Building a new system and need advice

[jweiner]

I'll try to keep it short as possible. I hope you guys can help me make up my mind.

I've been bying pieces here and there when great deals show up and Im ready to build a new system. Initially the plan was to make it for one of my kids, but I might make it mine and pass my old one down the line.

Anyways, I want a decent gaming PC but it doesnt have to be top o the line (hopefully good enough to play Doom3 when it comes out). I have just about everything except CPU/MB/Heatsink/Fan and I cant decide

Of the 3 choices of AMD Athalon XP/Pentium4/Celeron which one would produce the best performance bang for the buck?
Can Celeron machines be good gaming PCs?

Are Pentium4 or Celeron PCs signifcantly quieter (aka require less fans and/or slower fans) than AMD PCs? My current AMD 1600+ PC is louder than I would like it to be. Ive tried everything short of watercooling but no matter what fans I try its still too loud for me. As an example of what kind of quiet I am looking for, we recently have been getting in Dell or Compaq destops at work and , with the case open and it on a desk 5 or 6 feet away, I often have to look closely to see if the fans are spining to tell if it is on. Thats the kind of quiet I am looking for.

And, of course, I do not want my PC to be running hot. My current one is also running at high temps (in the 60-70 degree range) and its not overclocked. I got the worst of both worlds there , too loud and too hot. I want to avoid that as much as possible.

So, I guess Im looking for the miracle solution. Silent, low temps, good performance, and did I mention cheap?

Any Advice?

JW

 

[nick1985]

all i gotta say is, no, celeron machines cannot be good high-end gaming machines

 

[Maezr]

stay away from celeron.

as far as the noise... it's not the cpu that's loud, it's the fans, or the hds. the cpu itself has nothing to do with it (although the hotter the cpu runs, the faster the fan you would need).

 

[JulesMaximus]

I recently built a P4 2.4GHz system for my wife and quiet was the goal with this system also. I bought all the right stuff, Zalman cooler, quiet power supply, Lian Li PC-52B case but you can still hear it. It's not bad mind you but compared to the P4 2.4GHz Dell system I just bought for my Mother-In-Law it is a wind tunnel. With the Dell you literally cannot tell it is on without looking at it to see if the power light is illuminated. It is whisper silent.

I also have an AMD Athlon system I built up for myself and it is louder than the P4 but that is due to the extra case fans I added and my power supply isn't the quietest around either. It's not bad though and I have a variable speed fan on my CPU that turns between 1500 and 3100 rpm (2500 and you can barely hear it). See sig below for specs on my system.

As for cooling and temps I've noticed that the P4 doesn't run that much cooler than the AMD chips do. They require an effective cooling solution and that means fans. Check out the Zalman coolers if you are looking for silent (they are pricey though) or just buy a Dell and put a decent video card in it.

Oh yeah, stay away from Celeron for a gaming system. P4 or AMD Athlon is the only way to go.

 

[SkaarjMaster]

If you want a CPU that runs cooler, then get a Pentium4. The AMDs tend to run a little warmer. As far as the heatsink and fan, try getting a fan that's not so loud, but still has high CFM ratings. It's kinda a trade off between keeping the CPU cool and noise. Usually, the cooler you keep the CPU the noisier it will be, but there can be a happy medium. Maybe try the Thermaltake Spark 7 HS/fan combo for your new Pentium4 chip. There's also a passive heatsink solution for CPUs, but I don't have any experience with this one (also check out the Zalman coolers as suggested above as another choice). Also, make sure you use Artic Silver 3 between the CPU and heatsink as a thermal paste and scrap off any thermal pad that may be on the heatsink beforehand.

Good luck with your new system!

 

[Budmantom]

It's hard to compare a home-built to a Dell (noise), it can be done but it's not always easy.

Tom

Oh yeah, stay away from celeries.

 

[optimistic]

How a case is built and it's PSU (Power Supply) can determine how much noise your rig will put out. Get a case that allows air to flow freely through it's fan grills the least obstrucitons possible. Air that has to pass through a net of metal will make a lot of noise. Also reseach carefully if the power supply you're getting has a reputation of being loud. I find that the PSU can be the loudest part of the rig.

The retail fan that comes with the P4 is already plenty quiet. I don't think you'll have to go looking for an aftermarket one.

I know you already bought these parts but, for future reference these brands I find our the quietest.
LG / Samsung Optical drives
Seagate Hard Disk Drives
Certain models of Enermax & Antec PSUs

 

[jweiner]

Thanks for all of your advice. As far as cases, do you have any suggestions as far as good airflow and quiet as possible?

 

[SkaarjMaster]

Get a full-tower case for the room for cooling and installing components! Once you get one, you'll never go back. Use round cables for the IDE/optical devices. It's kinda hard finding a good looking full-tower computer case these days, so watch out for those ugly dogs, hehe.

As far as which case to get, that's your call for how you want it to look. Lian-Li has the best cases, but you gotta pay a pretty penny! Right now I have a Foxconn full-tower and will probably get a Lian-Li PC-70 for my next one.

 

[Corporate Thug]

athlon XP will give you the best bang for the buck

this talk about it running hotter is nonsense, get yourself a nice HSF and see how cool it runs. the default voltage on my chip is 1.5V and even on 1.65V it is only running 36C!!! true this temp isnt the most accurate but on the same token, i use an abit mobo for my intel setup and i get about the same temps

 

[Mikesta]

Originally posted by: shady06
athlon XP will give you the best bang for the buck

this talk about it running hotter is nonsense, get yourself a nice HSF and see how cool it runs. the default voltage on my chip is 1.5V and even on 1.65V it is only running 36C!!! true this temp isnt the most accurate but on the same token, i use an abit mobo for my intel setup and i get about the same temps

Yes indeed amd is the best bang for the buck if you dont have the money to spend on a p4 cpu or anything and also get something like a slk900 if your motherboard geometry is fit and have enough space for that huge heatsink a alternative is a aeroflow