shadows on 14/1/2010 at 23:22

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My old computer has died so I thought it's about time to build a new one, here's what I am planning to build. I am going for a 'most bang for my buck' type machine, since I don't need the latest stuff. Of course it must be able to play Thief! :cheeky:

CPU:
A basic dual core processor, going for Athlon II x2, cause it's cheaper and it uses the latest AM3 socket, leaving a future upgrade option.

Motherboard:
ASUS. I've heard some Gigabyte boards are not reliable. I am going to try and get one with:
One Slot (ideally two) = PCI-E2.0 16x
One Slot = PCI-E2.0 1x
Three Slots = PCI

RAM:
2GB. DDR3 cause it's the most current on the market. Dual Channel to help it run better.

HD:
500GB SATAII 16MB cache, probably Seagate since I've always used these with no problems.

GPU:
NVidia. 512MB. Geforce 8. I wanna go for the 8800GT, cause the power consumption isn't too high, especially when running 3D stuff. But I am willing to consider the mid-range 8500 and 8600 cards too.

PSU:
Corsair CX400 400W. This has 30amps on the 12v so should deliver sufficient power.

Case:
Either CoolerMaster or Gigabyte, cause I like the 'grills' design on the front. Most of the ones I saw had more then enough expansion slots and drive bays, plus the usual USB connectors front and back. Also need one with 2, ideally 4 fans split back and front.

Any opinions welcome! :)

shadows on 15/1/2010 at 08:41

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I've refined my choices, but I am worried whether an 400w power supply is enough. I've used online calculators to check how many watts this would all take, it says around 300w, which is not a problem...

But I've been reading about power consumption for graphics cards (link below) which says that cards use significantly more power when running 3D graphics. Not entirely sure what makes one graphic 2D or 3D. Is Thief 3 in 3D? Or when playing Command and Conquer Generals, that looks 3D to me.

In any case when running graphics in 3D the 400w power supply may not be enough...

Secondly I know that PCI Express slots come in different 'speeds' with it's own corresponding slot, the higher the speed the longer the slot.
1x
4x
8x
16x
The 16x is used for graphics cards. I tried researching this, but can't seem to find what the other different speed slots are used for.
There seems to be no motherboards with 4x or 8x slots. But ones with 1x slots. I need to know what 1x slots are used for, so i can work out if how i need on a motherboard for future upgrades.

Thanks! :cheeky:

GPUs Power Consumption:
(http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-radeon-power,2122-6.html)

bikerdude on 15/1/2010 at 10:47

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CPU:
Athlon II x2,
Motherboard:
Gigabyte (My last 3 mobos have been g-byte)
- In your case GA-770TA-UD3 (is on the only one with 3xPCI slots)
RAM:
- get 4GB, its worth it in the long run.
HD:
500GB SATAII 16MB cache,
- Id you more interested in speed over size then get the 750GB 7200.12, as it has 32mb cache.

GPU:
- get the GTS250 1GB, they can be had for £80-90

PSU:
- I suggest a Nexus NX-5000, these are wisper quiet and have a single 12v rail (I myself own the RX-1K)
Case:
- I suggest the Lancool Dragon-Lord PC-K58, its better than my Antec 900, and thewt coolermaster/gigabyte and £20 cheaper




* your better having more power than you need and helps future proofing.
* Thief, CnC are both 3d apps, and a gfx card will be using more power at this point (a GTS250, typically 150W)

* PCIE:-
1/2x - sound and network cards.
4x - raid cards and similar.
8/16x - gfx cards only.

Brian The Dog on 17/1/2010 at 02:34

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Something else that's moving to PCI-E x1 is legacy cards - if you want to add Parallel or Serial Ports, or extra ATA/SATA ports, then these are now being put on PCI-E x1 cards instead of standard PCI. Also, the PCI-E slots are kind of "backwards compatable" - you can put a x1 card in a x4 (or even an x16) slot and it will work fine, but not the other way round.

I would definitely agree with everyone else on here, get at least a 450W PSU, preferably over 500W. If you want to upgrade your CPU or graphics card, then these may require way more power than you currently have budgeted for. See if you can get a hard drive with 32Mb cache for a few dollars more, it will be worth it.

Edit - the number given in the PCI-E rating (e.g. x1, x16) is the number of lanes, i.e. the bandwidth it can cope with, not really the speed. This is why graphics cards have to use x8 or x16 whereas legacy devices can use x1 - graphics cards have huge amounts of data to move around. Although, as you'd expect if you throw large amounts of data through it, the higher the bandwidth, the quicker the device. For small amounts of data, the PCI-E ports will operate at exactly the same speed (I hope this is clear, I'm very tired whilst typing this!).

Brian The Dog on 18/1/2010 at 17:59

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You shouldn't need USB drivers unless you're installing Windows 95/98/NT. Everything from Win2000 onwards has built-in USB 2.0, and automatic recognition for standard USB devices so that drivers are not needed. Of course, some things made today are a little different to the "standard" USB devices and so need drivers anyway!

I've not needed USB drivers for XP x32 or XP x64, USB devices should just be automatically recognised when installed.

It looks a good computer, anway :) You can always add more RAM or a bigger PSU if you need it later on.