Comments/Crits New Machine

[X-FacToR]

Ok so finnally got my money saved up for my new machine, here it is, I just ordered it all so no going back (crosses fingers), but I would like to hear your opinions on what my final decisions were, good / bad / ugly?
Of course I ordered through newegg.


Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

Western Digital Caviar RE2 WD5000YS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 Conroe 2.66GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6700 - Retail

ASUS P5B Deluxe LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

EVGA 640-P2-N821-AR GeForce 8800GTS 640MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card - Retail

Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer 7.1 Channels PCI Interface Sound Card - Retail

COOLER MASTER eXtreme Power RP-550-PCAR ATX from factor 12V V2.01 550W Power Supply - Retail

CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X2048-6400C4 - Retail

Razer Copperhead Chaos Green 2000 dpi Gaming Mouse - Retail - Retail

ASUS 18X DVD?R DVD Burner with LightScribe and 14X DVD-RAM Write Black SATA Model DRW-1814BLT - OEM

 

[The Brick]

Hmm only a few things; I would've recommended the Abit QuadGT over the P5B Deluxe, it's quite more stable (especially with overclocking). And I prefer my logitech mx518 over my razer copperhead If you like the razer shape, the diamondback would be the better mouse.


Looks very nice.

 

[Icarusintel]

Everything looks pretty good. The only part I'm unsure about it your DVDR drive. Oh, and the 550W PSU might be a little on the low side. Besides, that everything should play well together.

 

[X-FacToR]

^^

COOLER MASTER eXtreme Power RP-550-PCAR ATX from factor 12V V2.01 550W Power Supply - Retail

 

[Asus]

It's awesome. I'm sure you'll like it a lot. Some good part selection there (although I probably would have got a different mouse).

Why exactly does everyone wait until after they purchase to ask about their build?

 

[The Brick]

Yeah looked over it heh. 550W is plenty. You could run SLI with that psu (but not with that mainboard).

 

[X-FacToR]

It's awesome. I'm sure you'll like it a lot. Some good part selection there (although I probably would have got a different mouse).

Why exactly does everyone wait until after they purchase to ask about their build?

Well I think the reason I asked after, is because I already made up my mind, I just wanted to get some opinions. As for the mouse... I don't consider myself really picky, im more interested in response times, Ill give it a whirl and see if its as bad as you guys say.

 

[X-FacToR]

Hmm only a few things; I would've recommended the Abit QuadGT over the P5B Deluxe, it's quite more stable (especially with overclocking). And I prefer my logitech mx518 over my razer copperhead If you like the razer shape, the diamondback would be the better mouse.


Looks very nice.

I have a abit mobo now, ive kind of given up on the company and moved back to my asus ways. They make good products, but I really like asus. And I was under the impression that the P5B Deluxe was not only very stable but a very reliable overclocking board.

 

[The Brick]

Well the thing is pretty hard to get stable at high speeds, but it can reach tremendous speeds. Though the new QuadGT is really the better board. The new DFI 965-s is awesome too but barely available. I believe they're a bit cheaper too, so I would really have recommended them. But the P5B deluxe isn't a bad board at all, mate. I have one myself. It has its problems but once it's stable it's rock solid.

 

[Qonfused]

You will love this case.

 

[staticprimer]

What resolution do you plan on playing at? If it's less than 1600x1200, then the 320mb version of the 8800GTS would be a better deal, as it is on par with the 640 version in everything but the highest resolutions.

Also, how is that case in terms of brightness? I know the fans have LED's on them, but I don't want anything that is over the top flashy for my new case. What I was looking at was the Antec Performane One P180.

 

[VirusType2]

Western Digital Caviar RE2 WD5000YS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

How do you use the RE2 with a home PC? I would have gotten one, but they said something about disabling something to get it to work?

If I could have got an answer to that, I would have got the RE2. I got the SE16 or whatever

 

[Asus]

How do you use the RE2 with a home PC? I would have gotten one, but they said something about disabling something to get it to work?

If I could have got an answer to that, I would have got the RE2. I got the SE16 or whatever

Not working with a home PC? It's a regular SATA drive. I have one as well. I'm confused, what are you referring to?

 

[staticprimer]

There are apparently some performance issues with the RE2 working as a single drive, as it was meant to run in a RAID environment. The option he was talking about is TLER:

Hard drives typically perform error recovery on their own, pausing for extended periods of time to save data that might otherwise be lost. That works well enough for drives acting independently, but it can be problematic when multiple drives are bound together in a RAID array. RAID controllers prefer to handle error recovery on their own, so they don't want to waste too much time waiting around for a single drive's heroic attempt at solo error recovery.

If a drive pauses for too long trying to recover from an error, it may be tagged as a failed disk and dropped from the array, even if its attempt at error recovery is ultimately successful. To prevent this premature array ejection, TLER limits the amount of time that a drive will pause to recover an error before it resumes normal operation. If the error isn't quickly recovered by the drive, the RAID controller will sort it out. However, if the drive isn't connected to a RAID controller that supports error recovery, data could become corrupted or lost. That's why Western Digital doesn't recommend TLER-equipped drives for non-RAID applications.

http://techreport.com/reviews/2006q3/wd-500s/index.x?pg=1

In realistic applications the performance difference between the SE16 and the RE2 is negligible plus the SE16 is cheaper so is a overall better bet for non-raid systems.

 

[VirusType2]

There are apparently some performance issues with the RE2 working as a single drive, as it was meant to run in a RAID environment. The option he was talking about is TLER:


http://techreport.com/reviews/2006q3/wd-500s/index.x?pg=1

In realistic applications the performance difference between the SE16 and the RE2 is negligible plus the SE16 is cheaper so is a overall better bet for non-raid systems.

Awesome help, thanks. At least I don't regret ordering the SE16 instead. It took like 7 days, but I got my SATA wires in the mail from slow ass Monoprice yesterday, so I'll be putting the drive in when I get home from work in a few hours. I have like 100 MB free on both drives. I didn't expect to have had to wait so long for the ****ing wires or I would have just bought them from the ****ing store!


Anyway, I feel better now. Thanks Staticprimer

 

[Asus]

Just in case anyone has an issue with TLER (instructions+dos utility).
(I have not had any issue with the RE2)

 

[VirusType2]

it requires a floppy drive. Does anyone have a floppy drive? I don't think I've seen one of those in a decade.

 

[X-FacToR]

Yeah just so we are clear, the RE2 rocks, absolutely no issues here (single HDD), just got everything up and running and updating drivers in vista. And no floppy drive needed for anything.

 

[Asus]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure I've seen reviews saying it's OK to use in single config. I have a few internal floppy drives...in a box somewhere. Not in my PC. hehe
Although it's easy to connect.

I don't think I've seen one of those in a decade.

Have not seen a floppy drive in a decade!?