New Rig...Suggestions needed

[EastCoastn07]

So, I've been saving up for my first major build and I've compiled a list of some parts which I think will be vital to my system, but I wanted to get others opinions before I went through with it. Right now, I know for a fact that I will be waiting for AM2 before I buy my system, so this list of course won't be final until I pick out the DDR2 memory, motherboard, and processor which goes along with the new socket type. Hopefully when AM2 comes out it won't jack up the price that high either. This list doesn't include my mouse, keyboard, wireless network card (I have my reasons) and/or any other component that won't be part of the tower itself, which includes the screen. Right now however I am a little lost on which screen I might want to get, I was looking at a Dell and also looking for other 19" screens that looked like a good deal, and anything under $300 dollars that has a good reputation is fine with me so if you have any suggestions leave them here.

Case: COOLER MASTER Centurion 534 - $69.99
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16811119104

PSU: Update Antec TRUEPOWERII TPII-480 BLUE - $79.99
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16817103930

Mobo: DFI nF4 Ultra-Infinity - $90.99
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16813136163

CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200 - $355
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16819103547

RAM: CORSAIR XMS 1GB (2 x 512MB) 184-Pin DDR - $89
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820145450

GPU: eVGA Geforce 7600GT - $219.99
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16814130284

HDD: Western Digital Caviar SE16 250GB 3.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s - $90
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16822144701

Optical: LITE-ON 16X DVD±R DVD Burner W/LightScribe - $51.99
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16827106015

Misc: MITSUMI USB 2.0 Internal digital card reader with Floppy Drive - $19.99
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16821104104

Suggestions are welcomed!

 

[JSFLY]

If your gaming alot, I recommend the benq FP91+. Great value, no ghosting in games.

 

[acole1]

very close to what i am in the process of getting. you might want to look at the OCZ ModStream OCZ52012U. it is a 520w for 79 after MIR.

i chose that one because after some research antecs have a history of burning out and dieing... perhaps they arn't as good as they once were?

feel free to disagree

 

[InlineFour]

Drop the 1Gb XMS and get the 2Gb Corsair Value Ram (1gbx2).

You should also consider an ASUS board if youn're not a big overclocker.

Are you actually going to be using the LightScribe feature? If not, you can save money by getting a NEC burner.

For the PSU, I recomend the Seasonic 430W.

 

[elite6]

I think you should drop down to the X2 3800+ and get the 7900GT. Or if you can, keep the X2 4200+ and get the 7900GT.

Also, somehow try and sneak some cheap 2x1GB memory in there instead of the 2x512 really nice XMS stuff.

 

[Cabages]

Basically what elite said. 4200+ wont give you much of an improvement. Get a 3800+ and a higher grade video card. More RAM is recomended.

 

[acole1]

Originally posted by: Cabages
Basically what elite said. 4200+ wont give you much of an improvement. Get a 3800+ and a higher grade video card. More RAM is recomended.

I would beg to differ. The performance gap between the X2 3800+ and the X2 4200+ is larger that the gap between any other 2 sequential X2's (except perhaps the difference between the 4400+ and the 4600+).

THG usually has a CPU chart, but it looks like the page is currently down. Here are some more comparisons between the X2's and some Pentiums.
http://www.tomshardware.com/2005/08/01/dual/page8.html

Don't just take peoples word for it. Check out some benchmarks to confirm what they are saying. If I was you I would get the 4200+. I was seriously considering it until I discovered it had 1\2 the cache of a 4400+ and my greedy self realized at 400 MHz OC would give me an FX-60 for 1\2 the price. The 4400+ is $100 more than the 4200+ with, what some would call a *minimal* performance gain, but it was worth it to me.

In the end you just have to ask yourself "is it worth it to me."

Also, the 7900GT would be nice... but IMHO from what I have seen the 7600GT is plenty for the casual gamer (and for almost 1\2 the price). Mine just came today!

Eidt: 2GB RAM is a definite must if you are looking for any longevity for your rig. Here is an article discussing how, in the end, more ram will provide a larger benefit than high frequencies or low latencies.

 

[Howard]

There isn't much difference if he's planning to overclock it.

 

[EastCoastn07]

Right now, I'm not looking to overclock the processor...

As of right now, I'll probably be getting two gb of RAM. I think I'm going to stick with the 7600GT because I'm not that much of a hardcore gamer. I would want to get both the 7900GT and the 4200+ processor but in order to keep the price down I went down on the graphics card...

If theres anymore screens you can recommend I'd appreciate it...I found two that looked pretty good I'll post them below so you can take a look.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16824116373

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16824116369

 

[Operandi]

Originally posted by: InlineFour
Drop the 1Gb XMS and get the 2Gb Corsair Value Ram (1gbx2).

You should also consider an ASUS board if youn're not a big overclocker.

Are you actually going to be using the LightScribe feature? If not, you can save money by getting a NEC burner.

For the PSU, I recomend the Seasonic 430W.

I 2nd that.

 

[LOUISSSSS]

nice build, if i were you i'd consider going with asus. dfi has given me (and MANY MANY others) @ dfi-street problems that would outweigh any benefits that dfi mb's give you (if any). i haven't noticed any. i'm going with an asus a8n5x with my friends build or an a8n-e.

 

[OSX]

Samsung 713n FTW!

 

[Howard]

Originally posted by: EastCoastn07
Right now, I'm not looking to overclock the processor...

That's a sin, my friend.

 

[alimoalem]

if you're not a harcore gamer, what will you be doing on your computer? if games are the most stressful things you'll be running, i would upgrade the graphics card and not the cpu. even if the performance gap between the X2 3800+ and the X2 4200+ is larger that the gap between any other 2 sequential X2's (which is given because the 200MHz to a 2GHz cpu is bigger %age-wise than 200MHz to a 2.2GHz cpu), the performance gap between those 2 cpus is less than the performance gap between the 7600GT and the 7900GT

 

[EastCoastn07]

Does anyone know if any of the two screens above are worth it...I would love to just get a screen with speakers for now so I can pass on paying another 100 or so for good speakers, but we'll see.

 

[EastCoastn07]

Can I bump this up, I want to get some more people's opinion.

 

[GeeFizzleDizzle]

If you're going to get a 7600GT, I'd get this one. It's factory overclocked plus it has a double lifetime warranty from XFX which means you get a lifetime warranty on the card and if you ever decide to sell the card the person you sell it to also gets a lifetime warranty :

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814150140

 

[EastCoastn07]

I think right now, the things I'm going to be getting depend on how much of a price difference AM2 will make to my rig. Suppose the prices on RAM go down, and motherboard and processor stay about the same I might be able to get a 7900GT. But we'll see because I'm definitely going to have to rearrange things come June.