Russian Assasian 0 Posted April 23, 2003 Share Posted April 23, 2003 (edited) It is about time for me to upgrade my old Dell, besides computers such as Alienwear or ABS which are too expensive I have not found anything too appeling and the best Dell's and compaqs were way over priced. So then it hit me, why not build a custom. I want to know 1 thing before I make my decision, is it hard? I plan to put on the following parts Nforce 2 ledtek 420 Watt supply AMD Athlon 2400 (2.4 GHZ) by the way should I get a P4 2.4 GHZ instead Creative Lab 5.1 sound card I am still thinking on what video card to get my choices are, Geforce 4 TI 4800 128 MB 8X AGP ( the same thing as a 4600 8X AGP), Geforce 4 TI 4200 128 MB 8X AGP, or the Radeon 9500 128MB 8X AGP, please note the 9500 is soon to go out of stock and I wont get this computer till June. 512MB of DDR4000 SDRAM So what do you think ? do you have any things that i should change? I just found a sight called ibuypower.com/ it offers great computers for a good price, do you think these are good computers? my parents will spend $1000 to 1200$ my dad says I should get AMD but A P4 would be alright, I think I will go with AMD though. I am not realy worried about building the computer since my dad knows ALOT about computers, he has been building and working with computers since the 70's but he doesnt realy know what is the "latest and greatest." keep this clean Edited April 23, 2003 by Russian Assasian Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stinger 0 Posted April 23, 2003 Share Posted April 23, 2003 1. Its Athlon 2. There is no such thing as a 4200 CPU its 2400. 3. You don't need that much ram Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dark Ranger 0 Posted April 23, 2003 Share Posted April 23, 2003 Let's try this again... Motherboard: - I'd consider the nForce2 chipset, or KT400 from Via. On motherboard manufactures, as RooK stated, Epox, Abit, and ASUS are some of the top-end ATM. - If you noticed, the nForce2 chipset I suggested was for the new 400FSB/Barton core. You can still obtain the original nForce2 for a couple bucks cheaper. It is up to you. - nStorm Audio is supposed to sound really good, although I have not heard it myself. If all you do is play a few games, and listen to a couple CDs, consider the Deluxe with nStorm audio instead of buying a sound card. - Both nForce2 models come with USB and LAN. The deluxe model includes Serial ATA(SATA 150MB/s transfer), Firewire, and a couple other goodies. CPU: - Unless you have googles of money to spend, don't buy the top-of-the-line AMD CPU. The 2400+ or 2600+ will do all that you need it to do. I am using the 2200+ @ 1.8GHz and I have yet to really push the processor(minus '03Mark ) Normal desktop apps and even some games do not really take advantage of the entire processor. Memory: - 512MB of PC2700 or PC3200 is plenty. The ONLY reason my computer has 1GB of memory, is because it is used to render some video apps or edit multiple high-res pictures simultaniously. Also, if you don't plan on OC'ing, get a standard grade of memory. I am using Samsung and I love it. Very fast. Video Card: - IMHO, this is one of the main system bottlenecks in most computers. Take out the 32MB TNT2 card from a 750MHz machine with 256 PC800/200FSB, and give it a 4200 or whatever, and it will prolong the system life extensively. So, for down-the-road applications, you might consider a 9500PRO/9700PRO. If you aren't a hardcore gamer though, the Ti4200 will work great. PSU/Case: - Antec and Enermax make great PSUs. Just be sure to get 350W+, and I'd even recommend around 430W. Check into Antec's Solution Series(cheaper) or TruePower. As for cases, get at least a Mid-Tower case. This will be better for airflow too. Look at the fan setup: Some better cases have 1 or 2 intake fans with a side, back or even top exhaust fan(s). I know most of the Antec Cases come with power supplies already in them, so that would save you some money. OS: - XP Pro. I'll stop there for now. Let me know if this will work for you. Regards, Quote Link to post Share on other sites
supasniper 0 Posted April 23, 2003 Share Posted April 23, 2003 i built my first system (in my sig) a couple of months ago and found it easy once i found the manual for the mobo also if there is a little red switch on the back of your PSU don't see what it does cos on mine at least it changes from (i'm in the UK) UK standard 230volts to US 115volts... ... the smell of fire filled the room Quote Link to post Share on other sites
=MM= SHADOW 0 Posted April 23, 2003 Share Posted April 23, 2003 Go with the Nforce 2 Board. (Via kt400 has problems with 9700pro) 9700pro Graphics 512 Mb DDR 2700 Ram (quite adequate) 2600-2800 XP processor. Very Powerful machine for a very good price.. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ruin 17 Posted April 23, 2003 Share Posted April 23, 2003 Do you need a monitor, keyboard, mouse also? The works, or only a tower? Btw, my system specs are in my sig (click the guns) I built that for $810. if $1000-$1200 is your budget, you cang et a mean machine! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
WhiteKnight77 1 Posted April 23, 2003 Share Posted April 23, 2003 You can see, that most of us here would most likely recommend a nForce2 mobo. I have the ASUS A7N8X Deluxe Mobo (tho I haven't used the onboard sound and am very happy with my Althon XP 2400+ (the same one you are thinking of and have clocked it up to 2162mHz which is equal to a Althon XP 2700+ with no stability problem.) One thing too is if you wish to upgrade your CPU in the future, with a BIOS flash you could just drop in a new AMD processor without having to get a new mobo. ASUS mobo's have a really neat utility to make flashing the BIOS really easy in a Window's enviornment (I have done it both in DOS and with the ASUS utility and like the second way better by far.) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Russian Assasian 0 Posted April 24, 2003 Author Share Posted April 24, 2003 I have decided that I will get an ATI Radeon 9500 pro 128MB with 8X AGP. If the 9500 goes out of stock before i order the computer i will get a Geforce 4 TI 4800 128MB 8X AGP. I will stick with the Nforce and the Athlon 2400. I might have a place called Krazy Kens Custom Computers build my machine which is the best computer store in Dublin (the dublin ohio thats in the Wendys comercials ) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
WhiteKnight77 1 Posted April 24, 2003 Share Posted April 24, 2003 Good Luck with it, you will have a really good system when you are done. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stinger 0 Posted April 24, 2003 Share Posted April 24, 2003 Have you changed your mind on the Ram? What about Ruin's Q's? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RooK 0 Posted April 24, 2003 Share Posted April 24, 2003 ... the smell of fire filled the room When my Antec PSU blew, it was more like the smelling of fried circut boards I still don't know why it went out, must have been one of the faulty flukes. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dark Ranger 0 Posted April 24, 2003 Share Posted April 24, 2003 Technically, fire does not "smell". It is the carbon-based exhaust, a.k.a. smoke, that gives it the characteristic aroma. @RA, Good luck on your rig. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me...seriously. You will be amazed at the increase in speed on your new 'puter. Even when I upgraded from a Via KT333 to the nForce2, I could tell definate improvement. @RooK, Your new signature is...just amazing. It's simple, yet powerful. I especially like the "sand-brush" effect on your name. GJ. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Stinger 0 Posted April 24, 2003 Share Posted April 24, 2003 Anyone heard about the KT400a chipset? Is it any good? @RooK, I second the GJ on your skin... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
RooK 0 Posted April 24, 2003 Share Posted April 24, 2003 Yes, heard of it, but it still isn't up to par with the nforce2. From the reference boards distributed, it makes a huge leap over the previous kt400 and officially supports ddr400 It also overclocks much better than the old version, mainly due to pci/agp locks. DR/Stinger: Thanks for the compliments. I'm hoping to purchase/build the rifle pictured in my sig (same config) this summer. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
300Mag 0 Posted April 24, 2003 Share Posted April 24, 2003 (edited) Every review I've seen on the KT400A vs. the NForce2 show them almost dead even. Having had two VIA chipset boards in the past, they served me well, but I can do without the constant 4 in 1 drivers. Edited April 24, 2003 by 300Mag Quote Link to post Share on other sites
snakebite1967 0 Posted April 24, 2003 Share Posted April 24, 2003 i run a kt400 mobo and love it never had an issue and never been disapointed with the performance i also run 1 gig of ddr 333 ram 512 to 1 gig is great depending on what o/s youl run and games , i found 1 gig helped out with new games like raven shield bf42 and unreal 2 the awakening , but usualy 512 is a good amount. i also trust the via chipset even tho forums are full of nvidia/via problems ive always been lucky and ya the constant hyperion driver updates can get annoying but they do seem to give a small increase each time Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Russian Assasian 0 Posted April 26, 2003 Author Share Posted April 26, 2003 (edited) Doing some more looking, I came along some video cards that were called saphire. what you have ruin. The Radeon 9700 Saphire pro 128MB 8X AGP looks like a nice card and has a good price, so I think I will get that. Edited April 26, 2003 by Russian Assasian Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ruin 17 Posted April 26, 2003 Share Posted April 26, 2003 I suggest you grab the 9500Pro. It out performs the 9700 and is cheaper. That's why they're trying to get rid of it. Mine's 128M 8x AGP as well (it's even got it's own cooling fan ) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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