Please help- $1000 budget.

[wireeater]

I have been spending nearly a week trying to figure what I want to go with, reading reviews, after reviews. I keep flip flopping between motherboards, memory and video cards.

I want to keep it under $1000. My main concern now is, will the powersupply I have right now hold up to what I am building. I wanted to reuse the case I currently have.

I have a Antec True 430w PSU. It came with the ANTEC PLUS 1080AMG case I got from newegg about 2 years ago. It has a 20 pin power connector and then a 2nd one with (aux)4 pins. I see that most of the motherboards are 24pins now. Is this PSU even compatible with these boards?

If so, will that PSU be able to power this system?

EPoX EP-9NPA3+ULTRA
AMD AMD Opteron 165 Denmark
OCZ Performance 2GB (2 x 1GB)
SAPPHIRE 100130VIVOL Radeon X800GTO2
Maxtor DiamondMax 10 6V250F0 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive

Plus 1 DVD RW/Floppy Drive

Aside from that, if you see anything that could be replaced with something better for not that much more, please feel free to explain to me why.

Suggest motherboards, memory, videocards, PLEASE. I need to find peace before I order this. I want to make sure I will have the system I wanted.

Mild overclocking is also a consideration. I also have the urge to tweak things. Can I do mild over clocking on stock HS/Fan without any heating problems on the x2 3800+?


Thanks in advance.

 

[HideOut]

It should have enough power, get a 20 to 24 pin adapter and give it a shot. If not, get the newer version of a similar Antec. It'll be awesome.

Hide

 

[shadowduck]

Custom building your own PC is always fun eh?

As for your list of compents, the dual core processor will serve you very well. However, I would switch out the Epox motherboard for an Asus one. I really love Asus motherboards, and have built hundreds of systems (I am a system builder, and work with a VAR). Asus motherboards have never given me a problem that could not be resolved with a BIOS update. I have never received a DOA Asus board. The Asus board I like is the A8N-E. It is slightly more expensive at $109 (Newegg of course), but still does not totally break the bank. Here is the link Asus A8N-E

As noted above, the 3800+ is a great choice for a processor, and the dual cores will serve you well if you use applications that take advantage on this technology. As for overclocking, AMD stock coolers will handle mild overlocking, but even a cheap ($30 or less) cooler will allow you to acheive vastly superior results, and well as your system running cooler overall.

As for the RAM, OCZ is a good choice. I have read nothing but positive reviews on their RAM, and the ability to acheive good timings using them. The choice of video card (ATI or nVidia) really depends on the games you wish to play. Most games are will run faster on one card or the other depending on the technologies used in the game or how big of a kickback the publishers got from the card manufactor. Quake (and most iD games) as an example tend to acheive better results on nVidia cards. The card you selected is very nice (and a great buy for the price). The only reason to consider switching would be if the majority of your games display an nVidia logo on the box or from benchmarks tend to run better on nVidia cards.

As for the hard drive, it does not seem to acheive a good rating at Newegg. However, I have the same drive in an SATA I version and have had no problems with this drive whatsoever. However for only $9 more you can get a WD drive that has more reviews, perfect rating, and a faster seek time. I Have had good luck with WD drives and would not have a problem recommending them. Here is the link for that item:
WD 250GB SATA II hard drive

As for the power supply, I am pretty sure your current PSU would work, but since it is two years old replacing it is not a terrible idea. While 430W will power the system, 500W+ is not a bad idea, especially since you are using a dual core processor. This decision is solely up to you.

Hope this information helps you!

 

[wireeater]

Wow man, thanks for the great post.

I am going to try it with my PSU and see how it performs. If it doesn't work too well then I will just order a newer one some other time, no biggie.


I think I am going to go with your advice for the motherboard. I had originally went with that but tried to get a little cheap and went for the EpOx. But I'd rather spend an extra 10 dollars instead of being disappointed.

I am also going to go with the 6800GS because from what I have read, it does near, or same performance and the unlocked GTO. Being said that most games are optimized for NVIDIA, seems like the smart choice. I guess I was being a fanboi and sticking to ATI since I liked my 9800pro.

I am also going to go with the HD you had selected because I never thought about WD. I had always heard bad things about them, but after reading those reviews, it seems like a good choice. Maybe a few more bucks, but as I said above, I am willing to pay a few more for a better product.

Thanks again for your reply, it was more than I had expected to receive!

Great board, I can see my self being an obsessed poster here.

 

[jnjkele]

These newer boards are set up so that you can plug a 20 pin ATX connector into the 24 pin mobo socket and it will work just fine - read the manual and it will explain it. You plug it in aligned to one end of the socket, leaving 4 empty sockets at one end of the mobo connector (I have done this before) and if it's an antec trupower, then no worries.

The only comment on the rest of the list is why go with the GTO when you can get an XL which is slightly better, for the same price?

-J