My future A64 rig: tell me what you think!

[guillaume]

Based on what I read on the forum, this is what I am planning to buy. Would love your feedback on what to improve/change (while staying on the same budget), better prices, etc. ..

CPU: Athlon 64 3200 90nm 939pin E Revision (VENICE) - $199
MoBo: DFI Lanparty UT nF4 ultra D - $126
RAM: G.skill (Samsung TCCD) Dual Channel Kit 184-Pin 1GB(512MB x 2) DDR PC-4400, Model F1-3200DSU2-1GBLC - $266
PSU: Fortron Source AX500-A Blue Storm - $85
VGA: ATI X800XL - not sure which model - $280
HDD:Seagate 7200.8 200GB 7200RPM SATA NCQ Hard Drive, Model ST3200826AS - $114
Case: Antec SLK3000B - $55 (I might choose the P180...tempting but 150 for a case is a lot...
HS: Thermalright XP-120 - $56
HS Fan: Delta 120x38mm EFB1212LE - $20
NF4 Cooler: Zalman ZM-NB47J - $8
Thermal paste: Arctic Silver Céramique - $6

that's it! Not sure about which X800XL yet...I also could go for the DFI SLI and a 6800GT...decisions, decisions...Anyway, let me know what you think, given that I'm looking for good overclocking potential on air

 

[The_Candyman]

I say get a 6800GT.. and then when you get more money.. Get another one!!!>. .. Bet then of course you'll need to get the SLI version mobo.

Killer setup man... Killer. Damn.. Where are you getting your Mobo from?.. I got the same one... i got it for $131... = \

Candy

 

[guillaume]

Thanks Candy (btw forget the DFI price, I must have dreamt it... I edited it so it reflects the correct price of 126$).
So you think 6800GT is better? I have to say upgrading later on to a second one is tempting, although from what I've read SLI isn't really the killer everybody expected. I'd also have to upgrade the PSU if I go SLI...
I forgot, do you think I need a Fan controller?

 

[millhouse]

Very nice! I will be getting most of the same stuff! (check sig)

 

[guillaume]

yep, amost the same
At some point I was considering a 36Gb Raptor just for the OS, but these are still costly.

 

[Yuriman]

Change the hard drive to a 200gb or 250gb 16mb Maxtor drive. They only come in IDE, but they are a lot faster. I'd say they are probably around Raptor performance.

 

[Sentential]

When exactally are you building this?

 

[ziggo0]

Your missing my address for you to send to me when your done

 

[CalsonicGTR]

If you are really interested in the P180, Techonweb has it on their site for $107.88. OOS at the moment, but it should be back soon

P180, Resellerrating

 

[infinitevalence]

If i was buying right now thats exactly what i would buy, good choices. The Chipset cooler is never going to work so save your self $8.

 

[ryufreak]

I like the Lian Li Cases...I just saw the Lian Li PC-6010 with the aquairum thingy, LOL wow thats different!

 

[maxio098ui]

i say go lian li
lovely case
dosent really matter which one they are all beautiful

 

[CeeDeeJay]

My Thoughts

The choices you have made are solid and strong.You can't go wrong with any of them.
I do have a few questions.
1) Do you at anytime plan on going with SLI or think you will want or need SLI
to do what you want your computer to do.
If the answer is no your vid card selection is great. However if it is yes or maybe
the time to make that determination is before you purchase the ATI vid card.
2) Did you make the decision on your HD after checking out and researching the new generation of HD's.If your answer is yes then you again have made a solid choice.If not then it would be worth your time to research a little into the Raptors and the new 16 meg cashe HD's.These links can help you get started in your research:
http://techreport.com/reviews/2005q1/seagate-7200.8/index.x?pg=1
http://www.storagereview.com/articles/200410/200410087B300S0-2_3.html
3) Are you familiar with that case?Does it have the airflow and space you need?
If you satisfied that it does then it is a good choice.But the cost of a case is not as important as it's airflow and space.Here are my thoughts on the requirements to make a good case selection:
Case Selection:
Many people make their case selection based on appearance or cheap price. These are the last reasons to be considered when selecting a case. Their are two critical factors that should effect case selection.
The first of these is Air Flow. Overclockers and Toms Hardware both have had excellent articles discussing the heat generated in a computer case. Many people don't realize the temp on top of the cpu roughly approaches that of a rocket engine. Other sources of heat include the hard drive bay, the vid card, the power supply, MB as well as all the other components. When computers were slow they could operate without cpu heatsinks and fans. They cannot do that now. A modern cpu will fry in less than a second without approate heatsink and fan(unless their is a failsafe built into the chip or mb or unless you use water or extreme cooling).Good cases have airflow thru the hard drive bay and across the vid chip as well as onto the mb and across the cpu slot and thru the power supply. Fresh air from outside the case has to cool the heat generated by all the components. The Goal you should aim for is to have the inside case temp the same or as close as possible to the room temp.A Good case attempts this(and comes close).
The second factor to consider is to have enough room inside the case. This includes room for all the components you have now as well as all the components you will add in the future but it also includes enough room that allows you to run all the wiring in a manner that will still allow good air flow with all components installed and the wiring in place. There are other factors that many overlook when purchasing a case. Most people make sure the HD drive bay has enough room for all the hard drives but only the astute buyer insures there is room in the HD bay for all the hard drives and plenty of room to blow air thru the bay to cool the drives.
If you examine most of the better computer builders (not extreme cooling or water) they will have a total close to 10 fans (total) in their cases.(example;2- front fans. side fan, top fan, 2-rear fans, cpu fan, vid card fan, Northbridge fan,1 or 2-power supply fans).This is done because you have to move a lot of air to keep a top performing computer working well. They also often have larger cases to insure that the airflow is not hampered. Cost was not discussed because we discussed the performance factors that are critical to case selection.
Good Luck and it looks like you will have a great unit

 

[The_Candyman]

Thanks Candy (btw forget the DFI price, I must have dreamt it... I edited it so it reflects the correct price of 126$).
So you think 6800GT is better? I have to say upgrading later on to a second one is tempting, although from what I've read SLI isn't really the killer everybody expected. I'd also have to upgrade the PSU if I go SLI...
I forgot, do you think I need a Fan controller?

I would have to say the 6800GT is better, but we all have our own experiences.

I think you really should at least get the 6800GT, and then (if you wanna spend the extra money) get the SLI DFI mobo, and that way you have the OPTION of SLI... And whoever told you SLI isn't what they expect it to be... They joked... When my buddy had his two 6800GT's compared to his brothers one 6800GT... I nearly shiat my pants... It was like...

Candy

 

[khiloa]

Buy one for me while your at it!

 

[cooter]

I would stick with the X800 XL and do not worry about the SLI crap everyone is talking about. If in the future you absolutly need SLI, ATI will have crossfire out and it will cost the same for you to get into it, cuz you need a different mobo for either sli or crossfire.

down worry about that stuff just get that setup, that is a great card.

 

[guillaume]

This is GREAT feedback!
I guess it raises a few questions:

1) Is a 2 card SLI system really faster than a single 6800GT or X800XL?
2) InfiniteValence: why won't the chipset cooler work? Do you recommend a better solution?
3) Yuriman: I guess I didn't look into the Maxtor 16 Mb cache EIDE HDD. I'll definitely research it. I wanted to go SATA also for airflow reasons.
4) CeeDeeJay: Thanks for the detailed feedback! I did quite a bit of research on the cases, and the SLK3000B is always praised for it's cooling and good airflow. Now with the P180 at $107 (thanks CalsonicGTR!), I'm really tempted to buy one. I don't think I can go wrong with this case...
5) Sentential: I was planning on buying this within the next 2 weeks. Should I hold back? Do you know something I don't?

 

[infinitevalence]

It will not work because the Graphics card sits ontop of the chipset cooler

 

[guillaume]

Indeed... so no solution to cool down that chipset?

 

[bobmanfoo]

Change the hard drive to a 200gb or 250gb 16mb Maxtor drive. They only come in IDE, but they are a lot faster. I'd say they are probably around Raptor performance.

i have 250gb 16mb Maxtor SATA