questions on new system

[v sf]

I'm building my first new machine in nearly 6 years (for myself that is) and was wondering what people thought of the Samsung 710T (available through Fry's for under $250) vs. the Dell 1905FP. Complicating the matter is the fact that I have a big gift certificate for Fry's, but I'm torn becuase it seems like the quality of the Dell is a lot better.


I'd also appreciate any comments on my choices below (I got it down to $830 or so with discounts and shipping). No HDD included because I already have 3 drives in hand to drop in. I'll probably do some mild overclocking but nothing insane. Finally, any recommendations for a KB/mouse combo?

Antec Sonata Piano Black Quiet Mid Tower 380Watt ATX12V

NEC ND-3520A/GNB 16X Dual Layer DVD±RW (Black) (OEM)

Asus Extreme GeForce 6600 GT TOP 128MB DDR3/PCI-E/TV-Out/VGA/DVI (Retail Box)

Asus A8N-SLI NForce4 SLI Audio/GB-LAN/USB

AMD Athlon 64 3200+ 512K 90nm (939)

DDR (400) 3200 - 1 GB (2 pcs 512) Patriot PDC1G3200LLK


Thank you!!!! I appreciate the advice for the noob!

 

[ribbon13]

Why an Asus SLI? Get a DFI Ultra-D

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Welcome to AT.

I'm not sure on the LCD question, I'm not a big fan so I don't keep up with them.

The only thing I'd question about the computer choice would be the SLI and 6600gt combo.

For just a little bit more you could drop down to a standard 939 pci-e motherboard and get a X800XL videocard that will perform close to 6800gt levels. I think SLI is a great option if you've got tons of money to burn and want to buy a couple 6800gts to get awesome effects in HL2 and Doom3, but I don't think 6600gt cards in SLI makes much sense. In the end for a 6600gt set you'll end up with ~$400 spent to get it running including increased cost of motherboard. For that price you could get a 6800gt, or for less, the X800XL which is an excellent buy.

I really like my Logitech mxduo set for keyboard/mouse. Justdeals has it for $55 with free shipping.

 

[ts3433]

Can't help you on the LCD, sorry

I'd agree with the above comments on your rig; otherwise it's fine

 

[v sf]

Switching to a non-SLI board is a good point ... I suppose I wanted to leave myself the flexibility to upgrade to a dual card setup in a year or two. But I'm not wedded to the idea. Any thoughts on what mobo to pair the X800XL with, maybe the DFI Ultra-D that was suggested above? And why not go with a 6800GT, is price the main reason?

 

[ts3433]

Price and performance--the X800XL provides performance very near the 6800GT for $100 cheaper.

 

[ribbon13]

Ultra-D and X800 XL is an excellent combo.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: v sf
Switching to a non-SLI board is a good point ... I suppose I wanted to leave myself the flexibility to upgrade to a dual card setup in a year or two. But I'm not wedded to the idea. Any thoughts on what mobo to pair the X800XL with, maybe the DFI Ultra-D that was suggested above? And why not go with a 6800GT, is price the main reason?

The 6800gt is a good card too, but in my opinion if you can go with PCI-e, then the X800XL is the much better cost/performance ratio. If they were the same price, I'd probably go with a 6800gt but it would be a tough call.

 

[v sf]

Well, you sold me on the X800 XL .... wondering if I shouldn't stick with the A8N-SLI in case I decide to go down the SLI path in the future. Is the Ultra-D worth switching for, esp. if the difference is only $20 or so?

 

[ribbon13]

Desktop SLI boards won't support ATi's version of SLI because in SLI mode the PCIe slots only run at x8.

Ultra-D is better.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

I guess if you think in the future you might sell your X800XL and get two nvidia cards for SLI it could be reasonable to use an SLI motherboard for now.

By the time that happens though, you might want to do a different kind of SLI or newer cards might need something different.

I like ribbon's suggestion of just getting a really nice single PCI-e board for now and saving a few bucks rather than investing in something that might be a dead end.

 

[Pr0d1gy]

Originally posted by: ribbon13
Why an Asus SLI? Get a DFI Ultra-D

Yeah the ASUS is low quality compared to the MSI Neo4 Platinum SLI or the DFI mentioned above.

On the point of the monitor, I have heard nothing but good things about both and you would be able to play games with no ghosting on either one. For reviews on the 710 go check NewEgg.

 

[v sf]

ribbon13 - Understand your point, was thinking in the future if I sold the X800XL and picked up 2 6600/6800 cards when the prices got a little better.

Pr0d1gy - Thanks for the input on the monitors.

Sounds like the DFI Ultra might be the call, as well as the upgrade to the X800XL. Any particular favorites/ones to avoid? Was thinking about maybe picking up the OEM version or the Sapphire.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: v sf
ribbon13 - Understand your point, was thinking in the future if I sold the X800XL and picked up 2 6600/6800 cards when the prices got a little better.

Pr0d1gy - Thanks for the input on the monitors.

Sounds like the DFI Ultra might be the call, as well as the upgrade to the X800XL. Any particular favorites/ones to avoid? Was thinking about maybe picking up the OEM version or the Sapphire.

Two 6600gt cards in SLI would almost be a downgrade from an X800XL

 

[ribbon13]

Ultra-D
OEM X800 XL
Better deal than X800 XL if you unlock the pipelines

 

[RussianSensation]

DFI is $140 on Newegg, much more than $20 less than Asus SLI. Also you can get an ever cheaper board in the form of Chaintech VNF4 or something along those lines. Get value ram and use ratios when overclocking. I'd definately get X800XL after saving $$ on the motherboard and ram.

 

[ts3433]

Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello

Originally posted by: v sf
ribbon13 - Understand your point, was thinking in the future if I sold the X800XL and picked up 2 6600/6800 cards when the prices got a little better.

Two 6600gt cards in SLI would almost be a downgrade from an X800XL

6600GT SLI is a really bad idea anyway...

As for two 6800-series cards in SLI, they'd likely take more power and still come up short compared to a single ATI R520-core or NV50-core next-generation card.