I'm about to order this hardware. Good/bad idea? Advice greatly appriciated

[Rustified]

I'm about to order the folllowing from newegg with a budget of $1000:

Kengwin Black All-Allmnium 10-Bay Mid Tower Case, KT-424-BK
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=11-170-014 $81.00

MSI K8T800 Chipset Motherboard for AMD Socket 754 CPU, Model "K8T Neo-FIS2R" -RETAIL
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=13-130-43 $130.00

AMD Athlon 64 3000+, 512KB L2 Cache 64-bit Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-424 $223.00

Antec P4 ATX12V 400 Watt Power Supply With 2 Fans, Model "SL400" -RETAIL
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=17-103-912 $47.00

Crucial 184 Pin 512MB DDR PC-3200 8T - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=20-146-541 $109.00 x2

SAMSUNG 120GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model SP1213C, OEM Drive Only
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=22-152-017 $97.00

Lite-On Black DVD-Dual Drive, Model LDW-811S/LDW-851S, OEM
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=27-106-926 $89.00

Asus Black 16X DVD-ROM Drive, Model DVD-E616P1 Black, Retail
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=27-135-017&depa=0 $31.00

Total $916.00

I'm going to keep my ATI 9600 XT from another PC.

I'm going to be using this PC for general stuff mostly, some gaming (ie: Far Cry, HL2), and video editing. Does this hardware seem good for such tasks?
I've also read that there is not much of a difference between the 3200+ and the 3000+, except for the price. True? Is the difference worth the $60?

I might change my case, and get one with a PSU built in, for about the same price as this case alone.

Lastly, I'm buing a VIA mobo. I've had bad experiences with VIA before. Have they cleaned up their act? I've read many reviews, and no one seems to mention anything about VIA's, ahem, heritage.

I'd appriciate anything any of you can say about these specs.


Rustified

 

[Brickster]

I would get a larger power supply in case you want to upgrade to a future power hungry ATI or NVIDIA.

The current 6800 requires two molex connectors and at least a 480W!

Since you are most likely to upgrade the Vid Card before anything else in the future, this will prepare you better for the future.

Other than that, the system looks GREAT!

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

1. Just get a case with PSU like the SLK3700-BQE or SLK2650-BQE depending on the size you need which looks like a mini would work. Savings $50.

2. Ram is overpriced right now. Get one stick and wait a couple months and get another. Savings $20.

3. Never EVER buy an optical drive without searching the HD forum first. Savings $50.

4. You'll mostly be GPU limited as far as games go with a 9600XT so a 64 bit processor is a bit of a waste when I just bought a barton 2500+ and motherboard combo for $84 + tax at Fry's and it will perform almost identically in games. Savings $250.

Don't know...just seems like a bit of a waste of money, but, otherwise, should be a solid system.

 

[Gusty987]

1. Go for the gig! You will need it if you are interested in playing Far Cry and HL2 as you mentioned.
2. Consider the Asus K8V mobo. There have been tons of complaints about the stability, etc. of the MSI board. Asus is said to be 100% solid.

 

[Rustified]

Thanks for all the replys..
A question for HeroOfPellinor: what's wrong with my choice of optical drives? I did a search, and found mostly good things. Of which drive specificly do you speak? (Also, once I get a job, I will get a new video card)

 

[HeroOfPellinor]

Originally posted by: Rustified
Thanks for all the replys..
A question for HeroOfPellinor: what's wrong with my choice of optical drives? I did a search, and found mostly good things. Of which drive specificly do you speak? (Also, once I get a job, I will get a new video card)

Sorry...HD refers to the hot deals forum. You're new, I see, so you may not have visited them yet...so I retract my statement and officially warn you away from that forum unless you just won a game show of some sorts. If you've chosen those drives specifically for quality, then go with them.

 

[Rustified]

Sorry...HD refers to the hot deals forum. You're new, I see, so you may not have visited them yet...so I retract my statement and officially warn you away from that forum unless you just won a game show of some sorts. If you've chosen those drives specifically for quality, then go with them.[/quote]

Do I detect a hint of sarcasm? Am I missing something crucial here?

 

[darkswordsman17]

You can get an NEC 8X burner for a little bit cheaper, and its a very popular drive.

Also check the Hot Deals forum for Kingston ValueRAM. You can get 512 PC3200 for like $80.

Case looks good, but I would suggest going with at least a 500W power supply if you're going to keep this for a good while and plan on upgrading components.

I would go 64 bit over XP. You're video editing will be better and also when you upgrade other components (RAM, vid card, etc.) your processor won't be such a bottleneck. Plus since there will be no new XP cpus made for Socket A then you're safer with Socket 754.

Yeah, there won't be too much of a difference between 3200 and 3000. You could probably OC the 3000 to 3200 speeds anyway.

I would maybe look at more motherboards and compare them. Find one that fits what you need (if you won't need gigabit internet then don't get a mobo with it for instance). Check reviews on them too.

He's warning you, because its easy to find a good deal you don't need and can't really afford but because its so good you decide to do it anyway. Some of them require mondo capital to go for as well and have potential to not come through (mail in rebates for several hundred dollars for instance).

 

[GeneralGrievous]

A. Downgrade your CPU/mobo to a mobile barton/Abit NF7. Those things at 2.6 ghz are performing at or beyond A64 levels.
B. If you are gaming at all, ditch that video card and pick yourself up either a next gen card or a 9800 pro in a month,