Building my New System - help?

NateKingCole · Jul 10, 2003

I'm building a new system for myself in the next few weeks. I'm still undecided on a few points though. Here's what I have so far:

Viewsonic P95f+ 19"
Maxtor 120GB HD 7200rpm 8MB (Ultra ATA-133)
LG 48x16x DVD ROM drive
LiteOn 52x24x52 IDE int CD Writer
Logitech Cordless MX Duo Keyboard & Mouse Combo
No sound card
2X 512MB PC3200 400Mhz 184pin DDR (Kingston KVR400X64C3A/512)
Canon S330 2400x1200dpi Bubble-Jet printer
Antec SX1040BII Black 20" ATX case w/400W power supply

Now the BIG QUESTION do I got AMD of INTEL?
and do I got ATI or nVidia?

I'm going mid range on both of them so I'm not really talking about who's better right now, but who was better.

a.k.a
Intel® Pentium® P4 2.6C GHz - 800MHz FSB (512K Cache)
OR
AMD® Athlon™MP 2600 w/266Mhz FSB

and Hence:
Asus A7N8X-Deluxe nForce2 Chipset 5PCI/1AGP8x/3DDR w/Sound Dual Lan SATA Raid USB 2.0 Socket A & ATA-133
OR
Asus P4P800-Deluxe S478 865PE Chipset 800Mhz FSB 1AGP8x/5PCI/4DDR, w/Sound Gigabit Lan SATA Raid USB 2.0 IEEE1394 ATA-133 Raid
{Depending on which CPU I choose}

and I guess I'm also wondering about upgrading later. Should I think about AMD or INTEL for the future?

Now the video card....

ATI Radeon 9600 Pro 128MB DDR AGP8X w/S-Video & DVI-I
OR
Asus v9560-VS GFX-5600 128MB DDR 8xAGP w/VIVO & 2xDVI

I know this might not be very exciting for you folks, since it's not exactly a supper computer, but any comments or suggestions would be great.

Thanks guys.

Edited by NateKingCole on 07/09/03 11:07 PM.

10GHZ · Jul 10, 2003

even though i'm a devoted AMD fan, i have to say that, if you want the highest performance, then go for the 2.6C,its quicker. With graphics card, ATI 9600 is a better choice over the FX and mobo choice is good

NateKingCole · Jul 10, 2003

Thanks man, the advice is much appreciated. I was really stuck trying to find articles comparing these component.

And for anyone else reading this thread don't by shy, call me an idiot for picking viewsonic if you want. Critisize any of my components. All comments are welcome. Thanks again,

Master_Yoda · Jul 10, 2003

I would get the AMD because its a better bang for buck and i would also get the ATI Radeon 9600 because its a bit faster and no where near as loud as the FX Series

Laxman12786 · Jul 10, 2003

Go with a 9500 pro. The only reason ATI even developed the 9600 line is because they were losing too much money on the 9500 pros. People realized they were a good price/performance product, and bought them up. ATI's production costs were too high, so they scrapped them in favor of the 9600's. Anyways, the 9500 Pro is MUCH better, and only like 10 to 20 dollars more.

HardWareBoss · Jul 10, 2003

Upgrading for later go with Intel. Your Mobo will support the new Prescott Cpu. Which Kingston ram are you buying. PC 3500 or PC3700?

bandikoot · Jul 10, 2003

I agree pretty much with what's been said, but why are you thinking about getting the MP2600? If you go AMD I would say get a barton with the 333. I think you should choose between the XP2800 and the P4 2.6C. (or actually you might need an XP3000 to get the same performance.) Go Intel if you plan to upgrade.

A friend and I each purchased a different logitech cordless keyboard/mouse duo. Mine was cool, but his had this really heavy black mouse that takes awhile to get used to. I can't remember if his was the MX or not, but you might want to check.

That Cannon will be good for you only if you do very little printing. Tom's did a big piece on printers in december and IIRC that one was on it so you might want to take a look.

Edited by bandikoot on 07/09/03 11:04 PM.

NateKingCole · Jul 10, 2003

I just edited my first specs to include the RAM...

Thanks all for the comments. Really appreciate it.

I might opt out and downgrade my CPU if I need the money, so if I could get an opinion on say

AMD® Athlon™XP Barton 2800+ w/333Mhz FSB 512K
OR
Intel® Pentium® P4 2.4C GHz - 800MHz FSB Retail (512K Cache)
(the two are in the same price range)

Any opinions on my motherboard? Should I go MSI? Does anyone recommend cutting my HD in half and going RAID. Throw any critisims at me you want.

bandikoot · Jul 10, 2003

The 2800s and 2.4Cs are very close in price, the 2.6c you had listed on the first post is about 30 more. Make that $50. 220-170 does not equal 30. (newegg) I have had annoying problems with msi so if you go amd stick with the delux, for intel ask someone else.

Your other money saving option is to OC the 2500.

Edited by bandikoot on 07/09/03 11:16 PM.

NateKingCole · Jul 10, 2003

Thanks man, that's what I was actually thinking (the 2500), there's a big price drop. Does anyone have any opinions inter-AMD barton vs. XP?

AMD® Athlon™XP 2600+
vs.
AMD® Athlon™XP Barton 2500+

I'd be willing to spend more money on the XP if I'm not inviting problems. Also are there OC problems?

Edited by NateKingCole on 07/09/03 11:24 PM.

NateKingCole · Jul 10, 2003

Is the other Mobo A64 upgradable? And where did you get the info on the Prescott upgradable? Thats somthing I didn't know.

pIII_Man · Jul 10, 2003

A64 needs a totaly new chipset...there will most likely be no conversions or anything like that you WILL need a new mobo.
Next 2500 vs. 2600...well it depends there is a new barton version of the 2600 so baron to barton the 2600 is faster...but 2500 barton vs. the older t-bred 2600 i would go with barton it is cheeper and can overclock like a mother...2.5ghz on air cooling in many cases. If I were you i would either for now get a budget system and upgrade latter when intel and amd release their new platforms...or sit tight until this january. The amd vs. intel debate if i were you and were buying a computer now...just get a 1700 good air cooling and o/c the $hit out of it then come december buy a new system.

varghesejim · Jul 10, 2003

It is a better idea to buy a intel processor.I think it is good for u to see slvr_pheonix's post about his system.And may I tell u one thing.It is better to buy a Yamaha-CRWF1 writer(It have mount rainer,tatooing and most importantly reliability)

Mephistopheles · Jul 10, 2003

At this point, I would highly recommend going the Intel route too. Current mobos are highly upgradeably, whereas AMD current mobos are dead ends. Also, Intel's ~C~ line of processors is top-notch... I'd spend a few dozen dollars extra on going Intel this time...

NateKingCole · Jul 11, 2003

Good stuff, thanks again guys. So I'm thinking really cheap AMD and upgrade next year or mid range Intel and be happy for a couple years. I think I'm going cheap AMD, although the other road sounds good too, I'm willing to buy a new mobo in a year and go with what's good then. Does everyone recomend the radeon 9500 pro? Can you hack the pro and make it a 9700? So I'm going 2500+ barton I think. What kind of cooling sys should I put in it? I got an intake and 2 out-take fans in my case.

Laxman12786 · Jul 11, 2003

As far as I know, there never was a hack / mod to convert the 9500 pro to a 9700. However, the older 9500 np's will convert to 9700, but most of the newer ones will not. Instead of having the 256-bit memory and 4 extra pipelines "disabled", the newer cards don't have the extra pipelines or memory capabilities at all.

Quetzacoatl · Jul 11, 2003

2500+ barton, you can use the stock cooler if you buy it retail, that works fine for stock speeds if you aren't overclocking. Just get a couple case fans to move the air around and your temps should be pretty alright. Radeon 9500 pro is a good card, on par with the ti4600. Supposedly you can soft/hard mod it to a 9700, but unless you know what you're doing, it's not worth the risk. Sometimes, the chips are just unable to make the transfer. The plain ati 9700 is about $230 now, prety cheap for a good card

I want to see an Ati Radeon 99999 Ultra Pro, based on the AtiRage core. And people wonder how a Geforce3 is better than a Geforce4 Mx...

shadus · Jul 11, 2003

The new fx series is silent... but saying that I'd still suggest the ati card and the intel chip.

Shadus

NateKingCole · Jul 11, 2003

"Radeon 9500 pro is a good card, on par with the ti4600."

OK so what about this:

ATI Radeon 9500 Pro 128MB DDR AGP8X w/S-Video & DVI-I
Vs
MSI (MS-8900) G4Ti4800SE-VTD8X 128MB DDR AGP w/TV & VIVO

and does anyone have an opinion on

Asus 52x24x52 IDE int CD Writer
vs
Aopen 52x24x52 IDE
vs
LG 52x24x52 IDE w/ sofware
vs
LiteOn 52x24x52 IDE int CD Writer w/Software
vs
Sony 52x24x52 IDE CD Writer w/Software
vs
MSI 52x24x52 IDE int CD Writer w/Software

slvr_phoenix · Jul 11, 2003

Everyone praises Lite On. **shrug**

MSI supposedly makes nice quiet drives.

Asus drives are usually fast according to reviews that I've read.

Heck, if you count firmware revisions to fix ones that have initial bugs on release then I'm not sure if any CD burner is all that bad anymore. They can't really afford to be.

However they all have their own strengths and weaknesses ultimately. So I'd suggest doing a google search for review sites that specialize in CD player reviews because it's really either a very easy decision or a very complicated one. Heh heh.

"Yeah, if you treat them like equals, it'll only encourage them to think they ARE your equals." - Thief from <A HREF="http://www.nuklearpower.com/daily.php?date=030603" target="_new">8-Bit Theater</A>

TheMASK · Jul 11, 2003

The new fx series is silent

COmpared to the earlier FX, they make less noise but they are still noisier than the ATI cards.

250+ posts and i am still a MEMBER...Edited by TheMask on 07/12/03 01:22 AM.

Quetzacoatl · Jul 11, 2003

I'd get the Ati BBA Radeon 9500 pro, it's still going to perform better than a ti4600 when you turn on Aniso and AA. Ti4800se is merely a ti4400 with agp 8x support, but doesn't put up a great fight against the 9500 pro.

I want to see an Ati Radeon 99999 Ultra Pro, based on the AtiRage core. And people wonder how a Geforce3 is better than a Geforce4 Mx...

NateKingCole · Jul 12, 2003

Ok here we go I think I'm ready, thanks for all your suggestions.

Antec SX1040BII Black 20" ATX case w/400 watt P4 power supply
Antec 80mm UV (Blue/Green/Orange) Case Fan
Volcano 7+ CPU Fan w/HML Copper 6000rpm
LG 48x16x DVD ROM drive
LiteOn 52x32x52 IDE int CD Writer w/Software
Maxtor 120GB HD 7200rpm 8MB (SATA)
Logitech Cordless MX Duo Keyboard & Mouse Combo
Asus A7N8X-Deluxe nForce2 Chipset 5PCI/1AGP8x/3DDR w/Sound Dual Lan SATA Raid USB 2.0 Socket A & ATA-133
2X 512MB PC3200 400Mhz 184pin DDR (Kingston)
Viewsonic 19" P95F+ .25 2048x1440
Canon S330 2400x1200dpi Bubble-Jet printer
AMD® Athlon™XP Barton 2500+(1.83GHz) w/333Mhz FSB 512K
Logitech Z-640 51W 5 Speakers w/subwoofer
ATI Radeon 9500 Pro 128MB DDR AGP8X w/S-Video & DVI-I

Good stuff
Too bad RAM went up again for the second day in a row and I can't afford RAID right now. But I'll be happy I'm sure. Comments are still welcome if you think I'm going the wrong way with stuff. Seriously.

And all for about $2042 (CAN) that's 1,483.90 (US)
With of course 14% taxes $hit, 2327.88$ ouch.

Building my New System - help?

Distinguished

Distinguished

Distinguished

Distinguished

Distinguished

Splendid

Distinguished

Distinguished

Distinguished

Distinguished

Distinguished

Splendid

Distinguished

Distinguished

Distinguished

Distinguished

Distinguished

Distinguished

Distinguished

Splendid

Distinguished

Distinguished

Distinguished

Share this page