Questions before buying new computer

[Poncherelli]

I'm about to purchase the parts for a new computer i'm building for my family and it will be the first machine i've built. I'm trying to get the best price/performance out of it and it needs to be able to last a few years, and i'd like it to be upgradable when new techonolgy comes out. Right now i have this put together from newegg and crucial:

ENLIGHT MEDIUM ATX TOWER CASE MODEL # EN-72370X3C4 - OEM with 300Watts Power Supply - $44.00

DVD ROM PIONEER INTERNAL ATAPI 16X DVD-ROM MODEL 106S/2 - OEM, DRIVE ONLY SLOT load 16X DVD/40X CD-ROM, $49.00

Floppy Drives MITSUMI D359M3 FDD 1.44MB 3.5INCH - OEM N82E16821103104 $9.00 $9.00

Hard Drives - MAXTOR 60GB 7200RPM $94.00

Motherboards - AMD Asus A7N266-C NVIDIA nFORCE 415-D Chipset 266/200MHz FSB Motherboard with Dolby Digital Audio- OEM
Supports AMD Socket A Athlon XP/Athlon/Duron Processors
AGP 4X/AGP Pro Advanced Graphics Slot for 3D Graphics
Integrated APU(Audio Processor Unit) in MCP-D built-in Dolby Digital (AC-3) Encoder. FOR BUNDLES ONLY! N82E16813131002 $105.00

Processors - AMD Athlon XP 1800+/266 FSB PROCESSOR CPU - RETAIL $128.00

Video Cards GAINWARD/CARDEXPERT GeForce 3 Ti200 64MB (NVIDIA GeForce3 Ti 200 GPU), Power Pack Golden Sample, ( 4ns 64MB DDR. ). TV-Out. GF3TI200 TI450. $129.00

Subtotal » $558.0

and
1x512mb pc2100 ddr- Part No. CT6464Z265 512MB, 184-pin DIMM.- $128.09


Will the 512 stick work well or should I go with 2x256? Also, does this seem like a good setup or is there anything that should be changed? I will not be overclocking anything (at least i don't plan on it for now) and my family will not be doing anything intense on here, but i'd like to play games on it until the end of summer and when i come home and visit. Thanks for any help or suggestions.

 

[FishTankX]

It's like this. With 2X256 you might get *slightly* better performance but have less legroom to upgrade. But 1X512 is better because it gives you more legroom to upgrade. What I would reccomend is using the MSI Nforce 420D board with integrated video and then waiting for the Geforce4 Ti4200. The disadvantage though is that you'd have to use 2X256 to get decent performance, because you'd be using dual channel memory, which gives the Geforce2MX graphics quite a bit more bandwidth. Most games are playable on the integrated graphics with the 2X memory module configuration.Anyways, i'd go with the MSI K7N420 pro right now and later upgrade to Ti4200.. if you can put up with 640X480X32 for now.

 

[Poncherelli]

I'd rather just get a video card now, unless the gf4ti4200 is coming out pretty soon, rather than have to get the onboard video and wait. I'd like to know, is pc2100ddr going to be around for awhile or are there new types of ram goin to phase it out? Also, how is the onboard sound and LAN with the nforce?

EDIT: Oh, and if i get the gf3, how much of a difference is there b/w the 64 meg cards and the 128 meg cards? Thanks.
One more thing, is the stock HS,fan, and paste on the Athlon good enough if i run it at default speed or bump the fsb up a little?

 

[FishTankX]

Uh, not much performance difference between 128MB and 64MB videocards. And Ti4200 should be comming out in less than a month, maybe a week or two.

Retail price:199$

As for RAM, i'd suggest if you're not going for the integrated video route Samsung sells a 512MB PC333/PC2700(Same thing) module. And this is gonna be the type of memory used in the hammer..

 

[FishTankX]

P.S. If you're gonna be keeping this rig for a long time, as in multiple years, a Ti200 with 128MB of onboard RAM will do ya better than a 64 meg card will. Think about the 16 meg vs 32 meg display card discretion now. I'm still on a 16 meg TnT2 pro at home and it hurts..

 

[jcmkk]

The system looks good. I'd go with the Samsung also since I've had good luck with it. If you possibly can, wait for the GeForce 4 Ti4200. It will be well worth your wait. I wouldn't use the stock heatsink. They just plain stink, even at stock speeds. Put a Alpha 8045 or Thermalright AX-7 on there with a Panaflo fan. And, if you're not stuck on slot loading, the Lite-On 16X DVD drive is fastest. The LAN and sound on the NForce board is good. Have fun with your system when you get it built.

 

[microAmp]

Just go with quality RAM, like Crucial, Mushkin. Do not go for generic kind of RAM.

 

[FishTankX]

My advice would be as follows

For 420 MSI mobo/integrated graphics (Wait for Ti4200 route as it's only a little while longer, no more than a month or so) 2X256 Samsung PC2700
For using the 415 motherboard 1X512MB samsung PC2700

Samsung is one of the best DDR brands.

 

[Poncherelli]

I have an old, extra TnT 16 meg video card laying around. Should I buy all the parts (415 mobo and 1x512mb Samsung 2700ddr) except the video card, use the tnt for a month, and then get the gf4-4200 when i comes out? I can probably wait a few weeks if the 4200 will be out by mid-may.

 

[FishTankX]

From what I know the NForce won't support TNT cards because they work on a higher AGP (I.E. 3.3 volts vs AGP4X's 1.5)voltage. Anyone care to fill me in?

 

[rover825lover]

The sound of the MSI k7n420 pro is very good. Nice crisp and bright. Also the internal graphics are much faster than a tnt card. It beats a 64 mb gf2mx (unknown brand).


Mark

 

[JonnyDuke]

First, why are you buying an NForce board if you're not going to use the on board GF2?

Second, why not buy a CPU/MB combo? It will save you money... check out Pricewatch, they have the best deals I have found.