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Weezer · Jul 20, 2005, 05:32 PM

Hey guys,

I've come to the conclusion that my 933 G4 is just not cutting it for me gaming wise, but I really don't wanna go for the current gen G5s due to the intel switch. My current thinking then is to build myself a gaming PC, hoping to spend 800-1000. I found this guide online that has been very helpful:

http://www.sharkyextreme.com/guides/...708_3501646__1

However, I am not nearly as familiar with the PC world as I am with apple. Does anyone disagree with what they suggest? Would you go with the 6600 GT? AMD or intel? Im considering getting a shuttle, so I don't have to have two towers, but I'm not sure yet. Also, does anyone know anything about DVI/keyboard dongles so I can use my 20 inch cinema display/keyboard? Thank you very much for any advice.

budster101 · Jul 20, 2005, 05:46 PM

Buy an Xbox 360 when it comes out. $150.00 and waste the rest on games and a plasma display...

ghporter · Jul 20, 2005, 06:16 PM

You don't need the fancy "gamer dude" lights and chrome, but it's hard to find cases with that much ventilation that don't have all the gunk. You do need several things: a fast processor, a LOT of RAM, a fast video card with a TON of VRAM, a large, fast hard drive, and a very good sound card. Getting advice about which sound or video card you should get is much like asking "which is better, Jehova's Witness or 7th Day Adventist?" You can find people who will actually discuss the relative merits of various products, but you're much more likely to find zealots-do your own research, and avoid the crazys.

And Bud, I think the 360 is going to go over $150, though I don't know how much yet. MS loses money on every original XBox, so the 360 with better hardware will probably lose them a lot more.

budster101 · Jul 20, 2005, 06:18 PM

I thought I saw pre-order pricing at $150 at some local store... Maybe I was looking at a regular XBOX?

I'm not a gamer, so ...

bradoesch · Jul 20, 2005, 06:44 PM

The link talks about Socket 754. Don't buy a Socket 754 board and chip. Socket 939 will be around longer and supports the better processors (i.e. Athlon 64 FX models, faster and better Athlon 64s).

The HyperTransport speed on a 754 board is 1600MHz while on a 939 board it runs at 2000 MHz. 939 also supports dual channel memory which is a good thing.

I'd recommend:

Athlon 64 3000+ (or greater)
1 GB (configured as dual 512 MB DIMMs operating in dual channel mode)
Western Digital SE HD (fast, cheap)

Chuckit · Jul 20, 2005, 06:49 PM

That would be the original system. It would be insane for Microsoft to release it for the same price the original is now. I don't believe any system has ever premiered for less than $200, and the original Xbox started at $300.

Scooterboy · Jul 20, 2005, 07:12 PM

Originally Posted by budster101

Buy an Xbox 360 when it comes out. $150.00 and waste the rest on games and a plasma display...

I thought the poster wanted advice on building a gaming PC, not on buying a console. Your response is like telling someone to buy a used Mac Mini or eMac when they want advice on building a PowerMac G5 based video editing workstation.

I'll probably buy an xbox 360 with the triple core 3+ GHz G5 and a Playstation 3 since they'll be cheap, but they'll play console games, not PC games. That's why I'd also like to build a gaming PC. The nice thing about building a PC instead of buying a PowerMac G5 to play games is that your PC games should all play on a MacIntel even if it requires a boot into Windows. I don't expect any of my current Mac games to be at all playable in a Rosetta G3 emulation environment.

Scooterboy · Jul 20, 2005, 07:13 PM

Originally Posted by Chuckit

That would be the original system. It would be insane for Microsoft to release it for the same price the original is now. I don't believe any system has ever premiered for less than $200, and the original Xbox started at $300.

I heard the 360 is to debut at $450 or so. THen they can scale it down from there over the years.

Scooterboy · Jul 20, 2005, 07:15 PM

Originally Posted by bradoesch

The link talks about Socket 754. Don't buy a Socket 754 board and chip. Socket 939 will be around longer and supports the better processors (i.e. Athlon 64 FX models, faster and better Athlon 64s).

The HyperTransport speed on a 754 board is 1600MHz while on a 939 board it runs at 2000 MHz. 939 also supports dual channel memory which is a good thing.

I'd recommend:

Athlon 64 3000+ (or greater)
1 GB (configured as dual 512 MB DIMMs operating in dual channel mode)
Western Digital SE HD (fast, cheap)

Athlon seems to be highly recommended for games, and I like the idea of building something not based on the Intel juggernaut.
"Play Different"

What about SLI? Is it worth the money to have 2 GPU's? That's around $1,000 for dual 6800 Ultra 512 MB vram cards!

Weezer · Jul 21, 2005, 08:19 AM

How much more is the 939 stuff going to cost me? worth it? Any comments on the 6600 GT vs the 9800? and athlon over intel?

suvsr4terrorists · Jul 21, 2005, 08:37 AM

The cheapest way to build a gaming PC is to go here:

www.pricewatch.com

Click on motherboard/cpu combos. Get something like .... eh...

pentium 2.4 ghz with fan and motherboard for $169

then click on ram, order two 512 sticks for as cheap as possible, then get a cheap 80 gig hard drive for $50 or so, and for the case, well... you could get a case with a power supply combo on that website for next to nothing also, like this:

aluminum ATX case with 500 watt power supply for $30

or you could just find an existing PC case that someone is throwing out (free) and buy a power supply ($15 for a 500 watt PS).

Then spend the REST of your money on the best possible videocard you can afford. Don't get something SUPER cutting edge, but get a nice one. I'd suggest a 6800 GT with a big cooler like this: http://www.xoxide.com/arctic-cooling...evision-2.html
However, right now it looks like the best deal is an nvidea 6600 GT ($150). Not quite 6800 speed, but again, with a big cooler, you can overclock it like crazy.

My buddy had a REGULAR 6800 and he put that cooler on it, which was quieter than the stock one, and he was able to overclock the living **** out of it.

Anyway, this will net you a VERY fast very good gaming PC for a measly (169 for CPU/mobo+ $30 for 1 gig of 2700 ram + 50 for hd + 30 for case + 150 for 6600GT) = $429

Note: That doesn't include shipping, so expect to throw on another $50 or so for all the shipping from differnet companies, but still. Under $500, and you have a 2.4 ghz P4 with 1 gig of ram, 80 gig hard drive, 500 watt ps, and a 256 meg 6600GT. Spend the rest on videocard coolers, fans, and other pc tuner products and you'll have a pretty sweet gaming rig for about $500 total.

bradoesch · Jul 21, 2005, 03:44 PM

Originally Posted by Scooterboy

Athlon seems to be highly recommended for games, and I like the idea of building something not based on the Intel juggernaut.
"Play Different"

What about SLI? Is it worth the money to have 2 GPU's? That's around $1,000 for dual 6800 Ultra 512 MB vram cards!

Yah, the Athlons are amazing these days. I recently build an Athlon 64 system myself.

SLI...well, how much are you into games? If you want top performance and don't mind getting ripped, spend the money and you'll get amazing performance. If you want the best bang for your buck link up dual 6600s or get a reasonable priced higher end card (Radeon X800-ish). It all depends on how much you want to spend.

JoshuaZ · Jul 21, 2005, 03:49 PM

Xbox 360. Yeah, that does sound like the best option for you.

Weezer · Jul 21, 2005, 06:57 PM

Im building it mostly for WoW, so no $400 xbox 360 for me