[skinlab]

here it is, should run me a total of about $900 Canadian, i already have $200 of those, so im $700 short, hopefully i'll have them by next weekend. the system is virtually donated by Casino Niagra (spanish 21 baby!)

Motherboard: ASUS A7V333 (NO RAID - maybe but probably not)
CPU: AMD Athlon XP 1800+
HSF: Globalwin Tak-68
Memory: 256DDR PC-2700
Hard Drive: Maxtor 80gig
Sound Card + Speakers: Audigy Value + Inspire 4400 (i already have those on this system, i'll take em out and put a cheap card on this one here)
Video: Radeon 8500 Retail (w00t - i still have my old MX, will put on this one)
Floppy: Panasonic
CD/CDR-W: Panasonic 8x4x32 (i already have it on this system, will just transfer and keep my old 44X on this one)
Monitor: KDS XF-9e 19" Flat (already got it, old 15" laying around for this one)
NIC: 3com 10/100 + linksys router for home network (got it already)
Keyboard + Mouse: Microsoft Office keyboard + Wheelmouse optical (got it already)
Case: http://www.nikao.net/case/noblesse.htm + Enermax 430 watts PSU (these 2 are what are putting me almost $200 over the top, paying for those myself )
OS: WinXP PRO or Win2k


any input would be good, suggest changes or addons, anything goes and i will take most of it into consideration

[UberLord]

I'd stick another 256 meg RAM in there at least.
Also, I'd ditch the Audigy and get a Sonic Fury/Turtle Beach Santa Cruz instead.

Otherwise, looking good

[skinlab]

i already have the audigy, so i figured i'd save myself a 100 bucks, and DDR ram is still quite expensive here, altho SDR dropped about $40 this week.
if DDR drops even more, yeh i'll be running 512 for sure, but i'm not willing to spend another $100 for something that i already own.
note, unless i win more than $700 (or if i dont lose anything at that), then yes i might be able to cough up another $100 for the santa cruz heh

[JavaFox]

Great system! I'm very picky about what goes into my PC, and I'd have to say, I'd be proud to own your system.

If you want to save a few bucks, just go with a KT266A or SiS735 (ECS K7S5A) board. KT333 doesn't really offer much of a performance gain over its predecessor and I'm sure PC2100 is cheaper than PC2700. I wouldn't waste my cash. But that's me.

Great choice for a HDD! I've always loved Maxtor, but you may want to look into Seagate, too -- especially if you're trying to build a quiet system. The Seagate Baracuda IV is fast and SILENT. I'm really obsessive about this -- I love that HDD.

Personally, there's no way I'd put any Creative product in my PC. Why not go with a Hercules (Cirrus Logic) or Philips (Thunderbird Avenger) card?

For the floppy -- I like having Mitsumis in my systems. The reason? I've never had a Mitsumi die on me, but I had ONE Panasonic die on me. That's all it takes!

As for the network card, I've never really cared for fancy 3COM ones -- Realtek based ones work great as far as I'm concerned, but YMMV.

You really don't need such a hefty PSU, especially if you'r strapped for cash. If you really must have a high wattage one, check out Super Flower. YES, I know it sounds cheesy, but check out that review.

As far as the OS, I'd say WinXP all the way.

Great build!

[Zardon]

nice system, and if your main prority is playing games, 256 meg of DDR2700 is fine, I render and use photoshop alot so I have three 512 meg DDR2700 chips installed, depends on your needs. a single chip is also better for overclocking.

nice well rounded system you posted

[skinlab]

cool, i was wondering about the a7v333 if it would be worth it, or if i should just stick to a 266, but i'll make that decision as i go along

as far as the sound card goes, i already own the sound blaster, so i dont want to waste $100 for something i own, otherwise i would buy a philipps card.

HDD, i also considered seagate, it's only $1 more so i just might go for it, i chose maxtor however caus they bought out quantum, i have a quantum and it's sweet, very quiet and i have my case open.

floppy <-- dont really care, not like im gonna be using it alot lol

NIC, the 3com is pretty expensive, i just might go with a cheap SOHO or a Linksys

PSU, the HSF i'm gonna be running has 2 fans (btw, if u check globalwin's site, it's a great looking HSF and installation is a breeze, TAK68), the R8500 i believe sucks up alot of juice, and i'm gonna have another 4 80mm case fans, and i might do a window + neons but i'm not sure. i also have a custom card cooler made.

i'm surprised no one has commented on the case, which is what i'm most worried about lol