new setup compatability

[trunks ssj1]

i'm going to order my new setup soon and i need help on the compatability of it i will order an

amd 64 3000+ winchester socket 939
1gb of corsair xms3200xl xpert
asus a8n-sli nforce4 socket 939 pci express
his excalibre ati radeon x700 pro 256mb gddr3
and a 400watt psu
is that enough power for the setup

[JANINE]

i'm going to order my new setup soon and i need help on the compatability of it i will order an

amd 64 3000+ winchester socket 939
1gb of corsair xms3200xl xpert
asus a8n-sli nforce4 socket 939 pci express
his excalibre ati radeon x700 pro 256mb gddr3
and a 400watt psu
is that enough power for the setup

400 watts is fine as it stands at the moment but if ever you want to add more bits u might be stuck. i would go for a 500 watt plus. it'll serve you better in the long run. sounds like you'll have a beast of a machine there. thats what i like:D

[trunks ssj1]

what 5000watt psu should i get

[Coconut Monkey]

Some suggestions and questions:

• Buy some cheaper RAM (but stick with name brands!). The faster variety you have there won't make much of a difference in general usage and gaming.
• What do you plan to use the PC for?
• Why the SLI chipset? I see you're buying an ATI card which currently does not support any form of "SLI" (although this may change in future if ATI fulfills what has been reported recently).
• If you're going to buy a PSU, make sure you buy branded. A high wattage doesn't mean much on a generic PSU. They typically provide a lot less juice, and can sometimes give out if the strain is too much. It's better to go with a quality product to begin with. Antec, Topower and OCZ are recommended.
• Are you purchasing any other components besides the ones stated?

[trunks ssj1]

i am getting the sli board because in about a year i would like to get two 6800 ultras mostly i will be using it for games like half life2, doom 3 and call of duty to name just a few

[JANINE]

Some suggestions and questions:

• Buy some cheaper RAM (but stick with name brands!). The faster variety you have there won't make much of a difference in general usage and gaming.
• What do you plan to use the PC for?
• Why the SLI chipset? I see you're buying an ATI card which currently does not support any form of "SLI" (although this may change in future if ATI fulfills what has been reported recently).
• If you're going to buy a PSU, make sure you buy branded. A high wattage doesn't mean much on a generic PSU. They typically provide a lot less juice, and can sometimes give out if the strain is too much. It's better to go with a quality product to begin with. Antec, Topower and OCZ are recommended.
• Are you purchasing any other components besides the ones stated?

I agree with you about brand names etc. you dont get anywhere near so many problems. unbranded can equal major problems. The power supply names are good too but if you want to feel free to have an eyeball at these beauties http://www.jeantech.com/Products/Power_Supply/power_supply.html

i have a tendancy to use jeantech for their strength and durability/compatibility:cool:

[trunks ssj1]

thanx i will have a look at them

[Coconut Monkey]

i am getting the sli board because in about a year i would like to get two 6800 ultras mostly i will be using it for games like half life2, doom 3 and call of duty to name just a few

I wouldn't count on that line of upgrade too much. The 6800 Ultra will be long obsolete by that time and you may not find discounted models on the shelves either.

Of course, new chipsets with SLI will be out and about for the around the same price as the 6800 Ultras are today, so what am I complaining about?
(but I would recommend a 6600GT over the X700 - just make sure you buy a semi-decent brand)

I'm not so sure about those Jeantech PSUs Janine - in the brief search I made it appears they are classed more as generic power supplies, although there were no complaints as such. Do you have any review links handy?

[trunks ssj1]

why the 6600gt over the x700 pro what psu would you reccomend also what motherboard would you get if you were in my position

[belama]

You should buy RAM from the Corsair ValueSelect series. Good price, good performance and brand.

[trunks ssj1]

the ram i have is the best ram corsair do and it fits under my budget and it will make my pc abit more future prof

[JANINE]

I wouldn't count on that line of upgrade too much. The 6800 Ultra will be long obsolete by that time and you may not find discounted models on the shelves either.

Of course, new chipsets with SLI will be out and about for the around the same price as the 6800 Ultras are today, so what am I complaining about?
(but I would recommend a 6600GT over the X700 - just make sure you buy a semi-decent brand)

I'm not so sure about those Jeantech PSUs Janine - in the brief search I made it appears they are classed more as generic power supplies, although there were no complaints as such. Do you have any review links handy?

heres some
http://www.trustedreviews.com/article.aspx?head=64&page=2298
http://www.1megashop.net/product_info.php/products_id/1013
or try googling it. theres way too many for me to place here but my own personal review of a Jeantech pwer supply is that it is very good and seeing as the pc i have only has a 350 watt one at the moment (no cash to upgrade it) it copes more then well enough with the load on it. running an AMD sempron processor and abit mobo with integral sound card, a radeon 9800 graphics card, cd rewriter, dvd rewriter (dual layer), floppy disk, hard disk etc and 4 fans controlled with a 4 channel fan speed controller. There is no strain on this PSU at all and above all due to the larger then average fan size is as quiet as a mouse. it contends well with prolonged usage and won't pop in your face like the lower brand makes. Cheap and effective. i paid £30 for mine and ok it was from PC world but like others say PC world arent the sole traders for jeantech components.:cool:

[Catweazle]

Those are rebadged generic power supply units. I'd suggest sticking with the brands Coconut Monkey suggested ;)

[belama]

I know that not many will suggest it, but I am very satisfied with my Ultra XConnect 500 Watt Modular PSU.

[JANINE]

Those are rebadged generic power supply units. I'd suggest sticking with the brands Coconut Monkey suggested ;)

your probably right but then im looking at the low cost of them. most PSUs do virtually the same thing anyway... with exeption of maybe a few. depends how how big a budget our friend here has. however i do agree with coconut monkey on the power supply units he listed. excellent stuff and my jeantech probably wont last as long.

j

ps any1 know where i can get a good surge protector strip that'll protect more than 1 PC. i have 1 that is running off a garden extension reel cos i've run out of space. it must have at least 15 feet of cable though. Uk mainland only;)

[belama]

Its funny that people say: "dont buy this or that brand of PSU".

I had a generic brand of PSU in 1995: I've had it for over 7 years with no problems.
In 2000 I got another generic branded PSU: Still working.
On another PC in 2001 I got another generic branded PSU: never had problem with it.
Now I have a Ultra and works well right now.

I dont know anyone that has a OCZ or Antec PSU. They never had problems. I'll continue to buy lower priced PSU cuz I've never had bad luck with them. ;)

[Catweazle]

belama, this fellow is intending to upgrade to a high powered graphics card. Have you ever used a generic power supply unit with a top of the line display card? The higher the demands placed upon the power unit, the more likelihood there will be of failure. Failure doesn't necessarily mean blowing up either - cheap power units are less stable with the voltage levels they produce, and in a high performance situation those tiny fluctuations in voltage levels have a much more dramatic impact on system stability.

I'd endorse the sentiment that 6800 Ultras will no longer be available in a year's time. By that stage you will be able to purchase a G70 or R520 based display card, which will give double the performance of a 6800 Ultra anyway. There is really no point to purchasing an SLI ready motherboard unless you plan to purchase two 'top of the line' display cards NOW!

And yes, the 6600GT is a better card to choose than an X700 Pro.

[belama]

I never said to buy one generic PSU. I just said that people say they wont last long or whatever when I have had the opposite experience.

My Ultra gives enough power for my PC.... and has strong voltage rails. I know, I know. They are not really a known brand like Antec.

[trunks ssj1]

catweazle which 6600gt card would you buy a bfg or xfx

[Catweazle]

My preference is, and has always been for sparkle cards. Reference specifications and design, cheap because there are no bundled 'extras' to bump up the price, and reasonably good build quality.

I don't purchase for fancy features or brand name recognition, only for value! ;)

[trunks ssj1]

where can i find sparkle cards and are they any better than bfg or xfx

[Catweazle]

Sparkle cards are made in Asia, commonly sold in Australia, and I dunno where you live or where you'd get them.

XFX are another 'cheapie' brand, and I'm unfamiliar with BFG

None of these cards are really any 'better' than any other in terms of performance. If they are reference design they all work the same way ;)

[trunks ssj1]

the bfg and xfx cards are overclocked to near 6800 ultra card specs in terms of core clock speeds and memory speeds and i live in london

[Catweazle]

NEVER would I pay extra to get a card that's already been overclocked out of the factory! Those cards are most likely already at their tolerance levels when you get them. I'd much rather pay less, overclock them myself, and take my chances of getting a great performer at a much lower price.

Every cheap card I've ever purchased has overclocked well with a reasonable amount of care and caution involved in the process. paying extra for someone else to do it for you beforehand is a mug's game, in my view ;)

Even should the card not overclock well, reference design is great performance at a very reasonable cost.

[trunks ssj1]

thankx i will take your advise and get a standard card

[Catweazle]

I wasn't trying to tell you what to do - merely stating my opinion. you might like to wait and hear the opinion of others :)

[trunks ssj1]

what you said made sence and learn how to overclock it myself

[JANINE]

ok check this out... im going to be building a PC for my brother and want to have it ready for his birthday in a few weeks time. Bear in mind im a little cash strapped at the moment.

Jeantech Butterfly ATX case
Abit VA20 motherboard
Radeon R9250 series Graphics card, 128mb of its own ram
512Mb RAM (either corsair or PNY)
AMD Athlon CPU
Jeantech 600 watt PSU with own switch
(and all the other bits)
floppy drive
CD rewriter drive
DVD rewriter drive
Win xp home edition (pro if cheap enough) dont want to use a disk without the ISO image (see one of my posts in another thread).

let me know what u think.:cool:

[JANINE]

Win xp home edition (pro if cheap enough) dont want to use a disk without the ISO image (see one of my posts in another thread).

in other words i aint gonna get messed up again and use a copied disk. i had a good look at the other disc and no hologram. i wont say any more cos im not gonna incriminate myself or any1 else. guys be careful out there:eek:

[trunks ssj1]

that computer sounds really quite good how much might it cost