Legit Reviews

Hi All,
I am looking to put together a new PC for myself for home office use and an occasional game. I also download pictures from digital camera from time to time and burn CD's

I would like to put together a PC that will not need an upgrade in 6 months

I would prefer Intel Core 2 Duo as a processor, 2 Gig of ram, video card that will serve the purpose, I don't need a top end card.

I am open to suggestions for the entire system.

I would also like to keep it around $1000, but if would be willing to go for more $$$ if necessary.

I would appreciate any help you could provide. I have been reading up on some of the current products available and it is mind boggling.

Regards,

Don

overclocking or no? Monitor, keyboard, mouse, speakers, OS or no?

Hi,
I don't know enough about overclocking to put it to good use at this time, but I suppose I should not discount it. So let's say yes to Overclocking.

I have the Monitor keyboard and mouse covered...I think.
I currently have a Sceptre 19" DVI LCD 5ms model X9WG-NagaV v1
Microsoft ergonomic usb keyboard and mouse.

I was going to purchase a Lite-On SHM-165H6S Dual Layer DVD±RW Writer to throw in as well.

AS far as OS I was thinking of going with XP professional...unless you have another idea to throw by me.

Thanks for you help

Don

The most important question is what size monitor are you running... 19" LCD... What is the highest resolution on it?

alright so we can rule out the monitor, keyboard and mouse.

Alright lets get down to work

OS:

Windows XP or Vista - Your choice here

Vista is 120$ at Newegg http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6832116202

XP Pro is 140

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6832116175

CPU

IMO the best CPU you can get is a C2D

E6400 Overclock the best on air.

Memory

Look for memory with chips that have Micron D9. PC2-6400 is your best bet speed wise

Motherboard

Look at the Asus p5n-E Sli. There is an article here that shows how well it can oc. Its cheap too. 143$ with 2day shipping at ZZF

HDDS

Here is a money issue. You want speed get a Western Digital Raptor

If want tons of storage but still good speed go Hitachi

Case

This is all you. Some go for the el cheapos, some go for the really expensive.

A happy medium is Antec SLK3000B. Around 70 or so dollars

I perfer Lian Li, but they can be 150$ and up

GPU

Again there are choices here. You don't want top end, I don't blame, you there are overpriced and give off way way way too much heat.

I'd say ATI x1950pro or Nvidia 7950GT. 200-250$ Can play most games well

Cooling
Someone will have to help you here. I haven't air cooled for almost 8months now. I perfer the silence of water

DVD
Look for Sata drives if budget allows, if not IDE do just as well

PSU

I'm in love with my Corsair 520W. Rock solid PSU. I highly recommend it. Look in the here http://forums.legitreviews.com/viewforum.php?f=30 my sticky on PSUs is at the top. Read that and look at what PSUs to avoid, and what I recommend.

Other items to think about, do you need good sound or do can you deal with onboard.

Hello,
Again, Thanks for your time and input.

The Monitors specs are: 19 Wide / 5ms / 700:1 / WXGA+ 1440 x 900 / DVI-VGA ... I hope this is sufficient as I just got this as a Christmas gift...

I suppose if I am to run theCPU over clocked I would run liquid cooling...
I am considering the ThermalTake CL – W0065 since it is reasonably priced. If you don't think this is adequate please let me know.

I am going shoppping for the items you suggested in the next week or so. I will post on final configuration once I buy everything.

Any other suggestions are welcome

Regards,
Don

PS,
Don't need Great sound, but would enjoy Good sound...

Ideas there?

Thanks,
Don

wouldn't bother with that, for the price high end air cooling would do better

Creative X-Fi Series or M-Audio Revolution 5.1 or 7.1

Onboard sound should be good enough if you want to save some cash.....later on you can add a pci sound card.

I would invest in speakers, instead of a sound card. Good speakers with onboard sound will sound better than poor speakers with a sound card.

I personally like Coolermaster cases. They are inexpensive, and good quality.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6811119077

I am overclocking with a Zulman 9500 that cools great and only runs around $50.

when do you plan to upgrade, if you are not in any sort of hurry wait till maybe summer when new intel cpu is out and new nvidia gfx is out as well.

Hello All,
After considering your inputs I am going with this setup for hardware:
ASUS P5N-E SLI Mother Board
Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 2.13 GHz CPU
ATI Radeon X1950 Pro
Corsair 2GB PC2-6400 C4 DDR2
Hitachi Deskstar T7K250 250GB SATA
Corsair CMPSU-520KX 520w PSU
ThermalTake Matrix VX VD3000BWA
Lite-On SHM-165H6S Dual Layer DVD±RW Writer

I have already purchased the RAM and PSU...Any other ideas before I go for the rest?

Regards,

Don

PS - I will be asking about overclocking in the near future, once I get everything up and running...

Sounds nice

actually quite similar to the system that I am typing on right now!
Check out newegg.com

I dont know the price difference in the E6300 and E6400 but there is a review out there calling the E6300 the best bang for the buck. espically when you can clock it too at least 2.9Ghz. Mine runs at 2.5Ghz easy

Looks like a very nice setup
I'd also go for the E6400 instead of the E6300 as there's a better chance of getting a good overclocking chip. The higher multiplier will also make your overclocking endeavors easier!

I thought all the mutipliers were locked at seven

My E6300 is locked at 7, and the E6400 is locked at 8, it goes up sequentially for all of the C2D series. The Extremes are multiplier unlocked but come at 11X (i think)

Core 2 Duo E4300 (1.8GHz), overclockable to 3.3GHz using stock Intel cooler

Maybe you could getting more using liquid cooling

Don Cavanaugh wrote: ASUS P5N-E SLI Mother Board
Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 2.13 GHz CPU
ATI Radeon X1950 Pro
Corsair 2GB PC2-6400 C4 DDR2
Hitachi Deskstar T7K250 250GB SATA
Corsair CMPSU-520KX 520w PSU
ThermalTake Matrix VX VD3000BWA
Lite-On SHM-165H6S Dual Layer DVD±RW Writer

I can recommend the motherboard since I use it myself. Even works with shipping bios and I can't really understand all the threads on the net that are bashing it.

I would probably choose the E4300 aswell, since the high multiplier. Or wait for the replacements for E6300 E6400 with bigger cache. If you can afford it the E6600 is a great processor and I promise you, if not for the sake of it, you wont have to OC.

If you're going for intel cpu and nvidia chipset why not go all the way and get a 7600GT GPU?

I myself like silence and would recommend the new 500GB samsung or the new 500GB WD. Both are top notch when it comes to quiet performance, and they are fast enough for me. Want to feel any difference go for a raptor - but then you will hear how fast it is.

Seeing that you already have a PSU I cant recommend the Antec P150, which is my chassie of choice at the moment. Luckily there is a black version without the PSU called Antec Solo. Brilliant construction and really user friendly. Cool and quiet running with right components.

Don't forget to put money on a good aftermarket cooler, I would recommend the Scythe Ninja if you can afford it.

Hope it helps! GL!

you can probably get a 500gb seagate for around 110-130 when it goes on sale every so often. i like seagate/maxtor since they have a 5 year warranty.