New Comp Help

[dd_viper]

hey im building a new comp for my friend and i wanna get some more opinion/critisizm from people more knowledgable then me. OK first cost is around $800-$950 USD. its going to be used for gaming, surfing and music. the best game that is going to be played is Need For Speed Underground (1,2). He WILL NOT be playing top of the line games (doom farcry etc)
This is what im thinking (~$930 USD)
Kingwin mutant X gaming case, with 430 watt psu ($62)
Samsung CD-RW drive ($33)
Artec DVD_ROM drive ($30)
Maxtor 80 gig 7200 rpm 8 mb cache hdd (SATA) ($70)
Corsair DDR400 PC-3200 512(2x256) RAM ($90)
AOpen NForce 2 Ultra 400 AMD socket A ($85)
Athlon XP 2800 Barton 333 FSB 512 cache CPU ($135)
EVGA FX5700 Ultra 128 GPU ($165)
ViewSonic 19" CRT-Monitor ($180)

Again i dont need a top of the line system for this. this doesnt include a keyboard and mouse because he owns one already. Thanks in advance!

 

[karamazov]

You can change that cpu to 2500 mobile and overclock it to 3200.. and of you wanted to go even cheaper, try and differemt case. I have also found an 80gb Segate for $64 USD.

As I sit up in my bed looking at all the stars, I begin to wonder... WHERE THE HECK IS MY ROOF!?

 

[karamazov]

Case-http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=11-170-021&depa=0


CD RW-http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=27-151-047&depa=0


RAM-http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=20-145-026&depa=0



Mobo-http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-138-227&depa=0


CPU-http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-376&depa=0



Didnt find a video card.


Moniter-http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=24-116-189&depa=0


As I sit up in my bed looking at all the stars, I begin to wonder... WHERE THE HECK IS MY ROOF!?

 

[dd_viper]

ok thanks for the post. 1st thing i like your idea of the mobile 2500. would it run at faster speeds? would it be better option for performance, not price?

and he likes the idea of the open panel
he told me that he wants black cd& dvd drives
im wanting more than 2 usb ports in back
he doesnt want a bright white monitor for a few bucks less

another thing, would it be smarter to run dual channel 512 ram with a 3 latency, or smarter to get a 512 stick and run a 2.5 latency?

 

[dd_viper]

actually now im thinking, i would be more confrotable getting a Athlon XP than a mobile. It retail box and i like the idea of getting retail more than just oem. will the axp o/c with the hardware that im getting? is so, to what speeds?

(please answer all other questions above too )

 

[karamazov]

Well the ram really all depends. If you're planning on upgrading the thing, one 512 would be a good thing. But if you're not planning on upgrading much, then 2 256's would be all right too. The Cpu.. Probably not. I was just saying that its an option. 2800 runs at like 2.25 and from what I've read, the 3200 runs at like 2.4 or something. So overclocking would be cheaper, but its up to you.
The moblile aslo has better front side bus. 333 for 2800 and 400 for 2500 o/ced..
As I sit up in my bed looking at all the stars, I begin to wonder... WHERE THE HECK IS MY ROOF!?<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by karamazov on 09/23/04 07:28 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[karamazov]

About the cd rw and dvd rom would be just a little more expensive I belive. I'de have to look. and the other stuff he wants should only be like 3 or 7 dollars more.The usb can be solved by either buying the oringnal board. Cause I didnt really check compatiblilty for that stuff.. I can tell you the specs of my computer (which isnt bad) If you want. But it aslo only has 2 usp ports and you need a video card and a harddrive and a moniter.. But yeah. You could also just buy an extra usb card..
As I sit up in my bed looking at all the stars, I begin to wonder... WHERE THE HECK IS MY ROOF!?<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by karamazov on 09/23/04 07:32 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[dd_viper]

you can get 400 FSB outta a 2500 mobile o/ced? i would need some more opinions to swing my decision, but u got the first push.

 

[karamazov]

I dont even know why I talk.. Dont listen to me anymore.

As I sit up in my bed looking at all the stars, I begin to wonder... WHERE THE HECK IS MY ROOF!?

 

[dd_viper]

i stand corrected. the lower the cas latency the better. whoops, what the [-peep-] was i thinking.

 

[endyen]

The xp-m will run at 220fsb 440 double data rate (DDR) without problem. They will do that with a multiplier of 10.5, and some have been known to do 220 X 12. I ran mine at 220 X 11 for gaming.
The stock speed of the xp3200+ is 11 X 200, or 2.2 ghz, the xp2800+ runs at 2.08 ghz.
I'm not all that happy with Acer/aopen. I would recommend the Abit NF-7S board instead.

 

[dd_viper]

alright got some new ideas.
i am still keeping the same price, but changing components.

Kingwin mutant X gaming case, with 430 watt psu ($62)
(2) Corsair VS256MB400 256MB DDR400 PC3200 CAS2.5 Value Select Memory Retail ($86 total)
Chaintech FX5900XT GPU ($175)
Western Digital 80GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model WD800JD ($69)
Alps Black 3.5inch Floppy Disk Drive ($10)
Artec DHM-G48-BR 16X IDE DVD ($29)
Samsung 52x32x52 CD-RW Drive ($33)
Thermaltake SILENT BOOST ($23)
ViewSonic E90B 19" CRT Monitor ($181)
Arctic Silver Premium Silver Polysynthetic Silver Thermal Compound ($8)

ok now i have another decsion. A Athlon XP 2800 Barton 333 FSB 512 cache CPU ($135) and a AOpen NForce 2 Ultra 400 AMD socket A ($85. OR a Asus K8V-X mobo ($88) with a64 2800+ socket 754 ($143).

 

[davemar14]

Looks pretty good to me. I would go Athlon64. The XP 3200+ is = a Athlon 64 2800+, so the Athlon64 setup would be faster for gaming.

 

[Mr5oh]

Well actually the 2800+ chip you picked out will also overclock pretty well. I personally run my at 2.6 ghz.

As for latencies, they really don't make as big of a difference as they used to.

Check out this link:
<A HREF="http://www.tomshardware.com/motherboard/20040119/index.html" target="_new">http://www.tomshardware.com/motherboard/20040119/index.html</A>


The 64-bit chip would also be a good choice, being the same price, probably a better choice.

Also another suggestion, for the price you are spending on a DVD, and CD-RW drive, a single layer DVD burner, may be a better choice.



My Desktop: <A HREF="http://Mr5oh.tripod.com/pc.html" target="_new">http://Mr5oh.tripod.com/pc.html</A>

 

[dd_viper]

im not planning on o/cing the cpu at all. my friend would rather have a dvd drive and a cdrw than one dvdrw. But thanks for your suggestions