Finally narrowed it down to 2 possible builds

[Smartazz]

I'm about to start building a new system in about 2 weeks, I narrowed it down to two final choices, one system is an AMD platform, the other is an intel platform. Keep in mind that the 7600GT is a temporary card and will be replaced with an Nvidia card that supports DX. The cpu is the same way, the AMD opteron uni-core will be replaced with a dual core when I can afford a good AMD dual core as well as when dual core becomes a major plus on a system. I am planning to overclock on either system, so keep that in mind and please be honest on which system would be more beneficial.
Note: I'm changing the video cards in Febuary 2007 to a DX10 card, and the AMD opteron will be replaced with a dual core at that time as well.

Intel Platform:
CPU:Intel 805
RAM:2 GB Corsair Value Select
HDD: Western Digital 320GB hard drive
GPU:7600GT
Case: Koolance PC3-426BK Plus, Black
PSU: Fortron 450
Media Drives: 1 DVD-ROM, 1 52x CD-ROM
Cooling: CPU cooling block for the liquid cooled system
Mobo: MSI 945P PLATINUM

Cost: $1108

AMD Platform:
CPU: Opteron 144
RAM:2 GB Corsair Value Select
HDD: Western Digital 320GB hard drive
GPU:7600GT
Case: Koolance PC3-426BK Plus, Black
PSU: Fortron 450 "will be replaced if I ever use SLI"
Media Drives: 1 DVD-ROM, 1 52x CD-ROM
Cooling: CPU cooling block for the liquid cooled system
Mobo: Asus A8N-SLI Premium

Cost: $1165

Thanks for your help.


Decided System:
Alright, I think I got it set now:
CPU: Opteron 144
GPU: 2 XFX 7900GT's
Case: Cooler master centurion 5
Media: 1 DVD drive
Cooling: Stock opteron cooling
RAM: 2GB Corsair XMS RAM
HDD: WD 250GB HDD
PSU: Antec TruepowerII TPII-480 480watt psu

 

[ForumMaster]

i'd get the AMD in your case since the 805 sucks for gaming. if i were you though, i'd wait a couple more month and save up more money. wait for the AM2 or the Conroe cpu's to get here. none of these systems are upgradeable to the new cpu's which are going to be introduced this summer. so just wait and build a system around conroe. if you want to build NOW and you can't wait, it'd get the AMD between the two you posted.

 

[GrammatonJP]

Originally posted by: ForumMaster
i'd get the AMD in your case since the 805 sucks for gaming. if i were you though, i'd wait a couple more month and save up more money. wait for the AM2 or the Conroe cpu's to get here. none of these systems are upgradeable to the new cpu's which are going to be introduced this summer. so just wait and build a system around conroe. if you want to build NOW and you can't wait, it'd get the AMD between the two you posted.

I'm in for AMD and agree on the same reason.

 

[Baked]

Why do you need a DVD-ROM and CDROM? If you're not gonna burn anything, get the Asus E616A2. This thing reads everything.

 

[imported_fx]

Just get NEC ND-4570 DVD Burner that reads and burn everything and its done a good job for me.

 

[Smartazz]

Originally posted by: ForumMaster
i'd get the AMD in your case since the 805 sucks for gaming. if i were you though, i'd wait a couple more month and save up more money. wait for the AM2 or the Conroe cpu's to get here. none of these systems are upgradeable to the new cpu's which are going to be introduced this summer. so just wait and build a system around conroe. if you want to build NOW and you can't wait, it'd get the AMD between the two you posted.

yeah, I need to build this before the summer because the only computer I have this summer is Pentium M 1.6 GHZ, 768mb PC2700 RAM and Extreme Graphics 2. As you can see I need to be able to game this summer to keep myself occupied, there's no guarentee I'll have that laptop I mentioned over the summer, so I'm in dire need of a pc.

 

[Smartazz]

Originally posted by: Baked
Why do you need a DVD-ROM and CDROM? If you're not gonna burn anything, get the Asus E616A2. This thing reads everything.

Well, I have these drives laying around the house from a broken computer, so I figured I'll just use those.

 

[bob4432]

that 144 may last you longer than you think - see my o/c in sig

between these 2 i would go the amd route

 

[Smartazz]

I just found out I have close to $1350 upstairs, I didn't count it right, should I spend it now on a better video card like the 7900GT, or save it to upgrade to a DX10 card later on when they get released?

 

[bob4432]

Originally posted by: Smartazz
I just found out I have close to $1350 upstairs, I didn't count it right, should I spend it now on a better video card like the 7900GT, or save it to upgrade to a DX10 card later on when they get released?

since you are going to be gaming over the summer i would get a 7900gt now. they are excellent cards.

when are games even going to be using dx10?

also do you need the premium version of that mb? i see the regular version is ~$50 less...

 

[Smartazz]

Originally posted by: bob4432

Originally posted by: Smartazz
I just found out I have close to $1350 upstairs, I didn't count it right, should I spend it now on a better video card like the 7900GT, or save it to upgrade to a DX10 card later on when they get released?

since you are going to be gaming over the summer i would get a 7900gt now. they are excellent cards.

when are games even going to be using dx10?

This fall? I think.
But I do like your idea to spend a bit more on a 7900GT, maybe I'll SLI it eventually.

 

[Smartazz]

Originally posted by: bob4432

Originally posted by: Smartazz
I just found out I have close to $1350 upstairs, I didn't count it right, should I spend it now on a better video card like the 7900GT, or save it to upgrade to a DX10 card later on when they get released?

since you are going to be gaming over the summer i would get a 7900gt now. they are excellent cards.

when are games even going to be using dx10?

also do you need the premium version of that mb? i see the regular version is ~$50 less...

hmm, I didn't read that in your post before, but w.e., thanks, I should look at the non premium version.
edit: The only diffrence I see is the heatpipe design, I've never had a computer with a fan there before, are they loud?

 

[bob4432]

Originally posted by: Smartazz

Originally posted by: bob4432

Originally posted by: Smartazz
I just found out I have close to $1350 upstairs, I didn't count it right, should I spend it now on a better video card like the 7900GT, or save it to upgrade to a DX10 card later on when they get released?

since you are going to be gaming over the summer i would get a 7900gt now. they are excellent cards.

when are games even going to be using dx10?

also do you need the premium version of that mb? i see the regular version is ~$50 less...

hmm, I didn't read that in your post before, but w.e., thanks, I should look at the non premium version.

sorry, i edited it and added that...

 

[Smartazz]

So, it looks like I'm going to buy the AMD set, but the last thing I need to decide before buying the parts in a couple weeks is the motherboard. ASUS A8N-SLI vs. ASUS A8N-SLI Premium, any suggestions? Thanks.

 

[bob4432]

Originally posted by: Smartazz
So, it looks like I'm going to buy the AMD set, but the last thing I need to decide before buying the parts in a couple weeks is the motherboard. ASUS A8N-SLI vs. ASUS A8N-SLI Premium, any suggestions? Thanks.

basically my question would be to you - do you need what the premium offers?

to me it just looks like you get to lose the fan and also an additional 4sata ports. is that worth $50 ? only you can decide.

my view is pretty simple, when i first started buidling machines i would have gone the premium route just in case, but year of building them tells me that i never have more then 3hdds in a computer and the smaller fans don't make that much of a difference in sound. when i buy a m/b now it is usually a pretty bare bones setup, but again, that is me. you will have to make this decision as only you know yourself.

 

[subby]

Originally posted by: ForumMaster
i'd get the AMD in your case since the 805 sucks for gaming. if i were you though, i'd wait a couple more month and save up more money. wait for the AM2 or the Conroe cpu's to get here. none of these systems are upgradeable to the new cpu's which are going to be introduced this summer. so just wait and build a system around conroe. if you want to build NOW and you can't wait, it'd get the AMD between the two you posted.

Go for the AMD system.

 

[Smartazz]

Originally posted by: bob4432

Originally posted by: Smartazz
So, it looks like I'm going to buy the AMD set, but the last thing I need to decide before buying the parts in a couple weeks is the motherboard. ASUS A8N-SLI vs. ASUS A8N-SLI Premium, any suggestions? Thanks.

basically my question would be to you - do you need what the premium offers?

to me it just looks like you get to lose the fan and also an additional 4sata ports. is that worth $50 ? only you can decide.

my view is pretty simple, when i first started buidling machines i would have gone the premium route just in case, but year of building them tells me that i never have more then 3hdds in a computer and the smaller fans don't make that much of a difference in sound. when i buy a m/b now it is usually a pretty bare bones setup, but again, that is me. you will have to make this decision as only you know yourself.

Thanks, I decided on the non premium one.

 

[Smartazz]

I've just decided to go with the AMD setup and it'll cost me
$1,391.42 shipped.
I'd like to thank all those who participated in the polls and who gave me good advice, I'll probobly order the parts as soon as school ends so I can build it in early summer and use it soon.

 

[subby]

Originally posted by: Smartazz
So, it looks like I'm going to buy the AMD set, but the last thing I need to decide before buying the parts in a couple weeks is the motherboard. ASUS A8N-SLI vs. ASUS A8N-SLI Premium, any suggestions? Thanks.

I've got the Premium version and I'm pretty happy with it. Though having said that, I've had my share of problems with setting up a stable system for it.

One of the benefits of going for the Premium is that if you do intend to go SLI, you don't need to physically swap the "SLI key" on the motherboard; this can be adjusted by a simple BIOS setting on the Premium. This is a major convenient factor for me. I also like the idea that it uses a heat-transfer pipe, thus avoiding the need for extra fans and dusting in future. I believe the Premium also supports up to 8 SATA hard drives (4 SATA2 via the nVidia controller, and 4 SATA via the 3rd party controller, though someone also told me you'll need to set them to JBOD in order to work on the 3rd party controller in a non-RAID setup.)

Few tips from me for the A8N-SLI Premium motherboard:

[*]Avoid installing 4 sticks of DIMM. Many users seem to have issues with this setup. I have 2 x 1GB DDR400 GeiL modules (value sticks in comparison with other brands) and they work great for me.

[*]When installing the nVidia nForce4 AMD chipset drivers from nVidia's website, you get the option to choose which components to install. Only install the SMBus and Network Controller drivers. DO NOT install the nVidia Sound Controller and IDE controller drivers.

The IDE drivers has caused me great grieve, significantly slowed down the boot-up of Windows XP Pro SP2, and caused a lot of paging error in the Event Viewer logs. When I reformated the whole system, and redo the chipset driver installation without the IDE controller drivers, all the problems were gone.

[*]DO NOT install the nVidia Firewall. This may cause BSOD and there are reports saying this has led to data corruption. Just use a software firewall like ZoneAlarm.

[*]If you intend to use the onboard sound card, install the Realtek sound card driver as found on the supplied/bundled driver CDs. The nForce bundled one did pick up the sound controller on my setup, but I didn't do enough tests to confirm the nVidia one was unstable (again there are reports stating that the nVidia sound controller drivers are not stable). Since you're into gaming, I strongly recommend getting an add-on sound card like the Creative Audigy range or the X-Fi (the latter may have some issues with the nForce4 platform, but I believe this has since been rectified by Creative). My Creative Audigy DE (Digital Entertainment) works for me, so I'm happy with it.

[*]Get a good power supply. I've got myself a 500watt Enermax, and had the stock one removed. On the A8N-SLI Premium motherboard, there is a power connector just beside the top PCI-e slot. Make sure this one is connected to the PSU. Even though I don't have an SLI setup, I have this one connected, so to guarantee the graphics card gets enough power to operate smoothly.

Happy days!

 

[bob4432]

Originally posted by: Smartazz
I've just decided to go with the AMD setup and it'll cost me
$1,391.42 shipped.
I'd like to thank all those who participated in the polls and who gave me good advice, I'll probobly order the parts as soon as school ends so I can build it in early summer and use it soon.

:thumbsup:

 

[silverpig]

Either go Opteron 165 now (which is what I'd recommend) or wait.

Even when the new stuff comes out there will still be people telling you to wait because better stuff is just around the corner. You could get a Conroe system, but if you wait a few months after it comes out there'll probably be some new chipset out for it, and then a new revision of the cpu itself, and then ATI and nvidia will be releasing new cards etc.

 

[bob4432]

Originally posted by: silverpig
Either go Opteron 165 now (which is what I'd recommend) or wait.

Even when the new stuff comes out there will still be people telling you to wait because better stuff is just around the corner. You could get a Conroe system, but if you wait a few months after it comes out there'll probably be some new chipset out for it, and then a new revision of the cpu itself, and then ATI and nvidia will be releasing new cards etc.

a 144 now would be better than no build at all, plus you can o/c the 144s pretty well.

 

[t3h l337 n3wb]

Eh, adding another card later on for SLI is a waste of money. By then, a next gen single card will outperfom an SLI setup. Save some money by going with the EPoX 9nPA+ Ultra.

 

[Henny]

You'd be foolish to buy now unless you're desperate. Wait for Conroe even if you go the 805 route. In a few weeks you'll be able to get a MB that supports Conroe even if you decide to choose 805.

Even if you want to go AMD, Conroe will be placing tremendous pressure on AMD to reduce prices.

Late July or August will be an optimum time to buy.

 

[t3h l337 n3wb]

Originally posted by: Henny
You'd be foolish to buy now unless you're desperate. Wait for Conroe even if you go the 805 route. In a few weeks you'll be able to get a MB that supports Conroe even if you decide to choose 805.

Even if you want to go AMD, Conroe will be placing tremendous pressure on AMD to reduce prices.

Late July or August will be an optimum time to buy.

Well, he said he wanted to use the summer to play games, so...