Newb needs System Build Advice

[FencePost]

I'm buiding my 1st comp. Have had others build em for me in the past but they are no longer available. I feel pretty confident in building my system, and after some exhaustive research on THG I've settled on the following components. Prices listed below are the range of prices I have been able to find using THG Price Search.

CPU- AMD Athlon XP Barton 3200+ $179-239
MOBO- ASUS A7N8X-E Deluxe nForce2 $91-109
RAM- Corsair TWINX 512MB (1 Stick) PC3200 400MHZ 2-3-3 $129-149
GPU- ATI 256MB DDR AGP 9800 PRO $299
CASE- ANTEC P160 $105-124
Power- ANTEC True Power 480W $109
HD- Barracuda ST3160023A 160MB 8MB Cache $99
DVD- Plextor PX-708UF $179.99
CD- LG (Can't remember the model) $45

TOTAL $1273 or so...

I'm thinking in order to save some money I could get the ENERMAX CS-1251 case with a 350Watt power supply for around $69
GPU instead of the 9800 Pro I can drop down to 9600XT 256mb DDR for $159

Those 2 moves would save $296 for a total price of
$977

QUESTIONS
Is the extra money worth it? Or am I better off saving the money.
What components are better for the money out there?

Also thinking of getting 2 Barracuda 80MB drives 8MB cache for $49 each. Total would be used instead of the single 160MB drive.

System is to be used for gaming, music/mp3s, net surfing, MS Office. Not much higher level apps.

Any help or recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

 

[endyen]

Save some more money, get the xp-m2500+ and set it to xp3200 speeds in bios. It will be cooler, but you need an hsf as that chip only comes oem.
For a video card get the Ati built version of the 9800pro from <A HREF="http://shop.ati.com/tradeup.asp" target="_new">http://shop.ati.com/tradeup.asp</A>

 

[Spitfire_x86]

Since you aren't extremely budget limited, builing an A64 2800+ or 3000+ system with a nForce3 250 mobo is a better idea.

256 MB VRAM is completely useless for R9800 (and lower) class cards. Radeon 9800 Pro 128 MB is the best card for you.

I recommend LiteOn SOHW-832S or SOHW-812S (if you don't need dual-layer DVD burning capability) for DVD burner. No need waste money for Plextor drive.

As a second optical drive, DVD-ROM is a better choice than CD-ROM or CD-RW. I recommend LiteOn JLMS XJ-HD166S DVD-ROM.

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[mdiz0n]

arite i think u should go for investment. the setup ur looking at is going to be really limited in the near future. I personally go for the triple As. AMD, Abit, and ATi.

Mobo: ABIT "KV8-MAX3" K8T800 $139
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 3000+ $223
GPU: ATi x800 pro these should go down to 400
RAM: Crucial 2x256mb pc3200, in actual fps performance, low latency is almost unnoticeable, dual channel will benefit u more $94
Case: Antec Sonata $99 (comes with an antec 380W)
HD: doesnt matter much unless ur looking to setup raid and stuff
dvd: NEC ND-2500A $69
you also might want to consider a new monitor if ur current one doesnt have good refresh rates, no point in blistering fps if ur monitor only displays 75 new images a second.
ur total is 1123 if u go with the 160gb hd. now this winds up being less money and a lot faster.

 

[slvr_phoenix]

RAM- Corsair TWINX 512MB (1 Stick) PC3200 400MHZ

Am I the only one confused by <b>ONE</b> stick of <b>TWIN</b>X?

I'm assuming that's a typo and that you mean one matched <i>pair</i> of TwinX.

<pre><b><font color=red>"Build a man a fire and he's warm for the rest of the evening.
Set a man on fire and he's warm for the rest of his life." - Steve Taylor</font color=red></b></pre><p>

 

[Guest]

ya TwinX automaticly means a pair.
its either 1 stick of XMS or 1 matched pair called TwinX

Asus P4P800DX, P4C 2.6ghz@3.25ghz, 2X512 OCZ PC4000 3-4-4-8, Leadtek FX5900 w/ FX5950U bios@500/1000, 2X30gig Raid0

 

[Coyote]

Since gaming is listed as one of your first priorites, do not downgrade to the 9600 pro/xt line. I just moved up from the 9600 pro to the 9800 pro. It's a noticible improvement and will be needed for new games.

The 9800 pro's nowadays often come with the same core (GPU) used in the 9800 XT. And with a free proggie (Rage3d Tweak) and 10 minutes of time, can be (over)clocked at speeds equal to, or faster than the XT. So, in effect you have a 9800XT with 128MB of ram for $200 or less. The extra ram is not worth an additional $100.

Forget the Desktop Barton @ 3200 @ approx $200. For 1/2 the price or less, the mobiles (I use a 2600+-see my sig) will reach the same speed with a simple adjustment in BIOS. The mobile will not come with a HS+F, but a Vantec Aeroflo a heatsink + fan unit @ $25 is definatly sufficient for cooling at 3200 speeds (that's what I'm using on mine now to good effect).

The issue for you maybe whether to go for the AMD 64 line.

I wouldn't suggest the Antec psu @ $109. If the case/psu combo satisfy's your objectives and saves money, good. Otherwise, the Fortron 530 watt at $75 is a very highly thought of psu (my next purchase) for less money, more power, and perhaps higher quality.

TWINX is a matched pair sold together, may not be able to buy just one. Some purchase one stick of 512MB with the intention of adding another later for 1 gig dual channel. You can also purchase 2 X 256 MB and run in DC now, then add a third stick of 512 to the other slot. The first pair operate in DC as one, and work with the other 512 MB fine.

Good Luck w/your build

Mobile XP 2600+ (11X200)
Abit NF7-S v 2.0
Maxtor 60GB ATA 133 7200RPM
512MB Corsair Twinx 3200LL
BBA 9800 Pro
Enermax Noisetaker 420 watts
Win98SE

 

[Obtuse]

Your setup looks decent, and most of the recommendations have been good, but let me make my own and gather all the existing ones.

CPU - It's not that hard to OC the 2500 Barton to a 400mhz FSB. Many people on the forum have done that. The 2500 will run you about $90 retail, so there's a hundred bucks saved.

MOBO - Not a dig on ASUS, but the ABIT NF7-S has that same chipset, plus the sweet onboard soundstorm.

RAM - fine.

GPU - As you've already been told, a 256 9800 pro has useless, slower ram. Find a good deal on the 128 version, save another 100 bucks.

CASE,HD - all sound fine, that's a snazzy case.

PSU - you could probably save another 30-40 bucks by buying a Fortron Source 450W PSU that's just as good. Hell, even the Thermaltake 480W PSU is only about $70.

CD/DVD - For less than the plextor alone, you can buy a lite-on dual layer burner and an extra dvd drive. Plextor is a great brand, but so is lite-on.



"It's too late now anyway. That song is stuck in my head and the only way to get rid of it is to blow it out. With a bullet!! - Carl

 

[mdiz0n]

as i said, the 64 bit platform is a much better investment and the x800 pro will get u fps that the 9800xt cant touch. the xp platform is pretty obsolete now, im running an oc'ed 2500+ at 2.2ghz on the abit nf7-s and im not happy with it. look at far cry because it is where the future of gaming is headed, even the x800 pro cant get 100fps, what do u think a 9800 pros going to do

 

[Crashman]

I'd pass completely on any K8T800 chipset boards. You can get the MSI K8N Neo Platinum, with nForce3 250GB, for a similar price to the board you mentioned.

<font color=blue>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to a hero as big as Crashman!</font color=blue>
<font color=red>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to an ego as large as Crashman's!</font color=red>

 

[trooper11]

or comprimise and get the chaintech VNF-250 board. it may not have the features of the msi k8n neo, but its based on the nvidia nforce 250 (non GB) and its very reasonably priced

 

[FencePost]

Ok...Here is my new setup based off all the advice...

CASE- ANTEC P160 Silver $100
PSU- Fortron Source 400W Power Supply With 12CM Blue LED, Model "FSP400-60PNU-R" $68
CPU- AMD Athlon 64 2800+, 512KB L2 Cache, 64-bit Processor $185
MOBO- MSI nForce3 250 Chipset Motherboard for AMD Athlon 64 Socket 754 CPU, Model "K8N Neo Platinum" (MS-7030) $128
GPU- ATI RADEON 9800PRO Video Card, 128MB DDR, 256-bit, DVI/TV-Out, 8X AGP $226
RAM- CORSAIR XMS Xtreme Memory Speed Series, 184-Pin 512MB DDR PC-3200, Model CMX512-3200XL CAS 2-2-2-5 $168
HD- Seagate 160GB 7200RPM IDE Hard Drive, Model ST3160023A $106
DVD- (Two) Lite-On 8X Double Layer DVD+/-RW Drive, Model SOHW-832S BLK $89.00 Total $178

This setup puts me into the Athlon 64 system and a 9800 Pro card. I could probably save a little by down grading one of the Liteon DVD drives to a DVD-Rom or CD-R drive.

Opinions on this setup?
Any recommendations on other componentes to add? HD Fan controller? Additional Fans? Etc?

Total Cost $1159

 

[Spitfire_x86]

Why you will need two DVD burners? 1 DVD burner and 1 DVD-ROM should be enough.

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[FencePost]

Final Setup as purchased... (NOT COUNTING TAX, Shipping was free)

Lian-Li PC-61B Case $95.00
ANTEC Truepower True430 $80
MSI K8N Neo Plat $125
AMD Athlon 64 2800+ $184
Crucial Ballistix 512MB (2-2-2-6-1) Ram $138
Lite-ON SOHC-5232BK $44
ATI RADEON 9800 PRO 128MB $149 (YES a 9800 PRO NOT 9600XT etc)
Lian-Li 9-1 Card Reader 3.5" USB 2.0 $26
Seagate SATA 160GB 8MB Cache Barracuda ST31600023AS $113

Im going to hold off on getting a DVD Burner until the Dual Layer +/- Drives are on the market. If I do grab a DVD right now it will be a single layer SHOW-1213S Lite-ON 12X DVD Burner.

TOTAL PRICE $954....INC TAX....$1028

Postman

 

[Spitfire_x86]

There's dual layer burners are already available. LiteOn has a very good dual layer burner (LiteOn SOHW-832S)

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