Ultra sleek, Ultra Fast gaming rig + questions critique

[Bulldog13]

Hello,

I am building an ultra-portable, small, ultra fast high end gaming rig for a friend. Please critique the parts I have listed.

Shuttle Barebones XPC Model SN45G NVIDIA nForce2 Ultra400 ATX - Retail
$279.00

POWERCOLOR ATI RADEON 9800 PRO 256MB DDR DVI+CRT+TV 8X AGP RETAIL
$528.00

AMD ATHLON XP 3000 "Barton" 400MHz FSB PROCESSOR CPU- OEM
$275.00

CRUCIAL MICRON 512MB 64x64 PC 3200 DDR RAM - OEM
$91.99 X 2 = $183.98

Floppy
$7

WD WESTERN DIGITAL "SPECIAL EDITION" 120GB 7200RPM EIDE HARD DRIVE MODEL # WD1200JB - OEM, DRIVE ONLY
$109

Microsoft 114 keys (10 internet Hot Keys) Internet Keyboard PS/2 - BLACK
$20

HITACHI CML174SXWB 17" Black LCD MONITOR - RETAIL
$454

Logitech MX500 Optical Mouse -USB/PS2 RETAIL
$46.00

Plextor DVD+R/RW IDE Drive Model PX-504A-SW Retail
$217.00

Total = $2,118.98

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Here are my questions. First off, I need a sound system for it. A 2.0 one, what are some recommendations?

Do I need a heatsink and fan or does the Shuttle case come with its own lil proprietory system for it, I can't find a straight answer.

Will the RAM or the Videocard have problems with the mobo, I have been reading about random incompatibilities?

Does the mobo comes with good onboard audio or audio at all? The shuttle website says this mobo does, but newegg doesn't list it.

I just picked a random LCD using neweggs search utility 17" and like 15 ms response time, can anyone recommend a better 17" for cheaper or same price?

Am I missing anything else?

Also, how can I get this build + a good 2.0 sound system for under $2k.

Work your magic

 

[DaveSimmons]

> Do I need a heatsink and fan or does the Shuttle case come with its own lil proprietory system for it, I can't find a straight answer.
Look at the pics at newegg.com but IIRC it has a heatpipe, which pic 4 seems to confirm.

> Will the RAM or the Videocard have problems with the mobo, I have been reading about random incompatibilities?
Maybe. The other problem is that the extra 128 MB doesn't really help on ATI cards (check the Tomshardware 9800-256 review).

> I just picked a random LCD using neweggs search utility 17" and like 15 ms response time, can anyone recommend a better 17" for cheaper or same price?
Toms had a LCD roundup recently, but take their articles with a grain of salt, their editor's choices don't always make sense (unless you match them up to the advertisers on THG).

> Am I missing anything else?
Well, for gaming (check the benchmarks here and at THG) a P4 2.6C - 2.8C in the silver i865 shuttle would be faster, but if you have a strong AMD preference go for the nforce.

 

[Vonkhan]

i'd go for 1GB RAM, lots of games run better with it ... esp BF1942. I'd also reccomend an Intel platform with a 2.6/2.8C Get the logitec mx700

 

[zamacman]

Originally posted by: Vonkhan
i'd go for 1GB RAM, lots of games run better with it ... esp BF1942. I'd also reccomend an Intel platform with a 2.6/2.8C Get the logitec mx700

I would also change that to an Intel C

 

[Jesta]

> Do I need a heatsink and fan or does the Shuttle case come with its own lil proprietory system for it, I can't find a straight answer.
Yea, just finished my 3rd shuttle rig for my house and it does come with it's own heatpipe and rear fan. No need to worry about a heatsink.

> Will the RAM or the Videocard have problems with the mobo, I have been reading about random incompatibilities?
There was an issue with the revision 2 AIW9700's and shuttles board, but the revision 4 AIW9700 corrected this problem, am not sure if this problem existed with the 9800.

Some shuttles have issues with cheap ram but I think you will be ok with the crucial.

>Does the mobo comes with good onboard audio or audio at all? The shuttle website says this mobo does, but newegg doesn't list it.
Every shuttle I have seen comes with onboard sound. The onboard sound is so-so. Not the greatest but decent enough for the average joe.

Can always check out the Sudhian Forums as well. Good luck.

 

[Falcon2k]

Lemme try and take a poke at this.

Video Card: I suggest you get a Nivada Geforce FX5900. It has performance equal to or better than the 9800pro and is a monster overclocker (i hear). Price isnt very much different and the big copper looking heat sink fins definately give it style points.

If you're getting a MX700, get the keyboard + MX700 logitech set. The keyboard is a great keyboard and u wont believe how useful it is when it comes to games. If you listen to music when you play a game, it's great, cuz you have the whole set of controls for the music player right on it and you can skip tracks, repeat, stop, pause, etc. without even minimizing the game. The volume adjust there is also very useful cuz it's so close. The keys are springy when you want to type and IMO, this is the best keyboard for everything, especially gaming.

Plus, if you go all wireless, it makes it even more portable.

You might save some money if you got the Samsung 52x Combo drive. It reads DVDs, burns CDs and does all the other functions a CD-Rom does, for the price of HK$580, which comes to US$74.36, alot cheaper than the other $217 Combo

 

[Lonyo]

P4 2.8c, 128MB 9800Pro, DVD+-R/RW combi (Sony or something), rather than +R/RW for extra compatibility.

 

[randumb]

I dont think there are any miniATX boards for the P4C processors.

 

[Lonyo]

There are Shuttle barebone systems for P4's around.
(UK site, but you get the idea)

 

[RaynorWolfcastle]

Originally posted by: randumb
I dont think there are any miniATX boards for the P4C processors.

yes, there are

 

[DAPUNISHER]

I have the SN45G and it's awesome! Go with the 2500+ and overclock it as this board is the ultra400 and will have that 2500+ running 3200+ speeds no problemo! That way you can put that extra $180+ into a better DVD burner that supports all the formats. The heatpipe works even better than I suspected it would and will let you overclock, but don't use the shim that is included There are a bunch of mods for the Shuttle SFF cubes at Sudhian.com's forums so have a look.

 

[DaveSimmons]

Originally posted by: randumb
I dont think there are any miniATX boards for the P4C processors.

In stock at newegg.com. If I didn't want more 5.25" drive bays I'd be very tempted to put my next gaming rig in one.

 

[jamison]

Someone mentioned a 5900 Ultra, as far as I know, they do not fit in the Shuttle systems. The 9700 and 9800 video cards do.