I need help, I'm possibly going to build my own computer.

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mgriff

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I'm looking to build a computer with at least 2.8GHZ Pentium 4 HT or 3200+ AMD 64-Bit and at least 256mb(I'd prefer 512) ram. I've never built a computer before, but I'm very skilled when it comes to putting things together and I don't know how to solder. I also want to be able to play counter strike perfectly on it. If you could give me almost a plan of what kind of parts I should get and what prices they go for, I'm on a $500 or below budget. I have no idea what graphics card or sound card or reliable brands of drives (cd and hard drives). Also does putting a computer together require soldering. Thanks if you can give me any help.

mgriff
 
[quote name='mgriff']I'm looking to build a computer with at least 2.8GHZ Pentium 4 HT or 3200+ AMD 64-Bit and at least 256mb(I'd prefer 512) ram. I've never built a computer before, but I'm very skilled when it comes to putting things together and I don't know how to solder. I also want to be able to play counter strike perfectly on it. If you could give me almost a plan of what kind of parts I should get and what prices they go for, I'm on a $500 or below budget. I have no idea what graphics card or sound card or reliable brands of drives (cd and hard drives). Also does putting a computer together require soldering. Thanks if you can give me any help.

mgriff[/QUOTE]

No soldering required.

You'll need:

Case
Power Supply (may be included with case)
Motherboard
CPU
RAM
Video Card
Sound Card
CD / DVD Drive
Hard Drive
Floppy (optional, though fairly cheap and sometimes useful)

I'm not sure on prices, it's been a while.
 
[quote name='Tromack']Go for more ram above anything else.[/QUOTE]

Agreed. 512 is pretty much the minimum these days, with 1 GB standard.
 
i'm not looking for the best graphics card, just something that will allow me to play most recent games esp. halo, doom 3, half life 2

EDIT - I also have no clue when it comes to motherboards
 
[quote name='mgriff']i'm not looking for the best graphics card, just something that will allow me to play most recent games esp. halo, doom 3, half life 2

EDIT - I also have no clue when it comes to motherboards[/QUOTE]

Doom 3 would run you pretty badly, probably forcing $200 or more for good, smooth frame rates (provide you don't play in like 640 x 480 :lol:).
 
[quote name='mgriff']i'm not looking for the best graphics card, just something that will allow me to play most recent games esp. halo, doom 3, half life 2

EDIT - I also have no clue when it comes to motherboards[/QUOTE]

If you're unsure about USB and cables, the motherboard may give you trouble. Everything is connected to the motherboard (I think) one way or another, and a lot of cables are involved.
 
I would trade for a computer if someone has one for trade and could find enough stuff on my trade list they are interested in.
 
[quote name='mgriff']I would trade for a computer if someone has one for trade and could find enough stuff on my trade list they are interested in.[/QUOTE]

If you're unsure of building the entire thing, you could go to a custom-building website like www.cyberpowerinc.com or www.ibuypower.com. They generally have great prices and can make cheap or powerful systems.
 
If you want something easier then a full-out do it yourself job, monarchcomputer has great bundle setups for the AMD64 line. You can get a mainboard, with a retail processor already installed & ready to go. No need to fuddle around with an aftermarket fan*unless you plan on squeezing more juice out of the cpu), & a nice 3yr warranty on the chip. You even can get a free copy of Farcry, Half-Life 2 & some napster music with that. :)
 
[quote name='Moxio']If you're unsure of building the entire thing, you could go to a custom-building website like www.cyberpowerinc.com or www.ibuypower.com. They generally have great prices and can make cheap or powerful systems.[/QUOTE]

Thanks for the links, Moxio. I'm in the market for a new laptop for college and these links are a fuck of a lot cheaper than Dell.
 
[quote name='Dead of Knight']Thanks for the links, Moxio. I'm in the market for a new laptop for college and these links are a fuck of a lot cheaper than Dell.[/QUOTE]

They also give more value. Nothing beats a custom computer, because there's no big logo to bog it down with an extra $500.
 
[quote name='Moxio']Doom 3 would run you pretty badly, probably forcing $200 or more for good, smooth frame rates (provide you don't play in like 640 x 480 :lol:).[/QUOTE]

PCI-e cards run fairly cheap so if he gets a decent motherboard he would not be out too much (an x700 and a 6600 are only like 125)
 
If you want a good guide, I would recommend the Maximum PC Guide to Building a Dream PC. I found this at my library. See if your library has it. It has plenty of pictures which is good in a guide. It also had a lot of good tips and other guides.

I priced some parts on newegg.com. I got everything you need for a computer, except for the OS and the hard drive, for $650. Hard drives go on sale all the time at CC, BB, OD, OM, and staples. My dad picked up an 80 gig drive for $20 a few weeks ago. If you have a friend in college, they can possibly get you a cheap copy of Windows XP, instead of paying a $100 for the retail copy.

How are these parts:

COOLER MASTER CAC-T05-WWA Black/Silver 350W Power Supply link

ASUS A8V DELUXE Socket 939 VIA K8T800 Pro ATX AMD Motherboard

AMD Athlon 64 3000+ Venice Socket 939 Processor

CORSAIR XMS 512MB (2 x 256MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory Model TWINX512-3200C2 - Retail

ATI RADEON 9800PRO 128M Radeon 9800PRO

NEC Black IDE DVD Burner Model ND-3520A BK - OEM

LITE-ON Black IDE DVD-ROM Drive Model SOHD-16P9SBLK - Retail

SONY Black 1.44MB 3.5" Internal Floppy Drive

I was just aiming to buid a decent machine with these parts. I could add more RAM and get a better video card.
 
[quote name='mgriff']i'm not looking for the best graphics card, just something that will allow me to play most recent games esp. halo, doom 3, half life 2
[/QUOTE]

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Your ignorance amuses me greatly!

Building a computer isn't hard at all. If you don't think you can make one, pay someone to do it for you.

A $500 computer would play Doom 3 like an NES would play a PS2 game. For a decent computer, you're looking at about 1000. If you can't afford it, don't buy a cheap ass PC now and then upgrade it later. It'll cost you more in the long run. Save up your money and get a good computer that'll last you a few years instead of scrounging up what you have now to make a PC thats already outdated.
 
I just built 2 systems at Dell and CyberPower that have exactly the same crap in it, except the CP has a Pentium 4 3Ghz Processor and the Dell has a Pentium M 2Ghz Processor. The CP one is $3093 + a 5% instant rebate making it $2938.35, while the Dell one is $3984 + a $500 mail-in rebate making it $3484. Holy crap. Pretty much the exact $500 difference you described, Moxio.
 
[quote name='erehwon']If you want a good guide, I would recommend the Maximum PC Guide to Building a Dream PC. I found this at my library. See if your library has it. It has plenty of pictures which is good in a guide. It also had a lot of good tips and other guides.

I priced some parts on newegg.com. I got everything you need for a computer, except for the OS and the hard drive, for $650. Hard drives go on sale all the time at CC, BB, OD, OM, and staples. My dad picked up an 80 gig drive for $20 a few weeks ago. If you have a friend in college, they can possibly get you a cheap copy of Windows XP, instead of paying a $100 for the retail copy.

How are these parts:

COOLER MASTER CAC-T05-WWA Black/Silver 350W Power Supply link

ASUS A8V DELUXE Socket 939 VIA K8T800 Pro ATX AMD Motherboard

AMD Athlon 64 3000+ Venice Socket 939 Processor

CORSAIR XMS 512MB (2 x 256MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory Model TWINX512-3200C2 - Retail

ATI RADEON 9800PRO 128M Radeon 9800PRO

NEC Black IDE DVD Burner Model ND-3520A BK - OEM

LITE-ON Black IDE DVD-ROM Drive Model SOHD-16P9SBLK - Retail

SONY Black 1.44MB 3.5" Internal Floppy Drive

I was just aiming to buid a decent machine with these parts. I could add more RAM and get a better video card.[/QUOTE]

This is a good system and I agree with most of the choices. The only things I would change is replacing the Corsair XMS 2x256 with a single Corsair XMS 512 since they're the same price anyway and get the asus radeon 256mb 9800pro since it can be overclocked to a smoother running 9800xt (the highest end 9800 series)
 
[quote name='jaykrue']This is a good system and I agree with most of the choices. The only things I would change is replacing the Corsair XMS 2x256 with a single Corsair XMS 512 since they're the same price anyway and get the asus radeon 256mb 9800pro since it can be overclocked to a smoother running 9800xt (the highest end 9800 series)[/QUOTE]

Two sticks is a faster config as you can access two at once.
 
[quote name='jaykrue']This is a good system and I agree with most of the choices. The only things I would change is replacing the Corsair XMS 2x256 with a single Corsair XMS 512 since they're the same price anyway and get the asus radeon 256mb 9800pro since it can be overclocked to a smoother running 9800xt (the highest end 9800 series)[/QUOTE]

I was thinking it was a pretty good system. This could be a good system for the OP, but it is also the one I'm thinking of making with some other choices. I would try to get a gig or RAM for myself. I already have a 9800 Pro, so I'm going to use that for a while. I would also get a better case and power supply.

I like these cases.
http://tinyurl.com/8enda
http://tinyurl.com/d2th7
http://tinyurl.com/8nrax
 
[quote name='Kayden']Two sticks is a faster config as you can access two at once.[/QUOTE]

True, but if he's thinking about future upgrades, he might still consider the 512 since all he'd have to buy is another 512 stick instead of leaving his 256s to languish inside the 'computer spare parts' drawer.
 
You will need more then $500 for that system, although $650 might do the trick.

Recently built a new computer to play Battlefield 2 primarily, and I went with the P4 Prescott line (3.2ghz) whoa this thing runs hot. They arent kidding at all when they say that lol. My ULTRA FIRE fan is massive on top of it, then throw in case fans & etc and quite loud.

Here is my config that I went up to:

Used my old modded ATX Case:
- ASUS P5GD2 Premium - $200
- Pentium 4 (3.2ghz) - $220
- 1GB of DDR2 RAM - $100
- Geforce 6600 GT - $190 (PCI-E)
- 400 Watt PSU - $25

Total: $735

I would suggest reusing stuff such as your Case, Power Supply if possible (Although nothing below 350 will run a 775 Chipset well), CD-Rom/DVD-Rom.

You can cut costs by just using Onboard Audio. In my case the on board audio sounds great, and I am sure you dont need a top of the line Mobo to do that.

I am not too familiar with the AMD prices, but they may run a bit below the following config:

ASUS Mobo - $120
P4 2.8ghz/HT - $160
512MB DDR Ram - $50
ATX Case w/PSU - $40
Geforce 6600 or Similar Radeon Card - $130
80GB HD - $40 Max.

Total: $540, and that system should be able to run all of the games you mentioned well, not great, but well.
 
[quote name='mgriff']I'm looking to build a computer with at least 2.8GHZ Pentium 4 HT or 3200+ AMD 64-Bit and at least 256mb(I'd prefer 512) ram. I've never built a computer before, but I'm very skilled when it comes to putting things together and I don't know how to solder. I also want to be able to play counter strike perfectly on it. If you could give me almost a plan of what kind of parts I should get and what prices they go for, I'm on a $500 or below budget. I have no idea what graphics card or sound card or reliable brands of drives (cd and hard drives). Also does putting a computer together require soldering. Thanks if you can give me any help.

mgriff[/QUOTE]


First check around places like Newegg (rocks) and even Tigerdirect (people either love or hate I have had great luck) for the best pricing.

Personally I would check out www.pcmech.com a sweet community of helpful people that have helped me out in the past.

$3000 is way to much for a pc unless you have money just waiting to be blown. In a year or two it will be had for less than $800. Building your own has many bonuses.

Good luck
 
If you don't feel like building your own, you can get some reasonably priced custom builds on ebay. I got one about two years ago for under $300 shipped, and while it might be a little slow today it has held its value well and was pretty solid for the time. It has:
AMD Athlon XP 2400+ CPU
ASRock K7VM2 mobo
80gb Seagate hard drive
52x cd burner (I have since added an additional NEC-3500 dvd burner)
Cogent case with 350 Watt power supply
512 MB RAM (its only PC133 though, you can do a lot better for the money today)
two intake fans (I have also added an Arctic Cooling exhaust fan)

The downside to it is that I only have onboard video, which gives me a measly 32 MB of RAM to use for video. The RAM is also pretty slow by today's standards, even though it is plenty to handle everything I do since I rarely play games on here and only do light graphics work in addition to everyday computer functions like surfing the internet. I also had to buy a monitor, but I got a good 17" Sony CRT from a local store. (LCD monitors were insanely expensive then, they're much more affordable now)

I am amazed that I somehow have spent hardly anything on upgrades for this. I got a dvd burner and sound card for Christmas, I bought a Logitech Elite Keyboard for this from ebgames with a deal I saw here where I got a gift voucher for the full price of the keyboard, and I bought a Logitech MX510 optical mouse with a small portion of a gift card to Amazon.com I got from one of those free sites.

I hope to build myself something new within the next year. I think it is entirely possible to get a really good PC for under $500, but you may have to get a cheaper video card that may not be able to run Doom 3 very well. You can get:
Athlon 64 3000+ (~150)
mobo that supports it (~80 though this can vary greatly depending on what you want)
200 GB or larger hard drive (can be had for $50 or less if you're willing to wait around for great deals)
1 GB RAM (~80)
DVD burner (~40)
Floppy drive (optional, its easier to just use a flash memory thing in a USB port which you will already have) (~10)
decent but not great video card (~70)

Let's say you spent $70 on the hard drive, which could probably get you 160 GB. This system would cost about $500. With a monitor that may be over your price range, and if so look for places you can scale back to save some money. You could always get a cheaper hard drive, which could save you $20 to $40, although you may want the extra space later. You could go with 512 MB RAM and save another $40. You could get an older processor, like an XP 2800+ and save another $50. I wouldn't recommend this though since 64 bits seem like they will become commonplace soon. I also wouldn't recommend omitting the DVD burner because you wouldn't save much just going down to a simple CD burner or DVD ROM drive.
 
[quote name='erehwon']If you want a good guide, I would recommend the Maximum PC Guide to Building a Dream PC. I found this at my library. See if your library has it. It has plenty of pictures which is good in a guide. It also had a lot of good tips and other guides.

I priced some parts on newegg.com. I got everything you need for a computer, except for the OS and the hard drive, for $650. Hard drives go on sale all the time at CC, BB, OD, OM, and staples. My dad picked up an 80 gig drive for $20 a few weeks ago. If you have a friend in college, they can possibly get you a cheap copy of Windows XP, instead of paying a $100 for the retail copy.

How are these parts:

COOLER MASTER CAC-T05-WWA Black/Silver 350W Power Supply link

ASUS A8V DELUXE Socket 939 VIA K8T800 Pro ATX AMD Motherboard

AMD Athlon 64 3000+ Venice Socket 939 Processor

CORSAIR XMS 512MB (2 x 256MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory Model TWINX512-3200C2 - Retail

ATI RADEON 9800PRO 128M Radeon 9800PRO

NEC Black IDE DVD Burner Model ND-3520A BK - OEM

LITE-ON Black IDE DVD-ROM Drive Model SOHD-16P9SBLK - Retail

SONY Black 1.44MB 3.5" Internal Floppy Drive

I was just aiming to buid a decent machine with these parts. I could add more RAM and get a better video card.[/QUOTE]

I'd have to say this is perfect for what you would want. And you can even cut back on things like the floppy drive or the DVD Burner. The floppy drive could be needed if your in school and a teacher requires assignments turned in on floppies. The DVD Burner really isn't needed either unless you really plan on burning movies. Just get a combo CD-R/DVD drive. That way you can burn CD's and still play DVD's.

And for the ram you could go with the Corsair Value Select ram instead of XMS. It is cheaper and will not overclock as easily, but I'd say for the amount you save it is more than worth it. So if you don't plan to overclock your computer at all then go with the Value Select. And if you don't know what overclocking is, then definitely just go with the Value Select.

Also, I'd highly recommend building your own computer. I knew just about NOTHING about computers when I built mine (i knew how to use them and that was about it) and it was probably the most fun I've had in a while and was very useful in helping me learn. If you get a good guide like the maximum pc one someone else linked to it is a breeze.
 
Stay the hell away from cyberpowerinc, and both custom sites for laptops. Nothing but bad things from cyberpower, though myself and ma few others have used ibuypower for desktops and have been completely satisfied.


Also--don't build it yourself. Seems like you have no idea what the hell you're doing. It's not worth it with ibuypower around---i've gone both routes.
 
I just built a new PC for about $400. It's certainly not the best - I used all older parts to keep it cheap, since I just bought a new mac less than 4 months ago. That said, for $400 I got:
Transparent ATX case with 3 case fans
Chaintech Socket A motherboard for AMD Sempron/Athlon XP
AMD Athlon XP 2900+ w/ heat sink and CPU fan
1.5 GB RAM (1 GB Corsair + 512MB PNY)
Rosewill 400W Power supply
Radeon 9800SE

I managed to salvage hard drives and optical drives from my old PC, along with a PCI wireless card and TV tuner that were both only a few months old. Adding in the cost of these drives and cards, it'd probably only have cost $550-600 to build this system from scratch.

Building a PC on your own is a lot easier than you'd think. Just make a list of everything you'll need and read the manual that comes with the motherboard.
 
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