Please Recommend Barebone Parts

[Jonathan Appleseed]

I need a custom mid-range PC. I DO NOT want to invest in appearance,
bragging rights, or the latest and greatest technology. Please recommend
BRANDS/MODELS for reliable bargain components available at Newegg.com or
other good online dealers. The system needs the following:

-low-noise case and an Athlon64-compatible PSU
-Athlon64 3x00 CPU (not significantly slower than the next expensive 3x00)
-CPU fan significantly better than the stock
-motherboard (preferably Asus) w/ integrated ethernet + decent sound
-512 MB PC3200 RAM
-8x NVIDIA video card capable of playing modern games like Doom 3 at
medium or higher quality and preferably Linux-compatible

*Also, can anyone recommend any online dealers that always ship quality
barebones?

 

[johns]

*Also, can anyone recommend any online dealers that always ship quality
barebones?

Mwave.com is fairly reliable, and they won't screw you
with a restocking fee like NewEgg will. Their tech
support is good too. They do charge shipping. NewEgg
is better that way.

Case: Antec SLK1650B with 350 watt supply
Mobo bundle: GA-K8NS for Ath 64 3000 with 1
gig Kingston ddr400 ( single stick
is best ) MAKE DAMN SURE YOU
HAVE THEM ASSEMBLE AND
TEST THE BUNDLE !!!! That is a
warranty issue with them.
Hard drive: Maxtor SATA 160 gig
Floppy: Sony black one
CD/DVD/CDRW combo: Sony ( one of the $60 )
Keybd / optical mouse: Microsoft mouse is good gamer
Video: ATI Radeon 9800 Pro ... look for $200 model
Run this card with Fast Writes OFF, and
AGP set to 4x ( under SMARTGART )
Monitor: AOC 19 inch Flat screen CRT ( not LCD )
crt with low dot pitch is best game monitor.
However, the AOC 19 LCD monitor is at a
very good price right now, and it is really bright
and clear. I have several at work, and the
ladies think they are great.
You don't need a zip drive ... totally obsolete now.
OS: WinXP Pro

Later pick up: 160 gig IDE drive to put in a USB
box to use for backups. Hauppauge WinTV PVR-150
for cable tv on that computer monitor. Looks better
than a house tv of any quality. Logitec joystick for
XP is only $30, and works great.

Games: careful. A lot of them out there right now
really stink ... Euro-trash that is badly outdated.
I like: Far Cry, MOHAA, CoD .... get the early ones
since they are priced down now .. and are great games.
Avoid like blazes: All the BF1942 series ( sucks ).
Conflict Vietnam ( EuroT )
Wait for: HL2 price to come down. It will.

johns