Gaming rig, suggestions and opinions welcomed!

siegler · 10-20-2005, 03:09 PM

Hey guys, my name is Steve and I am building my first gaming rig. I have a $2,000 (give or take) budget. I am planning to overclock (not hardcore) and play quite a range of games.

the list is so far...

LCD monitor:
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16824116355
I chose this monitor because its cheaper than my first choice, the VP930b, and according to specs, its response time is amazing. Even though I have read that this monitor is not flexible, considering the price and performance, I have considered it.

Case:
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16811133142
I love how this case looks, even though its heavy, it's cheap and I feel I won't go wrong with it.

Power Supply:
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16817103928
I chose Antec because I can trust them with their power supplies. This one is good, fairly cheap, and I know I dont need a whopping 500w, so this is good for now.

CPU:
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16819103529
I want something fairly new and fast (of course AMD) I dont think im ready for x2, its a bit pricey and as I have heard, games dont take full advantage of it YET, so im going to go with the AMD 4000+ SanDiego

Hard Drive:
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16822148039
Instead of waisting money on a raptor, I am doing Raid 0, with 2 Seagate 120gb SATA barracudas (sp?) with NCQ. I chose Seagate because they offer a 5 year warrenty and I have heard they make decent Hard Drives.

Motherboard:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813136152
I am going with the DFI Lanparty (no SLI, I dont want to do it). Before I was going to chose the Abit AN8, but hearing that DFI was the best overclocking board and the most reliable, I decided to go with it.

Memory:
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16820227219
I wanted to do DDR500. This was my hardest choice, but after doing massive research, the two companies I wanted to buy from was either Muskin or OCZ gold edition (I am getting 2 gb (2x1gb sticks)). Reading some articles on other forums as well, I hear the OCZ responded well with the motherboard I am getting.

Video Card:
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16814130249
I used to be an ATI fan, but recently I feel they arent up to par with Nvidia. With their new series out, it will definatly be more expensive and some of the cards wont come out for a while. I know not to spend a lot of money on THE best video car, it would just waste my money. So I am going with the second best, which I feel this card has the best bang for buck on the high performance scale. I chose eVGA because I hear they are very reliable and this OC 7800gt gives me very good feelings.

Optical Drives
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827135136
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16827101651
I chose to get the DVD-RW thats their because its cheap. And the DVD-rom will be from ASUS, I trust them and its also cheap.

Thermalpaste:
http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16835100007
Since I will overclock a bit, I will purchase this. Of course I will put the computer together, and make sure everything works first before I void any warrenties.

Speaking of cooling, do any of you reccomend a better heatsink/fan for my processor (or video card) that will drastically cool better then stock cooling?

I have my MX1000 mouse delivered the other day. I have my cyber acoustic 2.1 speakers lol, but im looking to buy some 5.1 surround sound speakers, but this computer will be built first. I'll get a floppy too, don't worry.

Granted, I love newegg, but most of my purchases will be from zipzoomfly.com, because most of their products are tax free and free 2nd day shipping. Some things that are not at zipzoomfly will be from newegg.

One last thing, I have heard that Black Friday is the best time to purchase computers. Is it worth it?

Thanks for your time to check my items out and please give me some suggestions you have or opinions.

Execute · 10-20-2005, 03:27 PM

Well your lucky to have such a big budget.
Although you can save some cash.
Its all up to you though.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150108

The XFX got better reviews and is a little cheaper.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813136160

Also since your not going to use SLI then why bother with the board?
DFI is the best for overclocking but this board will do you just as good.

siegler · 10-20-2005, 03:35 PM

hmm good point. I was just thinking, if i ever wanted to do SLI because it may be a cheaper alternative then a newer card, I might as well get the SLI board just in case.

the xfx is also a nice card, the the eVGA is a bit more overclocked, and I have heard how easy it is to OC to 550mhz and 1200mhz ram.

USAWolf · 10-20-2005, 10:05 PM

Do not go with XFX, they have major heat issues and are not the best cards, go with eVGA or PNY, other than that, HAVE FUN

macdude425 · 10-20-2005, 10:28 PM

I agree. And BTW, NEVER trust the reviews on Newegg. I learned that the easy way.

Ste · 10-20-2005, 10:29 PM

Never trust reviews on the seller website anyways, I always ask at a tech forum, for people who actualy have one of whatever your gonna buy.

siegler · 10-21-2005, 02:21 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by macdude425
I agree. And BTW, NEVER trust the reviews on Newegg. I learned that the easy way.

Yeah that is why I am here :-)

PZEROFGH · 10-21-2005, 06:43 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by macdude425
I agree. And BTW, NEVER trust the reviews on Newegg. I learned that the easy way.

you learned it the easy way?

Vampire_Slayer · 10-21-2005, 10:46 AM

I thought that AMD only supported up to 400 so 500 woudln't make any improvements....I may be wrong. But anyways, nice setup man. You could save money by getting the 3700 and ocing it. I would buy your lcd at a store btw. By doing that you can insure you don't get any dead pixels. Just have them turn it on for ya so you can check, and some stores like Fry's(450 bucks with 50 dollar mail in rebate..), although more spendy have a 15 day return policy so after you get things running, if you find a dead pixel just return it and get another one. Don't even bother getting anything else there, unless you wanna pay the price of a 7800gtx just to buy a 7800gt......

siegler · 10-21-2005, 11:29 AM

the new cores can support ddr500. They have the memory dividers in em. Although amd doesnt really officially say they support it, it really does.

About getting an LCD at a store, there arent as many selections and i just saw my LCD for $400, when i could save $80 and take the risk that most people take. If you have a dead pixel or two, you really dont notice it unless you have a few that are clustered.

10-20-2005, 03:09 PM	#1 (permalink)
siegler Newb Techie Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 34	Gaming rig, suggestions and opinions welcomed! Hey guys, my name is Steve and I am building my first gaming rig. I have a $2,000 (give or take) budget. I am planning to overclock (not hardcore) and play quite a range of games. the list is so far... LCD monitor: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16824116355 I chose this monitor because its cheaper than my first choice, the VP930b, and according to specs, its response time is amazing. Even though I have read that this monitor is not flexible, considering the price and performance, I have considered it. Case: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16811133142 I love how this case looks, even though its heavy, it's cheap and I feel I won't go wrong with it. Power Supply: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16817103928 I chose Antec because I can trust them with their power supplies. This one is good, fairly cheap, and I know I dont need a whopping 500w, so this is good for now. CPU: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16819103529 I want something fairly new and fast (of course AMD) I dont think im ready for x2, its a bit pricey and as I have heard, games dont take full advantage of it YET, so im going to go with the AMD 4000+ SanDiego Hard Drive: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16822148039 Instead of waisting money on a raptor, I am doing Raid 0, with 2 Seagate 120gb SATA barracudas (sp?) with NCQ. I chose Seagate because they offer a 5 year warrenty and I have heard they make decent Hard Drives. Motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813136152 I am going with the DFI Lanparty (no SLI, I dont want to do it). Before I was going to chose the Abit AN8, but hearing that DFI was the best overclocking board and the most reliable, I decided to go with it. Memory: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16820227219 I wanted to do DDR500. This was my hardest choice, but after doing massive research, the two companies I wanted to buy from was either Muskin or OCZ gold edition (I am getting 2 gb (2x1gb sticks)). Reading some articles on other forums as well, I hear the OCZ responded well with the motherboard I am getting. Video Card: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16814130249 I used to be an ATI fan, but recently I feel they arent up to par with Nvidia. With their new series out, it will definatly be more expensive and some of the cards wont come out for a while. I know not to spend a lot of money on THE best video car, it would just waste my money. So I am going with the second best, which I feel this card has the best bang for buck on the high performance scale. I chose eVGA because I hear they are very reliable and this OC 7800gt gives me very good feelings. Optical Drives http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827135136 http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16827101651 I chose to get the DVD-RW thats their because its cheap. And the DVD-rom will be from ASUS, I trust them and its also cheap. Thermalpaste: http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16835100007 Since I will overclock a bit, I will purchase this. Of course I will put the computer together, and make sure everything works first before I void any warrenties. Speaking of cooling, do any of you reccomend a better heatsink/fan for my processor (or video card) that will drastically cool better then stock cooling? I have my MX1000 mouse delivered the other day. I have my cyber acoustic 2.1 speakers lol, but im looking to buy some 5.1 surround sound speakers, but this computer will be built first. I'll get a floppy too, don't worry. Granted, I love newegg, but most of my purchases will be from zipzoomfly.com, because most of their products are tax free and free 2nd day shipping. Some things that are not at zipzoomfly will be from newegg. One last thing, I have heard that Black Friday is the best time to purchase computers. Is it worth it? Thanks for your time to check my items out and please give me some suggestions you have or opinions.

10-20-2005, 03:27 PM	#2 (permalink)
Execute True Techie Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 106	Well your lucky to have such a big budget. Although you can save some cash. Its all up to you though. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150108 The XFX got better reviews and is a little cheaper. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813136160 Also since your not going to use SLI then why bother with the board? DFI is the best for overclocking but this board will do you just as good. __________________

10-20-2005, 10:28 PM	#5 (permalink)
macdude425 Member (again) Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Raul's Wild Kingdom...How 'bout that, huh? Posts: 4,195	I agree. And BTW, NEVER trust the reviews on Newegg. I learned that the easy way. __________________ Debian Support Forums!

10-20-2005, 10:29 PM	#6 (permalink)
Ste lvl Infinite Psychopath Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Mount Prospect, IL Posts: 8,577	Never trust reviews on the seller website anyways, I always ask at a tech forum, for people who actualy have one of whatever your gonna buy. __________________ Read The Rules!! Power Supply Guide Intel Overclocking Thread AMD Overclocking Thread Other Important Threads I'm sorry but I do not accept support requests via IM, email, or personal messages There will come a day, such a day when all will be told more than they wish to know, what one hears may explain the past, it may explain the future, but it has never made a difference either way and it will change nothing. Some day.... But that is not this day, and I don't know when, I just don't know.

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10-20-2005, 03:35 PM	#3 (permalink)
siegler Newb Techie Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 34	hmm good point. I was just thinking, if i ever wanted to do SLI because it may be a cheaper alternative then a newer card, I might as well get the SLI board just in case. the xfx is also a nice card, the the eVGA is a bit more overclocked, and I have heard how easy it is to OC to 550mhz and 1200mhz ram.

10-20-2005, 10:05 PM	#4 (permalink)
USAWolf Newb Techie Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 13	Do not go with XFX, they have major heat issues and are not the best cards, go with eVGA or PNY, other than that, HAVE FUN

10-21-2005, 10:46 AM	#9 (permalink)
Vampire_Slayer Super Techie Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 315	I thought that AMD only supported up to 400 so 500 woudln't make any improvements....I may be wrong. But anyways, nice setup man. You could save money by getting the 3700 and ocing it. I would buy your lcd at a store btw. By doing that you can insure you don't get any dead pixels. Just have them turn it on for ya so you can check, and some stores like Fry's(450 bucks with 50 dollar mail in rebate..), although more spendy have a 15 day return policy so after you get things running, if you find a dead pixel just return it and get another one. Don't even bother getting anything else there, unless you wanna pay the price of a 7800gtx just to buy a 7800gt......

10-21-2005, 11:29 AM	#10 (permalink)
siegler Newb Techie Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 34	the new cores can support ddr500. They have the memory dividers in em. Although amd doesnt really officially say they support it, it really does. About getting an LCD at a store, there arent as many selections and i just saw my LCD for $400, when i could save $80 and take the risk that most people take. If you have a dead pixel or two, you really dont notice it unless you have a few that are clustered.