Associate
- Joined
- 31 Oct 2002
- Posts
- 2,315
Haven't built a PC for 3+ years and a newbie when it comes to the new hardware, so be gentle! 
Been reading for a day or so and still going on all the new tech! (All prices including VAT)
Here's my first punt - would welcome feedback, ideas, changes etc.
CPU
===
Definitely want AMD and dual core, not really into overclocking (not enough knowledge and need a really stable PC). So decided to go for the X2 range rather than the Opteron as I won't be able to take advantage of it's OCing abilities. I chose the 3800 but I may have some scope, moneywise to go up to a 4400 - is this worth the extra to get the 1MB L2 cache?
AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 3800+ (Socket 939) - Retail (ADA3800BVBOX) (CP-134-AM) £205.57
-or-
AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4400+ (Socket 939) - Retail (ADA4400CDBOX) (CP-127-AM) £325.42
M/B
===
Not really sure here, I know that I want the ability to RAID drives in the future and also maybe to add a second graphics card - which means Crossfire as I want to go ATI for the card.
I don't really know the difference between the manufacturers, but a couple of people recommended the DFI LP and I like the look of the boards - how do these stack up against others? Don;t mind paying a bit more to get a better spec (and therefore more future proof) motherboard. Read the Anand review - this board has no SATA2 support, is this a problem?
DFI LanParty UT RDX200CF-DR Crossfire (Socket 939) Motherboard (MB-017-DF) £146.82
The other option is to forget Crossfire altogether - any thoughts on a replacement motherboard in that case?
RAM
===
Definitely want 2GB - gain not sure of the difference between manufacturers. Heard people talk about Geil Value so here it is - again don't mind paying a bit more if there is a better (stock) option.
GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC3200 Value Dual Channel Kit CAS3 (GE2GB3200BDC) (MY-046-GL) £111.57
GFX
===
As I said, want to go ATI, with the option to go Crossfire later - hence the Crossfire motherboard. So is it best to get a master card now or get the best XTX and then get a master card later?
HIS Excalibur ATI Radeon X1900 XT-X 512MB GDDR3 AVIVO TV-Out/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail (GX-047-HT) £340.69
-or-
ATI Radeon X1900 ***Crossfire Edition*** 512MB GDDR3 TV-Out/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail (GX-045-CO) £352.44
HDD
===
As it will be a gaming rig, want very good performance so plumped for the Raptor, on its own to begin with - maybe adding another in RAID0 later on.
Western Digital Raptor 150GB WD1500ADFD 10,000RPM SATA 16MB Cache - OEM (HD-069-WD) £198.52
-or- Bundle
Western Digital Raptor 150GB 10,000RPM SATA 16MB Cache RAID Bundle (BU-001-WD) £370.07
CASE
====
Tricky - not many I like the look of. This is one - I also really like the Lian Li V1100 plus, but not sure I can justify spending the extra on a case, maybe.
Antec P180 Advanced Super Midi Tower Case - No PSU (Silver) (CA-039-AN) £93.94
PSU
===
No ideas - really need some help here.
DVDRW
=====
No ideas - really need some help here.
OTHER
=====
Also getting the Saitek Eclipse keyboard, Razer Copperhead mouse and S&S Steel mouse pad. Already have a monitor, so won't be upgrading this yet!
Thanks in advance!
Been reading for a day or so and still going on all the new tech! (All prices including VAT)Here's my first punt - would welcome feedback, ideas, changes etc.
CPU
===
Definitely want AMD and dual core, not really into overclocking (not enough knowledge and need a really stable PC). So decided to go for the X2 range rather than the Opteron as I won't be able to take advantage of it's OCing abilities. I chose the 3800 but I may have some scope, moneywise to go up to a 4400 - is this worth the extra to get the 1MB L2 cache?
AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 3800+ (Socket 939) - Retail (ADA3800BVBOX) (CP-134-AM) £205.57
-or-
AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4400+ (Socket 939) - Retail (ADA4400CDBOX) (CP-127-AM) £325.42
M/B
===
Not really sure here, I know that I want the ability to RAID drives in the future and also maybe to add a second graphics card - which means Crossfire as I want to go ATI for the card.
I don't really know the difference between the manufacturers, but a couple of people recommended the DFI LP and I like the look of the boards - how do these stack up against others? Don;t mind paying a bit more to get a better spec (and therefore more future proof) motherboard. Read the Anand review - this board has no SATA2 support, is this a problem?
DFI LanParty UT RDX200CF-DR Crossfire (Socket 939) Motherboard (MB-017-DF) £146.82
The other option is to forget Crossfire altogether - any thoughts on a replacement motherboard in that case?
RAM
===
Definitely want 2GB - gain not sure of the difference between manufacturers. Heard people talk about Geil Value so here it is - again don't mind paying a bit more if there is a better (stock) option.
GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC3200 Value Dual Channel Kit CAS3 (GE2GB3200BDC) (MY-046-GL) £111.57
GFX
===
As I said, want to go ATI, with the option to go Crossfire later - hence the Crossfire motherboard. So is it best to get a master card now or get the best XTX and then get a master card later?
HIS Excalibur ATI Radeon X1900 XT-X 512MB GDDR3 AVIVO TV-Out/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail (GX-047-HT) £340.69
-or-
ATI Radeon X1900 ***Crossfire Edition*** 512MB GDDR3 TV-Out/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail (GX-045-CO) £352.44
HDD
===
As it will be a gaming rig, want very good performance so plumped for the Raptor, on its own to begin with - maybe adding another in RAID0 later on.
Western Digital Raptor 150GB WD1500ADFD 10,000RPM SATA 16MB Cache - OEM (HD-069-WD) £198.52
-or- Bundle
Western Digital Raptor 150GB 10,000RPM SATA 16MB Cache RAID Bundle (BU-001-WD) £370.07
CASE
====
Tricky - not many I like the look of. This is one - I also really like the Lian Li V1100 plus, but not sure I can justify spending the extra on a case, maybe.
Antec P180 Advanced Super Midi Tower Case - No PSU (Silver) (CA-039-AN) £93.94
PSU
===
No ideas - really need some help here.
DVDRW
=====
No ideas - really need some help here.
OTHER
=====
Also getting the Saitek Eclipse keyboard, Razer Copperhead mouse and S&S Steel mouse pad. Already have a monitor, so won't be upgrading this yet!
Thanks in advance!