New Rig - Advice Needed

Vilante · Post by **Vilante** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 10:29 am

Hello all,

Wanted to pick your brains for a bit......

I'm seriously considering building a rig myself both because I've always wanted to do it and also because if I buy the components seprately over time the better half won't get so angry - lol

I want it for LFS mainly but also want it to be able to play some of the more graphic intense games well like GTR2 for example and possibly a FPS or two. Then I'd also like to do a bit of video and music also.

Was wondering if you think this would be a good place to start, it's a motherboard and precessor bundle.

ASUS K8V-MX VIA K8M800 and AMD ATHLON 64 3400+BUNDLE - $269.00.

I want a decent system but only really want to spend around $1,500.00 - $2,000.00 all up. Knowing me I'll spend more but was wondering what you'd recommend for the rest of the gear I'll need.

I used to know all this stuff backwards but lost touch for many years and everything's become more complicated, thought this would make a good discussion point and get me back into it.

Cheers

Exar Kun · Post by **Exar Kun** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 11:07 am

Probably best to steer clear of a VIA chipset. Go with an nForce for AMD if you can. Check out some of the prices of AMD processors right now and get something decent. You can get a pretty good graphics card for $400 to $500 and it's also the easiest component to upgrade later on. $1500 to $2000 is easily enough for a decent gaming rig these days (if you don't include a monitor) so you shouldn't have any worries with that budget.

SE1Z · Post by **SE1Z** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 11:20 am

If you are not brand loyal.... and can afford to wait for stock....

Grab one of the new intel Conroe cpu's - $500
Decent mobo - $380
2gig DDR2 RAM - $250
X1900XT (or Nvidia equivalent) - ~$675

(asuming you dont need the other gear and can use your old stuff... HDD, monitor, keyboard... etc...)

Total: ~$1805

Prices from MSY

AstrO · Post by **AstrO** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 11:37 am

Here is what I have in my PC atm:
A64 X2 4600+ (939) ~$400
DFI LanParty UT nF4 SLi-DR Expert ~$300
2gig DDR 400 ram coming ~$250
XFX 7900GT (520MHz) ~$500

Total: ~$1450

Other Stuff: 3x250gig (16mb cache) + 1x200gig WD HDD's, SoundBlaster Audigy, Dedicated 10/100/1000 network card, Pioneer DVR-109, HD TV tuner card, 19" LCD, mouse + keyboard.

If I was to buy a new PC today then I'd go AM2 and DDR2 instead of a 939 & DDR1 but keep the rest of my system the same. A new Conroe would be nice but the wait could kill you.

Blowtus · Post by **Blowtus** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 11:37 am

don't see the point in $500 for a cpu myself. The cheapest cpu's are always the best 'bang for buck' whereas video cards seem a much more 'you get what you pay for' scenario. Just depends on the balance of your wants / needs. If you're planning on keeping it for a fair while there is little point buying the latest gear at exhorbitant prices, but if you're the sort that has plenty of money and wants to upgrade every 6 months then I guess the expensive stuff makes sense.

SE1Z · Post by **SE1Z** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 11:43 am

not entirely true blowtus...
I bought the best cpu I could afford a couple of years ago (P4 3.2) - the only upgrades I have made in that time are an extra 2gig ram and a new vid card (X800xtpe)
Runs every game I throw at it.

I buy the best gear I can afford at the time, I have no plans to upgrade again any time soon.

When buying a new PC, you need to make sure it will at least last a few years with minimal upgrades.

If all you play is LFS, then no, dont buy the latest and greatest gear

Blowtus · Post by **Blowtus** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 12:10 pm

spending $200 instead of $400 on a cpu probably puts you back about 3 months, yeah? Makes more sense to me to upgrade at 2 years 9 months instead of 3 years, and pocket the $200

Righteous · Post by **Righteous** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 2:46 pm

Give up gaming, buy a bike, save money and the environment.

SIF!

Vilante · Post by **Vilante** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 3:58 pm

Righteous wrote:Give up gaming, buy a bike, save money and the environment.

SIF!

hehe - damn straight

Thanks fellas!!

Pinger$ · Post by **Pinger$** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 7:44 pm

Buy socket AM2 if you're buying a motherboard... if you can find any CPU's atm. Scarce as hell now.