Buying comp - suggestions + advice

beserker

Hey guys,

I'm planning to get a machine at the end of the month. It will be used for all sorts of stuff but ive never had a good pc for games before (never even had a dedicated card!:) so that will be important for me. i just want a machine that will let me play hl2 reasonably well. I'm looking for opinions on the set up below,am i missing anything? any bad choices? also, for example if someone reckons ill get a better pc by spending a couple of quid extra somewhere please lemme know or even better suggestions for cheaper components that'll do the same job;)My limit for komplett is deffo €1000 cause i need a monitor and case from elara or buyandsell or something(suggestions?) and i dont wanna go over €1200 by too much. Also, i'm not gonna be overclocking, adding fans etc...will this be stable with a cheapo case (350w psu)?

(All Komplett SKU's)
115222 Asus A7N8X
116590 AMD Athlon XP2500+ 1.833 GHz 333 MHz bus - Socket A (Barton) processor, 512kb BOXED
112684 Crucial PC2700 DDR-DIMM 512MB CL2.5 6ns - Unbuffered,Non-parity, 2.5V, 64Meg x 64
109593 Western Digital Caviar 120GB IDE 7200RPM - Special Edition 8MB cache WD1200JB
119314 Gainward GeForce FX 5600 ULTRA 128MB- AGP, 2,5ns DDR,Tv-Out/DVI, Retail
116056 MSI DVD rom IDE 16x/48x (D16)- Bulk
119424 Sony CD-burner IDE 52x/24x/52x Black - (CRX225E-B2) Intern Bulk w/o software
118819 Logitech Z-640 (Speaker), 5.1
114743 Microsoft MultiMedia & Optical Val. Pack - Mouse & Keyboard, PS/2, English

Newbie questions:)...Will i need any additional cables (ide,cd sound etc)or will they come with the mb,cdrom? and
will there be a pad/thermal paste with the boxed cpu?

Thanks!

clansman

i would get faster ram. i might only cost a few euros to get PC3200, but i think its wort it.

+ i would get a geforce 5900 FX cos when HL2 comes out all other game companys will try to match/beat it. So i reckon game graphics will get more and more powerfull, therefore a more power full card will be needed.

sci0x

Just a small change wouldnt make that much of a difference but seeing that your buying a new computer why not get a cordless keyboard and mouse such as Logitech Cordless Elite Duo. They have RF-based controls so you dont have to be in line of sight to the wireless receiver. Just thought they were pretty kewl

Webmonkey

Originally posted by denis_o_leary
Just a small change wouldnt make that much of a difference but seeing that your buying a new computer why not get a cordless keyboard and mouse such as Logitech Cordless Elite Duo. They have RF-based controls so you dont have to be in line of sight to the wireless receiver. Just thought they were pretty kewl

Only prob is that ur mouse might go off wandering and get lost, its not tied down like most mice :rolleyes:

sionnach

cordless desktop is expensive, id pass on it and get better actual pc hardware instead. And clans, surely with a 333mhz fsb he only needs pc2700ram?

beserker

Thanks for the replies,

I cant afford the 5900 tbh. I was thinking of getting a fancy arse keyboard + m alright but instead i said i'd get a 19" crt and every penny counts:) Anyone know if i'll get all the leads n stuff in the package?

sci0x

Originally posted by beserker
Thanks for the replies,

I cant afford the 5900 tbh. I was thinking of getting a fancy arse keyboard + m alright but instead i said i'd get a 19" crt and every penny counts:) Anyone know if i'll get all the leads n stuff in the package?

Yah course you will. All the leads you need to make the computer work sure they have to send them as well.

unkel

With the nforce2 mobo you need TWO IDENTICAL STICKS OF RAM for optimal performance, so if you really can only afford 512MB get 2*256. I would go for PC3200 rather than PC2700 because the mobo is well overclockable (FSB), but you won't go near this so PC2700 is fine

Good luck with building it - looks like a fine rig to me :-)

Fabre

+1 for 2x256 and if you are getting some crucial you might aswell buy it from their website. you might spare a few bucks.
I bought some ram and a video card from them.

I never bought a boxed cpu, do you get a heatsink and fan with it?

jesus_thats_gre

I personally wouldn't go the AMD route.. A 2.4 P4 will out perform it by far, maybe even go for a 2.6 with an 800 Mhz bus.

Mind you, just had a look at costs and it may not be suitable for you. Just an alternative.