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**Helevitia** · 29 July 2004, 15:36

Re: Help with new gaming system ?

Originally posted by Paddy the wak
[B]What do you think ? ... Do you have any better suggestions ?

Chip ...
AMD Athlon 64 FX-53

This chip is so expensive. Unless money is really not part of the decision making process, I'd get a 3500+(they just dropped to $345), maybe a 3800+. It is the only unlocked A64-939 chip though, so if overclocking is important to you, keep this chip in mind.

MB ...
ABIT AV8 motherboard

I'm not sure how ABIT boards have been recently but they have a track record for being unstable after about a month or so. I hear the new Gigbyte NF3-250 s939 board is excellent. Normally i would recommend Asus( I have the A8V), but they are having some slight issues with the AGP/PCI locks right now that are apparently being sorted out with the next BIOS release, but that remains to be seen. Personally, I haven't had any problems with this board and it is rock solid, but I bought it for the AGP/PCI frequency locks and to overclock my chip and I can't do that right now. So if overclocking is not an issue to you, then this board is good as well.

RAM ...
2GB of Corsair XMS RAM

I have never used Corsair but all fo the review say it is excellent memory! I had a chopice between Corsair and Mushkin. The only reason I took Mushkin is that it was in stock.

Graphics Card ...
GeForce 6800 Ultra OC

Seems like an excellent card overall. I'm personally more inclined to ATI X800s, but I don't think you can go wrong with Nvidia or ATI this time.

Case ...
CoolerMaster Aluminium ATC-101 Midi Tower

This is a personal decision. As long as it has a good power supply, then I think you are good to go.

Monitor ... something like this ... if it will work with a PC ...

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http://store.apple.com/Apple/WebObjects/ukstore.woa/90901/wo/RJ5JPTL9olDk32sNRFcjZWNDDSf/1.3.0.6.10.3.2.1.13.0

Or this ...

ViewSonic Europe | ViewBoards, Monitors, and Visual Solutions

http://www.viewsoniceurope.com/UK/Products/LCDTV/NextVisionN3000w.htm

A leading provider of visual solutions for engaging spaces in education, work, entertainment, and creativity. See the difference.

This is tough. I've been agonizing between CRT or LCD. I just can't seem to get past the "looks crappy in anything but the native resolution" issue of LCDs. On the other hand, there are no more new widescreen CRTs out there and that is what I want next.

Good luck!

**Paddy the wak** · 29 July 2004, 15:57

Hi Helevitia ...

It is so difficult to know what is best and therefore experience/recommendations are so important ...

I'll look into the Chip and MB options you have suggested ...

Is there anything particular that is swaying you towards the ATI X800s ?

Thank you ...

**RUS007** · 29 July 2004, 16:04

Hi Paddy,

Abit is known for its value boards. You wanna good solid board you go with ASUS. I looked at Corsair site. Their XMS series doesnâ€™t come close to Mushkin's top performance memory in latencies. Both Corsair and Mushkin have the new DDR2 out now so if I were you i would buy a board that supports it. Coolermaster makes nice cases but you wanna real case you go with Lian-Li Full Size Tower. It may not be pretty but it has all the room you'll ever need for any kind of cooling or just fancy mod. As for the Monitor and Video Card Iâ€™m still stuck up on Matrox and my multi screen setup.

**Paddy the wak** · 29 July 2004, 16:07

Hey RUS ...
Thanks for the info ... more research for me ...

BTW ... check your PM

**RUS007** · 29 July 2004, 16:18

allmost forgot FX-53 is dafinatly the way to go or if the money is not a problem. Maybe a Dual or Quad Opteron with a Tyan board.

**Paddy the wak** · 29 July 2004, 16:25

See now you've lost me ...

What is a Dual or Quad Opteron and a Tyan board ?

I take it that they are good ...

**RUS007** · 29 July 2004, 16:34

Tyan is a brand name ... they make the best dual and quad CPU boards. Opteron is a CPU by AMD just like the Athlon64 FX but designed to work in multi CPU systems. In fact the Athlon64 FX is based on the Opteron.

**Paddy the wak** · 29 July 2004, 16:40

Sounds expensive ... but I'll take a look.

Are Multi CPU systems that much better/faster and stable ?
... also sounds like they might need a lot of cooling.

BTW ... Did you get the email ?

**Paddy the wak** · 29 July 2004, 16:42

Just got your email so I guess you did ...

**RUS007** · 29 July 2004, 16:46

I would guess just the motherboard and the 4 CPU's would come up to 5k US, and yes they are very stable if configured properly. Allways been my dream of a multi CPU system, but it seems that i was only able to afford toys like that when i was single

Yes .. i got the email

**Paddy the wak** · 29 July 2004, 16:48

Lucky I'm single ...

**RUS007** · 29 July 2004, 16:58

When i shop for a new pc i start with the Motherboard. Find the motherboard you like and all of its features first because everything else is up gradable

**RUS007** · 29 July 2004, 17:06

Here is a beautiful board in my eyes

http://usa.asus.com/products/mb/socket939/a8v-d/overview.htm

but,

The DDR2 is out. Its very new and there will be new board in a month or so that will have that feature.

This is an Athlon64 FX based board. Donâ€™t let me confuse you with this dual or quad staff. For gaming its not necessary. I would spend that kind of money because Iâ€™m a pc hardware nut. Always upgrading or rewiring something inside

**Paddy the wak** · 29 July 2004, 17:06

Good tip ... thanks again !

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