How did I do?

[mazeroth]

I've been beating myself to upgrade my computer since November but couldn't justify doing it. I logged into Newegg today to browse around and saw the 8 hour sale going on which was the straw that broke the camel's back. I saved $47 off normal Newegg prices on the three items I bought:

DFI LANPARTY UT nF4 Ultra-D Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
$129.99 - $10 INSTANT - $7 8-Hour sale = $112.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813136152

eVGA 256-P2-N516 Geforce 7800GT 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 VIVO PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail
$285 - $15 INSTANT - $20 Rebate = $250
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130256

Antec Performance I P180 Silver Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
$124.99 - $15 INSTANT = $109.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811129154

Got the three for 492.98 + 22.73 shipping = $515.71 - $20 rebate = $495.71 shipped.

I was thinking of using my Corsair Value Select PC3200 512MBx2, reusing my WD 80gig ATA133 HD (formatting it; I don't need a ton of space), buying a new CPU and a new PS. As far as the CPU goes, do you feel the Opteron 144 Retail from Newegg is a good buy at $196? It's essentially an Athlon64 3000+ that's $30 more and "should" overclock well. I'd be happy if it hit 2.4ghz with the ram I'll be using. As for the power supply, which one would you guys recommend? I've never purchased an expensive power supply before (using the 300w Antec that came with my case) and hate putting money into one, but I know it's necessary. Basically, what's the best bang for the buck that's relatively quiet? Also, any other CPU suggestions? I'd like to keep the CPU and power supply under $300, building this thing for under $800.

Any other comments are welcome.

Thanks!

 

[stevty2889]

The only problem is that you want to use your corsair value select, but the DFI motherboard has some known compatibility issues with corsair value select. I recomend getting this Epox motherboard. It's also a good board that overclocks well, and won't have any incompatibilities with your ram.

For the power supply I recomend a 400-450w Fortron. They are good quality, but still inexpensive(~$40 for the 400w version). The opterons seem to overclock really well, so the 144 or 146 would probably work well for you.

 

[mazeroth]

I'm thinking of getting the 500w modular Enermax for $109. I know, that's a LOT more than I wanted to spend, but I figure it will last me 3-5 years so why not?

Anyone else have comments?

Thanks!

 

[Googer]

For $60 the ULi M1695 based ASrock 939Dual-SATA2 is a great peroformer that works well with Corsair Value RAM.

http://www.asrock.com/product/product_939Dual-SATA2.htm

 

[mwmorph]

again, the dfi board is no longer king of the ocing hill,

ASUS A8N Sli Platnium has taken the top spot for sli boards.
Epox 9PNA+ Ultra is the king of non sli motherboards

either way, the dfi is nothig special anymore and coupled with the compatibility isuesand horrible documentat, it is a severel overratd board.

 

[Googer]

ASUS historicly has always had the best memory compatabilty and support.

 

[mwmorph]

Originally posted by: Googer
ASUS historicly has always had the best memory compatabilty and support.

take my opinion as you wish since i'm sort a asus fanboy(6 asus motherboards, 1 asus video card),but i have no problems ever with asus except the fan on the vidoe card died after 5 years, but that's a wear item. Their products are somewhat more expensive, but very reliable. I have a 11 year old asus that still runs as my Super Nintendo emulator.

 

[GamerExpress]

Originally posted by: stevty2889
The only problem is that you want to use your corsair value select, but the DFI motherboard has some known compatibility issues with corsair value select. I recomend getting this Epox motherboard. It's also a good board that overclocks well, and won't have any incompatibilities with your ram.

For the power supply I recomend a 400-450w Fortron. They are good quality, but still inexpensive(~$40 for the 400w version). The opterons seem to overclock really well, so the 144 or 146 would probably work well for you.

I second this, the DFI board is great but only works real well with OCZ memory. The Epox board is a great board that will do everything you need.

 

[mazeroth]

I could easily sell my 1gb of Corsair Valueselect for $50-$60 and spend ~$100 on a good gig of RAM. Then the DFI should be just fine. Also, this is the first time I've ever heard anything negative about the DFI board I purchased. Even the motherboard buyer's guide on this site HIGHLY recommends that board. I know, I know...it's personal preference.

When I do get the memory do I want to go with a single stick or two sticks? I want to run at 1T (I hope, heh) and that means a single stick, correct?

Thanks, and sorry for all the newbie questions. I'd research it more but I've honestly just put in 38 hours in the last 3 days at work (where I'm at now) and don't have the time right now.

 

[Googer]

Originally posted by: mazeroth
I could easily sell my 1gb of Corsair Valueselect for $50-$60 and spend ~$100 on a good gig of RAM. Then the DFI should be just fine. Also, this is the first time I've ever heard anything negative about the DFI board I purchased. Even the motherboard buyer's guide on this site HIGHLY recommends that board. I know, I know...it's personal preference.

When I do get the memory do I want to go with a single stick or two sticks? I want to run at 1T (I hope, heh) and that means a single stick, correct?

Thanks, and sorry for all the newbie questions. I'd research it more but I've honestly just put in 38 hours in the last 3 days at work (where I'm at now) and don't have the time right now.

That depends if you have socket 939 or socket 754. If you have socket 939 then you can run two sticks of ram at 1t and thats because it has two memory controllers. Just make sure that you put one stick of ram per controller (aka channel).