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I refer to your experiences - what should I know about and/or be aware of when building my first computer? I'm pretty technical, but I am no engineer by any means. I work for CDW, I have always had a passion for computers, and got my CCNA 8 years ago and never did anything with it.
Here are my thoughts on what to do - please give any input or opinions!!
Budget - I'd like to keep it under 1100 for the tower and dual monitors.
Windows? Linux? I would like to game on it from time to time, but I hear about how much Windows sucks on your RAM. I want this computer to last for a long time, so a motherboard that allows me to expand down the road is important. I'm not paying for anything over a quad core processor since 5 years from now it'll still not be used to it's full potential. AMD/Intel? I am never opposed to AMD.
Hard drive, SSD for booting and 7200 for storage?
What type of cooling? Power supply should be greater than what? Nvidia/ATI?
Each question you asked is highly subjective, and you'll get more opinions than there are parts available to build your computer. As you will be using it do what you want, not what others think you should do. My 2 cents is below.
Budget is doable.
Any gaming rig needs to be Windows 7, but you can always dual boot with Linux. And no Windows 7 is not a memory hog, you heard incorrectly. I prefer Intel, and 8GB RAM will serve you well for quite a while.
As far as SSD, if you can afford one it's probably the best thing you can do for performance.
Unless you're going to be overclocking, standard fan cooling works fine, and I prefer Nvidia for graphics.
The Antec 900 is a nice case, with large, quiet fans.
I refer to your experiences - what should I know about and/or be aware of when building my first computer? I'm pretty technical, but I am no engineer by any means. I work for CDW, I have always had a passion for computers, and got my CCNA 8 years ago and never did anything with it.
Here are my thoughts on what to do - please give any input or opinions!!
Budget - I'd like to keep it under 1100 for the tower and dual monitors.
Windows? Linux? I would like to game on it from time to time, but I hear about how much Windows sucks on your RAM. I want this computer to last for a long time, so a motherboard that allows me to expand down the road is important. I'm not paying for anything over a quad core processor since 5 years from now it'll still not be used to it's full potential. AMD/Intel? I am never opposed to AMD.
Hard drive, SSD for booting and 7200 for storage?
What type of cooling? Power supply should be greater than what? Nvidia/ATI?
What type of Chassis?
I think you'll have a lot of options with that budget, especially if you stick with monitors that are 24" or smaller, and a smaller SSD. If you are looking forward to future upgrades, I would get a case that's bigger than you need, and a power supply that has extra wattage for a 2nd graphics card and other goodies down the road.
I would like to game on it from time to time, but I hear about how much Windows sucks on your RAM. I want this computer to last for a long time, so a motherboard that allows me to expand down the road is important. I'm not paying for anything over a quad core processor since 5 years from now it'll still not be used to it's full potential. AMD/Intel? I am never opposed to AMD.
Hard drive, SSD for booting and 7200 for storage?
What type of cooling? Power supply should be greater than what? Nvidia/ATI?
What type of Chassis?
Windows 7 uses memory pretty efficiently but even if it didn't, memory is cheap. The idea of getting a motherboard to last a long time is really not practical. Yes, get a full ATX board with expansion slots, especially PCI Express slots. And get some x4 or x8 slot if you can. But by the time you're ready for an overhaul, probably 5 years from now, any CPU or RAM will not work with your current board. Maybe the video card will still work but if you're gaming, you won't want your current card 5 years from now.
I disagree that faster CPUs with more cores are a waste. I have an i7-2600 with hyperthreading and a little CPU monitor gadget that displays it as 8 cores. When I do something CPU intensive, like video rendering, they all get pegged. If I had 8 or 16 real cores, I'd be even happier.
An SSD is great for a boot+apps disk. The 120/128GB SSDs are getting too cheap to ignore. Get a 7200 rpm drive for storing data.
Cases and power supplies are personal preference but I like Antec. I'm currently using a 6 year old Antec case that's on its second motherboard. When I did my last upgrade, I upgraded the power supply and got one with modular cables which really keeps the cable clutter down. Spend more than you think you should on the case and power supply. A good case will last you a long time and not vibrate/resonate. A good power supply will not only give you the power to expand, but it'll contribute to an overall more stable system. Too many people use cheap power supplies, then blame Windows for their instability.
I would stay away from the SSD for now. You don't NEED it for what you want to do and the money that you would spend on it can be added to your video card fund.
Power Supply should be a 650W.
I would choose a power supply from Seasonic, Corsair, or Antec. Dual fans are not an advantage. Modular cabling is nice, but for me not worth the cost.
A good case is important. A good case is designed for efficient cooling. More fans is not a way to choose a case. Many PC builders run a bunch of big fans and think their system is well designed. Your PC doesn't have to sound like a mainframe to cool your system well. A good case also has easily washable filters for the air intake areas. This minimizes dust buildup. The Antec 300 is a good affordable example. Match intake air flow to exhaust airflow. Cool air in, hot air out. There is no benefit to just stirring around hot air inside a case.
I think blingy (lights, transparent panels, etc.) cases are stupid.
Although the coolers supplied with cpus today are more than adequate, the aftermarket heat pipe units such as Xigmatek or Scythe are quieter and cool even better.
I have an antec 300 and love it love it love it. Front fans have a dust screen thing that I can pop off and clean real quick, air flow is nice and it's low-profile (not meaning in size, but in that it's just a clean, black case with no cold cathodes or 24" spinners or something )
LOL, no no I prefer mine made out of old caddy bumpers
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