checking for compatability and all that...

[r0botluv]

hello there~ this will be my first ever homebuild, so bare with me.
here are the components we're thinking about.


AMD Athlon 64 X2 5000+ Brisbane 2.6GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103211

ASUS M2A-VM AM2 AMD
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131172

G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231098

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250410AS 250GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148262

Rosewill RZLS142A-P BK Dual 120mm Cooling Fans ATX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147114

Rosewill Stallion Series Single Ball Bearing Fan RD600N-2SB-SL-BK ATX V2.2 600W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182150

NEC CD/DVD Burner
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?Item=N82E16827152058

planning to run Windows XP on it. not sure what version exactly...


The machine won't be used for any heavy gaming, so I didnt think a video card
was needed. If you couldnt tell, we're definitely leaning towards a budget machine
here. I think all the components on newegg with deals and combos and such, came
to well under $400.

What I need help with, is just knowing whether this machine will turn on or not.. Are
there any blaring incompatibilities? Any stupid combination? Any easy cheap upgrades
I should/could make?

thanks guys!

 

[WR2]

Nothing wrong at all with the parts you picked out.

You probably noticed that CPU and RAM came in a NewEgg combo deal.

Did you need the parallel printer port on the ASUS M2A-VM motherboard? If not, for just $15 more ($5 more after rebate) you can upgrade the motherboard Biostar TForce 780G

Your case and power supply (even with the combo deal) comes to $100. Thats a lot of your budget for stuff that doesnt improve performance. And the power supply is about twice as large as you need for your parts.
Antec NSK4480 and Antec Earthwatts 380W PSU would save you $20 and still allow for a future mainstream video card (ATI HD 3650 or HD 4650 for example) upgrade.

 

[dirtmountain]

There are some great combo deals with the AMD Athlon64 x2 5000
The one that would probably save you the most money is the one including this case/power supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129033

 

[r0botluv]

There are some great combo deals with the AMD Athlon64 x2 5000
The one that would probably save you the most money is the one including this case/power supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129033

Holy smokes.. you're not kidding when you say great combo deal.. $66 off! This one is already in the shopping cart.

Thank you both for the advice. I had a feeling I could save some money on the power supply.. but I was worrying about getting one of those cheap cases with the PSU's already in them.. especially from a company
like ANTEC; i've read some bad reviews about them on the egg.

When it comes to the mobo.. i dont currently have a printer or any other device to run off the parallel port and it looks like most printers run off USB these days, so yeah, I'll consider upgrading to the biostar.. though I trust ASUS more.. I really fear having to RMA >< oh, and what about the RAM.. will DDR2 800 fit in a board with a DDR2 1066 standard?

 

[dirtmountain]

Yes it will, in fact it's a better choice for a budget build. You can save a couple of $$ with this RAM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146118
The Antec power supply in the NSK case is a higher quality PSU then the Rosewill. Make sure you get a SATA DVD burner and not the IDE one. It'll make the build easier.

 

[r0botluv]

What are the advantages of the dual channel RAM? And its supposedly gaming RAM, its not a waste to get that if I wont be doing any heavy gaming? and price wise, what about these corsair... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145034&nm_mc=EMC-IGNEFL081908&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL081908-_-Memory-_-L0B-_-20145034 ~ $27 after a $30rebate

what kind of difficulties will i face if I use the IDE one? i know burners are cheap these days, but I've had the NEC one lying around for a while and thought i would just use it.

 

[WR2]

If you already have the IDE DVD burner there is no reason to replace it with a SATA version.
And that Antec NSK6580 combo deal is a good find.

These days you can find "gaming RAM" for less (after rebate) than just standard RAM. Go figure!
Advantages of dual channel RAM vary with what programs you use and how hard you use them. On average you can expect a 5-10% improvement for a single program over just single channel (1 stick of RAM).
And the cost of 1 stick of 2GB RAM is just about the same as 2 sticks of 1GB RAM. So advantage to dual channel mode.
Compare 1 stick 2GB and standard 2x1GB RAM with "gaming" 2x1GB RAM

The Corsair and Mushkin RAM linked differ in Cas Latency (4 is better than 5) and voltage (lower is better than higher)
So Corsair is CAS4 2.1volts and Mushkin is CAS5 and voltage 1.8volts. Corsair has upped the voltage to squeeze a little more performance out of its RAM. Mushkin is using the stock spec for DDR2 800 voltages and so is more "compatible" with a wider range of motherboards. Not an issue with either the Asus or Biostar motherboards you're looking at.
I have a slight preference for the Mushkin DM posted over the Corsair you linked but both are good choices.