Decisions Decisions...

[spyblog]

Ok now it's time to decide brands etc. I'm not really up to date so help me out

Processor - 3200 or 3400? I know it is a lot more cash, but I'm pretty sure I saw some reviews showing big performance differences from the 3200 to 3400. Am I remembering this wrong?

RAM - I first planned on OCZ 2x512 pc3200 Enhanced Latency Platinum RAM. I hear this RAM is very good (fast, solid, reliable) but should I go with more than 3200? I doubt I'll overclock very much. If I didn't overclock at all, would it still be wise to get a little higher speed since I want this PC to last a good while?

Video Card - x800 XT or FX6800? I had my heart set on the x800 but now there is something going on making all past reviews useless? Could someone explain this cheating thing to me and whether x800 is still as good as it seemed? If not, which would be my best choice? I have never had a PC that could run new games with great frames at highest settings, which is why I loved the x800. But, if there is something else to consider, speak up.

Case - I am considering the Aspie X-Superalien but I'm unsure about it. I've read some reviews saying it's good but I have some concerns. Is the PS any good in it? It's 500W which is awesome, but how is it for quality, stability, etc? My other choice was either a medium Thermaltake like Lanfire or a Super Tower. These both are without power supplies, so more money, but would they outdo the Apsire?

HD - How important is hard drive speed for gaming? I always wanted a Raptor, but they're so small I'd need at least two...which I don't want to pay for. Would a Seagate 80GB 7200 still be decent for gaming?

Monitor - Ok, delema (sp?) here. I have a 3 year old monitor from NEC (MultiSync 75) which I want to replace. I was to get a sexy black NEC or Viewsonic, but if I don't need them I'll save the cash. This monitor currently can't go over 1280x1024 and I'm wondering if I need a new monitor to make my games run at better quality?

Motherboard - I hear the K8V Deluxe is good and that was my first idea, but then I thought about the new nForce3 250s coming out, etc. I hear these are awesome for OCing, but if I don't plan to OC very much, or at all, would this still be a good board? Would it be a better choice to run with the K8V?

That should be it and then I'm off to buy buy buy! Thanks.

 

[sirsmokingham]

For the HD don't get SATA unless you know it is true SATA (raptor is) because most of them are just a SATA to ATA133 converter and you get some data corruption (I KNOW DAMN IT) but i have a seagate 80Gb 7200 (2mb cache) ATA 133 and it works pretty good for gaming

 

[The Merlin]

OK.....

1. Yes, the 3400 is quite abit faster than the 3200, so it's your money, so you need to decide if you want to spend that much

2. Well, you can't use any RAM higher than DD400 on AMD64 is do recall......That brand of RAM is very good

3. Well, either way the X800XT is blazing fast.....And Both parties have been accused of optimzing on this round of benchies. You also have to wonder why the optimzations weren't for the new games that count like Far Cry and UT2004. I would go with the X800XT personally because it looks nicer and doens't take up another PCI slot

4. Well, Thermaltake makes excellent cases....I personally own an Aspire though and it has excellent fan placement on it, so maube you could post the link to the cases you are looking at and we'll compare them that way

5. HD's certainly don't make as much of a difference in gaming performance as the rest. The Seagate 7200rpm would be plenty fine, but since those are low priced I'd look at 120gb's just so it is high end like the rest of the system

6. You've got a X800XT or 6800Ultra here baby, so no monitor under 1600x1200 would be worthy of such an awesome system

7. Can't help you much here, but I can say that I would defiantly go with a nForce 250

Good Luck and have fun

 

[Apokalipse]

21" monitor
- preferrably Sony Trinitron from a swap meet for like $400 AUS

Radeon x800 Pro
- dunno if x800's come in XT's, but you've still got an insanely powerful video card

Gigabyte K8N Pro
- really good quality, Nforce3 BIOS, 1600MHZ FSB

Seagate 120GB SATA 7200RPM
- quietest, best quality and aretrue SATA

Corsair Micro, OCZ or Kingston 2x256/2x512MB PC3200

Thermaltake Damier or Lanmoto with Purepower 480W or
butterfly 480W
- the butterfly has 7 colours of LED's
- the Damier is prolly best for space and has got more 'features'

Athlon 64 3400+ socket 754
- outperformed an Athlon 64 FX-51 in some games