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And here is what I recommended to him, Budget in the $800 range. Comments/Suggestions?

AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+ Windsor 2000MHz HT 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Dual Core Processor $183.00

ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI MCP ATX AMD Motherboard $142.99

Western Digital Caviar SE WD2500JS 250GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb $74.99

Case Already Has

Powersupply Already Has $-

Memory CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM Unbuffered DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) $229.00

CD/CDRW/DVD Burner LITE-ON Black 16X DVD+R / CDRW $32.99

3D Fuzion 3DFR76256GTSINE Geforce 7600GT 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card $163.00



Subtotal $825.97


Shipping $29.00
Total $854.97

I think you can safely shave a lot (30%?) off the mobo/CPU combo if you're careful.

I'm concerned about his existing P/S. Has it got the juice to power this rig?

The one that came with the case is a 500Watt if im not mistaken...

Ya, I checked the PSU, it's 500Watt.

Moving right along... The case has 2 fan slots, One 120mm slot and One 80mm slot. I want to get each of the fans with matching blue led lights that will go along real nice with the UV Reactive side. What would you all suggest?

Next order of business would be a monitor. Here's what I'd ideally want. 19" LCD screen. But im sure that, that will be pricy. So I wouldnt mind a CRT 19".
What would you guys recommend as far as that goes. I'm hoping to get one of these for around $150. If that however, is damn near impossible i'd settle for a 17" LCD or 17" CRT around that price. As you can see i'm not sure how much monitors go for at all. Is there a difference between LCD's and CRT's as far as gaming goes? Also, what do you guys think about monitors with built in speakers ? Good? Bad ?

Glad you asked. I actually found these earlier today.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/ ... chdeals-20
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6824021025
http://www.officedepot.com/ddSKU.do?level=SK&id=113062

They've all got rebates of some sort that put them in the $110-$160 price range. They're all 19" (one's a widescreen).

Thanks for the links Gambit. However, I only see rebates on the Newegg one. Would all three of these monitors work well when being used for gaming ? I remember someone on these boards saying that LCD Monitors somtimes blur when used for gaming.

What you look for in LCD monitors is a quick (low) response time.

My LCD was one of the first, a 16ms. If I was going to buy one now I would get a 12ms or lower. I love my 16ms one...I don't see any motion blur, but Hammer says he can...he has younger eyes than mine anyway.

So watch for lower than 16ms response time for a good LCD monitor. Beats the hell outta the 21" CRT I am using while mine is in the shop.

I have a 17" LCD with an 8ms response time, and it's perfect, IMO. But I'd like to get a 19" after having a 19" CRT. The only thing I would do to maybe save some dough is to only buy 1Gb of RAm.. You can always upgrade to 2Gb later, and you probably won't have this PC long enough to need 4Gb, so whay worry about upgrading you're not going to do? Just a though.

(At least two of the ones I linked above claim to have 8ms response.)

All 3 of them were... I noticed that last night.

Is there a differance between these 2 parts.... besides the $40?

EDIT: Alright guys, I basically have everything picked out... all I need is an 80mm and a 120mm fan and Im good to go... I was reading differant product details on differant fans at newegg. And it seems like every fan has differant details and I have no idea which two to pick... Anyone have suggestions as to which I should pick? (From newegg since I have everything being ordered in one big package .)

If you're not worried about case noise, or you want something adjustable, this is a great fan, or if noise is a concern, this is a good one. Thermaltake also has some 80mm blue LED fans that moves pretty good air and aren't too loud. There's This 80mm fan or this 80mm Smart fan.

Alright fellas! Just finished all the credit card stuff with my Mom and the order is finalized... I should be receiving it about Wednesday. Here's what all I got.

ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI MCP ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail $142.99

Sunbeam CCKPT2-30-UV UV Blue Case Cathode Light Kit - Retail $4.99

LITE-ON 16X DVD±R DVD Burner Black ATAPI/E-IDE Model SHW-160P6S-04 - Retail $32.99 (+ -$5 rebate)

Thermaltake Thunderblade A1926 120mm Sleeve Blue LED Light Cooling Fan - Retail $9.99

Thermaltake Thunderblade A1910 80mm Sleeve Blue LED Light Cooling Fan - Retail $5.99

Western Digital Caviar SE WD2500JS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM $74.99

CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Unbuffered Dual Channel Kit System Memory Model TWIN2X2048-6400 - Retail $229.99 (+ -$40 rebate)

Rosewill R913J Black-Gray 19" 8ms LCD Monitor, DVI - Retail $234.99 (+ -$70 rebate)

AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+ Windsor 2000MHz HT Socket AM2 Dual Core Processor Model ADA4200CUBOX - Retail $187

3D Fuzion 3DFR76256GTSINE Geforce 7600GT 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail $162.99


Sub Total = $1,085.92
SH + $29.40
Grand Total = $1,115.32
(After Rebates) = $1,000.32


I'm Psyched! Thanks to SH, Gambit, and Ice for all of the help on picking parts and giving useful input! Can't wait for this to arrive!


On a sidenote... What am I going to need to get this thing running right away. After its all put together I know I'm going to need Windows Xp (Am I going to have to go out and buy a $70 copy?! or can I use someone elses ?). I have no idea how to install it... or would I just stick the disc in like I would any other time. Also I need the SP2 updates along with AVG, Ad-aware and Spybot S&D. I also know im going to need to put on my firewall (Zone Alarm) before I become internet active. Is there anything i'm missing?

The difference between those two vid cards is that one of them is marked "open box." To me, this indicates a return, though that may not be true. I wouldn't mind if it was a store on the corner I could take it right back to after purchase, but I'm a little less willing to do so with a mail order. OTOH, I don't mind refurbs at all.

Just MHO.

You will set the bios to boot from the CDROM drive first...after you have put the Windows XP cd in it.

Then just step through it. You can call me if you need help.

Also...IF...IF...you trust me enough...I would be more than willing to put it together for you from free...and load it up with everything you would need and make sure it is ok. But...otherwise I strongly recommend that you come here to ask for our help on ANY questions. We can save you hours of work.

But...if you build it yourself...and you are successful then you will be able to use that skill from here on out and it will be a great skill to have.

Here is a step by step guide to building it...one thing...install the CPU and memory before putting it into the case. Also, ground yourself to prevent any static electricity from ruining anything.

http://www.pcstats.com/articleview.cfm?articleID=1444