Building New Computer--Suggestions?

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HamHam

Senior member
Feb 19, 2001
507
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I have had the same computer setup for about the last 2.5 years and after attempting to "play" BF2 last night, I realize that I have to bite the bullet and build a new computer for myself.

The only real request for this rig would be to be able to play BF2 well. I would like to only spend around 1-1.3k for the computer portion.

Lets get started... ( all items are from newegg)

CPU
AMD 64 3500+ retail $224

Mobo
MSI K8N Neo4/SLi Socket 939 retail $124

dvd-rom
Asus black retail $28


Floppy (just be on the safe side) $11


Hard Drive
Hitachi Deskstar 160gb 7200rpm Sata II OEM 82.50


Ram
2 OCZ 1gb $226


PS
Seasonic 500w - Retail $129
( there is an antec 500w for like $75 in the HB forum, should I go for that?)

Vid Card

ATI 100-X800XL 256 Retail $278


Case

Antec p180 ( directon.com) $123


Sound

SB Live (good deal in HB forum) ~80


I think the total is about 1.3k, might be less if I shop around with pricewatch.

I will prolly also get a dvd burner, any suggestions?


So, any thoughts on the stuff I listed?

Also is there anything new in the works I should wait for before building my next computer?


Thanks for your time!

Hamilton







 
Ricemarine

Ricemarine

Lifer
Sep 10, 2004
10,507
0
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SB Live! is $80?! WTF?!

Mmm... only thing that I would fix is the motherboard... get a DFI Ultra-D or an epox nforce4 mobo (there, I said epox)... K8n Neo4 has issues apparently (fsb can't go past 229 for some odd reason), so to be on teh safe side yeah....

I love the 500w seasonic :D
 
C

coomar

Banned
Apr 4, 2005
2,431
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0
3dconnect x800xl is 229 at tigerdirect

you do realize that the sound coming out the mobo you chose is better than the soundcard you chose?
 
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HamHam

Senior member
Feb 19, 2001
507
0
0
Coomar-

No Idea. THanks for the heads up. I am not that much of a audio guy, will the onboard sound cut it for good bf2 sound? If not, what do you recommend for a good sound card?


Is the vid card you suggested about the same as the ATi one?


All-

Sorry for the mix up regarding the sound card!


So should I just get a 3200+ and try to OC it a bit? By getting a 3200 instead of a 3500 cause a bottleneck in the system?


Thanks


 
B

bREwIn dOdgEr dUDe

Member
Mar 20, 2005
129
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go with at the very least a CDRW/DVD-Rom optical drive... a DVD Dual Layer is not going to cost that much more which is really a given these days in any setup... what is the OCZ memory (details)...?
 
Ricemarine

Ricemarine

Lifer
Sep 10, 2004
10,507
0
0
Originally posted by: HamHam
All-

Sorry for the mix up regarding the sound card!


So should I just get a 3200+ and try to OC it a bit? By getting a 3200 instead of a 3500 cause a bottleneck in the system?
Thanks
Click to expand...


1- Keep the sound card
2- You can try to OC to 220X10, it won't bottleneck.
 
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HamHam

Senior member
Feb 19, 2001
507
0
0
mem details are..

OCZ 1GB 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered System Memory Model OCZ4001024PF - Retail

Rice-

I should get the so call "worse than onboard sound" sound card?


Thanks
 
Ricemarine

Ricemarine

Lifer
Sep 10, 2004
10,507
0
0
How is the audigy 2 ZS worse than onboard sound... Its way better geez...

Do you really need 2 GB of ram?.. Just wondering lol...


HamHam,... its Hamtaro time... Hamtaro...
 
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coomar

Banned
Apr 4, 2005
2,431
0
0
if you want a soundcard, wait until the new ones come out from creative in a month or two, your looking to spend 80 bucks or so, there is supposed to be one at 99 dollar pricepoint

for pci-e, the epox and dfi boards are better

ati has a longer warranty than 3dconnect i'm guessing but the card will perform the same, 3dconnect has had the cheapest x800xl on the market for a long time, a lot of people have them

and hit this ram up30 bucks cheaper and better
 
T

t3h l337 n3wb

Platinum Member
Apr 22, 2005
2,698
0
76
If you're going to get another sound card, don't bother with the Neo4 SLI. The Neo4 SLI comes with onboard Soundblaster Live, which sets it apart from most mobos. I like the Neo4 Platinum a lot. It has RAID 5 support, dual gigabit LAN, 8 SATA ports, and ton of other awesome features. It also comes with a reset CMOS button, not sure about the Neo4 SLI. SLI is a waste of money anyways. The DFI Lanparty Ultra-D is excellent for overclocking though, so it's also a great board to consider.
 
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coomar

Banned
Apr 4, 2005
2,431
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i just realized that your getting an ati card

there is no reason to get an sli board with it

get the epox or dfi board
 
R

raildogg

Lifer
Aug 24, 2004
12,892
572
126
Originally posted by: Ricemarine
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813136159

That's the mobo.
Course, many believe Epox is better, blah blah... Its your choice...

Btw... get a Nec ND-3540
Click to expand...

of course they feel the Epox is better. and in many ways it is

it is somewhat faster than the DFI at stock performance. it is cheaper. it is much easier to work with for a first time or a non-expert pc user. it is just as overclockable as the DFI minus the high voltage. it has had less issues as well

plus, Anandtech picked this, along with the DFI.

HamHam, if you're going to overclock to the extreme and going to use high expensive ram as well, get the DFI.

if you're going to overclock quite a bit, get the Epox. heck, in some cases the Epox is a better overclocker even

since you may not be a extreme-to-the-max overclocker, get the Epox or stick with MSI.

but i'd get the Epox, it has less issues, it is Anandtech recommended and almost as overclockable as the DFI.
 
D

DavidoFoo

Senior member
Nov 28, 2004
304
0
0
CPU
A64 3200+ "Venice"

Mobo
DFI nF4 Ultra-D/Epox 9NPA+ Ultra

dvd-writer
BenQ DW1640

Ram
You can stick with that OCZ EL Platinum 2x1024MB or go for the PDP 2GB sticks mentioned

Case
I think there's a Hot Deals deal for 99$

Sound
Yea, make sure it's an A2ZS or higher buddy.
 
H

HamHam

Senior member
Feb 19, 2001
507
0
0
Coomar, Which epox board should I get?

Should I get a nF4 ultra even though I am getting an Ati Card?

Thanks
 
H

HamHam

Senior member
Feb 19, 2001
507
0
0
Arghh!!!

DFII or EPox..... Must choose..... but which one?...


* looks for a silver dollar*

 
R

raildogg

Lifer
Aug 24, 2004
12,892
572
126
HamHam.

Look at this ... link ... and this ... link

and then decide for yourself

i would buy an Epox for better price and since its less picky about RAM. but either is a good board
 
YOyoYOhowsDAjello

YOyoYOhowsDAjello

Moderator<br>A/V & Home Theater<br>Elite member
Aug 6, 2001
31,204
45
91
Before we tell him to get a $80 or $100 soundcard, maybe we should find out what speakers he's connecting it to?

So what's the answer? :p
 
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