New machine. Opinions ?

Ponster

This is just a quick last-minute check with you guys.

I'm getting this for my brother. He's looking for a machine for gaming but not a serious overclocked who needs SLI and all that jazz...



Asus A8N-E, nForce4 Ultra, Socket-939, ATX, S-ATA, GbLAN, Sound, PCI-Ex16 €100
AMD Athlon 64 3500+ 2.2GHz Socket 939, 512KB, BOXED w/fan €184
Samsung SpinPoint P120S 250GB SATA2 8MB 7200RPM NCQ €115
Antec Sonata II Miditower, Black w/450W PSU €109
Corsair Value S. PC4200 DDR2 2048MB Kit w/two matched Value Select 1024MB €209
POINT OF VIEW GeForce 6800GT 256MB GDDR3 , Tv-Out, DVI, Retail, PCI-Express €211
Acer 19" LCD AL1916S TCO99 Monitor, Silver/Black, 12ms €277
NEC DVD±RW burner, ND-3550A, 16x, Dual, White OE €43.9


€1118

plonk

Your ram isnt compatable with your mobo you need ddr-dimm pc3200

conzy

1. Get the 3700 its only a few euros dearer than the 3500 but its much better

2. One gig of low latency ram would be better than 2 gigs of value ram and DDR2 is
NOT compatible with that system get Crucial ballistix (best bang for buck ram)

3. Asus A8n-E is good, but i think it doesnt support sata2

4. And I think the sonata 2 has a 20pin ATX connector on the PSU which should NOT be used on a ATX 2.2 Motherboard

Other than that its a nice system

Ponster

Thanks for the fast replies.....The next time I'll put one together with my eyes open

The Asus A8n-E supports Sata2 so that's cool.

The 3700 isn't that much more expensive (€30) so is probably worth it, yeah.


As for the RAM, I can pick up :

Corsair DDR XMS PC3200 (400mhz) 1024Mb - Cas 3 (3-3-3-8) - ECC, Registered for €135

I'll look into the Antec Sonata II PSU. I have the Phantom 500W and it was backwards compatable with pretty much everything so guessed that all their products.


Thanks again !

duridian

Ponster wrote:

Corsair DDR XMS PC3200 (400mhz) 1024Mb - Cas 3 (3-3-3-8) - ECC, Registered for €135

The latency of that ram is quite high(CAS 3) for PC3200 DDR ram, it wouldn't be great. You should really be looking for stuff with lower latency CAS 2, or at least CAS 2.5. With latency a lower number means better.

leeroybrown

Ponster wrote:

Corsair DDR XMS PC3200 (400mhz) 1024Mb - Cas 3 (3-3-3-8) - ECC, Registered for €135

I'm with the above posters who suggest getting better RAM. For about 25 more you should be able to pick a pair of 512's that will do 2-2-2-5 IT.

Ponster

OK. I had a look around for something better and I can get a pair of 512 (2-3-3-6) for the same money.

DonkeyRhubarb

All looks pretty good,, but like what was said, change the RAM to 3200. Also, the way 7800's have depreciated, you might look into a 7800GT. The only other thing I might change is the PSU, but that's a matter of preferance. Regards, Mike

DemonOfTheFall

Get the 2 gigs, trust me. So much smoother than 1 gig. Especially if he's gonna be playing battlefield 2, or any games coming out in the next while.

Ponster

The RAM is being changed to 3200 yeah.

As for the PSU, I'm a big Antec fan since I picked up my Phantom and my brother doesn't really care in the end as long as it works.

2Gb of LL RAM isn't an option as it pushs the budget up to far.

There's no problem in him updating in the fuuure though but best to spend what he can to get a working system.

DonkeyRhubarb

I don't mean change the brand of the PSU, just a more powerful one perhaps.

WizZard

Ponster wrote:

Corsair DDR XMS PC3200 (400mhz) 1024Mb - Cas 3 (3-3-3-8) - ECC, Registered for €135

Registered ECC RAM won't work with that board. You need unregistered.

Ponster

DonkeyRhubarb wrote:

I don't mean change the brand of the PSU, just a more powerful one perhaps.

More powerful than 450W?

I workde out the wattage of everything that he could possible have in the machne and I don't get any highter than 380W. I know there are often other factors but I'm pretty sure that 450W will be good enough

uberpixie

Ponster wrote:

More powerful than 450W?

I workde out the wattage of everything that he could possible have in the machne and I don't get any highter than 380W. I know there are often other factors but I'm pretty sure that 450W will be good enough

450W is plenty.

Stick to cas 2.5 ram. You will see a difference beteewn cas 3 and cas 2.5 ram.

The difference between cas 2 and 2.5 in games is minimal.

DemonOfTheFall

http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=122785&cks=PRL

This kit looks up to the task. I know, ick, Corsair. But, decent timings and a decent price. I've found my corsair pretty damn reliable and decent.