Ne Build need Some help

Discussion in 'New Build / Upgrade Advice' started by AaManiac, May 16, 2006.

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  1. AaManiac

    AaManiac Geek Trainee

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    I as for the Help of the HF.com gurus once again ^_^
    Starting to Plan out my custom pc here over the next few days, mainly for Gaming, finalizing some detail then will most likely be ordering ti early next week...So far I have selected.
    --http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1071020&sku=ULT31664
    Two for $169.98

    --http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1639147&sku=TSD-160AS3
    $89.99
    --http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1226548&sku=L12-1018
    $19.99

    That is all I have so far....

    So things I would like help with on are
    LCD Monitor
    Nvidia Card w/ at least 512 MB Ram
    Case
    Power Supply
    Fans/Cooling
    and of Course a Motherboard and CPU... somewhere around 2.75+GHZ +


    MY budget is somewhat flexible but i am looking to keep it under $2,000USD (while I'm leaning close to $1750)

    As far as where it is bought, it doesn't really matter to me as long as the site is reliable

    Like I said this is more or less of a rough set-up of parts I have looking at so far.... if you have something within my price range(s) that is a complete set-up let me know...

    Thanks for taking you time to look at the this post and replying ....

    -Maniac
     
    AaManiac, May 16, 2006
    #1
  2. pelvis_3

    pelvis_3 HWF Member For Life

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    Hows this sound?

    ASUS A8N SLi Premium Motherboard - $158.99
    Athlon 64 X2 3800+ CPU @ 2Ghz - $297
    GeForce 6800 256MB PCIe 256 Bit - $179
    Viewsonic 19 Inch VX922 2ms LCD Monitor - $269.99
    Enermax Liberty 500W SLi Power Supply - $109.99
    Total - $1014.97

    That's a basic setup without the Case. Depending on what type of cooling your looking at, it can be recommended. That also applies to the case aswell.
    If you really need a 512MB nVidia card, you can pick up a 7800GTX 512MB for under 500 big ones.

    Feel free to nitpick :)
     
    pelvis_3, May 16, 2006
    #2
  3. AaManiac

    AaManiac Geek Trainee

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    Allright cool, what do you think about the RAM, Hard Disk and Cd Burner I listed in my first post?

    and I'd need some help with a case and cooling... I'll like to stick basic fan cooling... and somethign that doesn't run to loud or hot...

    Thanks Guys...

    -Maniac
     
    AaManiac, May 16, 2006
    #3
  4. Big B

    Big B HWF Godfather

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    I know nothing about Ultra RAM. I know you can get better RAM for less money from established brands. TigerDirect has improved over the years, but Newegg and ZipZoomFly still beat them out. I've also heard that TD isn't that great about honoring rebates.
    I have that exact hard drive you're looking at. It's pretty good.
    I've personally found the retail cooler to work just fine and without being loud, so unless you're overclocking, that will do the job well.

    Here's what I threw together:

    Athlon64 3700+ Retail $235
    Abit K8N SLI $100.99
    OCZ Performance 2x1GB $173.99
    eVGA GeForce 7900GT 256MB $289 x2 = $578.00
    Segate 160GB 7200RPM SATA $73.99
    Pioneer DVR-111D BK 16x DVDRW $35.79
    Creative X-Fi XtremeMusic $121.99
    OCZ PowerStream 520 $134.99
    Lian-Li PC-65B $125.00
    Samsung 920N $255.99

    Total: $1,835.73 + Shipping (+tax for CA, NJ residents)
     
    Big B, May 16, 2006
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  5. AaManiac

    AaManiac Geek Trainee

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    Big B
    and suggestions on a 17In monitor? and as far as the graphic cards are concerned.... I need to order two of them?

    And with the Sound card... could you suggest something perhaps a more on the low end... I will be using headphones while on my computer.
    and a DVD- Burnder is not required.... just a CD_ Burner that is quick and not to loud....

    and you said the fans that come with the PSU, and CPU will suffice for my needs?


    Thanks a lot so far everyone....
     
    AaManiac, May 16, 2006
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  6. KenshinX

    KenshinX Big Geek

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    2 cards will give you very good performance(SLi) and alot cheaper than 1 expensive 512mb Nvidia card. Also the Dvd burner will be good for games that require a dvd drive hence games that are on dvd discs plus you get the cd burner you wanted for cheap with added features.

    If you really don't want a DVD-RW drive a CD-RW/DVD Rom combo drive should be good and cheaper than buying the two seperate.

    You could always use the sound card built in to the motherboard that should do since you will be using headphones and I would get an extra 120mm or 80mm fan for exhaust especially for the cards.

    And finally either one of these monitors should do you nicely and match the
    case.

    Acer 179.99
    Acer AL1716BBD Black 17" 8ms LCD Monitor - Retail at Newegg.com

    BenQ 169.99
    BenQ FP71G+ (Black) Black 17" 8ms LCD Monitor - Retail at Newegg.com
     
    KenshinX, May 16, 2006
    #6
  7. Big B

    Big B HWF Godfather

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    You don't need two, however, dual 7900GT's will outperform a single 7900GTX.
    If you're going with a single card, you're probably better off going with a Radeon X1900XTX. If you want to go with multiple cards, SLI is the way to go, simply because of the maturity of it versus ATi's Crossfire.

    The particular case I pointed to has fans included, so I didn't suggest any. If you go with a different case, or want to change to different ones fine.
    If you really want an aftermarket cooler for the CPU, I've been pretty happy with the Thermaltake Silent Boost K8, although several folks around here have been using the Arctic Freezer 64.

    If you're just using headphones, you can drop the X-Fi altogether and just use the onboard sound.

    DVD burners aren't necessary, but given how inexpensive they are, I usually suggest them.
    $2,000 is pretty high.
     
    Big B, May 17, 2006
    #7
  8. AaManiac

    AaManiac Geek Trainee

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    Everyone thanks so much so far for your help I have yet another question.... concerning 2 of the processors listed on this thread....
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+ 2000MHz HT Socket 939 Dual Core Processor - Retail at Newegg.com
    and
    AMD Athlon 64 3700+ 2000MHz HT Socket 939 Processor - Retail at Newegg.com

    any pro's and con's on these two.. I say that Big B and Pelvis were the one's who suggested these.... Thanks again guys... MY newegg shopping cart is starting to fill up and now it's only a matter of days till I make my purchase... ^_^



    -Maniac



    On a side note a game I would like to be able to run woudl be Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion... Everythign I've seen so far exceeds the requirements, and I right in saying this or am i overlookign something....
    Recommended:

    * 3 Ghz Intel Pentium 4 or equivalent processor
    * 1 GB System RAM
    * ATI X800 series, Nvidia GeForce 6800 series, or higher video card

    Minimum System Requirements:

    * Windows XP
    * 512MB System RAM
    * 2 Ghz Intel Pentium 4 or equivalent processor
    * 128MB Direct3D compatible video card
    * and DirectX 9.0 compatible driver;
    * 8x DVD-ROM drive
    * 4.6 GB free hard disk space
    * DirectX 9.0c (included)
    * DirectX 8.1 compatible sound card
    * Keyboard, Mouse

    Supported Video Card Chipsets:

    * ATI X1900 series
    * ATI X1800 series
    * ATI X1600 series
    * ATI X1300 series
    * ATI X850 series
    * ATI x800 series
    * ATI x700 series
    * ATI x600 series
    * ATI Radeon 9800 series
    * ATI Radeon 9700 series
    * ATI Radeon 9600 series
    * ATI Radeon 9500 series
    * NVIDIA GeForce 7800 series
    * NVIDIA GeForce 6800 series
    * NVIDIA GeForce 6600 series
    * NVIDIA GeForce 6200 series
    * NVIDIA GeForce FX series
     
    AaManiac, May 17, 2006
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  9. AaManiac

    AaManiac Geek Trainee

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    AaManiac, May 17, 2006
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  10. Big B

    Big B HWF Godfather

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    If you do a lot of video editing or run a lot of programs at once, having dual core is a good idea. However, for gaming, a fast single core CPU is the better choice. The X2 3800+ uses two 1.8GHz cores, the 3700+ a single 2.2GHz part. For Oblivion, having SLI or Crossfire will be highly beneficial. The requirements you listed are the minimum, and the way I understand it, Oblivion is considered to be the most taxing game on the market right now, so do understand that SLI is going to benefit you more than dual-core will.

    I haven't heard of any issues with either drive listed.
     
    Big B, May 17, 2006
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  11. AaManiac

    AaManiac Geek Trainee

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    Allright another Step closer to my machine-
    AMD Athlon 64 3700+ 2000MHz HT Socket 939 Processor - Retail at Newegg.com
    ABIT KN8 SLI ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail at Newegg.com
    OCZ Performance 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM Dual Channel Kit System Memory - Retail at Newegg.com
    eVGA Geforce 7900GT KO 256-P2-N564 Video Card - Retail at Newegg.com x2
    Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 SATA NCQ 3Gb/s 160GB 3.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM at Newegg.com
    OCZ PowerStream OCZ520ADJSLI 520W Power Supply - Retail at Newegg.com
    Lian Li PC-65B Black Computer Case With Side Panel Window - Retail at Newegg.com

    This seems likea pretty good set up, Going with your suggestions- Big B....
    Do you suggest a Fan or other cooling apparatus....
    I'll prolly go with a standard DVD-ROM Driver with a fast read speed....
    and Upgrade to a CD- Burner as Time Passes..
    and I have acess to a 22'' CRT Monitor for the time being until I decide to spurge on a 22-25'' LCD Monitor...

    What do you think Big B? Everyone Else?
     
    AaManiac, May 17, 2006
    #11
  12. AaManiac

    AaManiac Geek Trainee

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    Is there any special hardware i need for my Video Cards.. to ensure they run smoothly in SLI...
     
    AaManiac, May 17, 2006
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  13. Big B

    Big B HWF Godfather

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    Nope. All SLI capable motherboards come with a bridge connector, but if by some chance you don't get that connector with your SLI motherboard, I'm sure you can ring the motherboard manufacturer up and get that connector sent your way. Outside of that, there's no other hardware you need for SLI, and there's nothing you have to or need to purchase for fully functional SLI. Install your chipset drivers, then your video card drivers and it should tell you that you have SLI capabilities you can enable...
     
    Big B, May 18, 2006
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  14. KenshinX

    KenshinX Big Geek

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    yeah actually CRTs are good for gaming so a 22in CRT is great beats my 2 17in monitors good system so far
     
    KenshinX, May 18, 2006
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  15. AaManiac

    AaManiac Geek Trainee

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    AaManiac, May 18, 2006
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  16. Big B

    Big B HWF Godfather

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    The A8N 32X SLI uses the nForce 4 SLI x16 chipset. The K8N SLI uses the nForce 4 SLI chipset.

    These use PCIe (PCI Express) x16 slots. PCIe comprises of lanes running from the chipset. Each lane runs 250MB/s each way, or a total bandwith of 500MB/s. The physical slots x1, x4, x16, are representative of the number of lanes each slot can use at most. The nForce 4 SLI used 16 PCIe lanes for one PCIe x16 slot when in single-card mode, but would divvy up those 16 lanes in SLI mode so that each slot had 8 PCIe lanes worth of bandwith. 4GB/s ain't shabby. The nForce 4 SLI x16 increases the number of PCIe lanes so that there are a full 16 PCIe lanes dedicated to both PCIe x16 slots. To do this, nVidia had to go to a 2 chip chipset design, unlike past nForce 3/4 chipsets which used only one chip. The good news is that the need for a paddle or jumper system to switch between SLI and single video card mode is gone.

    There's been data that shows little to no difference between the SLI and SLI x16 chipsets. However, a few reviews have shown some noticeable improvements in speeds as well. Even if it doesn't bolster performance now, you would have ample bandwidth down the road. The bad news is, that it will cost extra. Given your budget, it's probably not a bad move to get the SLI x16 board instead.
     
    Big B, May 18, 2006
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  17. AaManiac

    AaManiac Geek Trainee

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    AaManiac, May 18, 2006
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  18. AaManiac

    AaManiac Geek Trainee

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    AaManiac, May 18, 2006
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  19. KenshinX

    KenshinX Big Geek

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    The Cool Master case you posted is very good especially considering the price many user on this forum have it and havent had any problems with it its quite. The case is really your opinion because it matches your style.
     
    KenshinX, May 18, 2006
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  20. Big B

    Big B HWF Godfather

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    Exactly. LianLi's are nice cases, but they're not cheap. I just threw that in as a suggestion. As already stated, pick something that you like. I like larger cases because there's more room to work with. That makes installation and cable management easier.
     
    Big B, May 18, 2006
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