New to the forum

[n3wt3ch]

Hi Everyone,

I'm new to the forum and to computer building and I wanted to introduce myself. My name is Mike and after working in web programming freelance for about 4 years I just landed a job in System Building/Administration and PC Support for a decent sized engineering company. I'm really excited about my new position and learning about the other side of IT. Up untill 2 weeks ago I had never even opened a box and now I feel comfortable digging in and have even started the project of building my own system. I'm pretty much still clueless right nolw but I'm learning a ton. So far I've got my case, mobo and PSU and have my heart set on the ATI Radeon X800XL for video. Still haven't decided for sure on a CPU but so far the Athlon 64 3200+ is looking pretty good.

I am also having a problem with one of my old systems that won't start (totally my fault ) Here's the link in case anyone can help

http://www.techist.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=57511

Well, that's enough rambling for now! See you all in the forums

 

[woot7800GT]

Welcome to the community, Mike. But, try out a 6800 Ultra instead of that X800XL. Just a suggestion.

 

[idiotec]

Welcome to the community, Mike. But, try out a 6800 Ultra instead of that X800XL. Just a suggestion.

Ultra??? Just get the 6800GT. The 800XL performs very well, but doesn't have PS3.

 

[Powerslave]

Personally, I would wait until the new graphics cards come out.

 

[003]

Dude, why the **** would you get an X800XL??? Get a 6800GT!

 

[n3wt3ch]

Personally, I would wait until the new graphics cards come out.

Just wondering what the advantage is and when the new ones are coming out? So far I really liked the X800XL because it got good reviews, what counts when it comes to video cards? What is the minimum I should be looking for? Heres my current spec and what I'm planning on getting

Parts I have:
Enermax 535W PSU (Dual 12V rails, SLI connector x2, PCI Express, SATA, Dual Fans)
DFI LanParty UT nF4-D (Socket 939, NVIDIA nForce4, AMD)
A-TOP X-Blade Case.

Parts I'd like to get:
AMD Athlon 64 CPU at least 2.0GHZ and 512 L2 Cache, HyperTransport
1GB PC3200 DDR400 RAM (Dual Channel, Planning on adding another Gig later)
Internal DVD-R RW DL Burner
Internal DVD Player
3.5 Floppy
Good Video Card around $300US (open to suggestions)
Some sort of TV Tuner card (or mabye a good graphics card that incorporates one into the card)
Suitable sound card for gaming and watching TV

Am I on the right track so far? Any suggestions for a guy just getting into it?

 

[David2004]

Ya, looks good so far. For the processor, the venice core 3200+ is great. For the 1GB, it depends, if you are going to overclock get eithr OCZ or G.Skill. If not, just get 1GB of twinMOS(value ram, but good). for the DVD drives, NEC are great. Video card.. Leadtek 6800GT its 365 right now, but after the new cards come out(later this month?)prices will drop if you want to wait. hope this helps and GL on the build!

 

[pc_boy]

welcome to Tech Forums, i was clueless like you and now i already built 4 systems and they're all great!!!!

 

[n3wt3ch]

Thanks David. I'm looking forward to getting everything setup, but the fact is that It's probably going to take at least a month for me to aquire all the components to complete my system so waiting is no problem.

I have an update on my startup problem as well. I found out the option I enabled was under the PC Health Status Menu and is labelled "CPU protect for CPU Fan" and is automatically enabled. Another key note to mention is that the PC Health monitor did not show my CPU or system fans as running (although when I started it a minute ago with the case open they both were running before it shut off). Apparently from what I read in the manual the feature I enabled turns the system off immediatley if it doesn't show the fans are running so I've got that narrowed down.

Do you guys things think that clearing the CMOS would work. And on that note. I have a question about clearing the CMOS (because it doesn't explicitly define it in the book): Once the jumper is set in the "clear" position is the next step to plug the computer in and then start it or do you just set the jumper and then switch it back before starting the machine? Also, what steps do I need to take after resetting the CMOS to get my system to run correctly?