New Computer, need help..

[Sniper991122]

Okay, im somewhat new in building computers, i've never actually built one from the ground up but have tons of old computers that i've played around with and have that experience...

heres the computer im looking to build...
*Update*
Processor - Athlon 64, 3200+ with 1mb L2 cache..
Motherboard - Foxconn Sis755 chipset, socket 754 (read anandtech's review, liked the benchmarks)
Memory - 2 512mb ddr400 sticks of OCZ Performance Series
Graphics Card - Sapphire 128mb Radeon 9800 pro (i had originally wanted the 256mb version, but benchmarks show the 128 is better and many have said they use cheaper memory on the 256?
Case - Lian Li Aluminum Case model "PC-65B"
power supply - Antex 400W model "SL400"

all the other components i have from other computers, but these were the main things i was going for..

any advise? im pretty clueless to the motherboards and about them, so any help is helpful...

budget is about ~$900, processor is like $270, motherboard is $92, memory is $228 graphics card is around $200, case is around $100, power supply is about $50

so all that comes pretty close..

 

[Viper96720]

Get DDR400 memory good brand. A64 is picky about memory. Crucial brand should be good

 

[Sniper991122]

okay, still need help with the motherboard, cause i have no idea what im looking for (other than how many desired slots of everything i want, im clueless to the chipsets and stuff)

also, hopefully i'll be able to extend my budget a little in which case i'd get 2 512mb sticks from crucial with error correcting

 

[Matthias99]

Um, ECC is useless on the A64; only the Opteron chipsets (AFAIK) support it.

I suggest reading some of AT's recent motherboard reviews if you don't know much about the A64 chipsets/boards. There are three main choices: SiS (SiS7XX), VIA (KT8XX) and NVIDIA (NForce3 150/250).

 

[Nickel020]

Yep, just read some mobo reviews and don't get ECC/Registerd memory. It is actually slower than normal RAM.

 

[Algere]

The A64 has 512KB cache, not 1MB if that means anything to ya which probably doesn't.

 

[Gurck]

My only contribution is to comment on the case & especially power supply - if you have an older and/or generic power supply, you might want to look at ordering a quality 350watt or higher one, higher if you plan on overclocking. Cheap cases tend to have a lot of sharp edges, stamped fan inlets & outlets which allow for less airflow than grills, don't fit together well (let in more dust), and so can cause you cut fingers and temperature problems - again, especially if you overclock when temps are more of a concern. If your case/psu are coming out of like an old Dell or something, you'd better figure in at least another $50 for something that won't give you so much trouble, possibly even $100 or more. It's very important & often overlooked.

 

[Sniper991122]

all of this input is very helpful, so thanks and im in the process of reading anandtech's reviews now

also, on the topic of the athlon 64's only having 512kbs cache maybe your not up to date with them, or its a mistake on new eggs part but.. http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-416&depa=0 has the 3200+ with 1mb l2 cache... not sure if thats your mistake or theirs, but hopefully its yours

also, i've got a 430 watt power suply lying around, so that should do and im sure i'll just grab some case or something and throw some fans in there?

 

[Gurck]

Well generally brand name is more important than wattage (since it indicates quality), but yeah that'll probably do the trick. If you end up with any stability problems though, it's the first place to look if it's not a good brand name.

 

[Algere]

Originally posted by: Sniper991122
all of this input is very helpful, so thanks and im in the process of reading anandtech's reviews now

also, on the topic of the athlon 64's only having 512kbs cache maybe your not up to date with them, or its a mistake on new eggs part but.. http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-416&depa=0 has the 3200+ with 1mb l2 cache... not sure if thats your mistake or theirs, but hopefully its yours

also, i've got a 430 watt power suply lying around, so that should do and im sure i'll just grab some case or something and throw some fans in there?

The 3200+ has 1MB but the 3000+ listed above has 512KB.

 

[Sniper991122]

Originally posted by: Algere

Originally posted by: Sniper991122
all of this input is very helpful, so thanks and im in the process of reading anandtech's reviews now

also, on the topic of the athlon 64's only having 512kbs cache maybe your not up to date with them, or its a mistake on new eggs part but.. http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-416&depa=0 has the 3200+ with 1mb l2 cache... not sure if thats your mistake or theirs, but hopefully its yours

also, i've got a 430 watt power suply lying around, so that should do and im sure i'll just grab some case or something and throw some fans in there?

The 3200+ has 1MB but the 3000+ listed above has 512KB.

ah, my mistake then... i posted that i was buying the 3000 i see :X im getting the 3200+ with the 1mb cache size (or incase i made any other mistakes, the one that operates at 2ghz heh)

also, i've decided just to get a new case and power supply, so this is the case http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=11-112-040&depa=0
and how do i figure out what size power supply to get (not wattage, actual size?) and what wattage should I get? Im also unfamiliar as to who makes good power supplies, so recommendations are helpful...

 

[Cerb]

Originally posted by: Algere
The A64 has 512KB cache, not 1MB if that means anything to ya which probably doesn't.

Er, no.
The 2800+ and 3000+ have 512K. The 3200+ and 3400+ have 1MB.

 

[Cerb]

Mobo: fine. I don't know about Foxconn boards, but buy from a good place like Newegg and no worries. However, SiS has awesome drivers. Period. They just work, and fast. With ECS' recent lacking in QC (last six months or so, L7S7A2s seem to be flaky on a regaular basis), and Gigabyte and Foxconn starting to offer competing solutions, things are looking good.

PSU: Nice one, but not too expensive. Ni!
OK, Fortron, Enhance (Silverstone?), Enlight, Antec, Thermaltake (Enlight), Enermax, some others.
Just get a nice 350w or 400w. A good PSU will serve you well, a bad one will cause trouble at some point. Like getting good memory, you may have some fantastic generic, but you never know, and price premium is relatively small. A Powmax or Deer will make you a believer in name-brand PSUs--Don't learn the hard way .

Also note the ~$95 for XP Home.

 

[Sniper991122]

alright, found a powmax 400 watt power supply for $23... seems cheap? Still reliable?
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=17-163-013&depa=0

some of the reviews on newegg say other users have had it die after a few months or even a few days in one instance..?

 

[Markfw]

Thats not a good one. Get an Antec 350 at least.

 

[Algere]

Originally posted by: Cerb

Originally posted by: Algere
The A64 has 512KB cache, not 1MB if that means anything to ya which probably doesn't.

Er, no.
The 2800+ and 3000+ have 512K. The 3200+ and 3400+ have 1MB.

I was replying to what was listed on the OP(before edit) which was a 3000+

 

[RussianSensation]

Get a motherboard with NF3-250 chipset because that is the only one guaranteed to have AGP/PCI lock for overclocking goodness and taking that A64 to 2.4ghz. Fortron FSP-60GNA or Thermaltake PurePower 480 or Antec TruPower 430 should be more than enough for your system. Also make sure NOT to get 128-bit Sapphire 9800Pro for $170-175 by accident and get the 256-bit version. Also I think AOpen boards reviewed at Anandtech were both amazing and both had a working PCI/AGP lock as well.

 

[Cerb]

1. NF3-250 = more $.
2. No need for a 480w, but a Fortron or Sparkle FSP-xxx 300w would be a minimum, 350w Antec. To quote myself

A Powmax or Deer will make you a believer in name-brand PSUs

3. 128-bits called pros? WTF?!

 

[Sniper991122]

Originally posted by: Cerb
1. NF3-250 = more $.
2. No need for a 480w, but a Fortron or Sparkle FSP-xxx 300w would be a minimum, 350w Antec. To quote myself

A Powmax or Deer will make you a believer in name-brand PSUs

3. 128-bits called pros? WTF?!

ah, wow i completely read that wrong, thanks for pointing that out.. hehe

anyway, i found a 400 watt antec power supply thats not too expensive, and the graphics card is the 256 bit one with 128mb (i wrote down all the product #'s so i can easily search for them and add them to cart)

also for the motherboard, i read some good reviews on that foxconn board and im already over my budget, so adding a more expensive motherboard probably wouldn't work too well, as much as i'd like to

unless this mother board http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-152-043&depa=0 is decent compared to the foxconn (i checked their benchmarks, but i'll have to go back and see if these two compare) then i couldn't budget in a more expensive mobo =\

 

[Sniper991122]

*sigh* okay, your input is killing my budget.. lol i got it extended to $900 from $650 and now im pushing over $1k at this point...

looked at the benchmarks of the foxconn and the nf3-250, and I like chaintech's ZNF3-250 its benchmarks did very well... plus that amazing ability to overclock...

thats about an extra $80, so I have to raise $138... hehe
puts the total at $1048 for the following (This is probably my 'final draft' for everything..)
Graphics Card - Sapphire Radeon 9800 Pro 256 bit - $209
Case - Lian Li Aluminum Case w/4 fans - $106
Power Supply - 400 Watt antec - $48
Memory - 2x512mb sticks of ddr400 OCZ Performance Series - $228
Motherboard - Chaintech ZNF3-250GB Pro Zenith - $175
Processor - AMD Athlon 64-bit 3200+ 1mb L2 cache - $282
Total = $1048....
Budget = $900

I don't want to sacrifice a whole 512mb stick of memory, even though that would put me right at about budget range... so I think i'll just stick with everything and get some money real quick..

thanks for all the input, I know my list has drastically changed since I first posted here... (in fact, everything about it has except the graphics card and processor.. heh)

 

[Nickel020]

You might want to take a look at the Antec SLK3700 BQE, it's one of the best cases around and is about $80 including a pretty good PSU. Silentpcreview.com has a review of the case.
Lian Li cases are great, but if you are on a tight budget get the Antec.

 

[Cerb]

If you want to make $650, you have the wrong CPU and case.
Get a Antec SLK3700-BQE, that alone should save $60.
Get Crucial or Kingston RAM (if Crucial, get from Crucial itself), save a bit, if it doesn't work, both companies have great support.
If you want to OC, go P4. The results with A64s so far have not been that great. Surely not work the cost of that Zenith. There are many good boards under $100.

Lastly, to save a bit, drop down to a 3000+. The differences are minimal between the 3200+ and 3000+ (1/2 cache).

 

[Sniper991122]

the budget was 650, but its been extended to 900.. and now i can just easily make up the money to obtain the $1048 i need...
im fine with paying the extra for the case, the processor and the memory the budget was more of guidelines to stick around or try to come close to...

 

[Gurck]

Originally posted by: Cerb
If you want to OC, go P4. The results with A64s so far have not been that great. Surely not work the cost of that Zenith. There are many good boards under $100.

If you go Intel and overclock get a p4c (Northwood) - not a p4e (Prescott) - unless you want to drop a few hundred on watercooling.

 

[Algere]

Water cooling doesn't cost That much.