Plans on first gaming rig (no O.C. planned): $915 budget

[OlegusTT]

Looking for opinions/advices/comments on my plans for building first computer:

Intended Use:
Games: F.E.A.R, Heroes 5, Civ 4, future MMORPGs (Vanguard, etc)
Apps: Visual Studio .NET; Driver debugging w/ serial link to my old P4 1.6GHz....

Resolution up to 1280x1024. (Actually my CRT monitor reasonable resolution/refresh rate combo is 1152x864 @ 85Hz).

Newegg Wishlist:
Athlon X2 3800; 7600GT; 2 Gb Ram

When I was looking for components I passed on SLI and O.C. capabilities - I am not into overclocking or SLI.

So, here is a list of parts:
AMS Gmono CF-2029SW-S Silver Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
Thermaltake TR2 W0070 ATX 430W Power Supply - Retail
ASRock 939Dual-SATA2 Socket 939 ULi M1695 ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+ Manchester 2000MHz HT Socket 939 Dual Core Processor Model ADA3800BVBOX - Retail
eVGA 256-P2-N553-AX Geforce 7600GT 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail
CORSAIR ValueSelect 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) - Retail
Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD2500KS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
SAMSUNG 16X DVD±R DVD Burner With 5X DVD-RAM

Does is it look like solid/balanced build (balance between budget & gaming performance)?
Is anything could be replaced with cheaper components without loosing much quality? Though I am fine with loosing overclocking features/potential.

 

[sandmannight]

looks good. You may want to go single core and go for a better graphics card.

 

[ForzaItalia4]

looks good. single core + better graphics is a better solution for gaming though.

also, why did you get the dual sata? the only reason i'd see to get that over a more quality board is the AGP slot, buying a cheap card to replace it later with a PCI-E. Although I head rumors that it is AM2 capable, but I'm not sure I believe that.

If you can fork out the extra 100 for the graphics card, keep dualcore, but if not then get a 3200+ for 150 and buy the 7900gt or x1800xt.

 

[jaguarskx]

I would keep the dual core as more applications and games will come out to take advantage of dual cores.

 

[DrozD]

See the June 06 issue of Maximum PC page 49. They just built a nice one.

 

[OlegusTT]

Woot. Thanks for quick responses.

I am kinda *need* dual core but not for gaming. I am programmer myself and I want to learn how to use efficiently two+ cores and multi-threading. So, for that purpose I would like to keep the dual core.

As for 7900GT vs 7600GT: Is difference in frames rates above 30+ fps visually recognizable by human eye? Initially I thought about 7900GT, but realized that I am not gonna run 1600x1200 ever. Only 1280x1024 max. From charts it looks like 7600GT is pretty sufficient to provide 30+ fps on most game at such resolution.

Dual Sata - no particular reason, I was looking for motherboard with good rating and low price. If you have in mind a cheaper good quality motherboard then please advise!

 

[ForzaItalia4]

the 7900 will destroy the 7600. 7900 has twice the pipelines, better clock, and not to mention is an overclocking beast of a card. it will have you playing on better detail settings such as higher quality enviornments.

oh yeah, and a 256 bit interface, 7600 has a 128 lol

 

[ikjadoon]

I'd stay with the dual core, and 30FPS is VERY noticeable in F.E.A.R. and most FPS games. In the MMORPG's it isn't too noticeable, but the 7900GT will keep the minium FPS high as the 7600 may have larger fluctations. The 7600GT actually performs very well for a budget card and a card with 128-bit memory...

~Ibrahim~

 

[sdrawkcaBgoD]

Don't forget your OS if you don't already have it.

 

[OlegusTT]

Appreciate everyone's feedback!

I have re-worked my wish list. Now looking at Intel Dual-Core, but getting better graphics card within the same budget about $900.

From CPU charts, it looks like D 930 is quite close in performance to AMD X2 3800+, but almost $100 cheaper... and it is still a dual-core.

So, here is my Intel wish list on newegg:
Pentium D 930, X1800XT, 2 Gb RAM: $899

I got impression from forum that AMD is better for gaming. However D 930 seems to be better from price/performance index, and it is dual core, plus its performance is close enough to X2 3800+ to my understanding.

Components in details:
Pentium D 930: $210.99
SAPPHIRE 100154 Radeon X1800XT 256MB: $239.00
ECS C19-A SLI (1.0A) (LGA 775) NVIDIA nForce4 Motherboard: $78.99
G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) DDR2 667: $144.99
COOLER MASTER Real Power ATX12V 450W Power Supply: $59.99
COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 ATX Mid Tower Case: $43.99
Western Digital Caviar SE WD2500JS 250GB: $83.99
NEC DVD Burner: $36.99

So, what do you think? Am I on best spot for my budget now?
Keeping dual core + better video card.

 

[FatFunkey]

um for the frames question its anything above 60 frames the human eye cant detect

of course some say 75 and what not but the accepted rate is 60 and why the sweet spot is 60 frames however you can dip below 60 as long as you dont go below 30 because thats when u notice slow down and choppyness

i used to run a Geforce 2 on COD and what not..i dont care if i go into the 30s but some people freak out and go nuts and thats why they must have th best video card all the time so its basicly your own personal feelings on the matter do u want it to run smoother then silk or do u not mind if it gets a little slow choppy when there like 20 guys blasting away its a matter of personal prefrence... sigh 9800Pro hasnt failed me yet....