Please check this final spec

.Lethal · 23 Feb 2006 at 12:12

I've put up a lo of specs over the last few months but I have finall come down to a spec I will be buying tomorrow. But I want to make sure its all compatible and will work smoothly. And if any part I have choosen is really bad for some reason then I would like to know. Anyway the spec is..

CP-121-AM AMD Athlon 64 3700+ San Diego 90nm (Socket 939) - Retail (ADA3700BNBOX) (CP-121-AM) 1
£134.95 £134.95
MB-088-AS Asus A8N-E nForce4 Ultra (Socket 939) PCI-Express Motherboard (MB-088-AS) 1
£61.95 £61.95
GX-010-BG BFG GeForce 7800 GT OC 256MB GDDR3 VIVO TV-Out/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail (GX-010-BG) 1
£189.95 £189.95
HD-054-SE Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 NCQ 120GB ST3120813AS SATA-II 8MB Cache - OEM (HD-054-SE) 1
£46.95 £46.95
CD-030-PL Plextor PX-716AL Dual Layer Slot Loading 16x4x DVD±RW ReWriter - Retail (CD-030-PL) 1
£69.95 £69.95
CA-039-AN Antec P180 Advanced Super Midi Tower Case - No PSU (Silver) (CA-039-AN) 1
£79.95 £79.95
CA-005-HP Hiper HPU-4K580-MK Type R 580W Modular ATX2.2 PSU - Black UV (CA-005-HP) 1
£52.95 £52.95
Subtotal £636.65
VAT £111.42
Total £748.07

I've gone with the slot loading Plextor because I really want the Slot Loading mechanism (for those thinking wth have I choosen that

) I didn't include RAM because I have 1GB of Corsair LL RAM that I will use.

I think that is everything I need so please. Feedback much appreciated.

FWIW: The case is the black one I'm getting, not the silver one. (The black is out of stock atm.

Thanks

ACESHIGH · 23 Feb 2006 at 12:22

Very nice, but if you want a far better graphics card for not much more cash then get the ..
Connect3D ATI Radeon X1800 XT 256MB GDDR3 AVIVO TV-Out/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail (GX-044-CO) £234.94*Including VAT (recently in to OcUK).

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/acatalog/X1800_Series.html

.Lethal · 23 Feb 2006 at 12:26

I thought the ATiX1800 series were on par with the 7800's? Is there a noticable difference or feature between the two?

ACESHIGH · 23 Feb 2006 at 14:14

The X1800XT is a bit faster than with the 7800GTX. Considering that is faster than the 7800GT OC, & considering the price i think it is a worthwhile buy.

BTW ..
X1900XT / XTX fastest of the lot
7800GTX 512MB next fastest (due to diff core / mem speeds)
X1800XT next fastest.
7800GTX next fastest
X1800XL = 7800GT
(slowest at bottom - fastest at top)

.Lethal · 23 Feb 2006 at 14:23

Oh sorry I just noticed you said XT, I thought you were reffering to the XL.

Well if that is the case then Yes you are totally right man. But that makes me wonder would the mobo be a good choice for this? (I dont plan on x-fire or SLi)

semi-pro waster · 23 Feb 2006 at 14:36

The motherboard will be fine with an ATI card, just to clarify the card that ACESHIGH is talking about is the 256mb X1800XT for ~£235 inc VAT and it is well worth the extra £10 or so over the 7800gt.

Everything else should be fine, the Plextor is overpriced for what it is but then you know that already

.Lethal · 23 Feb 2006 at 15:18

Oh you SO had to mention the Plextor didn't you!!!! I knew someone would

I knew the card would work in the mobo, I ment to ask if there was a more suitable mobo (prefably by Asus) for the ATi card.

Sorry for the confusion. I would guess though this board is still better than any other for the price right?

semi-pro waster · 23 Feb 2006 at 15:26

You could get the Crossfire motherboard but I don't really see the point, if you get an X1800XT master card in the future you will be paying quite a bit more money plus as I understand it you wouldn't be able to use the full 512mb Ram on the master card. There have been mention of a couple of issues around the Asus (or all) Crossfire motherboards although that said I think they are good motherboards just perhaps not excellent for overclocking.

So on the basis of that I'd still stick with the original motherboard, good solid motherboard with a proven and reliable chipset.

And yes I couldn't help myself about the Plextor. I do think they are cool though

.Lethal · 23 Feb 2006 at 15:44

OK, I was sort of going on that assumption. ASUS are very good for there motherboards and the one listed is proven to be very good.

So I'll stick with the original spec but I'll change the GFX card.

Thanks for pointing that out btw! I would have kicked myself If I found out later.

EDIT: ASUS good for reliability/stability (Which is what I'm after)

maddad68 · 23 Feb 2006 at 17:44

Hi .

IMO stick with the BFG ... LIFETIME Manufacturer Warranty

you will not be disapointed

Allso can i allso recomend that you look at another HD .

Maxtor DiamondMax Plus 10 NCQ 250GB 6V250F0 SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (HD-088-MD)

Few more quid but in THIS WEEK ONLY (£65.74 Including VAT at 17.5%)

It has 130 gig more storage and it 16 MB Cache and its only a few quid more than the one you have .

.Lethal · 23 Feb 2006 at 20:12

Hi maddad68,

Firstly, I choose the BFG partially for that reason. But the X1800 XT is way to tempting for the price, thats over £100 cheaper than the Nvidia eqivilant.

As for the HDD, there are a lot of mixed views on Maxtor. the 120GB is my main drive also for programs and appz, XP can only read 120GB as the main drive, unless I partition it, which I don't plan to. But you do make a good point for the price. I suppose I'm being picky there.

thanks

maddad68 · 24 Feb 2006 at 02:40

Hey Damonic

Its your cash man ... you spend it as you see fit , Aslong as you yourself are happy and have no nagging douts after you put it all together ... the world is good .

Good luck man and take your time on the build ..no rush

.Lethal · 24 Feb 2006 at 12:09

Just posted another thread on my purchase, I wish I could take my time on my build ..I have to take my time waiting for stock! *cries*

InQ · 24 Feb 2006 at 15:00

Damonic said:
Hi maddad68,
As for the HDD, there are a lot of mixed views on Maxtor. the 120GB is my main drive also for programs and appz, XP can only read 120GB as the main drive, unless I partition it, which I don't plan to. But you do make a good point for the price. I suppose I'm being picky there.

thanks

Are you using FAT32?
XP can handle massive partitions if formatted with NTFS.

.Lethal · 24 Feb 2006 at 15:38

InQ said:
Are you using FAT32?
XP can handle massive partitions if formatted with NTFS.

XP Can after SP1 if I remeber correctly. However it can't handle above 120gb for the drive where Windows is installed (Drive C for example).

Remember Maxtor's Big Drive enabler before SP1? After it theres no probs but only if its not used as the main drive.
You could partition the main drive however but I just don't want that.

InQ · 24 Feb 2006 at 16:17

I'm sure u can use more than 120Gb for the XP installation partition, never heard or come across that problem before only the pre SP1/2 HDD size limit.

p4radox · 24 Feb 2006 at 16:31

I'd dump the Hiper Type-R and get a Tagan, Seasonic or Enermax. There've been a few problems recently with Hipers and I've seen first-hand one with smoke pouring out of the back. They're also not all that quiet.

Of course the case is personal preference but I'd go for an Akasa Eclipse or Lian Li PC7+, but if the P180 takes your fancy then fair enough.

.Lethal · 24 Feb 2006 at 18:22

p4radox: You were actually one of a few people that made me get in touch with OCuK to change the PSU/Order I placed. I went with the Antec Phantom 500W Hybrid Fan Silent ATX2.0 PSU instead. I figured I'm not going to chance anything and went for a highly rated yet expensive PSU. I hope this one won't give me any problems.