building a new comp, advice please

dubstar

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3 Dec 2002
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for my 21st birthday, my mommy is buying me a computer, or atleast the parts. I get ~$600, a little more if i really need it.

im thinking i can get this:

$100 = 2500XP
$120 = A7N8X-Deluxe
$150 = 9600 Pro 128mb DDR
$50 = 330w TruePower P/S
$120 = 100gig/120gig 8mb HardDrive
$50 = 52x24x52 CD-RW
$140 = 1gig PC3200*
______
~$730 (some tax&shipping already included)


there arent any computer stores where i can get it this cheap around me, maybe FRY Electronics, but i'll look into that later. I'm thinking i will order everything from the same place, instead of shopping for the cheapest price (so everything arrives at the same time).. do you think this is wise, or is it ok now'days to order from multiple places?

also, i have a nasty little e-machine case already, and i dont plan on having all kinds of crazy lights and waterfalls and fogmachines some of you crazy people put on your computers.

thanks.:D


edit: *forgot about memory, crap im spending too much
 
1) make sure it's the A7N8X 2.0

2) better/cheaper power supply? i think allied is decent.

3) when i build, i tend to stick to two reputable sites to order from. usually www.newegg.com and www.essencompu.com or someone else. this way you can get the best price for a particular part between the two sites... and only having two big orders keeps it simple.

4) make sure the 2500+ you get is retail, or else you'll be spending more $ on a hsf. plus retail has a better warranty and is only like $3 more.
 
nevermind, i couldnt wait.... i pressed "order now" and it was all down hill from there.

i just got the 9600 Pro because i knew it was good, and with the extra 40 dollars, i got a 48x24x48 CD-RW + 16DVD


ohh man, i cant wait to be kickin some ass with 1 gig of ram!
 
Now that it's too late...

Good system, prices are about right and I have been happy when I bought from essential computer.

I did not see a heat sink/ fan on the list and you will need 2 case fans (1 in 1 out) with that powerfull of a system. Also arctic silver for the thermal compound. If it's a "retail" 2500 it will come with HSF and thermal paste. FRY's has good prices on case fans their cpu fans are a little high but shipping and handling makes it a wash.

You could have done better on a 120 gig HD. WD is $59 after rebate right now and they had them at FRYs last week.

There was a 400w antec power supply on sale at one of the stores (best buy or compusa) for $50 this week but that sale may be over.

Buying from different places doesn't matter as long as you have another working PC available to check components before you put all the new parts together. It's actually an advantage since then you get the parts and can check them out individually. Doing the whole job in a day can be a strain. And putting untested parts together all at once is a pain if something isn't working.

My best advice on assembly is do the MB, CPU/HSF & RAM on the desk (put down a layer of newspaper to protect the desk from scratches and as insulation) then install the whole batch into the case. I usually go one step further and hook up the case switch, plug in the vid card and power supply too and boot while everything is still out of the case. Make sure the system does a successful power on self test before putting everything in the case. It's a pain if you have to pull it all out again. Check the CD and HD in the old system too.

And last but not least be careful putting the HSF on if you haven't done it before. The exposed chip with the AMD processors is fragile.

Oh yeah, and have fun. ;-)
 
I think you want a PSU with at least 350W otherwise you may have an expensive upgrade next time, especially if you overload your system with too many devices.
 
i got a 400w, i also ordered it from www.newegg.com. it was $770 with tax! (way over what i was supposed to spend, but i guess my mom is just kickin much ass!).. I'm only planning on having 1 hard drive, 1 cd-rw/dvd, video card, and processor. nothing fancy. i wont even have a floppy drive (who needs one anyway) XP is all on CD, same with Linux.
 
Originally posted by LeeJend
Now that it's too late...

Good system, prices are about right and I have been happy when I bought from essential computer.

I did not see a heat sink/ fan on the list and you will need 2 case fans (1 in 1 out) with that powerfull of a system. Also arctic silver for the thermal compound. If it's a "retail" 2500 it will come with HSF and thermal paste. FRY's has good prices on case fans their cpu fans are a little high but shipping and handling makes it a wash.

You could have done better on a 120 gig HD. WD is $59 after rebate right now and they had them at FRYs last week.

There was a 400w antec power supply on sale at one of the stores (best buy or compusa) for $50 this week but that sale may be over.

Buying from different places doesn't matter as long as you have another working PC available to check components before you put all the new parts together. It's actually an advantage since then you get the parts and can check them out individually. Doing the whole job in a day can be a strain. And putting untested parts together all at once is a pain if something isn't working.

My best advice on assembly is do the MB, CPU/HSF & RAM on the desk (put down a layer of newspaper to protect the desk from scratches and as insulation) then install the whole batch into the case. I usually go one step further and hook up the case switch, plug in the vid card and power supply too and boot while everything is still out of the case. Make sure the system does a successful power on self test before putting everything in the case. It's a pain if you have to pull it all out again. Check the CD and HD in the old system too.

And last but not least be careful putting the HSF on if you haven't done it before. The exposed chip with the AMD processors is fragile.

Oh yeah, and have fun. ;-)

:( damn! the CPU is Retail so i'll get the HSF and Juice.. I think i'll go over to frys and buy another hard drive anyway.. uhhh, for my girlfriend ;)

i downloaded and printed out some "how to's" on computer assembly, and some trouble shooting tips.

Question: what do you mean by Check the CD and HD in the old system?
 
I woulda hve suggested the 9800 non-pro but its a little too late for that now :)

the 9600pro is not a bad card however.. enjoy it :)
 
how about this setup

video card: ASUS V9520TD GeForce FX5200 91$
case: Raidmax Model 208(BEIGE) 10-bay Case 18$
cdrom: Lite On 52x24x52 CDRW 43$
hard drive: Maxtor 40GB 7200RPM Hard Drive 60$
keyboard: A4TECH ANTI-RSI HEALTH KEYBOARD 11$
memory: Apacer 512MB DDR PC2700 RAM 81$
motherboard: Asus Motherboard Model# A7N8X Deluxe Retail 125$
mouse: Logitech SBF69 Corded Optical Wheel Mouse PS/2 12$
cpu: AMD ATHLON XP 2500 92$
power supply: Allied 400W Power Supply ATX400P4 w/ Two Fans 33$

i need suggestions on a monitor(crt), cheap but good....and any other suggestions you have

and

is the motherboard above a A7N8X 2.0?

gracias
 
it looks like that motherboard is 2.0, yes.

dear god, don't get that case! the construction is horrible and it only has one 60mm exhaust fan. look for something with one 92mm or two 80mm exhaust fans.

i'd look at a different video card, too. a ti4200 like this ($85) or this ($119) would be a lot faster than that card. but if you're just trying to save money, then check this chaintech 5200 for $69 (same speed as your asus).

[edit] newegg has a good 19" flat crt on sale for $225 with free shipping! but i'm a little wary of having a monitor shipped.
 
Originally posted by Sazar
I woulda hve suggested the 9800 non-pro but its a little too late for that now :)

the 9600pro is not a bad card however.. enjoy it :)

damn, i just read you can overclock it to run like the pro! man, i screwed up.. oh well, the cd-rw/dvd player is a lot faster than the one i have now... and im not playing too graphic intense of games, so im sure it wont be too bad. (lets hope it breaks and they dont have any 9600s to replace it and offer the 9800 non pro for a free replacement!)

anyway, thanks for your reply Sazar, i just wish i had more patience.
 
Just hook the new HD and CD drive into the power supply and ide cables of the old machine.

Make sure the CD reads/writes.

On the HD you could actually format and partition it on the old machine to save you time when you start building the new one.

Also, if its compatible, try the new memory sticks out in the old machine to make sure they work. Every piece you can confirm good before building the new machine saves you time and aggravation if the new one does not boot or post at first power on. 2 new pieces =4 chances of problems. 9 new pieces = 81 chances of problems.

PS Just because some people have had luck with overclcoking something doesn't mean you will. And check out some of my rants on the downside of overclcoking. I do it, but I understand the risks (fried hardware with a avoided warantee) fully.
 
Originally posted by LeeJend
Just hook the new HD and CD drive into the power supply and ide cables of the old machine.

Make sure the CD reads/writes.

On the HD you could actually format and partition it on the old machine to save you time when you start building the new one.

Also, if its compatible, try the new memory sticks out in the old machine to make sure they work. Every piece you can confirm good before building the new machine saves you time and aggravation if the new one does not boot or post at first power on. 2 new pieces =4 chances of problems. 9 new pieces = 81 chances of problems.

PS Just because some people have had luck with overclcoking something doesn't mean you will. And check out some of my rants on the downside of overclcoking. I do it, but I understand the risks (fried hardware with a avoided warantee) fully.


you can use PC2700 on a PC100 machine? i'll try it out. (oh man 1 gig of pc2700! im gonna crap my pants when this rig is running!)

i will definitly test them out 1 by 1 on my old comp.. thanks for the advice, i probably wouldnt have thought about that.
 
Originally posted by dubstar
you can use PC2700 on a PC100 machine?
the PC number is just a speed rating. it can always run slower than what it's rated at. and when you do that, you can set tighter timings and get some good performance out of it (like my pc3200 running at 333mhz, but at 5-2-2-2).

it's for that reason as well as future upgradeability that i suggest getting pc3200.

[edit] oh, PC100... i read pc2100. um, no.. ddr (pc2700) won't work in a sdr (pc100) board. sorry, man.
 

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