Help me improve my gaming machine

[fooo]

Im planning on making a gaming machine with $3000.
this is wat i came up with:
AMD Athlon 64 FX-55
DFI LANPARTY UT nF4 Ultra-D Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra ATX AMD Motherboard
PlexWriter PX-716SA DVD Burner
Western Digital 74GB Raptor
Seagate 160GB Barracuda 7200.7 7200RPM SATA Hard
CREATIVE Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS:
Corsair DDR SDRAM PC3200C2 1GB×2
EverGreen silentking3 500w
ATI Radeon x800xt Platinum Edition

Please help me improve this machine. pleas post suggestions but remember my price limit.

 

[MDE]

1) You could go to the SLI model of the DFI and get two 6800 Ultras
2) Get a nice case
3) Never heard of that PSU, go for a ~400W Antec, Enermax, PCP&C, Fortron, or another well known reputable brand
4) If you're overclocking drop down to a San Diego core CPU and it should OC the same or a bit better
5) What Cooling are you using for the FX55?

EDIT: Almost forgot, Welcome to AT!

 

[ironique]

That would be a sweet rig indeed. If you want to go the ATI way, why not just get the X850XT PE?

 

[Malak]

The only thing I would change is up the video card to x850XT PE, that's what I have. Works great. Just say no to SLI.

 

[AtaruMoroboshi18]

I'd probably say, get a bigger drive than a 160 gb drive. You can get some 250's for a good deal. Just my two cents.

 

[fooo]

if i go SLI and get 2 6800 ultras.. itll be way over my price range.

x850xt Pe is also really pricey.. Whats the price difference, anyone know?
i will have to drop my processor to 4000+ if i get the x850xt.

how about my ram? is 2gigs not worth it? and is there a faster alternative?

I also dunno how to overclock, and im not using any special coolers for my fx-55.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: fooo
if i go SLI and get 2 6800 ultras.. itll be way over my price range.

x850xt Pe is also really pricey.. Whats the price difference, anyone know?
i will have to drop my processor to 4000+ if i get the x850xt.

how about my ram? is 2gigs not worth it? and is there a faster alternative?

I also dunno how to overclock, and im not using any special coolers for my fx-55.

If you're not going to overclock, I think a 4000+ would be a better choice... or even a 3800+. You'll save hundreds that you can use towards an SLI setup. 6800gt cards in SLI are more affordable then ultras and will still get you blazing fast performance.

I'd much rather have a 3800+ system with 6800gts in SLI than a system with an FX-55 and an X800XT.

 

[SynthDude2001]

Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello

Originally posted by: fooo
if i go SLI and get 2 6800 ultras.. itll be way over my price range.

x850xt Pe is also really pricey.. Whats the price difference, anyone know?
i will have to drop my processor to 4000+ if i get the x850xt.

how about my ram? is 2gigs not worth it? and is there a faster alternative?

I also dunno how to overclock, and im not using any special coolers for my fx-55.

If you're not going to overclock, I think a 4000+ would be a better choice... or even a 3800+. You'll save hundreds that you can use towards an SLI setup. 6800gt cards in SLI are more affordable then ultras and will still get you blazing fast performance.

I'd much rather have a 3800+ system with 6800gts in SLI than a system with an FX-55 and an X800XT.

I agree (especially if you have a high resolution monitor - and if you're spending $3000 on a computer, there is absolutely no reason not to have one).

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

All prices at newegg I put together this for $2070 before shipping

Antec SLK3000b
NEC DVD burner
74 gig raptor
160 gig Seagate
2 gigs of geil value
MSI SLI board
Seasonic 600watt
A64 3800+
Audigy 2 ZS
two EVGA 6800gt

That leaves you almost $900 to get a monitor, speakers, and keyboard/mouse if you need it.

 

[aatf510]

Originally posted by: fooo
Im planning on making a gaming machine with $3000.
this is wat i came up with:
AMD Athlon 64 FX-55
DFI LANPARTY UT nF4 Ultra-D Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra ATX AMD Motherboard
PlexWriter PX-716SA DVD Burner
Western Digital 74GB Raptor
Seagate 160GB Barracuda 7200.7 7200RPM SATA Hard
CREATIVE Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS:
Corsair DDR SDRAM PC3200C2 1GB×2
EverGreen silentking3 500w
ATI Radeon x800xt Platinum Edition

Please help me improve this machine. pleas post suggestions but remember my price limit.

Seagate 160GB Barracuda 7200.7 7200RPM SATA Hard?? The 7200.8 has been out for a long time.
Corsair 1GB sticks are no good, get some 1GB sticks with 2 CAS
EverGreen 500w? Not a wise choice
x800xt PE?? The PCI-E verision are probably more expensive than the x850xt pe because they are impossible to find.

 

[fooo]

All these recommendations r good, but they r all going to go over my price range.
If i get the x850xt Pe, i will have to get the Amd 4000+.
would that be better than a AMD Fx-55 with a x800xt PE?
im also going to stick with corsair ram because i hear good things and they r highly available for me.
i am contemplating which corsair ram is the best. (im only gonna get 512x2).
and which is more bang for the buck, Plextor 716A or NEC ND-3530A?
and also
Seagate 160GB Barracuda 7200.7 or 7200.8
VS
Hitachi Desktar 7K250 160GB

 

[Reapsy00]

i'd get the fx 55 and x800xt and 2 gigs o ram!

 

[suicidalpigeon]

id say go with YOyoYOhowsDAjello's rig cept with 1gig of sairs and the 7200.8.

 

[fooo]

which is best choice?

1)
AMD Athlon 64 4000+
DFI LANPARTY UT nF4 Ultra-D Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra ATX AMD Motherboard:
NEC NC-3530A
Western Digital 74GB Raptor
Seagate 160GB Barracuda 7200.7 7200RPM SATA Hard
CREATIVE Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS
Corsair TWINX1024-3200XLPRO (512x2)
ANTEC Neopower
ATI Radeon x850xt Platinum Edition

2)
AMD Athlon 64 4000
MSI K8N- Diamond SLI
NEC NC-3530A
Seagate 200GB Barracuda 7200.8 7200RPM SATA Hard
raid-0
Seagate 200GB Barracuda 7200.8 7200RPM SATA Hard
Corsair TWINX1024-3200XLPRO (512 x 2)
ANTEC Neopower
Nvidia GeForce 6800 Ultra 256 MB PCI- EXPRESS
&
buy another 6800 ultra when it becomes cheaper in a few months

3) the original
AMD Athlon 64 FX-55
DFI LANPARTY UT nF4 Ultra-D Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra ATX AMD Motherboard
PlexWriter PX-716SA DVD Burner
Western Digital 74GB Raptor
Seagate 160GB Barracuda 7200.7 7200RPM SATA Hard
CREATIVE Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS:
Corsair DDR SDRAM PC3200XLPRO 512×2
Antec Neopower
ATI Radeon x800xt Platinum Edition

 

[Necrolezbeast]

As far as I've seen, a SLI setup does not offer enough performance for the money....but that is from what I've seen and my personal opinion. I vote for getting a San Diego and not an FX55, save some money for minimal performance difference. and with the money saved get the x850xtpe....
So #1 is my vote!!

 

[twitchee2]

#1

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: fooo
All these recommendations r good, but they r all going to go over my price range.
If i get the x850xt Pe, i will have to get the Amd 4000+.
would that be better than a AMD Fx-55 with a x800xt PE?
im also going to stick with corsair ram because i hear good things and they r highly available for me.
i am contemplating which corsair ram is the best. (im only gonna get 512x2).
and which is more bang for the buck, Plextor 716A or NEC ND-3530A?
and also
Seagate 160GB Barracuda 7200.7 or 7200.8
VS
Hitachi Desktar 7K250 160GB

How is my suggestion for $2070 before shipping going over your budget?

I still think my system would offer the best performance out of the group.

I know there are some issues with SLI, but for a "$3000 rig" (which I managed to make for $2070 before monitor and other extras), I don't think there's any reason not to do it.

Yeah, it's not great price/performance, but nothing is in this price range. In the newest games (which is the only reason to spend $3000 on a gaming rig), SLI with 6800gts or ultras blows away the competition.

For the money spent to get a 4000+ or FX-55 vs the 3800+, you're not going to get an amazing increast. SLI 6800gts is going to get you a very big increase over a single 6800 ultra or X850XTPE in most cases, especially if you crank the settings and play at a big resolution (which again, is the only reason in my mind to spend $3000 on a gaming rig)

 

[knothead34]

3000 is a big budget for a system. dont know if you still needed a monitor or not. if your going dfi and going to do sli 600watt power supply recommended ocz power stream and has to be native 24 pin. i would even go pcpower and cooling 510sli.

 

[aatf510]

do I need to repeat this?
don't consider getting an x800xt pe PCI-E.
even if you get to find one.. it's going to be EVEN MORE EXPENSIVE THAN A x850xt pe.

 

[raildogg]

Choice # 1 is the best. I'd stay far away from SLI, its too overhyped and not really that beneficial in comparison with the price. The ATI Radeon X850 pe is a amazing graphics and will consume less than than the SLI setup. It is a better choice.

Also keep in mind that a Athlon 64 4000+ is a FX-53. It is just renamed to the 4000+ so it doesn't have to compete with AMD's higher end FX-55. So basically you will go from a FX-55 to FX-53, not a big loss of performance if any.

Choice # 1 is your best bet.

 

[fooo]

so #1 is the best?
the thing is, this computer is going to be presented to me from my grandparents.
SO, they told me to create a computer with a $3000 budget... and if i dont use that budget to the max, im not gonna get the change or nothing.
i understand that everyones way of thinking is to save money but in this case i want to use as much of the $3000 as possible.
So if u people were told that someone will give u $3000, but only for computer buying,
what would be your specs?
YOyoYOhowsDAjello, would u still buy that same spec u gave me?
Necrolezbeast and raildogg, would u still not buy Sli?

 

[The Green Bean]

Originally posted by: twitchee2
#1

 

[raildogg]

Choose # 1 since that is the best option. Spend the remaining on a top of the line monitor, either a 22 inch CRT or a 19+ inch LCD. Also get the Klipsch ProMedia ultra 5.1 speakers or the Gigaworks 7.1's if the budget allows. If not, then the Logitech Z-5500, which is just an amazing speaker system that is replacing the Z-680's is less than $400. This should cover the $3,000 (or at least be somewhere around there) hopefully.

This is a fine CRT, large flat screen.
Something more expensive, but it may be better than the NEC, even if slightly.

If you're looking for a 19 inch LCD, I would recommend a Samsung syncmaster 920t or the less expensive Dell ultrasharp 1905FP. For 20 inchers, either the Viewsonic model, believe its the vp201b or e or the Dell 20 inch model.

And no, I would not touch SLI.

 

[SVT Cobra]

yoyohowsthejelllo's rig is the best i believe...

check out my rig below, ive got an FX-55 on water thats only OC'ed to 3000mgz, go for a san diego core and eventually learn to OC...start reading more stuff, youll learn it qucik and easy...also go with SLI m8, you can buy one 6800 ultra or GT now, and get great gaming performance and then later when you save more money or got some laying around you can buy another and get uber gaming performance, especially when new games come out and you need it (by then 7900's will be out in like the late fall and 6800's will drop dramitcally)

also go for the BFG cards, if you dont know how to OC they are already and you get a nice warrenty on them

my 2/cents

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: fooo
so #1 is the best?
the thing is, this computer is going to be presented to me from my grandparents.
SO, they told me to create a computer with a $3000 budget... and if i dont use that budget to the max, im not gonna get the change or nothing.
i understand that everyones way of thinking is to save money but in this case i want to use as much of the $3000 as possible.
So if u people were told that someone will give u $3000, but only for computer buying,
what would be your specs?
YOyoYOhowsDAjello, would u still buy that same spec u gave me?
Necrolezbeast and raildogg, would u still not buy Sli?

Yeah, I still personally think my components would offer the best gaming performance.

Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
All prices at newegg I put together this for $2070 before shipping

Antec SLK3000b
NEC DVD burner
74 gig raptor
160 gig Seagate
2 gigs of geil value
MSI SLI board
Seasonic 600watt
A64 3800+
Audigy 2 ZS
two EVGA 6800gt

That leaves you almost $900 to get a monitor, speakers, and keyboard/mouse if you need it.

With the extra $900 you could get a nice keyboard/mouse for around $75, a nice speaker system like Klipsch Promedias or an Onkyo HTIB for around $400 and still have $400 for a very nice CRT or LCD.