building a new computer, want it to be a BEAST!

[patton art]

Hello,
I decided to build a computer for myself. I don't really care too much about 3d processing, but 2d processing is very important.
I do a lot of digital painting. I need a computer that will have no problem pushing around an image with 3,000 x 5,000 pixels, multiple layers, and has no prob with photoshop and painter.
I don't play many games and don't do any 3d graphics. Though if I could get a graphics card that does 2d and 3d both good, I won't mind

I have no experience building computers, but my friend has built quite a few and went to vo-tech for building them. He doesn't live REALLY close, so I'd like to get the parts together and go up to his house and do it one day.

My current funding is 1,400... though I need money for next semester in college, so I'd like to spend around 700-900. I hear pricewatch is the best place for getting parts... I think everything here came out to around 800.

I was thinking something around this:
2 ghz Athlon XP processor
2 512 MB sticks of DDR ram (that PC 3500 kind, i guess) or would one 1 gig stick be better? I mean, later on I might be able to put in ANOTHER 1 gig stick, right? 2 gigs of ram would be NICE
a 20 GB 7200 rpm hard drive (could I get any more space with the same speed around the same price?)
and then a good graphics card, which i know NOTHING about

what else will I need? I was hoping to use some parts from my old computer... like the sound card, moniter, maybe the case, etc etc. Oh yeah, I had a gateway performance 500, in case you're wondering...

Can anyone help me out here? I don't know what I need to get... I don't want to get stuff, take it to my friends house, and then find out it's totally incompatible! I have no idea of telling what works with what!

PLEASE help me here...

Here's what I was hoping to get, but again, I don't know if this is all compatible:

Processor:
with cpu - Athlon XP 2600+, 2.13GHz 333MHz, with Heatsink & Fan. Complete Combo kit
(Part - CB00358)

RAM:
512MB DDR433 PC-3500 Life time warranty. Copper heat spreader included. Timings: CAS2.5 3-6-3 2T
(Part - MMOCZ3500-512)

HD:
20.0GB EIDE 7200rpm UDMA with 1 year

BUT i could spend a little more and get more HD space... I don't need much, but more would always be nice... I care more about speed than space.

40.0GB EIDE, 7200Rpm, 2MB BUFFER (OEM, WHITE LABEL, 8 Months Warranty).

Video card:
GeForce3 TI200 (128MB)GOLDEN SAMPLE (RETAIL PACKAGE)
(Part - VC-118-134)
I know NOTHING about video cards... I really hope someone can help me out here. I just need something that pushes pixels around fast and has a lot of memory for photoshop and big digital paintings.

what else will i need? a new case? new power supply? help me out here please... lemme know if all this is compatible!

 

[patton art]

sorry again

sorry about replying to my own post here... but i forgot..
i'll need to be able to connect my good ol' tablet to my PC, so I'll need to make sure there's some (well... 1) open USB ports...
I dunno... that probably sounds dumb, but oh well, I'm a newb!

 

[ikellen]

Since you dont need much for gaming, I would say to look into a simple mobo, maybe even like a Dell or Gateway machine.

 

[Ecniv]

Here are my suggestions for a beast:

MSI Dual Athlon MP Motherboard
Couple MP 2000+ Procs
1gb crucial ddr, 1 stick
Striped raid, 2 7200 rpm HD's Western Digital
for 2 video proccessing, something high end by Matrox.

 

[Martin]

^^^ Hahaha, definitely a must have if you have the money, and do some heavy work with CPU-taxing applications

For your budget, a Thoroughbred Athlon XP 1800+ (1.53 GHz) has very good performance and runs quite cool as well - I would suggest anything up to the 2000+ (1.67 GHz) model. You will need a motherboard for the new CPU, but IMO either the ASUS A7V333 (KT333), ASUS A7V8X (KT400), MSI KT3 Ultra ARU2 (KT333) or the MSI KT4 Ultra (KT400) works well.

For RAM, 512 MB is plenty enough, but it would be ideal to get 1 GB if 512 isn't cutting it for you. PC2700 sticks are getting quite cheap now, and if you will be using a KT400 based motherboard, PC3200 is ideal.

For HDD, get at least somewhere within the range of 40-60 GB, 80 GB even. 20 gigs just ain't cutting it for the large amount of space apps these days eat up.

Video card:

GeForce4 Ti 4200 64 MB as a baseline, but check out the Radeon 9500 cards as well.

Extra (essential) stuff:

An Athlon processor functions best in a case with good airflow - you may need to consider a new one if the current one has absymal airflow. Some I would recommend are from Antec and Chieftec. As for the power supply, anything less than 300W max. output is bordering on RISK. If you are thinking of using multiple HDD's and add anything else which eats up power, consider no less than 400W.

 

[ikellen]

I would agree with most suggestions, but you definitly dont need a card in the caliber of a GFTi4200 or Radeon 9500. Since you are working with CPU intensinve tasks, I would look at some of the higher P4's especially the new 3.06ghz P4 as hyperthreading will help you alot with what you're doing.

 

[Vivec]

Well...I know somwhere along the line you will need this...Gateway has recently sold 500mb stix. I really roccomend this....

 

[h4x0r]

I work a whole lot in 3d Graphics and Animation as well as 2d. If u need extreme efficiency for 2d graphics, I recomend Athlon 2200 XP. 512 DDR, GeForce 4200.

Also get a 19" monitor. Fits nicely to any graphics designing machine.

 

[b.dave]

a cheap system would work well, i mean nothing really crap but a nice cheap lttle system then you can do what you want to it when you have the money

 

[Disciple]

Im not a machintosh fan, but if u just want to do graphics, I think the machintosh would be suitable for your needs....just a thought...