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New User and SFF Build

M

Miami_Fly_Guy

Gawd
Joined
Dec 20, 2005
Messages
523
Hello all, newly registered to this forum and it's also my birthday...im 20 :D To start things off, I had a computer that I used for schoolwork and gaming. 2400xp 512ddr of junky ram 120gig hd and a normal nvidia5900 on an MSI mobo. It seemed to do fine, and I was considering an upgrade due to 64bit and pci express cards being out for awhile now. My current situation is that someone stole my ram as well as my video card :mad: I figured that instead of getting the aging system running again, I could use the money I'll be getting this holiday season to start a new SFF build. I should have around 350-450 dollars, possibly more which I'd like to spend only a qpack, a motherboard and processor. The rest of the computer will be bought when additional funds arrive in the somewhat near future. With the new technology, I dont think I'll be able to use whats left of my old computer. What I would like is something that I can get up and running somewhat soon, yet be able to upgrade as the opportunity presents itself. I believe that after I get the case, mobo and processor, I'll only need ram, hd and OS to get her up and going. I'm not trying to get a bleeding edge system here, just something decent to play some of the newer games on nice settings. The most taxing games I forsee myself playing right now would be bf2, flight sim 2004 and need for speed most wanted.

What I'm looking for are your recommendations on....

qpack compatible motherboard which must have-decent integrated video but pci express slot for future card-nice features like sata-dual channel ability-not too worried about overclocking ability but would also like room to grow
64bit processor
1 gig (512x2) dual channel ram
nice sata harddrive-doesn't have to be massive
optical drive(s) must watch dvd's but if it is cheap enough wouldnt mind a dvd burner...also must be able to burn cd's-dont mind 2 drives
pci express video card need not be top of the line but run said games smooth
any other things I might need that I left out

Can't think of anything else but if you need more info don't hesitate to ask. Your help is really appreciated, im excited to be a member and get this show on the road! Of course, pix when finished...may be awhile lol
 
I'd recommend...

Mobo: Biostar TForce
CPU: AMD 64 3200+
RAM: Geil 1gb (521mb x2) DDR400
HDD:
DVD:
GFX: GeForce 6800 GT

You can't go wrong with the Biostar, even if you don't want to OC! You can fudge the with the CPU, go a little lower and get a 3000+ or go higher and get a 3500 or 4000+. Geil's ram is a great buy, value-wise. I don't know how well they overclock, but they've served me well at stock settings for about two years now. I'm bad a recommending HDD and DVD drives. You can go one lower on the 6800 GT and get a 6600 GT, or you can go up and get a 6800 Ultra or 7800 GT. I doubt you'll need that kind of power for Flight Sim '04 though...
 
Hm, thanks very much for the reply. Any additional responses will be appreciated. I'm at 170 on newegg for this case and motherboard combination. At worst, it leaves 180 for a processor up to 280. On Newegg, this leaves me with a range of processor options. Of course, I'd love to get the most bang for my buck since it would be great if I could pick up a gig of dual channel memory with the leftover money. Other than the numbers, I cannot really tell the difference in the 64bit processors because they all seem to have the same L1 cache. As far as the L2, the only difference is from 512kb to 1meg and that is only on the 2 Opterons and the 3700. Which processor would be the best for my buck and whats the deal with the different cores and the Opteron? Also, any additional ideas on nice ram choices?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...2E16819103535,N82E16819103602&SubCategory=343
 
with an a64, the ram doesn't matter as much. as for the processor you get, make sure its either a venice core or san diego core. also, you're gonna want a new power supply with the qpack, as the one that they give with the case is pathetically inadequate.
 
true about the PSU, except that until he puts something into a slot, it should be adequite, but when he puts in a video card, psu upgrade should be concurrent
 
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