Draft Specs of Gaming / Multimedia PC [ Feedback Required ]

[Xenctuary]

Hey guys. I am in the final stages of designing a new machine created purely for cutting edge gaming and multimedia use and would very much appreciate some suggestions or changes to the components.

When it's all said and done, I wish to be able to play games such as Half-Life 2 and FarCry at very high, if not maximum, graphical settings. I also look forward to the day where I can have several intensive multimedia applications such as Illustrator and Photoshop open simultaneously. At the moment I have to work on projects one program at a time, something that really can be restricting and frustrating.

After a load of research, I feel that I've got the right system for me. Please note that I already have a custom chassis, an appropriate PSU, LCD, HDD, cooling, speakers and all of the other essentials.

Anyway, enough chatter, on to the goods:

£700 Budget (updated 29th august)
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 3700+ S939 "San Diego" at £192 (scan.co.uk)
GPU: XFX 7800GT 256MB DDR3 Dual DVI VIVO PCI-E at £280 (ebuyer.com)
M/B: Asus A8N-SLi at £86
RAM: Ballistix 1GB kit (512MBx2) DDR PC3200
Corsair TwinX 1Gb Kit (512MBx2) DDR, PC3200 (LED Activity Lights, Lifetime Warranty) at £102 (scan.co.uk)

I'm looking to order the following parts in next couple of days and wish to stay in the region of around £650. I have no idea how about AMD speeds, so I'm not sure whether the 3200+ is enough for my needs or not. Can anyone suggest a suitable motherboard? I can then go on and choose the RAM from Crucial. Any sort of feedback would be great.

[BenW]

The 3200+ should be plenty fast enough, expecially when matched with that graphics card. You want DDR RAM with an AMD, not DDR2

Crucial RAM:
Basic: http://www.crucial.com/uk/store/part...CT2KIT6464Z40B
Performance: http://www.crucial.com/uk/ballistix/...T6464Z402&cat=

The second more expensive set should give you a couple more fps on games

[Trippledence]

Don't foget to budget for a big PSU with that spec. I expect that the 7800's eat up the juce and once youve got all the other gubbins. You might want to set aside £60-70 espechaly if you want a bit of future proofing.

[BenW]

I think the 7800 is actually meant to use less power than the 6800 series.

Just get a decent branded ~400W

[Xenctuary]

Thanks guys, I've updated the first post to reflect the changes. I've pretty much got everything down except for the motherboard - I really am lost, there are so many options and I have no idea what is right for me!

The 3200+ should be plenty fast enough, expecially when matched with that graphics card. You want DDR RAM with an AMD, not DDR2

I wasn't aware of that, I just assumed DDR2 would be more beneficial?

Crucial RAM:
Basic: http://www.crucial.com/uk/store/part...CT2KIT6464Z40B
Performance: http://www.crucial.com/uk/ballistix/...T6464Z402&cat=

The second more expensive set should give you a couple more fps on games

That actually works quite well, I'll definitely invest in the more expensive RAM for that little extra longevity.

Don't foget to budget for a big PSU with that spec. I expect that the 7800's eat up the juce and once youve got all the other gubbins.

While researching I found that the 7800GT was suprisingly easy on the PSU. Nevertheless, I'll bear that in mind; there can't be much worse than spending hundreds on a PC for it to be reduced to fried components due to a £12 CPU

[kempez]

And the nforce boards require a lot of power

Get a decent PSU: Tagan, Enermax, Hyper, OCZ, PCP&C....

Mobo - EpoX are good cheaper board - or Asus AN8 or DFI Ultra-D

[sawyen]

Never skimp on a good reliable power supply... a 480W Tagan is trillion times better than a generic £20 600W PSU

Nforce boards are pretty thirsty, I would recommend something between Tagan and Enermax above 450W just to be on the safe side.

Abit and ASUS boards are pretty reliable. You'll be at a better position to kick that CPU up to speed later with ABIT, as they offer very comprehensive monitoring and overclocking options. DFI is a fav as well, but they do have some memory compatibility issues which annoys me.

3200+ is plenty, as long as you stick with a reliable memory. Ballistix or MXS or OCZ Gold series are all reliable memory that can work pretty well above 200MHz..

[nez]

Asus A8N-SLi (Standard), you could go for the delux if u really need the extra ethernet port and raid 5, but other wise its gr8 and only £85 from scan, we have one in the office pc, it boots to windows so bloody rapidly (about 10 secs)
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Produ...oductID=158981

I think u can get a verison without sli, but its not much cheaper and you will have the option there for sli if u find another 7800 in a hedge!!

That would leave you enough for a very nice Tagen 480W power supply, this one works gr8 with a8n board and perfect for the 7800 too
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Produ...roductID=82572

nez

[Xenctuary]

Sounds great, seems like I'm set! I'll probably order these items tomorrow, unless anyone else responds with alternatives. Thanks for all of your help guys, I'll keep ya posted!

[RDL]

Your selection seems good, just one point. I don't know how far you are looking to overclock, but if I was you I'd upgrade your CPU to either a 3500 or 3800 Venice, or a 3700 San Diego. You will hit a threshold with your current pc where the graphics card wont perform to full potential (this will be reduced, if not cut out by spending a bit more on a CPU). Other than that, decent setup!

[krazy_olie]

With regard to the cpu I personally think It's a good choice, I see your point RDL, but the way I see it is that a threshold will be hit by single core anyway before it will be badly limited by the clock speed. Having said that, if there's a bit left to spend then upgrading the CPU is the thing to do.

[ifyouknowme]

that setup looks cool but i would have thought a bigger cpu might be better

[Dark Horse]

That actually works quite well, I'll definitely invest in the more expensive RAM for that little extra longevity.

In practice at stock settings performance ram will get you only a few more % than standard ram but is often twice the price. If you're an overclocker you will see much larger performance gains with performance ram but if you're not I would say just get something like 2x512mb of standard ram at £60 and you won't notice the difference in the slightest.

I also look forward to the day where I can have several intensive multimedia applications such as Illustrator and Photoshop open simultaneously. At the moment I have to work on projects one program at a time, something that really can be restricting and frustrating.

Having read that I would say that you might want to look a better cpu than the 3200+.

A 3700+ San Deigo with 1mb cache would suit you much better and could be got with the money saved from buying performance ram.

[ifyouknowme]

i have a 3700 san deigo there about 185 quid now

[Xenctuary]

I've taken all of your suggestions into consideration and I really am torn between the very enticing 3700+ San Diego and my original choice of the 3200+ Venice. I might have to stretch the budget a bit, and I think I will settle for the standard Crucial memory ("standard" seems so inferior, haha).

Since sleeping is a lot easier than deciding... I'll sleep on it

I gotta consider whether I need to fork out for a new PSU (I have a few reputable ones lying about, I have to find them and check the wattage) and whether I need a larger local HDD or whether I can rely on network drives.

Thanks for all of the help, I would seriously be still lost if it weren't for you guys. Just goes to show that there is always time for design changes, however last minute they may be.

[BenW]

I'd personally go for the 3200+

Get a 3700 in a few months if needed.

BUT if its better CPU or ballistix ram then go for the CPU