friend request: find him a good PC for under $1500

[truflip]

ok of all my friends im prolly the one whos most knowledgeabe bout PC's.. so far.. so a friend asked me to help him pick out a PC thats no more than $1500 Canadians..

so far i found these..
http://www.orleanscomputers.com/shop/item.asp?itemid=610&catid=64
* AMD ATHLON 64 3800+ S939
* ASUS A8N-SLI DELUXE MAINBOARD
* 1024 MB 400MHZ PC3200 DDR
* WESTERN DIGITAL 160 GB HD SERIAL ATA
* ATX CASE 450W TOWER BLACK OR BEIGE (PSU is changed to a Coolesmaster 480Watt)
* LG 52X32X52 CDRW
* GEFORCE 6600 256 MB PCI-E (changed to either 9800Pro 265mb AGP or 6600GT 128mb PCI-E)
* 10/100 NETWORK CARD OB
* 6-CHANNEL AUDIO OB (this should be 8 channel since its the A8N SLI Deluxe.. right?)
* PANASONIC 1.44 FLOPPY DRIVE
* 1394 FIREWIRE
* 2.1 SUBWOOFER SPEAKERS (changed to 5.1 logitechs)
* PS2 INTERNET KEYBOARD (changed to Benq slim keyboard)
* LOGITECH OPTICAL MOUSE
this set up costs $1287.. but im a little skeptical bout the memory brand, the generic ATX case/psu... the vid card.. n the speakers.. actually i kno the speakers and keyboard are the crappiest ones out there.. neway since its only 1287 so far.. i decided to modify the items in there..

switching the video card to a 6600GT 128mb PCI-E(50$ more) OR
9800Pro 256mb AGP($40 more)

logitech 5.1 X530 Speakers ($90more)
keyboard.. jus say 30 bux for a nice one.. lol (30$ more)
and finally.. PSU.. since this pre-setup PC is from a local shop.. n they dont sell PSU... i dono why.. i think im jus gonna go on ahead with wut they gimme n change it.. so another 80.. ($80 more)

$1527-1537 total price..

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Now, the one i set up for him.. in this case.. most of the parts are coming from tigerdirect.ca

$135 VNF4 Ultra Motherboard
$365 AMD Athlon 64 3500+
$128 1GB Kingston DDR RAM PC3200
$239 Radeon 9800Pro 256MB AGP
$88 Vantec 460 Watt Power Supply
$137 200GB Maxtor Diamond Plus 10 7200RPM with 16MB Buffer
$103 ThermalTake Soprano Case (Black)
$70 Pioneer DVD+-RW 16x with DL
$89 Logitech X-530 5.1 Surround Sound Speakers
$30 BenQ Slim Keyboard
$30 Microsoft Optical Mouse (Black)

The total for this set up is $1414-1424 depending on which if i stick in the 6600GT or the 9800Pro

so what do u guys think? which set up is better...

the main difference is the motherboard.. A8N-SLI vs. VNF4Ultra.. if i stuck in a A8N Mobo instead of the VNF.. thats.. $85 more.. totalling to just about 1500$...

i prefer the 2nd option.. however, to build the system i have to order the parts online which can be a hassle having to send back defective items (if there are any) which could take a week to get anotehr one..

the first set up is from a local shop.. which i can always drive to n yell at if ever theres something wrong wit their parts..

i need ur opinion.. as this is his $1500 n i wanna help him get the best out of it.. thanks guys... and girls (if der are any)!

 

[mailpup]

Don't forget to add shipping to your second option. Since both motherboards support PCI-E graphics cards only, forget about the AGP card option unless you have an alternate motherboard to go with it. Also, what is the core version of the Athlon 64 3500+?

 

[truflip]

core version? im not sure... im not an AMD person.. could u xplain plz?

he jus said he wants something powerful in the AMD line. n when i told him the 3800+ was $505.. hes like.. puke: n said to get a 3500+ thats all.. :S sorry if i sound noobish lol

 

[vnf4ultra]

The top one is "better", due to it's having a sli board, a 3800+ cpu.

I personally like the second option, for obvious reasons.
Umm, you know the vnf4 is pci-e, not agp right? You listed an agp card, the 9800 pro.

Get a venice core, they're somewhat better than winchester.

 

[truflip]

ok i changed the mobo to the SLi mobo... its only 50$ more.. might as well get a full feature mobo.. right?

also changed the video card to the 6600GT.. i cant get a card thats any better than this unless i change some stuff.. cuz of the budget..

neway wit these changes.. the prices are just about the same..

now, what do u think?

 

[truflip]

yea i double checked for the CPU.. the 3500+ i listed n looked at is a venice =]

 

[mailpup]

Looks fine to me.

 

[truflip]

set up selected.. final check needed plzz..

ok so here it is... final check..

$222 Asus A8N-SLI Deluxe Motherboard
$365 AMD Athlon 64 3500+
$130 1GB Kingston DDR RAM PC3200
$257 Chaintech GeForce 6600GT 128mb DDR3 Video Card
$88 Vantec 460 Watt Power Supply
$122 200GB Maxtor Diamond Plus 10 7200RPM with 16MB Buffer
$103 ThermalTake Soprano Case (Black)
$41 Grandtec Keyboard
$54 Premium Cooling Kit (5 Piece)
$15 A4Tech Mouse (comes in white, black and red)
$67 Pioneer DVD+-RW 16x with DL
$52 Logitech X-230 2.1 Surround Sound Speakers
$25 To Build PC at Cas-Tech (comes with a 30 day warranty)

Total: $1541
$1772 (with taxes)

Product Links (goes in order)

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1179727&sku=A455-2112

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1366613&sku=CP1-A64-3500 E

http://cas-tech.ca/products.asp?L1=814&L2=13

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1118503&sku=C460-7023

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1407918&sku=V13-3220

http://pccyber.ca/scrItem.asp?product_subtypes_id=98&product_types_id=9&product_id=6495

http://pccyber.ca/scrItem.asp?product_id=6492&product_subtypes_id=87&product_types_id=5

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=44207&sku=G126-1008

http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1511657&sku=TC3J-2002

http://pccyber.ca/scrItem.asp?product_id=1701&product_subtypes_id=269&product_types_id=17

http://pccyber.ca/scrItem.asp?product_subtypes_id=128&product_types_id=29&product_id=4775

http://pccyber.ca/scrItem.asp?product_subtypes_id=72&product_types_id=23&product_id=4824