[ubermu]

Hey guys I just bought a Radeon 9700np and 200gig harddrive, and decided that I mine as well build an entirely new system and give the one I currently have to my sister.

The system I'm using now is a P4 1.6@2.5, 2x512 Crucial 2700mb, 80gig 8mb hd, geforce 4200 128mb, believe it's an Asus something or other and a standard soundblaster and what not.

I primarily used the PC for gaming and haven't had any real problems with it yet but since I'm getting new parts I decided I wanted a fresh start and also just have the satisfaction of building and OCing a new comp.

So I ask you guys, what should I get? I'll want a whole new setup, new case, new fans, new power supply, new mobo, new processor, new heatsink, new everything minus a monitor mouse and actually I want a new keyboard too. So I'd like to throw out an all-encompassing what should I be getting if I intend to game, and that is not too expensive because I'm an OCer at heart and like to watch what I spend my money on rather than dish out for an overpriced cpu.

I was thinking 2500+ because I hear the combo is cheaper and it's only 5% slower than the 2.4c overclocked, I don't think I've had a good history with AMD though so swaying me towards a 2.4c won't be that hard. But I'd still like any and all opinions on the subject matter. I'm looking for not only CPU advice, but MOBO advice along with it, ram advice (I want 1gig in the mobo so I'm guessing 2x512 but what speed?), I definately want heatsink/fan/power supply/case advice because I want this system to be QUIET, my current system is loud as **** and if I were to leave it on at night I'd never get any sleep. Basically I'm asking what you would build while being somewhat prudent with your money. I can afford 2.4c or 2500 and whatever else, I'm not looking for an A64 just yet but I'll be looking into that in the future. I just want something that will perform now that I'll be happy with because it's fast and quiet.

[kfunk]

What's your budget?

[ubermu]

No real budget, I just want to spend smart. I'm not limited by anything other than my general thriftiness, I'd rather pay based on "bang for buck" rather than "only the best will do".

[Deathknight]

Well I am an AMD guy myself. I won't try to sway you too much 1 way or another but I will give my advice based on AMD since thats my bag.

I would go with the Abit NF7-S for a motherboard. Its got good features but more importantly is a great ocer.

For the CPU I would go with either a 2500+ barton or a 1700+ DLT3C (lower default voltage).

For a heatsink go with an slk-900u. Depending on your budget you may want something a little cheaper like an slk-800 or an sk-7.

For a fan thats probably more a matter of how much cfm you want and how much noise will you tolerate. Alot of people like to use the smartfan2 cuz it has the fan controller.

IMHO PC Power & Cooling is the best brand of PSU but being as expensive as they are I recommend a good Fortron. A 350W fortron with the 120mm fan is great and is very quiet. Depending on how much ocing you do and how many other components you are running you may want to go with a bigger psu though. I am using the 530w fortron in my latest system and I love it.

As for a good case for a quiet machine I say go with the Antec SLK-3700AMB. It has 2 120mm fan mounts for good airflow without alot of noise, grommets for mounting the harddrives(again less noise) and has a real nice paint job. The compucase LX-6A19 is internally the same case and comes without a power supply but I have been having a hard time finding it in stock lately.

[ubermu]

How does the 1700+ compare to the 2500+ in performance? Does the fact that the 1700+ having half the L2 cache of the Barton make it a bad choice?

[Jognt]

im going to be building a new system too, specs r in my sig under "new rig"

i believe the 1700+ OC'ed better than the 2500+ but thats my thought, being an intel guy atm, doesnt really give me a lot of AMD knowledge..

[ubermu]

Thanks for the advice so far guys. I ran across a post a day ago that talked about the best components for a quiet comp but I lost it, it had a bunch of names and prices but I can't seem to find it anymore, does anybody know the link to it?

[Deathknight]

Will try and hit both your questions at once here ubermu. As for the performance diff between 1700+ and the 2500+ barton well most people equate the extra cache to about 100mhz, maybe a little bit more. Its a pretty tough call which to get at this point. 1700+ procs probably hit good speeds more consistantly but I have been seeing more and more good 2500+ ocs lately.

As for the post about building a quiet pc this might be the one you are refering to. If its not well read it anyways cuz its great info:

http://forum.oc-forums.com/vb/showth...hreadid=225234

[ubermu]

Hey thanks for the link.

So what you're saying is it makes no difference if I go with a 1700, 1800B or a 2500 because they generally have the same performance?

Also your case recommendation you said it has 2 120mm but on the link the author sais that 120mm fans aren't as good as good 80mm fans. Should I go with your case or should I just stick to what he said and go with what he's done (w/ modifications). He also uses an SK-7 instead of an SLK-900 like you recommend, what are the differences between the two there?

Also what about memory, is 2700 ok or should I step it up to 3200 or 3500 and what type?

Edit: The author also sais to get a 300 watt power supply but will that even be enough for overclocking? I somehow am beginning to question his method.

[Deathknight]

Yeah I think its a matter of personal preference on the 1700+ vs the 2500+. I have seen a couple of 2500+ ocs that were pretty darn high and with that cache would make them really sweet. I ended up going with the thing that I felt was the more sure thing and got a 1700+ but it was a hard call to make.

For a heatsink I did mention the sk-7, I just threw the slk-900 out there for its top notch performance. The sk-7 is a quality HS and is the best bang for the buck HS for an AMD machine.

As for cases well I guess its personal preference if you want 120 or 80mm fans. I like the 120mm fans because of the amount of air you can move with them. Alot of fans develop noises when undervolted, but there are several brands that perform pretty well at low voltage(the panaflo L1A being one of them). Unless you are a complete silence buff I think that either 80s or 120s would probably be quiet enough for you. If you do want absolute silence then definatly follow cmcquistion's advice, its all good stuff in that article

[ubermu]

So what's the sure thing right now? Is the 1700 or 1800 still worth it or should I opt for a Barton 2500 intead. And if I do is there a special barton I should look for like the DLT3C for the 1700 or 1800?

Also which ram is better Corsair or Buffalo, what exact ram speeds will I be needing? Will 2700 suffice, or 3200 or should I just go all out 3500 given a certain processor.