the price, it's probably DDR2-800 already. However, reading the reviews at Newegg, it seems people are having trouble with this RAM and Gigabyte motherboards. So let's try another brand.

Apparently it's a compatibility problem with Intel chipset P965 and DDR2-800 memory. Well, I have an Asus P5B (same chipset) with 1GB DDR2-800 Corsair memory (2x512MB), and it all runs perfectly. Memory runs at 400Mhz (800Mhz effective) and dual channel.

However, I'm sure many people on the forums have DS3 motherboards. Any comments, advice?

 

[tzvii]

All the links should work on this one. I changed the case also, not worth spending $115 on. The RAM wasn't DDR2-800 or PC2-6400, it is only DDR2 533 (PC2 4200)

CPU- Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 2.4GHz LGA 775 Processor - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16819115003 - $316.99

GPU- eVGA 256-P2-N624-AR GeForce 7900GS 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 KO Video Card - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16814130056 $185.99

Mother Board- GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3 Socket T (LGA 775) Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard -
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16813128012 - $146.99

Hard Drive- Western Digital Caviar SE16 250GB 3.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16822144701 - $79.99

Case- COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 CAC-T05-WW Black/Silver Aluminum Bezel, SECC Chassis ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16811119077 - $49.99

PSU- OCZ ModStream OCZ52012U 520W Power Supply - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16817104155 - $89.99

Optical Drive- SAMSUNG 18X DVD±R DVD Burner With 12X DVD-RAM Write Black E-IDE/ATAPI - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16827151133 - $30.99

RAM- OCZ Gold Series 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16820227076 - $229.99

Total - $1,119.92

 

[Meithan]

Oh, the RAM you're choosing is DDR2-533. You can get DDR2-800 for almost the same price.

OCZ Gold 2x1GB DDR2-800 - $229.99

But there's the compatibility issue. So you have two options.

1) Stay with the (slower) DDR2-533 RAM.
2) Buy faster DDR2-800 RAM, but we'll have to check which brands are compatible. Probably Corsair.

 

[tzvii]

Would any of these work?

OCZ S.O.E 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820227120

G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Standard System Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820231098

Patriot 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820220144

 

[KBlair]

This is known to work.

 

[tzvii]

I was looking for something a little less expensive than that..

 

[Meithan]

Yes, it's quite expensive considering it's value RAM. The Corsair XMS kits aren't that expensive, and I've heard they work great on P965 boards (2x512MB works on mine).

Edit: Also, concerning the RAM options you posted earlier, I read a few user reviews on Newegg. OCZ: it seems it works on DS3, but the ram isn't very overclockable. If you won't overclock, then this might be a good choice. G.Skill: compatible with DS3, but stability issues when going away from stock settings. Patriot: works with DS3, good overclock potential, but it's rather pricey. Corsair 2GB kits are around $300, but are CL5. Not that it will matter if you don't overclock. From the bunch we're considering, it seems Patriot is the best choice, if you have the money. If not, go with OCZ.

However, I'm only guessing here. Anyone else with a DS3 motherboard that can help us out?

 

[tzvii]

CORSAIR XMS 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145575

That Corsair one is about the same price as the Patriot one, both around $260 after rebates. Which one would be best? I'm not sure if I am going to want to overclock or not.

Also, the PSU I was going to get is out of stock. Does this one work? RAIDMAX RX-630A ATX12V/ EPS12V 630W Power Supply 115/230 V CB, IEC, TUV, UL, CSA
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145575

Also, on a different forum somebody told me to get a E6400 Processor and get a better video card. They recommended a X1900XT. The only ones of these on Newegg are openbox ones, like this:
Open Box: SAPPHIRE 100168L Radeon X1900XT 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 CrossFire Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16814102051R
Would it be a good idea to do that?

 

[Meithan]

That Corsair dual channel kit is DDR, not DDR2! You need DDR2. You probably meant this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145590 - $280
The timings might not be great, but I'd bet it works on the DS3 board. Plus Corsair RAM is known to be a good overclocker.

Uhm, Raidmax PSU... I'm not that sure about that. I'm running on a Raidmax 450W, and so far so good, but people tend to be a bit picky about this. Maybe another brand? I'm no PSU expert, at all.

As for the CPU, in my personal opinion the good options are E6300 (if you're poor) or E6600 (if you're rich). The other two (E4000, E6700) are not worth it, unless you're overclocking and wand to get absolutely all the possible juice out of your CPU. In all other cases, the E6300/E6600 offer similar performance at a lower price.

I don't really know how the X1900XT compares to a 7900GS. I'll have to look around, or wait until someone can clarify this. The price difference isn't great anyway. Just one thing: with DX10 around the corner, I don't think right now is a good time to get a really high-end card. Better get a cheap, mig-range one (~7600GT), which can run everything right now, and upgrade next year.

Personally, I think E6600 + 7900GS is a very good combo. Powerful, too. But this is only my opinion, you're free (and encouraged) to get a second, third, fourth (etc) opinion.

 

[KBlair]

Hiper makes good modular PSUs, but I just don't like modular in general. Cables ftw.