/\ R. I. P ! ''The Beast' MkI 2002 - 2006
(aka 'why build a pc in a server case?')

Motherboard (unreliable - possibly a damaged Northbridge)
GPU (damaged memory, due to heat)
HDD (fubar 500gb in 2 dirves with repeating bad sectors)
PSU (broken internal fan and switching)

Im gunna buy/build a new one since the remains of my pc limits me to
agp and slowr DDR ect. So 'The Beast mk 1' is relegated to watching
episodes/ browsing ect

I need some advice. Heres what i want ( )

Ideally:

CASE: Antec P180 B Case
CPU :64 Bit dual core (Amd or intel?? hmm)
GPU ci-ex (mebe sli but either way i want it to be uber)
RAM:2 Gb DDR (fast and on 2 1gb sticks)
Mobo: (needs same chipset manufacturer as cpu and gpu if poss)
PSU: (400w mebe 550w if i go for watercooling)
HDD: (500 Gb on Scsi or the new ide format mebe?)

Any advice? I know its alot and im prepared to spend about 1k on it
( mebe a bit more since i sepend my entire life on it)

Do you know of a decent offer on a similar machine from a pc manufaturer?
....or....
Do you know of a manufaturer who will allow me to swap the
case/parts without voiding the warranty?

A good site for parts would be helpfull too? ne one?>

funkus (distraught )

Ps: might have to start earning some money soon,
who wants to be my gentleman?

I would definatly say build could save yourself quite abit

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Ive heard that times have changed tbh mate, normally id have shouted homebuild too!!

Unfortunately everyone keeps saying that since hombuild got soo
easy/popular prices for parts have risen and 'off the shelf' machines have
dropped in price...



http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/technology/archives/2006/04/26/build_your_own_pc_its_cheaper_to_buy_a_dell.html

EDIT: Currently being 'put stright' by 3of5 mebe it is cheaper to homebuild, its more fun too

You tell him 3of5

_________________

Its roughly the same in the end, but if you build it yourself you can make it how you want. Like you can overclock and upgrade without Dell's mobo having a hissy fit.

If you build your own, personally see if you can wait till AMD releas the AM2 socket CPU's. I reckon we are on the verge of a new hardware "generation" thing:

AMD's AM2 socket
Intels conroe processor
Windows Vista
Direct X 10 cards

If you buy a PC now, it may not be up to scratch for the new DX10 games. Plus you wont be able to upgrade as much. Even the best DX9 cards in SLI wont beat a DX10 card with new features (like that triangle shader thing).

Wait? . . . . . . . . . . .'Is it here yet?'.............'is it here yet'?

What should i do, read a few books, take up yoga?

Would you be able to wait, im not sure if i can, i cant play games!!!

EDIT: just thought its gunna be at least 6 months before theses new technologies and they will only start to become standard/more neccisary after a year or more, inluding big problems maybe 2yrs so by that time ill nearly be ready to upgrade anyway. Id rether wait for the usual bugs to be ironed out. (with any luck Windows vista should run but who knows till we try)

Good points though, but no forward compatability to DX 10 yet, so needs must

Well I am holding out on an upgrade. I have had enough money saved for 2 7900's for a couple of months now, but I also want a car for when I pass my test

Im not telling you not to upgrade. Go ahead, but just be wary not to buy stuff that wont be upgradeable in the future

you be waiting forever for 'new' stuff.

buy what you can at the time, of course it would be silly to re-buy a pc of the same spec you already have.

funkus, get the PC spec 3of5 (or as near to it as you can). homebuilds ftw, some dells may be cheaper than a hom build, but it will lack performance and quality.

shelf ones, even the so called custom ones, give you no choice

they'll give you bottom and top of the range, nothing in the middle, so you end up overpaying or underpowered

_________________
“There are some people in this world who don’t love their fellow man, and I HATE people like that!”

There is no substitute for knowing exactly what kit you have when it comes to solving problems. It's your kit, your installations, your choices.

_________________
Don't worry Sony, I'll just cancel my date of birth and get a new one.

yarr my kit 4tw

currently copying 3of 5's setup its exactly what i want and i know its all compatible, ive been meaning to upgrade for ages so

Its time to taake the plunge :S

(already have keyboard and mouse/moniotors and half the HDD's so its cost a little less to put together)

personally i would go for a more powerful psu and possibly a modular one too (less messy cabling), just incase you do decide to go sli as you will have the power and stability.

_________________
m
mmmmYou sir, are a swaggering addlepated jackanapes!
m

go for one of these PSUs.

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/acatalog/Online_Catalogue_Enermax_111.html

those are enmax, as you will see they nearly all have dual 12v rails for stability and produce lots of AMPs (even the 400w has this and is SLI compliant).

IM I would get the Enermax Liberty 500W. Good price and performance.

enermax FTW

thats weird, ive already ordered that, you freaky mind reader(s)!

What im getting:

Processor:- AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4800+ (2mb cache)

Mother board:- Asus A8R32-MVP Deluxe Crossfire (Socket 939) PCI-Express
Motherboard

Memory:- Corsair 2GB DDR XMS4000PT TwinX

Graphics card:- PowerColor ATI Radeon X1900 XT 512MB

Hard drives:- Maxtor DiamondMax Plus 10 NCQ 80GB 6V080E0 SATA-II 8MB Cache 2 of those

Cpu cooler:- Zalman FS-C77 Fatal1ty CPU Cooler

Hard drive coolers:- Xdio Aluminium heat sinks

Case:- Antec P180 Advanced Super Midi Tower Case

power suply:- 500w Enermax Liberty Modular series

keyboard Mouse:- Already have (Logitch DiNuvo)

monitor:- (already got) Samsung 19" LCD Syncmaster 930BF TCO-99 Monitor, DVI-D, D-sub, 4ms

Collecting and building tomorrow (hopefully) So ill be on eve/css/bf2 and special forces by dinner time.... woot, ive copied 3of5 setups only with a different power supply and passive hdd coolers rather than fans.

(kinda glad my old pc is shot, means i have an excuse to upgrade!)

PS: Noone's commented upon my 3ll3te paint skillz!
PPS: With reference to Corned's car remark..im spending about 1k, i spent half as much on my car (4yrs ago), get yer priorities right, save some cash and do both