New PC parts

[PeepinMoFo]

I havent posted here in a LONG time. I have kind of fallen out of the loop for all the new computer parts and what not. Can anyone give me a list of parts available that are the best "bang for your buck", but still provide excellent performance?

Im talking, MB, CPU, video.....all of it.


Thanks all....

[nuke]

Originally posted by PeepinMoFo
I havent posted here in a LONG time. I have kind of fallen out of the loop for all the new computer parts and what not. Can anyone give me a list of parts available that are the best "bang for your buck", but still provide excellent performance?

Im talking, MB, CPU, video.....all of it.


Thanks all....

mobo: Shuttle AK39N (via chipset) or MSI K7N-L (nf2 chipset). If you want all the latest goodies such as firewire and serialata, then an Asus A7N8X deluxe, but is much more money.

cpu: barton xp2500 (if you can find one), or else xp2200. An xp2600 would be nice with 333 Mhz FSB, but they are still a little pricey.

video: no doubt, Radeon 9500PRO, or a ti4200-8x.

sound: turtle beach santa cruz or hecules digifire 7.1 or Phillips Acoustic Edge.

monitor: any viewsonic, preferably g90f (19").

cdrw: liteon 48x12x48

psu: a GOOD one, at least 350W, from either Sparkle, Antec, Enermax, or PC Power and Cooling. Sparkles are great psu's at a great price. Remember, a GOOD PSU, I cannot stress this ENOUGH!!!!!!!

case: Chen Ming aluminum with side window, your choice of color. Great case, great price.

RAM: Good stuff, no generic, Crucial is great value. Again, GOOD RAM!!!!!!

speakers: Klipsch (but expensive), Altec Lansing or Monsoon 4.1's, very nice.

HDD: anything but IBM!!!!!!!

[netracer]

I have to agree with most of what Nuke said. Here is what I'd say:

Processor: Athon XP 2200+ or if you wanted more power, the Athlon XP 2500+ Barton core.

Motherboard: Haven't been keeping up, but I know the A7N8x is supposed to be very good

Sound: Turtle Beach Santa Cruza

video- Not sure, but probably something with 8x agp like the Radeon 9500, etc.

Monitor: Viewsonic, either 17 in or 19 in

CDRW: Lite-on 48x12x48

DVD: Lite-on 16x DVD-rom

Case/PSU: go with something cheap made by Antec. I highly recommend the sx1040 or sx1040BII, it is a big tower and comes with a 400 w PSU.

RAM: Crucial or Corsair, both are excellent.

Speakers: Logitech z-640's- 5.1 surround sound, nice quality. If you want a step up go for the z-540's, or their newest version of that.

HDD: Gotta agree with Nuke, anything but IBM . I suggest getting something with an 8mb cache, it is faster than your average hdd. Western Digital and Maxtor make these.

Man, doing this makes it crystal clear that I am starting to fall behind in new hardware- I'll have to do some research myself in the next few days

[palmboy5]

Processor: Athon XP 1700+ ThoroughBred B

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-7VAX

Sound: Turtle Beach Santa Cruza

video- ATI Radeon 9500 or GF4 4200

Monitor: Viewsonic, w/e

CDRW: Lite-on 48x12x48

DVD: Lite-on 16x DVD-rom

Case/PSU: Antec, w/e its all good

RAM: all are excellent.

[nuke]

Originally posted by netracer
I have to agree with most of what Nuke said. Here is what I'd say:

Case/PSU: go with something cheap made by Antec. I highly recommend the sx1040 or sx1040BII, it is a big tower and comes with a 400 w PSU.

RAM: Crucial or Corsair, both are excellent.

Speakers: Logitech z-640's- 5.1 surround sound, nice quality. If you want a step up go for the z-540's, or their newest version of that.

HDD: Gotta agree with Nuke, anything but IBM . I suggest getting something with an 8mb cache, it is faster than your average hdd. Western Digital and Maxtor make these.

As for the case, note that Chen Ming = Antec = Chieftec = Thermaltake......................they are ALL THE SAME CASE, MADE BY THE SAME MFGER, which is CHEN MING!!!!!!

I suggest the Chen Ming Aluminum because it is MUCH MUCH cheaper than either the Antec or Thermaltake, EVEN if you get the aluminum model with the side window. I have one, it is an EXCELLENT CASE!!!!!

For speakers, if you are gonna spend that kinda money on Logitechs, spend a little more and get the Klipsch. They are the pinnacle of computer speakers. IF that is too much, I really recommend 4.1's, especially if you are primarily a gamer, as they will be much less.

For HDD, note the "no IBM"!!!

PSU: although so far not to much on the PSU, I NEED TO SAY IT AGAIN, get a GOOD PSU. Antec is good, but I will once again recommend Sparkle - just as good and less money!

[Big B-man]

Mobo...I guess that depends on what you're looking for. Personally, Abit if I want overclocking. Iwill and Asus for options and stability. AOpen for nice boards with few frills.

PSU: I personally like Sparkle PSU's, but Antec's are pretty good as well.

Video card: Radeon 9500 Pro

Monitor: a flat screen with either a Sony or Samsung tube at least 17" that can do 1280x1024 @ 75Hz. You should be able to do that if not better. Flat screens are the way to go dude.

Ram: I like Samsung, but I can't complain about Crucial or Corsair from my readings.

[Chang]

Though they're the same case, the PSU included differs. Buying Antec guarantees you a high quality PSU. When you price the PSU by itself, getting the Antec case with the Antec PSU becomes a no-brainer.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. The best bang for the buck is what was released 6-12 months ago and has just been replaced with the new best thing every powergamer has to buy.

[nuke]

Originally posted by Chang
Though they're the same case, the PSU included differs. Buying Antec guarantees you a high quality PSU. When you price the PSU by itself, getting the Antec case with the Antec PSU becomes a no-brainer.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. The best bang for the buck is what was released 6-12 months ago and has just been replaced with the new best thing every powergamer has to buy.

The beauty of a chen ming case is you can get them without PSU's, and put your own in, so you know it is high quality.

My chen ming and sparkle only cost $180 CDN, or like $0.35US!

[Drew U]

Check my sig, all new parts. If you want 200 fsb & a 600--> 900 Mhz overclock for a reasonable price.

[nub]

Originally posted by nuke
$180 CDN, or like $0.35US!

Sorry to be off topic and not contribute, but that was hillarious.

[hella356]

The XP2200 is a bad choice at this point since they run so much hotter than a TBred-B XP2100 and don't overclock to anywhere near the same level. Even if not OCing I think it's worth it to save the extra $10 and be able to live with a quieter system. An increase of 66MHz isn't really noticable anyway.

PeepinMoFo, will you be overclocking? What will you use the computer for?

[Chang]

Originally posted by nuke
The beauty of a chen ming case is you can get them without PSU's, and put your own in, so you know it is high quality.

You missed my point. Buying the generic Chenming case and then buying the separate Antec PSU costs a lot more than buying the Antec case bundled with the Antec PSU. Of course this only works when the config you want is sold as an Antec bundle.

[PeepinMoFo]

Thanks for all the responses....Thats exactly what I was looking for.

Nuke - That canadian remark was the funniest thing Ive heard (or read, or seen) all day...hahaha

As for what Ill be doing with this rig, it will be upgrading my current one. I will make it my primary rig for games and such.

One question I have:

Whats the benefit of a radeon 9700 or 9800 over a 9500 (performance wise) comparing the cost?

[nuke]

Originally posted by PeepinMoFo
Whats the benefit of a radeon 9700 or 9800 over a 9500 (performance wise) comparing the cost?

Well, since I haven't seen any R9800's yet, I will only compare the 9700.

In CDN $'s, the 9700 is like $200-250 more (not quite double the price). The performance gain in real world terms is only relevant if you want to run games at 1600x1200x32 with full AA and AF on. Then the 9700 prolly is worth it. Not many ppl do that though. So the decision is really up to you - save money and get the 9500PRO with really good performance, or be able to play games at extreme resolutions for twice the cost.

[Chang]

Let me just say (with tongue firmly in cheek) that since the 9500 was only released in October 2002, you'll have to wait until April 2003 before six months have passed and it gets the best bang for the buck designation.

Also, depending on your mobo, you may want to just use the onboard sound -- especially if it's the nice onboard Dolby Digtal 5.1 setup.