[cheema]

I am looking to build a gaming pc. I have done a little research and decided to pick the following parts:

(2) Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 ST3250824AS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
What's the difference between SATA and Ultra ATA? I was wondering if I should do Raid 0 with these drives. Could you tell me more about the pros and cons of Raid and if it is worth "Raiding."


CORSAIR XMS 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 433 (PC 3500) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory Model TWINX2048-3500LLPRO - Retail

AMD Athlon 64 X2 4800+ Toledo 1GHz HT Socket 939 Dual Core Processor Model ADA4800CDBOX - Retail

ATI 100-435805 Radeon X1900XTX 512MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail

WaterChill CPU Power kit - KT03A-SL35 [115V/1/2' inch/Triple Radiator]

LITE-ON Beige ATAPI/E-IDE DVD Burner With LightScribe and 5X DVD-RAM Write Model SHM-165H6S BG - OEM


Questions:
1. I was confused about which mobo to get. I heard that it is better not to get sli if you are not going to buy both graphics cards once. I also read that MSI or Gigabyte are good. So which actual one do you recommend? I also wanted to overclock. Is there any mobo that is overclock friendly that you could recommend? I also read Nforce 4 is better and Asus isn't that good.
2. What PSU should I get?
3. What case should I get?
4. Am I missing anything that I need?

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sli, nforce4 chipsets are better if you have an nvidia video card, not an ati. ati's big thing is crossfire.

DFI motherboards would be your best choice for overlocking

get a psu thats over 500 watts, and a trusted brand, like thermaltake, ultra, or something of the sort, (higher price = better, but dont spend too much).

i would go with a 7800gt or gtx video card (nvidia) rather than ati, (personal preference) but regardless of maker, 512mb of ram is overkill. dont pay twice as much, double the ram is not double the performance.

as far as a case; get one that is pretty, lots of room, and good reviews.

dont forget to pick up extra fans, and round cables for better air flow

sata is serial-ata, ultra-ata uses big fat ide cables and is much slower.

[Thebinaryman]

sli, nforce4 chipsets are better if you have an nvidia video card, not an ati. ati's big thing is crossfire.

DFI motherboards would be your best choice for overlocking

get a psu thats over 500 watts, and a trusted brand, like thermaltake, ultra, or something of the sort, (higher price = better, but dont spend too much).

i would go with a 7800gt or gtx video card (nvidia) rather than ati, (personal preference) but regardless of maker, 512mb of ram is overkill. dont pay twice as much, double the ram is not double the performance.

as far as a case; get one that is pretty, lots of room, and good reviews.

dont forget to pick up extra fans, and round cables for better air flow

sata is serial-ata, ultra-ata uses big fat ide cables and is much slower.

[cheema]

Is this DFI motherboard ok DFI LanParty UT nF4-D ATX AMD Motherboard
I decided to go with this power supply Thermaltake W0101RU 550W Power Supply
For the case, could you recommend some companies that are good and can support water cooling. And is the water cooling kit that I have right now poor, good, or overkill for overclocking?
I am confused. Can you tell me more about why I should 256 over 512? Will I be able to run demanding games at all high settings with both gfx cards? Are you saying that there won't be a noticeable difference in graphics between the 256 and 512, therefore I should stick with the 256?

[cheema]

I was thinking of getting the dell 24 inch lcd screen for my comp. So would I still be able to play non-laggish games with the 256 gfx card?

[gerryf]

what is the response time on the monitor? Larger monitors tend to have slower response times (not because it's not possible, just expensive)

For good gaming, look for a response time under 16ms

[cheema]

it's under 16ms

[cheema]

so should i get 256 or 512 mb graphics card with the 24' screen that has a response time of under 16ms? should I get the ati or nvidia? and what case should i get?

[cheema]

so why does this DFI LanParty UT nF4-D Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 ATX AMD Motherboard have two PCI ExpressX16 slots if it doesn't support sli? What can i use the two for?
I have so many questions and no answers. Someone please reply and help a noob in need.

[cheema]

I have another question. For the amd athlon 64x2 dual core processor, it says that the operating frequency is 2.4 Ghz. Does that mean that both cores are running at 2.4Ghz or each core at 1.2?

[cheema]

what is your opinion on refurbished graphics cards? ati x1900xtx 512 card.

[cheema]

if i get the ram that i have posted in the beginning, does it need to be pc 3500 b/c that is what the dfi motherboard can handle. And when I get a hdd, does it have to be ATA100 b/c that is what the mobo supports?

[quetzalcoatl]

Yes both cores are @ 2.4. I feel the 4800 is a waste of money. The 4400 is on the same core so can easly reach the same speed with oc'ing. Also have you looked at the opty's. They are dual core as well and have more silicone since they are for servers.

As far as the mobo goes having 2 X16 pci slots w/o sli is just plain stupid.

The video card is up to you. The 7800glx 512mb cards are very nice but also very pricey. And the question about Nvidia and Ati. It is up to you. Some like one over the other but both make very good products. I prefer Nvidia but that does not make them the best just my preference.

Just remember with any ram over pc3200 with a AMD processor will have to have some oc'ing done to make it work.

[cheema]

I did look at opterons but an administrator here recommended the one I chose for another guy so i decided to stick with that one. I am having the hardest time finding a mobo. Here is what I need out of it:
1. ATA150 for hard drive
2. supports AMD x2 CPU
3. don't want SLI
4. need a PCI expressx16 slot
5. want it to have a nforce 4 chipset
6. socket 939
7. DDR pc3200
8. not asus
I can not find a mobo with these specs. Could you please recommend one?

[quetzalcoatl]

I am guessing you ment SATA 150 The SATA 1 and 2 are backwards compatable. So go with a board that is SATA 2. Here is one that fits what you want.

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813127222

This board will support upto pc4000 which 500mhz. Best thing to do is decide on the company you want for ram then use the memory conf on the site to find out what will work best for what you need.

Why not ASUS? they make good boards.

[warriorscot]

ANy nforce 4 motherboard fits that description, they are the most common and best performing board available and still cheap, the x1900XTX is by far the fastest card on the market right now so if you can get a good price go for it.

Its almost impossible to look and not find an nforce 4 board those are just the standard specs you listed of them all, MSI, ABIT or DFI would be where i would look they all make the best, personally i would go for the MSI since it doesnt seem like you have done this before its nearly idiot proof and very solid performer, DFI is a bit more specialised and alot more money usually.