Help me build a computer - please!

Hey, after amassing a total of $2,555.90 on newegg, I decided to try one of those, you picj the parts, we build the puter sites. I tried www.sysbuilder.com. Here's the comparison:

NewEgg
Thermaltake Armor VA8000SWA case $179
ASUS A8N-SLI Deluxe $135
2x GeForce 7900GT 256Mb $560
Kingwin 520w power supply $110
AMD Athlon 63 FX57 $720
Corsair XMS 2Gb DDR SDRAM $189
Western Digital Raptor 150Gb (SATA) $275 OR Maxtor 160Gb IDE $72
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy2 ZS $75 OR M-Audio 9900-40901-00 $90
WinXP Pro x64 $140
KB $16
TOTAL ~$2560

SYSBUILDER
CASE: (+170.00) Thermaltake VA7000BWA Shark Series Black, No PS
PS: (+114.00) Thermaltake W0023 Purepower 560W+PFC ATX V2.0 Power Supply
MB: (+169.00) ASUS A8N-SLI DELUXE SKT939/ nFORCE4 SLI/ 2 PCI-EXP16/ 2GBE
CPU: (+155.00) ** ATHLON64 3200+ SKT939 ** Retail Box CPU
MEMORY: (+192.00) Crucial 2GB ,1GBX2, DDR400 Memory
HDD1: (+109.00) WD 250G SATA II 7200RPM 16MB /WD2500KS
CD-ROM1: (+18.00) SAMSUNG 52X IDE CD-ROM Drive Black
CD-ROM2: (+29.00) ASUS CD-RW 52X32X52 BLACK
VGA: (+365.00) ASUS/MSI GeForce 7900GT 256MB TV/2DVI
AUDIO: (+38.00) Creative Labs Sound Blaster Audigy SE 7.1 Sound Card
OS: (+135.00) MICROSOFT WINDOWS XP PROFESSIONAL EDITION
KEYBOARD +17.50) BenQ/Acer Black KB+ Optical Mouse COMBO
WARRANTY +0.00) No Charge on 1 Year Parts Warranty
ASSEMBLY +35.00) Assembly and Testing
TOTAL $1546.50

OK, $1000 less using sysbuilder. A few issues/explanations: I don't understand all the technical monikers on processors and other parts, and sysbuilder did not have the exact processor Jack was recommending. Also, I was only able to pick ONE video card rather than the dual GeForces. No Corsair or Kingston RAM as high as 2 Gb on sysbuilder. You may ask about my choice of drives under sysbuilder. I already have a DL DVD-burner and a DVD-ROM drive that I'm happy with. So since I'd be moving the Dell into the boys' room, they could have the cheaper DVD-ROM drive and CD-RW drive listed above. Oh yea, and higher capacity SATA drive only slightly more expensive on sysbuilder than newegg's IDE drive. What gives???

Anyone still watching this thread ... or is it just that I'm so boring as to be watching this thread and posting to it all day on a SAturday. Hey, I hope this doesn't qualify as hijacking the thread. I'm actually just adding to the question, I hope.
 
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One big difference you have from sysbuilder is that your getting a Athlon 64 3200 processor over a Athlon FX processor. The difference is that one is dual core and the other isn't. I'm currently trying to decide if it's worth upgrading to a dual core but they are WAY more expensive.
 
Love you guys to death!

The best course of action is to wait a bit for the prices to shift based on AMD's new chipset.

There are several differences between what you have been quoted on New Egg and designing your own.

For one thing, the New Egg prices are retail while the help-u-build guys are using OEM.

Retail parts most generally have 3 times the warranty. As these things change so much you have to exercise due diligence and do your research. But generally that is the rule.


The single most important element in a computer system is stability.

This can be achieved by using quality components that are assembled with a respectable amount of care and configuring the OS and software for optimal performance/stability.

Patience is a virtue to be sure.

I have subscribed to this thread and will keep an eye on it and the market.

After we see the impact of the new AMD gear I will do some research and post the findings here.

Hang in there!

All good things in time.
 
mystico, building a computer shouldn't be too hard if you've replaced that many components before. The only little annoying part, for me anyway, is plugging in the case switches to the motherboard (ie. power switch, power LED, reset switch, ect.), mostly because I've got big hands:).

But it's easy really, all you have to do is follow the instruction manual diagrams. After the motherboard is in, all you've gotta do is plug everything in. Just read the instruction manuals of the parts if you don't know what to do with them, it's not hard at all.

Also, concerning the parts, you WANT dual-core at the minimum. For video, it'll be a real life-saver, especially when Windows Vista comes along. Even if it's an AMD X2 3800+, as long as it's dual-core, there's a performance advantage. Right now I'm using a regular AMD Athlon 64 3800+ and it's REALLY good so I'm excited to hear that the dual-cores perform even better than the single-core processors like that.

What I did for Shaw was come up with a top-of-the-line list of specifications for the ideal current computer regardless of AMD's next processor platform. If you need lower specs, I can quote something for you if you want but it looks like you've already come up with something that you like already:Drogar-BigGrin(DBG).

PM me if you or anybody else have any questions.
 
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Ok guys, one quick question.

I've been thinking about the new X2 5000+ core. Any thoughts about it? I'm also not sure whether I should go with the FX60 and DDR ram or the 5000+ and DDR2... Low latency seems to be ideal for gamers but what about video? This also seems to depend on whether you use Intel or AMD (AMD has memory controller built in right? Or is that Intel).

Then there is, of course, the fact that the 5000+ is a lot cheaper than the FX60...

Thoughts?

EDIT: To clarify..

I'd be using something like PC433 DDR vs PC6400 DDR2.
 
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Go with the AM2 platform, you won't regret it. Not only is DDR2 (marginally) faster, but there's better compatibility when going up to 4gb of RAM. Take DDR as an example, in order to get 4gb, you'd either have to pay an arm and a leg for 2gb sticks or use a mix of double-sided and single-sided RAM. With DDR2, just buy two pairs of 2gb kits (4x 1gb sticks) and there you go! :) Plus, in the future you can get 2gb sticks and do 8gb of RAM, but you can't right now only because Vista isn't out and Windows XP doesn't really support more than 3gb or so of RAM.

Also, anything higher than PC3200 DDR won't get you more speed, it will get you more overclocking room. DDR2 by contrast in 533/600/800 flavors will get you more speed as you go up.

So, since the AM2 platform is out, you definitely want that as it's the latest revision and you also want DDR2.

On the processor front, realize that the current crop won't get you too much more speed over the Socket 939 counterparts at the moment (with obvious exception with higher numbers like the X2 5000+ being faster than the X2 4800+).

With that, you still can't go wrong with the 5000+ or the FX-62 or even the AM2 version of the 4800+. Just as long as you're on the new platform, there'll be more options for you in the long run should you need to upgrade processors or RAM. Also, stick with the ASUS-brand for the AM2 board, it seems to be the AM2-version of the A8N-SLI Deluxe, but better. :)
 
vip77 said:
Hey, there is a way to get a 4.1Ghz dual core intel for $130.

http://www.tomshardware.com/2006/05/10/dual_41_ghz_cores/

You could probably build the computer for $700.

If you build it, be sure to tell us all how it comes out.
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It's funny. I was in Fry's this past weekend pricing the parts to build the computer to Jack's specs. I was looking at motherboards and an Intel guy was hovering in the area. When I told him why I was looking (only because he asked), he began telling me about their $130 processor. I told him I am sort of partial to AMD and he stated, "Yea, well you're in AMD country. Everyone around here loves AMD--unlike the rest of the country." OK I'm sorry but, trying to make me feel like some Texas hick who just goes with the flow of everyone around me rather than what "everyone else knows" to be best isn't ever going to be a successful sales tactic!
 
WOW! He actually said that to you? Well, unfortunately, that's the kind of crew you'll find at Fry's occasionally, whether they work there or are just trolling around. Fry's, though very useful for product selection, has a reputation for customer horror stories. Sounds like you got lucky and only went away with a comment. :)
 
Thanks Jack. AM2 it is. Especially since I can get an AM2 processor like the 4800+ for the same exact price as the socket939 version.

Another quick question. Many of the higher end motherboards come with the built in ability for various SATA 3Gb raid. Is this software or hardware based? I can't quite tell. It seems like a good option since I could get 2Tb of SATA raid by using 5 400GB drives - all for 1K! What do you guys think?
 
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Oh one more thing, how much power should I have with this system? I can get a great deal on a case and high quality 550w PSU but I'm not sure that will be enough...
 
Budget...

Budget...

6K - 8K. 8K being the absolute top I'd be willing to spend. Of course, the lower the price I can get while still going high power the better. =)
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If this is your budget, then why don't you go for the dual core Opteron's? You could probably build one for around $4k on up.

AC
 
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I certainly could. I'm not sure it would be much of an improvement though. Can anyone comment on this?
 
Heh heh heh, well, the new Opterons are supposedly due in July under the Socket F platform. If you want to wait even longer, then you could wait and go for that, but I doubt you'd be able to get a retail Opteron Socket F at that time unless you get an OEM from Polywell, Alienware, or some other place.

The current AM2 platform is good enough for a long time. Unless you want dual dual-core processors for future stuff, then you should wait by all means for the Socket F Opterons. Whether that will be the same price as building a highly configured AM2 system is up in the air as there haven't been benches on it yet of course.

Also, keep in mind that Intel is releasing the Conroe chips this summer which are supposed to be really kick-butt and then quad-cores are due in January-1Q 2007. So, depends on how long you can wait. I think things are on a standstill at the moment, there's just been such a rush of new speedier technologies that anything will do at this point in time.
 
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That's sort of how I see it. Good to know I'm not going crazy =)

I can't wait too long so I'm going with the AM2 platform.
 
I know this thread is old at this point and Shaw, maybe you've already built your system. But I'd like to get the thread going again since I'm still looking to buy/build something. Videoguys did a DIY face-off of Intel vs AMD. AMD won, of course, but I noticed they used or at least mentioned much of the same config Jack talked about here.

Check out their config and results ...
http://www.videoguys.com/DIY4.html

I found a neat site where you config your desired computer and they build it for you. I built to the videoguys' specs, changing some parts for what Jack recommended, and mine came in under $1400. Here's my config ...

- Aspire X-Cruiser ATX mid-tower (please tell me why BTX would be better)
- ASUS A8N32-SLI Deluxe
- AMD Athlon 64 x2 dual core 4400+ 2.2 GHz (It feels weird selecting this processor because I feel at this point it should be at least 3.0 GHz. But videoguys insisted that the cache this particular processor offers outweighs the listed speed. Also, this one is not FX. What would the difference be?
- Kingston 1Gb DIMM PC3200 (May tweak to have 2Gb)
- 160 Gb SATA2 7200rpm 8MB HD (I don't need a system drive larger than this. And I have two externals, as stated in a previous post.
- ASUS EN7900GT 2DHTV NVIDIA GF7900GT 256 Mb PCIe (config'd system with just one of these so far).
- 2 optical drives ... DL DVD burner and DVDROM
- Creative Labs Sound Blaster SB0570 Audigy SE card
- other standards: ethernet card, WinXP Pro, KB and mouse.
TOTAL $1344 w/o monitor and before S/H
The site is Georgia Computer Workshop (www.gcworkshop.com). They have high marks on www.resellerratings.com

Will post later once I tweak it some more. But want some advice on this setup.
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