New Gaming Computer

[James Bond]

Hi I'm going to be putting a new computer together in just a few days. I have picked out everything I want and I feel pretty good about all of it, but I wanted to hear waht you guys thought.

I'm going to be going PCI-Express, and I'm almost positive I want an AMD64 processor. Here is what I chose.

Processor:
Athlon 64 3200+ 90nm
$193.00

Mobo:
Abit AX8
$151.50

Video:
XFX GeForce 6600 GT 128MB PCI-Express
$178.00

RAM:
Corsair 512MB 3200DDR
$83.00

HD:
WD Raptor 36GB
$100.00

It comes up to a total of like $700, which is a little high, but OK.

The things I'm not sure about:
The ram - I really want Corsair, but is it the best choice for me? I can only afford 512MB of it since its a little more pricey.. Will that be ok?
My video card - I have heard bad things about NVidia's newer cards, but after reading benchmarks with the PCI-E version of the 6600, it looked decent to me for the price.
The mobo/cpu - I like what I've read about both of these, are there any better mobo's though? Selection is small for PCI-E.

Any input would be soo great. Could I get anything here for cheaper? Am I making any mistakes?

Thanks again,
Tyler

 

[thecrecarc]

lose the raptor and get 1gb ram

 

[flamingspinach]

When did you "hear bad things about nVidia's newer cards"? Their GeForce 5 series (a.k.a. FX series) was crap but the 6 series 0wnz.

Corsair is excellent RAM. 512 should be okay, you might have some jittering on newer games though (due to pagefile access).

Dunno about that XFX, I'd suggest an eVGA or Leadtek (unfortunately BFG doesn't make 6600 GT cards)...

-fs

 

[James Bond]

What does everyone else think? Downgrade HD and get 1GB Corsair? Or keep it?

And on the Video Card.. I'll start comparing benchmarks between the XFX and some LeadTek cards and see what happens.

 

[2Xtreme21]

- You shouldn't use the Raptor for storage and it won't do anything to help perfomance that is worth it. Lose it and put in a 120GB or so.

- 1GB Corsair :thumbsup:

- 6800GT if you can find it for the price will knock the socks off of the 6600GT. (though I don't see you being able to find it for cheap)

- Why would you compare benchmarks between nVidia brands?

 

[biostud]

Originally posted by: thecrecarc
lose the raptor and get 1gb ram

 

[James Bond]

Ok Ill find a shittier HD and use that. The thing is I have a large HD for storage, I just wanetd a faster one to be my primary HD.

I'll try to afford the Corsair.

Ill start looking at prices for 6800's too.

Any other input?

 

[James Bond]

I found 1GB of Corsair priced nicely: http://www.monarchcomputer.com...=M&Product_Code=140443
What HD should I get (This is going to be my main HD for running OS etc.) I need at least 40Gigs.

 

[fishmonger12]

lose the raptor. i have one and there's no noticeable difference between it and my brothers dell 2mb cache storage drive.

1 gb ram is a must.

6800gt is the preferable card.

if you aren't going to be upgrading this system, getting an agp board isnt a bad idea. lowers the cost of the board, almost guarantees stability, and lowers the price of a 6800gt to ~380$.

 

[2Xtreme21]

It really doesn't matter. So Windows will load 2 seconds faster... is that something you'd like to pay a boat load for? Just grab a 40GB SATA somewhere.

Edit: I agree with the above poster. Since you seem to be on a budget, go for a mobo that supports AGP rather than PCI-E. You won't notice a difference in speed and your components will be cheaper.

 

[fishmonger12]

ok i see you want to stay under 700$.

6600gt is a good option, good performance right now and the pci-express motherboard will get you upgrade options in the future.

or

if you don't plan on upgrading this box, an agp socket 754 system will probably put a 6800gt in your price range.

 

[Ike0069]

Yea, go for the Socket 754 MB/CPU. Ditch the Raptor.

S754 MB/CPU (3000+ retail) ~$235

 

[KoolDrew]

Originally posted by: thecrecarc
lose the raptor and get 1gb ram

 

[James Bond]

Ok, I appreciate all of the input.
I have nothing against Socket 754 so I'll go for it.

Any ideas on what a really decent S754Mobo is?
Ill go Athlon XP obviously.
What brand GeForce6800 is nice?

Thanks again

 

[James Bond]

I'm actually really torn now.
I know that going 754 will be a lot cheaper and allow me to get the GF6800, but won't I just end up having to upgrade again in a couple years and buy both a new Mobo/CPU/Video card?

 

[James Bond]

Processor:
Athlon 64 3200+ 90nm
$193.00

Mobo:
Abit AX8
$151.50

Video:
XFX GeForce 6600 GT 128MB PCI-Express (Or different brand?)
$178.00

RAM:
Corsair 1GB 3200DDR
$147.00

HD:
Western Digital 40GB SATA
$60.00

=

$729.00

?

Or should I go 754??

 

[flamingspinach]

It depends on what your goals are. Do you usually upgrade piece by piece? Personally, I think the best strategy is to get a computer, then three years later get a totally new computer. That way none of your parts will be old when you upgrade, plus it's a bit more cost-effective.

If you really think you're going to upgrade your CPU really soon, keep in mind that the socket 754 chips will only go up to 3700+. But personally I think socket 754 is the way to go, because PCI-E isn't really mainstream yet, nor will it be for at least another year, I think.

A really great s754 motherboard is the Asus K8N-E Deluxe, ~US$120.

But wait, did you say "Ill go Athlon XP obviously"? Why? Athlon64 is really the way to go, if you can afford it... and that's what you had in your original post, so I assume you can... Why did you decide otherwise? Besides, AthlonXPs aren't s754 IIRC - was that a typo?

-fs

 

[ayman]

in a couple of years a FULL upgrade will be just about necessary. Buying those parts now for upgradibility in 2 years isnt worth it at all. If in 2 years you plan on only upgrading something like a processor or video card, then thats not worth it in my opinion. When people here at AT say they want to upgrade, its usually an upgrade for say 4-6 monthes time. In 2 years you'll end up needing a whole new system to keep up! That's if you want to

And you said your going "Athlon XP?" ... 754 mobo is still amd64 if that's what you were referring to ;o

 

[ayman]

Hey tizyler, i heard XFX isn't that great. I'd go for eVGA or Leadtek. BFG for any other model besides the 6600's.

 

[fishmonger12]

first off, dont get xfx.

second, socket 754 will put a 6800 vanilla in your pricerange. it will perform better for the same price as socket 939. however, the performance difference isn't THAT much. if you think you will end up upgrading your video card before you build a new box, you should probably go with socket 939.

i would still go with socket 754, as upgrading piecemeal just creates bottlenecks in your system that limit the performance of the new part.

http://www.newegg.com/app/view...tion=22-135-106&DEPA=0

there's an 80 gig hd by wd for only 66$.

 

[James Bond]

Yeah that was a typo, my bad.

Well generally what I end up doing is upgrading piece by piece, by you're right.. After I get all this stuff I won't plan on upgrading anything for a couple years most likely. So I guess my question is this: If I end up getting Socket 754 am I going to need to upgrade both my MB/CPU any sooner? Or will I be able to hold out a while?

If I go PCIe, will it be more cost effective in a couple years?

I think the reason I really want PCIe right now is because I really like the benchmarks on the PCIe 6600GT's, plus its really cheap for what you get it seems.

 

[James Bond]

Ok thanks a lot fish, that helps.

Let me rebuild my plans real fast.

 

[James Bond]

Asus K8N-E Deluxe - 120
Athlon 64 3200+ - 193
BFG GeForce 6800 - ? - Which one?
Corsair 1GB 3200DDR - 147
WD 80GIG - 66

?

 

[quizzelsnatch]

get the msi neo or dfi lanparty ut, my friend has an msi neo and i have the lanparty ut. my friend really likes his neo and i liked my lanparty when it worked (i fried it :-/). they are both 20 dollars cheaper and imo are much better boards than the asus k8n-e.

 

[flamingspinach]

Originally posted by: ayman
Hey tizyler, i heard XFX isn't that great. I'd go for eVGA or Leadtek. BFG for any other model besides the 6600's.

Please don't double-post! ^_^ But, I totally agree with this info. Dunno about that XFX, I'd suggest an eVGA or Leadtek (unfortunately BFG doesn't make 6600 GT cards)...

-fs