Help me out here guys.....Outbuild me a pc for $800.00

[MTDEW]

Brother is coming over to order a new pc.

He wants a gaming rig similar in performance to the one you see in my sig.

We're shopping ONLY at newegg cuz I trust them.

His budget is $800.00, thats for everything except modem & mouse which I have.

What can ya come up with?

Heres what I have:
Black EVERcase (no pwr supply) $25.00
Enermax 431w pwr supply $81.00
Epox 8K7a $75.00
AMD Tbird 1.4/266 $98.00
Leadtech GF3 TI200 64mb $157.00
Gemstar 17"monitor $139.00
256mb Crucial PC2100 DDR $90.00
Mitsumishi 1.44 floppy $9.00
Lite On 52X cdrom $ 30.00
40gb Seagate Barricuda 72000hd $80.00

Total $784.00 + $83.00 shipping = $866.20 (Im over budget, please outbuild me)

 

[rwalterk]

Maybe get one of the Enlight cases that come with an AMD approved power supply? You might save about $40 - $50. I saw this one on newegg:

ENLIGHT EN-72370AZ MEDIUM TOWER P4 CASE - OEM with 340Watts Power Supply $60

340 Watts should be fine for the new rig.

 

[Ardeeell]

get the evercase with 300w ps...buy mem direct from crucial...monitor can be gotten cheaper...either staples or even compusa b&m...supposedly the ati 8500 will be $150 at compusa in a week (see hot deals)...300w would be sufficient for your setup

 

[Tol]

I'd go with a retail 1700+ for $30 more than that OEM 1.4...I don't know about yours, but my 1.4Tbird runs extremely hot.

I agree with them in going with a case w/power...the enermax is nice, but not necessary and expensive.

$800 is a really tough pricepoint. Right now, it seems like $1000 is where the best price/performance ratio lies.


Have a look at Yahoogle. frysad set that page up with help from people in these forums.

 

[The Dancing Peacock]

you could probably get away with the Enermax 365 (350w)from Newegg for around 50 bucks. Or pick up the antec/chieftec/chenming black sx series case with 350 Enhance psu for ~65 I think.

 

[MedicBob]

Sams club had a 19 inch CTX monitor for 190.00 US. It is what I have and I like it. Just in case you are looking for a 19 in monitor. Added bonus, no shipping just go get. I you or someone you know has a Sams Club membership.

 

[Wuzup101]

A monitor is one of those things that should always be looked at in person before buying. I'm not saying you can't order it online but you should atleast know what your buying. The thing to remember if you do order it online is to buy some vasaline to go with it...because you're gonna get raped on shipping... You can get a nice $130 17inch monitor at many local stores as mentioned above. Definitly would recomend buying the ram from crucial direct...free shipping and lower prices....and if you think newegg is reliable...you haven't delt with crucial...lol. The 1700+ isn't a bad idea either...it's a little more expensive but runs cooler...well worth the $30.

I personally think 800 is plenty to build a nice rig if you already have basic hardware (monitor, keyboard, mouse, etc...) but it's kinda hard when your spending a nice chunk on a monitor.

 

[frysad]

Here ya go, all from newegg although I agree you shouldn't mail order the monitor.



** Antec SX1030B (w/ pwr supply) $88.00 (better case/ slightly inferior ps)
** ECS K7S5A SiS® 735 $52.00 (the only real compromise but not bad)
AMD Tbird 1.4/266 $98.00
** Gainward/Cardexpet GeForce 3 Ti200 64MB $153.00 (an improvement in my opinion)
Gemstar 17"monitor $139.00
256mb Crucial PC2100 DDR $90.00
Mitsumishi 1.44 floppy $9.00
Lite On 52X cdrom $ 30.00
40gb Seagate Barricuda 72000hd $80.00

total $729.00 + $72.41 = 801.41

** things I changed

I think you are forgetting that shipping drops with multiple items, fill your shopping cart and calculate shipping to get real totals. I hope you don't live in CA, cause if you do you need to add tax. you still need a heatsink/fan

 

[MTDEW]

thanks alot for the advice guys.

unfortunately, I couldnt get on the anandtech forum again until about an hour ago & I missed some of the suggestions.


Well, I did convince him to spend a little more $$ though.

Heres what we ordered.

Item List
CPU FAN GLOBALWIN (Qty=1,Price=24.00)
MB AMD761 EP-8K7A EPOX (Qty=1,Price=75.00)
FD 1.44MB (Qty=1,Price=8.00)
80MMX25 FAN 4PIN SUNON (Qty=1,Price=5.00)
40GB SEAGATE 7200rpm (Qty=1,Price=80.00)
CDRW 24X10X40 LITE ON (Qty=1,Price=85.00)
CASE ANTEC SERVER CHASIS SX1040 (Qty=1,Price=127.00)
MSI GF3 TI200 64MB RT (Qty=1,Price=143.00)
MNTR GEM 17" .25 (Qty=1,Price=139.00)
AMD T-BIRD 1.4GHZ/266 (Qty=1,Price=98.00)
DDRAM 256MB PC-2100 CRUCIAL (Qty=2,Price=160.00)

Subtotal:944.00
TAX:.00
Shipping and Handling Charge**:81.96
Total:$1,025.96




<< ** Gainward/Cardexpet GeForce 3 Ti200 64MB $153.00 (an improvement in my opinion) >>


frysad,
Was the MSI GF3 TI200 64MB RT a bad call on my part?
Since its already ordered, Id like to know, cuz I was trusted to choose these parts & if its a bad call, I'll make it right outta my own pocket.

Wuzup101, I agree 100% with you about monitors(see my sig, it cost me but i LOVE it), but he decided thats what he wanted & he wanted to
order right away b4 he drank any of his pc money. LOL

And YEP, i ordered my ram directly from crucial, as a matter of fact they just replaced a stick for me that died for free!

Im hoping the Lifetime Warranty still stands even though he just added the memory to his newegg order & didnt buy directly from crucial.

 

[spanner]

Enermax+Epox8k7a don't mix very well, I have the same combo and my 5v line goes as low as 4.7 volts, not a problem since I don't overclock but it could end up being one esp with a 1.4ghz cpu

 

[Jen]

for powersupply i enermax has been known to have issues with 5 volt line holding steady..........

for processor retail 1700+ xp its worth the little bit extra.........more performance and runs cooler

consider a alpha 8045 heatsink with panaflo or sunon fan..........


chieftec case or antec............good case flow dont forget some fans


epox 8k7a is a very good board.........the rev 1s had a problem with 5 volt line being low.........i have never had this problem with my rev 1.1

those are my suggestions..........


Jen

 

[frysad]

MTDEW: I don't want to come off sounding like I think I'm an expert on the subject because I'm not... but in my opinion you can't really go wrong getting the GF3 Ti200 from any well known manufacturer. They all seem to be virtually identical as far as performance. I have read in these forums that the Gainward is known for being a little more overclocking friendly but that is about it.

So, no I don't think you went wrong, especially considering you saved some money, but someone here might have a different opinion.

 

[venk]

All Prices from newegg.com
P4 1.6A Retial w/ HSF - $155
MSI 645 Ultra Mobo - $81
Evercase w/ 300W PS - $57
MSI Gf3Ti200 w/ TV Out and DVI - $150
256 MB DDR333 - $101
Floppy - $9
Lite On 52x CD-ROM - $35
40gb Seagate Barricuda 72000hd $86.00
VIEWSONIC E70 17" (16" Viewable) (WHITE) 1280x1024 CRT MONITOR - RETAIL - $179

Total = $854 After Shipping or

 

[flexy]

i agree with most,


except that i totally recommend the enlight 7237 case ($60) which is excellent and comes with a great 340W PSU. Anything more is (IMHO) wasted money.

The saved money i'd rather spend on a better CPU, namely XP 1700 or (better) XP 1800 !

I dont know about the AMD 761 chipset...i'd rather go with a VIA266a chipset....i think the shuttle and/or epox8kha+ are great boards and they're kinda cheap too.
(It's your preference...)

gf3 ti 200 is definetely a good card for the money.

I own a 40gig maxtor dx740 HD and i am very satisfied with it...very fast !

AMD TBird just sounds a bit outdated for a new build, i'd totally advice go with an XP !

 

[mrman3k]

The monitor I would HIGHLY advice waiting a while and saving up for. You should go for a Sony monitor as they are the best quality and you know it will work and not be fuzzy or have other weird things. It can be quite a bit more, but save a little longer for it and go for the Sony, you will not regret it.

 

[kehi]

before you buy the sony make sure you can deal with the trintron horizontal lines. They are very visible on white backgrounds and while typing documents.

 

[MTDEW]

mrman3k, yeah, I wish he'd save & get a Sony too.
My 21" IBM you see in my sig is a Sony Trinitron Aperature Grille, & as far as Im concerned,
the image quality cant be beat!
But of course, when I told him what it & my Klipschs cost, he said theres no way he'd spend that much.

And of course, he wants one NOW!
He says he'll upgrade later, its his money!

And I do agree with most, that the XP is a better deal on a cpu & the AMD 761 chipset is no longer the best choice.

Heck, after seeing all the prices, I was tempted just to sell him my tower & build ME a new rig!

But my Monitor , Klipsch's and Momo stay with me!

thanks for all the input, Im sure he appreciates all the knowledgable suggestions.

frysad, you dont sound like a know it all to me, if the card was for me, id want the one with the best chance at a GF3 Ti500 level overclock too.
But hes not much into overclocking.

He just saw me running Papyrus's Nascar 2002 at 1600x1200x16 & Im running Medal of Honor at 1600x1200x16 also & he decided to
skip buying a prebuilt "name brand" pc & wanted one as close to mine as he could get.
(so I consider any of the hardware mentioned in this thread a major step up from the wallymart HP special he was looking at)

heck, by the middle of next week, he'll have a faster pc than me.

But I can say my pc is holding up well.
But Darnit an Athlon XP 2000,Epox 8KHA & GF4 Ti4600 are looking mighty tempting though.

 

[MTDEW]

kehi, the lines on my Trinitron dont bother me at all.
Nobody even notices them when they see my Monitor unless I point them out, then they look
real hard unless Im on a white webpage like you said.

Good advice though, when I read about the lines, I looked at as many AG displays as I could to be sure
they wouldnt bother me b4 I bought my monitor.

 

[mrman3k]

Yep, unless you are really looking or are told about them you will not notice the two lines, at least on my two Sony's the E400 and F520, they are thinner than a strand of hair and are ultra light. This should absolutely not be a deterrant because they are simply not noticable.