Ready to buy a new PC RIGHT NOW... but is my build up to par?

Sk8erlink7

Sk8erlink7

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A few months back, I posted my PC build that I was thinking about buying. I didn't have the money then, but I have the money now, and I'm ready to finally pull the trigger. The only thing is, I don't know if, in these past months, some of the things in my build aren't quite up to par or should be bumped up a notch higher due to better hardware becoming cheaper. My rig will be used primarily for gaming, so I want something that can handle pretty much anything that can be thrown at it. Anyway, here's my build:


Link to my Newegg wishlist
 
Socket 939 is out... you can get AM2 for the same price and that PSU sucks. And if you want to play games, you need a graphics card.:lol:

I say you build AM2... if you take out some of the fancy pheriperals/extras, then you can keep all the nice hardware. The stuff you chose did become cheaper but there's better stuff out now for the same money or maybe a bit more.

For the larger hardware, like the case and speakers think about shipping costs. ZipZoomFly almost always has free shipping on many cases and I saw those speakers at Office Max for $60 today.
 
[quote name='Vinny']Socket 939 is out... you can get AM2 for the same price and that PSU sucks. And if you want to play games, you need a graphics card.:lol:

I say you build AM2... if you take out some of the fancy pheriperals/extras, then you can keep all the nice hardware. The stuff you chose did become cheaper but there's better stuff out now for the same money or maybe a bit more.

For the larger hardware, like the case and speakers think about shipping costs. ZipZoomFly almost always has free shipping on many cases and I saw those speakers at Office Max for $60 today.[/quote] :lol: Yeah, I guess the graphics card I had picked out a while ago was discontinued, so it was taken off my wishlist.

I decided that I don't need all that fancy stuff. I have an extra keyboard, mouse, and speakers that I can use, so I can just wait on getting new ones for a while.

As far as choosing a good mobo and graphics card goes, I'm kind of lost. You see, I'm not really very computer saavy, although I'd like to be. I'm building a computer to try and learn more, but that's not to say that I won't have somebody helping me build it. So if anything isn't compatable, I won't know it until I buy it and find out the hard way. Do you have any suggestions on what I should get?

If I upgrade my mobo to AM2, then will I have to upgrade my processor as well? And as for graphics cards, I've been looking at this one. Is it any good? I'm trying to stay under $1200 for everything (including the monitor), so I don't want to go all out on a graphics card, just something that will get the job done for a couple years or so.

Oh yeah, would this be a pretty good PSU?
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16817103937
 
[quote name='Vinny']
For the larger hardware, like the case and speakers think about shipping costs. ZipZoomFly almost always has free shipping on many cases and I saw those speakers at Office Max for $60 today.[/quote]

Yeah, that's true. I seriously considered getting my case from Zipzoomfly because free shipping on heavy, bulky cases is awesome.
But I bought a lot of stuff from Newegg, and their new shipping policy is really, really good on lowering shipping costs with the more you buy.
 
Honestly, if you are going to build a machine today and you want it to be gaming capable and future worthy, then you need to probably look at an NVIDIA’s SLI or ATI's Crossfire solution. So in the future, if you want to do a cheap upgrade, you just buy another matching graphics card (or better with the crossfire solution) and you double your performance, theoretically.

Besides that, what are you looking to do with the machine?

Also, if your going to upgrade the processor to an AM2, then you will have to chenge the RAM, because regular DDR will essentially handicap your system.
 
If you go AM2 then yes, you'll need an AM2 processor and DDR2 memory. But the thing is, those things can be had for less than what you have listed in the 939.

And that GPU and PS are great picks... I have that GPU, or had it, actually. It was a faulty one so it's being RMAed now. But those two are great pics for PS and GPU.

As for SLI/Xfire, I say it's not worth it for future proofing. Two GPUs from today won't have many of the newer features for the next gen cards (hell, the X850XT doesn't SM3 so that's a weakness). More importantly, with DX10, who knows what'll happen. It's better to get a good card for now and worry about upgrading later. That X850XT can run Oblivion on fairly high settings at 1680x1050 for me so it'll most likely run games for at least a year or two.
 
There is no need for a floppy drive anymore, usb flash drives are cheap and too many files require more space than 1.44 mb.

I would agree with those who say go with AM2, if you want AMD. However the tide has shifted for gaming processor's. I own a socket 939 A64, but if I were to build today I would go with a Core 2 duo (Conroe), Intel's latest offering.
Here is a reveiw

http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=2795

I think it may cost a bit more than the AMD solution though, the processor won't cost much more but I think the mobo's are more expensive. Also, it really makes a difference what you are using it for. I would probably suggest going for 1 gb of memory instead of 2 and putting the money saved into a better video card or better processor, but it depends on what you are using the comp for.
 
There is no need for a floppy drive anymore, usb flash drives are cheap and too many files require more space than 1.44 mb.

I would agree with those who say go with AM2, if you want AMD. However the tide has shifted for gaming processor's. I own a socket 939 A64, but if I were to build today I would go with a Core 2 duo (Conroe), Intel's latest offering.
Here is a reveiw

http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=2795

I think it may cost a bit more than the AMD solution though, the processor won't cost much more but I think the mobo's are more expensive. Also, it really makes a difference what you are using it for. I would probably suggest going for 1 gb of memory instead of 2 and putting the money saved into a better video card or better processor, but it depends on what you are using the comp for.
 
Ok, sorry for reviving this thread from the dead, but I've been doing my research off-and-on over the past month, and I've updated my Newegg wishlist.

I'm just wanting some advice on whether or not this build is good for gaming. I realized that I never use my floppy drive at home anyway (I'm just used to seeing it, so I figured I should have one), and that I can always upgrade the RAM in the future should I have to, so I'll just go with 1GB for now.
 
mmm you definitely don't want that vid card, get a 7600GT instead and if possible a 7900GT or X1900XT. also why that SLI motherboard with an ATI card? get a cheaper mobo.

if i were you i'd wait a little longer and build around christmas time. the new nvidia 8800 series will roll out in november and you could probably score a good deal on a 7900GT.

also i'd get a core 2 duo based system, but that would probably run you about 200 more than your current build. i think it would be worth it though due to the overclocking potential. like a E6600 w/whatever mobo.

and lastly, HOLY HELL what happened to RAM prices??? jesus!
 
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