opinions on first build

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fubar yay

Junior Member
Mar 26, 2005
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Hey guys, this is my first build and i was wondering what you all thought of it. I have a limit of 1000 dollars so this is what i could find for that price. This will be mainly used as a gaming machine. I'm buying all of these parts from newegg.

DFI "LANPARTY nF4 SLI-DR" NVIDIA nForce4 SLI Chipset Motherboard For AMD Socket 939 CPU

Chaintech nVIDIA GeForce 6600GT Video Card, 128MB DDR3, 128-Bit, TV-Out/DVI, PCI-Express, Model "SE6600G" -RETAIL

Maxtor 160GB 7200RPM IDE Hard Drive, Model 6Y160P0, OEM Drive Only

Corsair Value Select (Dual Pack) 184 Pin 512MBx2 DDR PC-3200 - OEM

AMD Athlon 64 3500+, 512K, L2 Cache, Socket 939 Windows Compatible 64-bit Processor - Retail

I realize that i'm still missing a cd drive and case, but I'll figure that out later. I am also planning on buying a second 6600 gt when i have the money so that i could use dual vid cards. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
 
M

mwmorph

Diamond Member
Dec 27, 2004
8,877
1
81
1. buy the dfl nforce4 ultra board with simulated sli. you can use a pencil to easily mod(and by easy, i mean draw 1 small line) on the chip to mod it to a fully functonal sli nofrce4 sli chipset mb(it comes with 2 pci-e 16x slots anyway).(anandtech had a guide on how to do this a few months ago.

DFI "LANPARTY UT nF4 Ultra-D" NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra Chipset Motherboard For AMD Socket 939 CPU -RETAIL-$139.99
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=22-148-031&depa=1

2. buy retail hdds. they have warranty. also, the oem dont come with cables, it's just a drive. maxtor is ok but not nearly as good as seagate. seagate are fast, good quality and quiet.

seagate:$106-160gig ide
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=22-148-031&depa=1

another alternative is samsung. they are slower, but VERY, VERY quiet(though they only come in oem flavor, so you need to buy some cables).

3. there's some g-skill cas2 ram(very good ram) for $109.99 on newegg. it will be better and by better, i mean a better ocer and give better performance stock.
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=20-231-012&depa=0

you can back it down to 3200+ unless the 3500+ is a venice core. no real speed difference and they both oc the same(except for the 3500+ and 3800+ venice cores whickh are crazy good oc'ers)

dvd burner: i personally have a lite-on 1633s. cheap ,comes with some good software, and burns pretty fast. also can be flashed with a 1653s bios easy so it burns even faster with no problems. ben-q also makes some great, affordable drives with good software(lite-on and benq give you full versions of nero6).

rosiewill cases are alright, athenatech has a excellent,ableit boring case with what seems like a decent rebranded sparkle power supply(350w) for like $56 or $60, in that range. otherwise, ask someone else. not big with the cases.


edit: with all the money you save from the mb, upgrade yourself to a x800provivo and flash ti to x800xt. you wont regret it.(though ti's not guranteed it will flash, it is a VERY good chance)[ONLY VIVO MODELS FLASH]

SAPPHIRE ATI RADEON X800 PRO Video Card, 256MB GDDR3, 256-Bit, VGA/VIVO/DVI , PCI-Express
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=14-102-496&depa=1

How To Flash to x800xt
http://www.techpowerup.com/articles/overclocking/vidcard/100
 
F

fubar yay

Junior Member
Mar 26, 2005
20
0
0
Thanks man, i like your ideas, but just had one quick question. Are you able to use SLi with ATI cards? I thought that dual video cards was only for nvidia
 
M

mwmorph

Diamond Member
Dec 27, 2004
8,877
1
81
no. you need a rd400 chipset to do that.

it's called AMR for ATI Multi Rendering

drivers that support it are coming out soon. noo need for physical connectors so within a few months if you buy that x800pro vivo, and a RD400 chipset mb(not out yet maybe 1-2months) and then another x800pro, you can have AMR 2 X800xt for a lot less than 2x 6800gt and a sli mb.

read this
http://www.bit-tech.net/feature/80
 
M

mwmorph

Diamond Member
Dec 27, 2004
8,877
1
81
Originally posted by: mwmorph
no. you need a rd400 chipset to do that.

it's called AMR for ATI Multi Rendering

drivers that support it are coming out soon. noo need for physical connectors so within a few months if you buy that x800pro vivo, and a RD400 chipset mb(not out yet maybe 1-2months) and then another x800pro, you can have AMR 2 X800xt for a lot less than 2x 6800gt and a sli mb.

read this
http://www.bit-tech.net/feature/80
Click to expand...
no im saying, a sli isnt needed for any game, and b, if your really want to sli, just buy 1 6800gt.

why would you sli 2x6600gt? buy 1 6800gt and have the option to sli it later. 1x6800gt is usally faster than 2x 6600gt for about the same cost.

rollo has a bunch of benchies with 6600gt, 800nu, 6800gt, and 6800u.
 
K

KoolDrew

Lifer
Jun 30, 2004
10,226
7
81
For DVD-RW drive get the NEC 3520A. For cases check out Antec, Lian Li, CoolerMaster and Silverstone. Just to name a few.
 
F

fubar yay

Junior Member
Mar 26, 2005
20
0
0
so, would you suggest getting 2 6800 gt's, or one x800

what im trying to say is... is sli a good way to go for gaming, or can you do just as well with one video card
 
n yusef

n yusef

Platinum Member
Feb 20, 2005
2,158
1
0
IDE/SATA cables come with your motherboard, so OEM HDD's are OK. Also, the newer NF4 Ultra boards can't be pencil modded into SLI anymore. If you don't want to flash the BIOS of an X800 Pro, you can just get an X800XL. Don't worry about getting an SLI board if you have an ATI video card though.
 
K

KoolDrew

Lifer
Jun 30, 2004
10,226
7
81
Just go with one video card. SLI is a waste of money unless you want the absolute best. I would go with the X800XL though. It performs very well for its price.
 
F

fireontheway

Golden Member
Jul 8, 2003
1,480
0
0
Originally posted by: KoolDrew
Just go with one video card. SLI is a waste of money unless you want the absolute best. I would go with the X800XL though. It performs very well for its price.
Click to expand...

 
K

KoolDrew

Lifer
Jun 30, 2004
10,226
7
81
If you are not overclocking why not just get the Chaintech NF4 mobo. Anyone know if this is any good? It seems good fro the price.
 
F

fubar yay

Junior Member
Mar 26, 2005
20
0
0
I probably will not be overclocking because i do not know how to oc yet. However, i may try later ...
 
S

SNM

Member
Mar 20, 2005
180
0
0
Since you can play the latest and greatest games with AA/AF at resolutions over 1024*768 with a sub-$200 6600GT, you really don't need to worry about SLI (or even X800) unless you need to have the highest framerates on the block. ;)
If your budget is $1000, save some money and get a 3200+, even if you don't know if you'll overclock.
Going along with the last two, as everybody else has said, just get an nf4 Ultra board. I'd stay with DFI because the decent integrated audio appeals to me, but if you're not into overclocking there may be better options (cheaper, better audio, less finicky, etc).
I like fast hard drives, so I'd upgrade to a SATA, especially with an nf4 board...all those connectors!
I've heard there are problems playing some games on DVD burners; I don't have a clue if it's right. However, a combo drive (CD-R, DVD reader) can be had for $30 @ Newegg. And having two CD drives can come in really handy; you need to swap CDs less. :p

Oh, and pay plenty of attention to your cooling and power supply. I can't believe nobody's said anything about that yet.
 
F

fireontheway

Golden Member
Jul 8, 2003
1,480
0
0
Originally posted by: fubar yay
I probably will not be overclocking because i do not know how to oc yet. However, i may try later ...
Click to expand...

Stick with DFI,get a 3000 or a 3200 instead if you plan on overclocking anyway.Also TwinMos RAM is good too.
 
M

mwmorph

Diamond Member
Dec 27, 2004
8,877
1
81
waste of money. as for x800xl. it will be 2-3fps faster than the x800pro but for $281 there is a VERY good chance you can flash that x800pro to a x800xt(16/6) and it wuill far outperform a x800xl. also, it costs less.
 
F

fubar yay

Junior Member
Mar 26, 2005
20
0
0
Is there any risk of ruining a video card by "flashing" it? Or is there any work to be done on the actual hardware? im really new to these modifications
 
rise

rise

Diamond Member
Dec 13, 2004
9,116
46
91
Originally posted by: mwmorph
1. buy the dfl nforce4 ultra board with simulated sli. you can use a pencil to easily mod(and by easy, i mean draw 1 small line) on the chip to mod it to a fully functonal sli nofrce4 sli chipset mb(it comes with 2 pci-e 16x slots anyway).(anandtech had a guide on how to do this a few months ago.
Click to expand...


i thought this mod was dead/disabled by nvidia? i thought only the first shipment had a chip that could be modded and that all original boards would need to run certain drivers for it to work?
 
F

fubar yay

Junior Member
Mar 26, 2005
20
0
0
Could someone find me or write me a very in-depth tutorial on how to flash an x800 pro to an x800 xt. I've already read the past links posted, but am still a little confused on the subject. Thanks.
 
M

mwmorph

Diamond Member
Dec 27, 2004
8,877
1
81
Originally posted by: fubar yay
Could someone find me or write me a very in-depth tutorial on how to flash an x800 pro to an x800 xt. I've already read the past links posted, but am still a little confused on the subject. Thanks.
Click to expand...

its almost the same procedure as updating your bios.
 
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