Building a new system(part 2)

[Leaderz0rz]

Well some of you may remember my post a month or so ago...well i ran into some finacial problems that I had to use my system money to get out of. Well I'm back and ready to order my new System..what I want you guys to help me with, is look over everything I'm getting and post your opinions...you guys helped me alot the first time, so I figured I would stop by here and ask again =)

MD Socket 939 Athlon 64 3500+, 2.2 GHz, 512KB L2 Cache 64-bit Processor - Retail

MSI "NEO 2 PLATIUM" Chipset Motherboard for AMD Socket 939 CPU -RETAIL

Corsair XMS Extreme Memory Speed Series, (Twin Pack) 184 Pin 2GB(1GBx2) DDR PC-3200 - Retail

Sapphire Radeon X800 Pro Toxic Edition -RETAIL

X2 Maxtor 120GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, MODEL 6Y120M0, OEM Drive Only

Aspire 520W 12V Black Triple Fan Aluminum Power Supply, Model "ATX-AS520W BLACK" -RETAIL

X2 (i like two cdrom drives) NEC 8X Black Dual Layer DVD+/-RW Drive, Model ND-2510A BLK, OEM BULK


What I am missing that i need help on....

A great heatsink.. I am new to the amd64 proccesors, so I'm not sure which would be the best heatsink

Soundcard...Would the onboard soundcard be good for gaming/music/video ? I've had the nforce onboard audio before, and had alot of problems with it...

Moniter... I am a BIG gamer and want a good moniter.. min res 1280x1028 flatcreen or CRT I want a crisp display that is good for gaming and everything else.

 

[Leaderz0rz]

http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproductdesc.asp?description=24-116-282&DEPA=1

this looks like a nice moniter, got good reviews and all... any comments?

 

[logisticprism]

i'd take a super flower PSU over an aspire one. they're cheaper and better, i used to have an aspire. not that the aspire was that bad, super flower is just better. there are some here http://www.directron.com/500w.html

yeah i don't like the nforce audio either, i have an orignial audigy platinum and it works just great. you might want to look into the audigy 2 though.

i dunno, but you might want to consider waiting for pci express if you can hold out for a few months.

 

[Leaderz0rz]

not really wanting to wait for pci express... and i have an audigy in my pc now, and it works pretty well, though i've had alot of drive problems.

 

[logisticprism]

drive problems or drivER problems?

 

[LeeJend]

Loose the Aspire. You don't want a second string power supply in a system that expensive. Go for Antec or Enermax.

IMHO stay away from the LCD flat panel monitors. They have significant less color fidelity, there is risk of bleeding on fast games and they seem grainier to me (that last one is personal and subjective). Some people at NTFS say their LCD is fine for gaming.

On board sound is ok, especially if you only use headsets or two speakers. You can always upgrade sound latter if you want.

Why spend the money for 2 burners? I'd buy a good dvd burner and the cheapest, dvd rom I can find for my second optical drive.

PS Man it's fun spending other peoples money. 🙂

 

[Leaderz0rz]

oops typo, driver problems hehe, i'm use kx drivers now, but they arn't the best for games.

 

[Tuffgong4]

the nec burner you are buying has a faster newer version called the 3500A I think and is only like 85-90 bucks at newegg and burns dvds at 16x and cdrs at 40x

 

[logisticprism]

i used to have problems with my original audigy drivers, but then i found out how to softmod it into an audigy 2 using the audigy 2 drivers, and now it works fine.

and about the PSUs: enermax and super flower are the exact same thing (they get their PSUs from the same factory, but have their own names and cases) but super flower is much cheaper :-D

 

[Maveric169]

You can save yourself some money on the CPU by getting the OEM version and adding your own heatsink and fan. I did this when I built my system. The savings from retail to oem paid for my own cooling setup. Definatly go with a great PSU, I have an Antec 430W (I think that is right) and have no problems with it power wise.

 

[Leaderz0rz]

advice on heatsink and fan? and i think i will buy a super flower PSU. and thanks for the update on the burner, didn't know they had a newer version

 

[Sazar]

I suggest highly that you read the MSI recommended memory clips for that motherboard..

a coupla other tech sites I hang out at (hardware related) have some people with problems while using certain memory clips... there are a few types that seem to work w/o issue but its best to check on the MSI forums as well as checking the MSI recommended memory list...

I also suggest trying to get a 6800GT instead of the x800pro... it has 16 pipes (less chuggage @ max LOD) and pretty much all of them overclock to 6800Ultra clocks 🙂

the x800pro is not a bad card and performs close to the 6800GT in many instances but it has slower OGL speed and the nvidia product should be better under linux distro's if that is a route you choose to take..

wrt coolers if you are looking for quietness than the flower sink is not bad... I would personally suggest gettng a swiftech and slapping a big/quiet fan on it 🙂

they generally cool better and allow for better oc's if thats a route you wish to undertake in the future...

the powersupply should not be that much of a problem as long as the 12v rail has mn of 18A (for your system go for a mid 20's rating)

antec's and others are as apt to fail as other brands in many instances but they have generally got tighter volts (not as much fluctuation) and better peak and average wattage... I would probably go with a better brand name but its your call 🙂

the nf3 does not come with the soundforce thinger that is available with some nf2's... either use a discrete solution or use the integrated product... the integrated product is not bad at all... not as good as a discrete but unless you have a high-end speaker system and are very particular about audio it should be adequate 😎

keep posting your updated info if you want more feedback 🙂 and g.luck on the purchases...

 

[Leaderz0rz]

Honestly I don't like Nvidia, never have. What brand soundcard would you suggest? Creative has given me alot of problems in the past, but I don't know of any other brand really.

 

[ShepsCrook]

Well for sound cards I think the Fortissmo 7.1 card has had good ratings. There's a few others of the non-SB type that do just as well. I usually look for ones that have the optical ins and outs.

The HSF should be a Zalman 7000AlCu fan. those rank pretty high for people. Quiet and do VERY well.

I suggest the 6800GT also, you save some cash going that route. I prefer Ati as well, but those 6800GTs are great overclockers for the money. More bang for the buck.

Also the NEC 16x drives would be a nice touch. I don't see a point in 2 DVD burners because the need to burn 2 DVDs at once is not really feasible. A DVD Reader and the NEC 16x would be just fine.

Nice choice on the board and the Chip. You may as well go with an OEM processor because you won't need the stock HSF and since you're voiding the warrenty right away by applying a 3rd party thermal paste to put on a non AMD HSF setup, it'll save you a few bucks.

Personally I like the Seagate SATA drives over Maxtor (I'm not a fan of maxtor.)

And the PSU I'd probably go with an Antec Truepower.

 

[Leaderz0rz]

Well I checked the memory, and in the forum post the Corsair has been working fine, so I'm going to go ahead and go with the corsair, i love the brand so I'm pretty sure it will work, Power supply I'll probably go with the Super Flower, or Antec TruePower I dunno yet. I have had maxtor for 5 years, and never had one fail, so i'm sticking with them =). And I intended to get the proccesor OEM, i just copy and pasted from newegg hehe. I will auctaly only get 1 burner and then just a dvdrom, it is silly to get two burners hehe.

Sound card i am still undecided, but i am looking into the Fortissmo atm.

I still need a good make/model heatsink...i know its very important and I am a newb in the amd64 heatsink department
Thanks for your help, and keep the suggestions coming!

 

[Sazar]

generally the best idea is to go with the best tech.. now if you were to go with an nv35 over and above an r3xx of comparative price I would say no... but the GT is a nice card for the price and performs well...

the sound card... if yer not sure I suggest you use the on-board initially and find out for yourself if it is good enough...

if it is not then at a later date you can invest in it...

and i will still suggest a swiftech style heatsink.. a nice big chunk of copper with a decent fan on it 😀

 

[Leaderz0rz]

Very true on the soundcard Sazar, might as well try the onboard first =) i'm still set on an ati card though ;P i will have a complete list in a bit, that you guys can look over.

 

[ShepsCrook]

Oooo good point. Forgot about onboard sound. For my gaming rig I'm running the SB Audigy 2 Plat. So I don't even bother with the onboard. But, my 2nd machine which I use for listening to music and an occassional movie is all onboard and it's not bad.

The Zalman 7000AlCu is my suggestion on the Heatsink and Fan. I run it and it works great. Nice and quiet.

 

[Maveric169]

Well I can say thatI have tried many dffernet soundcards as well as a few onboards in my time. And unless your running a 5.1, 8.1, 9.5 whatever multi-speaker sound setup for your PC, onboard works great! And if your a FPS gamer or you just choose to use headphones, your not going to see any real differnece anyway.

 

[Son Goku]

Yeah I'd suggest the integrated sound for now, and perhaps an audigy 2 latter on (though I seem to remember some peeps having issues).

BTW, when suggesting the A64 3500+ it was before AMD did some price cuts. Needless to say, I've heard that prices have dropped since then. I'm not sure what your budget is, though gathering it is about as tight as it was before? You might want to check the 3700+ In any case, you probably have a little more play here, due to price drops.

I myself would recommend the 6800 GT (especially if you're going to save some mullah). The cards aren't that far off, and well the OGL performance has already been mentioned. That said, we can/will only suggest and if you're dead set on the ATI, it is your money...