Building a PC

fran441 · February 14, 2004 12:47PM

Ok, I figured out a lot about the Athlon 64s, and the question is, how much would I be limiting my ability to upgrade the PC if I got a K8V motherboard? I understand that it is for Socket 754 Athlon 64s, so if I got a 3200+, is that about as high as I'm ever going to take it?

If that is the case, should I start looking at Pentium 4s again just to keep my upgrade options open?

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Also, I found a case that I like which comes with 2 fans and a 350 watt power supply. I plan on putting in a cheap internal CDRW and DVD drive, a hard drive, and a Radeon video card (not sure which model yet). Will I need a bigger power supply? I'd rather know now then getting things set up only to have it crap out on me.

fran441 · February 14, 2004 5:57PM

Ok, this is what I have narrowed things down to:

Aspire X Case w/350 watt power supply and 2 fans

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...ion=11-144-023

Aspire Keyboard/Mouse

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...ion=23-165-003

Lite-On CD-RW (52x32x52x)

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...ion=27-106-197

Lite-On DVD-ROM (16x)

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...ion=27-131-603

Fans (5)

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...ion=11-999-051

Western Digital 120 GB HD

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...ion=22-144-118

Asus K8T800 Chipset Motherboard for AMD Socket 754 CPU, Model K8V Deluxe

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...ion=13-131-473

AMD Athlon 64 (model to be determined)

ATi Radeon 9XXX (model to be determined)

RAM: I NEED HELP! TOO MANY CHOICES. There are so many types of PC 3200/DDR400 that I don't know what to look for. Any suggestions at all would be a BLESSING.

Monitor: To be determined, suggestions also appreciated.

So, this is what I've put together so far. What else am I going to need? I'm going retail for the processor, so it will come with a heatsink and fan, and I'm not planning on overclocking. I'm hoping I can figure out these fans and keeping the system cool, and I'm also hoping that a 350 watt power supply is going to cut it. The last thing I want is a dead system on my hands because it's using too much juice or wasn't cooled properly.

Any suggestions, comments? I'm dead set now on this motherboard and processor (Athlon 64), so what do you think?

eugene · February 14, 2004 7:08PM

I still think if you want an Athlon 64, you're just going to be sticking yourself with 1st generation hardware with first generation hiccups, but since you've already made up your mind, eh...\\/\\/.

scavanger · February 14, 2004 7:20PM

The socket for the Athlon 64 will be changing so I'd wait if I were you if you can.

I'd also get about a 400 to 550 watt PSU... Antec, and Enermax is good. It'll save you upgrading in the end.

res · February 14, 2004 11:36PM

It looks like you are building a real kick-ass system. The only thing I would change would be the power supply. I would go with something a bit more powerful, like an Antec True 430 or True 480

screed · February 15, 2004 1:52AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Fran441

RAM: I NEED HELP! TOO MANY CHOICES. There are so many types of PC 3200/DDR400 that I don't know what to look for. Any suggestions at all would be a BLESSING.

Well I see Corsair mentioned a lot in gamerz/overclockers' circles. However, Crucial has never failed me and you can search by motherboard maker and model.

Screed

eugene · February 15, 2004 3:51AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Res

It looks like you are building a real kick-ass system. The only thing I would change would be the power supply. I would go with something a bit more powerful, like an Antec True 430 or True 480

Fran, Res is giving you a good tip (one I gave on page 1

). If you choose a cheap power supply, you'll regret it sooner than later. Components *will* fry. Also, don't just get a cheap 550W monster. More often than not, you'll be able to do more with a decent 430-450W PSU from Antec, PC Power & Cooling, Sparkle, or Enermax than a much higher rated one from some no-name company.

That's why I suggested Antec cases in general. The deal is in the bundled PSU. It's usually cheaper than buying another brand's case, ripping out the utterly worthless bundled PSU, and getting an Antec PSU anyway.

For a plain DVD-ROM drive, just go with a Pioneer 16x model for a little extra. I've found them to be compatible with more generic DVD-R media than Lite-On.

And RAM... go Corsair XMS Series. It'll be cheaper (and better) than Crucial in all likelihood. If you're wondering why they have a PC3200 and P3700 stick of RAM for the same price, look at the latencies. They're probably exactly the same, but one with much more aggressive latencies on the PC3200 set by the SPD. Of course, you're going to have to install the RAM in pairs too.

5 32 CFM fans is overkill, even for the average overclocker...especially if they're as expensive as the Coolermasters you've listed. It seems like Panaflos are selling for $7+ each now, so I don't think they're a very good deal anymore. I bought a ton for $2 each last year. If I were to get a fan, I'd just get the Zalman ZM-F1 80 mm fan. It comes with a "quiet mode" adapter (basically a resistor) to slow the fan down. If you're going to have 5 fans anyway, just leave the resistors on all of them. You'll be pushing 100 CFM of air around, which is still plenty.

Most mobos only have three 3-pin fan connectors...one for the heatsink/fan combo and two auxiliary. Some PSUs like the Antecs like to connect to one of these for RPM monitoring. You're foing to need some 4-pin Molex to 3 pin adapters for your fans.

fran441 · February 15, 2004 7:05AM

Ok, about the fans. It was the same price to buy 5 as it was to buy 4, and I wasn't sure how the fans in the case were going to cut it, so I was buying extra to be on the safe side.

I'm going to reinvestigate the power supply situation. I definitely don't want to be stuck with a computer that won't boot because the power supply is shot.

I've seen all the different types of Corsair XMS, but the questions I have are:

Why are there so many types, and what's the difference? I know I don't need ECC RAM, at least, I *think* I don't need it....

scavanger · February 15, 2004 10:41AM

Cosair and Crucial RAM are, I would say the best. The more expensive the sticks, the better they can be clocked to sync when you o/c your system. If you aren't gonna overclock, just get crucial, get a pair of 1gig sticks.

fran441 · February 15, 2004 10:48AM

Ok, thanks for the help.

eugene · February 15, 2004 1:53PM

A stick of CAS-3 PC3200 is probably equivalent to a stick of CAS-2 PC2700, so that's one explanation of the price difference. There are so many different kinds of Corsair RAM because they all have slightly different timings, and they're willing to offer them to you. The latencies are controlled by a chip called an SPD, but most BIOSes can override the values.

I'm currently running a stick of CAS 2 PC2700 at CAS-3 PC3200.

ghost_user_name · February 15, 2004 2:10PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Eugene

--snip--

I'm currently running a stick of CAS 2 PC2700 at CAS-3 PC3200.

And I am running a stick of CAS 3 DDR 400 (PC3200) at CAS 2.5 DDR 333... (my mobo only supports DDR 333)

eugene · February 15, 2004 2:33PM

Quote:

Originally posted by \\/\\/ickes

And I am running a stick of CAS 3 DDR 400 (PC3200) at CAS 2.5 DDR 333... (my mobo only supports DDR 333)

You bring balance to the force.

Building a PC

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