New midrange system - please critique.

[rvitek]

Hi! Been awhile since I've been here.

Did finally upgrade my aging system and this is how I'm thinkning:

AMD 64 3200+ Venice
Asus A8N-E
Leadtek Winfast 6600GT
OCZ OCZ4001024PFDC-K 1GB PC3200 CL2.5
Win XP

Transferring my old sound, firewire, harddrive, DVD+-, and CD+- over into an Antec case.

Only thing outstanding is my old 350W power supply. It may not hold up to this task, but I'm not into overclocking so I think I'll be able to pass with this setup. Should I go for a new PS?

Did I do OK? Any changes before I submit?

And oh yea - this is actually WIFE APPROVED!

Ry.

 

[suicidalpigeon]

3000+
epox 9npa
evga/bfg 6600gt or get an x800xl for like $230 at tigerdirect
it depends if that psu is branded or generic. if generic, a 350w sparkle will do just fine, or you can bump to $50 for a 450w fortron or pcp&c silencer 360w(peaks 400w or something) for $65.

 

[kleinwl]

All of that is fine. Since you are not into overclocking the ASUS board is good and the 3200+ is fine. If you would want to overclock in the future then I would go with the above posters recommendations.

Only other thing 2x512MB is a little better (and cheaper) than 1GB ram since you take advantage of the dual channel.

Other question... is it worth it to keep your old hard drive? Depending on the age you may see some improvements with a new hdd with 8MB cache / SATA2 / NCQ abilities. Since the hard drive is one of those things that really effects responsiveness it may be worth your while to change/upgrade.

Assuming you are running 1028x then the 6600GT is fine. ATI has x800pros (refurb) for ~$180. So that is also a viable option.

 

[Sqube]

Just for the sake of knowing all your options, ATI has finally come out with a card that competes on the same level as the 6600 GT: it's called the X800 GT.

From the review I read on Hard|OCP, it seems to be neck and neck with the 6600 GT in most games, and I believe it was better in a couple.

However, nVIDIA still has that whole SM 3.0 support thing in their favor; ATI's not supporting it until the next generation (R520?) if I'm not mistaken.

 

[rvitek]

Thanks for the comments!

The HDD is a: SAMSUNG SpinPoint P Series SP1614N 160GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache IDE Ultra ATA133 Hard Drive

And oh - I do appologize as yes, the RAM package I'm looking at IS a "kit" in which it contains two 512MB chips packaged together for a 1GB total. It's their midrange RAM with a latency of 2.5, vs. the "value" RAM for a few bucks cheaper with a latency of 3.

The only thing about the ATI card is that I've been a nVidia fan ever since I upgraded from my old 3Dfx Banshee. I forget what I upgraded too - something like a TNT2 or something (??). I've had nothing but a killer experience with nVidia, and their support and driver releases are awesome! I know ATI has come a long long way, but if the 6600 and X800 are indeed the same, then I think I'll stick with the 6600. TRUST ME, if money were no object, I'd be in the 6800GT game, but I really can't justify it for almost double the price of the 6600GT. And now, I do play HL2 with my 4800SE and 2Gig AMD in 1024 just fine - shouldn't I be able to either bump the resolution OR enable some AA with my new setup? If not, then yes, I'll throw in the $$ for a 6800GT.

Yes, my PSU is branded: an Antec brand at 350W.

Also - howcome the ePox MB better than the ASUS at overclocking? According to the ASUS website, they claim they're pretty good at it.

Ry.

 

[rvitek]

Turns out my PSU is an Antec 300W SmartPower. No good for this system 'eh? Should I upgrade - and if so, by how much?

Ry.

 

[t3h l337 n3wb]

Fortron 450W with dual +12V rails @ Newegg for $50

 

[Azndude2190]

Originally posted by: rvitek
Hi! Been awhile since I've been here.

Did finally upgrade my aging system and this is how I'm thinkning:

AMD 64 3200+ Venice
Asus A8N-E
Leadtek Winfast 6600GT
OCZ OCZ4001024PFDC-K 1GB PC3200 CL2.5
Win XP

Transferring my old sound, firewire, harddrive, DVD+-, and CD+- over into an Antec case.

Only thing outstanding is my old 350W power supply. It may not hold up to this task, but I'm not into overclocking so I think I'll be able to pass with this setup. Should I go for a new PS?

Did I do OK? Any changes before I submit?

And oh yea - this is actually WIFE APPROVED!

Ry.

Good choice for the video card I have the same one.You should get the Antec NeoPower 480w PSU and that should do it.

 

[suicidalpigeon]

a lot of info on an actual manufacturing site are displayed in an advertising-tone method, so not everything is as it seems. you should do research in sites that tests several devices all at once such as anandtech and tomshardware to make final purchases. 300w meets minimum requirements, but you should get what t3h l337 n3wb suggested.

 

[rvitek]

Ty ty again!

I ended up going with an Antec TruePower 2.0 430W as I get a heck of a discount with CDW and it only came out to be a few bucks more than the Fortron and there's just something I like about Antec since it's been so good to me over the last few PCs.

I'll get her together and let you know how she fairs!

Thanks again - and oh, did pick up an Audigy 2 ZS for $40 retail to swap my OLD Live! value.

Ry.

 

[t3h l337 n3wb]

Eh, in general, Fortron is supposed to be better than Antec, but the TruePower II's are pretty nice, and it looks like you got a pretty nice deal on it. Good luck with your built

 

[i1o0i]

Originally posted by: rvitek
Hi! Been awhile since I've been here.

Did finally upgrade my aging system and this is how I'm thinkning:

AMD 64 3200+ Venice
Asus A8N-E
Leadtek Winfast 6600GT
OCZ OCZ4001024PFDC-K 1GB PC3200 CL2.5
Win XP

Transferring my old sound, firewire, harddrive, DVD+-, and CD+- over into an Antec case.

Only thing outstanding is my old 350W power supply. It may not hold up to this task, but I'm not into overclocking so I think I'll be able to pass with this setup. Should I go for a new PS?

Did I do OK? Any changes before I submit?

And oh yea - this is actually WIFE APPROVED!

Ry.

:thumbsup: use forton 450watts power supply and use 80gb or up hard drive would give you enough space.