I want to build a new system, around $400-$600.

[lordmattus]

I need some help. I want to build a new system. When I get to reading these boards I get overwhelmed with all the options. 8O So I would really appritiate help on selecting what I need. I have about $500 to put into what I need, give or take $100 or so.

Here is my scenario:
1. Gamer, I play Oblivion, DDO, WOW, and looking forward to NW2.
2. I prefer not to heavily tweak the system, OC is a little spooky to me, so its not a priority. Just something I will have to figure out.
3. I already have the basics, monitor, keyboard, mouse, etc. My current system is about 2.5 years old.
4. I already bought a GeForce 7900GT SLI 256MB.
5. I know I need a new CPU, MB, Ram, PSU, and maybe a new case? My current case is a basic ATX, I'm not sure if the new MB's still fit.

-Thanks!

 

[shadowduck]

I need some help. I want to build a new system. When I get to reading these boards I get overwhelmed with all the options. 8O So I would really appritiate help on selecting what I need. I have about $500 to put into what I need, give or take $100 or so.

Here is my scenario:
1. Gamer, I play Oblivion, DDO, WOW, and looking forward to NW2.
2. I prefer not to heavily tweak the system, OC is a little spooky to me, so its not a priority. Just something I will have to figure out.
3. I already have the basics, monitor, keyboard, mouse, etc. My current system is about 2.5 years old.
4. I already bought a GeForce 7900GT SLI 256MB.
5. I know I need a new CPU, MB, Ram, PSU, and maybe a new case? My current case is a basic ATX, I'm not sure if the new MB's still fit.

-Thanks!

$500 is just is tough for the type of system you want....

CPU- $200
Intel motherboard- $200
RAM- $200.. see?

E6300
Good Gigabyte motherboard
OCZ or G.Skill 1GB DDR2-667

you might be able to stay at $500 with that.. someone help on the motherboard.

 

[trixst4r]

gigabyte S3 would be around 130 i think, the DS3 which is 20 more is not needed since u won't be OCing.

Buy an antec case for like $100 witha 450W PSU already in it and it should be fine.

 

[shadowduck]

gigabyte S3 would be around 130 i think, the DS3 which is 20 more is not needed since u won't be OCing.

Buy an antec case for like $100 witha 450W PSU already in it and it should be fine.

Ok..

soo lets see..

S3- $117
e6300- $180
Sonta II- $99
1GB DDR-667 GeIL Memory- $120

Total- $516 plus shipping (Case is free- lucky deal).
That should keep you in your price range.

 

[sillywabbit]

Also consider Foxconn P9657AA-8KS2H for $100. It's only $20 less but there's a decent review of it at:

http://www.overclockersonline.com/index.php?page=articles&num=471

 

[mr_fnord]

Do you just need a box or do you need everything for that price? Do you have access to pirated OS's? Otherwise you'll have to add about $90 to these prices to buy XP. Since you're not big into customization or OC you could also buy a cheap PC and just drop a decent vid card into it. That way you could have a new PC up and running today, and then drop $100-200 on a video card in a month or so.

For $400 or so you should be able to get a low cost A64 system with a PCI-E slot at Best Buy or any other computer store.

 

[bliq]

I'd also add ECS's 965 board in the mix. I like ECS, cheap and never let me down.

Alternatively, I play oblivion on a X2 4200+ and an Asus A8R-MVP. That cost me $200 total. If you go with a better board like A8N32-SLI, that should still be around $350. Add $150 for 2GB of RAM and you're set.

 

[bliq]

For $400 or so you should be able to get a low cost A64 system with a PCI-E slot at Best Buy or any other computer store.

That's a GREAT point- since you already have a 7900GT. Compaq has A64s in this pricerange and I KNOW they have an open x16. I looked.

Only question is psu rating. Honestly, if it's 350W or higher, you'll probably be fine. I can't imagine them using 200W or 250W psu's nowadays. My Dell P4-3.0 Optiplex at the office has a 400W.

 

[Mousemonkey]

Being a Limey I don't where you'd get be getting your kit from but I'd go with bliq on this one (see sig) I'm using one of these PSU's http://www.aria.co.uk/productinfocomm.asp?id=19862 but I don't know if it's available in the US

 

[lordmattus]

Awesome, thank you for all the responses.

I do have WinXP and all the assorted programs that I need. I just need a bare bones box.

One question on the MB. Is it worth getting an SLI MB to go with the SLI Graphics Card?

 

[Mousemonkey]

Only if you plan to run two cards any time in the future, but it's not mandatory dude, your card will run just fine in a single slot board.

 

[CompTIA_Rep]

If you go AMD, the motherboards are about $80 for not SLI. SLI is only good if you want to spend the extra cash anyway. The processors are fine too, not as good as the core2D, but then again, the processor is hardly the defining factor. Spend your money wisely. You can hardly go wrong these days, as long as you have a good video card to back you up.

 

[MarcusL]

Here's a build you can start with. Drop in your video card, floppy disk, keyboard, mouse, and monitor and you are done. The motherboard does have 2 PCIe x16 slots so it will run dual graphics if you get a second video card BUT you will need a better power supply.

$175 AMD X2 3800+
$89.99 eVGA 123-K8-NF47-AX socket 939 SLI motherboard
$104.99 2x512MB DDR-400
$44.99 Rosewill dual 120mm case
$24.99 Powertek 500W PSU
$94.99 Seagate 7200.10 320GB SATA Hard Disk
$28.99 Samsung 18x DVD burner

Total: $563.94

 

[Mousemonkey]

Nice list Dude 8)

 

[JQB45]

MarcusL -- the 939 system you listed is a dead socket. I'd suggest he go with a AM2 or Intel C2D system.

No upgade path especially with 939 going away in the next 3 to 6 months.
I have a 754 system and was disapointed it was only upgradeable for 18 months...

-Jeff

[code:1:10c1efa20b]
Rosewill TU-153 Black Steel ATX Black 0.8mm SECC Steel Mid Tower Computer Case 400W(20+4 pin) Power Supply - Retail
49.99
16.62

GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3 Socket T (LGA 775) Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
149.99
6.13

Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 Conroe 1.86GHz 2M sharing L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor - Retail
180.00
0.00

CORSAIR XMS2 1GB (2 x 512MB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X1024A-6400 - Retail
144.00
0.00

TOTAL: $546.73 US w/shipping from newegg.
[/code:1:10c1efa20b]

I believe he already has hardrives/optical drives. This system is upgradable and overclockable to some extent.

 

[JQB45]

I want to suggest a different case.

This one has Dual +12 Volt rails and its cheaper.

Athenatech A416BS.400 Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case ATX 2.01v 400W (20+4P, Dual +12V, 2xSATA Connectors) Power Supply - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811190080

29.99
11.84

According to Athenatech's website the powersupply in that case has 20 Amps on each +12 Volt rail, that should run the video card you have.

-Jeff

 

[bliq]

MarcusL -- the 939 system you listed is a dead socket. I'd suggest he go with a AM2 or Intel C2D system.

No upgade path especially with 939 going away in the next 3 to 6 months.
I have a 754 system and was disapointed it was only upgradeable for 18 months...

-Jeff

If money is a factor now, why not 939? You get to reuse your DDR and motherboards are cheap and plentiful. And even a year from now, I doubt one would have trouble finding a fast 939 to upgrade to. A machine like that ought to last someone a couple years, easy. There's a point of diminishing returns and for everyday use, I think we're starting to reach it. Wait a year or so until there are lots of AM2 boards to choose from with different chipsets to let the best rise up, and the rest shake out.

No one needs 4GHz to surf the web or encode music or even game.

As long as you have PCI-E, you're in good shape.

BTW, X2 3600+ is available retail in my area for $136, so that might also be an option to shave some dollars off the total...

 

[MarcusL]

I would be very careful getting a bundled power supply since you have a high-end graphics card. The 7900GT requirements call for a power supply with 26 Amps on the 12V rail. The 400 watt supply bundled with that case probably only sources 17 Amps. The power supply I listed give 34 Amps.

The C2D 6300 system is certainly the better way to go if you don't need any drives.

$180.00 C2D E6300
$149.99 GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3
$144.00 CORSAIR XMS2 1GB (2 x 512MB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800
$44.99 Rosewill dual 120mm case
$24.99 Powertek 500W PSU
Total 543.97 before shipping

I wouldn't worry too much about upgradeability. If you plan on keeping this system for more than 2 years, you are often better off buying a new cpu, mobo, and ram as a set to stay up with better technologies. Also, don't place too much faith in claims that cpu sockets will support future cpus.

 

[JQB45]

You mentioned don't have faith in sockets...

Thats why I did not mention AM2 as AM2+ and AM3 are going to be out in the next 18 months. AMD changes sockets far to often.

I agree the power supply should be very critically scrutizied and compared against between models. If in doubt remember this.

You want as many +12 Volt rails as you can afford and you wants as many amps as possible on each +12 Volt rail as you can afford. And ideally you want these measurments good at 50ºC not the 25ºC most companies test at.

I won't buy an AMD system until AM3 is well sorted out. :-(
Not because of intels current success but because Socket T thus far has proved to have a long life span. Since Intel released Socket T AMD has gone from Socket 754, 939 to AM2 and has in their roadmap AM2+ and AM3...

[/end rant]
-Jeff

 

[shadowduck]

AM2+ and AM3 will work in an AM2 motherbard, just not support DDR3 memory.

 

[JQB45]

That makes me fill a little better.

Do you have a link to anything that talks about AM2+ and AM3 and their compatability with AM2?

-Jeff

 

[purdueguy]

What memory do you currently have? If you have some DDR 400, you could salvage these and put them into a Socket 939 system. It might be old, but it will still hold out for awhile.

My suggestion (if you already have DDR 400):

CPU: AMD Athlon 64 3700+ (San Diego Core). Here. ~$99
Mobo: ECS KN1 Lite ~$74 after MIR
PSU: Enermax Whisper II - 535W. It's SLI ready. ~$92
Case: Antec Soln SLK3000-B. This case is close to the Perf Plus case that I've had for 5 years. Nice mid-size case. ~$72
Memory: (In case you need some). Patriot 1GB. ~$109 Now, the reason I don't suggest 2x512MB to go into dual-channel mode is that you will need 2GB soon and therefore you can pick up another 1GB stick and then put these two in dual-channel mode.

Total: $337 or $446 with 1 GB memory, or $536 with 2 GB (2 x 1GB Patriot for $199).

Though I would suggest saving your money and getting the following C2D system.

CPU:E6300 - $180
Mem: PQI Turbo 2x1GB. The price is screwed up at Newegg. One states $190, another $175.
Mobo: ASUS P5NSLI ~$127
PSU: HIPER 580W. It's SLI ready. ~$111
Case: Same Antec as above. ~$72

Total: $665 or $646 with the Enermax PSU listed above and assuming you can get the memory for $175.

I only added the cost of memory to show the value of getting the C2D system over the A64 socket 939 system. If you can salvage some DDR 400 memory then go with the AMD system, otherwise for 46 or 65 BUCKS over your budget, you can get the C2D system.

 

[shadowduck]

That makes me fill a little better.

Do you have a link to anything that talks about AM2+ and AM3 and their compatability with AM2?

-Jeff

AMD has been quoted as saying that, and its on their website somewhere.

 

[JQB45]

Thanks I'll look into it.

-Jeff