Help me build my new gaming system.

[Spamdini]

ok so heres the deal, ive been reviewing and learning and reading about parts and such and i just got super confused by my pc parts dealer so im going to start anew. Im making a primarily gaming system with a budget of 1800$CDN (canadian funds). im looking obviously at an AMD system and a RADEON X800 Pro. I would also like it to be a socket 754 based system and i dont need enormous amounts of HDD space OR those uber expensive 10000 rpm raptor HDDs. since its in $CDN plz use Canada Computers for your pricing.

Thank you in advance.

 

[CJP]

One thing that might help you. WWW.sharkyextreme.com continuously releases suggested computer configurations with names like basic, mainstream, extreme gamer, etc. If you go there it can give you an idea of what parts you need for your budget and you know that they work together. Once you found a configuration you like you can read up on the components from there. Other sites have these suggested rigs as well (Anandtech might have started this too).

 

[3chordcharlie]

canada computers has pretty good prices - you should have a look at tigerdirect.ca as well. their regular prices are sometimes a little higher, but they run a lot of specials, and may just happen to have something you want. Free shipping over $200, too.

 

[Spamdini]

ty for the info i had a look but coud some of the you pro guys help me out and actually abuild me a system with the limits i set up top?

 

[dmw16]

Do you need a monitor too? Assuming you dont need a monitor, keyboard, or mouse; here is a suggestion that leaves you some space for extras or whatever.

CPU: Athlon64 3000+ retail: $305
MOBO: Gigabyte FA-K8VT800 Pro: $153
CASE: Antec SLK3700 w/ 350W: $93
VIDEO: Radeon 9800PRO: $328
RAM: 2x Samsung 512MB PC-3200: 2x $126
DVD-RW: LiteOn SOHW-812S: $119
HD: Seagate 80GB S-ATA: $104
TOTAL: $1354
(ALL CND)

The motherboard has most of what you need on board. Sound, LAN, USB2, Firewire, etc. That would actually give you a pretty nice setup. If you really wanted to hit the top of you $1800 limit, then maybe get an X800Pro and that would put you at $1665. I think either way you'd have yourself a nice gaming rig. That is my suggestion.
-doug

 

[Spamdini]

alright well i was definetly looking at the Athlon 64 3000 and 3200 wither one was about the same.

Essentially this is the PC i had in mind.

Amd Athlon 64 3000 - 305
Radeon X800 Pro - 600
ASUS K8V SE Deluxe VIA K8T800 - 168
Sony 16X DVD-ROM - 40
Sony 52x32x52 CD-RW - 45
Sony 1.44MB Floppy Disk Drive OEM - 15
Western Digital 80GB S-ATA - 108
-----------------------------------------------
Total = 1281

so now what i figured i need is a case and RAM, and those are the things im stuck on.

(approx. 400$CDN left for case and RAM)

 

[DaveSimmons]

Antec Sonata is a great case for this, should be around $150 CDN

 

[Spamdini]

and what about ram?

and whats the diff in dimensions of a mid tower and mini tower

 

[Spamdini]

noone going to help me out with ram its been the most difficult part of all this for me lol, so anything would help.

 

[Runner20]

Originally posted by: Spamdini
and what about ram?

and whats the diff in dimensions of a mid tower and mini tower

If you want a case and PSU combo then the Antec 1080 is the best. Its a great case, very solid and comes with a Antec 430W power supply, cant beat that.

As far as memory goes, if you have the money get Kingson HyperX or Corsair XMS Extreme PC3200 2 sticks of 512MB. If you dont have that much then get "value RAM". It wont make a big difference really. But be sure to get memory in pairs, either 2 x 256 or 2 x 512. I suggest getting 2 x 512.

I'm not sure if you overclock or not, assuming you dont then PC3200 is the best choice.

 

[Spamdini]

why would i have to get it in pairs? what difference does that make?

 

[Runner20]

Originally posted by: Spamdini
why would i have to get it in pairs? what difference does that make?

its called dual channeling. its faster than single channel memory. so 2 sticks of pc3200 will give you 6.4 bandwidth

 

[Runner20]

LOL sorry if i sounded a bit weird, its late at night here and im tired

 

[Spamdini]

but its called dual channeling if its not dual channel ram? how does that work...keep in mind im new to the hardware world. also i heard something about haveing to put ur ram in the 1st and third ram slots? or what?

 

[Runner20]

Originally posted by: Spamdini
but its called dual channeling if its not dual channel ram? how does that work...keep in mind im new to the hardware world. also i heard something about haveing to put ur ram in the 1st and third ram slots? or what?

There is no dual channel ram

If you want 1 gig of RAM to run in dual channel, you either need to get 4 sticks of 256MB RAM or 2 sticks of 512mb.

 

[Wingznut]

Originally posted by: Spamdini
Sony 16X DVD-ROM - 40
Sony 52x32x52 CD-RW - 45
Sony 1.44MB Floppy Disk Drive OEM - 15

My suggestions... Get a DVD burner instead of the two drives.
NEC ND-2500A 8X DVD+/-RW OEM $107 -or- NEC ND-2510A 8X DVD+/-R Dual Layer OEM $135
It'll cost a little more , but it is very much worth it.

And scratch the FDD, unless you have a specific use for it.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

Socket 754 doesn't support dual channel so don't worry about it and it has mininal effects on 940 systems. Also only two of the 3 slots will work if your using ddr400 ram. So either get 2x512 or 1x512 if you can't afford it. As for the type look up some benches if you want and just get some quality stuff (mushkin, ocz, etc)

 

[bob4432]

Originally posted by: Spamdini
and what about ram?

and whats the diff in dimensions of a mid tower and mini tower

if you have the room, get a full tower. after you build it you will like the room of a antec 1080 like somebody else noted. antec cases are very nice and are ususally a good deal when it comes to their prices. the bigger cases are easier to work on and have better airflow if heat is a problem.

when you buy ram in pairs they are supposed to have matched timings so they will work good together. like others stated the 754 doesn't support dual channel but get 1GB. i have personally had good luck with kingston, mushkin and ocz.

i would really look hard at the x800, sure it kick @$$, but it is so expensive. i imagine in less than 6mos it will be far cheaper. you might want to really consider getting a 9800pro for ~$200 now and let those x800s come down, which they will in the near future. look at different benches for the games you play and see if the extra $$$ is really worth it.

 

[Spamdini]

alright thanks.

 

[viivo]

Originally posted by: bob4432

Originally posted by: Spamdini
and what about ram?

and whats the diff in dimensions of a mid tower and mini tower

i would really look hard at the x800, sure it kick @$$, but it is so expensive. i imagine in less than 6mos it will be far cheaper. you might want to really consider getting a 9800pro for ~$200 now and let those x800s come down, which they will in the near future. look at different benches for the games you play and see if the extra $$$ is really worth it.

Would that really save him any money? The cash he would spend on a 9800pro now would not be equalled by an X800 price drop in that time frame, so buying a 9800pro now and an X800 pro later means he'd lose very little cash compared to just buying one now, especially when he could be enjoying the performance of the X800 for 6 months.

 

[high]

AT: www.vibecomputers.com (excellent CDN retailer)

ANTEC SUPER LANBOY ALUMINUM SUPER MINI TOWER CASE *NO POWER SUPPLY* $124.12


WESTERN DIGITAL WD360GD-00FNA0 RAPTOR 36.0GB 10000RPM 8MB CACHE SATA *OEM* $159.95


SEAGATE BARRACUDA 120.0GB 7200RPM 8MB CACHE SATA *OEM* $146.50


LITEON XJ-HD166S 16X DVD-ROM DRIVE *OEM* - BLACK $38.24


CORSAIR XMS3200 512MB DDR 400MHZ 184PIN CAS2-3-3-6 $190.72


MSI K8T NEO-FSR FOR AMD ATHLON 64 $140.53


AMD ATHLON 64 3000+ 512KB L2 CACHE - RETAIL $335.48


CREATIVE SOUND BLASTER AUDIGY 2 - *OEM* $107.93

ANTEC TRUEPOWER 430 WATT ATX12V POWER SUPPLY $108.73

Sub-Total: $1,352.30

AT Best Buy This week
ATI Radeon 9800 Pro $279.99

Should be a nice rig, enjoy

 

[Finnkc]

Spamdini

try

http://www.ncix.com/
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/
http://www.compusmart.com/

as well might find some cheaper prices then Canada Computers

 

[Tostada]

Like Wingznut said, a DVD burner is a good idea, especially the NEC 2510 since it burns dual-layer DVD+R (and is also very highly rated in burn quality). If you don't really care about a DVD burner right now, you might as well wait until dual-layer DVD-R is available, too, but you should at least get a combo 52X burner / 16X DVD-ROM. There's really not any reason not to get a combo drive. And while I probably wouldn't get a Lite-On DVD burner, the $50 Lite-On 52X CD-R + 16X DVD combo drives are actually better drives than the Sony ones.

Kingston HyperX, Corsair XMS Extreme and OCZ Enhanced Latency are all good memory. Just make sure you get PC3200 with CL 2. Corsair also makes PC3500 with CL 2 if you want to overclock. Even though you can't run dual-channel with Socket 754, you want to get a pair of 512MB sticks because 1024MB sticks have higher latency.

I wouldn't get that Western Digital drive. Go look at the reviews of WD drives lately. The Raptors are great, but all their 7200RPM drives are much louder and much more failure-prone than the competition. Hitachi, Samsung and Seagate are all better and extremely quiet. Hitachi is the fastest, Samsung is thought of as the most reliable, and Seagate is arguably a little bit quieter. Hitachi SATA drives and all Samsung drives have a 3-year warranty, and Seagates have a 1-year warranty. I would say Hitachi is the best drive if you're not going to get a Raptor.

There's nothing wrong with getting an 80GB drive, but keep in mind that 160GB drives are the best bang for the buck. 80GB drives are about $75, 120GB drives are about $95, and 160GB drives are about $100. I'm amazed that so many people suggest 120GB drives.

Even though I already mentioned Western Digital 7200RPM drives suck, you also have to consider that they have ambiguous model numbers, and their 80GB drives are actually listed on the website as being two 40GB platters. So, if you get an 80GB Western Digital, you may end up with a slower drive from the previous generation. The only WD drive you would want to consider is the Raptor 74G. Don't get a Raptor 36G. Hitachi SATA drives are as fast as 36G Raptors (and much quieter and cooler). The only thing faster is the bigger Raptor.

And getting a hard drive with a 1-year warranty doesn't make any sense when Samsung/Hitachi/WD drives with 3-year warranties are the same price (yeah, WD's suck, but at least getting them RMA'd isn't a hassle). I don't dislike Seagate -- I love their shock-protection thingy, but they've only got a 1-year warranty.

Antec definitely has the best case & PSU combos if you're not looking for a silent system (and with that graphics card, you're not).

 

[GreatBarracuda]

Hello Spamdini, I got my rig at Canada Computers as well (2nd person to buy a system at their new location Mavis/Eglinton). I must say those guys know what they're doing! They can't speak a damn word of English but there are some very smart people there. And basically, you won't get better prices at any other retail store other than Canada Computers (atleast in the GTA). So i'm glad you chose the right place to get your system A few words of advice:


1) They can assemble your whole rig for $15. I suggest you let them do it because it will save you A LOT of headache (considering you are a first time builder). As easy as people may have you believe, you have to have a little knowledge about computer components to assemble a rig correctly! So I recommend you let them do it as they are reliable people.

2) Get a case with atleast 2 (preferably three) fan slots. You would need GOOD cooling for your rig (for any good gaming rig nowadays actually). I recomend a fan with atleast 2 slots for 120mm fans. The cases these guys mention are good.

3) For RAM, get either Corsair or OCZ or Mushkin. The CORSAIR XMS3200 512MB DDR 400MHZ is a very good.

BUT, if you want the best of the best RAM on the planet! (I know I wan't it ), I would suggest the Corsair TWINX1024-4000. This ram is actually two sticks of 512mb equalling 1024mb. What makes it different from the rest is that Corsair designs it to work optimally in dual channel (which Runner20 explained to you above, I recommend you read into it more), and these things will cost you $429 at Canada Computer. The BEST deal on this at a retail store in Canada is $419, if you're interested, tell me. These things are expensive, I admit but damn they're good!

Remember one thing, you'll NEVER regret getting good ram! bob4432 is vey right about the X800. It's damn expensive right now and games which will need it won't come out until months later! (even though Doom III might come out sooner). So yes, getting the 9800 pro would be a good call, remember, it was the best card money could buy a year ago (you can sell it later when the X800 becomes cheaper and get it instead).

4) Do you need a monitor as well?

And one last thing, a good gaming rig costs money! Don't expect to get a super computer for an incredibly low price. Quality parts cost money, period.

Hope this helps.

 

[bob4432]

Originally posted by: viivo

Originally posted by: bob4432

Originally posted by: Spamdini
and what about ram?

and whats the diff in dimensions of a mid tower and mini tower

i would really look hard at the x800, sure it kick @$$, but it is so expensive. i imagine in less than 6mos it will be far cheaper. you might want to really consider getting a 9800pro for ~$200 now and let those x800s come down, which they will in the near future. look at different benches for the games you play and see if the extra $$$ is really worth it.

Would that really save him any money? The cash he would spend on a 9800pro now would not be equalled by an X800 price drop in that time frame, so buying a 9800pro now and an X800 pro later means he'd lose very little cash compared to just buying one now, especially when he could be enjoying the performance of the X800 for 6 months.

i should have stated that maybe wait longer than 6mos to buy the x800 if the 9800 will work good for the games he plays. if he can get 60+/fps at the setting he uses then anthing faster would be a waste as you won't see the difference and it will save him a couple hundred $$$$.

i used to be a early of new technology/items and found that i have wasted thousands of $$$ doing so. i don't know how many times i have and item because it was the newest/greatest then saw it for 50% less in a very short time.

i was tire last night when i posted...

also, as stated in another post, the $15 fee is very cheap to have a computer store build a computer as it will take you atleast a couple of hours, but that will be up to you. since you are a first time builder this entire community will be to help if you have any probs.