looking to build an amd system..

[89crxsi]

Hi everyone..

This is the list I made from weeks of research,this site among others helped alot..I don't need a gaming computer,however if I want to play a game I want to feel comfortable..But this will mostly be used for alot of storage,light video editing,and multi-tasking. Give me your opinions on everything,don't be afraid to bash me..

Case - see below

Power supply - SPARKLE ATX-450PN ATX12V 2.2 450W Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817103024 $50

CPU/Processor - AMD Athlon 64 X2 3600+ Brisbane 1.9GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103046 $70

Motherboard - MSI K9N Neo-F nForce 550 Socket AM2 ATX Motherboard
http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?inv...O-F-DT&cat=MBB $87

Hard disc drive - Seagate ST3200827AS 200GB SATA/300 7200RPM 8MB HDD
http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?inv...27AS-R&cat=HDD $47

RAM - see below

Optical drive - see below

Video card - see below

Modem - I have a wireless pci adapter card from linky's..it works great in the computer I'm using now $ 0

Operating system - still debating between windoows xp pro and ubuntu,,Might do a dual boot setup..$0-$100

All the other stuff not mention I have already


Please let me know what you guys think,Im open to any suggestions and other cheaper but quality parts..

[89crxsi]

I added all that up to $442(add $100 with windows) without the videocard..however the DAMN shipping is going to kill me,I know this..Is this all worth it or should I buy a pre-made system? (I really want to build my own though,but won't if theres no savings)

Also I found an old video card from a previous computer,maybe I can use it temporarily..Let me know if this thing is any good

"NVIDIA Vanta TNT-2 16MB AGP Video Card" It's from gateway millenium computer built '99 lol

[minsonngo]

For an AM2 setup... use DDR2-800 memory modules.

As for optical drives... go with SATA interface drives instead of IDE interface.



And you need a new video card... the one you found is an AGP card... the board will only take PCI-E video cards.

[Alaron]

The 7600GS is a solid budget card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130075

[89crxsi]

Thanks guys.Changed the list alittle

Case - COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 CAC-T05
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119077

Ram - Transcend JETRAM 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820208283

Video card - EVGA 256-P2-N541-T2 GeForce 7600GS 256MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130075

optical drive - LITE-ON Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 20X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD Burner with LightScribe - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827106072

Now comes out to $511 without windows..Is this a good price for this combo?

[minsonngo]

Not sure about the memory modules though... its not a familiar brand. Reviews for it looks good... maybe someone familiar with the the Transcend brand can input.


But... everything else is nice.

[89crxsi]

Yeah I wasnt sure about the memory either,but i read the review on newegg and everybody has good things to say, besides the fact that it has no heatsinks.

So if I build this computer and leave everything default,will it run stable? Because I was reading something about having to change the memory settings with this motherboard to make it more stable? I don't really understand what this means.


• Supports dual channel DDR2 400/533/667/800, using four 240-pin DDR2 DIMMs.
• Supports the memory size up to 4GB
• Supports 1.8v DDR2 SDRAM DIMM
Due to the High Performance Memory design, motherboards or system configurations may or may not operate smoothly at the JEDEC (Joint Electron Device Engineering Council) standard settings (BIOS Default on the motherboard) such as DDR2 voltage, memory speeds and memory timing. Please confirm and adjust your memory setting in the BIOS accordingly for better system stability

[minsonngo]

Based on the specs of the memory (1.8V & 5-5-5-12) and what the motherboard requires... I think it will work fine.



I just do not know about the brand. I know they don't use Micron chips which most people prefer.

[89crxsi]

Thanks.

I was browsing on their website,and under support they have alot of info,even more then a couple trusted brands websites..I think I'm going to go with these because I'm trying to keep the cost down while using good parts.

Would you change anything else in my list?
msi motherboards good?
dual core processor with a brisbane core?
would you recommend a different heatsink and fan for the cpu or is the stock components fine?

[minsonngo]

MSI boards are okay. Many on here and me included prefer ASUS boards.



The stock HSF should be fine. It will allow you to keep the warranty intact on the processor too.

[Mr.Ferrari]

I would still suggest you go with some well known corsair modules.

You don't have to go with ddr2 800 if you dont mind loosing a little bit of performance.

Corsair and G.Skill have modules around that price range in various speeds. I would check them out first.

[Windu]

Better ram. Not to much more also.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145590