building my system (mach 2)

Logan1

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i tried to post this and there was an error and i couldn't find it later so i'm posting it again. i've been looking around at different parts(none bought so far) and was wondering a few things. what do i need to check for in psu's(i.e. compatability with hardware, connecters, voltage needed....)??? also, seeing as how all of you will have more computer experience than me, do you have any suggestions? I have no parts but am slowly making a list of the desired items. I'm looking for a gaming system, versatile, and cheap.
List of parts needed and looking for recommendations:

1. Motherboard (slots, supported hardware and software, expanability)
2. CPU (ghz vs. cache/what does it all mean in system performance??)
3. Memory (type, amount??)
4. Video Card (have a game coming out the requires 6800GT or better)
5. Sound Card (not a must as i use only headphones but i would like ideas)
6. Hard Drives (how much is too much/ not enough, i would like 2 but want
2 large ones not 2 small that make a large one, planning on
running windows xp pro on one and linux mandrake 8.0 on
the other)
7. Monitor (CRT vs. LCD, price vs. screen size, remember i'm a gamer)
8. Operating System (are my choices above good ones??)
9. PSU (/w case bundle vs. alone)
10. Case (bay count, expandability, air-flow, psu?)

i think i got it all but feel free to point and laugh at my ignorant foibles. but please correct them as well. also i would like to user linux more in the future and need all the parts to be linux compatable. thanks for any help you can give.
 
1. Go with something that has socket 939 (amd) and pci-e. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813131530

2. Go with amd. A single core might be better since u want it to be cheap, maybe like a 3500+ or 3700+. And socket 939 ofcourse.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813127197
I'd say thats enough. If u can spend more money then something a little bit more powerfull or then just go for the dual core (amd X2).

3. has to be ddr400 or faster. Don't get any value ram is u plan to overclock.
Some good brands are Kingston, Corsair, OCZ and Geil. (just to name a few) And get atleast 1GB, 2GB would be great.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820227208
That is some awesome ram. Expensive though. Cheaper ones will do fine, but that ram is great for overclocking.

4. 6800GS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814150118
Already overclocked. A medium price card that performs very well.

5. The mobo (link above) has integrated sound.

6. I'd say 2x 250GB.
2x http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16822145087

7. I'd get an LCD. CRT is a little bit better for gaming, but u won't see any big difference.

8. XP pro is good. Never tried that version of linux.

9. Get a separate one.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817103935

10. Just find something that has a few fans. And make sure it looks cool! :p


That's just something I pulled from the top of my head. I'm pretty sure that everything is compatible. I haven't got the time to look for a good monitor now, but if u get an LCD make sure that it has a low response time.
 
Logan said:
i tried to post this and there was an error and i couldn't find it later so i'm posting it again. i've been looking around at different parts(none bought so far) and was wondering a few things. what do i need to check for in psu's(i.e. compatability with hardware, connecters, voltage needed....)??? also, seeing as how all of you will have more computer experience than me, do you have any suggestions? I have no parts but am slowly making a list of the desired items. I'm looking for a gaming system, versatile, and cheap.
List of parts needed and looking for recommendations:

1. Motherboard (slots, supported hardware and software, expanability)


I hear the Abit Fatality MBs are fairly decent. I picked out one for a friend of mine. It has built in 8 channel surround sound... Well, it uses a special PCIx 1x port for the 8 channel surround sound... So, it's not "really" built-in


2. CPU (ghz vs. cache/what does it all mean in system performance??)


Most people will recommend AMD (including myself). Especially if you're talking about gaming. Just recently, I helped a friend of mine buy a AMD x2 3800+ and overclocked it to a 4800+. So, it was well worth the money. You could also consider getting an Opteron 170 Denmark if you're interested in overclocking.


3. Memory (type, amount??)



Cosairs XMS brand ram are pretty good. Just recently they released some ram with 2,3,3,8 but with a very high overclock capacity. Meaning, you can fix the timmings to 2 2 2 4 without much heat at all. Very cheap but very powerful!



4. Video Card (have a game coming out the requires 6800GT or better)


I'm an ATI fan, so I would get a ATI 850XT... But others would perfer a Nvidia 7800GTX or something a bit cheaper like the 6800 GT... However, the 850XT is a bit faster than the 6800 GT but a bit slower than the 7800 GTX... However, that's ok... It's within a reasonable price range.




5. Sound Card (not a must as i use only headphones but i would like ideas)


Already mentioned this :p


6. Hard Drives (how much is too much/ not enough, i would like 2 but want
2 large ones not 2 small that make a large one, planning on
running windows xp pro on one and linux mandrake 8.0 on
the other)


As of late, I've been setting PCs up with Hardware SATA Raid 0 setups. The result was... Well, overwhelming! The OS boots up in 20 seconds. Programs load much quicker, and the overall system performance boosts up to 40%!! Clearly, one of the fastest computers I've ever built. It ran very smooth and it was very responsive. You should check that out.

My PC has 400 gigs of HD space. 3 Hard drives. 1 partitioned into 3 parts. So, it shows up as 6 seperate drives. My computer Triboots with Windows XP, Windows 2003 and Suse Linux 9.3. I have plenty of room for several different series of anime (Bleach, Naruto, Rozen Maiden, Beet, Happy Lesson, etc.)
Tons of games and plenty of room left for more!


7. Monitor (CRT vs. LCD, price vs. screen size, remember i'm a gamer)


I'm trying to go for TFT Flat LCD screens.
The secret is to get something with a low response time with a high viewing angle. 160 / 140 at least! Also, get something that's nice and bright. Something like 300 to 400 cd/m is good. Flat screens are the way to go since they're now getting very cheap! Also, the picture quality is a lot higher than CRTs right now. They're more crisp. They also take up less room.


8. Operating System (are my choices above good ones??)



I use Windows XP Pro: SP2. I wouldn't recommend Windows Home. It sucks!
Also, its a good idea to dual boot with a Linux distro. I perfer Suse because its easy to use with the ability to use advanced options. There's always Mandrake or Fedora Core 4... But Some of those distros are unstable (Fedora Core 4 especially). Suse is free now, so you can download it from the Net.


9. PSU (/w case bundle vs. alone)
10. Case (bay count, expandability, air-flow, psu?)


Sometimes a PSU comes with a case. Many people don't recommend using those because they could blow very easily. I've never had a problem with them, but if you're looking to overclock, it may be a good idea to get another one. I recommend a 450 - 550 watt PSU. It's enough to cover your system and anything else you add to it. Most computers don't use anything past 330 watts, but who knows?

You should get an ATX PSU and an ATX Case. ATX is the standard and it supports Micro ATX as well.

As far as cases are concerned. There are many many cases you can choose from! Some of them look downright gorgeous, while others look hideous! My next case is going to be Acrylic! That way I can add more LCD lights and lazer to the system! Especially with UV sensitive watercooling tubes and coolant! Yeah, baby!


i think i got it all but feel free to point and laugh at my ignorant foibles. but please correct them as well. also i would like to user linux more in the future and need all the parts to be linux compatable. thanks for any help you can give.
 
thanks this helps a lot. keep them coming. newegg.com seems to be very popular here. i've been looking at tigerdirect.com so a new site is very welcome.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130261

here is a video card i been looking at. good?/bad?
also is there any way besides extreme overclocking to run a processor over 3 ghz without spending more than about $250
and OCZ seems to be a good choice, dual channel???
 
TigerDirect.com is usually a tadbit higher in price, as they sell their products at what a retail store would, such as BestBuy, which buy the way, NEVER BUY RETAIL!!! They charge you bundles more for it!
 
total i'm aiming to spend about $1200-$1500
i can spend more on things like a second hard drive or another gig of memory
i like the specs on your soon to be done computer mammikoura, is it outta my price range? also which should i get first?? motherboard?? case?? something else?
 
The 7800GTX is much better than the X850XT PE. Anyways, if you're looking for the ultimate speed hard-drive-wise, get a WD Raptor.
 
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