Help Building First PC

[Raider82]

I have been doing some research and searching on the net so I can hopefully build my first PC. This is a great site, and forum, btw. I'm looking to spend around $300 dollars maybe more maybe less, this is going to be my 2nd PC and will be mainly used for the net, school, and games. I'm not really looking to overclock or anything, just want something that I can put together, learn more about computers, and use as a great little 2nd system. I've been looking at the nforce2 motherboard, the A7N266 and the A7N8X deluxe. Or would it be better to get a combo mobo and processor? I see these are cheaper. What's the main difference between these boards? Also what would be a good processor the 2100 AMP is what I'm looking at now, mainly of the price and speed. I'm thinking of getting the retail version because you don't have to do a heat sink is this correct? Would it be better to not get the retail? As far as a hard drive, possibly 60 gig, already have a CD, CDRW, and A drive. Would PC 2100 memory be a good choice? Also two sticks or one? I've heard people claim one, and other swear by two. I'm thinking maybe 256 ram. The case I'm not to worry about just something basic that will hold everything. Anything else I'm missing? Thanks.

 

[JC]

Get a mobo/cpu combo with the retail cpu, it will save you some $$. The retail cpu comes with a heatsink and fan. Don't bother with the Deluxe mobo, not worth the money for the app you described. Just get one stick of PC2100 and be done with it. Welcome to AT, and good luck with your system!


JC

 

[batorok]

<FONT size=1>I have been doing some research and searching on the net so I can hopefully build my first PC. This is a great site, and forum, btw. I'm looking to spend around $300 dollars maybe more maybe less, this is going to be my 2nd PC and will be mainly used for the net, school, and games. I'm not really looking to overclock or anything, just want something that I can put together, learn more about computers, and use as a great little 2nd system. I've been looking at the nforce2 motherboard, the A7N266 and the A7N8X deluxe. Or would it be better to get a combo mobo and processor? I see these are cheaper. What's the main difference between these boards? Also what would be a good processor the 2100 AMP is what I'm looking at now, mainly of the price and speed. I'm thinking of getting the retail version because you don't have to do a heat sink is this correct? Would it be better to not get the retail? As far as a hard drive, possibly 60 gig, already have a CD, CDRW, and A drive. Would PC 2100 memory be a good choice? Also two sticks or one? I've heard people claim one, and other swear by two. I'm thinking maybe 256 ram. The case I'm not to worry about just something basic that will hold everything. Anything else I'm missing? Thanks.

</FONT>you're comparing nforce1 to nforce2. The nforce1 you're looking at is single channel memory, so you need only one stick of max 266mhz ram. The Nforce 2 (a7n8x) needs 2 sticks to function at max speed, but in practice it won't make things noticeably faster to have two sticks unless you buy an nforce 2 with built in video. The nforce 2 will let you overclock your cpu, so if you get it, get good, pc3200/ddr400 ram, and you may be able to crank your cpu up quite a bit. If you're going for cheapest, the a7n266 mobo and some standard pc266/pc2100 ddr memory will work well, that's what I use for my main (non-gaming) pc. Were you hoping to game with built in video? I don't think the a7n8x has built in video, and the a7n266 has pretty slow video for games, so make sure you're only interested in older games or less graphically intensive games if you go that route.

I've built/rebuilt computers for fun since 1996, and I have to say I just got my first dell. I would strongly consider one of the dell deals such as at www.gotapex.com on a new dell for cheap before I built one- they are really slick, quiet, come with winxp, and are great to work on inside if you want to add stuff. That said, I really enjoy the putting together and troubleshooting required to DIY, but I never thought I'd see a dell 2.5ghz p4 pc with all the trimmings for under 400$...

If you really want something simple though, the a7n266/AMD cpu/pc2100 memory/case/hard drive should only run you around 300$ or so (without the operating system).
BTW, delete your other post, you don't need two posts...

 

[Raider82]

Thanks for the quick replys, I tired deleting my other post but couldn't so sorry about the double post. Most of the mobo/combo's I see on price watch all have intergrated video and audio, with no AGP slots. Would it be better to get one with an AGP slot for the future? Anyone know of any good mobos combos? I've heard good things about Asus and Epox. Some of the cheaper ones have names like Biostar and House Brand, how are these?

 

[batorok]

Originally posted by: Raider82
Thanks for the quick replys, I tired deleting my other post but couldn't so sorry about the double post. Most of the mobo/combo's I see on price watch all have intergrated video and audio, with no AGP slots. Would it be better to get one with an AGP slot for the future? Anyone know of any good mobos combos? I've heard good things about Asus and Epox. Some of the cheaper ones have names like Biostar and House Brand, how are these?

Get an agp slot, and a name brand motherboard (avoid "house brand" like the plague, you want a motherboard maker that will update the bios if there are problems ) that has some reviews on some decent web sites like anandtech, tomshardware, hardocp... you can't go wrong with asus, though others are often cheaper, but no one else makes a board like the a7n266. You'll spend at least 50$ more for an nforce2 with built in video, but it may be worth it if you don't get a new pc all the time, it's a lot more future proof with pc3200 ram/400mhz bus support, should you want to upgrade to the top of the line barton cpu next year when they're 50$ and everyone is buying athlon64s and the pentium4 prescott cpus.

skip the pricewatch scammers and buy from a reputable reseller. www.Newegg.com is one of the best as far as www.resellerratings.com goes, though the prices there have crept up. If someone offers a good deal on pricewatch check their ratings out at resellerratings first, or price shop at www.pricegrabber.com which has some built in ratings, and factor shipping into the cost.

I've had good service from newegg, even returned things that were supposed to have a restocking fee and they didn't charge one (of course the thing was broken anyway...)