advice welcome

[licarus]

hello,

i am trying to set up my first homebuilt pc. this is my choice for the
moment:
asus a8e-n
athlon 64 3200+
2x twinmos 512mb
barracuda 7200.7 200gb sata
geforce 6600gt

since i do not need superperformance, but a good pc that can last a
couple of years, these are my doubts:
do you thin 3200+ is going to be old very soon? better 3500+?
is seagate ok? it seems to be more reliable than maxtor and less
expensive than western.
a more performant graphics card would be appropriate (maybe a 6800gs [i
prefer nvdia for shader model 3.0 support].
last, but not least: i am at loss as to what case to buy. any idea?
what are the main features of a case.
thank you everybody for your advice!
lorenzo

 

[nos1eep]

On 18 Dec 2005 00:36:20 -0800, (e-mail address removed) spewed the following
drivel:

<hello,
<
<i am trying to set up my first homebuilt pc. this is my choice for
the
<moment:
<asus a8e-n

Do you mean A8N-E?

<athlon 64 3200+
<2x twinmos 512mb
<barracuda 7200.7 200gb sata
<geforce 6600gt
<
<since i do not need superperformance, but a good pc that can last a
<couple of years, these are my doubts:
<do you thin 3200+ is going to be old very soon? better 3500+?
<is seagate ok? it seems to be more reliable than maxtor and less
<expensive than western.
<a more performant graphics card would be appropriate (maybe a 6800gs
[i
<prefer nvdia for shader model 3.0 support].
<last, but not least: i am at loss as to what case to buy. any idea?
<what are the main features of a case.
<thank you everybody for your advice!

You have a socket 939, buy as much cpu as you can afford and if not
satisfied, you can upgrade to something faster.
Seagate has a 5 year warranty, Maxtor a 3 year. I like the Hitachi
(IBM) Deskstars (3 year warranty) and put them in the systems that I
build unless another drive is requested.
http://www.storagereview.com/articles/200310/20031007HDS722525VLSA80_3.html
The main features I look for in a case are removable drive bays, a
rail system for the 5.25 bays, 120mm fans, an easily cleaned air
filter, and the exterior finish. I prefer Lian Li or Thermaltake
cases.
-nos1eep

-Scaling up the heights of folly.
-non est ponenda pluritas sine necessitate

 

[Bob]

Well, you are in the right place to learn about building your first PC.

The guys here helped me build my first PC about 5 years ago and I never
had any problems with it. And they helped me build my second PC a
month ago.

It seems like the more you spend, generally, the longer the PC will
last or have a useful life before it eventually becomes out dated.

But that only goes to a point. I think that point is someplace just
below the highest level of what is available, because the highest level
may cost twice as much as the second level and only perform 10% faster
or better.

On the case, I think you should pick a full tower case with lots of
room in it and with casters to make it easy to roll out to work on it.
That is unless you have a need for a smaller size. There are a lot of
good cases out there and it would be best if you could go to some local
stores and look at them. Open them up and touch the insides and pull
out the removable parts so you get an idea of what you like and
dislike. Look at the cooling options, number of fans, filters for
fans, openings for fans or venting. I bought my current case for only
$30 on sale, marked down from $90 but it isn't a full tower.

Drives - sounds like you know what you like and go with that. I have
used maxtor in the past but my new PC has a faster (10,000 rpm) Sata
drive by western.

I went with a 7800 GT card for $290 on newegg.com and it is a great
card.

Once you build your own you will never go back to buying the old way.

Good luck and have fun!

 

[licarus]

thank you, i'll take a walk to the shop. now i know what to look for.