Need Advice Picking Parts for New Comp

**fatsheep** · July 01, 2007, 02:48 PM

I've built computers before but have lately been quite busy and haven't kept as up to date with hardware as I should have so I am asking for some advice on picking out parts for a computer I'm building for my Dad. This would not be a gaming PC and I would not be overclocking it. So expensive video cards, cooling systems, and low latency RAM aren't really as appropriate. What I need to build is a computer with plenty of hard drive space and RAM as well as a sturdy dual core processor that will power through statistical calculations and multitasking. This computer would be running statistical packages such as R and SAS which do processor intensive calculations.

I'm debating on whether to go with the Intel Core 2 Duo E6420 or the AMD 64 X2 5600+. I'm starting to lean toward the Core Duo but I'd like some advice.

The motherboard will depend on the processor selection obviously. But if I went with the Intel how about something like this:
MSI P6N SLI Platinum LGA
or this:
GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3R

For memory, we need a good amount but it doesn't have to be low latency or overclockable. I've selected the G.SKILL 2GB DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit

Case: Cooler Master Centurion. I own a similar coolermaster centurion and am very pleased with it.

Power Supply: FSP Group (Fortron Source) Blue Storm II 500 ATX. I'm not so sure about this choice. I'd be open to suggestions.

Hard Drive: Samsung Spinpoint 500 Gb. I like the looks of this bad boy but it's SATA which means I need a controller or is that included on the motherboard now? What do I need to know about SATA? I've used IDE drives in the past and don't have any experience with SATA.

Optical Drive:
I really have no idea, maybe someone could help me out here. I want something that can read and write both CDs and DVDs. Speed is not really that important (although faster is always better) but it needs to be reliable. Here's a list of DVD burners on newegg:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...d&Order=RATING

Monitor:
Same as the optical drive: I have no idea. There are so many models and I haven't had the time to keep up with them. I'm open to ideas:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...=&MaxPrice=300

Floppy Drive:
Samsung Floppy Drive. For backwards compatibility.

Speakers:
Logitech X-230 32 watt 2.1 Speakers. I have these speakers and I like them but I'm open to recommendations.

Network Card and Sound Card:
Depends on the motherboard. Sound quality isn't really a big deal so onboard will probably be OK. Onboard will probably be OK for the network card too unless there's a significant performance improvement in using a seperate network card.

**Doono** · July 01, 2007, 04:17 PM

Definitly go with the intel cpu, amd have lost the crown when the core 2 duo's came out.

Unless you need an SLI mobo get the gigabyte mobo.

RAM is fine

Power supply is made by a good quality manufacturer and has duel 18amp 12v's so it has enough juice.

Sata will be supported by pretty much any new mobo you dont need any sort of adapter.

Those are the main points except for one thing you have no graphics card, i realise this is not a gaming rig but i would still purchase a graphics card even if it will only be used for watching DVD's. Intergrated graphics will bottleneck the crap out of that system which is very good except for the lack of GPU.

Just get soemthign like a 7600GT/x1950pro or similer.

**fatsheep** · July 01, 2007, 08:51 PM

Originally Posted by Doono

Definitly go with the intel cpu, amd have lost the crown when the core 2 duo's came out.

Unless you need an SLI mobo get the gigabyte mobo.

RAM is fine

Power supply is made by a good quality manufacturer and has duel 18amp 12v's so it has enough juice.

Sata will be supported by pretty much any new mobo you dont need any sort of adapter.

Those are the main points except for one thing you have no graphics card, i realise this is not a gaming rig but i would still purchase a graphics card even if it will only be used for watching DVD's. Intergrated graphics will bottleneck the crap out of that system which is very good except for the lack of GPU.

Just get soemthign like a 7600GT/x1950pro or similer.

Ooops, I forgot to post the video card. I was going to go for the 7300 GT but the 7600 GT is only a bit more expensive and it has 12 pixel pipelines compared to the 7300's 8. I has faster clocks as well... More bang per buck

I don't need an SLI mobo so I I'll go with the Gigabyte mobo.

**Erik** · July 02, 2007, 04:42 AM

Have you considered a quad core CPU?
Core 2 Quad Q6600 is quite affordable, and might speed up your dads work a lot.

Originally Posted by fatsheep

For memory, we need a good amount but it doesn't have to be low latency or overclockable. I've selected the G.SKILL 2GB DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kitp

Since you aren't planning to overclock, you don't really need DDR2-800, DDR2-533 in dual channel mode is fast enough for a C2D E6420 at stock speeds, anything beyond that will be bottlenecked by the FSB.

Using DDR2-666 or DDR2-800 will make future CPU upgrades easier though.

What do I need to know about SATA? I've used IDE drives in the past and don't have any experience with SATA.

All modern motherboards come with on-board SATA controllers.
You don't have to mess with jumpers, just connect to the power supply with one of the special SATA power connectors (all new power supplies have them) and connect to the motherboard with a SATA data cable (should come with your motherboard).
SATA is newer and superior to IDE, so I would definitely recommend buying SATA drives over IDE drives.

The only problem that might occur with using a SATA harddrive is with the windows installation not recognizing the SATA controller.
I think Vista recognized most SATA controllers out of the box, but XP doesn't.
If the SATA controller isn't recognized then you'll need to make a special floppy disk containing the SATA driver (see the motherboard manual for that) before you can install windows.
It's not hard to do, but you'll need a second PC with a floppy drive.
Once windows is installed you won't have any problems with using SATA.

Network Card and Sound Card:
Depends on the motherboard. Sound quality isn't really a big deal so onboard will probably be OK. Onboard will probably be OK for the network card too unless there's a significant performance improvement in using a seperate network card.

The onboard network controller should be just fine, I don't think there is any performance difference at all.
Onboard sound is just fine too.

**boboftl** · July 02, 2007, 01:26 PM

if you do decide to get quadcore wait for the price drop later this month. Also instead of a 7 series card you can always get one of the cheaper 8 series card for watching movies if you ever want to get a hd or blueray drive for your dad's computer.

**Quex** · July 02, 2007, 07:18 PM

I can recommend the HP f1905 for the monitor. Really customizable, which is a lot more helpful than it sounds.

And yeah, go for the 7600GT. If not, and you want to future proff a little more, go for the 8600GTS.

**fatsheep** · July 04, 2007, 07:04 PM

I couldn't find the HP f1905 on newegg but I did find another monitor that looks nice. The quad core processor I found was about $600 which is far out of my price range. Thanks for all the help, here's the updated parts list:

Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E6420

Motherboard:
GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3R

Memory: G.SKILL 2GB DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit

Video Card:
EVGA 7600 GT

Case: Cooler Master Centurion.

Power Supply: FSP Group (Fortron Source) Blue Storm II 500 ATX. Still open to suggestions but it looks like a solid buy.

Hard Drive: Samsung Spinpoint 500 Gb.

Optical Drive:
I still have no idea, maybe someone could help me out here. I want something that can read and write both CDs and DVDs. Speed is not really that important (although faster is always better) but it needs to be reliable. Here's a list of DVD burners on newegg:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...d&Order=RATING

Monitor: Acer 22" LCD Widescreen

Floppy Drive:
Samsung Floppy Drive.

Speakers:
Logitech X-230 32 watt 2.1 Speakers.

Network Card and Sound Card:
Looks like I won't bother with these.

**mrmouth** · July 04, 2007, 11:18 PM

Originally Posted by fatsheep

Power Supply: FSP Group (Fortron Source) Blue Storm II 500 ATX. Still open to suggestions but it looks like a solid buy.

Thats a quality PSU from a quality manufacturer.

Take a look at this link. It goes over the basics and has a nice breakdown of the major PSU's on the market.
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=458204

I'm a big fan of spending as much as you can on your power supply, or rather factoring that in as a major, important component. Although the Fortron you picked out is a very nice "bang for your buck" PSU and will suit your needs just fine.

The only reason not to grab it is the 2 year warranty, but given the price and Frotron's reputation, its a nice buy.

**fatsheep** · July 07, 2007, 10:36 AM

Ok here's a final update. I'm pretty sure on all the purchases except for the motherboard and possibly the case although I'm pretty pleased with that choice. It looks like a good motherboard but there are so many very similar ones, I'm not sure which one would be best:

Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E6420

Motherboard:
GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3R

Memory: G.SKILL 2GB DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit

Video Card:
EVGA 7600 GT

Case: Cooler Master Centurion.

Power Supply: FSP Group (Fortron Source) Blue Storm II 500 ATX.

Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 500 Gb. Looks like with the promo code I could get it for $100. It's still showing up as $110+ in the shopping cart but I'll check the invoice before I order.

Optical Drive:
Lite-on Black DVD Burner

Monitor: Acer 22" LCD Widescreen

Floppy Drive:
Sony Floppy Drive. The samsung floppy disk when out of stock.

Speakers:
Logitech X-230 32 watt 2.1 Speakers.

Mouse and Keybpard
Logitech Mouse and Keyboard

Any other suggestions? Particularly on the motherboard?

**fatsheep** · July 07, 2007, 08:07 PM

Just ordered. Thanks for the advice everyone.

**spartan_phalanx** · July 08, 2007, 02:42 AM

Look's like it should be a good overclocker. I think there have been some problems with compatible ram with that motherboard but it's one of the most popular motherboard. Overall I think you got decent rig there.

**fatsheep** · July 10, 2007, 07:10 PM

Originally Posted by spartan_phalanx

Look's like it should be a good overclocker. I think there have been some problems with compatible ram with that motherboard but it's one of the most popular motherboard. Overall I think you got decent rig there.

Yea I'm gambling a bit on the RAM - Motherboard compatibility. I probably should have just chosen a different motherboard but Gigabyte had the best deals for me so I'm going to see what happens.