Opinions/Suggestions for this system config

[ooeDBone]

*First off, sorry for the cross posting, just trying to get as much input as possible. Too bad there isn't a "system builder" forum or something.*

Greetings everyone. Long time listener, first time caller. I am getting ready to put together a new gaming system for myself and just wanted to hear your guys thoughts on this config. I've been trying to keep up with all the forums and what-not but don't have as much free time as I like. Hopefully you can let me know if there is something I need to watch out for with this build. Thanks for any input you guys have.

Processor
AMD Athlon 64 3200+, 512KB L2 Cache, Socket 939 64-bit Processor - Retail (90nm Winchester Core)
The new Winchester core is supposed to be better than the 130nm core and the 3500+ is 100 dollars more expensive. So the 3200+ should be sufficient for price vs. performance right?

Motherboard
ASUS "A8N-SLI Deluxe" nForce4 SLI Chipset Motherboard For AMD Socket 939 CPU
http://usa.asus.com/products/mb/socket939/a8nsli-d/overview.htm

Memory
CORSAIR XMS Xtreme Memory Speed Series, Xtra-Low Latency 184-Pin 1GB(512MBx2) DDR PC-3200 w/ Platinum Heat Spreader, Model TWINX1024-3200XLPT
2-2-2-5 CAS timings and 2 512's for dual channel.

Video Card
XFX nVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT Video Card, 256MB GDDR3, 256-Bit, Dual DVI/TV-Out, PCI-E, Model "PVT45GUD"
Would rather have the big single card now and leave the option for SLI in the future.
http://www.xfxforce.com/product_view.php?sku=PVT45GUD

Hard Drive
Maxtor 300GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model 6B300S0
9.3ms seek time, 16MB buffer, SATAII support and NCQ.
PDF Data Sheet: http://www.maxtor.com/_files/maxtor/en_...ta_sheets/diamondmax_10_data_sheet.pdf

Case
I was hoping for the Antec P180 to be out by now... Will probably be using the P160 instead. I helped my buddy build his system with this case, and I really like it.

Power supply
Trying to decide between the Antec NeoPower480 and the TruePower480. The Neopower is 30 bucks more.
Neo480: http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=24480
True480: http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=20480

Optical Drives
Keeping what I currently have, Plextor DVD writer.

Sound
Will either use onboard or current SB Live. I usually play with headphones.

Thanks in advance for any advice you guys have.

 

[Waylay00]

Looks good, but steer away from Maxtor. Stick with Seagate or Western Digital. Spend the extra on the Neopower, but if you plan on running SLI later, I would get a single rail PSU as people are having issues running SLI with dual rails.

 

[alrox]

I'd opt for the Seagate 7200.8 300GB drive instead of the Maxtor. It costs a little bit more, but has an 8ms seek time instead of the Maxtor's high 9.3ms, plus it has a 5 year warranty.

HD on newegg

Also, I'd save some money and buy this ram instead of the Corsair XMS. The timings are 2-3-2-5 1t for $25 per stick cheaper.

With the more expensive HD and less expensive RAM you'd end up paying about the same as the parts you picked out.

 

[ooeDBone]

Yeah, I like Seagate drives alot, but I was hoping for SATAII. Thoughts?

 

[Waylay00]

SATA 2 shows no improvement now whatsoever. Most drives now won't even max out at the SATA 150 spec.

 

[DfiDude]

GET MSI K8N NEO4 PLATINUM, the asus is ok..people been having way too many problems with that board. I suggest you gettin the msi. Its a really good board, trust me.

 

[ooeDBone]

Yeah, I guess I'll scrap the SATAII idea. I feel much better getting a Seagate w/ NCQ anyway.

As for the MSI board, I thought the feature set on the Asus was better. What's better on the MSI?

 

[ahurtt]

Don't bother with getting NCQ if you are gonna put it on the A8N SLI. Nothing but problems have occurred for just about everybody who tried to enable NCQ. Maybe future BIOS or nForce drivers will fix it. . .maybe firmware updates are needed for the hard drives. . .who knows. Might be fixed in the future but for now NCQ = "Nice and Corrupted Quickly." And the A8N also has a problem with Maxtor SATA drives and detecting them in general. Don't get a Maxtor drive with that motherboard. (I know, I have one and I made the mistake myself.) I have also heard some spotty things about XFX video cards and artifacting and low quality. I have BFG )C cards and they have been great so far. Cost a little more but they come pre-overclocked and have a lifetime warranty. [EDIT] BFG also has a 24-7 tech support phone line and it really is 24-7. I had to call them in the middle of the night once and got a very prompt answer.