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$2000 for a build

G

gamekid

Gawd
Joined
Nov 1, 2004
Messages
626
ok, this is going to be my first computer build and i would like to get it done right after christmass. the only problem i have with the budget is that it oesnt stretch as far as i would like it to because i do not only need a completely new system, i need a monitor, printer, keyboard, mouse, antivirus, windows, etc.... i have done research a pretty much know what i want but i am trying to get this system as cheap as possible but still want a pretty nice system. i will be using this mostly for gaming.

so heres what i was thinking-

Motherboard: some SLI board that coming out, was thinking DFI but its coming out too late

Processor: AMD athlon 64 3500+, winchestor core, retail (should i get this or get a 3200+ with good cooling and overclock, or i will add cooling to this one?)
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-498&depa=1

Memory: OCZ EL Platinum Revision 2 Dual Channel Kit 184-Pin 1GB(512MBx2) DDR PC-3200 - Retail (should i get a higher speed if i go for the 3500+?, and what about DDR boosters?)
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproductdesc.asp?description=20-146-890&DEPA=1

Hard Drive: Seagate 200GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model ST3200822AS, OEM Drive Only
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=22-148-033&depa=0

Floppy Drive: NEC 1.44MB Black Internal Floppy Drive, OEM (do i need one, i herd u do for SATA drives)
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=21-152-005&depa=0

Optical drives:
1) NEC 16X Double Layer DVD±RW Drive, Black, Model ND-3500A BK W/SW, OEM with software
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=27-152-029&depa=0
2)Lite-On 16X DVD-ROM, Model SOHD-167T Black, RETAIL
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=27-131-119&depa=0
(will i be able to burn cds onto blank cds, and the same with dvds?)

Video Card: nvidia 6800GT PCI-E (should i get artic silver NV5?)

Sound Card: Do i really need one?

Speakers: not sure, depends on how much money i have left(suggestions are welcome)

Case: Thermaltake VA3000 Dream Tower Black Tsunami VA3000BWA ATX Case with Transparent X type side panel window -RETAIL
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=11-133-132&depa=1

Power Supply: OCZ PowerStream 520W Power Supply With Adjustable Power Rails With LED Indicators, SATA Connector, Model "OCZ520ADJ" -RETAIL
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=17-104-152&depa=0

Printer: no idea, i want one that prints, prints photos nicely, copies, and scans

Monitor: Not too sure yet, i want a 19 inch CRT that can do 1600x1200@85

Keyboard: Logitech Elite Keyboard USB/ PS/2 104keys -RETAIL
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=23-126-114&depa=0

mouse: Logitech Blue Performance Optical Mouse PS2/ USB, Model "MX510" -RETAIL
(do i need a mouse pad?)
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproductdesc.asp?description=26-104-151&DEPA=0

OS: windows xp home

ANTI-VIRUS: no clue

well, i hope i covered all the parts, i didnt tally up the price yet. seems to me,ATM, its over $2000. i will thank everyone that gives me any feedback right now, THANK YOU!

Rough Estimate: $2400, please suggest any downgrades....this "estimate" is no doubt higher then the actuall price....and NO, the video card stays the same.
 
sound card is a must if ur an audiophile or a gamer

agian if ur an audiophile or gamer i suggest a nice pair of cans, sennhiesers are nice

get a monitor with .20 dot pitch if your a gamer. CRT is teh way to go

o yea, also I have 2 X 512 Corsair PC3200C2 ram for sale if you are interested.

http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=833664 <~~~ There
 
ViewSonic P95F+B 19" PerfectFlat CRT Monitor –RETAIL
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=24-116-232&depa=0

i was thinking about this monitor because its optimal setting is 1600x1200 @ 87hz but i was thinking to get a monitor closer to $200 like this one:

SAMSUNG SyncMaster 997DF-T/T 19" DynaFlat CRT Monitor -RETAIL
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproductdesc.asp?description=24-001-166&DEPA=0

and thanks for the offer but my parents dont want me to get any used stuff, expecially if it is from a private seller, sorry

-------the places i feel i can skimp on are the RAM ( i dont want to but will), the $72 optical drive( i just want one that basically does everything), PSU(but not too much, i am eventually gonna run 2 6800 Gt's), and the case (but this is really the only case that i like that i saw with 120mm fans), the thing that bugs me is that the stuff that doesnt directly go with the computer itself(ex: monitor, keyboard, software...) is gonna cost like $500
 
I have flawless feedback, but ok. I also gaurentee my ram will not be DOA and will OC, but ok.
 
I would say get a free virus scanner like AVG or something. Its supposed to be reall good. I use Avast32, by the way has anybody ever even hard of Avast?
 
banned_user said:
I would say get a free virus scanner like AVG or something. Its supposed to be reall good. I use Avast32, by the way has anybody ever even hard of Avast?
Click to expand...


AVG is well known and trusted. Norton is well known and trusted yet I hate the hell outta it.
 
banned_user said:
I would say get a free virus scanner like AVG or something. Its supposed to be reall good. I use Avast32, by the way has anybody ever even hard of Avast?
Click to expand...
I used it for a few months, now i use AVG. They both do their purpose, (although I'm careful and never get viruses). I switched mainly cuz Avast's audible alerts

jk
actually i switched cuz i find AVG to use less resources
 
Crap, don't have time to finish this; work calls.

First off, with the stuff you have listed, you come in well under $2k shipped. I even included speakers (got great reviews), NOD32 antivirus (best damn antivirus software out there) and upgraded you to XP Pro and you still come in under $2k. Now, what this Excel file doesn't included is the price of the mobo (just came out a few days ago), a monitor, or an all-one-printer. As far as a sound card goes, most mobo's have decent on-board audio. Unless you're into home-recording, I suggest you give that a try; if you find it's not to your liking you can always add the sound card later.


http://inat.org/files/CompSpecs.xls
 
Xee, i'm sorry but my computer is gay and old and wont open up the file(says i'm missing something needed to run it, probably deleted it on accedent), one of the many reasons i need a new one, but are u sure u added in the monitor in at least $200, the mobo in at least $200, printer ~100, and video card ~450????

[EDIT] i went on newegg and added all of those things i mentioned, with a $100 sound card, no speakers, windows home xp $90, antivirus $40, monitor $250, printer $100, and a $190 gigabyte mobo to compensate for a SLI mobo........total = $1,954.85 with shipping and handeling($70 is not bad, do i have to pay tax for michigan?(i hear some people say they dont for other places(i'm confused))), this would be great, but i did not include the $450 PCI-E 6800GT, i do not think it will be hard to get the price down to fit the vid card in it because i put everything together really sloppy and can take $50 off here, $20 there, etc... and will do that tomarrow......furthermore, if anyone will suggest a good printer (~$100)that has a memory card reader and a little LCD screen for printing photos, printing regular stuff, copies, and scans, i will really appreciate it, and any downgrades.

sorry for the choppy typing, i tend to do that without noticing it....and i am deeply sorry for the long read but its not that bad.......
 
gamekid said:
Xee, i'm sorry but my computer is gay and old and wont open up the file(says i'm missing something needed to run it, probably deleted it on accedent), one of the many reasons i need a new one, but are u sure u added in the monitor in at least $200, the mobo in at least $200, printer ~100, and video card ~450????
Click to expand...

No, like I said in my post, the final price didn't include the mobo, monitor or printer. Here's the finished setup. And just for your information, Asus's SLI mobo is to be released by Christmas(or so it is rumored) and is supposed to cost anywhere from $260-$325 so figure on around $300 if you want that.

As for a printer, I did the Canon MP360. It scans, copies, and prints and has gotten pretty decent reveiws. If by printing "photos" you mean printing actual pictures you took on a digital camera . . . well, sorry to burst your bubble but no printer like that exists anywhere near $100.

I changed your DVD/CD writer to a Toshiba; it got good reviews and is cheaper. I upgraded you to XP Pro because if you're going to be installing games and the like, you're going to need it. Home is more of a "light" version for casual surfers. I also changed your RAM to Patriots; they are based off the same stuff as the OCZ's and you can expect to overclock them almost as much as the OCZ's in turn.

Still, even with all of this I got it down to $2,300 shipped. Anyone else care to take a crack at it?

CompSpecs.jpg



http://inat.org/files/CompSpecs.xls
 
Getting PCIE is so pointless right now. IRT Xee, the MX510 blue mouse is more expensive than the red for some reason. Just order a red from amazon.
 
Xee, a GeForce 6800GT is not supposed to cost 500$... it was more around 400$ so shave 100$ off the total.
 
NOD32 is the way to go. I used to love Norton for some unknown reason :rolleyes: and then I switched over to NOD32 and have never looked back.
 
Framerate said:
Getting PCIE is so pointless right now. IRT Xee, the MX510 blue mouse is more expensive than the red for some reason. Just order a red from amazon.
Click to expand...

Hmm . . . just noticed that. That's pretty odd. On newegg the red is more expensive by $8 and on amazon the blue is more expensive by $5. Stll, overall the cheapest route would be to get the red from amazon since it comes with a $10 mail-in rebate so you can get it for $22 shipped (free shipping). Pretty good deal.


Xilikon said:
Xee, a GeForce 6800GT is not supposed to cost 500$... it was more around 400$ so shave 100$ off the total.
Click to expand...

Yeah but he said he wasn't willing to budge on the card so I left it with the link to the card he chose (newegg). Me, I'd rather go with a 6800GT OC for $399.
 
yeah but i want a PCI-E card for SLI in the future....but with the board being ~$360, i dont think that is gonna work with my budget.........and i thought $2000 was plenty, boy was i wrong
 
Well by the time that you will need the PCIe mobo, the price will have dropped enough so that you can get a regular AGP mobo and the PCIe mobo later for about the same amount of money as just getting the PCIe mobo now.
 
but then i will have to get a agp card now and later wont be able to use it with the PCI-E mobo
 
6800GT PCI-E is $450 at monarch.

i got the proc, case, mem, win, antivirus, mouse, keyboard, psu, hdd, floppy, optical drives, printer, monitor in at ~$1500, i want to bring this down to ~1300 with a sound card(probably gonna end up adding on at a later date) and speakers

-----downgrades------

PSU- i dont think i need a $140 psu, i just need one that can run 2 6800 GT's and will be good for future overclocking

Processor- i already brought the 3500 down to a 3200

Memory- changed that down to the patriot stuff too

Windows- i have pro on the list but i think i am gonna save $50 and get home

Printer- i put down a hp all-in-one ~$90, all i want is one that can print word documents and be able to scan/copy if necessary

Monitor- is there any monitor that can do 1600x1200@85hz that costs less then 250 (i listed the viewsonic in the $1500

Optical drives/floppy- do u need a floppy? i think i do for SATA but i dont know. i put the NEC 3500a (76) and a lite-on dvd/cd ROM (25). i want to beable to burn cd's and dvd's onto disks from the computer and also be able to burn existing disks onto blank disks (so i need 2)

---------

and for the SLI boards, a few brands should be out before christmass (asus, msi, gigabyte) and i think they will be $300 at the most and then a $450 6800 GT will brings the price to ~2050
 
too expensive, i would love to be able to get it, but cant.....i'm even pushing it with the $250 viewsoonic
 
gamekid said:
yeah but i want a PCI-E card for SLI in the future....but with the board being ~$360, i dont think that is gonna work with my budget.........and i thought $2000 was plenty, boy was i wrong
Click to expand...
SLI boards will be 175ish the asus will be 180
 
i'm really more focused on downgrading to fit budget, i would really like to get a good sound card and 5.1 speakers (~200) but i do not really want to lose performance, and in the future i would like to get better cooling and oc the 3200 to 2.6ghz.

[edit] i am kind of in a rush as that my mom is cooking thanksgiving dinner and invited all my family over ( people that will buy me christmass presents), and i was going to ask for money but i might be able to dish out some better stuff if i tell them the exact part(but who knows, could back-fire)
 
i dont think i waited long enough to bump again but i am really impatient, i need to have everything figured out by tomarrow.

and i read the SLI review on tomshardware and said the asus board needed a 2.0 psu or something like that....i saw some of them on newegg but didnt really know what they were so i stayed clear....guess i have to pick one out.....at least the demand is not up for them yet so i should be in the clear, pricewise

[edit] this blows, im starting a new thread with a catchy title.......being boring and straight to the point never gets u anywhere
 
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