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MSI NF4 A64 4200+ NV 6800GT etc. .. suggestions?

J

John2583

Member
Hi everyone. I'm building a new rig for the first time in over 2.5 years and I've done a bit of research and decided on these parts. I'm not finalized yet and I would like to hear some suggestions. I am going to run Gentoo linux on this mainly but I will also have Win XP 64 bit to run some games and such. I am not a big gamer but I do go to LAN parties regularly and like to be able to play decent games (which I can't w/ current rig) I run lots of apps in linux at the same time so that's why I'm going with 2 GB memory instead of 1 GB.

The newegg wishlist is here:
http://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/Wis...60942&WishListTitle=JB%27s+Nforce4+SLI

Here are the specs if you don't want to click the link:

MSI K8N Neo4 Platinum SLI Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 SLI ATX

AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+ Manchester 1GHz FSB Socket 939 Dual Core Processor Model ADA4200BVBOX - Retail

CORSAIR XMS 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory Model Twinx2048-3200c2pt - Retail

BFG Tech BFGR68256GTOCX Geforce 6800GT 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail

Lian Li PC-60BPlus Black Aluminum ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

Antec SmartPower 2.0 SP-500 ATX12V 500W Power Supply - Retail

The things I'm not sure on are the memory and powersupply. I would like to overclock my rig at some point as I hear the manchester based procs run cool and are good at overclocking (I would probably add an aftermarket CPU cooler). I would need the memory to be able to handle higher voltage and clock speeds of course, but I'm not sure that memory can do that. I also read one reviewer on newegg say he couldn't reach the 2.5 latency it said it would reach... As far as the power supply, it seems PSU's are very hard to pick. I read tomshardware(can I mention them here!?) review of power supplies and a lot of supposedly good PSUs failed the test they did, were out of ATX spec. I really would like to try a PSU w/ the modular plugs so I don't have extra cables in my case so if you know another PSU that would be better than that Antec for about the same.. or possibly a bit more, let me know. (I really like the way that Antec 500 W phantom looks.. but it's a lot more money), also it's 5 pounds heavy.

That's about it. My aim is for about a $1500 setup. I already have a Maxtor 160 GB SATA-150 drive and my old optical drives..

Thanks ahead of time for your comments.
 
Do you really need SLI? or is it for the features?
X2 3800+ - same processor but underclocked. they have the same oc ceiling
300 bucks on ram? If I were to do that, I'd spend 14 bucks more and get two 1 GB sticks of Crucial Ballistix PC4000. What I would do is get OCZ EL Platinum PC3200 2x1GB. Or those 2-3-2 PDP sticks for 199.99 at outpost.com(if that deal is still going on)
An X800XL performs on par and even better in some instances than the 6800 GT. The X800XL is cheaper, which makes it the better deal.
Case is fine.
 
1-If you aren't going SLI, get an Epox 9NPA+ Ultra, DFI is out of the question due to corsair ram.

2-If you plan on playing more D3D games, get an x800xl, otherwise if you play opengl games more, stick with your 6800gt.

3-If you are on a budget, get a cheaper case, antec slk-3000b or something...

4-get a Seasonic S12 500w for our sake 🙂 expensive yes, silent yes, pfc, yes, something very nice.
 
i bought the antec 1050b case because it came with that PSU. So far I am extemely impressed. Speedfan shows stable voltages, has 36 amps split between the 2 twelve volt rails, and modular: theres no going back after you've had modular. Case stays clean of the wire hell.
Heres a review of the PSU:
http://www.extremeoverclocking.com/reviews/cases/Antec_TX1050B_6.html
(if you shop around you can get that case for $110)
If you went this route, with the money you save you can get a 7800GT instead of the 6800.

As far as ram, if you're planning to overclock hardcore, for that price crucial ballistix seems to be the best stuff around. For a moderate overclock you can find some 2x1gb sticks that get better timings than that for cheaper, but I guess you pay for the corsair name.

 
Looks very good, but I would change two things.
1: If you plant to OC, then save some money and go with the X23800+.
If no OC'ing, then save some money on cheaper RAM. The only reason to buy expensive RAM is if you plan to OC it.

2: Drop to a non-SLI board and get a 7800 GT or GTX as the budget allows.
 
Originally posted by: DavidoFoo
Do you really need SLI? or is it for the features?
X2 3800+ - same processor but underclocked. they have the same oc ceiling
300 bucks on ram? If I were to do that, I'd spend 14 bucks more and get two 1 GB sticks of Crucial Ballistix PC4000. What I would do is get OCZ EL Platinum PC3200 2x1GB. Or those 2-3-2 PDP sticks for 199.99 at outpost.com(if that deal is still going on)
An X800XL performs on par and even better in some instances than the 6800 GT. The X800XL is cheaper, which makes it the better deal.
Case is fine.
Click to expand...

I want the features of the SLI board. You are right about getting X2 3800+ instead of 4200. I think I will switch this. I will use the saved money to get better memory. X800 and all ATi vid cards are out of the question because of the worse driver support in linux compared to nvidia. I will look more closely at the seasonic PSU, but I don't think it has module cable connections like I would prefer. jonesmaster said his Antec PSU, the same I have selected is great though.. so I may keep it.

Changes for sure (don't have time to update list and check prices):
X2 3800+ instead of X2 4200+
better memory, probably ballistix by Crucial.

Thanks a lot everyone. I really appreciate it.
Anandtech forums rock!

 
Ok I had more time than I thought before class ;-) I updated my wish list:
http://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/Wis...60942&WishListTitle=JB%27s+Nforce4+SLI

I now have the Athlon X2 3800+ for about $100 less than the X2 4200+ and I have added a Crucial 2 GB PC 4000 (1GB x2) kit instead of the Corsair for only $9 more:
crucial Ballistix 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 500 (PC 4000) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory Model BL2KIT12864Z503 - OEM (FYI on Crucial.com this SAME kit is $399 vs $309 on newegg in OEM form).

I really want that Lian Li case I have picked because I think it looks awesome and I love the fact that it is NOT steel. I am leaving the same Antec PSU because jonesmaster said it worked well for him. I could upgrade the video card some I imagine since my total is now only $1380.. but I'm not a huge gamer like I said so maybe I will go ahead and look at aftermarket CPU coolers, suggestions?

Thanks again.

EDIT: what do you think about this CPU HS/FAN combo:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835106061
Thermaltake CL-P0114 120mm Cooling Fan/Heatsink - Retail

they say it's hard to install.. I can see why.
 
Ah, I missed that Linux part. I also missed the modular part at first and edited it out 😛 Everything looks great. About the HSF, the stock one is fine unless you really need it. If you are going to get one, you should get the Thermalright XP-90 with a Japanflo L1A @jab-tech.com
 
want to save some money?

get a refurbished Radeon X800 Pro for $179.99
http://shop.ati.com/searchresults.asp?dept_id=39

it performs closely to the XL or 6800GT


edit:

that is a lot of overpriced hardware you have chosen. that $325 6800GT is a definate bad buy.

skip the SLI setup and get a $95 epox 9npa ultra motherboard. use that money to buy speakers and a monitor

also, dont spend that much on pc3200 ram. no point in that.
 
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