Seeking advice on new computer

[bigjp]

Thanks Nomad! I'm going to keep researching X64 and see what I turn up. It looks like drivers are coming out for it, but how quickly?....we'll have to see. I do want to get it because it seems to be what will keep me going in the future.

OC'ing looks really cool and I want to try and see what I can do with it. Just a little at a time and see how I do. I'm going to run the PC in a room with no a/c and it gets pretty hot in the summer, so I'm not sure if I should just go for the extra heatsink. I've been reading about this as well and it may be that blowing hot air may not help my problem if I run into overheating issues. This will be something I'll have to watch closely if I go that route.

Anyone have other comments on the rig I'm planning? I'm thinking for an extra $90 I can have 2 gb of ram. This may be overkill, but if I go with X64 I don't want ram to be an issue (bottleneck) with it.

One other thing....since finding this site, I can't believe how much I've learned about PC's. I'm still a complete moron with them, but I can figure some stuff out. For comparison sake, I'd say my computer IQ was around 30, and now it's around 60. So I'd still be put in the special ed classes, but at least I can put a sentence together (with a little help).

 

[Praetor]

SAPPHIRE 100119L Radeon X550 256MB 128-bit DDR PCI Express x16 Video Card

For the price of that, you should also consider the superior GeForce 7800 series

SONY Black IDE DVD-ROM Drive Model DDU1615/B2s - OEM

Not that thi will probably make a world of difference, i'd reccomend the LiteOn drives (see cd101)

I would suggest 80/92mm fan

Another question about Windows. I don't have a disk or full version of Windows now. Will I need to buy the retail version of XP (whichever one I end up getting) or will the OEM still work for me? Is the retail version just for folks who want to put it on multiple systems?

Retail is for the folks who think they may want to reinstall at some point in the future

Thanks Nomad! I'm going to keep researching X64 and see what I turn up. It looks like drivers are coming out for it, but how quickly?....we'll have to see. I do want to get it because it seems to be what will keep me going inthe future.

Drivers for 64bit windows are fairly reliable now

Just a little at a time and see how I do. I'm going to run the PC in a room with no a/c and it gets pretty hot in the summer, so I'm not sure if I should just go for the extra heatsink.

Which heatsink did you have in mind?

I'm thinking for an extra $90 I can have 2 gb of ram.

For that i'd prolly go for it

This may be overkill, but if I go with X64 I don't want ram to be an issue (bottleneck) with it.

Ram wont be bottlenecked whether you got 64bit OS or not

One other thing....since finding this site, I can't believe how much I've learned about PC's. I'm still a complete moron with them, but I can figure some stuff out. For comparison sake, I'd say my computer IQ was around 30, and now it's around 60. So I'd still be put in the special ed classes, but at least I can put a sentence together (with a little help).

Glad you like and enjoy it

 

[bigjp]

For the price of that, you should also consider the superior GeForce 7800 series

I just added 5 of them to my shopping cart. I would've added a baker's dozen, but I'm trying to keep this build under 10k.

Which heatsink did you have in mind?

This is the one I was looking at....

Thermaltake VENUS 12 80mm Ball Cooling Fan/Heatsink - Retail

Since I'm looking at 2 GB's of RAM, for a bit more I can get it in 2 sticks instead of 4 if I go with OCZ Value. How does this look?

OCZ Value Series 1GB 184-Pin DDR SDRAM

 

[Praetor]

I just added 5 of them to my shopping cart. I would've added a baker's dozen, but I'm trying to keep this build under 10k.

LOL my bad... saw the "50" on "550" and forgot ATi released the 550. Realistically you wont see much benifit from 550 over the 300 series (because all there really is, is an overclock)

Thermaltake VENUS 12 80mm Ball Cooling Fan/Heatsink - Retail

Good cooler for its price however:
1. Something like Thermaltakes own SilentTower or DIY Tower112 is superior
2. The Venus12's performance is really sensitive to dust

Since I'm looking at 2 GB's of RAM, for a bit more I can get it in 2 sticks instead of 4 if I go with OCZ Value. How does this look?

Looks good: it's better to get it in two sticks rather than four but that route often depends on the budget

 

[bigjp]

Good cooler for its price however:
1. Something like Thermaltakes own SilentTower or DIY Tower112 is superior
2. The Venus12's performance is really sensitive to dust

Lots of dust here, so one that is sensitive to that is OUT. Both of the coolers you mentioned look good, but the Tower112 is very heavy according to reviews. Any idea of a good way to support it so it doesn't put much strain on the mobo?

 

[bigjp]

The nitty gritty

I'm pretty sure I have everything picked out that I need. Now I just want to make sure I have all the things I'll need to put it together.

For the 2 SATA drives, will I just need the Ultra ATA-133 IDE round cable with 3 heads? And another one for the optical drives? Should I get the 18" or 24"?

Also, I have a 60 gb ATA100 (I think...maybe it's 133) that I have bunches of digital pics on. Can I throw this in the system and pull the pics off to put on my new HDD? I'm using Windows ME in my current system, so will that conflict with XP? If I can do that, will a 12" 2 head round IDE cable work to hook it up?

I'm also getting Artic Silver 5, but see there are a few different types. Which one should I get?

Is there anything I'm missing that I'll need to put it together?

I switched cases too because this one has some good things said about the airflow. COOLER MASTER Centurion

 

[bigjp]

While I was messing around doing research, all the items that were on sale at newegg that I wanted went off sale....damn! Oh well, another $50 it will cost me.

Anyone have any advice they can give about my above post on the extras I'll need to put the computer together?

Thanks!

 

[Praetor]

Both of the coolers you mentioned look good, but the Tower112 is very heavy according to reviews. Any idea of a good way to support it so it doesn't put much strain on the mobo?

If you attatch it properly (i.e., read the instructions) and you dont jar the case (i.e., dont kick it) then you'll be fine.

For the 2 SATA drives, will I just need the Ultra ATA-133 IDE round cable with 3 heads? And another one for the optical drives? Should I get the 18" or 24"?

SATA drives use SATA cables rather than Ultra ATA133 cables. Between 18 and 24" cables, i prefer the longer ones: more room to folder the cables

i'm also getting artic silver 5, but see there are a few different types. which one should i get

Arctic Silver 5

Also, I have a 60 gb ATA100 (I think...maybe it's 133) that I have bunches of digital pics on. Can I throw this in the system and pull the pics off to put on my new HDD? I'm using Windows ME in my current system, so will that conflict with XP? If I can do that, will a 12" 2 head round IDE cable work to hook it up?

You'll have to reinstall the OS or install a new one (most likely) before being able to access the files like that

 

[bigjp]

I'm about to hit the buy button at newegg, but wanted to throw my final choices out here one last time before doing so. There's some good rebates on the items I chose right now, so I'd like to get it before they expire. Before you mention something about the SLI mobo, there is a $25 rebate and $20 instant saving on it because I'm buying with the X2 AMD. It comes out to be only $79 after all that.

I'll be using Pinnacle Studio Plus 9 for video editing. And I'm also going to try out a few games….my first time gaming. Video editing is much more important to me than the gaming aspect, so I'd like to avoid buying the really expensive graphics card if possible....stress on "if possible".

Star Wars Galaxies: Total Experience PC Game LUCASARTS - Retail
Unreal Tournament 2004 PC Game ATARI - Retail
Digital Jesters Bet on Soldier: Blood Sport - OEM (free from newegg)

Also, for security software I'm looking at PC-Cillin 2005….what do you think?

Any comments or maybe some things I should add/change? How about software? I'd like to have some good security for my system, so will have to learn more about doing that. But if you have any recommendations of what I could buy to help in that dept, I'd appreciate it. I added the little extra stuff like cables, so I hope I have everything I need to complete the build.

COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 CAC-T05-UW Black Aluminum/Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

ENERMAX Whisper II EG565P-VE FMA(24P) ATX12V 535W Power Supply - Retail

MSI K8N Neo4/SLI Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 SLI ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail

AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+ 1GHz FSB Socket 939 Dual Core Processor Model ADA3800BVBOX - Retail

OCZ Peroformance 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory-Retail

SAPPHIRE 100119L Radeon X550 256MB DDR PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail

Maxtor DiamondMax 10 6L300S0 300GB 7200 RPM Serial ATA150 Hard Drive - OEM (X2)

LITE-ON Black IDE DVD-ROM Drive Model SOHD-16P9SBLK - Retail

NEC Black IDE DVD Burner Model ND-3540A - Retail

Logitech X-530 70 Watts 5.1 Speaker - Retail

Rosewill R910P 19" 8ms LCD Monitor - Retail

Software
Microsoft Windows XP Professional X64 Edition 1 package - OEM
PINNACLE Studio Plus Version 9 - Retail
TREND MICRO PC-Cillin 2005 Internet Security - Retail
Star Wars Galaxies: Total Experience PC Game LUCASARTS - Retail
Unreal Tournament 2004 PC Game ATARI - Retail
Digital Jesters Bet on Soldier: Blood Sport - OEM (free from newegg)

 

[bigjp]

Here's the other vid card I'm looking at

POWERCOLOR Radeon X800GT

....more expensive, so I'm thinking it over. I know Geforce is popular for gaming, but I'm getting the idea that Radeon is better for video. Do you guys have an opinion on this? I'm looking for a card that will be better for video, but will work for casual gaming. Should I save my money and just stick with the X550? I'm already in pretty deep, so I'm starting to think about just diving in even deeper.

 

[Praetor]

Also, for security software I'm looking at PC-Cillin 2005….what do you think?

Not a big fan of it myself but realistically there isnt a world of difference between the major players in security software

Here's the other vid card I'm looking at
POWERCOLOR Radeon X800GT

Compared to the 550 id suggest the X800GT hands down.

....more expensive, so I'm thinking it over. I know Geforce is popular for gaming, but I'm getting the idea that Radeon is better for video. Do you guys have an opinion on this? I'm looking for a card that will be better for video, but will work for casual gaming. Should I save my money and just stick with the X550? I'm already in pretty deep, so I'm starting to think about just diving in even deeper.

Well it kinda depends on whether the games you suggested will tide you over for how long and when you might upgrade again ... if you dont plan on upgrading for some time ... go all in now as far as u can ... if you plan on upgrading soon then grab the cheaper of the two