yet another "build a computer for $xxx thread"

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scottatwittenberg

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ok.. i have a friend who wants to build a computer $600 give or take.. he has a monitor, keyboard and mouse.. external dvd burner even.. right now he plays wow a lot.. he has been using a laptop for quite some time to do this.. and finally got a smaller laptop and wants to sell the bigger one..

he won't be overclocking.. and will be building this without my assistance, i am just picking out the parts for him.. so it can't be too tricky to build and configure.. i would think to shy away from a dfi motherboard for this reason.. as far as taht list is concerned.. he would probably be ok with the cheapest of everything i listed.. but i put other things in too... mainly, i think i just need a good video card reccomendation.. and some power supplies.. maybe i will tell him to get a sonata...

so.. i know what to reccomend.. but not quite... right now it seems like probably the following: i am rounding off prices btw..

cpu:
3000+ venice ($117 ewiz.com) + $30 hsf.. or
3200+ venice ($190 retail)

mobo:
chaintech vnf4 ($80) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813152053
msi k8n neo4-f ($85)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813130491
dfi DAFG ($100) what is the deal with this? new to me..
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813136160
msi k8n neo plat ($130)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813130484
dfi lanparty UT ($130)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813136152

memory:
twinmos sp ($100/gig) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820218405
there are also some gskill and mushkin 2-3-3 pairs for $100..

hard drive:
samsung 160 gb 8mb cache ($80)
what is the difference between a maxtor dm10, and maxline III ?? both 16mb cache etc..

case:
i will probably tell him to go to compusa and get an antec on sale.. and replace the psu

psu:
i am kinda lost now.. cause i don't know what has 24 pin, and what doesn't..

video card:
lost again.. a new generation of cards just came out.. and i don't care about vid cards.. he does though.. he will game.. probably whatever is $200..
 
Why would you be picking parts for him if he is the one building?
Should this be his job? Why pick parts for him if you can't enjoy the fruits of
your labor (Building)?
 
CPU:
I would go with the 3200+ since it is faster at stock and he is not overclocking.

Motherboard
The only two out of those I would really consider would be the CHAINTECH VNF4 and MSI K8N Neo4-F. The Chaintech is recommended in Anandtechs builders guides and it is cheap so it looks good. The MSI I have not read any reviews on it, ubt it looks like a very good board providing a bit more feutures. I would read reviews first, but my pick would be the MSI.

Memory
Just get the cheapest value memory you can find from a good manufacturer. Low latency RAm will amek no noticable difference in real-world performance and I would spend money on more RAM. Maybe 2GB.

HDD
The Samsung is a good drive and is incredibly quiet. The difference between the two Maxtor drives you mentioned is the Maxline has a 5 yr warranty. They are exactly the same drive though. Performance will be the same. They are also the best performing 7200 RPM drives currently.

Case & PSU
An Antec case with a quality 350w PSU would be more then enough for this rig. Especially since he is not overclocking and it will keep costs down.

Video Card
A 6800 would probably be your best bet. You could also get a X800Xl for $250 that would perform very similair to a 6800GT.
 
Alex A. said:
Why would you be picking parts for him if he is the one building?
Should this be his job? Why pick parts for him if you can't enjoy the fruits of
your labor (Building)?
Click to expand...
i am picking the parts becuase he doesn't know what to pick.. if it were up to just him, he would probably go to best try or circuit shitty and just buy what they tell him to... he has installed vid cards and hard drives and shit in the past.. and i know he can put together a computer by himself.. it just depends how much help he will need from me on the phone.. i would probably want to avoid things like a dfi bios for him though since he is a first time builder.. however, i have never used a dfi board before.. i personally would dive right into one, but i am not going to reccomend one for him though.. i would have reccomended an abit or asus, except since the a64 came out, they aren't really considered as that good anymore.. i am not sure why..

my next question would be, how does the twinmos sp run at slightly above stock? can you get 2-3-3 or so at 2.9?? i wouldn't go telling someone to crank the crap out of their vdimm on a first build.. but i would tell them to take it up a hare or 3... i could just tell him to get some $80 a gig shit.. probably corsair value, but.. i know the twinmos has some potential.. and maybe he will feel comfortable enough to start tweaking that kind of stuff since he will still have a backup computer... is there any reason not to go for the chaintech vnf-4 board? is the neo-f any better?

i guess that's all for now.. do the old sonatas come with a 24 pin psu? how about the new one?
 
The DFI is a mini-ATX board designed for use in SFF pcs and such.

Personally I would recommend the Chaintech because the MSI has known performance issues with 90nm processors - supposedly fixed in a BIOS update but I wouldn't chance it.

So then my recommendation would be -

Venice 3000+ (Retail, still overclockable to 2400Mhz+) $140
Chaintech VNF4 (non-Ultra is all you need, only missing 2nd SATA controller) $80
OCZ or TwinMOS Value PC3200 512MB x 2 $85 (value ram that's overclockable!)
Seagate 7200.7 160GB SATA (can't beat a 5 year warranty) $75
Leadtek Winfast 6600 GT PCIe $160
Antec SLK3800B (solid case, comes with the new ATX2.0 400w PSU) $100

Total: $640
 
Why in the past 3 weeks have I heard a few people fear the DFI bios?
Frankly, i would be more worried about him trying to install the heast sink on the processor.

I'm sorry, but it just seems like your getting your friend into something that may be way over his head, especially if he does'nt even have a general understanding of compadible hardware and would trust the local bestbuy person.

Oh well, only time will tell I guess.

Also, at first you said he would not be overclocking, but then you say he might fiddle with the memory since he has a backup computer............................................

Also, for that build (assuming you get a motherboard with PCI express x16), i would recommend a Nvidia 6600GT, 6800, x600 series, or x800. The 6800gt seems a tad bit pricey for that build.

As for ram, this should do just nicely http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145440
Corsair VS 2x512mb DDR400 for 80$us, great memory for the price and it comes with a lifetime warranty ^_^.

The case is totally up to personal prefrence (if he had the extra money, i would spring for the lian li PC60, but that's me).

HDD, anything cheap. In the local compusa adds, they have a 160gb seagate 7200rpm ATA drive for 40$us after MIR's.

~Hope this helps, and keep us posted
 
he is the one that told me that he wants to build a computer.. and thinks he can handle it.. but he just doensn't know what specific hardware to get for it.. and of course i am never going to discourage soemone from trying to build a computer.. i really have no idea how much he knows about computers.. he does know how to reformat one and reinstall windows.. cause he did that a few days ago.. and not using a backup cd... but at the same time he saves everything to the desktop.. haha.. which i freakin hate...

should the stock antec psu be trusted in that case that stellar listed? i was basically told to stay away from them unless they are a true power..

i will look at 6600 GT cards since i got a few reccomendations on those... i am just looking for the best performance per $$..

i reccomended the samsung drive, cause i have 2.. they are quiet and run much cooler than my maxtor.. however.. if seagates can be had for under 50cents a gig.. then they are definitely worth looking into.. he needs one to get started.. and then can go buy more drives if he feels like fucking aroudn with mail in rebates.. i personally won't but someting that has one anymore, because i hate them and have been burned a few times..
 
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