Describe Ideal Barebones PC-Sept 2006

Monarch Combo
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Asus CROSSHAIR nForce 590 SLI Audio/GB-LAN/IEEE-1394a/PCI- 250.00

AMD Athlon 64X2 3800 + Dual-core 111.00

DDR2 (800) 6400 1 GB (2 pcs 512) Corsair ( twin2x1024a-6400) 165.00

NewEgg

connect3D 3058 Radeon X1900GT 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 VIVO PCI Express x16 Video Card 300.00

Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD2500KS 250GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive 78.00

BenQ FP202W Black 20.1" 8ms Widescreen LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 600:1 0.258mm Pixel Pitch 285.00

Antec LifeStyle SONATA II Piano Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 450Watt SmartPower 2.0 ATX 12V V2.0 90.00

This may be out of your price range, but this is what I am currently in the process of building (all ordered from NewEgg):

CPU = Intel e6600 Core2 Duo (2.4 Ghz) processor

MoBo = Intel DP965LT (does not support CrossFire, but I run only one video adapter)

PSU = Antec Neo HE 550 Watt (meets the new v2.2 specifications and modular cables make for a clean & organized wiring system)

Video Adapter = ATI X1950 XT (512 MB) PCIe (released next week)

RAM = (2) 1 GB Crucial DDR2 667 (PC5300) - due to it being fully tested and certified on the MoBo.

Case = Antec Solo


Other thoughts:

ATI will also be releasing four other video cards. One of them, the new X1900 XT (256 MB) card is actually the current X1900 XTX (512 MB) card with less memory, and the price is slated to be nice at $279 MSRP.

Instead of just posting a list of components and guessing what your price range is I'll save myself some time and just ask. So, what are you looking to spend? The suggestions made here already are good but without an idea of what you are looking to spend it's hard to try and optimize the "bang for your buck". Here are some general guidelines I tend to give to friends and family members who are looking to upgrade.

Processor: AMD is of course a good choice and the new AM2 socket will give you the ability to upgrade your processor in the future should you want to. Intel has made some real strides in their Core2 Duo line and they may have taken the performance lead for the time being the choice is really yours go with whatever makes you most comfortable.

RAM: It's cheap, if you aren't going for gaming level performance you can get a gig of good RAM for fairly cheap. I'd suggest at least a gig.

HDD: SATA II, Seagate or WD are probably your best bet but again there's not a huge performance difference between any of the major manufacturers. The new perpendicular recording techniques used in some of the newer SATA drives is supposed to help the drives run cooler and quieter so if that's something you're going for you might want to look into that.

Video Card: This is more of a religious battle than anything else. ATI vs. Nvidia, depending on who you ask I'm sure you can get hours of explanation as to why one is better than another. I personally have always stuck with Nvidia. I've never felt that ATI's drivers are as good as Nvidia's. This is of course only my opinion, take it for what you will but this is probably an area you'll need to do some research. If you are only looking for a card that can support all of the advanced features in WB and Vista you can easily get away with a basic 256MB card that shouldn't set you back much green.

Sound: Most mobo's these days come with fairly good 6 and 7 channel audio onboard so unless you're an audiophile you probably don't need to worry about a discreet sound card.

Case and powersupply are really up to your preference. I'd suggest looking at a case that has some sort of sound proofing to ensure that your new system will be as quiet as possible, but make sure it has good ventilation too as you want to keep your components nice and cool to avoid strange system behavior. All you need to consider wrt a powersupply is modular or not, and make sure you have enough juice to support future expansion.

I know I didn't offer any actual product ideas, but I always find its best to find out what you are looking for before going to that point. Remember, this is going to hopefully be your computer for a good while, make sure you know what you want before you buy and you'll be a happy computer user!!

Corky O, that machine will be a screamer. What sound card and speakers will you be using?

Aimzzz, here are some links you should check out. After reading the first one move over to the different forums and look around. There are always people asking about new builds and there are plenty of experts to give advice. You don't want to make the mistake of buying things that won't work well together or maybe missing a good deal somewhere. And use the last link just to read the user's reviews on specific items. Stay away from anything that gets too many complaints no matter how good it looks.

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Corky O, that machine will be a screamer. What sound card and speakers will you be using?

I haven't decided on the sound system yet.

The MoBo comes with the 6 channel SigmaTel STAC9227, and I have a pair of Polk-Audio speakers that do pretty well. I prefer a simple stereo (2 speaker) system where the sound electronics and speakers are high quality, so I am open to suggestions for the sound (currently my Nakamichi component stereo system is in the same room, so music and TV are 'full of sound').

As for the machine, I agree - it should move right through anything I throw at it.

Kevin-- sorry. Thought I had put a price range, but it looks like I forgot

I don't need a new HD yet-- got a 200GB Maxtor last year & also have an older 30 GB Seagate. For the rest, I was thinking in the range of $400-600, the lower the better, of course...


Thanks for all the input so far. I didn't realize onboard audio had moved up in the world. I have upgraded most everything but the sound card on my current clunker. I'm maxed out on ram (but it's SDRAM) & nothing about the system would handle another CPU upgrade.

For around the price you mention, you could get...

Mobo: Asus A8-N SLi, which would allow future upgrades. Has superb on-board sound.
Athlon 64 3800+ (socket 939)
Hitachi 250Gb SATA II drive - needs Hitachi software to enable SATA II, but it's a cheap (£56 UK) and reliable drive. The MoBo can also accomodate your existing 200Gb drive - a useful backup if you go that route. Or you could just use the 200Gb Maxtor only.
1Gb ram
Cheap floppy drive
Sony DVD-RW
GeForce 7600GT - a bit pricey for this system but rock solid and speedy (upgrade path is to add a second one later). You can cut the price in half by going for the 7600GS.
Antec Sonata case (450W PSU)

That little lot would be Vista ready, powerful and easily upgradable. It's the top limit of your price, but worth every penny.

Aimzzz,

No prob, price is important but only once you really have an idea what you want to go for. It looks like Fuzzy has suggested some great components that will fit in your budget and should server you very well..

Corky_O,

If you're looking for a good 2.1 system look at Klipsch I'm currently running these and they are absolutely awesome!! There have been issues with the amp in some of the units but I haven't had any problems with mine and I think the failure rate is fairly low. That is unless you ask the folks in their forums, where of course people only go to complain. As far as Soundcard I have a Creative X-Fi Platinum.

If you're looking for a good 2.1 system look at Klipsch I'm currently running these and they are absolutely awesome!!

Thanks, Kevin.   

Amy: Check your spam filter....you have/had mail.

I'll second the positive reviews of the Klipsch 2.1s. They are great speakers for music.

Thanks, Gary