Custom PC Input needed

kryan1

Ok, i am going about building a PC, first timer... lol so i have just bought the new Intel Extreme Edition Core 2 Duo chip awaiting it to be dispatched. So i would like to have all the components ready for it. I am shopping in www.Komplett.ie. so far here is what i picked out.

· 305081 Antec Phantom 350W Fanless Stealth PSU
· 301111 Corsair Value S. PC4200 DDR2 1024MB 128Meg x 64, CL4, 533MHz, 240-pin
· 317774 Creative Gigaworks T20, Retail
· 320345 MSI P965 Platinum, P965, Socket-775 Firewire,SATAII,ATX,GbLAN,DDR2,PCI-Ex16
· 320080 Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 750GB SATA2 16MB 7200RPM
· 310552 Thermaltake Kandalf Black, Aluminium Front, Super tower (Without PSU)
· 304874 WaterChill 3 1/2 HDD Cooler (With Fittings 10mm)
· 315127 WaterChill CPU/VGA/Chip Kit KT12A/T-12VS ,12V Pump, 120mm Black Ice Pro Radiator

What i plan to do is get 2 750GB HD's purely for storage and set them up that 1 is a back up of the other and this will be done by RAID, but haven't a clue about RAID and the different numbers. The Main drive will be a 250GB that will run windows etc...
Also i plan to have it water cooled, so any input on this and if i have the right kit etc.
I also plan to get a 20" flat screen, and a soundcard/video card.
It will be only used for music and videos. No gaming.
So any advice or recommendations, i would be grateful.
Thanks in advance,
Kevin

K.O.Kiki

The C2E is pure overkill -- you'd be just as well served with the E6700, or even an overclocked E6600 -- as it offers less than a 10% performance increase for 2-3 times the money.

Also, get PC2-5300 memory.

Make sure the video card you get can support the resolution & refresh rate of the monitor (shouldn't be a problem tho); since you're not gaming, wouldn't spend too much here.

And get a soundcard from the Creative X-Fi range (which one depends on whether you need a break-out box or not). BTW, why you not getting a 2.1, or even 5.1 (ie, with subwoofer) system though??

PogMoThoin

Change the PSU.......500w
E6600 should be powerful enough....can always oc

Ram 4 sale:http://cgi.ebay.ie/OCZ-2Gb-2x1GB-DDR2-PC2-5400-Gold-GX-XTC_W0QQitemZ270013109115QQihZ017QQcategoryZ172QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Soundcard:http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=312204
Monitor:http://accessories.euro.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=ie&l=en&s=dhs&cs=iedhs1&sku=59233
Gpu (take your pick, how much you willing to spend):http://www.komplett.ie/k/kl.asp?bn=10488

Cuddlesworth

Lose the Hardrive cooler, you dont need it. If you plan to Oc use a dual radiator.

PogMoThoin

Guide to raid:

kryan1

Got the chip at a reasonable price, so bought. Thanks for the info so far, but, but the RAID question, that is the difference between RAID 1 and 0? from what i can make out, RAID 1 is 1 drive but with a direct back up, right? thats what i am looking for. To do this then, does the MoBo i have choosen allow me to do this, or do i have to get a another piece of equipment?
Anyone know where i could perhaps get a ABIT MoBo that is compatable for the Intel® Core™2 Extreme Processor X6800?
Many thanks,
Kevin

Cuddlesworth

Yeah raid 1 writes the same data to both drives

kryan1

Just a quick question, does anyone know if the Mobo is anygood, r is there better out there?
Its in komplett.

http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=320345

thanks...

PogMoThoin

Reviews:
http://forums.extremeoverclocking.com/showthread.php?t=228582
http://www.hardwarezone.com/articles/view.php?cid=6&id=1987

I did come across a comparison of all boards for conroe on another forum somewhere. will post it when i find it again.

TomCo

Why would you want such a system if you weren't gaming?

Why would you want to overclock?

kryan1

TomCo wrote:

Why would you want such a system if you weren't gaming?

Why would you want to overclock?

I no i no, i'm like building a boeing 747 when all i need is a small plane, right, well, i don't know y, i just perfer to be looking at it, than looking for it, if u no what i mean. Whats Overclocking???

PogMoThoin

kryan1 wrote:

Whats Overclocking???

OMFG Here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overclocking

unkel

PogMoThoin wrote:

Change the PSU.......500w

No, the 350W Phantom is perfectly adequate for the use as a music / video box that obviously needs to be very quiet

PogMoThoin

:rolleyes: I thought it was a gaming rig. Thought he might go sli in future.

TomCo

kryan1 wrote:

I no i no, i'm like building a boeing 747 when all i need is a small plane, right, well, i don't know y, i just perfer to be looking at it, than looking for it, if u no what i mean. Whats Overclocking???

I'd liken it to building a 747 and not putting the wings on because you just want to us it for the shopping run and driving the kids to school.

With the water cooling gear I assumed you'd be overclocking, its for the noise factor then?

I heard those PSU's run very hot and actually have a fan that kicks in when it goes above a certain temp, which is not exactly fanless. Can someone confirm this?


From this point forward the rig will be refered to as the "Spinning wheel" and the OP "The Mule".

I'd use a smiley but I'm allergic.

unkel

TomCo wrote:

I heard those PSU's run very hot and actually have a fan that kicks in when it goes above a certain temp, which is not exactly fanless. Can someone confirm this?

You've got a few things mixed up but it is a bit confusing alright. First, the Phantom 350W is fanless. It does not have any fans. It does get hot, but the PC internal case temperature should be fine as long as there is some airflow. The Phantom 500W is the same as the 350W, but it does have a fan that kicks in under certain circumstances (can be set to three different settings)

I've a Fortron 300W fanless PSU myself. Pretty much the same (excellent and efficient) performance as the Phantom 350W, but a good bit cheaper

Mine runs a passive cpu watercooled modern rig with 4 SATA harddrives (one Raptor) based on a 1.8 opty 144 @2.7. 50% overclock

The only fans in my system are 2 undervolted case fans. The passive 300W PSU runs the rig fine 24 hour stable prime95 torture test

Rule of thumb: you only need a powerful PSU for running newish games with a newish high end graphics card

kryan1

OK, just a thank you to everyone and all your advice. So The System parts that i am going to order is a follows.
Case - http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=322567
PSU - http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=315160
Motherboard - http://www.neqx.com/product.asp?pf_id=MO1261
HD - http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=320080
Sound Card - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16829102163&CMP=OTC-pr1c3watch&ATT=29-102-163
Video Card - http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16814150139
RAM - http://www.monarchcomputer.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=M&Product_Code=141290&AFFIL=pricewatch&NR=1
Modem - http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=323597
Screen - http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=318935

The Processor is the New Intel Core Duo X6800. I have gotten rid of the Watercooling. So what am i missing, is everything compatable.
I am also going for quietness so if you have any advice then would be great...
I know that there are american site included here, but i have a few friend there and they will order it for me and i will bring them when i visit them.
Thanks again guys for all you help.
Kevin.

unkel

kryan1 wrote:

I am also going for quietness so if you have any advice then would be great...

Depends on your definition of quietness. Your previously selected PSU was silent

kryan1 wrote:

PSU - http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=315160

That is not silent. Why the change of mind? And if you are going to spend a lot of money on a not even quiet PSU that has way more power than you need for a music / videos box, you might as well get a Seasonic for the price of a few more pints and be sure you have the quietest one in the land of the noisy...

PogMoThoin

kryan1

Extreme conroe is a complete waste of money and only aimed at serious overclockers cos of the unlocked multi. It's of no advantage having unlocked multi if you not gonna oc to the extreme max. Buy an E6700, you'll get it faster than extreme on stock voltages. Only gotta push up the fsb. Will do that on stock no probs.
Everyone will advise the same.

The mobo doesn't support that ram, you wont get the full speed of that ram unless you overclock. Intel recommend pc5300 for that mobo on stock.

If you're buyin a soundcard, go for Creative X-fi, Audigy are a few yrs old now, X-Fi is the latest: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/acatalog/Creative_Sound_Cards.html
Cooler. Are you gonna use the intel stock one?
Google each item 2 see if you can find them cheaper. Good luck

K.O.Kiki

@OP: Since you said you won't be doing any gaming at all, why are you spending close to $300 on a graphics card?
I'd have thought you'd be better off with an $80 nVidia 7300GT (checking Newegg), which is also a silent card...

And don't buy an Audigy 2ZS; the X-Fi would be far superior!

kryan1

PogMoThoin wrote:

kryan1
Cooler. Are you gonna use the intel stock one?

What do you mean here???

Cuddlesworth

All retail box cpu's come with a stock fan. The stock fan part means that the fan is a industry standard for that chip range. After-market fans, ones you buy that are sold seperately are normally of a higher quality and make less noise.

PogMoThoin

If you're lookin for a quiet pc you might consider buying a cpu cooler as the ones that come with the intel chip could be rather noisy. Like this:
http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=312473

Edit: not quick enough, Krazy_8s got ere first.

kryan1

I was reading in the fourm about building a quiet PC and about fanless PSU's. It said that you really need to know what you were doing. And believe me when i say that i havn't a clue. With the case that i have chosen, is this ideal for a fanless PSU. I was thinking of going back to the original Antec Phantom 350W Fanless Stealth PSU or 500W verson.

Guys your advice here is really great and i really appreciate this.

Kevin

PogMoThoin

That case should be ok, not suitable for watercooling in the future tho, as its a bit tight Review: http://www.custompc.co.uk/custompc/reviews/74276/antec-p180.html

This is the case i chose, great airflow, loads of space & ready for watercooling, if i decide to go down that rd in the future: http://www.thermaltake.com/xaserCase/armor/va8000bws/va8000bws.htm

Don't get smaller than 500w psu, 350w is not enough. Fanless psu's come highly recommended. They have a fan, but it only cuts in when you reach a certain high temp.