Need a system for gaming

[groo028]

Hi All..

I am thinking of buying / building a gaming system .

So far, my mind is set on the DELL Dimension 8400 - Here are the specs
P4 3.0Ghz, 1GB DDR2 533 Mhz, 160GB Serial ATA 7200RPM, Geforce 6800GTO PCI Express 256MB, 17" Flat panel, DVD Writer.

I can get this system for about 1200$. I am not really sure if this system is worth the price.

One of my friends was suggesting me to build my own system with an Athlon 64 bit processor but I am really not sure what would make up a good system and where I could buy the parts separately.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[shoRunner]

thats not that good of a price, you can do better

 

[Machine350]

The Athlon 64 is the premier gaming chip right now. It runs circles around the P4. For $1200, you could build a NICE AMD gaming system.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

If you're willing to build it, finding a good config and buying the parts is not much of a problem.

A64 is the way to go with gaming right now.

Buying a system from Dell is a decent option too though. You don't have to do any work, and if something goes wrong you have someone to call (other than anandtech ).

Building computers isn't as hard as it sounds. It's just plugging and screwing stuff in pretty much.

So if we made some suggestions, would we need to include
keyboard/mouse
speakers
windows xp


Welcome to the forums too

 

[ts3433]

Don't know where to buy parts separately? Recommended vendors include Newegg, ZipZoomFly, Monarch Computer, Directron, and MWave. As a matter of fact Monarch also builds systems.

 

[groo028]

Thanks guys....could you recommend me a configuration for such a system? I am not really well versed with all the different mb chipsets/ram types/etc... So if you could suggest a config, I could go look for the cheapest deals for them.

Thanks!

 

[Machine350]

What's you budget?

 

[groo028]

Around $1200-1300

 

[shoRunner]

will you be overclocking??

 

[groo028]

Originally posted by: shoRunner
will you be overclocking??

I guess not.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

A really nice site with good navigation is newegg.com

Zip Zoom Fly is also good but their naviation sucks in my opinion.

A $1300 gaming system:

sonata case (will be very quiet, like your dell would have been)
A64 3200+ 939
chaintech NF4
6800gt
160 gig HDD
1 gig kingmax
17" LCD
windows xp

comes to $1250 before shipping. You still need a keyboard/mouse and speakers with that though. just deals is a nice place to get both is you're willing to go refurbished. You could get a mx700 duo set and a z-340 speaker set and be just a little over budget depending on how shipping goes.

You could also save a few bucks be going AGP instead of pci-e, but it's probably a good idea to go pci-e now.

The dell system isn't all that bad for the price.

EDIT: I'm an idiot, I forgot the optical drive.... do you want a dvd burner or just a cd burner?

 

[shoRunner]

memory
case
mobo
hard drive
DVD burner
x800xl
AMD 3800+

ends up right around 1200, you may opt for a larger hard drive or 2nd optical, i'd just go to a 3500+ then. i could find a 3500 in stock at zip or newegg which is why i just put the 3800+. that system with also be tons better than the dell in basically everything.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: shoRunner
memory
case
mobo
hard drive
DVD burner
x800xl
AMD 3800+

ends up right around 1200, you may opt for a larger hard drive or 2nd optical, i'd just go to a 3500+ then. i could find a 3500 in stock at zip or newegg which is why i just put the 3800+. that system with also be tons better than the dell in basically everything.

Not at having a monitor or windows it's not

 

[Cook1]

This is all from Newegg, but shop around and see if you can't beat these prices...but here's the config I would do for $1200-$1300

AMD Athlon 64 3200+ $190 Shipped

DFI "LANPARTY UT nF4 Ultra-D" $140.99 Shipped

Corsair Value Select $97 Shipped

EVGA nVIDIA GeForce 6600GT $184 Shipped

Lian Li Silver ATX Mid-Tower Case, Model "PC-60" $110.99 Shipped

Seagate 160GB Barracuda $118.49 Shipped

Antec 430W Power Supply $76.99 Shipped

ASUS Silver 16X DVD-ROM/ 48X CD-ROM Drive $33 Shipped

AOpen F75VS 17" Silver LCD Monitor w/ Speakers $220 Shipped



Total= $1171.46

If you feel the need, get another 6600GT for SLI, will bring you a little over $1300. I have a regular 6600 and it has handled every game I have thrown at it.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Do you need windows xp with it? (Or can you get is somewhere else / have it already?)

 

[NetDevil]

Originally posted by: Cook1
This is all from Newegg, but shop around and see if you can't beat these prices...but here's the config I would do for $1200-$1300

AMD Athlon 64 3200+ $190 Shipped

DFI "LANPARTY UT nF4 Ultra-D" $140.99 Shipped

Corsair Value Select $97 Shipped

EVGA nVIDIA GeForce 6600GT $184 Shipped

Lian Li Silver ATX Mid-Tower Case, Model "PC-60" $110.99 Shipped

Seagate 160GB Barracuda $118.49 Shipped

Antec 430W Power Supply $76.99 Shipped

ASUS Silver 16X DVD-ROM/ 48X CD-ROM Drive $33 Shipped

AOpen F75VS 17" Silver LCD Monitor w/ Speakers $220 Shipped



Total= $1171.46

Forget the case and the psu. Buy an antec sonata, put some more money and buy a 6800gt.
Later edit: Forget that LCD and buy a good CRT monitor. So you`ll have enough money to buy a 6800gt

 

[shoRunner]

i never saw him say he needed a monitor and peripherals

 

[emilyek]

The Dell is not a bad deal since you get everything, except for the 3.0g Intel processor.

Find it in an AMD flavor (do they make them?) and you're good to go.

If you do build your own get at least a socket 939 3200, 1g of ddr400 ram, and a 6800gt.

 

[shoRunner]

the x800xl is a much better buy than the 6800gt about the same performance (+/-) and nearly 100 cheaper

 

[Cook1]

Forget the case and the psu. Buy an antec sonata, put some more money and buy a 6800gt.

Don't tell me, you have Powmax case and an Aspire PSU right?

 

[shoRunner]

lol... nows the part in the thread where people start arguing over which is the best system and the OP stops responding. at least he got a few differnent good ideas

 

[Kid Vicious]

my rig below cost about 1300. course i bought in late january when some of the components were still priced premium. got everything at zipzoomfly cos of the free 2nd day fedex. mid range but it runs just about anything. room for expansion too. get a different psu tho, ocz powerstream or enermax eg701ax-ve at a reasonable price. just some ideas.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: Cook1

Forget the case and the psu. Buy an antec sonata, put some more money and buy a 6800gt.

Don't tell me, you have Powmax case and an Aspire PSU right?

I think the new powersupply in the sonata with 24a on the +12 rail will be plenty for a non-overclocked non-SLI A64 system with 1 hard drive.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Since I forgot the optical drive, I'll do a little update

sonata case (will be very quiet, like your dell would have been)
A64 3200+ 754
chaintech NF3
6800gt
160 gig HDD
1 gig kingmax
17" LCD
windows xp
NEC dvd burner

$1274 before shipping, still need kb/mouse/speakers if you don't have them already

 

[Machine350]

Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
Since I forgot the optical drive, I'll do a little update

sonata case (will be very quiet, like your dell would have been)
A64 3200+ 754
chaintech NF3
6800gt
160 gig HDD
1 gig kingmax
17" LCD
windows xp
NEC dvd burner

$1274 before shipping, still need kb/mouse/speakers if you don't have them already

This would be an awesome rig for gaming. The only thing I would change is the XFX video card. I've heard a lot of negative things about XFX. I'd go with EVGA, similar price, better reputation.