Athlon-64 3500+ CPU
eVGA 133-K8-NF41 nForce-4 SLI Chipset Dual Channel DDR w/7.1 Sound, Gb LAN, USB 2.0 Dual PCI-E Motherboard
1 GB RAM
200 GB HARD DRIVE [Serial-ATA-II, 3Gb, 7200 RPM, 8M Cache]
16X Dual Format/Double Layer DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW Drive
ATI Radeon X800GT 256MB w/DVI + TV Out Video
Thats all the important info I think.
What do you think about this setup?
Also, will this run on a 350W power source?
It looks ok for a workstation. What’s the price/make?
Local shop… price around 900…
How would it do for gaming?
Also any recommendation would be appreciated.
That sounds about right price wise - those parts you listed run ~$650 at Newegg; add in the price of a case, OS license, and other misc parts, and that shop is making a mild profit on this. Should be reasonably fast for gaming; a x800GT will play any game out there right now pretty well, though not at max eyecandy; still, maybe look at getting them to upgrade it to a Geforce 7600GS (these cards just came out) - $25 more than the x800GT cards at Newegg, should be quite a bit faster, and they are passively cooled.
If it’s a quality switching power supply which actually delivers 350W, certainly. If it’s a generic no-name bit of junk which maybe only delivers 250W, possibly not.
Certainly when buying stuff to assemble yourself it’s always good to get the brand name of EVERY component to assess the quality, but if you are gitting this from a local shop with a reputation to protect they will probably do the right thing, and you can always go shout at them if it goes up in smoke…
slaphead is right about the power supply. However, you’ll be pretty limited on upgrades. I’d suggest a good 450 watt power supply; if you ever want a beefier videocard, a second disk drive, or a second hard disk, your computer will appreciate it.
Just thought i’d give my input, having just built a rig fairly recently (a few weeks ago). Keep in mind that you won’t be able to take advantage of the SLI capability of that motherboard with an ATI video card. ATI has their own version of SLI that is much newer and the motherboard selection is pretty limited. Having said that, the 7600 gs is an excellent performer (the new rig has one of these). Concerning the power supply, 350W will be sufficient if you get a quality power supply and you don’t intend on running an SLI setup in the future. SLI may be able to run on some power supplies, but i’d seriously recommend getting one that is SLI certified. Most of these power supplies are $100+ a piece and are 500w+. At any rate, the processor speed sounds good, although if you are tech-savy, overclocking a 3000+ or 3200+ may also be an option, as the athlon 939’s have a lot of potential.
I like it. However, I would check a few things out. Does the RAM have a warranty, and/or is it burn-in tested? It looks like you can support 4 slots @ 1GB, and almost every board today can run RAM dual-channel. Are you getting dual-channel RAM with this machine?
What brand of power supply are they planning to use? Check this article for recommended, tested brands, and read the horror stories before the summary to see what a cheapie power supply can do to your system.
nVidia and ATI flip-flop between which of them is doing drivers well and which one is sucking like a showroom Hoover. Right now ATI’s driver updates suck (at least that’s what I’ve heard in gaming forums – shaker of salt not included). Consider an nVidia chipset for your graphics card. Also, consider getting a motherboard with built-in graphics. If you go with nVidia, there are several motherboards that have a built-in 6th-gen graphics card and a PCI Express slot for future upgrades. Some of these even support upgrades to 939-pin processors with dual cores, so your system would have room to grow with both CPU and graphics power. You could get a PCIe video card now, or wait until the prices have dropped and drivers stabilized on the X800 or 7600GS series – either way, the built-in 6th-gen graphics will run most of today’s games just fine, and you have a backup video card in case of compatibility problems with some games or drivers. All of that, and you pay about $75 less for a motherboard with built-in graphics than you do for a motherboard with SLI. My wife runs World of Warcraft with all of the eye candy turned up on a 6100-based system and it looks great.
I’m suggesting the alternative motherboard, but I recognize that you’re probably looking at a pre-fab system from a local place. If you think the suggestion’s worthwhile, you might ask them if they can order something in. You could use the same CPU, HDD, burner, power supply, RAM, etc. – it would just be a more future-proof core for your system.
After this thread and a discussion with a friend I may be looking at building my own system. What would a person need to do this?
Items I know I need:
Case
Motherboard
CPU
Memory
Videocard
Hard drive
DVD/CD Burner/Player
Floppy maybe
What other things would I need to build one by myself that I am not thinking of?
Power supply
Heatsink for the CPU. Don’t forget thermal compound to go with it. I am partial to Arctic Silver but there are others…remember you only need a tiny bit. Thermal pads are much simpler to use but nowhere near as good. Adding the thermal compound is probably the most annoying part of building your PC (not hard but need to pay attention and be careful in its application…can be messy stuff).
Fans (case fan or three, fan for the CPU)
Maybe a soundcard. Looks like your mobo has one built-in but something to think about.
Buying fans that are both capable and not noisy as hell takes a bit of homework. Cooling is an important issue. Do not ignore it.
Yeah… I realized right after I hit submit that I forgot to mention the power source… we talked about it about 5 posts before…
Would I get any fans or other cooling items when I actually buy the processor or case?
Also is there a good guide or something similar that anyone recommmends that I can look at on the net?
Some cases will come with fans but in general they do not and you have to buy the fans yourself. For case fans you need to pay attention to the proper size so it fits the mounting holes on the case (usually 80 or 92mm…these are standard sizes but you still want to get the right size). You will certainly want an exhaust fan. If the case has an opening on the top for a fan then get two exhaust fans (one for the back and one for the top). Most cases also have mounts up front for one or two intake fans. Not strictly necessary but something to think about.
Processors usually never sell with a heatsink or fan (although there are “stock” heatsinks but they usually suck). The reason is not all heatsinks fit on all motherboards. Due to placement of capacitors and other things some heatsinks simply will not fit on some motherboards. Heatsink manufacturers almost always have a compatibility list that will tell you if a given heatsink fits a given motherboard. If you do not see your mobo listed call or e-mail the manufacturer but definitely get a solid answer that the heatsink you buy will install ok on your mobo.
Likewise when buying a heatsink make sure it is rated for the CPU that you are buying. Heatsinks come in all shapes and sizes. Do not think any old hunk of metal will do. If the heatsink is not up to the task your computer will likely crash (most mobos these days have thermal sensors that will turn the PC off after a certain thermal threshold is reached…this is not a nice shutdown…just plain off like a switch). Also be sure the proper mounting kit comes with the heatsink to put it on your mobo (probably does but be sure just the same).
Also get a fan for the heatsink. It’ll probably surprise you to find the heatsink fans these days are usually case fans (read big fan) clamped to the top of the heatsink. 80 or 92mm fans are usually the size these days. Make sure the fan for the heatsink (at least) can send RPM info* (I am not sure if all fans these days can do that or not).
Heatsinks are BIG nowadays. Here’s a link to the heatsink I use. At 690 grams it is heavy too. I think this is one of the better air cooled heatsinks out there but note that there is an aluminum version that is less expensive and performs nearly as well (but the copper is sexy!). Whatever you do though do not buy on looks alone. There are some sexy looking heatsinks out there that suck. Check reviews and get something that does the job it is intended to do. If it looks cool too then great but that should be the last consideration.
As for guides there is not much to be had since every machine can be a bit different. The one guide I would have you carefully follow is use of thermal paste. Here is Arctic Silver’s guide. This can probably be used for most thermal compounds but note that Arctic Silver has different instructions for different compounds they sell so you may want to check. I very strongly urge use of Arctic Silver though. They have been pretty much the standard by which other thermal compounds are measured. Considering the tiny dollop of goo you get it is remarkably expensive but still it is just $6 give or take so why go cheap when some alternatives can approach close to being useless (or worse)?
Beyond that just follow the instructions that come with the various components. The heatsink should have detailed instructions for mounting and most everything else should be fairly obvious*. Just take it slow and easy…no rush. Be in an area with good lighting and make sure you have the proper tools on hand (mostly just a screwdriver with assorted bits…seems no one can agree on one type of screwbit to be used).
It really not as hard as it may seem. If you have a propellor head for a friend who knows this stuff have them over the first time you do it and all should be well.
*Note: One not so obvious thing is making sure the heatsink fan is attached to the proper fan header (power coupling) on the motherboard. Fans in your case may run directly off of the power supply or use fan headers on the motherboard if provided but the one you need to pay attention to is the header for the heatsink fan. Many motherboards (I will not say all but it is common these days) want to know that a fan is running on the heatsink. There is a header that the motherboard specifically can watch to see that a fan in there and running (hence the need for the fan to report its RPM). If the fan dies the computer will shut itself off to avoid damage to the CPU.
Oh yeah…pay close attention the the heatsink mounting instructions too.
Once again just go slow and careful and pay attention. Do not force anything. If something does not seem right or seems to require too much force back off and rethink what is going on.
One last question…
Who do you recommend I get the different components from? New Egg? Tiger Direct? Somebody else?
One last question…
Who do you recommend I get the different components from? New Egg? Tiger Direct? Somebody else?
I got all my stuff for my last computer from New Egg. I found their selection to be extensive (which given my very particular parts list was helpful) and the prices were very good. On the computer I built before this last one I shopped for the cheapest piece wherever I could get it and got creamed in shipping costs (e.g. a tube of Arctic Silver costs $6 to buy and $5 to ship…if dropped in a box with a bigger order I do not think it adds a cent). So even if New Egg was a tad more expensive on some items I stuck to them to keep shipping costs in line. Finally New Egg is reputable for an online discount retailer which is worth something.
All that said shop wherever you want. If Tiger Direct has what you need at better prices and you trust them then go for it.
Considering that’s almost identical to the rig I researched and had put together sometime last year, I’d say that it’s pretty nice.
You might find an operating system useful. I hear windows XP is popular these days.
Your mobo should have all the cables you need bundled with it, but check to make sure. Case should come with all the screws you would ever need, but again, double check.
Headphones/speaker, webcam, mouse, keyboard, monitor etc. I assume you already have.
Depending on which CPU you get, it may come with a heatsink/fan. Most of the stock AMD ones are pretty decent nowadays - good cooling and reasonably quiet. Also pretty much guaranteed to fit any mobo which takes the CPU.
NewEgg or Monarch Computers should be fine. (I’m assuming “Potatoville” isn’t in CA, but if it is, you won’t get charged sales tax by Monarch as you would by NewEgg.)
WRT cooling, keep in mind that larger fans are quieter (as they require fewer RPMs to move air), and this applies to heat sink fans as well. For instance, my 90mm CPU fan is the loudest one in my case at idle. When/If I replace it with a 120mm (as my 3 case fans are), my PC should be pretty much silent. Just something to consider if noise is a factor.