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First time building new PC
Hey all,
I'm going to be trying to build a new PC. Mainly for gaming, but I will also be running some virtual machines as well. Heres what I was thinking so far:
Intel i5-3570k
Nvidia GTX 660 Ti
windows 8 oem
Corsair 600W PSU http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139028
120G SSD http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820239045
extra harddrive http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136769
WIreless card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833106121
simple optical drive http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827100067
computer case http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146025
I'm pretty much at a loss as far as a motherboard, so I could really use some suggestions there. Also I have 4x4GB already and I think that should be plenty.
Thanks in advance!
Comments
The asrock Extreme 4 is a nice mb, I've used it on several builds.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157293
What happens when you log off your characters????.....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFQhfhnjYMk
Dark Age of Camelot
Nearly all modern motherboards have gigabit ethernet built in, so there's no need to buy a separate card for it unless you have very unusual needs. You call it a "wireless" card, and ethernet is wired, so I think you've made a mistake somewhere. You should use a wired network if it's practical to do so.
For an optical drive, you want a SATA DVD burner, not an IDE drive that can only read but not write. Read-only CD/DVD drives are such a low volume part that they're often more expensive than drives that can also write.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136259
Are there other parts that you've already bought, and are going to reuse? And which particular video card are you looking at? The GeForce GTX 660 Ti tends to be way overpriced.
For wireless, you either need a WiFi Adapter (which can be either PCI card/internal, or USB/external), or a WiFi Bridge (often sold as a repeater/extender/bridge, as it can serve either function), which lets you hook your wired ethernet connection into the wireless signal.
WiFi adapters are often less expensive, but they require drivers, you have to configure the WiFi on your computer, and internal ones are particularly poor about signal (as to move the antenna, your moving around your entire PC) - at least USB/External ones are easier to position as long as they have a sufficiently long enough USB cable.
EnGenius USB WiFi B/G/N 300 Mbs adapter
One of many models available, just for example
Edimax PCI Express WiFi B/G/N 300Mbs Adapter
(example of an internal card)
A WiFi Bridge doesn't need any drivers at all - it hooks up in your existing wired ethernet port (which does require drivers, but they are included with your motherboard and fairly universal). It also has the advantage that it can take multiple ethernet devices and hook them all up to WiFi using the same bridge (by using a cheap ethernet switch, or hub) - so you could buy one Bridge, and use it to hook your computer, your internet-enabled TV, your XBox, your toaster, your printer, and everything else up - all with one device. You just set the wireless info up once on the bridge, and then everything else just works via wired ethernet - no drivers or anything required. It makes them a lot more portable and reusable. This is what I recommend to most people, especially for a desktop although it tends to run about $10-$30 more than a WiFi adapter does (although if you hook two or more devices into it, you've ended up saving money over individual WiFi adapters).
EnGenius WiFi Extender/Bridge WiFI B/G/N 300Mbs
One of many different models available, just for example
Also, something to consider is that WiFi 802.11AC is coming, which promises faster than N-band transfers, with better coverage over the 5Ghz spectrum. You'd need both an AC-compatible router ~and~ either adapter or bridge: they are expensive now because they are brand new. They won't be the "standard" for a while, 802.11N is still catching on in lower-end devices, while G is probably the closest thing to a universal "standard" as of right now. Something you may want to consider if your putting together a brand new system and the network infrastructure to go with it. I wouldn't buy one without the other though - because you need both to get an AC connection, and when you do plan to buy the other the former would likely be cheaper and more robust in the first place.
"It's a sandbox, if you are not willing to create a castle then all you have is sand" - jtcgs