Need help with 1st rig.

I've never built a computer before. However, I have a friend who says he will help me with the assembly. He referred me to this forum to learn more. Unfortunately, I have no idea what I need, how to tell if it is compatible, etc. Normally I would do more research and not jus ask all of this but I have very little time until I lose this comp and have to get this built. Plus you all seem to be pretty knowledgeable about it and more likely to know about deals. I'm looking for the best bang for my buck. Please help.

I have arbitrarily set the budget to be about $600 without a monitor and about $800 with one.

I'm shooting for the following:

3+ AMD, preferrably closer to the 4 without paying top buck for the newest. (basically the "next to the newest so it is tomorrow's comp without tomorrow's prices).
Mobo I didn't even realize was motherboard? until yesterday.
about 1-2g ram. ddr?
at least 200 g hd, prefer closer to 400-500?*
good vid/graphics card.**
windows xp (90$?)
NEC DVD burner (35$?)
nice but cheap cd rom/cdrw
floppy drive
speakers/sound stuff i know nothing about. I connect my pc to my stereo.
cooling and powersupply? I dont want either to be an issue or problem.

all new parts, no refurbish.
(*)I want to store A LOT of music and movies, which leads to (**)...
(**)I want to try streaming my tv and ripping it. I play some video games but im not extreme gamer to the max. It doesnt have to be godly, but i would hope for something at least 64+

I want to try linux too. I will probably partition and use windows and linux. So, if anyone has any suggestions feel free please.

I have no plans to oc it. I know nothing about oc'ing. However, if I can get a 4+ processor for 2ish prices I may give it a try.

Monitor I want to go with LCD slightly larger than normal stock monitor (17-19"?)

main uses:

Playing online mmorpg.
Listening to music.
Surfing.
Word processing.
Movies.

Want to try eventually:

Programming.
Hosting server.
Streaming and integrating my stereo, tv, computer more.
etc.

Payment options prefer check, money order, or gift card credit card. (I heard you can use gift cards from Simon malls like a credit card. May not work with paypal though? Basically I don't have a credit card and don't want to use my debit card).

Thanks again in advance. Sorry again for making 1st post a beg.

Good Luck in your decisions

Based on the excellent information you provided I will try to give you a starting place and maybe you can go from there:

1)Based on what you said a A64 could be an excellent chip.the 3000 and up should do what you want done.A Venice core is a solid preformer.
2)Several motherboards will work for you and the ASUS mb's are excellent preformers and I would begin my search with the A8N seris of boards.I would chose one that has the features you want and room to upgrade without costing a lot of money.
3)A gig of memory would be a good starting place and I would match the speed of the memory with the mb you select(for example a Asus A8N-sli can use ddr 3200 and I would match the board with 3200 speed memory.
4)A vid card in the range of a 6600gt or 6800gt should meet your needs.I would go to Toms Hardeware and read the vid card reviews to see if there is a specific feature you feel like you need (for example a AIW card ).

This should give you a starting place and I would go to newegg.com to look at prices to give yourself a baseline of prices to expect.
Good Luck

Hello mate and welcome to the forums!!

A sub $600 Rig. That is not too hard.
Since you are new to building computers, I'd suggest the following components:-

1.ASUS A8N $94
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813131569

2.Athlon64 3000+ $142
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819103537

3.xfx 6600gt
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814150098

4.Fortron BlueStorm AX500-A
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817104934

5.OCZ Performance series:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820146950

6.You can pick up the case and HDD, Optical drives as per your choice.

This can be a decent budget Machine.
Let me know if you have trouble setting up your PC. You could read my threads when I started off..if you promise not to laugh too loud
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=325569
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=326351
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=325569


Overclocking:
Read the links I have provided to get you started with overclocking your computer. Overclocking is a multi-discipline adventure. In order to enjoy this adventure, it is necessary to understand the basics. Once your background is solid, the rest is a breeze!

General Overclocking:
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=83663

Memory specific Overclocking Info, Stress/Burn-in programs/info:
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=257741
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=123908

Stability testing Guide:
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=335813

Info about the AMD64 processor:
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=295328


Handy software:
http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php
http://www.cpuid.org/clockgen.php
http://cpu.rightmark.org/download.shtml
http://cpu.rightmark.org/products/rmma.shtml
http://www.sisoftware.net/
http://www.mersenne.org/prime.htm
http://superpi.radeonx.com/
http://www.memtest86.com/


This should keep you busy for a while

Good Luck!

S.N

Welcome to the Forums! :Welcome:

Very nice post lots of info on what you need

to stream for your TV you will need a TV card, i believe many people like the winfast TV cards as they dont have as much lag as some of the ATI cards

a venice 3000 will be great for you

For video cards if you can afford the 6800gt you will be very happy, but the 6600gt is also a good option, you might also take a look at the x800gto^2 AND X800 pro as well

I think your expectations are a little high for $600, at leaste for a build from scratch. But here's something I came up with really quick:

Motherboard - EPoX EP-9NPA+Ultra $105
Processor - AMD 3000+ $142
Memory - 2x512MB Corsair VRAM $80
Video Card - Sapphire X550 128MB $82
Hard Drive - Maxtor DiamondMax10 200GB $66
Case - Antec SLK1650-B $62
Power Supply - Antec Smartpower 350w - Comes with case
CD Drive - NEC DVD Burner $40

Total - $607.54 with shipping.

Thanks for the quick replies everyone. I did a little research on the parts you guys listed. I found this and wondered if it would work and if it was worth it for the extra 10 $

AMD Athlon 64 3200+ 1GHz FSB Socket 939 Processor - Retail

I also wanted to see how it compared to some of the computers in the stores and customized the rig below from staples website.

It looks like the graphics are shared? What else would I lose by ordering it a la carte like below:

Hewlett Packard A1130E Customizable PC

AMD Athlong 64 3200+ (2.0ghz/512kb l2 cache) L1-0kb; L2-512kb
1gb ddr-400mhz sdram (2x512)
mem expandibility 2k mb
hd 160gb 7200 rpm sata
cd 48 max cd-rom
56k modem
10/100 base t fast ethernet
integrated ati radeon xpress hypermemory
integrated 5.1 sound
microsoft works 8.0/money/msn encarta plus
hp pavilion software bundle
hp keyboard + scroller mouse
max 4 drive bays
3 pci: 0 agp; 0 isa
windows xp

Total price 443.00
+ 75.00 shipping
- 150.00 rebate (Dont know if it is auto or if you have to buy something like digi cam. the .pdf doesn't work?)

Final cost $368?

Maybe upgrade with NEC DVD, different mobo, grafx card, etc with the left overs.

Barf, an HP. It looks decent on the outside, but the components it comes with are not quality, or at leaste not for gamers. After you upgrade to a decent video card and what-not it will end up near the same price as one you built yourself, but not as fast and not as good quality. Plus, when you build a system yourself, you get the peace of mind knowing you have exactly what you want. And it's always good to know your rig inside-out so you can get help easier in the case of a problem.

Yeah, you're probably right. I'd rather build my own than buy the hp. I just stumbled across it and thought I'd see what everyone thought.

I was also wondering, what if I bump up the Athlon to an x2? Can I cut back on other parts to compensate for the price increase?

edit: I was looking at newegg and couldn't find Athlon 64 3200+ in an OEM package. I would like to upgrade the fan, so I don't really need the retail box. Any suggestions?

Newegg doesn't carry the Athlon 64's in OEM packages (or at least not the s939 A64's, which are the ones you should get). If you're getting an A64, make sure it's a Venice core. If your budget is only $600 you probably won't want a x2. The cheapest I've been able to find a x2 3800+ on the entire internet is $340, and that's still over half of your budget. A good video card matters more than a good processor for most of the stuff you'll want to do (i.e. gaming and movies). If you're going to be oc'ing, get a 3000+ venice. All the A64 venices can oc to about the same speed on air cooling, so you'd be best off going for the lowest priced one. If not oc'ing, get the 3200+. It isn't much more expensive than the 3000+ (or at least it won't be on monday once the AMD price drop takes effect), so the performance increase will be worth it.

Are you planning on doing some overclocking? If not, than there is no need to replace the stock HSF. Also, I don't think you could downgrade your other components enough to comensate for the processor-price increase.

A dual-core CPU is definetly not the way to go with a budget rig like this. The cheapest being X2 3800+, and it costs more than $300.

Regarding the 3200+ Venice: If you're overclocking, it wouldn't be worth it. But if you aren't, I'de say go for it.

Video card: 6600GT is a good deal. If you feel like spending a little less, you could probably get away with a 6600 or a X600XT. Anything less would not be suitable in my opinion, for playing any of today's games.

Ewiz has some of the best CPU prices out there you can get a 3200+ venice core for less than $130

Several excellent suggestions have been addressed

I will try to specificly address your latest questions:
1)Thanks for the quick replies everyone. I did a little research on the parts you guys listed. I found this and wondered if it would work and if it was worth it for the extra 10 $

AMD Athlon 64 3200+ 1GHz FSB Socket 939 Processor - Retail
1R)Retail and oem chips have the same preformance however the retail versions have longer warrentys and normally come with cpu fans that preform satisfactory as long as you don't overclock.You can always upgrade to a more powerful cpu fan if you decide to overclock later.In many cases it is worth the extra money to go retail and I believe it could be for you.But it never hurts to have additional cooling if you can afford it.

2)I also wanted to see how it compared to some of the computers in the stores and customized the rig below from staples website.

It looks like the graphics are shared? What else would I lose by ordering it a la carte like below:
2R)Propritity computers like the hp,compaq,dell and others have one positive feature.That is the price.However the price comes at a cost not in money but in your loss of options.For example the major builders contract with MB manfs to build them the cheapest mb they can.Often these boards come up short in quality or features often resulting in having to buy more of thier computers.Another example of loss of options is the modem.Your stuck with what they sell.Many people want thier modem to handle data,faxes or even voice another loss of choice..Often they don't need a modem because thier dsl uses a differant type of modem.The list of loss of options as well as loss of preformance due to being stuck with the choices they companies make goes on and on.It is normally safe to say an individual can build as much preformace as they want to accolmpish what they want thier computer to do.The goals of the major computer builders are very differant than that.To answer your question you can build a lot more preformance specificly designed to meet your computng needs than anyone else can.However they can beat your cost if you can live with thier preformance-just remeber that cheaper cost often results in cheaper quaiity and less preformance parts.The specific hp you listed is handicaped to meet your needs espically in vidieo without spending a lot of money to design it for your own needs you listed.

3)I was also wondering, what if I bump up the Athlon to an x2? Can I cut back on other parts to compensate for the price increase?
3R)There is no doubtthe x2 chip would really bump up your preformance.And it would be really nice for your specific computer goals to have that specific preformance.However it would put you in a compleatly differant price range.One you stated is well beyond your budget.And sadly it would put you in a price range that would make it impossible to cut cornors to met your budget.However if I were you I would go to a site like newegg and build a shopping cart or wish list with the x2 and approiate mb and other hardeware to see what it would cost to build a unit like the x2.It is always helpful to know what it would cost to have max preformance even if you decide you can't afford it.

Thanks everyone again. This is all very helpful information. I appreciate it.

I will probably oc a little with my friend when we set it up. After that, I may research more and try to push it a little farther. Howerver, it's not certain and 10$ isn't going to break me. As long as there's no problem with the 3200 that makes it inferior to the 3000 or something.

Today I was looking at the system requirements of some of the newer games and noticed most required 1ghz+ and prefer 1.8ghz or more. On the Athlon 64's are they referring to the operating frequency, FSB, or?

I guess what I am asking is whether or not the 64 3000+/3200+ are enough to run those games comfortably. The 3000 has 1 ghz FSB and 1.8 OF.

If I dedicate more cash to the project, and decide to go with the x2 or something, I need more powerful ram and better mobo than the ones listed for the 64 3000+ right to get the most out of the processor? If so any suggestions?

I think I am going to go with one or a mix of the rigs already suggested. With the monitor at about 250 and the software, drives, etc. it's probably going to be close to 1k$. But if I can improve the machine without going up too much in price I may do it. Any input is welcomed.

Thanks again everyone.

i have to sayt that was one real good post
most ppl say: i need pc
(i know i did)

welcome to the ocf hope ya have a good time and goodluck

It's refering to the operating frequency and it's probably talking about Intel processors as most system requirement information doesn't include AMD's, or at leaste it doesn't do it by their frequency, but by the model.

Also, you probably won't need to upgrade any other component just by upgrading to the X2. And no, you won't have to change the motherboard or anything to make it compatible. (At leaste with the setup I made.)

answer

1)I guess what I am asking is whether or not the 64 3000+/3200+ are enough to run those games comfortably
1R) Yes-I will attempt to explain.Because of differances in design of the cpu the folks at amd attempted to come up with a rating system that would allow people to understand how thier cpu preformed.that is where the rating system orginated from.If you purchased an AMD 1600 you were suppose to expect the approx preformance of an 1600 megahertz intel cpu.The rating system has been modifided but it is suppose to give you an idea of where you stand.Therefore if a game requires a 1800 megtahertz intel cpu the amd 3200 is pleanty of cpu to play the game.The amd website and released working papers attempts to explain thier rating system.Websites like Hardocp and Toms Hardeware preform in-depth comparissions that do a very accurate job of comparing exact preformaces.

Welcome! You are off to a great start.

Resonable Recomendations

1) A64-3200 Venice Core Retail-A Good Price:$139 @ Newegg-upgrade to A64-3200 for $12 bucks more.Includes a 1yr warrenity and a cpu fan
2) ASUS A8N-SLI Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 SLI ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail -A Good Price:$133 bucks@newegg-upgrade to ASUS A8N-SLI Premium Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 SLI ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail for $36 more-this gives you the sli option for more vid preformance for the furture
3) Memory 2x512=1 Gig-OCZ Value Series 1GB (2 x 512MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory Model OCZ4001024V25DC-K - Retail 83.44@newegg-you can add more memory or faster memory for a upgrade later if wanted
4) Western Digital Caviar SE WD2500JS 250GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM-$100.99 @newegg-upgrade with another hd to gain the raid features the mb supports.
5) Vid card-6600gt-XFX PVT43GNDF3 Geforce 6600GT 128MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail -$127 @ newegg:upgrade to 6800gt for $127 more;sli on the motherboard will enable you to upgrade to two vid cards later if desired
This totals $584 you will still need a case,power supply,dvd burner,mointor and if you chose a floppy.Could your budget streatch a little if so this would be the basis or a solid unit.If not let us know and I will try to drop in price or preformance a little.A good Blue storm is about 90 bucks and case like the aspire or coolmaster cent 5 for about 50 bucks and about 50 bucks for a burnner.If you can find a good deal for a mointor locally it could save you in shipping.This unit has a lot of room to upgrade in the future and will usually outpreforme the priporitiy computers but it can't compete with the price of a Dell or HP.

hey, I don't have any input really, but I'd like to say how much I liked your first thread post there Scratch....provided great info for people here to assit you, nearly everything we need.