Build new system now or should I wait?...

[prism]

Alright, I'm planning on building a new gaming system sometime soon, and I need some advice from you guys. My current plan is as follows:
AMD Athlon 64 3200+
Asus K8V SE Deluxe
Corsair Value Select 512MB PC-3200
Rounded off with my old Western Digital 40GB 7200 RPM HD with a 8M buffer and my G4 FX5200 (yes I know it's not exactly state-of-the-art, so don't tease me )

Does this sound like a good setup? Eventually I'll add a 9800 and another 512MB RAM. My only concerns are that as of now I've noticed that the 3200+ doesn't seem to add much performance to the 3000+, but in the future the extra 512k cache could come in handy. Also, I've noticed that many of you use the Athlon 2500+ XP-M and overclock the heck out of it. Would this be a viable option for someone who's never overclocked before? And any recommendations on what model 9800 I should get (Pro/XT and what brand)?

And my biggest concern is that soon many new Athlons will be released, albeit with a lower L2 cache, and mobos with PCI Extreme and the new video cards from ATi and NVidia. I know that there's new stuff constantly coming out and prices are always going down, but these seem like big innovations that will take over the older generation, so would prices on my current list of components drop dramatically?

Oh, and any recommendations on a power supply and cheap, sturdy case?

Any advice and help is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Shyatic]

I'm personally waiting till the end of June since the new Socket 939 will be out (and more upgradable too), so I can buy a 3000+ chip, pop it into a 939 and then have a lot further reach down the CPU spectrum later on. That way I can benefit from the speed of the 3000+ NOW, and then upgrade later and still not have paid the premium I would on the 3200+.

As per the 9800... yea that's what I'd go for probably though my gaming tendencies lend me to probably spend more on that graphics card and opt for the X800... but that's just me. The 9800 will overclock well also, so you can get a nice cooler for that baby and OC the card.

 

[Algere]

If you intend to upgrade again during your system's life then I'd wait.

In my case, I decided to upgrade my system completely the next time the upgrade bug hits me so the socket 754/939 didn't really affect my buying decision @ the time.

Last thing

PCI-E = PCI Express

 

[nick1985]

well your going to want to add more than 512k of ram. 512 megs should do.

 

[prism]

Thank you nick for your observation on my horrid typo .

So the current Socket 754 CPUs can go into a Socket 939 mobo??

 

[Algere]

Definitely not

CPU w/ 754 Pins = not the same as CPU w/ 939 Pins

ergo not compatible with socket 939 based motherboards.

 

[jrphoenix]

Definately wait... see what if any performance gains you will see with the new chips in the new socket. The worst that will happen is the socket 754 may become more affordable.

 

[sailor420]

I too would wait a few months for the Socket 939 mobos. No sense in being caught with an incompatible system in just a few months...