computer novice

[mhan80]

I am planning to buy a computer and I am on a budget so I want the best deal for the money. My budget is $1000 with CA tax and monitor.

First CPU speed? I am planning to get a AMD Thunderbird 800 or 900, is it worth to pay $50 more for a 900 when I dont play games and all I do is compile C++ and type reports, I might do some graphics and games later on.

Motherboard? I am getting mixed suggestions on a motherboard. My boss tells me to get a ASUS A7V, while my brother tells me to get a Microstar MSI k7t pro2a. which is better . If the microstar is better do you think i should wait to get the new model that is coming out the turbo version, rememebr I am on a budget of $1000

Ram? ram prices seem to vary greatly. Does the performance matter if i get generic ram, over name brand such as Kingston, Crucial. I am planning to buy 256mb


Which is a better video card? Radeaon 32mb or Geforce2 mx

Recommend a company for 40 gig HD 7200rpm?


Do you think i should wait for the Rambus tech to take over or the DDR.

thanks

 

[Jamey]

First, get in on the deal for the Geforce card price matched at staples. That is the best card for the money. Buy your case. I recommend an antec from Onvia. They have free shipping and pretty good pricing. I chose the cheaper 282 model with the 300 watt PS. AWESOME cheap case...65.03 shipped. Get a floppy for about $15. Get in on a 19 monitor for about $250-$275. I think there was a flat screen viewsonic for that in the bargains forum a few days ago. If you need a cd recorder get in on the zip cd 12x drive deal. I would recommend the Plextor 12x, but thats's gonna throw you over budget. Get the MSI board. It has onbaord sound. You won't use this forever, but it will save you money now. The board is more stable than the ASUS. Unless you HAVE to have a tbird, get a duron 650 or 700 and O/C it to about 900-950. This will give you close performance, and keep you closer on budget. Get a QUALITY 128 MB stick of pc133 from crucial or mushkin for about $70 shipped. Get in on a deal for a Maxtor 40 gig drive for $80 from staples if the deal is still going on. Sorry for the lack of structure...Let's total up.

$130 MSI Pro 2-A
$ 70 Duron 700
$ 70 128 MB Memory
$130 Video Card
$ 80 40 gig HD
$ 30 Labtec 2414 speakers
$ 15 Floppy
$ 65 Case
$ 25 Optical wheel mouse
$ 30 MS Internet pro keyboard
$125 Zip CDR drive
$275 19" monitor


This puts you at $1045, and would make a darn fine machine. I am sure you could shave the $45 off if you really worked at it. I really doubt it's worth shaving enough to get the T-bird chip. Get the case, floppy, speakers, keyboard, and mouse first. These are things that won't get better in performance while dropping in price. Get the MB, CPU, and Memory last. These will come down in price or add speed or performance more rapidly. As far as rambus or DDR boards go, you won't be able to get them in your $1000 budget either unless you wait longer than you are probably wanting to.