Computer Finalised - Your Opinions

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buildrebuild

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OS - XP OEM Home Edition (SP 2) - £59.99
CPU - Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 2.66GHZ - £115.72
Mobo - Gigabyte GA P31-DS3L, iP31 Express, S 775 - £46.94
Arctic Cooling AC-FRZ-7P Freezer 7 Pro - £15.91
RAM - Corsair 2GB Kit (2x1GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 XMS2 - £37.47
CASE - Antec Midi Case NSK4480B 380W Black - £47.96
HARD DRIVE - 160 Gb Western Digital WD1600YS Caviar RE, SATA300 £39.12
GRAPHICS CARD - Radeon X1650Pro 512MB - £40.66
CD/DVD Drive - LG GSA-H55NBAL 20x DVDRW - £16.37


TOTAL approx £423

Monitor will be a DELL or SAMSUNG 22" £200-£300

The computer will be running multiple apps(up to 6), but no games. Would you know if any of the above components have any compatibility issues.

A similar spec computer from DELL is £649.01 and this includes the monitor, so I'm torn between the easy option of buying a "reliable, tested" free shipping PC from DELL and doing no work or building my own which may have some faults and costing a bit more.

Any advice?
 
If you using it to just run multiple apps and no games i would look at this processor
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600

It is 200mhz slower but it does have 4 cores. But can easily be overclocked to 2.6ghz+. When using a app that will make use of 4 cores it be alot faster then the E6750. Overtime when you think its not fast enough just push it to 3ghz. You should be able to get this on air cooling.
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/131823
 
What monitor are you going for buildrebuild? I'm thinking of getting a lcd panel for around that price range. Want one specifically for photoshop work. Thinking of a samsung 215TW myself.
 
Thanks for the advice. Thing is, what applications use quad core. I'll be using adobe products, but they don't support it. This probably wouldn't have effective use of this chip.

Regarding the monitor, I was going to plimp for a Dell E228WFP 22-inch £292.58 or a Samsung SyncMaster 226BW. A guy at work uses the Dell which has an amazing screen and good colours. The Samsung, I have read has very bright unnatural colours, so maybe not good for photoshop. Just read about a bit is my best recommendation.

Best,
C
 
Adobe products must support quad. Am sure Adobe premiere would to encode video. Even if it doesn't its life would last longer then the E6750 and its the same price. All you have to do is overclock it a tiny bit to get it to the same speed per core as the E6750 and you would have 4 of them :D
 
"Even if it doesn't its life would last longer then the E6750 and its the same price"

Can you get a quad core for £116? Definitely get one if that's the case.
The cheapest I've seen is this from Scan.co.uk
Intel Core 2 Quad-Core Q6600 G0 SLACR, 95W, S775, 2.40 GHz, 1066MHz FSB, 8MB Cache - £166.84

I don't want to overclock etc because I don't know much about that and don't want to shorten the life of any components. I'm also on a very tight budget.

I won't be using Adobe Premier. The most intensive of applications I might dabble with would be After Effects. I mostly use Web Design Tools like Dreamweaver, Photoshop, etc.

Thanks again.
 
If your not overclocking why would you need the Freezer Pro? The HSF that comes with the Intel chip is fine if your not overclocking and even if you are it would keep the thing cooled up to a certain point.
 
Thanks for the tip Captain Boom. That will shave some pennies off!

Read this in a review...

"BUY A NEW COOLING FAN. The one that came with the boxed CPU DOES NOT FIT MANY MOTHERBOARDS properly. Buy a fan that you can screw into a backing under motherboard. That way you can GENTLY control the force without bending the motherboard out of shape."

PS. How did the Gigabyte P35C-DS3R work out for you. Is your computer quiet?
 
I had no problems attaching the Intel HSF to my board. Did the review mention what boards were affected?

My P35C-DS3R is great, lots of room on it to install a bigger HSF if I want in the future. Had no problems fitting it into my case either. I would definately recommend it :)

My pc isnt the quietest but thats because I have 14" and 12" fans sucking air through the front and out the back. It would be if I didnt have those though.
 
You shouldnt have problems keeping it cool, it looks like a good case. Plus it has a 12cm fan at the back which is speed controlled which will keep it cool.

Have a shop around for the best price though, at oyyy.co.uk its £44.14 with £4.99 delivery. How much is delivery at dabs?

http://www.oyyy.co.uk/product.php?xProd=39820

EDIT - There is a 8cm front vent on that case so you could install a fan if you wanted to. Shouldnt think you would need to though.
 
Not too sure yet. that's one of the problems with the build...POSTAGE.

I really am looking hard at getting everything from the one place to keep costs down. Bummer.
 
Not too sure yet. that's one of the problems with the build...POSTAGE.

I really am looking hard at getting everything from the one place to keep costs down. Bummer.

I usually find ebuyer the cheapest plus get free delivery.
 
Yeah ebuyer are good, went with them for my build and got everything except the hd from them. Free delivery normally takes around 5 days though so be prepared to wait.
 
If your not overclocking why would you need the Freezer Pro? The HSF that comes with the Intel chip is fine if your not overclocking and even if you are it would keep the thing cooled up to a certain point.

Because the reference Intel cooler sounds like an aircraft taking off, and the Artic Cooler is quieter and keep the CPU cooler, thus increasing the lifespan of the CPU.

Plus, the reference Intel heatsink, bent the hell out of my Gigabyte motherboard!

And don't forget forum members get fre delivery from Scan.
 
Thanks for that mjn. Free delivery.

Now I have two conflicting stories to the Intel HSF!!! Aaaaggghhh!!!!

How did you bend your board? I thought I could skimp on the Freezer Pro for a while and install later.
 
How did you bend your board? I thought I could skimp on the Freezer Pro for a while and install later.

The mounting frame was so tight, that when i pushed the 4th pin in, when it clicked in place, the board had bent so much, i thought it was going to snap.

I planned to use the Artic cooler from day 1, but that invloved cutting a small piece out of case, so it would fit. Thought i would use the Intel cooler until i had the time to cut the case, but after the fitting, and the bending board, i decided against even using the intel cooler for a short while.

The Artic was a much better fit, and a hell of lot more quieter.
 
Must say I had no problems fitting the Intel HSF to my gigabyte board. Im not arguing against the Freezer Pro as it has had very good reviews and I will probably be getting one once I start overclocking. Its just I didnt think it was an essential bit of kit for a new build unless you were planning to overclock. But if you want the pc to be as quiet as possible (not really a concern for me) then go for it as it will reduce noise compared to the stock Intel cooler. Plus, afterall, it is only 15 odd quid! Im sure it wouldnt be hard to fit that into your budget.

mjn - did you try and get any compensation from Intel or a replacement from Gigabyte? I would have done that as running a bent board cant be good.
 
I really don't get how Gigabyte, and/or Intel would have made a major botch of sizing their products wrongly. I'll put this down to an being an edge case...a dodgy board or the HSF pins being bent.

I would like to keep the noise to a minimum so the Freezer Pro 7 looks to be good.
 
Don't know if I am missing something but you haven't specified a PSU yet?

Something like a Seasonic or Corsair would be good choices around 500W or more.
 
The PSU comes with the case 380W, which should do me for some time, then I will be purchasing a Corsair HX model with more Watts.

I have updated my components a bit and here is what I have now.

CPU - Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 2.66GHZ
Gigabyte GA P31-DS3L, iP31 Express, S 775
Firewire - Scan 4 Port Firewire 1394A PCI Card(No firewire on Mobo)
Arctic Cooling AC-FRZ-7P Freezer 7 Pro
RAM - Corsair 2GB Kit (2x1GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 XMS2Inc VAT
CASE - Antec Midi Case NSK4480B 380W Black
HARD DRIVE - 160 Gb Western Digital WD1600YS Caviar RE, SATA300
GRAPHICS CARD - Radeon X1650Pro 512MB
CD/DVD Drive - LG GSA-H55NBAL 20x DVDRW

MONITOR - Dell E228WFP 22-inch £298.45
- 22" Samsung SM-226BW V2 Black £207.85

TOTAL FOR COMPUTER £370
MONITOR ?????

Best,
C
 
mjn - did you try and get any compensation from Intel or a replacement from Gigabyte? I would have done that as running a bent board cant be good.

No, because i uninstalled the intel cooler straight after fitting it.
 
The PSU comes with the case 380W, which should do me for some time

No no, never use the cheap and nasty PSU's that come in cases. They're the cheapest and nastiest PSU you'll ever see.

Spend the money on a decent PSU from the start, it'll save you a load of hassle later on. Cheap PSU's can cause stability problems, due to the fact that their voltage ratings can drop from the official standard of, 3.3v, 5v and 12v.......and if the PSU blows, it often takes the motherboard with it.
 

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