Help Building a Desktop

[nko]

I have a laptop I'm pretty happy with, but I'm planning now on getting a desktop. There are a couple of specific things I want, so I plan on building my own from parts (fun!).

Of course, there's a budget. I'd like to keep everything under $500. I've got a monitor, keyboard, mouse, USB2.0 PCI card, 120GB external HD and CD-RW (both USB 2.0), and a comfy chair. I still need:

Mobo
CPU
Power Supply
RAM
Internal HD (tiny, 7200RPM would be fine)
Case
And if I can't boot from the external CD, an internal CD drive
Video card - I'd like to play with XComposite, but low FPS in 3D games wouldn't matter to me

My wife says I can spend the money, but the case has to be red. I'd like an Athlon XP-M, which I hear can be used in any mobo a regular Athlon can. I hear a low quality power supply can be a threat, and I'd like to avoid that issue. I'd like at least 512 Megs of RAM, but I can push the budget to accomplish that. A gig is my aim, but that's probably not happening for a couple of months. I'd like to run several virtual machines under this machine, but just for light software testing. No need for them to be at all production-speed, or to ever have more than 2 running concurrently.

If anyone would like to dream out loud about what they'd buy in this scenario, please do! I'd like to keep my power bill low, if that affects anything other than CPU / video card.

While I'm posting, is there a card for sale today that's decent for xcomposite other than an ATi or nVidia?

[Bubba56]

Well I can't give specifics on all the somponents you want, but I CAN point you to a couple of VERY good, reputable online vendors.

WWW.newegg.com
www.zipzoomfly.com

Newegg I know has many search criteria for components, speed, socket type, ram speed, etc, etc etc. Yes a good power supply IS important, I would suggest not skimping on quality on that point. There are many makers of reliable power supplies , Antec, Enermax, PC Power & Cooling (this one will break the bank tho :P)

I just built a new machine(mostly) with parts from Newegg, got a GB of Corsair ram (pc3200 184 pin DDR) for under $100.

Hope this helps some.

edit: re-read and deleted an un--necessary suggestion :/

[nko]

I like newegg! Thanks for the pointers!

What do we think of these parts?
http://secure.newegg.com/app/WishHistoryReview.asp?position=HISTORY&submit=VIEW&ID=1410190

Am I missing anything important? Will this case / mobo / power supply work together? I've never built my own computer before; only dinked with already assembled ones. I think everything else will be fine, I don't mind proprietary drivers too much, but those three components leave me with a big question mark.

The big sell is that my wife really likes the case :)

[StarTiger]

Looks good excopt for your processor.

the Mobile processor is a laptop processor and won't work in a desktop system.

try this one instead.

AMD Athlon 2700+ (http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-341&depa=0)

also, your getting a OEM processor, that's just the chip, no heat sink. You're conna need some sort of cooling system ther if you want that chip to last longer than 2 minutes.

look at some of these:
Heat Sinks (http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.asp?submit=property&DEPA=0)

also what are you doing about a video card, monitor, keyboard, mouse, speakers, modem, floppy drive? with the first 4 items being esential to build a useable system.

[nko]

I've heard from several places that a mobile Athlon does work in a desktop, and that's one of its major selling points amongst geeks. Every shopping site I've hit / googled seems to think that dual Athlon MP's is TEH Ro0Lz!

I will need some sort of cooling / heatsink, though, you're right. As for the rest, that wishlist should include a GeForce 3 Ti, selected for decent speed, good price and low wattage. Monitor, keyboard and mouse are laying around the house, because I'm a geek, and I have self respect. Modem is a maybe, since I don't have Internet service and might like the dialup option, but for now, no need. I'm sure I've got speakers laying around somewhere, too, but I'd love to go as long as possible without my wife wondering how she's supposed to play music on the thing (though she's got decent taste!).

Floppy drive? I suppose I'll need at least two of those. They probably have faster CPUs than the machine itself, but... wait, this is 2005!! You almost had me!

[nko]

Oops, you were right, no video card there. Well, I added this one:

APOLLO nVIDIA GeForce2 MX400 Video Card, 64MB DDR, TV-Out, 4X AGP, Model "Bloody Monster Geforce2 MX400" -RETAIL

I used to have one of these, so I think it should be good enough to run xcomposite stuff. Right? And at $37, the price is right.

[pilotgi]

You can get an Athlon XP 2800+ "Barton" processor for $104 that includes the heat sink. And much better performance. Your separate heat sink and mobile processor costs about $15 more.

[soulestream]

just a note i started my last box with 3 thermaltake fans about a year or 2 ago. 2 of them are now in a drawer with bad bearings, they have been replaced with oem fans that have had no probs. I guess sometimes you dont get what you pay for.


soule

[DrChuck]

I built my rig with similar requirements to yours: cheap with decent, but not earthshattering, performance, and spent less than $600. My biostar motherboard (http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=13-138-234&depa=1) is about the same price, but has onboard graphics which are good enough to play Doom3 smoothly at low quality. So maybe you could spring for another stick of (pc2700) RAM instead of the graphics card.

drChuck

[nko]

Ah man, now I feel iffy about having put down the money for this setup. Oh well. I'll try to remember to come back here and post an update if the fan fails. I was trying to look for a cheaper one, because $30 just seems steep for a fan / heat sink, but the only one I could find was for like $5 and said it went up to Athlon XP 2200+'s. I didn't want to risk it not being good enough for an MP 2600+, so I opted for the $30 one... after making sure there wasn't a better deal (at NewEgg).

Oh well, we'll see how this setup does once it arrives.

[Bubba56]

Well $30 for a good HSF isn't bad at all. but to save the worries about compatibility etc, you could go with the retail setup, like:

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-342&depa=0

but if you have already ordered everything, I hope it all comes together for you, don't forget to get some thermal compound for the contact/heat dissapation help between processor and the HSF. Arctic Silver highly recommended and a VERY thin layer at that. It is just meant to fill the minute imperfections in the HSF. Good luck and build carefully, it's always fun to see your own home brew machine come to life and run :))

[nko]

Thanks! That link points to an XP. I'm getting an MP, kind of because I like the idea of lower power / etc. May not be rational, but *I want a mobile CPU in my desktop!* </whining> :)

My setup may still be a space heater compared to a PentiumMMX, but it's been a long time since I've seen a computer at a store and thought, "hey! That's a computer, not a power-grubbin' space heater!"

How important is the compound?

[IsaacKuo]

Have you already checked out the mobo/CPU combo deals at NewEgg? NewEgg mobo/CPU combos (http://www.newegg.com/app/manufactory.asp?catalog=446&DEPA=0)

There are some good deals there, which may shave off some of your cost. Also, Fry's Outpost has some great mobo/CPU combo deals (my only experience with them is that my friend got one of those deals and it worked out very well).

[Bubba56]

Compound is actually VERY important. Even my new retail version AMD 64 3200+ retail came with a pre-applied small layer of thermal compound and if you were looking at the base of the HSF, you would swear it was already glass smooth it was so polished. The thermal compound fills in the minor imperfections of the base of the HSF so there is optimized contact between the hsf and the processor itself. Heat destroys very quickly!!!

The resaon I pointed to that XP was
a) the mp processors don't come as "retail" ( including the hsf) to my knowledge.(I may be wrong)

b) I do not know if the "power savings" employed by a mobile oprocessor can be realised in a normal desktop setup. There may be motherboard setups that you can configure in a similar fashion?? I know my new processor/Asus mobo has the AMD "cool and quiet" feature that I can add but if that is available on a slightly older generation processor that will be used in a desktop mobo?!?!

c) getting a "retail" package gives you a hsf that is recommended/warrented BY AMD and not having to worry about buying the correct for the product after market hsf.

I am not knocking your selection of an MP just pointing to reasons for the retail regular desktop processor. Heh variety makes the world go round I hear :P