New Rig - Compatibility Enquiry

Im thinking of building a new rig...ive got all the specs ready but i dont if all the parts will be compatible or not...here they are:

Motherboard: Asus A8N-SLI Premium
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+
GPU: BFG 7800GTX OC
RAM: 2GB DDR400 PC3200 OCZ Dual channel Platinum
Power Supply: OCZ Modstream Power supply 450W (might go for 520W)
Harddisk: Western digital 250GB 7200RPM
Case: Thermaltake Shark (Black)

So these are the main parts, do u think they will al be compatible?

by the way, another option i am thinking about is the XFX 7800gtx instead of the bfg, and the DFI Lanparty SLI-DR intead of the Asus...if i got those, would it still be compatible? .... thanks

 

should be alright, although i may be wrong but look for a PSU with a little more power...more amps and a higher wattage.

 

thanks....could you give me a suggestion for the power supply though?

 

Judging by the hardware your buying money is obviously no object!
I would recommend a SLI or Crossfire certified PSU something along the lines of these:
Enermax 600W Noisetaker
Thermaltake 500W Purepower
Hiper 580W Modular
Antec Phantom 500W
If any of these won't do let us know!

 

ok i decided to go for the Enermax 600W NoiseTaker EG-701AX-VE SFMA 2.0. But will it still work normally even though i dont have sli?

Also i need to ask this. Im thinking of overclocking my 4400+ from 2.2 to 2.4GHz (which is the same as a 4800+). Do u think i will need any sort of extra cooling to do this. And if i do, can u tell me what would be the best cooling solution for this, and also that it can fit in my thermaltake case....thanks again!

 

Yes it will work normally, they are just nVidia Certified to handle SLI requirements!
You should'nt need any extra cooling for a 200Mhz overclock but i'd recommend anything from the Artic Freezer series and Zalman also make excellent coolers!

 

thanks for everything, i think ill purchase a cooling solution alot later on after i have bought the computer.

Last question, im looking for a 19"+ monitor, im thinking on getting this one:
ony CPD-G520P FD Trinitron 21" CRT Monitor. what do u think?

now the question i need to ask you is that is the native resolution for a 21 inch monitor 1600 X 1200 or 1280 X 1024? also (if it is 1600 X 1200) , if i reduce the resolution to 1280 X 1024, will the picture look stretched? will the screen look pixelized, even slightly?

 

Nice monitor!
To answer your question, yes, the native res is 1600x1200!
In my experience using large monitors with smaller resolutions, the image has always looked slightly stretched to me, but i have very sensitive eyes!
But the image by no means should be pixelated!

 

i think ill go with 19" then, dont wanna take any risks, (just in case a game comes out that my card cant handle on high and on 1600 X 1200 therefore forcing me to lower my resolution)

but man...the sony model i wanna get isnt available in 19". Do u know of any other good substitutes?

oh yeah, another thing, is 30 fps a playable frame rate, if it is what is the minimum? Also, what happens if you have like 100fps, is the game gonna go faster or just smoother..thanks!

 

i found a good site thats got loads of monitors :

http://search.ecoustics.com/Consumer/Reviews/CRT-Monitor/Alpha-Name/All/

thers also some sony 19" monitors, but then from there i dont know which one to choose, is sony the best anyway....i dont expect to check every monitor in the whole list for me cause then ill be wasting alot of your time, but just out of your knowledge of monitors, which do u think would be the best?

 

How much tweaking are you looking into on this motherboard? The DFI boards are wonderful, but they have more settings than any other motherboard on the market as far as I know. If you're a new builder, this probably isn't the motherboard for you. However, if you like to tweak the bejeezus out of your rig, then you're probably not going to get any better than the DFI offerings. If you don't want it, that Asus A8N-SLI is a fine choice.

That OCZ stuff should be fine, but I've become a big fan of Patriot's RAM, particularly their PC3200+XBL stuff. My 512MB dual-channel kit can do 285MHz (DDR570) at 2.9V. If you're wanting to shave a few bucks off somewhere, the +XBL stuff is really good.
If you go with the DFI board, you might consider looking at the OCZ VX series of RAM. It's built for extremely high voltages, which only the DFI boards can provide, at 4V on the RAM. No other motherboard can provide that natively.

 

Personally i think the best screens out there are from Samsung, BenQ and Phillips!
Just a couple to check out >
Samsung Syncmaster 957Mb
Phillips 109B43

 

Im a new builder, so i guess ill go with the asus...thanks

 

ill think ill do a bit more searching on monitors before i buy one, but the sumsung one looks pretty good, ill think ill add that to my, "might get list" !

 

yeah you dont want too many settings, you may end up changing something and causing yourself some problems...well good luck with the build

 

thanks to all for all the help!! I just ordered the parts from newegg (should ship my computer in a few days!!)

Only one problem left though, newegg wont put the parts together for me, so i guess ill have to do it myself.....well.....ive never really assembled a computer together, i mean i know the insides of computers pretty well but, i think ill still need some guidance...do any of you know of any way where i can get help in the assemblance of the parts, or do u think that i can handle it and assemble it myself?

 

you'll be okay, as long as you follow a few precautions:
*Make sure you ground yourself on something metal before hand, even better get an anti-static wristband
*Make sure you assemble parts on the motherboard (RAM, CPU, CPU Heatsink while the motherboard is outside of the case as when the stand-offs are on you could easily bend and break the mothboard by putting too much pressure on it.
*Use standoffs, you'll get these with the motherboard and/or case, these are not optional and they raise the motherboard off the case to stop it shorting out.
*Take your time, dont rush as you'l lmake mistakes
*Use Thermal Paste on your CPU, it'll lower temps a good few degrees than the pad supplied with most CPU's.
Check out this site for an in-depth how-to on building your own computer.

 

This website may be a bit better as it has some diagrams/pictures as well...

 

thanks for everything matt, you've been a great help!

Ill try to keep you updated on how im doing with my new computer once it arrives.

By the way, my dad is bringing it from the US, he will be back home by next monday (next week), so ill reply to this thread mabye on next tuesday and tell you how im doing...ill also tell u my 3dmark05 score..hehe

thanks again !!!!

 

just glad i could help, hope all goes well and enjoy a new shiney fast rig!