Cheap Upgrade Needed

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runt

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ok, my monitor has been having problems turning on and i am starting to have graphical glitches. i have decided that it is time to build a new computer as cheap as possible (instead of my "dream" system i posted before). i need a new mobo, proc, ram, and video card. my current choices are below, please give me suggestions on stuff to change (and remember i need this to be as cheap as possible). i also know i could go cheaper on the proc (not much though) and the video card, but i have heard many good things about asus video cards, but i sadly do not know enough about athlon 64 procs to know if i should drop to the 3200+ or the 3000+ instead of the 3500+. i need your help with the proc guys.......

hASUS A8N-E Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
ASUS EAX800XL/2DTV/256 Radeon X800XL 256MB DDR PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail
THERMALTAKE TR2 W0070 ATX 430W Power Supply - Retail
AMD AMD AMD Athlon 64 3500+ Venice 1GHz FSB Socket 939 Processor Model ADA3500BPBOX - Retail
 
looks good expect I would change the ps to maybe an enermax or something, those thermaltakes I hear are not so good. the 3200+ venice cpu is probably just fine if you are really trying to pinch pennies, plus you could always oc. You did not list ram either, crucial value is good stuff.
 
I have the same mobo, one thing i would caution is becareful on the drivers, 6.66 worked great for me but the previous ones would some how conflict with xp and it kept BSODing when i would get on the internet, also i have read that the fan goes out pretty quick but i put the thermal right NB heat sink on it so i wouldnt know, if it does go out you can get a new one free from asus, but word of caution, if you get the zalman heat sink for the video card there is about 1 or 2mm between it and my thermal right HSF. i have that video card but not the same brand i have sapphire one with the zalman cooler, its really quite, its pretty good, but i dont really have any games right now except kotor II which looks awesome, i was waiting for a game that was suposed to come out in sept. but got delayed to jan :( .
 
munkle said:
I have the same mobo, one thing i would caution is becareful on the drivers, 6.66 worked great for me but the previous ones would some how conflict with xp and it kept BSODing when i would get on the internet, also i have read that the fan goes out pretty quick but i put the thermal right NB heat sink on it so i wouldnt know, if it does go out you can get a new one free from asus, but word of caution, if you get the zalman heat sink for the video card there is about 1 or 2mm between it and my thermal right HSF. i have that video card but not the same brand i have sapphire one with the zalman cooler, its really quite, its pretty good, but i dont really have any games right now except kotor II which looks awesome, i was waiting for a game that was suposed to come out in sept. but got delayed to jan :( .
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if it uses the same brackets, i would pull the thermal right nb cooler off my nforce 2 mobo (abit nf7-s rev 2) and put it on there since i am planning to shoot this mobo (good except my video cards keep dying on me no matter what psu i use). i also had to add a cheap pci firewire card to my list since i use firewire for my ipod and would like to keep doing that.
 
I will run my comp for a while tomorrow and post some temps for you, so you will know around how cool the board will run with that NB cooler and an xp90 cooler.

I'd say go with which ever processor you can afford.

I agree about crucial ram, im running 2 512mb vaule sticks it works great :D, your ram will work great to as its free from your old comp :p .

I also agree about the psu, might i suggest this ONE , it is more expensive than the TT but cheaper than the enermax you picked, its roughly the same as the enermax, or if you would like one a little cheaper this ONE will do you well its still much better than the TT. Im running an antec 550w really nice havent had any problems with it, its really quite too.

As for sound quality on this board i really couldnt tell you how good it is, im running off digital output to an external decoder, much better quality of sound than any kind of integrated sound :) .
 
after 4 hours of prime 95, my 3700+ is at 36 C or 96 F, and the NB is at 30 C or 86 F
 
You can go $30 cheaper on the mobo while staying with good manufacs. DFI nf4-DAGF $89:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813136160

I bought this myself, it is working well so far.

Don't get a thermaltake PSU, they seem cheap, but that's because they suck. The voltages won't stay where they should well at all, and that can fry your other components. An Antec or Enermax should be fine.

Go to ewiz.com and get a 3000+ Venice (E6 rev too, the new one. Number ends in BW. Better OCs in general) for $120. Will save you a LOT over the 3500+.

You'll need a heatsink though. I got Arctic Silver Ceramique and a thermalright heatsink from svc.com for $13 shipped ($8 w/o shipping). The heatsink comes with thermal paste though.

http://www.monarchcomputer.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=M&Product_Code=190527
x800xl for $268 free shipping (compared to your $281 with shipping included from newegg).
Monarch is very reputable.
 
Russ said:
You can go $30 cheaper on the mobo while staying with good manufacs. DFI nf4-DAGF $89:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813136160

I bought this myself, it is working well so far.

Don't get a thermaltake PSU, they seem cheap, but that's because they suck. The voltages won't stay where they should well at all, and that can fry your other components. An Antec or Enermax should be fine.

Go to ewiz.com and get a 3000+ Venice (E6 rev too, the new one. Number ends in BW. Better OCs in general) for $120. Will save you a LOT over the 3500+.

You'll need a heatsink though. I got Arctic Silver Ceramique and a thermalright heatsink from svc.com for $13 shipped ($8 w/o shipping). The heatsink comes with thermal paste though.

http://www.monarchcomputer.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=M&Product_Code=190527
x800xl for $268 free shipping (compared to your $281 with shipping included from newegg).
Monarch is very reputable.
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what is the difference between the standard nforce4 and the nforce4 ultra again? i cannot remember right now.........
 
definitely get a different power supply. i recommend antec, enermax, or OCZ. the antec smartpower is what i have and it was only 63 bucks...stay away from ultras for the love of god...im warning everyone about them now!
 
takimbe said:
definitely get a different power supply. i recommend antec, enermax, or OCZ. the antec smartpower is what i have and it was only 63 bucks...stay away from ultras for the love of god...im warning everyone about them now!
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i have an antec truepower ii 430 in my wish list now.
 
runt said:
what is the difference between the standard nforce4 and the nforce4 ultra again? i cannot remember right now.........
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almost nothing i'd guess.

Non-dual gigabit lan? lol
 
Found that on the net.


"Each of the chipsets in the nForce 4 series share a similar set of features - common to all is support for PCI Express x16 graphics card as well as support for PCI Express x1 peripherals, four Serial ATA ports, Gigabit Ethernet integrated and AC\97 8 Channel audio. The main differences between the three are as follows, the nForce 4 is the only chipset that officially supports the Socket 754 AMD CPU’s and only has Serial ATA 1 standard. The nForce 4 Ultra supports the Socket 939 CPU’s and adds Serial ATA-II standards. The nForce 4 SLI adds in nVidia’s Scalable Link Interface for Dual Graphics cards by allowing the PCI-E x16 slot to be split into two PCI-E x8 slots."
 
and we all know that SATA II doesn't matter a lick, so basically no difference for the average user.
 
munkle said:
Found that on the net.


"Each of the chipsets in the nForce 4 series share a similar set of features - common to all is support for PCI Express x16 graphics card as well as support for PCI Express x1 peripherals, four Serial ATA ports, Gigabit Ethernet integrated and AC\97 8 Channel audio. The main differences between the three are as follows, the nForce 4 is the only chipset that officially supports the Socket 754 AMD CPU’s and only has Serial ATA 1 standard. The nForce 4 Ultra supports the Socket 939 CPU’s and adds Serial ATA-II standards. The nForce 4 SLI adds in nVidia’s Scalable Link Interface for Dual Graphics cards by allowing the PCI-E x16 slot to be split into two PCI-E x8 slots."
Click to expand...

ok, so i might as well get a nforce 4 board and not a nforce 4 ultra board (and save myself some money).
 
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