Gaming computer help

[heatherneville]

hello i need a little help... i am trying to put together a half decent gaming computer this is what i have so far:

- ASUS A8N-SLI PREMIUM SOCKET 939 MOTHERBOARD
- AMD ATHLON 64 X2 3800+ DUAL CORE S939 2X512K
- ANTEC TRUEPOWER 550W ATX2.0 POWER SUPPLY
- ANTEC P180 11BAY MID TOWER NO-PS ALUMINUM
- WESTERN DIGITAL 250G SATA II 16M
- DDR400 MEMORY 1024MB PC3200
- DDR400 MEMORY 1024MB PC3200
- video card\s ???????


I am interested in playing games like Heroes of Might and Magic V and Fear,
any help anyone could give me would be greatly appretiated!
thanx

 

[JMMD]

Either the Nvidia 7900GT or ATi X1800XT would be fine for that machine. You could always go a little higher end if you wanted to spend more.

DX10 cards will be out in the fall so you may not want to spend too much on a card right now.

I noticed there's no memory listed. I would go with 2GB of value PC3200 (unless you're going to overclock).

 

[heatherneville]

Thank you JMMD any other info on gaming computers would be really helpfull.

 

[gamingguy27]

Hello,

It looks good so far, I agree that 1800XT would be a very good choice for you.

However you may want to invest in the Intel Core 2 Duo, as it outperforms the newest Amds by almost 40% in some cases. The Intel Core 2 Duo Extreme Edition beats the old 3.4GHZ pentium 4s by a ridiculous 80%.

The Core 2 Duos chipset is far superior as it supports DDR2 memory and faster bus speeds.

If your going to play games I would also get some better ram, whatever people say cheap ram: a) isnt as stable b) or as quick. If your gonna buy ram get some OCZ stuff, its fairly expensive but it comes with a lifetime warranty and is very quick.

Alex.

 

[heatherneville]

thank you Alex, but do you think that motherboard is a good choice?

 

[Rage_3K_Moiz]

I agree with gamingguy27. I just got an E6700 and it screams! I believe u can get an E6300 for around $100. But for the price it has tremendous overclocking potential(reportedly reaching speeds of upto 2.6GHz with stock cooling) and gives quite some performance increase over the FX-62 which is almost 7x the price. I have overclocked mine to 3.3GHz and it's quite stable.

Video card wise, I would recommend the 7900GT since it is way better than the X1800XT and quieter as well. I

If u get an LGA775 mobo which supports the Core 2 Duo, u can get good, inexpensive DDR2 RAM from Corsair's ValueSelect, OCZ's Value or Kingston's ValueRAM series. Buying high-performance RAM like OCZ 's Platinum series is only recommended if u have extra cash to spend coz the inexpensive RAM is more than enough for gaming. DDR2 RAM is much cheaper than DDR RAM presently so u'll save cash and get a better performing product.

 

[heatherneville]

Rage 3K Moiz could i get a good gaming computer for 1200$can

 

[Rage_3K_Moiz]

Sure u can. Here's one configuration.
Motherboard & CPU $268.99
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2354217&sku=MBM-945GPM-840

PSU $107.99
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1632010&CatId=0

RAM $114.99
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2353494&CatId=1651

Hard Disk Drive $107.99
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1265028&CatId=134

DVD Burner $30.99
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2271188&CatId=89

Video Card $309.99
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2146534&CatId=0

Sound Card $44.99
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1870098&CatId=0

The casing, speakers, mouse and keyboard I leave upto u. U can probably use them from ur old PC if u have one but with the above adding up to around $985(Canadian of course), u have plenty more left to buy them if u don't. If u are able to recycle one or more of them from ur old PC and have enough cash left over, u can probably replace the video card with an ATi X1900. Otherwise the 7900GT I picked is fine too.

I hope it helped . I have chosen the parts from reputed companies so don't worry about their quality.

 

[heatherneville]

thank you it helped alot

 

[heatherneville]

what about a AMD system? could you put one together?

 

[Rage_3K_Moiz]

Yeah sure. Just replace the motherboard and CPU with this one.
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1959177&CatId=2019
Or these.
Motherboard $85.99
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2245541&CatId=0
Processor $205.99
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2207238&CatId=2328
But beware, since Socket 939 is getting obsolete fast, and Socket AM2 is a bit more expensive as u may have seen from the above prices. So if u want AMD, I would highly recommend AM2.

However, Intel Core 2 Duo CPUs are the best ATM. I found a bundle which may interest u. It's almost double the price of the earlier Intel bundle, but delivers double performance of the Pentium D and is a great overclocker too(it can go upto 2.6GHz without problems, or so I've heard). Plus, at that speed it outperforms the FX-62 which is around 5-7x it's price.
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2368609&CatId=2406
If u can afford the extra expense go for the above one I'd say.