Hey guys I have about 600 bucks to spend on a new rig and I'm not sure how to best spend it. What are your thoughts on AMD64 vs. P4HT? I have been looking at www.ecollegepc.com and I am looking at about a 3.2 or 3200+ or so with a 6600gt. Also is it a consensus that I should get pci-e instead of agp? I can get a bit more machine with an agp board, but I don't want to be stuck with old tech. On the other hand, if I go agp, I won't have to buy a vid card right now and I could get a better chip or more ram....Any thoughts?
i am amd built myself when i can, overall the p's a flimsy if you'll understand my very broad meaning, hate the celeron, and well enhance a style of architecture that as lil flaws
with that being the case I would tell you to go agp. in order to get the processor the more ram. PCI-e is the newest technology and I dont think its going away anytime soon so I would suggest that worry about mobo replacement later on and just get the agp for the money savings.
I concur on the AMD direction, assuming your primary use of the machine is (or will be) gaming. Was doing a bit of price checking for a friend of mine 2 days ago and wuz able to set him up with a decent mobo, Athlon64 proc, and a gig of corsair xms memory for about $370. With a budget of $600, you can squeeze in one of the new 6800GS boards and have a pretty good setup. The 6600GT is not a bad choice for the $150 range, but an additional $70 will grant a considerable performance boost with the 6800GS at around $220. I'm not much of an ATI fan, especially since the introduction of SLI, but ATI does have some decent cards in those same price ranges.
As far as AGP vs. PCI-e, as long as ur upgrading, you might as well move up to the PCI-e. The main reason being the SLI capability of the PCI-e (assuming you go with an SLI-capable board, which would tend to up the cost slightly). I personally wouldn't stay with AGP, as that would severly limit your future upgrade options. When I upgraded my machine, I deliberately spent more on the mobo and less on the vid card so I could have the SLI-capable motherboard for future upgrading. My next upgrade will be cheaper cuz I don't have to upgrade my motherboard and processor.
Just my noobish 2 cents..... What you'd really want is for Impolite to chime in here.... I'll see if he's got time to put some thoughts in here as well....
Blitz
QuoteHey guys I have about 600 bucks to spend on a new rig and I'm not sure how to best spend it. What are your thoughts on AMD64 vs. P4HT? I have been looking at www.ecollegepc.com and I am looking at about a 3.2 or 3200+ or so with a 6600gt. Also is it a consensus that I should get pci-e instead of agp? I can get a bit more machine with an agp board, but I don't want to be stuck with old tech. On the other hand, if I go agp, I won't have to buy a vid card right now and I could get a better chip or more ram....Any thoughts?
Blitz just pointed me to this topic.
If it's a gaming PC, the processor should be an A64. There's really no question on that, the P4 core just can't keep up at all any more. A Venice core 3200+ would do you very well. One other option to take a serious look at is the Opteron 165. It's more expensive at around $290, but it's a dual-core cpu with 1 MB per core that seems to easily hit 2.4-2.5 GHz overclocks. For slightly more money, it's a serious addition to your processing power.
You have two options for a motherboard. You can either go the PCI-E SLI route, or you can get a PCI-E and AGP motherboard. Do not do an AGP only motherboard - that would permanently lock you into having a card no better than the ATI X850XT-PE or 6800 Ultra, and while those cards sound respectable now, give it a year and they will be midrange at best. FEAR can already stress a 7800 GTX.
So, back to the motherboard topic. PCI-E SLI is an excellent choice. It gives you a very well known chipset (one of the nforce4 variants) and there are plenty of motherboard choices available. It will also be very future proof. If you go this route, look at boards like the DFI LanParty SLI boards for proven performance, the Jetway 939GT4-SLI for equal performance for less money, or the Asus A8N32-SLI Deluxe for the best performance possible.
The other possibility is the ASRock 939Dual-SATA2. This is a very interesting board. It's based on a ULi chipset instead of the NF4, but the performance is just as high as the NF4. It doesn't give you SLI, but it gives you full speed AGP and full speed PCI-E. That would allow you to use your current video card and upgrade cpu and ram as you mentioned without locking you into AGP. It also has an expansion for the Socket M2 CPUs coming out in '06, but I wouldn't count on that being usefull. The downside of this board is that it is ULi - there won't be nearly as much available for it as for NF4 boards in terms of driver updates, etc. Still, support seems to be pretty good. There was a cold boot issue with it early on but a BIOS update fixed that. Here's a review: http://www.anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.aspx?i=2524 (http://www.anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.aspx?i=2524)
For RAM, I'd be less concerned with speed and more concerned with size and latency unless you plan to seriously overclock. I'd really look at 2 GB for a new build, or if you go with one, go ahead and get a 1 GB stick so you can easily upgrade to 2 GB later. It would mean running in single channel mode until you upgraded, but the A64 doesn't see a huge boost from the extra channel.
Video. If you buy a card, buy PCI-E. Cards to consider would be the 6600 GT, the 6800 GS, the X800 GTO^2 (be sure you are getting the GTO squared, other GTOs are not nearly as fast), or the 7800 GT if you can squeeze it. Supposedly the 7200 and 7600 are coming out soon, so staying with your AGP card for a little while might be a good idea since the 7600 may be a better option for your price point.
I'm not sure I'd buy from www.ecollegepc.com - they have a 7.83 lifetime rating at http://www.resellerratings.com/seller5908.html (http://www.resellerratings.com/seller5908.html), but they only have 15 reviews. I'd suggest www.mwave.com, www.newegg.com, or www.zipzoomfly.com. Those all have very good prices and good service.
Any questions?
Quote
Blitz just pointed me to this topic.
If it's a gaming PC, the processor should be an A64. There's really no question......
blah blah blah....
I'd suggest www.mwave.com, www.newegg.com, or www.zipzoomfly.com. Those all have very good prices and good service.
Any questions?
OMG!! Wut a newb..... He obviously has no idea wut he's talking about.... One of you forum admins needs to delete that worthless piece of trash post!!
needless to say, I'm kidding.... That post is exactly why I brought this to his attention. I r newb....Imp r l337.
Blitz
QuoteQuote
Blitz just pointed me to this topic.
If it's a gaming PC, the processor should be an A64. There's really no question......
blah blah blah....
I'd suggest www.mwave.com, www.newegg.com, or www.zipzoomfly.com. Those all have very good prices and good service.
Any questions?
OMG!! Wut a newb..... He obviously has no idea wut he's talking about.... One of you forum admins needs to delete that worthless piece of trash post!!
needless to say, I'm kidding.... That post is exactly why I brought this to his attention. I r newb....Imp r l337.
Blitz
My cube needs polishing.
QuoteQuoteQuote
Blitz just pointed me to this topic.
If it's a gaming PC, the processor should be an A64. There's really no question......
blah blah blah....
I'd suggest www.mwave.com, www.newegg.com, or www.zipzoomfly.com. Those all have very good prices and good service.
Any questions?
OMG!! Wut a newb..... He obviously has no idea wut he's talking about.... One of you forum admins needs to delete that worthless piece of trash post!!
needless to say, I'm kidding.... That post is exactly why I brought this to his attention. I r newb....Imp r l337.
Blitz
My cube needs polishing.
*cowers*
please sir.... may i do it WITHOUT the toothbrush and maid outfit this time?
QuoteQuoteQuoteQuote
Blitz just pointed me to this topic.
If it's a gaming PC, the processor should be an A64. There's really no question......
blah blah blah....
I'd suggest www.mwave.com, www.newegg.com, or www.zipzoomfly.com. Those all have very good prices and good service.
Any questions?
OMG!! Wut a newb..... He obviously has no idea wut he's talking about.... One of you forum admins needs to delete that worthless piece of trash post!!
needless to say, I'm kidding.... That post is exactly why I brought this to his attention. I r newb....Imp r l337.
Blitz
My cube needs polishing.
*cowers*
please sir.... may i do it WITHOUT the toothbrush and maid outfit this time?
Balaso would be very disappointed if he didn't get his maid pics, so no.
QuoteQuoteQuoteQuoteQuote
Blitz just pointed me to this topic.
If it's a gaming PC, the processor should be an A64. There's really no question......
blah blah blah....
I'd suggest www.mwave.com, www.newegg.com, or www.zipzoomfly.com. Those all have very good prices and good service.
Any questions?
OMG!! Wut a newb..... He obviously has no idea wut he's talking about.... One of you forum admins needs to delete that worthless piece of trash post!!
needless to say, I'm kidding.... That post is exactly why I brought this to his attention. I r newb....Imp r l337.
Blitz
My cube needs polishing.
*cowers*
please sir.... may i do it WITHOUT the toothbrush and maid outfit this time?
Balaso would be very disappointed if he didn't get his maid pics, so no.
Balaso doesn't need pics. I pose for HIM willingly.... I only wear it for you cuz I'm using you for your brain....
BLITZ AND IMP ARE AT POST WAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
QuoteQuote
Balaso would be very disappointed if he didn't get his maid pics, so no.
Balaso doesn't need pics. I pose for HIM willingly.... I only wear it for you cuz I'm using you for your brain....
*grin*
Hey thanks alot for all the advice and info! I will consider everyone's opinions and see what I can do with my budget. I might even wait another week and see if I can reach the 700-800 range....but patience isn't my thing. Plus there is always that chance of me holding my pc money and the car breaking down or something. I have been limping along on an xp1700+ and a fx5200 for too long!
I was looking at ecollege because of the free shipping and no sales tax...but I will look around at the sites suggested here and make my choices. Thanks again for all the help! I will update with my decisions and future questions.
All the good suggestions are already mentioned, so I'm just going to give you another vote on a few of them:
1) Athlon64 3200+ is the most awesome deal for any sub $1000 system. Make sure you get the Venice core, best for overclocking and most recent, runs you $152 at NewEgg.com. I am going to get once myself in a few weeks.
2) 1GB of RAM is a good idea. For cheap you should look at a good value set from Corsair, OCZ, or Mushkin, but there are other good sets to choose from (http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=80098-34&ps=ho3). For AMD systems you only need PC3200 memory, which is good because it's cheapest and more common. If you really care about performance, try to pick one with lower timings. CAS 2.5 is better than 3.0, CAS 2.0 is even better; CAS 2.5 is probably the best bet for the price. There are 3 other timings given as well, and something like 3-3-6 is decent. My $220 2GB OCZ Platinum chips are 2-3-2-5; you typically won't get lower than 2-2-2-5. It doesn't make a huge difference unless you are performance freak, I just wanted to introduce that aspect in case you want to learn more or spend time comparing products closely.
3) Mobo and video choice has been well-advised. I myself am planning to buy the ASRock board so I can use my AGP X800 XT for a while longer and I can get a PCI-E card when I choose to do so. If you buy a video card, go PCI-E, AGP support is being cycled out fast, and of the latest chipsets only ULI supports it, and only the ASRock uses ULI. $69 at NewEgg.com. When you do choose to buy a new card, consider a $330 7800 GT from eVGA or XFX, they are relatively expensive but the low-price version of all the high end cards. Otherwise there are a lot of well-priced cards cheaper than $200.
4) Buy from places with excellent reputations, it's not worth buying el-cheapo cuz that's what you'll get for service. NewEgg.com, ZipZoomFly.com, MonarchComputer.com, and MWave.com suggested by Imp are your best bets for major computer components.
5) In case you need a new power supply, post back for advice. You might think the flashy looking PSU's are good buys, but there are better choices with more stability, efficiency, cooling, and silence. There are some good ones for under $80 also.
Ok, I basically decided to give myself another week (and another paycheck). I am now sold on buying from newegg or mwave. Newegg has a location in Memphis, so it would be like 1 business day to Nashville.
So, what is the minimum power supply needed to properly drive an sli mobo? I was just choosing cases by their sexiness. What else should I consider? I don't really enough about the case to spend more than like 50-80 or so. Again thanks for all the help from the fellas.
for cost and scalability I would hover around the 500watt mark. no less than 430watt.
but look for the best deal on a 650...
The power supply was a bitch for me to pick out. Unlike CPUs, there's a lot to choose from, and there are several factors to consider. Higher wattage doesn't always mean enough power for your needs... power supply wattage is actually determined by the amperage available on a few different "rails." There are a couple rails in particular that are more important, and lesser power supplies don't put enough amps in them. A good 430W psu is sometimes better than a cheap 550W! I personally got the 430W Seasonic S12, and it has two (instead of one) +12V rails, which is what you really need to see your amps on.
If you care about case temps or noise, you might also consider efficiency ratings; a power supply is there to convert AC current (your wall socket) into DC current (your computer components). This conversion isn't a 1:1 ratio, and anything your psu doesn't convert becomes heat. Heat also causes noise if any of your fans spin faster when things are warmer. I pay my own electric bills and I wanted a quiet, cool case, so efficiency was a big deal for me. 70% or better is good, but try not to get one rated lower than 65%.
If you want to keep things simple and cheap, just get a case that has a 500W+ rating as was suggested by Fudd and Cookie. Also, you can always upgrade your psu later if your stock PSU can't handle SLI.
Wow FourScience dropped some...science on all of use right there! Thanks for all the tips guys. I'm only going to have one vid card running right now with the intention of running duals down the road. I am realizing that I don't actually know what sli is. I bet it means more than 2 vid cards? I am going to go ask google. I haven't paid attention to new tech since I built my last rig like 4 years ago...
sli is the form factor that mobo manus use to support raid across multiple video cards.
Quotesli is the form factor that mobo manus use to support raid across multiple video cards.
Yeap. That means, for SLI, you must have a motherboard that supports it. Good info here: http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=ODY5 (http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=ODY5)
SLI is an nVidia technology. The ATI counterpart is Crossfire.
Ok guys here's what I ended up ordering. My 500-600 budget ended up up at 800, but that's the nature of the beast. I rushed it and paid for 2day so I could have it built and kicking ass for my 5 day turkey weekend. I appreciate everyone's input, you helped me out alot. I got a nice ps and a $20 case, for now. I feel good about my purchase and how it will hold up to future upgrades!
So, now the question is what game to replay in high res first, Far Cry, HL2, BF2, COD2, AOE3, Brothers in Arms.... My first priority is to finish Gun before I need to format my HD. It is a cool game if you like westerns. You can tomahawk people, shoot them in max payne style slomo, bang whores and play hold 'em at the saloon etc. I am counting this game to tide me over til my new baby arrives.
1 CASE LINKWORLD|3210-04-C2628 BLK/SL - Retail
Item #: N82E16811164040 $19.99 $19.99
1 MB ASUS A8N-SLI Deluxe NF4 RTL - Retail
Item #: N82E16813131517 $157.95 $157.95
1 VGA XFX|GF 6600 GT 128MB PVT43GNDF3 - Retail
Item #: N82E16814150098 $139.00 $139.00
1 >POWER SUPPLY ANTEC TPII-550ATX RTL - Retail
Item #: N82E16817103931 $89.99 $89.99
1 CPU AMD 64 |3200+ ATHLON 64 939P RT - Retail
Item #: N82E16819103535 $152.00 $152.00
1 CORSAIR D400 512MX2 VS1GBKIT400 R - Retail
Item #: N82E16820145440 $73.00 $73.00
1 KB&MS LOGTCH|INTERNT PRO DSKTP BLK% - OEM
Item #: N82E16823126152 $16.00 $16.00
1 DVD+/-RW LITEON|SHW-1635S BK % - OEM
Item #: N82E16827131419 $39.99 $39.99
Subtotal: $687.92
Tax: $63.63
Shipping: $46.38
Rush Order Fee: $2.99
Grand Total: $800.92
dont skimp on the quality... you can get buy with a 350, for a while, pick up a 50-$80 PS that throws out 450-580. Stick with name brands like thrmaltake and such. Not sure who makes the best P/S, but the important thing is quality. You need it to be stable and reliable. make sure you get one with 2 or more fans, and some kinda varible speed fan.
oh, I see someone recommended lite-on for the dvd... godo choice,but Plextor has a SATA DVDRW out, little pricy but pretty darn cool. just a suggestion.
Also consider a 256MB video card if you can find one you like. Future games will require 128 as a minimium if they don't already.