Looking for advice on computer build

WeedCali

WeedCali

Certified Dubhead
Dec 14, 2009
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Adam
Hello all of AC. anyone here know anything about building computers? if so, i could use some advice/opinions.

Heres the story, i have an older HP desktop with an AMD Athlon XP2800+(yeah, socket A. lol), 1GB PC2100(266) and a Visiontek Radeon X1300 AGP Card. it gets the job done, just not well enough.

Im saving up to build myself a new system. Mainly for Music Production and light to moderate gaming(Warrock, NFS, Bioshock etc.) but im not sure how i should manage my money. right now i have $388 in the bank with more coming in as i get paid. the system i want to build will most likely end up at around $650+

Heres the Specs:
Case - Thermaltake V3
PSU - OCZ ModXtream Pro 500W
CPU - AMD Phenom II X6 Thuban 2.8ghz
Mobo - ASUS M4A785TD-EVO
RAM - 4GB G-Skill Ripjaws Series DDR3 1600 (2x2GB)
GFX - Sapphire Radeon HD4670 1GB 128bit DDR3
HDD - 1TB Seagate Barracuda SATA II

My idea is to buy some of the parts now and finish it up when i have the chance. The reason i say that is because i can get the HDD, CPU, and Mobo for cheaper (new) on eBay. Question is, should I? most of the parts im getting from Newegg BTW.

Thanks in advance to anyone who can hep :)
 
Last edited:
Added links.

also, would you think the 500W PSU can cut it? i checked out a PSU calculater and came up to about 434W.
 
I always build my own PCs but everything changes from the time I do one to the time I'm ready for another. It's been a while again at this point so I can't help out much, except to say I think you're definitely going to want more than 4GB of ram for the things you're talking about doing with the machine (music production and gaming.) Beyond that, like I said, I can't say much, but it looks pretty good.
 
You'd be surprised how well 4gb of ram can do. eventually i will buy another 4gb of the same stuff. im just trying to get the basic layout done so i can get it built and help save a little money.

Now that i think about it, im gonna need a new OS too. i only have 32bit XP so it wont recognize more than 3gb.
 
i would buy the motherboard, ram, chip and especially the video card last.

i would go with a 700-800 watt power supply in the event you eventually upgrade the crap out of it... you'll have the juice no matter what.

i would get my psu, case, peripherals (card reader, dvd drive, etc.) and maybe hdd now. these things either rarely change in price range, don't age as fast towards useless, can be taken from system to system, etc., etc.. the meat and potatoes where you'll spend the majority of your money for gaming is upgraded constantly, often by leaps and bounds by the manufacturers and becomes obsolete or drops in price rapidly. buying them last will give you your best bang for your buck for music and gaming purposes.

i also agree that 4 gigs might be a little short handed nowadays... but more can get expensive still.

i think $650 might wind up a little short handed also for gaming. you shouldn't be too far off if you mind your spending and already have mouse, keyboard, screen, etc., etc..

you might want to look for a card with at least 1gb gddr5 for graphics. it will suffice for your applications much better for much longer... but gaming costs money... even mid-level.

EDIT: also, i personally much prefer western digital to seagate. IME, seagate has been horrible for having a very short life in my pc's.
 
dual boot with ubuntu FTW!
 
lol i have ubuntu 10.04 but i cant get wireless to work on it so i never use it.

and about the ram, i have 1gb of ddr266 and will eventually have 4gb of ddr3 1600. thats quite a leap if you ask me. plus, i dont do major gaming or overclocking so i dont need a really nice video card. hence why im only buying a 4670.
 
Also, heres some link to the ebay items.

Windows 7 Ultimate! great deal if you ask me. only an hour left though! should i?
HDD
A used Western Digital. never been a fan of WD but its been used and formatted with maufacturers warranty still good. not too sure if i should just go with that.
CPU
Mobo

I also found THIS HD4850. is this legit??? thats a killer deal!!
 
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