Parabola

I'm thinking about trying to build a computer for the first time. I know I could do it and have a pretty good idea on everything I need to get. Still I have never done this before and could use some help. So could someone help me out and put a list together of everything they would put in a computer if they were to build one. I'm thinking about spending around 1000 but if I go over a little thats fine.

drawerfixer

I've never built a computer either, but I have heard nothing but excellent things of the Asus A7N8X Deluxe motherboard.

More Info

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thephuse

how does the ASUS A7N8X stack up to the ABIT NF7-S ?

and now w/ intel speeding up the intro of PCI-Express.. how's that gonna affect this?

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VF19

Depends all on whether youre a gamer or not.
Cuz you can build a cheap comp for $300 that's not for gaming.
And all the rest is gaming..

SiN

Your request is a bit vague, and of course your usage needs to be considered...

but, in general, i suppose i'll give a vague general reply:

Case
Power Supply
Cooling (casefans etc)
Harddrive(s)
Floppy ?
dvd-rom/dvd-burner (i recommend separately tbh)
Motherboard
CPU
RAM
Gfx card*
Soundcard*
Network card*

* onboard or PCI

i think that covers it, for the basics.

if you want specific rec's narrow down your requirements...
and i'm sure there's some good info in other threads in here, try a search

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digby

I can add more after we see more of your specific needs, but for some generally high power/dollar stuff, look at:

Mobo: Abit NF7-S V2 ~$95
Proc: Athlon XP 2500+ Barton (1.83 GHz and 333 MHz FSB) $90
RAM: Crucial PC 3200 512MB ~85

Video card selection will depend strongly upon what you want to do with your system. The NF7-S has onboard 5.1 that is supposed to be quite good. It also has a 10/100 NIC built in.

Things to consider and let us know about:

Gaming preferences (as mentioned above)
OS choice: Windows only? Linux too/only?

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Lasereth

Parabola, do you want to use the computer to play games, or just use average software like Microsoft Office? You can get an "average" computer today for insanely cheap, and you can even get a very nice gaming computer for $1,000. If you want it for gaming, then I'll suggest the top-of-the-line components, but if you just want a computer to type and read e-mail, etc. on, then it's a different story.

-Lasereth

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Ashton

This list would be my suggestion's for a nice $1000 + PC........

All Prices from http://newegg.com/

Case ~ ANTEC SOHO File Server Tower ATX Case with 400W Power Supply, Model "SX1040BII" $83.00

Processer ~ Intel Pentium 4/ 3.0C GHz 800MHz FSB, 512KB Cache, Hyper Threading Technology $267.00

Motherboard ~ ABIT 875P Chipset Motherboard for Intel Socket 478 CPU, Model "IC7-G MAX2" $149.99

Ram ~ Kingston HyperX Series Dual Kits 184 Pin 512MB(256MBx2) DDR PC-3200 $127.00

Video ~ ATI RADEON 9600SE Video Card, 128MB DDR, 64-bit, DVI/TV-Out, 8X AGP $125.00

Sound card ~ Creative Labs Sound Blaster Audigy2 ZS $89.00

Sony Black DVD+/-RW Recorder Drive, Model DW-U14A $139.99

Sony Black 16X DVD-ROM Drive, Model DDU1612/B2 $29.00

Sony MPF920 Black 1.44MB 3.5INCH Floppy Disk Drive $10.99

Main HD ~ Western Digital Raptor 36.7GB 10,000RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model WD360GD $115.00

Storage HD ~ Western Digital 120GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model WD1200JD $95.00


Total $1231.00 - tax & shipping and a few things like cables, case fans ect.

This would be a nice all around machine for gaming, video ect, and have plenty of room for expansion.....
It all depends on what you plan on using it for, the price can easily be brought down by going with standard
IDE drives, a cheaper video and sound card....... even a cheaper motherboard, I chose the Max 2 because it's
a great board with dual Sata and onboard Lan, but if you're on dial up you'll need a network card so the "IC7"
would be a better choice.

My main machine has most of the above with a few more bells & whistles,

2 x 512 Kingston Hyper X
Radeon 9800 Pro
Audigy2 ZS Platinum
2 x 36.7 Raptors (Raid0)
200gb Maxtor (storage)
Coolermaster Musketeer
Vantec Fan controller

Embic

i would recomend this exact setup as well. if your into gaming i would suggest getting different processor and spending a little more on a video card, say a p4 2.6c and a radeon 9600pro, or a 2.4c and a 9800. also most of the newer p4's will overclock to 3ghz+ plus easily.

Parabola

I do want this for gaming. It's one of the reasons I want to get a new computer. My 1ghz athlon and 8500 Radeon aren't what they used to be.

Lasereth

If ya want a $1,000 PC, you're gonna get just about the best you can buy right now. Ashton's setup is nice, but for a gaming PC, that shitty Radeon 9600SE will not do the trick. A P4 3.06 with Hyper-Threading will be incredibly bottlenecked by a videocard like the 9600 SE. Games these days have changed over the past few years; they're now more dependant on the videocard instead of the processor. You can get a 10 GHz processor if ya want, but the game won't run worth a shit unless you have a good videocard.

Now, the final decision! AMD or Intel!! Either one is fine considering you're spending $1,000. Budget-minded gamers usually go AMD, but with $1,000 you can afford either choice.

If you want an AMD system, there's another choice on top of the first one: Athlon XP or Athlon 64? Yeah, with $1,000, you can afford either. I suppose I'll list both recommendations!

Athlon 64 Setup

GIGABYTE GA-K8VT800M Motherboard - $96
Athlon 64 3000+ Retail - $227
Corsair XMS Extreme Memory Speed Series, PC3200, 256 MB x 2 - $124
Lite-On 52x32x52 CD-RW - $38 OEM
Samsung Floppy Drive - $9
Maxtor 80GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive - $82
Whatever Case You Want® $50
ENERMAX EG365P-VE(FCA) 350W Power Supply - $59
SAPPHIRE RADEON 9800PRO Video Card, 128MB DDR, 256-bit, DVI/TV-Out, 8X AGP - $229

The total on that computer is $914 before shipping. That's considerably under your price limit and will deliver incredibly performance on ANY of today's games. All prices are directly from the one and the only -- NEWEGG!!

Now for the Athlon XP system:

AMD Athlon XP 2500+ Barton at 1.8 GHz stock - $80 OEM
Abit NF7-S Revision 2.0 Motherboard - $99
Corsair XMS Extreme Memory Speed Series, PC3200, 256 MB x 2 - $124
Lite-On 52x32x52 CD-RW - $38 OEM
Samsung Floppy Drive - $9
Maxtor 80GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive - $82
Whatever Case You Want® $50
ENERMAX EG365P-VE(FCA) 350W Power Supply - $59
BFG GeForce FX 5900 ULTRA Video Card, 256MB DDR, 256-bit, DVI/VIVO, 8X AGP - $336
Thermaltake Volcano 9+ CPU Fan - $30

The total on the Athlon XP system is $907 before shipping.

Now for the Intel system:

Intel Pentium 4/ 2.4C GHz 800MHz FSB, 512K Cache, Hyper Threading Technology - Retail - $163
ABIT 875P Chipset Motherboard for Intel Socket 478 CPU, Model "IC7-Max3" - RETAIL - $186
Corsair XMS Extreme Memory Speed Series, PC3200, 256 MB x 2 - $124
Lite-On 52x32x52 CD-RW - $38 OEM
Samsung Floppy Drive - $9
Maxtor 80GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive - $82
Whatever Case You Want® $50
ENERMAX EG365P-VE(FCA) 350W Power Supply - $59
SAPPHIRE RADEON 9800PRO Video Card, 128MB DDR, 256-bit, DVI/TV-Out, 8X AGP - $229

The Intel system is about $940 before shipping.

I hope these recommendations help with buying your computer! They are the exact combinations I'd get if I had $1,000. Good luck!!

-Lasereth

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sixate

I was reading all the responses and I was thinking, am I the only person who couldn't build a PC for a grand or less?
Maybe my taste is just a little too expensive.

Jephree

It's not really an either/or thing when setting up a new PC. There are many other ways to build a PC in regards to what the PC will be used for (many more options that gaming).

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ToolBag

I just built a good pc for around $650, all parts from newegg except the case and power supply. Specs are:

Athlon Barton 2800+ (oc'd 3200+)
MSI K7N2 Delta Motherboard
512 MB Geil PC-3200 RAM
GeForce 5900 Video Card
120GB Maxtor HDD 7200
DVD ROM
CD RW 42x
Creative Audigy Sound Card

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Wyodiver33

My Barton 2500+ system rocks. Just got better RAM and now running at 2300 MHz, 200 MHz FSB. Not bad for a $90 CPU. Now I need a new video card, 9500 Pro is still sweet, but I want a 9800 Pro.

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Parabola

Thanks very much. I don't know exactly what I'm going to get but all of this was a big help.

nanofever

Might as well posts the specs for what I am building.

AMD based:

Motherboard: Abit Nf7-s V2 $98
Proc: Barton 2500+ $90
Video: BFG Geforce fx5900 $175
Ram: Corsair XMS 3200 (2x512) $250
System HD: WD 37 GB Raptor SATA $110
Storage HD: Hitachi 160 GB 7200rpm $110
CD-rom: Aopen CD-rw/Dvd $57

Case+cooling:
Case: Thermaltake supertower (7 fans) $130
PS: Antec (2 fan) 550w PS $100
Proc HS: Thermaltake silentboost heatsink $30
Grease: Artic Silver 5 $11

about 1200 total and yes the excessive cooling is for massive overclocking of the proc and videocard...

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I'm leaving for the University of California: Santa Barbara in 5 hours, give me your best college advice - things I need, good ideas, bad ideas, nooky, ect.

Originally Posted by Norseman on another forum:
"Yeah, the problem with the world is the stupid people are all cocksure of themselves and the intellectuals are full of doubt."

Redjake

that's definitely what I would do, but you can knock down some of that stuff. I would just get a nice $50 case, and he seriously doesn't need a 550 watt power supply. a 350-400 would serve him fine. might could clock down that 160 as well, if he doesn't need that much storage.

I have no room to talk, I am running 540 gigabytes right now....

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Parabola

What is the point of having the 37gb raptor HDD. I assume it's because it is a lot faster. So what kind of files would you put on that? Games? Then keep stuff like documents and photos and music on the huge drive.

nanofever

OS and games that are being played nightly go on the fast drive. Media and games that are out of rotation go on the storage drive.

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I'm leaving for the University of California: Santa Barbara in 5 hours, give me your best college advice - things I need, good ideas, bad ideas, nooky, ect.

Originally Posted by Norseman on another forum:
"Yeah, the problem with the world is the stupid people are all cocksure of themselves and the intellectuals are full of doubt."

wondash

SharkeyExtreme is a great site for guides on building your own pc. They have three levels, value ($1000), high ($2500), and extreme ($4000). For each level, they'll provide both an Intel and an AMD configured recommendation.

Parabola

I'm not sure what to do about the processor. On one hand the 2500+ is cheap and can be overclocked. I don't know how to overclock at all and am kind of worried about doing a good job with it. Then I could also just get a 3200+. It would be nice to save the money but I can afford it and I won't worry about trying to overclock it.

thephuse

can u overclock a 3200+?
or any other athlon xp for that matter.. like a 2800+.. why's 2500+ the one everyone's going for?

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sixate

Because it's cheap and easily overclocked.
People want bang for the buck.
People, not me, are too cheap to buy a 3200+.

thephuse

what do you mean by easily overclocked?...
Does that mean the 2800+ is harder to overclock?
and can the 3200+ be overclocked?

thanks for helpin this noob

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b000yahed up your w000pah!!

Joygasm~!!

Jephree

So, that's the reason. Hmmmm, interesting

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Redjake

some processor's are "harder" to overclock, meaning they won't handle it as well as say, a Barton 2500+. You can increase the MHz on that chip 400-500 MHz easily, while on other processors they may get too hot or just not like it very well. The 2500+ is notorious for being easily OCed, while providing a very reasonable price compared to other high-end processors.

the 3200+ and 2800+ and 3000+ can all be OCed, but the 2500+ is the cheapest

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SiNai

While we are on the OC'ing subject,

I have an Athlon XP 2000+ palomino that I would like to try OC'ing with, but I think that its multiplier and fsb is hard to tweak without doing things to the chip..? I am new to this sort of thing and haven't found many good resources for OC'ing. I could use some tips/sites to check out..

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Lasereth

You can't OC a Palomino without physically modding the chip. You'll need an X-Acto Knife, scotch tape, and various other tools to complete the mod. www.tomshardware.com has a good Athlon XP Palomino core overclocking guide. Just to let you know, it's a very delicate process, and you'd probably be better off buying a 1700+ Thoroughbred core to OC.

-Lasereth

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Parabola

Here is the computer I think I will be getting. any comments would be great. My only real question is if the Antec Sonata case is big enough. I read a few reviews and one said that it was a little on the small side. I also haven't made up my mind yet on a graphics card but I'm leaning toward the 9600xt 256mb. I don't really plan on overclocking at all at least for now either.

AMD Athlon XP 3200+ "Barton", 400MHz FSB, 512K Cache Processor - OEM

Corsair XMS Extreme Memory Speed Series, (Twin Pack) 184 Pin 1GB(512MBx2) DDR PC-3200 - Retail

SONY Black 52x32x52 IDE Internal CD-RW Drive, Model CRX230E-B2, OEM

SONY BLACK 16X DVD-ROM Drive, Model DDU1612/B2, OEM

SONY MPF920 Black 1.44MB 3.5INCH Floppy Disk Drive, OEM

Western Digital Raptor 36.7GB 10,000RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model WD360GD, OEM Drive

Western Digital Special Edition 120GB 7200RPM IDE Hard Drive, Model WD1200JB, OEM Drive Only

ABIT nForce2 Ultra 400 Chipset Motherboard for AMD Socket A CPU, Model "NF7-S V2" -RETAIL

ANTEC Life Style Series Black Case With 380W Power Supply, Model "Sonata"

thephuse

what's the use of the 37GB hdd? Is it really that helpful?

And just out of curiousity.. what video card will you be using?

hehe.. You're pc looks like what I was thinkin for myself... (how much is that corsair ram cost?)

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Destrox

the Raptor drives are the next step for general consumer harddrive quality.

SATA , no longer IDE/ATA is faster and more stable.

10,000 RPM: apprently faster then 7200rpm, this allows for the read/write heads to access the platters faster.

Is it worth the difference? I feel so yes. And if you do RAID its beyond worth it w/out going SCSI.

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digby

The Sonata is a little small, but I would never say it is too small. I got mine yesterday, and I absolutely love it. It is one of the most classy looking cases I have seen. The construction is very solid. I don't think that there is a sharp edge in the thing.

I haven't got everything assembled yet, so if you can wait 24 hours before ordering, I can offer a much better review, but I don't forsee any real problems.

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Parabola

allright I have one final question, I think. Would it be worth it to spend a few extra bucks on a better and quieter heatsink fan combo on the CPU. I don't plan on overclocking but I want to have a very quiet computer. Also the case I'm getting the Sonata only comes with one big fan. If so what would you recommend. Doesn't have to be the best at keeping cool, good but not the best. Most important it doesn't make much noise.

Lasereth

The AMD heatsink fan that comes with the CPU will be the best for how quiet it is. Better heatsink fans are usually MUCH louder than the AMD stock fan. If you're not gonna overclock, the AMD fan will work just fine, and keep noise at a minimum.

-Lasereth

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Destrox

Vantec's AeroFlow - $25.00
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...110-007&depa=1

I my self find it very quiet, but then again anyone who has more then 3 normal 80mm fans wont even hear it anyways.



For the excellent job it does cooling vs other coolers in its class, its dead quiet.

And dont let TMD fans fool you, they once were bad news, Vantec has perfected it.

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thephuse

Well its time for the daily noobie question from me

What's the diff. between SATA and IDE?

-its special double dose wednesday!-

Does having a higher buffer on hdd's and cd-rw's (ie. 2mb -> 8mb) make the burning process, or moving files faster? and if so, by how much

Thanks a bunches

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Destrox

Well without going into a completly geeked out definition...

IDE/ATA currently pretty much only comes in two flavors, ATA 100 and 133. Each relating to its speed, 100MBps and 133.

Newer technologies offer higher cache on board, allowing even better performance.

Serial ATA on the otherhand offers a whole new realm.
Starting at a minimum of 150MBps going upwards to 600MBps (You wont find this anywhere atm), and uses a parallel ribbon cable sending 1 bit bus unlike ata's 8bit to 16bit bus.

SATA has built in data protection, part reasoning for the new bus method.

A nice thing about SATA is the loss of worrying about Master and Slave setups, easier bios setups, and is backward compatible with mixing other IDE/ATA devices. They also on newer power supplies get thier own dedicated power cable.

On larger cases ribbon cable lengths can become a problem, with SATA they go up to 39" (1meter) w/out worry of data loss or corruption.

It is highly debatable wether the cost vs performance is worth it atm, but as time goes on you will notice SATA is the future.

Why not switch now?

(Just dont get the impression that SATA is ment to replace SCSI as well, SATA is just a updated faster and better IDE/ATA)

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thephuse

ah.. I've learned so much in these forums. thanks

well for more learning,

Arent SATA drives currently around 35 to 50 Gigs big? and reallly expensive? So if i want movies and songs and stuff, i should also get a IDE and make it a slave... rite?

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Destrox

Yeah, cost is always a factor.

But for the most part, SATA is the same general cost of IDE.

a buck per gig.

for example:
Seagate 80GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model ST380013AS, OEM - 82$ @ newegg.com

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