My first pc build

[Snowmonkey]

Hi all! First I'll introduce myself. I'm a 32 yo geography teacher (no sandals!) from the Netherlands.

Next week I'll pick up the parts for my first build. It'll be used for gaming mostly, with the odd Photoshop and Illustrator job(around once a month, if I'd have to guess).

The games I'll play on it:

Starcraft 2

World of Warcraft

Crysis 2

Portal 2

Emulation of arcade games

Future: BF3 and Tera.

I set a budget of 800 euros for this build and this is very close to that limit.

Ok, this is it:

CPU: 2500K

MB: P8P67 PRO (or EVO, I don't recall....)

RAM: Mushkin Silverline Stiletto 1600Mhz 2x2GB

GPU: Sapphire 6950 HD 2GB, I just found out this one CAN'T be modded to 6970

Ah well.

Fan: Noctua NH-D14, initially because it looked great and later found out it is an incredible cooler!

PSU: Corsair TX650v2

Case: Bitfenix Survivor

I have the HDD myself already, which will be salvaged from an external 1TB LaCie disk. I don't plan on adding a DVD, as that would mess up the front of the case IMHO. I'll be gaming on my Samsung 2493HM @1920*1200/1080

Some questions:

1. Will my laptop drive (Momentus XT 500GB) work without special cables? (I think it might be faster than the 7200RPM from the LaCie)

2. Can someone help me dcide which of the following keyboards I should get: A. Zowie Celeritas B. Steelseries 7G C. Das Keyboard Professional S. I don't like too much "bling" on my keyboard, like macrokeys.

Thanks for your time! I'll post pics when I pick up the parts.

 

[Karlos_the_n00b]

Is this your drive? http://www.seagate.c...ContentOverview

If so then yes, it should work with just a standard sata cable and sata power connector.

 

[ionicle]

might i sugest a saitek eclipse mk1 as a keyboard choise? mine is brilliant, even after so long

 

[Snowmonkey]

Is this your drive? http://www.seagate.c...ContentOverview

If so then yes, it should work with just a standard sata cable and sata power connector.

Thanks for the quick reply! Yes, that is my drive that currently resides in my laptop. Great drive! Battery life went from 1 hour to 20 minutes, but that is not an issue in a pc.

@ionicle: Thanks for your reply. I really prefer a mechanical keyboard (I should have said this in my OP). I've used one at school previously and there really isn't anything that comes close. And the Saitek, raving reviews aside, is really too flashy for me.

 

[DragonPC]

7g simple

 

[Snowmonkey]

Allrighty then. If no one else replies, I'll go with the 7G. All three of the keyboards I mentioned are superb, so I really could not go wrong. I like the minimalistic look of the 7G.

 

[Saltire35]

The 7G looks the best from the ones you've mentioned imo.

 

[rwiuviberwVFIUBER]

Get the 7G man. I have the 6GV2 which is the same build, except without the handrest and ports on the keyboard for USB and headphones. If you really don't use any of them features, save yourself some cash and get the 6GV2. But either way, you're exactly like me with boards. I hate those damn macro keys! Half the time I think they're shift and just screw myself over

The mechanical keys of the SteelSeries boards are extremely quiet as well, in comparison to other ones like the Razer Blackwidow. One thing I will mention though, is I recently saw these mechanical keyboards, which are based off the IBM Model M, the best selling keyboard for hardcore gamers. And from the reviews that have been popping up, they are the best mechanicals on the market right now, but with a slight increase in price.

Loving your choice of games as well! I recently got Rift and I really don't like the whole art concept vs WoW

 

[Snowmonkey]

In the end I decided to go for the Zowie Celeritas. I just ordered it, it was 110 Euros. The reason I went for that one instead of the 7g in the end, was that the Zowie has a tactile feel halfway through the press and the 7G does not; it just bottoms out. Comes down to preference I guess. Should receive it in a few days and will post pics. If you like.

 

[rwiuviberwVFIUBER]

Yeah, it all depends on what you like. The 7G has quieter sounding keypresses, but like you said, doesn't have the tactile feel. Should put up some pics of your desk area when you get it

 

[Snowmonkey]

Yes! The keyboard arrived today. Had some trouble installing the drivers, as I pulled the usb out almost immediately after inserting it... But in the end all was fine.

My first impression was not good, as the space bar seemed to be stuck/not moving too easily. But that is fixed now. It is a really nice keyboard to type on. Having typed on a laptop keyboard for the past 9 years, the Zowie does feel like it will hurt my wrists quite a bit. I'll have to get a foam thingy to rest my wrists on, I think. We'll see.

The keyboard is quite heavy, but not as heavy as some of the reviews on Youtube made me believe. It does have very nice antislip surfaces on the back and it will not move. The black is VERY sensitive to smudges, so it is covered in fingerprints already. No worries.

The logo can change from red (standard) to blue, but I don't know why you'd want to do this. The 1x 2x 4x 8x indicators on the F9-F12 buttons will make the keyboard even faster, but not when using the usb cable. The keyboard also has media keys, and the work straight away with the Zune software I have installed. Just press the Zowie logo and F1-F6. Easy and first time I had this function, as I never seem to get them working after reinstaling my laptop

.

Typing on the Zowie is not overly loud, just a very satisfying soft click when I press the letters. I always thought I would have to press the letters all the way down for them to register; this is not the case. Just slightly pressing them will make the keys register.

My girlfriend asked if I would now also make my first unboxing video! I watch a lot of them and while she thinks they are weird (and the people who watch them are even weirder), she insisted on making one for this keyboard. So I did. Very crappy video on Youtube as we speak... Not sure if I'll share it.

I did make a picture for you all to enjoy. More pics of my new rig will be uploaded this weekend when I pick it up.

 

[rwiuviberwVFIUBER]

That speed feature is probably the most useless thing I've ever heard of in my life, other then that, congrats on the new keyboard.