[Malvavisco]

I'm planning on building a PC as a secondary computer, it will be used mostly for gaming online and single player. This is the one area where my Mac doesn't completely fill my needs. I went to Newegg and put one together. Constructive suggestions are appreciated:

Link


Thanks!

[Spliffdaddy]

I think your link requires a login in order to see your 'wish list' system.

If you could copy/paste it here, it would help.

Oh, and don't forget to check Newegg's 'top-10 sellers' list for ideas and their refurb category for bargains.

[the_glassman]

Is it the one listed under new rig or something like that? Pretty spiffy.

[Luca Rescigno]

All I see is a WinXP CD. Do you really need Pro? About the only benefit over Home is that it is much better with networking. But you'll save about $50 if you go with Home. Or you could just steal it like all the cool kids.

[Spliffdaddy]

He would only need XP Pro if he was using a Pentium4. Hyperthread requires SMP (multiprocessor) support, something not included in XP Home edition.

If his system is the one listed under 'new rig', then it looks quite adequate for a gaming machine. Personally, I would add a second matching hard drive and take advantage of the motherboard's built in RAID 0 striping. Games load much faster from striped arrays. I'd even be willing to give up 512MB of RAM in order to offset the cost of the 2nd hard drive. Windows doesn't benefit from having more RAM than you use. 512MB is usually plenty for gaming. You'd notice a difference in speed from a striped disk array - but you probably wouldn't notice a difference by having 1GB of RAM instead of 512MB.

[Malvavisco]

Ok folks, not sure what happened to the link, so here's shot at cut and paste. Thanks to those who have already posted advice.

Cooler Master Wave Master Black MID-TOWER CASE, Model "TAC-T01-EK" -RETAIL
Specifications:
Case Type: MID-TOWER
Color: Black
Material: All Aluminum Alloy
Drive Bays: 5.25" x 4/0, 3.5" x 1/4 (external/internal)
Expansion Slots: 7
Front Ports: Dual USB2.0 & IEEE1934 firewire, Audio
Power Supply: N/A
Cooling System: 3 x 80mm
Motherboard Compatibility: ATX; 12" x 9.6" (30.5cm x 24.5 cm)
Dimensions: 21"x 7.8"x 18" (LxWxH) more info->
N82E16811119030

$148.00

ASUS "K8N-E Deluxe" NVIDIA nForce3 Chipset Motherboard For AMD Socket 754 CPU -RETAIL
Specifications:
Supported CPU: AMD Athlon 64 Processor
Chipset: NVIDIA nForce3 250Gb
FSB: 800 MHz
RAM: 3x DIMM Supports DDR266/333/400 Max 3GB
Slots: 1x AGP 8X/4X, 5x PCI
Ports: 2x PS/2, 1x COM, 1x LPT, 8x USB2.0(Rear 4), 1x IEEE1394, 1xRJ45, 2x S/PDIF Out, Audio Ports
IDE: 2x ATA 133 up to 4 Devices
Onboard SATA/RAID: 2x SATA RAID with 0,1,0+1 by South Bridge, 4x SATA RAID with 0,1,1+0,5 by Sil 3114
Onboard Audio: Realtek ALC850(8-Ch)
Onboard LAN: 1000 BASE-T Ethernet
Onboard 1394: 2x ports by VIA VT6307
Form Factor: ATX more info->
N82E16813131498

$130.00

ATI RADEON 9800PRO Video Card, 128MB DDR, 256-bit, DVI/TV-Out, 8X AGP -RETAIL
Specifications:
Chipset/Core Speed: ATI RADEON 9800PRO/380MHz
Memory/Effective Speed: 128MB DDR/680MHz
BUS: AGP 4X/8X
Ports: VGA Out(15 Pin D-Sub)+TV-Out(S-Video + Composite Out)+DVI
Support 3D API: DirectX®9, OpenGL®2.0
Cable/Accessories: 2 DVI to D-Sub Adapters, 2 Cables, Driver CD, Manual
Max Resolution@32bit Color: 2048X1536@85Hz
Retail Box (See pics for details) more info->
N82E16814102286

$233.00


Thermaltake W0013 Silent Purepower 480W with Silver housing - Xaser Edition ATX 2-Fan Power Supply
Specifications:
Type: ATX
Maximum Power: 480W
PFC: No
Power Good Signal: 100-500ms
Hold-up Time: > 16ms at Full Load
Efficiency: > 65%
Over Voltage Protection: +5V trip point<+6.8V;+3.3V trip point<+4.5V;+12V trip point<+15.6V
Overload Protection: Not specified
Input Voltage: 100-240 Vrms
Input Frequency Range: 47-63 Hz
Input Current: 8.0A
Output: +3.3V@30A;+5V@40A;-5V@0.3A;+12V@18A;-12V@0.8A;+5VSB@2A
MTBF: Not specified
Approvals: Not specified more info->
N82E16817153008

$59.00


AMD Athlon 64 3200+, 512k L2 Cache, The Only 64-bit Windows Compatible Processor - Retail
Specification
Model: AMD Athlon 64 3200+
Core: Newcastle
Operating Frequency: 2.2GHz
FSB: Integrated int chip
Cache: L1/64K+64K; L2/512K
Voltage: 1.5V
Process: 0.13Micron
Socket: Socket 754
Multimedia Instruction: MMX, SSE, SSE2, 3DNOW!, 3DNOW!+
Warranty: 3-year MFG
Packaging: Retail Box (Heatsink and Fan included) more info->
N82E16819103483

$204.00

Geil Ultra Series Value Dual Channel 184 Pin 1GB(512MBx2) DDR PC-3200 w/ Blue Heatspreader - Retail
Specifications:
Manufacturer: Geil
Speed: DDR400(PC3200)
Type: 184 Pin DDR SDRAM
Error Checking: Non-ECC
Registered/Unbuffered: Unbuffered
Cas Latency: 2.5 7-4-4
Support Voltage: 2.55V-2.95V
Bandwidth: 3.2GB/s
Organization: two 64M x 64 -Bit
Special Features: Optimized SPD for Dual Channel DDR motherboards
Warranty: Lifetime more info->
N82E16820144310

$178.00

SONY Black 1.44MB 3.5inch Floppy Disk Drive, Model MPF920, OEM
Specifications:
Capacity: 1.44MB
Average Access Time: 94 ms
Interface: 34 Pin Standard Floppy Connector
Form: 3.5 inch
Media Type: All Standard 1.44MB & 720KB 3.5 Floppy Diskettes
Features: High Quality and Reliability
Packaging: OEM more info->
N82E16821103116

$8.00

Seagate 200GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model ST3200822AS, OEM Drive Only
Specifications:
Capacity: 200 GB
Average Seek Time: 8.5 ms
Buffer: 8MB
Rotational Speed: 7,200 RPM
Interface: Serial ATA
Features: Best-in-class non-operating shock for excellent reliability. Best combination of performance, acoustics and robustness. Idle acoustics of 2.5 bels- the industry's best. World's first SATA desktop drive.
Manufacturer Warranty: 5 year
Packaging: OEM Drive Only more info->
N82E16822148033

$115.00

PIONEER Black DVD±RW Drive, Model DVR-A08XL, Retail
Specifications:
Color: Black
Write Speed: 16X DVD+R, 4X DVD+RW, 16X DVD-R, 4X DVD-RW, 4X DVD+R DL, 32X CD-R, 24X CD-RW
Read Speed: 40X CD-ROM, 16X DVD-ROM
Interface: ATAPI / E-IDE
Buffer: 2MB
Features: Dual format, supporting DVD+R/RW and DVD-R/RW, 16X DVD+/-R writing speed, 4X DVD+/-RW rewriting speed, burn at 16X speed on selected 8X media, support "overspeeding" of 2.4X DVD+R DL media to 4X speed, 32X CD-R writing and 24X cd-RW rewriting
Packaging: Retail Package (see pictures for details) more info->
N82E16827129154

$155.00

Microsoft Windows XP Professional With Service Pack 2 -OEM
Specifications:
Designed for reliability, security and privacy, high performance, and ease of use, the Windows XP operating system provides a host of benefits for business and home users. A clean and simple desktop, rock-solid reliability, and easy-to-use features that take advantage of the digital age all contribute to the value of Windows XP
*Must be Purchased with Hardware!!* more info->
N82E16837102153

$142.00

Subtotal »


$1,372.00




_

[OpenStep]

winxp home works fine with hyperthreading. It's true XP Pro is needed for true smp but with hyperthreading WinXP tells teh difference between 2 logical cpu's and 2 physical cpu's and enables the 2nd virtual processor in XP home.

[Luca Rescigno]

Why are you spending $150+ on a DVD burner with full retail packaging? Get the OEM version of the NEC ND-3500A. It's $80.

Use the extra money to switch to a Socket 939 motherboard and processor. They aren't really any more expensive but they will be much more upgradable in the future since Socket 754 is already on the way out.

Also think about downgrading to XP Home. I don't think you need Pro.

Overall it looks like a nice system. Excellent choice of power supply and case. If you really want awesome gaming performance, the plain-jane version of the GeForce 6800 is about $40 extra, and should offer almost double the performance of the Radeon 9800 Pro. But the 9800 Pro is not a bad video card at all.

[Malvavisco]

Originally posted by Luca Rescigno:
Why are you spending $150+ on a DVD burner with full retail packaging? Get the OEM version of the NEC ND-3500A. It's $80.

Use the extra money to switch to a Socket 939 motherboard and processor. They aren't really any more expensive but they will be much more upgradable in the future since Socket 754 is already on the way out.

Also think about downgrading to XP Home. I don't think you need Pro.

Overall it looks like a nice system. Excellent choice of power supply and case. If you really want awesome gaming performance, the plain-jane version of the GeForce 6800 is about $40 extra, and should offer almost double the performance of the Radeon 9800 Pro. But the 9800 Pro is not a bad video card at all.

Thanks Luca, I'll check out those options you mentioned. A noob like me needs these kinds of tips.

[Peter]

swap the Geil memory for Corsair or Cruial in my opinion.

[hayesk]

Originally posted by Luca Rescigno:
All I see is a WinXP CD. Do you really need Pro? About the only benefit over Home is that it is much better with networking. But you'll save about $50 if you go with Home. Or you could just steal it like all the cool kids.

XP Pro also has Remote Desktop, which you can use the free RDC client for MacOS X to control it remotely. I don't know if that works any better than the free VNC.

[tooki]

RDC is very substantially faster than VNC.

tooki

[Drakino]

If size is any concern, you might want to look at a Shuttle XPC box. One box will take care of your power supply, motherboard, cooling needs and case. In most cases, they are quieter then the average properly cooled full tower case.

Newegg has the SN95G5 for $319, and it is as good as your motherboard selection above. It is a socket 939 solution, so look for the proper Athlon 64.

If the power supply worries you, don't let it. I have the first AGP capable Shuttle released more then two years ago, and for most of its life, it has powered my Radeon 9700 Pro, 2 hard drives, and CD burner just fine. Power supplies they ship now are even more powerful, so it will do just fine for you.


To build a shuttle here is all you do:
Open case
Remove drive mounting
Unseat cooling solution
Put in processor
Apply heatsink goo
put in memory
put cooling solution back in
Add hard drive and CD-Rom to the drive mount
Put in AGP video card and attach power
Lower in drive mount, attaching the needed prerouted data and power cables
Put case back on

No need to worry about mounting the motherboard, trying to figure out how to wire front panel connectors, and no worries about mounting the power supply. Sure, it's not overly hard to do it all yourself, but as a Mac user, you probably understand the value of your time.