Fun Stuff > CLIKC
AMD-based computer,,,
thermodynamics:
k. well, i finally decided. here is my setup:
Asus A8V Deluxe Via Socket 939 ATX Motherboard
AMD Athlon 64 3500+ Processor
Western Digital / Caviar SE / 200GB / 7200 / 8MB / SATA-150
SimpleTech 1024MB PC4200 DDR2 533MHz Memory
NEC ND3520 / 16x8x16x DVD+-RW/CDRW
it is fucking expensive, so i am gonna think on it for a while, but i think that it would be a good bet.
TheCourtJester:
Go TigerDirect if you're buying one or two things...go Newegg if you're getting it all at the same time. TigerDirect has slightly lower prices on some items (though they charge every item individually on shipping), but Newegg will put them all in the same box so shipping is MUCH cheaper.
If you can help it, don't buy the case online. The case may be cheap, but the shipping charges for a computer case will ass-rape you. Trust me.
That setup looks great...I'm running an A64 3200+, MSI K8n Neo motherboard, GeFroce 6800 GT, and 1 gig of RAM. The AMD proc beats teh crap out of any Intel proc I've seen. I do a lot of video editing so every boost I can get makes all the difference. :)
By teh way...good luck finding ANY system that can run Photoshop, Dreamweacer, and Flash without at least a little slowdown. Running all three at the same time is fucking NUTS. Still, if you want that kind of multitasking, AMD is definitely the way to go.
SpacemanSpiff:
--- Quote from: thermodynamics ---k. well, i finally decided. here is my setup:
Asus A8V Deluxe Via Socket 939 ATX Motherboard
AMD Athlon 64 3500+ Processor
Western Digital / Caviar SE / 200GB / 7200 / 8MB / SATA-150
SimpleTech 1024MB PC4200 DDR2 533MHz Memory
NEC ND3520 / 16x8x16x DVD+-RW/CDRW
it is fucking expensive, so i am gonna think on it for a while, but i think that it would be a good bet.
--- End quote ---
That's a really good system. Especially the motherboard is good, I have it as well and I can't complain.
As for the harddisk: Seagate also makes really good ones and they have 5 years warranty (at least around here). And they're dead silent. I have two 200gb Seagates and I don't hear a thing.
Something Important: Your RAM is wrong. Athlon64 systems don't need DDR2 nor will they work with it! Get simple DDR 400mhz RAM, that's the right one. Faster DDR RAM won't make your system faster, actually, depending on the RAM it might make it slower.
A good choice is the Corsair ValueSelect 2x512MB DDR 400mhz kit. (Linky: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145440)
I have it and I can say: It definitely works with the motherboard, it's rather cheap and I have tested it thoroughly with Memtest and it found no errors whatsoever. I wouldn't worry too much about timings or voltage if you're not into some serious overclocking.
Also, if you want 1gb of RAM, get 2x512MB, not a single 1024MB. The CPU has dual-channel support and for this, it needs two identical RAMs for that. The manual explains what RAM slots they should be put in, that's important as well.
Dual-channel makes your system quite a bit faster, so I would definitely go for that.
As for the case: I recommend the Chieftech CS-601 series. They might look as cool, but they're solid cases, they have excellent cooling and lots of space and hardware is very easy to install.
Also, you most likely need a new PSU (power supply unit). Get one with 400W or more (depends on your video card - the faster your video card is, the more power your PSU should be able to supply). Those brands make pretty good PSUs: Enermax, OCZ (the ModStream series), Fortron, Elan Vital (I have one of these - rather expensive but extremely efficent and silent), Zalman.
Se7en:
Agreed, your looking at the wrong ram.
The best thing to opt for is a socket 754 system, which is just like a 939, but without dual DDR support (ie, less memory bandwidth)
However, the AMD 64 bit platform is VERY forgiving, and you wont suffer much of a performance drop from not having Dual DDR, and even DDR333 works great, with about a 4% performance loss from DDR400 performance.
You can get socket 754 semprons reliatively cheaply (i wouldnt know prices for your part of the world) and you want to get an "nforce 3" based motherboard, which gives exelent performance, and typically the best range of features.
The AMD 64 bit platform is infinately preferable to the old 32bit, or god forbid.. some intel platform. The cooling system is far superior, and the "cool n quiet" feature throttles both fan and clock speed intellegently to keep the noise and power consumption down. As i said, performance is exteremely robust, and as long as you prioritise getting 1gb of memory, the actual memory speed, cpu clock speed, and cpu cache wont really make any noticable difference to performance for all but high end gaming.
The rule for memory, is to buy anything thats branded. Just about all memory comes out of the same 5 factories anyway, so buying a brandname with a manufacturer warrenty gives you a good chance of not getting a lemon, but dont spend extra on expensive ram! its only something to do on absolutely crazy systems.
The same applies to PSUs. The wattage ratings are spurious, a no name 500 watt PSU gives as much power as a decent brand 300watt.
SpacemanSpiff:
You're completely right about the PSU.
Edit: And also about the Athlon64 architecture, especially Cool'n'Quiet.
However, I beg to differ about the sockets: The price difference isn't that big and socket 754 is already about to die, whereas 939 will continue to live for some time. That means: You can probably get a CPU upgrade in a few years.
By the way: If you don't keep your video card, you should get a different motherboard that already has PCI-E. You can get better video cards for that already (and cheaper too) and unlike AGP, it won't die within the next year.
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