A challange

[MoneyMike]

If I gave you $2,000 could you make me a computer that had the following:

P4 2.53 Ghz @ 533Mhz
4X256 PC1066 RDRAM
Intel 850E Motherboard
120GB IDE Hardrive
Geforce4 Ti4600
40X CD-RW
DVD-RW (any kind)
19" Digital Flat panel (any kind)

And anything else you need to finish it off, cables, fans, etc...

Do this and I will be impressed. Voodoo sells this config for a high price. yes they are cheap. But impress me. If I had any left over money after that, id let you keep it (out of the $2,000).


My computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.

 

[garett]

do you like ubid.com?

 

[chuck232]

NOPE. (unless you did the ubid/ebay stuff. I don't like that stuff though) From a repected retailer, you'll never get that.

Falling down stairs saves time

 

[Smokey]

Sorry dude, I tried for you. Here's a copy/paste of a newegg shopping cart (reliable vendor) with your specs: 3,117$, WITHOUT shipping & with decent components...

CD Recorder/Rewritable Drive
Lite On 40X12X48 CDRW Model: LTR40125S-Full OEM with
----$68.00
DVD+RW DVD-RAM DVD-R Drive
----$299.00
Hard Drives - IDE
MAXTOR 120.0GB 5400RPM Model # 4G120J6 D540X - OEM,
----$152.00
Memory - PC (RAMBUS)
4x KINGSTON KVR1066X18-8/256 RAMBUS 256MB 1066MHZ ECC -
----$636.00
Monitors - LCD Flat Panel
CTX 19 INCH LCD Model# SV900MD - RETAIL 19" Diag
----$890.00
Motherboards - Intel
Special Deal!!! Intel P4 Motherboard D850EMD2 For P4
----$139.00
Processors - Intel Pentium 4
Intel Pentium 4 / 2.53GHz Northwood 512K Socket 478
----$638.00
VGA CHAINTECH GEFORCE4 TI4600 128MB VGA & TV-OUT, DVI -
----$295.00


Subtotal » $3,117.00


<font color=purple>Pentiums are for wusses who are afraid of instability</font color=purple>

 

[bront]

The cheepest Flat Panel monitor I could find that was 19" was almost $900!

Other than that, I could do it with about $100 to spare (an extra $140 if you don't need to write DVD-R). However, you'd have to live with a 2.0A P4 OCed to 2.66.

English is phun.

 

[bront]

Oooh, Caseless too

English is phun.

 

[MoneyMike]

ok, let me lighten up a bit here.

Forget the DVD-RW drive(still want a like a 16X DVD drive), and ill settle for a 17' Flat panel.

what can you get now?
(thanks for the effort)

My computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.

 

[buddry]

Show us a link to this computer at voodoo. I doubt they would build that for you for $2000.

<font color=red>God</font color=red> <font color=white>bless</font color=white> <font color=blue>the</font color=blue> <font color=red>U</font color=red><font color=white>S</font color=white><font color=blue>A</font color=blue>

 

[MoneyMike]

never said they did. take a little more time to read what I said, and I quote myself "Voodoo sells this config for a high price". I said a high price. They sell systems at 2,000 but not at the config i want.

My computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.

 

[bront]

Why do you need a flat pannel monitor anyway? CRT, while bigger, have a better display and don't have any image refresh issues.

Anyway, I can do it for $450 under your $2000 price tag W/O the monitor with the Overclocked 2.0A running at 533 at 2.66, or $50 with a 2.53 running at 2.53.

Lowest price on a Flat Panel 17" is around 500. I've seen them lower, but they're usable for Office and some web browsing, and that's it.

English is phun.

ED: BTW, that's with a 32x12x48 CD-RW, 16X DVD, Leadtek Video card, Asus Motherboard, and Western Digital 7200 RPM 8MB Cache Drive.

ED: Oops, that was only a 100 GB, the 120 GB is $25 more.<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by Bront on 07/16/02 03:51 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[Smokey]

My setup only had a 5400 2mb cache HD, a better brand Vcard (no offense Chaintech owners!), no case, and Bront STILL beat me.

To save money, I was hoping to construct the case with the excess packing materials. Bubble wrap OWNZ!

<font color=purple>Pentiums are for wusses who are afraid of instability</font color=purple>

 

[MoneyMike]

ok, that sounds good.

But i really don't like OC'ing...isn't it unstable?

What would it be with a 2.53Ghz, 120GB 8MB cache, and any 19" or nicer monitor?

My computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.

 

[AMD_Man]

But i really don't like OC'ing...isn't it unstable?

You can't dislike something you've never tried!

<b><i>"A penny saved is a penny earned!"</i></b>

 

[pr497]

Anyway, I can do it for $450 under your $2000 price tag W/O the monitor with the Overclocked 2.0A running at 533 at 2.66, or $50 with a 2.53 running at 2.53

overclocking the P4 2A to 2.66 isnt as easy as pie...just so you know...

<b>L <font color=red>A</font color=red> e <font color=red>T</font color=red> a <font color=red>I</font color=red> K</b>

 

[AMD_Man]

P4 2.53 Ghz @ 533Mhz
4X256 PC1066 RDRAM
Intel 850E Motherboard
120GB IDE Hardrive
Geforce4 Ti4600
40X CD-RW
DVD-RW (any kind)
19" Digital Flat panel (any kind)

You'll get 90%-130% of the performance of that system (depending on if you overclock or not) for a lot less if you get the following:

P4 2.26GHz @ 2.55GHz (bare minimum overclock, it should do over 2.8GHz stably with stock HSF)
2*256MB PC1066
Asus P4T533-C
Western Digital 120GB HD w/ 8MB cache
MSI Geforce4 Ti4600
Lite-On 40X/12X/48X
16X Pioneer DVD-ROM Drive
17" Samsung 171S LCD monitor
Antec Plus1080


<b><i>"A penny saved is a penny earned!"</i></b>

 

[eden]

Hey AMD_Man, is your Retail P4 HSF overall silent? Basically is the new P4 system entirely silent, or much less than a Volcano 7 on a Hawaiian trip day?!

--
Intel and AMD sitting under a tree, P-R-O-C-E-S-S-I-N-G!

 

[AMD_Man]

The P4 HSF also appears to be variable speed but it's max RPM appears to be 3000RPM. I get anywhere from 2200RPM to 3000RPM. It's anywhere from completely silent to a small hum. So, yes, it is quieter than the Volcano 7 in the summer. In mid-winter, they probably sound the same.

<b><i>"A penny saved is a penny earned!"</i></b>

 

[eden]

WOAH, 3000RPM MAX, now that is weird, for the cooling power it provides, this is serious strengh. They should try using them for AXP cooling, I bet it'd be worth it, silent and may provide decent Retail OCing opportunities!

--
Intel and AMD sitting under a tree, P-R-O-C-E-S-S-I-N-G!

 

[MoneyMike]

>>P4 2.26GHz @ 2.55GHz (bare minimum overclock, it should do over 2.8GHz stably with stock HSF)
2*256MB PC1066
Asus P4T533-C
Western Digital 120GB HD w/ 8MB cache
MSI Geforce4 Ti4600
Lite-On 40X/12X/48X
16X Pioneer DVD-ROM Drive
17" Samsung 171S LCD monitor
Antec Plus1080<<

And how much is this AMD man?


My computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.

 

[baldurga]

Also you can save some money going for the GF4 4200 instead of GF4 4600. You con overclock it and end not so far away from you are looking for. Really you need the 4600?

Also ATI is releasing a new graphic card that can push GF's prices down. If you aren't in a hurry, some extra bucks can be saved.

DIY: read, buy, test, learn, reward yourself!

 

[bront]

OCing is quite stable if taken to reasonable levels, and overclocking the 2.0A to 2.66 (Basicly, running it at 133/533 FSB) should be quite stable.

The prices I listed were without a monitor. A good CRT 19" monitor should run between 300-400, so you can get the OCing system and a monitor for under your $200 budget.

Note, this also doesn't include any software or an OS.

What do you plan to do with your computer? You can probably save some money by doing things like dropping down to a 100 GB HD, 512 MB of Ram (with room for more later), and still have a fantastic system. That should save you 300+ just on those two add ins alone.

English is phun.

 

[bront]

Are there problems with overclocking the 2.0A? From what I've read, it's more likely to work than not by quite a bit.

English is phun.

 

[MoneyMike]

ill settle for a Ti4400, and the OS i use is LinuxRH/XP on a dual boot.

I really would like a 120GB hardrive, (i fill it uyp quick with my progs).

BTW...did anyone here about that new 200GB hardrive?

How far cant the 2.53Ghz OC to?

My computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.

 

[bront]

I don't know about any HD over 160 GB.

The TI4400 is a good choice, saves you an extra 100.

The 2.56 will probably not Overclock quite as well, as it's already running higher, and it's already on a 133/533 FSB. Also, it costs $650, while a 2.0A costs about $200. With a 2.0A clocked at 2.66, you'll get a faster CPU than the 2.56, and for 30% of the price.

You didn't mention anything on the Ram, and very few people need over 512 MB (Heck, most people are good with 256), so if you get half now, and upgrade later if you find you actualy need more, you can save money. Especialy with the prices droping on PC1066.

You've got your own software already, so that's good.

English is phun.

 

[bront]

Ok, here's what I came up with for you with your new specs.

430W PSU
16X DVD
40x12x48 CD-RW
120 GB HD 8MB Cache
2 x 256MB PC1066 (512 MB total)
Asus P4T533-C
P4 2.0A
Leadtek GF4 TI4400
Viewsonic PF790 19"

For about $1600

Adding an additional 512 MB of ram costs about $280 more.
You can get 2 80 GB HD with 8MB Cache for about $50 more.
Upgrading to a TI4600 will be $75 more.
Downgrading to a TI4200 will be $75 less for 64MB, or $50 less for 128MB card.
Moving to a P4 2.26B will be $50 more.
Downgrading to a 380W PSU will cost $5 more (Not everything makes sense in pricing)

This is with a Full tower Chieftec case. Looks very nice (It's the same case as the Antec 1080 I believe, just no PSU comes with it)

English is phun.