noob in pc building plz help

[watchman]

I am a noob to pc building and would like some help with it, i already posted in the hardware supporrt part but realise now that i should have put everything in here.
1st of all i want a decent gaming pc,i already got a pc of which i can get some parts off, but i want to get a new mainboard, gcard etc. any way this is what i found so far and was thinking of getting :

mainboard- abit nf7-sv2.0
gcard- ATI Radeon 9200 256mb ddr
case- stuck at this one, i like to go to lan games so it has to be light and i want a window kit and plenty of air supply( also cheap enough probably asking for too much lol)

thnx for the help

 

[ô§§|E]

cant say ive looked at the 9200, but im going for a 9800 pro 128 meg, the extra 128 meg (in the 256 card) doesnt make much difference atm. the mobo i havent looked at either.............gee.......im not much help.

a wireless mouse is probably not a good idea for ya, slow response times compared to a wired mouse, and get an infra red one, keeps its "preciseness".

get a mobo with dual channel, support for at least 3 gig of DDR400 RAM.

extra fans are always a good thing

imguessing u use an LCD screen, but a CRT will keep up with the refresh rate games demand these days.

at LEAST 1GIG of DDR RAM, preferably Corsair, but that'll cost ya!!!

120 gig HDD is a minimum.

gigabit LAN is always nice as well

 

[floppybootstomp]

Good choice of motherboard. If you're going for the 9200 card, try and stretch your budget to the XT version, it's a fine card, any make except Sapphire should be OK.

And I believe atm you'll get a Half Life Two voucher, which can't be bad

If you're into LAN gaming, perhaps consider a Shuttle system or similar. Small, neat, case, ideal for LAN's and you can buy a carry case for them as well.

 

[watchman]

thnx for the replies

floppy wots wrong with saphire and do u have a link for the case cos i couldnt find it anywhere

 

[floppybootstomp]

I bought a Saphire 9200 from Tekheads. It ran for about 10 minutes and I noticed an electronic burning smell. Before I had a chance to turn off and check things out, the card failed and ruined my motherboard, NIC Card & Sound Card.

The standard of manufacture is poor and they often use passive cooling when fan cooling would be more suitable. They're built to a price, not a standard.

I did get the card RMA'd, it took a week, the replacement has been running OK for six months now, but since that happened to me I've noticed many complaints about this manufacturer all over the web.

Other than that, nothing, I suppose

I can't remember where I saw the case for sale, I'll check it out. If I come across it again, I'll post back, 'k?

 

[floppybootstomp]

Well, waddya know? First one I tried, the carry case is listed about three quarters of the way down.

Shuttle Systems

 

[watchman]

thnx alot floppy i nvr realised that about saphire cards, but thnx cos i alomost got one today and thank god i checked here before i did
and also thnx for the link

 

[kalbal]

a Radeon 9200 with 256mb Ram?....

ATI Radeon 9200 256mb ddr

that card will definately not do for a gamer, it is a cheap and nasty card, u are a gamer and are making a gaming rig, go for a 9600 (at least) or a Geforce 5700U.

I dont see why they put 256mb on a 9200, it is too slow to use the extra ram as it is, I see that everything else you have is fine, just change the graphics card, if u skimp out on that component you will realise that is wasn't worth it.

thats all i got to say...

enjoy, Nucleo!

 

[floppybootstomp]

I'd agre with Nucleo actually, I was just thinking of your budget.

If you can stretch to it, go for a 9600, preferably a Pro or XT version, 128mb version should be fine. Even the vanilla flavour of 9600 would be better for gaming than a 9200.

9200 is OK for the likes of Warcraft 3, Dungeon Siege, The Sims & the like, but it will struggle with newer fps's. And it won't run Halo at all, I know, I've tried

 

[watchman]

lol i am probably such a pain in the arse.
i looked around on overclockers.co.uk for the g-force cards and i am now not sure with what brand to go with
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/acatalog/nVidia_Graphics_Cards.html
and i really cant afford to spend over £80
sorry for bothering u again guys

 

[watchman]

oh yeah i also forgot to mension whats the difference between these two g-cards
ATI Radeon 9600 GPU 128MB DDR AGP TV Out DVI Graphics Card ATICGC
and
GeForce FX5600 XT 128MB 8XAGP Graphics Card
thnx again

 

[kalbal]

you should get a Radeon 9600....no Geforce card for £80 will be any good

 

[watchman]

but are radeon good enough for gaming you see thats what i was confused about as well, cos some people say that gforce are the best for gaming others say that radeon are

 

[kalbal]

hehe...

thats like asking about different brands of beer..

every1 has an opinion. The fx 5600 cards have been dubbed "naf" because of their poor performance and are being replaced by the fx 5700U.

the 9600 will serve you fine. although if you want a gaming card then you will need to save up more.

perhaps even a Geforce fx 5900 for £177. because if u get the 9600/5600 and dont like the performance you will regret not saving anymore.

the 5600 (XT VERSION) is a cut down version of the 5600, so it will "maybe" be a worse buy than i originally said.

people say the Geforce cards are better for gaming?...
the Geforce cards are better at Opengl games, (quake 3, doom 3 "soon to come...")
the Radeon cards have better directx9 performance, (half life 2, halo ect...)

so go for what you want....just steer clear of these cards...

any Geforce card with the ending "se" and "XT"
any Geforce 5200-5600-5600U-5800 (sounds bad but if u r a gamer, then dont)

any Radeon card with the ending "se"
and for a gamer steer clear of the 9000's til u get to 9600, anything higher will be gr8

if u can find a 9500pro/9700pro then snap it up, similar performance to 9800 (similar, actually little slower but good buy)

hope it helps....chow!

 

[watchman]

wow that actually explains it all thnx a lot man

 

[kalbal]

no problem...
I have been browsing harware forums for a while now and know what to/not to buy

 

[kennclaud]

Watchman,
You'll be wasting your money if your getting 9200 256mb for a gaming card. I suggest get the 9600xt or 9800PRO.