New Build - Suggestions?

[ren]

I've decided to build my own computer. I'm recycling these parts from other computers: ATX Full Tower Case, CD-ROM, CD-RW (have Nero burning software), HDD, Floppy, Video Card, WinXP OS

ASUS P5P800 SE Socket T (LGA 775) Intel 865PE ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
Model #: P5P800 SE
$89.99

VIKING 1GB (2 x 512MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered System Memory Model VGDDR64X64PC3200/2 - Retail
Model #: VGDDR64X64PC3200/2
$73.99

Intel Pentium 4 511 Prescott 533MHz FSB LGA 775 EM64T Processor Model BX80547PE2800EN - Retail
Model #: BX80547PE2800EN
$127.00

SPARKLE ATX-300PA ATX12V 300Watts Power Supply,24pin & 4pin, SATA - OEM
Model #: ATX-300PA
Item #: N82E16817103514
$28.99

I use this for occasional gaming and for college work, etc. I've checked all of the components for compatibility and they all seem to be all right. Is there anything that I've missed, or does anyone have any suggestions before I buy these parts?

[doubledragon5]

The Prescot core runs hot, so make sure you have a good cooler for that cpu other than the stock one that comes with it.. You may also want to have another fan in the front bringing in cool air to help with cooling the case.. Other than that it looks fine...

[not important]

If you can spare the money, I would go to a CPU with the 800Mhz FSB to take advantage of Hyper Threading and your PC3200 RAM. I wouldn't be to concerned about heat. I have a Prescott 630 3.0 w/stock HSF in an Antec Sonata II case that never goes above 50C under hard loads.

[jayb1234]

If you use a case off this page, you shouldn't have any heat issues using the stock fan/heatsink. Bad airflow is the usual reason for hot running Prescott core CPUs.

This Antec case/PSU would be a good choice if 350W is enough to run your video card.

[ren]

Intel Pentium 4 630 Prescott 800MHz FSB LGA 775 EM64T Processor Model BX80547PG3000F - Retail
Model #: BX80547PG3000F
$182.00

ASUS P5P800 SE Socket T (LGA 775) Intel 865PE ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
Model #: P5P800 SE
$89.99

VIKING 1GB (2 x 512MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered System Memory Model VGDDR64X64PC3200/2 - Retail
Model #: VGDDR64X64PC3200/2
$73.99

SPARKLE ATX-300PA ATX12V 300Watts Power Supply,24pin & 4pin, SATA - OEM
Model #: ATX-300PA
Item #: N82E16817103514
$28.99

Shipping: $18.44

Total Cost: $393.41

Oh, and I have a bunch of case fans, so I would think the stock HSF would be ok... any other suggestions?

[not important]

You will need a case. The link that jayb1234 posted will take you to a selection of Antec's. Most come with a power supply and they are good quality.
The motherboard you selected will also require an AGP video card.

[tomster2300]

I don't know if Viking is quality ram or not. Switching to a gig of Corsair ValueSelect ram (DDR400 pc3200) would give you more assurance. I have two sticks of the Corsair Value in this machine and I haven't had a problem.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145480

It's only $10 more than what you have picked out already. Whatever you do, make sure you get two sticks so that you can utilize dual channel. Ex: 2 x 512 mb = 1 gig. That link is a dual channel set.

[ren]

I already have a full tower ATX case, and an AGP card, and all those other parts I had listed in the original post ... I'm having second thoughts about the motherboard I picked out because I have a feeling there won't be any AGP cards on the market... would it be better to go with a PCI Express x 16 slot?

[nosefirst]

The future...
Although future-proof isnt really possible I would think your motherboard would be one of the most important elements in considering how long your rig will be useful.

[tomster2300]

AGP is pretty much dead. It's kind of surprising that Nvidia released an AGP version of their 7800 line, the 7800 GS, but besides that you probably won't see many more. Practically every board is now PCI-E and pretty much all card manufacturers have abandoned AGP. Does that mean that an AGP 6800 card can't play today's newest games? No, they most certainly can (albeit not at the highest settings or resolutions). But, they're still worth their salt. My AGP 6800 GT can play Age of Empires III at 1280 x 1024 at the highest settings with only minimal slowdown during very intense fights. (Thanks to my recent extensive cleaning job). It plays Doom III smooth as silk and BF2 pretty well (very well on medium settings). If I threw in another gig of ram it would run just fine on all high. HL2 is good as well. Now, if I played F.E.A.R. on all high it would probably sit down and cry, but I bet I could play it on some of the lower settings.

It's your choice. If you want longetivity (three or so years for the casual gamer) then definately go with a pci-e card. If you want to play stuff fairly well right now, then a cheap AGP board wouldn't be too bad since you already have an AGP card. A cheap board is easily replaced in a couple of months with a newer pci-e capable one. By going with a nice pci-e board now allows you to upgrade video cards for the next couple of years without having to worry about the AGP - PCI-e issue down the road. The only problem there is you'd be looking at buying both a new video card and mobo today (or you could just buy one and stare at your computer until you could buy the other). The choice is yours. I personally face the same problem and have decided to wait for the new M2 processors to come out so that I can have even more upgradeability options (but that's a whole other topic).

There is no such thing as future proof.

BTW, I don't think you've said it yet, but what kind of AGP card do you have? That would help us in telling you what kind of gaming potential you really have.

[ren]

ok, i think i'm going to go with a PCI-E motherboard... which is better?

ASUS P5GD1-VM Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

ASUS P5GPL-X Socket T (LGA 775) Intel 915PL ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

MSI 915P Neo-F ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

ABIT GD8 Socket T (LGA 775) Intel 915P ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

AOpen i915Pa-E ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

And it would need to be compatible with:

Intel Pentium 4 630 Prescott 800MHz FSB LGA 775 EM64T Processor Model BX80547PG3000F - Retail


What would be a mid-level but pretty good video card under $100? since i need to add this, i'd prefer not to spend an arm and a leg on it. Anyway, if I get some more cash later on, i can always upgrade if i go with pci-e. besides, the only pc games I play are the tomb raider series (and I will get TR: Legend for PC when it comes out) and the Sims 2. So it doesn't need to be a spectacular card. I play everything else on my PS2. oh, by the way, my old agp card was a nvidia fx 5200 (it came with my Dell), which isn't that great, so i needed an upgrade anyway.

by the way, i usually tend to stick to nvidia-based cards, but i wouldn't mind going with ati if it's a better card for the money.

[BrokenKingdom]

Here, this board would keep you in the running for a while as far as upgradeablility and if you're going to be spending about a hundred dollars on the mobo anyway might as well get an SLI board even if your not going to use it right away. Only thing to remeber is later on when you do decide to upgrade make sure to get an SLI approved PSU.

And this would be a great card in the range you are looking for. It's just over $100 ($104.00) but its a good card for the price.

[glc]

The Sparkle PSU is good, but spend an extra $15 to $20 on a 450 watt XClio.

Get the Asus P5PL2 board with the 945P chipset and DDR2 ram - it's actually a bit cheaper than standard DDR. Corsair Value Select DDR2-533 would be the best match.

Squeeze out another 20 bucks and get a 6600GT video card.

You will have a solid, stable, and fast system which won't need any upgrading for a while.

[ren]

does the p5pl2 have IDE connector(s) on the motherboard?

the asus site says:
1 x UltraDMA 100/66/33
4 x Serial ATA II (3Gb/s)

that means there is one IDE connector?

sorry if it's a dumb question, but i have a 2 optical drives and a HDD, so i wasn't sure...

I think I prefer this motherboard... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131520

It has DDR instead of DDR2, but is there that much of a difference in performance?

[glc]

It's a good board, but it's micro ATX which means it's slot limited, and it has onboard video which you won't be using. If you need more than one IDE channel, get this one:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131538

The XClio is out of stock, by the way, but you can get a 400 watt Fortron for 40 bucks.