Hi,

About to go for my 1st build. Could you give it a look over and tell me what you think? (not even sure if all components are compatible :S). I could also use some advice on cooling (air).

Antec P182 PC Tower
ASUS Striker II Extreme - LGA775 Socket for Intel
Intel Quad Core QX9650 - 3 GHz, L2 Cache 12 MB
Corsair XMS3 DHX 4 GB (2 x 2 GB) DDR3-SDRAM
Antec TruePower Quattro 1000-EC 1000W PSU
2x MSI GeForce 9600GT - 512 MB OC
WESTERN DIGITAL Raptor - 150 Gb - 10000 RPM - 16 Mb
WD Caviar - 500Gb-
Creative 7.1 PCI Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer

Thanks in advance.

I plan to install Vista Ultimate 64 bit btw. Will I have compatibility issues?

You should be ok on compatibility, but...

To put it bluntly, the QX9650 is a waste of money. One can buy a Q6600 and EASILY overclock to the same levels or much higher. I have heard of skilled overclockers hitting 3.6 easily on air (use a Tuniq Tower or similar), and you will find endless help in the forums here.

The Raptor drive also could be changed to a Seagate 7200.11... better value: cheaper, more space.

For 2 9600 GTs you will not need a 1 kW PSU. Go for a Corsair 620HX.

You might also do well to grab a 8800 GTS 512 rather than the 9600s. Better upgradeablity. If you get a Q6600 instead of the QX, you will be able to grab two of these for SLI for less than your original budget.

^^^ agreed with Deadboots on CPU and GPU(s).

The Q6600 hits 3.6ghz VERY easily. Im at 3.4ghz at the moment but have gone as high as 3.8 before i got worried about my temps. The bang/buck ratio on the Q6600 is almost unmatched. If money is no object (which by your video card i would say it is) then disregard, but I couldnt be happier with my Q6600, I even lapped it and my Arctic Freezer 7 a couple days ago to push it higher than 3.8 when the Arctic Silver 5 burned in.

This could be so much cheaper with a Q6600 and DDR2...

I don't know if that PSU fits in the P182. It's way overkill anyway.

Thanks for the advice.

It was the sweet 12 meg L2 that got me looking at the QX9650 as much as the clock speeds but I guess I could always upgrade the CPU down the line if needs be.....?

I've found a 640 meg 8800gt going for a tenner more than the 512. Think I might put a pair of those in sli.....

With the PSU, I wanted to get an antec coz I've been told that with my cases unusual layout, some cables from the PSU wont reach. Anyone had experience with this? Also want to make sure I have the power for any future upgrades (extra HDs new GPUs etc). Could I power any 2 cards in sli plus extra drives with a 620W?

With the P182, a Corsair 620HX would be perfect. It's going to make your cable management much easier. It's enough for two 8800GTS 512MB cards.

Avoid the 8800GTS 640MB cards, they are slower than the 8800GTS 512MB.

If you want extra upgrade room get a full-tower case and a Silencer 750W PSU. Future video cards, especially two of them, might not fit in the P182. Right now you can put two 8800GTX cards in a P182 but you lose a drive cage, and you're limited to 4 hard disks. The cooling would also not be great. Future cards might be even bigger and hotter than the 8800GTX.

Agreed, the 640mb's are quite a bit slower than the 512's.

I honestly think the 620HX will do you just fine; it is an excellent, reputable PSU.

I would also recommend the Cooler Master Stacker series for a larger case, should you decide to go with a full tower.

A word of warning about th Q6600.... yes it is very good at overclocking, but it is MUCH less efficient than the 45nm chips. This basically means you are going to make a lot more heat (also it is slower at a given clock speed). Although this isn't too much of a problem with a good fan/heatsink, it means you will most likely have to run it faster. This means noise can be more of a problem. Just something to think about.

No you won't be able to run "any" two cards plus with a 620... One of the key points of a PSU is that you want to aim for your max usage to be about 75% of the PSU's max rating. (eg. with a 620 you probably wouldn't want to use more than 455watts regularly) The reason is that your PSU will get stressed and die faster because PSUs aren't designed to run at 100% all the time. With the 620 I wouldn't feel comfortable going with more than a pair of 3850s or 9600s. I'd go for an 800-850 watt psu if you want to be able to run 2 of anything with exceptions of grossly inefficient GPUs like the 2900xt.

Back to hard drives as I've noticed only one guy had an opinion there. If money is no object and you want the best, then get the new 300GB velociraptor if/when its available. Short of that I would recommend Western Digital's 640GB drive, it a new drive with new platter density and showed promise in the one review I saw of it. Their 750GB kicks butt unless you accidentally get the green model.

For CPU, I'd recommend the Q9450. It has the bigger cache and smaller manufacturing process. AND its the only new model (non-QX model anyway) that has an even multiplier. Those odd multipliers are always nothing but trouble, especially when over-clocking. For a cooler I'd recommend the OCZ Vendetta, very efficient cooler, not too heavy so you don't have to worry about stress on your MB... but be carefull cuz the fins are sharp (of course most are these days anyways)

Good luck on your build!

Thanks.

After giving it some though I've decided to go for a full size tower to maximise upgradeability. Thing is, I really liked the understated, simple design and build quality of the P182. I cant seem to find a larger equivalent of it.

I had a look at the cooler master stacker cases, I'm sure they're quality but I'm not so fond of the look of them (plus they all seem to come with PSU's).

Any suggestions...?

Try looking at some of the Lian-Li cases. They are a bit pricier, but doesn't seem to be a major problem for you and they are all aluminum which is much nicer than steel. Also, they are built as well or better than any other cases. Their silent lineup is particularly good looking IMO. In particular, try looking at the PC-A71. I think that's the best looking of their full towers.

Yeah, Lian-Li makes the best stuff. Their PC-V2000 model is nice too.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811112061

Then there's the Silverstone TJ-09, of course. I got one and I'm very happy with it, even though it cost more than my CPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 09&x=0&y=0

The Lian Li cases look amazing. They also seem very hard to get hold of here in Ireland (Silverstone too). Any Irish or UK users known where I can find them?