Some suggestions/tips for hardware

[gaminlegend38]

Okay, I've compiled this list for a computer I'm building.

ASPIRE X-Infinity ATXB6KLW-BK/420 Black Computer Case With Side Panel Window
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811144076

AMD Athlon 64 3200+ Venice 1GHz FSB 512KB L2 Cache Socket 939 Processor
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819103535

MSI K8N Neo4-F Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4-4X ATX AMD Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813130491

pqi TURBO 1GB (2x512MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820141154

MSI NX6600GT-TD128E Geforce 6600GT 128MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814127147

Logitech X-230 2.1 Speaker
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16836121123

Western Digital Caviar SE WD800JD 80GB 7200 RPM Serial ATA150 Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822135106

ASUS Black IDE DVD Burner Model DRW-1608P
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16827135033

LITE-ON SK-1789/BS 2-Tone PS/2 Wired Slim Keyboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16823107123

Windows XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16837102151

Okay, what I want to know is if there are any items that I could afford to go with a cheaper manufacturer and still see nearly the same performance. Also, is everything compatible on there that I listed?

Feel free to make suggestions on what I should upgrade too, but I'd still like to keep it to the 800-850 dollar range.

 

[FghtinIrshNvrDi]

Motherboard. I know some people will tell you to make the motherboard the backbone of the system. This is partially true, but I think you can get a great motherboard for a great price. I have the ECS Nforce4 [insert model number here]. I have no idea...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813135177

Are you overclocking? If not, go with a 2x512 of something like corsair value ram. It's just as good if you're not going into ram overclocking options.

I'm VERY fond of the price of your keyboard. but you may want to spring a couple bucks instead of being horribly disappointed by the quality, and then having to buy another one in addition. Spend 15 bucks instead.

Processor... Knock 40 bucks off the price and you have an AMD Athlon 64 3000+ in which you can overclock to 3200+ speeds without cooling upgrades... Just a thought.

Overall, I really like your system.

Ryan

 

[gaminlegend38]

I'm not really into the overclocking scene because I personally don't wanna fry the first computer I build. I know I would screw up. Basically, I'm getting this to play some games. Would a 3000+ still be suitable to run BF2 on medium settings at least? If everything goes well, I still might look into the overclocking scene but it sounds pretty dificult to do.

 

[banefulassasin]

http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=A64-3200BW

 

[FghtinIrshNvrDi]

The 3000+ will run any game on high settings currently assuming it is paired with a capable video card. That's why I bought mine! People will encourage you to bump up to the 3200+ because it's always easier to spend someone else's money. The 3000+ is hardly a fraction slower than the 3200+ anyway... Do the math. 3200/3000 = 1.0666

which means... the 3200 is 6.666% faster.

So let's do some figuring. I'll call this my performance/dollar ratio.
Athlon 64 3000+
3000/146 = 20.547 speed 'points' (as I'll call it), per dollar
Athlon 64 3200+
3200/190 = 16.842 speed 'points' per dollar

The CLEAR bang for the buck is the 3000+, which is virtually the same performance chip anyway. I encourage you to go with this choice, as I did.

Ryan

 

[gaminlegend38]

Ok, here is hopefully my final system specs for now:

RAIDMAX Storm ATX-847WTP Gray/Silver 0.8mm Japanese SECC Gaming Case Computer Case 420watts PS2 ATX12V Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811156133

AMD Athlon 64 3000+ Venice 1GHz FSB Socket 939 Processor Model
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819103537

MSI K8N Neo4-F Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4-4X ATX AMD Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813130491

CORSAIR ValueSelect 1GB (2 x 512MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory Model VS1GBKIT400
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145440

MSI NX6600GT-TD128E Geforce 6600GT 128MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814127147

Logitech X-230 2.1 Speaker
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16836121123

Western Digital Caviar SE WD800JD 80GB 7200 RPM Serial ATA150 Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822135106

ASUS Black IDE DVD Burner Model DRW-1608P
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16827135033

AOpen S-500 2-Tone USB + PS/2 Wired Standard MULTIMEDIA Keyboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16823144017

Windows XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16837102151

SONY Black 1.44MB 3.5" Internal Floppy Drive Windows 98SE/ ME/ 2000/ XP
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16821103116

Okay, I have a couple questions.

1.) Do you think I should upgrade my PSU? If so, do you think I could wait until sometime around Christmas for it?

2.) Should I get two 40GB HD's and use RAID or should I just keep it like it is now with one? What's the difference between RAID 0 and RAID 1? Which one should I get?

3.) Do you see any problems with that setup? Is there any compatibility issues or am I good to go?

Feel free to make suggestions, but I'd still like to keep it at the 800 dollar range. Thanks.

 

[The_Tobes99]

i would recommend getting a 256MB grahics. You would be able to play hi-res games better for an extra bit of money.

 

[Elbatrop1]

1) Nah. You have nearly the same system as me. 420W is more than enough, and will leave room for future expansion.

2) It really depends on what you use the computer for. RAID if you dont download massive amounts of movies, games, etc. RAID1=Mirrored drives for redundancy and protection against data loss in the event of a drive failure.
RAID0=Striped drives to increase performance.

3) Like I said, you have a similar system to mine, and I know that I am happy with the performance of my system. I can tell you right now, that if you build with the parts you have listed, you will not be dissapointed.

i would recommend getting a 256MB grahics. You would be able to play hi-res games better for an extra bit of money.

You would be surprised at how little difference that extra 128MB makes...

 

[gaminlegend38]

Okay, thanks for all the help guys.

PS: Today is by birthday!!

 

[The_Tobes99]

happy b'day