Building New AMD Gaming PC

P

PhoeniX51

New Member
Hi. I'm new here and I was hoping you guys could help me out. I'm building a new computer and need to make sure all these parts will work together. I haven't picked out a motherboard yet either... all I know is that I want it to be Mini-ATX formfactor, has to have at least 1 PCIe (x16) slot, 2 regular PCI slots, support at least 2GB RAM, and be Socket 939.

Here's what I have as for the rest of the hardware:
- AMD Athlon 64 3700+ San Diego
- 2 x Western Digital 74GB Raptors (RAID 0)
- Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS
- HP Lightscribe DVD Drive*
- 2 x 1024MB Corsair PC3200XL Pro Twin X**
- Graphics Card?
- Ultra X-Connect 500W PSU
- Wireless Internet Card

* I'm not sure if I want this, but I do want a dual layer DVD burner; preferrably one that you don't have to press a button to open, you just slide it in (sorry I don't know what it's called).
** I hear this is good gaming memory, but is it faster than PC6400 regular memory? (I have no clue how much those cost)

And as for the graphics card, I haven't picked a specific one out yet. I want it to be at LEAST at 6800 of some sort. I was looking at the 7800s but I think they're too expensive. Something good under 300 dollars hopefully.

I know mATX mobos probably aren't THAT upgradable, but the Socket 939 will give me some options at least. That's OK because I wasn't planning on upgrading right away. As you can probably tell, this machine will be used primarily for gaming, and perhaps hosting dedicated servers (for games). I know this is a lot to ask but I'm stuck.

Lastly, I need a case to put it all in. I was looking at the Aspire X-QPack and I like that a lot but I hear there's some problems. I would like lots of windows and gray color, if possible.

I think that's all you need to know. This will help me out a lot. If I'm about to do something stupid please correct me, and if you see anything I can do to make this better I'm open to suggestions. Thanks a lot in advance.

- PhoeniX
 
Looks great Phoenix! :)

As for a graphics card (since you stated it like you don't know) I'd go with either a Radeon X800XT or a GeForce 6800 GT (depends on your budget).... other than that, looks good.
 
just get 1gb of ram and get the 7800. you shouldn't need more than the 1gb unless you like to run 50 million programs at once.
 
why do u neet a microatx motherboard? most cases are mid-towers which support ATX motherboards. And i have never heard of a dvd player/burner that you just slide the disc in, how would u get it out?. And i agree with what skidude said, you should get either an X800XT or PRO, or a 6800GT.
 
alanuofm said:
just get 1gb of ram and get the 7800. you shouldn't need more than the 1gb unless you like to run 50 million programs at once.
Click to expand...

untrue, 1gb is pushing the limit for me playing half-life 2, when im playing it i have only around 100mb of free memory.
 
geoff5093 said:
why do u neet a microatx motherboard? most cases are mid-towers which support ATX motherboards. And i have never heard of a dvd player/burner that you just slide the disc in, how would u get it out?. And i agree with what skidude said, you should get either an X800XT or PRO, or a 6800GT.
Click to expand...

its kind of like the car cd players where when you slide the disc in, a mechanism pulls the disc in and its trayless.
 
Yeah, I think you would be better off sticking with the 2 GB (a very respectable amount) and get one of those two cards, as I don't think dropping a gig of RAM for a level up in graphics isn't worth it.
 
geoff5093 said:
untrue, 1gb is pushing the limit for me playing half-life 2, when im playing it i have only around 100mb of free memory.
Click to expand...

i run half-life 2 / CS:source on 512mb of ram and it runs perfectly.

do you have a lot of stuff running in the background?
 
No, I don't really have that much running in the background, of course you have to have the antivirus, but not constantly running.

As for the RAM, I think I'll keep it at 2GB; the more the better for servers. Also, Half-Life 2 is one of the main reasons why I'm building this new system.

I chose mATX just because I wanted to try something different. Smaller computer = better for LAN parties (easier to carry).

Now... what about the motherboard? Can anyone help me out there? I know Gigabyte makes on that I liked... here's the link. http://www.giga-byte.com/Motherboard/Products/Products_GA-K8NMF-9.htm

Last thing. Could I fit a full size PSU inside a micro ATX case? The one I was talking about before came with one preinstalled, and it looked about half the size as a regular one.

Thanks for all your help so far.
 
as far as that cd player goes, i know exactly what you're talking about. I've seen it before... don't remember where. Good luck finding one though. It'd be easier to get a normal one. why is it so important that it be doorless?

for that whole memory/graphics card problem, you could get the 7800 and only one gig of ram and then later add another gig. it'd be much cheaper than getting a cheaper card and then later upgrading to a better one.
 
Well the whole thing was, I wasn't going to upgrade my computer for maybe a year or so. As I said before, Mini ATX formfactor boards don't have many upgrade options. When I decide to upgrade, I might just move everything to a regular ATX board, and switch some parts out. No, the tray-less DVD drive isn't important, just one of those nice things you like to add on. As for graphics, I think I'm going for a 6800GT. As for the time being though, could anyone help me with finding a motherboard? That what I really need help on.
 
i've seen this doorless drive before (don't remember where). ur gonna have one heck of a time finding one though. just get a normal one.

as far as the memory/graphics card thing go with a better card and one gig of memory. its much cheaper to upgrade the memory later on than the graphics card.
 
run4it said:
as far as that cd player goes, i know exactly what you're talking about. I've seen it before... don't remember where. Good luck finding one though. It'd be easier to get a normal one. why is it so important that it be doorless?

for that whole memory/graphics card problem, you could get the 7800 and only one gig of ram and then later add another gig. it'd be much cheaper than getting a cheaper card and then later upgrading to a better one.
Click to expand...

totally agree with that remark.
 
I manage HL2 and CS: Source AND Doom 3 on my old computer with only 256 mb. of RAM.... it aint pretty, but it worked until I got my new one!
 
THANK you Vampiric Rouge for finally helping me lol. I don't know why I didn't think of looking there in the first place... I'm stupid. But thanks :) .
 
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