I'm building a rig, and I need a second opinion

[Mobius01010]

Hi. My name is Brandon, and I'm kind of new to the custom builder scene. I have some parts selected for a wicked gaming rig to replace my aging AMD based machine, and I wanted to know if I might be overlooking any compatibility issues with the RAM/mobo/graphics, etc. I am unsure about building this unless I am sure that it will work.

ASUS M2n32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce 590 SLI MCP ATX AMD Motherboard - Newegg.com

Corsair XMS2 2GB 240-Pin DDR2 800 SDRAM PC2 6400 Dual Channel - Newegg.com

XFX PVT71PUDP3 GeForce 7900GS 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 EXTREME Video Card -x2 (SLI connected) - newegg.com

ULTRA 550W X2-Connect Power Supply - Titanium - xoxide.com

Seagate Barracuda ES ST3400620NS 400GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - x2 (RAID Striped) - newegg.com

AMD Athlon 64 3800+ Lima 2.4GHz 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Processor - newegg.com

Plextor PX-716AL dvd dual layer - tigerdirect.com

Corsair DHX XMS2 Dominator Dual Channel 2048mb DDR2 PC6400 800Mhz - x2 (4gigs) - Newegg.com

Creative 70SB046A00003 7.1 Channels 24-bit 192KHz PCI Interface Sound Blaster X-Fi Platinum Fatal1ty Champion Series Sound Card - Newegg.com

CyberPower CP1500AVRLCD 1500VA 900W 8 Outlets - Newegg.com

Logitech MX Revolution Black 7 Buttons 2 x Wheels USB RF Wireless Laser Mouse - TigerDirect.com

Thermaltake A2413 7in Touch Screen LCD Display For Mozart TX - (mod the case for a 7" fit) - xoxide.com

Microsoft Windows XP Home With SP2B 1 Pack - OEM - Newegg.com

Logitech G15 Keyboard - Newegg.com

Nautilus 500 Corsair Watercooler system - Newegg.com

NZXT Nemesis Elite Gaming Case - Black - Xoxide.com

I just want to make sure that these parts are all compatible with one another, since (with accessories) it will cost me almost 4 grand to purchase this monster. Any help is appreciated.

[Luke122]

I noticed in that list is that you have 2 different sets of RAM...

Corsair XMS2 2GB 240-Pin DDR2 800 SDRAM PC2 6400 Dual Channel - Newegg.com

and

Corsair DHX XMS2 Dominator Dual Channel 2048mb DDR2 PC6400 800Mhz - x2 (4gigs) - Newegg.com

Stick with the Dominator setup... pricier, but coooooool.

Power supply.. 550w may not be enough to run 2 7900's in SLI. Go with at least a 700w psu.

XP Home is a no-no. If you are going to stay with XP, go for XP Pro.. much more stable, and definitely a better OS to work with.

Adding an LCD will require another VGA output to feed it.. maybe add a cheapo pci card just to feed that LCD.

Xfi 7.1 is cool, but I find the fatality stuff to be a bit pricey.. you could probably get away with a cheaper soundcard.

[Exley]

XFX PVT71PUDP3 GeForce 7900GS 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 EXTREME Video Card -x2 (SLI connected) - newegg.com


insted of spending that much money on 2 older cards i would recomend putting that money toward a single 8800GTS which is about the same price. from what i hear this card will be just as fast if not faster than both 7900s and it is Dx10 complient for the future.


Microsoft Windows XP Home With SP2B 1 Pack - OEM - Newegg.com

if your intrested you can defantly run vista.
but if your gonna stay with XP i agree with luke go with Pro or Media Center (Pritty much Xp pro) Home is a pain sometimes

Everything looks compatable but im not up on my AMD chipsets so i would wait for some more input

[Mobius01010]

Ok, so go with the newer video, and a cheap pci card to power the *sweet* 7" lcd, and go with a bigger psu. (BTW the RAM is the same, I just accidentally listed it twice from newegg and tigerdirect while pricechecking.) How about a 1000w PSU for another 8800GTS? I also want to make sure I have power room for future upgrades. And the high end sound is for my friends. I know a lot of band members, and they love tooling around on fruityloops, and I even have a Logitech speaker setup for studio quality @ 289.99.

[Mobius01010]

Oh and I tried Vista on a Dell rent to own (my old system crapped out and I'm lost there, too), and it was prettier, and I LOVE the lack of filesharing and ReadyBoost, but I couldn'y play any of my DOS games. (I know, 4000 on a new pc for DOS? What can I say? Joust rocks!) I do have quite a few new games, though. Is there a Vista plugin or summin to allow fullscreen DOS?

[xRyokenx]

While Vista is prettier, I'll have to state why not to get it, others may add if they so wish:

It is very buggy at the moment, and doesn't play all the games that are out, I'd go with XP just for that reason. We have a couple Vista machines, I think it's alright, but XP is pretty much a fine tuned car, Vista is like a used car that needs some work, but can get real nice. Btw, in that analogy, XP started as a used car too, not just Vista, hope you get what I'm trying to say, lol.

Prolly need more added to that... help yourselves guys, best to go with more than one opinion, lol.

[Spawn-Inc]

not sure but isn't the amd 3800 a bit old? (i don't keep with with amd so i'm not sure) i would go with a AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ Windsor 3.0GHz Socket AM2 Processor Model ADX6000CZBOX - Retail if i was going for amd.

[Bucko]

I wouldn't even go with an AMD, I'd get a Core 2 Duo my self. Oh wait, I did...

[Spawn-Inc]

I wouldn't even go with an AMD, I'd get a Core 2 Duo my self. Oh wait, I did...

i meant if i err HAD to go with amd... haha and i am too (going with C2D)

[rakuza]

i hope you havent bought that because 1. the amd 6000+ sucks with memory so A. get a 5800+ or B. go core duo

next problem is water cooling i dont see the need any where and if your on a budget its a big money waster, unless you feel the need to pose.also you seem new to the work of computers so avoid water cooling if its a diy build

graphics card go with a 7950gt ($350nzd super cheap in american money)
or go with a 8800 card matching your budget

the mx mice ive heard arnt designed so much for gaming as a g5 or g7(wireless ver of g5)

memory us also pricey (the high quality stuff is still good at overclocking)but it looks good for posing... i just buy cheap heatsinky things to make my memory look better no other reason

[.Maleficus.]

Like people have said, unless you're a hardcore AMD fanboy and have to have AMD, Core 2 Duo is the way to go for gaming. You could get a better C2D setup for cheaper than the setup you currently have. I'm really loving the setup in my sig if you're interested in a C2D setup.