megalomania
January 8th, 2004, 09:14 PM
After 3 long years of planning to purchase a new computer I finally have done it. This weekend I ordered the components of the system that I plan to build myself. If all goes well I could be using my new screamer by next weekend, yea! I have been merticiously tracking component prices for most of the past year looking for the best deal and configuring the system I want, but at a very competitive price. Here’s what I have:
I will be using the venerable ASUS A7N8X-X motherboard for starters. I did not opt for the deluxe because I don’t need raid or LAN with this system, and I am not too keen on duel channel RAM quite yet. This board actually came down quite a bit with the release of the –X version this past spring. I got the retail version to get all the cables, documentation, warranty, and software.
I opted for the AMD XP 2800+ processor. This chip offers the best value for the money, a little more expensive than the 2700+ by about $30 but, but going to the 3000+ means an extra $60. AMD processors are just as good if not better than their Intel counterparts at this mid level range, they are certainly cheaper. I got the retail version to get the fan, heatsink, and 3 year warrenty.
For RAM I wanted something good so I went with a 512 MB stick of Corsair PC3200 XMS ram. That is perhaps one of the best sticks of RAM you can get without going for low latency or their funky RAM with the LEDs all over them. The XMS series is their best quality xtreme performance ram. Since I don’t have a duel channel motherboard I can wait until RAM prices drop before buying another 512 MB stick. My mobo can hold up to 3 sticks. The PC3200 is the fastest the Asus board supports.
For graphics I wanted something that would last into the foreseeable future, give some modicum of performance, and yet be cheap. I opted for the Radeon 9600XT with 256MB of ram over the 128. The XT is the newest flavor of cards with directx 9 support and all that good stuff, plus the 256 MB version should offer better performance over the 128 MB. A 9700 card would have been nice, but there is a huge price premium I am not willing to pay. I got the retail version because I want the Unreal 3 game voucher that comes with it, and because there are not yet any OEM versions of this particular model..
My hard drive is a Western Digital 7200 rpm 120 GB drive with 8MB cache. It does not get much better than this especially for the price I got this. I have actually had this drive and been using it for the past couple of months now.
I bought an Optowrite combo CD-RW and DVD ROM drive that has a 48x24x48 CD speed and is a 16x DVD drive. It is actually backordered, so I may be using one of the old CD drives I have laying around until it gets here. It matches my case even. I could have gotten two drives, but the prices of combo drives have fallen so much this past year that it is now cheaper to get the combo. I could have gotten a faster CD-RW, but I never burn faster than 40x because very little media supports that, at least mine doesn’t. It will be years before I use up my current stash of CD-Rs.
For the modem I sprung for a US-Robotics v92 56k bad boy. I actually got a great deal on a new one off of Ebay for $16. This baby goes for $60 in the stores. The Ebay one is not used, it is brand new still in the shrinkwrap. I am actually toying with buying broadband (cable most likely).
For my case I went with the Raidmax Scorpio 860 black case with a 420W power supply. This is a very stylish case with a window and all, not very expensive at all really. It beats the pants off a beige box any day that’s for sure. I also got a discount on combo wireless Raidmax keyboard and mouse that matches the case.
For a sound card I want to get a Creative Audigy2 ZS card, but I have not narrowed my choice of speakers as of yet, so I will wait on this one since I can always add it later. The motherboard supports 5.1 sound as it is. The Audigy2 card has the 7.1 surround capability that I want since I will be using my PC as a home theatre system as well. I want some good 7.1 speakers, but they are not in the budget as of yet.
I should mention the floppy, not much to say about it except that it matches the case being black. Other incidentals include some Artic Silver V thermal paste for my CPU, some colored round cables for the hard drive and floppy, and a hard drive cooler, which came with the case as a free gift from the vender.
Now I bet you all want to know how much all this cost me eh? Well to be quite honest it has thus far run me a little over $730 and change. Not a bad price if I do say so, and the price includes all shipping and handling charges. A similarly configured system from Best Buy, or Dell, gateway, HP, etc. would run over $1200 and it would still have crappier components than mine. I would have to pay tax too. I also bought a refurb Viewsonic 21” monitor for $140 (shipped).
Now we shall see if I am up to the task of building my own system from scratch. I anticipate problems; there are always problems in my experience. Lets just hope it’s nothing I can’t handle. Even if I do get stuck my local computer repair shop can bail me out and I will still save tons of money vs. a pre built.
I will be using the venerable ASUS A7N8X-X motherboard for starters. I did not opt for the deluxe because I don’t need raid or LAN with this system, and I am not too keen on duel channel RAM quite yet. This board actually came down quite a bit with the release of the –X version this past spring. I got the retail version to get all the cables, documentation, warranty, and software.
I opted for the AMD XP 2800+ processor. This chip offers the best value for the money, a little more expensive than the 2700+ by about $30 but, but going to the 3000+ means an extra $60. AMD processors are just as good if not better than their Intel counterparts at this mid level range, they are certainly cheaper. I got the retail version to get the fan, heatsink, and 3 year warrenty.
For RAM I wanted something good so I went with a 512 MB stick of Corsair PC3200 XMS ram. That is perhaps one of the best sticks of RAM you can get without going for low latency or their funky RAM with the LEDs all over them. The XMS series is their best quality xtreme performance ram. Since I don’t have a duel channel motherboard I can wait until RAM prices drop before buying another 512 MB stick. My mobo can hold up to 3 sticks. The PC3200 is the fastest the Asus board supports.
For graphics I wanted something that would last into the foreseeable future, give some modicum of performance, and yet be cheap. I opted for the Radeon 9600XT with 256MB of ram over the 128. The XT is the newest flavor of cards with directx 9 support and all that good stuff, plus the 256 MB version should offer better performance over the 128 MB. A 9700 card would have been nice, but there is a huge price premium I am not willing to pay. I got the retail version because I want the Unreal 3 game voucher that comes with it, and because there are not yet any OEM versions of this particular model..
My hard drive is a Western Digital 7200 rpm 120 GB drive with 8MB cache. It does not get much better than this especially for the price I got this. I have actually had this drive and been using it for the past couple of months now.
I bought an Optowrite combo CD-RW and DVD ROM drive that has a 48x24x48 CD speed and is a 16x DVD drive. It is actually backordered, so I may be using one of the old CD drives I have laying around until it gets here. It matches my case even. I could have gotten two drives, but the prices of combo drives have fallen so much this past year that it is now cheaper to get the combo. I could have gotten a faster CD-RW, but I never burn faster than 40x because very little media supports that, at least mine doesn’t. It will be years before I use up my current stash of CD-Rs.
For the modem I sprung for a US-Robotics v92 56k bad boy. I actually got a great deal on a new one off of Ebay for $16. This baby goes for $60 in the stores. The Ebay one is not used, it is brand new still in the shrinkwrap. I am actually toying with buying broadband (cable most likely).
For my case I went with the Raidmax Scorpio 860 black case with a 420W power supply. This is a very stylish case with a window and all, not very expensive at all really. It beats the pants off a beige box any day that’s for sure. I also got a discount on combo wireless Raidmax keyboard and mouse that matches the case.
For a sound card I want to get a Creative Audigy2 ZS card, but I have not narrowed my choice of speakers as of yet, so I will wait on this one since I can always add it later. The motherboard supports 5.1 sound as it is. The Audigy2 card has the 7.1 surround capability that I want since I will be using my PC as a home theatre system as well. I want some good 7.1 speakers, but they are not in the budget as of yet.
I should mention the floppy, not much to say about it except that it matches the case being black. Other incidentals include some Artic Silver V thermal paste for my CPU, some colored round cables for the hard drive and floppy, and a hard drive cooler, which came with the case as a free gift from the vender.
Now I bet you all want to know how much all this cost me eh? Well to be quite honest it has thus far run me a little over $730 and change. Not a bad price if I do say so, and the price includes all shipping and handling charges. A similarly configured system from Best Buy, or Dell, gateway, HP, etc. would run over $1200 and it would still have crappier components than mine. I would have to pay tax too. I also bought a refurb Viewsonic 21” monitor for $140 (shipped).
Now we shall see if I am up to the task of building my own system from scratch. I anticipate problems; there are always problems in my experience. Lets just hope it’s nothing I can’t handle. Even if I do get stuck my local computer repair shop can bail me out and I will still save tons of money vs. a pre built.