Building a new computer- need some advice

atheism_rule · **Posted:** May 4th, 2007, 8:03 pm

The time has finally come for me to retire my current computer, a relic from the 20th century. I've decided to build another computer out of parts, and i've drawn up a basic list. I need advide on any improvements that can be made and any other things i'll need to assemble the computer.

Motherboard- Intel D946GZIS

Processor- Either Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 or Pentium D 925

Case- Antec Solo Quiet Black Case (ATX)

Power supply- Athenatech PS-450W 450 Watt ATX Power Supply

Hard Drive- Seagate 320GB 7200rpm SATA

DVD Drive- NEC 18X Dual Layer, DVD+-RW Drive

Memory- 2GB 667MHz DDR2 Non-ECC CL5 DIMM

The motherboard seems to have integrated audio and video, and I don't plan on running Vista or any high-end games.

Adbot · **Posted:** May 4th, 2007, 8:03 pm

Evelyn · **Posted:** May 4th, 2007, 9:22 pm

Integrated audio is OK, but don't rely on integreated video (Ugh, the days before I got my video card... so many random crashes...).

You should get a video card. It doesn't have to be a good one.

MattVortex · **Posted:** May 5th, 2007, 12:59 am

Definetely get the Core 2 Duo over that Pentium.

Even though you wont be running any hi-end graphics, I would recommend getting a graphics card anyway. The Intel GMA 3000, which is what is on your motherboard, still runs some graphics processes through the CPU, which could be a bad idea.

If you want a relatviely cheap, but still relatively good graphics card, I would recommend something like the nVidia 7300 GS.

Other than that, though, those options look pretty good.

Gzpro · **Posted:** May 8th, 2007, 6:37 am

Matthew wrote:

Definetely get the Core 2 Duo over that Pentium.

Even though you wont be running any hi-end graphics, I would recommend getting a graphics card anyway. The Intel GMA 3000, which is what is on your motherboard, still runs some graphics processes through the CPU, which could be a bad idea.

If you want a relatviely cheap, but still relatively good graphics card, I would recommend something like the nVidia 7300 GS.

Other than that, though, those options look pretty good.

Yeah the Core 2 Duo is good

atheism_rule · **Posted:** May 8th, 2007, 1:47 pm

Is the total processor power for a dual-core exactly double that of a single core?

MattVortex · **Posted:** May 8th, 2007, 2:11 pm

atheism_rule wrote:

Is the total processor power for a dual-core exactly double that of a single core?

No. It doesnt work like that.

The Core 2 architechture is far superior to the older P4 architectures, and it is always better to have a dual-core processor, I think. I would certainly like one, but I'm stuck with my little single-core Sempron 3100+.

Adbot · **Posted:** May 8th, 2007, 2:11 pm

Ranging God · **Posted:** May 8th, 2007, 6:41 pm

Here is some adivce.

Do not get Win Vista 64 bit just caz it is cheaper... Make sure you get 32 bit.. lol

I made this mistake.

Sebastian · **Posted:** May 9th, 2007, 9:34 am

Motherboard... Pretty nice.
CPU... Good but if you wanna save power for overclocking or future modifications you should choose the 6320.
And definately run the Core 2 Duo and not Pentium D.
Case and PSU are good.
Memory and DVD-Burner aswell.
Though, you should buy a low-end videocard and maybe evwn a low-end soundcard (if you're gonna play music) since they take about 3% from the CPU.

Though, gonna be a good computer

atheism_rule · **Posted:** May 9th, 2007, 1:46 pm

ahh... many thanks. I'll be putting it together this weekend then.

Sebastian · **Posted:** May 10th, 2007, 7:20 am

Remember to always use any device that grounds you

I don't think you wanna discharge your new goodies

Ranging God · **Posted:** May 10th, 2007, 7:57 am

red_rooste5 wrote:

Remember to always use any device that grounds you

I don't think you wanna discharge your new goodies

Yeah that is imporatint. But If you dont have a writst strap thing, just touch the metal part of your computer, and keep all the electronics on the anti-static sheets thay give you

atheism_rule · **Posted:** May 13th, 2007, 7:47 am

Question- Do i need to replace the thermal compound (stuff between the heatsink and CPU) if i just took off the heatsink for a second before i even ran the CPU?

Ranging God · **Posted:** May 13th, 2007, 9:28 am

atheism_rule wrote:

Question- Do i need to replace the thermal compound (stuff between the heatsink and CPU) if i just took off the heatsink for a second before i even ran the CPU?

Nope, unless it got wiped off somehow.