bad time for my first build?

[gamekid]

hi everyone, im new to the forums and am planning on building my first computer!!

i generally know what i want but i am hearing all this stuff about NF4, dual cores, and everything switching to PCI slots. this does not look like a good time for me to build my system with all this stuff coming out in the next few months, i am going to use the system for gaming a lot and will need to be able to use it for a long time with some upgrades to RAM or getting another harddrive, small stuff like that,

thanks for any advise, i really apprieciate it

 

[Xatrix]

I am in the same boat as you.

What I have done is identified the tech that I think will be useful for what I will be using the comptuer for, and I have decided to wait for THAT tech to come out.

Once that tech is out I will begin reading reviews and deciding on what to buy that is using that tech.

 

[oneshot47]

Every time is a bad time. That said, i think the best time coming up will be after nf4 is out in a month or so. PCIe anything other that video cards arent going to supplant pci anytime soon and dual cores have a long way to go before an affordable desktop model will be out.

 

[LordPhoenix]

nah go ahead. i'm doing my first build

there is never a good time for a build.

 

[Chronoshock]

Yeah sadly, it always seems like something is new around the corner, but try to wait for price drops (perhaps another one before the holiday shopping season?) and any major releases (ie new cores for graphics cards/processors, mobo chipsets if they seem to offer significant performance benefits). Just don't get into the cycle of "I'll wait for X to come out" because you'll be stuck there forever.

 

[DrCool]

gamekid

yeah, i hate to break this to you.. but that's just the way this industry works. were currently looking at an economy that is growing by the day, and technology is finally getting back into the groove.. were are starting to see technological advances, like we saw back in the late 90's.. which is only good thing for all us consumers. More choice, more brands, lower prices.. etc.

there will always be something 'new & shiny' to buy.. that's capitalism for you!

 

[Fern]

Originally posted by: gamekid
hi everyone, im new to the forums and am planning on building my first computer!!

i generally know what i want but i am hearing all this stuff about NF4, dual cores, and everything switching to PCI slots. this does not look like a good time for me to build my system with all this stuff coming out in the next few months, i am going to use the system for gaming a lot and will need to be able to use it for a long time with some upgrades to RAM or getting another harddrive, small stuff like that,

thanks for any advise, i really apprieciate it

Unless you got a strong rig now, I say go for it. Why waste time not gaming!

Doesn't sound like you plan to upgrade cpu's & vid card's, so maybe no need to plan your new rig around an "upgrade path" (like skt 939 and PCIe). Think about a skt 754 cpu (64bit) and get the best (AGP) graphics card you can.

My .02

Fern

 

[Comparisonman]

I agree, the first time getting into the computer market is usually going to cost you a pretty penny, but don't worry because by the next time you upgrade you should be ready since you'll know about the "best bang for the buck" deals and such. Of course, you can get that now, but don't expect to have the best upgradability. Just be ready to have to spend money when the time comes and look for the best value at that time. Good luck.

 

[Demo24]

Id jsut wiat for nforce 4 then go for it. dual cores wont even be for desktops till around this time next year and you know they will be super expensive. also anandtech said that it wont really help in gaming and that a faster single core one would probably be a smarter solution.

 

[gamekid]

yeah i kind of thought that, but i think i want to get a 939 socket computer because with the computer i am going to build, i want to use it for a long time and will probably upgrade if i can afford it.

i am currently in the 10th grade in a high school and am probably going to bring the computer with me to college, i am smart and do good in school so im probably going to be in college for a while( im either thinking buisness or like computer science, but im still not sure...i change my mind almost every week) and i will probably get a completely new rig after i get a job making lots and lots and lots of $$$$$$$$$$$$, hopefully.

 

[beatle]

Keep in mind if you're on a budget and you're waiting for the next new thing, it will likely ruin your budget when it arrives. New tech is always more expensive (sometimes by a lot) and sometimes it's not even all it's cracked up to be. Not buying bleeding edge stuff will allow you to upgrade more often and keep your machine updated without blowing all your savings.

 

[gamekid]

im not really worried about haveing the best rig or newest tech, but even if i cant afford the new tech, most likely the older tech will drop in price, i think this will happen to NF3 mobos because i see a lot of people are waiting on the NF4's

 

[lavagirl669]

I would hang tight for a month or so.

But you will always have something new coming along, it never ends.

 

[Vee]

Originally posted by: LordPhoenix
nah go ahead. i'm doing my first build

there is never a good time for a build.

Exactly! Get some stuff fitting your budget and time. (life's short, kid) Never mind that "wait for..." stuff.
Also, I would say things like PCI-E, DDR2, BTX, SLI, possibly even dual channel 939 (for value builders) are the most unexciting *wait-for* hardware :thumbsdown: for a very long time, even considering recent 'SATA' :roll:.

Why wait for that? The things you could need, 64-bit compatibility (and possibly 3.0 shaders, though real usefulness may be a good while yet), are available, and doesn't really cost more.

...just get A64, nF3 and 6800something (prefferably GT).

 

[gamekid]

i was planning on getting a:

MSI neo2 platinum with the NF3 ultra chipset
amd athlon 64 3500+
6800GT 256mb
sound blaster audigy 2 ZS PCI sound card
Western Digital 200GB 7200rpm SATA
and im not intirely sure on the monitor, optical drives, case/psu, or ram(thinking on getting one 1gb stick and then getting another later)

 

[ts3433]

Vee said it quite well. I am a high school freshman and I recently built my first computer; after reading similar advice (and finally establishing that I don't know when or if I will have the time or interest for PC gaming), I decided to forgo high-performance stuff and built the cheap box I have right now. (This is the inverse situation of yours, but I think still possibly a bit relevant)

 

[gamekid]

good point, your around my age, i really dont have that much time on my hands with school and homework. i think i might drop the processor down a bit and maybe downgrade from the RAM i was thinking about. other than that, i can make this system fit my budget quite nicely~$1000, a bit more, and if the 6600gt cards play the latest games, i might get one of those..........i have some thinking to do

 

[Mrvile]

Personally I'd wait for NF4 since the MB's won't cost much more than they do now (maybe 20 more bucks?). Stick with a 6600GT for now, since they can handle the latest games on lower resolutions, and when you get an extra 200 bucks get another one, SLI them, and you'll get almost twice the performance power.

 

[Bitpower]

You definitely need a 6800 card. If necessary spend less on another part, like cpu or memory or motherboard.

Because a slower computer with a 6800 GT can kick the butt out of a faster computer that has an older card.

If on the other hand you buy the fastest CPU and motherboard, then you get a video card that is one generation behind, then someone with a slower CPU and motherboard could probably beat your system.

 

[gamekid]

back to the 6800GT

 

[Skipholiday]

6800 GT rocks and most that I have seen oc to ultra with no problem

 

[ts3433]

What you posted above (OP) is a good start. Keeping the 6800 GT would be a very wise decision. However, I might suggest the following:
Downgrade your processor to a 939 90nm 3000+ or 3200+ (they're all said to OC to 2.6 GHz just the same IIRC, and even at stock shouldn't be much of a bottleneck) and possibly get a slightly cheaper board if there is one.
You will not need the Audigy 2 ZS if you do not have a super-high-end speaker setup (If onboard doesn't cut it, try a Chaintech AV710).
Dump the SATA drive for a regular IDE drive--SATA is not worth it right now and in some circumstances can limit OCing ability.
With 939 you probably want to run your RAM in dual channel (even though it's a marginal benefit), so get 2x512 value PC3200 sticks (PC3500 or higher for serious CPU/RAM OCing).
I also have a case recommendation for you, since you aren't sure. I have an Antec SLK3700AMB and it is very nice (quiet too if I don't run my processor fan full blast). Ditch the PSU for above mild-moderate overclocking, though, in favor of a unit with better 12V amperage.

 

[SickBeast]

It's both a bad time and a good time. There won't be any significantly faster processors released over the next year, but motherboards and graphics cards are in a period of great change. If you can hold off for one more month you'll be golden.

 

[Losty]

dude ... if like everyone said ... if you decide to wait ... you'll be waiting forever ...
these days ... technology advances so fast that you'll be wishing you waited for blah blah to come out.

i'd just get something that you want now ... and upgrade later. If you get a 939 just for upgrading ... you don't really know when you'll want to upgrade ... could be in two years ... for all you know ... 939 might be out of use in 2 years ...

i'm going to build a chaintech vnf 250 w/ an athlon64 2800 and 1gb 3500 memory and possibly a raedeon9800pro ... it's going to be pretty cheap ... and if i do decide on upgrading my cpu/mobo in the next year or two it won't cost more than a 200 upgrade ... most of the time i change my cpu with my mobo ... never really just upgraded a cpu before ... but for this system i think i could live with it for another 3-4 years ... up to you buddy... good luck

 

[imported_Kiwi]

Originally posted by: Xatrix
What I have done is identified the tech that I think will be useful for what I will be using the computer for, and I have decided to wait for THAT tech to come out.

Computer buying and computer building have both always faced a particular problem based on the very rapid evolution of our PC's. There is always some new thing right around the corner. Always. In other words, before you buy a first one, or perform an upgrade, whatever, you can always find an excuse to wait for something that isn't available yet.

If you need a computer for anything at all, there is already some level of computer hardware available to use for that. You may need to sharpen the definition of the uses you will put the computer to, and the real fact is that for the most part we now have a lot more hardware capability than we have software for handling those chores. Software, even gaming software, has almost always lagged behind hardware.

Before the popularity of the internet, the most popular BUSINESS uses of computers -- data bases, spread sheets, and word processing, could all be handled with aplomb by the 386's and 486's we used back before there were Pentiums, or Windows9-whatever, or browsing on the web. Even today, 90-95% of everything that PC owners do with their systems can almost all be performed quite well by the hardware being sold about three or four years ago.

Don't use excuses about whatever next new greatest thing is right around the corner to put off doing the PC thing. Maybe just start somewhat less ambitiously. And this is a really great thing about the rapidity of changes. I'm shopping for an FX 5800 (or maybe even an FX 5900) about a year after it was brand new (they were); instead of $350 to $400, I fully expect to get it for about $130. Wait just a little while, use a less expensive temporary piece, and the followup thing arrives, forcing prices down for those of us with small PC budgets!




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