Opinions on this build please (first timer)...

[Istanbuller]

Going to be building my first system some time in the next few months. Will be used for heavy gaming and general use.

This is what I have so far:

Xclio / Meridian Technology A380PLUS-36 Black Tower Computer Case

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Xclio...s-Screwless-w-

Corsair TX 650 W Power Supply (PSU)

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/650W-...Fan-ATX12V-v22

Gigabyte GA-MA770T-UD3 AMD 770 AM3 Motherboard

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/Gigab...3Gb-s-RAID-ATX

AMD CPU Phenom II 965 Black Quad Core Processor

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/AMD-P...he-125W-Retail

2x 2GB (4GB) DDR3 RAM StickS PC3-10600 • CL=9 • Unbuffered • NON-ECC • DDR3-1333 • 1.5V • 256Meg x 64 •

http://www.crucial.com/uk/store/list...=GA-MA770T-UD3

Pioneer DVR-S18LBK 22x DVD±R, 12x DVD±DL, DVD+RW x8/-RW x6, RAM x12, SATA, Black, Retail Labelflash -

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Pione...ail-Labelflash

1TB (1000 GB) Samsung Spinpoint F3 Hard Drive - HDD

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ss1TB...-89-ms-NCQ-OEM

XFX HD 5850 Graphics Card

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/1GB-X...I-DPplusAssins


Extras:

2x 2GB RAM Sticks (to give me 8GB of RAM)

http://www.crucial.com/uk/store/list...=GA-MA770T-UD3

HRU-215A3 - Scan Black Floppy Disk +Int Combo All in 1 Card Reader Fits 3.5" Bay USB2

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Scan-...ts-35-Bay-USB2

Edimax EW-7128G 54Mbps Wireless PCI Card - £11.32

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Edima...eless-PCI-Card

or maybe a PCI-E Wireless card.

Antec Easy SATA - Hot Swap HDD Caddy with e-SATA Port - Fits in 5.25" Slot - 1x 3.5" SATA HDD

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Antec...1x-35-SATA-HDD

I DO NOT NEED OS (have 64 BIT OS), Keyboard, Mouse, Monitor etc.


.......................

Questions:

1. Does all this look ok?

2. Is it best to go for 2 smaller hard drives? What setup would be best. I currently have 64 BIT XP Pro but I might buy WIN7 64 Bit and have a dual boot system.

3. Thinking about the future, I may want to do crossfire. The motherboard selected would not support this.

Should I go for this now:

Gigabyte GA-890GPA-UD3H AMD 890GX AM3 Motherboard

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Gigab...Gb-s-SATA-RAID

This would support crossfire, already has USB3 and faster SATA. I want to go for a Gigabyte board 100%.

4. Is 8GB worth it or should I stick with the 4GB for now?

Thanks for looking, I think this looks a good system with a good price. But would really appreciate input as this is my first build and have probably overlooked something.

Cheers!

[Domestic_Ginger]

If you're not going to use two GPUs get a smaller wattage PSU and save some cash. (500-550W is more than enough)

Cut down the 965 to a 955. The saving might not be much but its for only a 200mhz loss which can easily be made up bu OCing.

there are 5850s about for about 190iirc. I would have a hunt around.

Unless you really like the case there are more options for the price. Check out the threads on here.

Mobo is pre-order which may delay your order. If you go for the better one then seriously consider an i5 build as the price difference will be much less

[Istanbuller]

Thanks for the input.

I'd like a more than capable PSU in case of future upgrades, plus I tend to go mad adding extra hard drives and optical drives, so I think 650W is a good fit for me.

Good point on the 955, will look into it.

I really like the case designn and have got it for £52 delivered.

Would prefer to stick with AMD as I have always had my systems as AMD, but will investigate.

Thanks again.

[Cheapy]

AnandTech has a useful bench for CPUs and graphics as well now. Lets you get a rough idea of how much difference there is bewteen processors at stock speeds.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/88?vs=109

[Iron Sights]

it would be handy if you could tell us what resolution you game at with that monitor and also, what is your budget for this build?

[Istanbuller]

Don't really know on my budget, I'd say £800 max.

Monitor is 19" widescreen, but I have two of them. Also like to connect to my 40" TV every now and again (but rarely, so don't consider that a factor).

However, that's not to say I wont get a bigger standard monitor in the future and play at a higher res, I want to be future proof...well, as much as one can be in this ever changing game.