Feedback on budget spec wanted.

[ExKArt]

I would get a 500W + psu. Some good ones start at about $54 US.

[SweetDreamz]

Don't get the Thermaltake PSU. They don't have a good reputation. Instead, get something like Antec...they're good, budget PSUs. And it's not the wattage that matters, it's how well it can sustain that wattage...reliability really.

Grab the eVGA 7800GT + motherboard combo. It's a great board and very simple to use and it can overclock decently. Then you can grab a Opteron 166 or 170. Those chips can OC very well, that is if you do overclock.

Combo: $360
Your RAM: $180
Opteron 170: $420
Antec Neopower(Just a recommendation, choose others that you want.): $90
Your Case: $50 (Or you could get a better case)

Total: $1100

Your total is about $1060, but just for $40 more you get something better. And it's still within your budget.

You get a better deal for the amount that you spend.

[saygt]

thanks for the feedback

would 500w be sufficient for 2 video cards?

which combo would this be? which motherboard does it come with?
i'd like to get a motherboard that supports sli because i would like to have
that option of upgrade. also, where can i find it online?

from what i've read there isn't a huge difference in performance between equivalent opteron and x2 processors. am i mistaken? would it be worth the extra 100ish dollars?

[SweetDreamz]

from what i've read there isn't a huge difference in performance between equivalent opteron and x2 processors. am i mistaken? would it be worth the extra 100ish dollars?

I'm just saying if you're an "enthusiast" as some people may say, get the Opteron. If not, just grab the x2. Stock to stock, the x2 will beat the Opteron. But once OC, it can go far beyond the x2. Of course, it depends on luck also. And Opterons generally will OC better than x2 because they've gone through more testing and a better batch in general.(correct me if I'm wrong)

And the Opteron 170 oem is about 20 bucks more than your x2 4200 retail.


The motherboard included is basically this one (http://www.anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.aspx?i=2506) but rebranded with eVGA's name. Here's a link (http://evga.com/community/promos/BigNameGame/) to their site about the deal and the associated resellers. And it's come with a free copy of Quake 4! Monarch is the cheapest at about $360.

[saygt]

thanks that clarified a lot.
i couldnt find any motherboard/gpu combo though, just motherboard/cpu?

as of now with the mobo/cpu combo...

asus mobo/opteron 170 OEM combo - 510 (free HL2!)

2gb corsair ddr ram - 180

geforce 7800gt - 305 (free Q4!)

case - 50

antec truepower 550w - $90

@ 1135

how does that look? (still curious about the mobo/gpu combo) thanks

[SweetDreamz]

Hmm...bundle must have been sold out already...they still have it here in Canada so I assumed they still have it in the states, guess not.

That m/b & cpu seems like a good deal. Link to it? I just wanna see which Asus board it is.

[saygt]

i dont think it's really a 'combo deal' per se, u just get to pick the mobo and the processor, but they install and test it for u for free and their prices are good so. but here's the link http://www.monarchcomputer.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=M&Product_Code=80152
the mobo i was looking at is the asus nforce4 sli, non-premium. Although right now I think I'd rather invest in the premium, but Im not certain of the difference. Would it help with the OCing?

i was also reconsidering the case, any suggestion for a case that's pretty quiet for under $100?

[saygt]

turns out the mb/vid card combo is there afterall :D so going with the suggested spec with a little uppage

Jetaway NF4 sli/7800gt combo @ $360

Opteron 175 oem @ $460

Thermaltake TR2TT A4014 CPU Cooler for AMD 939/940 Heatsink-w-Fan @ $20

2GB corsair ddr @ $180

Coolermaster case @ $50

not sure about HD yet but, give or take $90ish

Antec truepower 550w @ $90

Total: $1250

how does that look?

[lots]

If you have an X2 with 1MB cache and a dual core Opteron 1xx of the same GHz, they will perform pretty much the same. They will be no different.

In fact, since all Opteron 1xx have 1MB of cache per core, I would go out further to say that since the low end X2s (3800) only have 512KB per core, you'll get better performance out of the Opteron, all of this at stock speeds.

Clock for clock the X2 and the Opteron 1xxs are identical :P They're the same freakin chip... As is the case with all of AMD's 64bit line up... An Opteron 170 vs an Athlon64 X2 3800, both at stock speeds (2.0 GHz), will give you about the same numbers, the edge to the Opteron for the 1MB cache per core...

The Opteron tends to OC better due to the tighter QA requierments for the chips (they're geared towards people who require stability). And in the single socket world of AMD, that is the only difference between the Opteron and the X2. There is no magical speed boost just because Opterons are "server chips" They're server chips because they're stable, not because they're fast. Ever notice that Opterons are always one speed grade behind the Athlon64? :P

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