NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS 320MB

[crimsonjack]

Hey, I'm trying to figure out what I should or should not get for my new computer.
This is my first time buying a computer over $500, so I'm in a little bit in the dark,

but not completely.

I just really need some suggestions.
But I will take your opinions very seriously,
and you will probably effect what (or where?) i buy.

First off, here is what I;ve come up with so far:

BUDGET: $1300-1600

CyberPowerPC.com: $1505.00

CASE: NEW!!! CoolerMaster Cosmos Silent Gaming Tower Case w/ 420 Watts Power Supply (Original Color)
CPU: (Socket AM2) AMD Athlon?64 X2 4800+ Dual-Core CPU w/ HyperTransport Technology
MOTHERBOARD: (Socket AM2)Asus M2N-E SLI NVIDIA nForce 500 SLI MCP Chipset DDR2/800 SATA RAID PCI-Express MBoard w/GbLAN, IEEE1394, USB2.0, &7.1Audio
MEMORY: (Req.DDR2 MainBoard)4GB (2x2GB) PC6400 DDR2/800 Dual Channel Memory (Corsair Value Select or Major Brand)
VIDEO CARD: NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT 512MB 16X PCI Express (EVGA Powered by NVIDIA)
VIDEO CARD 2: NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT 512MB 16X PCI Express (EVGA Powered by NVIDIA)
LCD Monitor: NONE
HARD DRIVE: Single Hard Drive (500GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM HDD)
Data Hard Drive: NONE
Optical Drive: (Special Price) 18X DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW DRIVE DUAL LAYER (BLACK COLOR)
Optical Drive 2: 16X DVD ROM (BLACK COLOR)
SOUND: HIGH DEFINITION ON-BOARD 7.1 AUDIO


Now I have a few choices. I dont know whats best for my gaming PC, nor do I know what I should be buying RAM-wise.

Req.DDR2 MainBoard)2GB (2x1GB) PC6400 DDR2/800 Dual Channel Memory(Corsair Value Select or Major Brand)[-$140]

($30 off Mail-in Rebate) Corsair XMS2 Xtreme Memory w/ Heat Spreader[+$20]


(Req.DDR2 MainBoard)4GB (4x1GB) PC6400 DDR2/800 Dual Channel Memory(Corsair Value Select or Major Brand)[-$60]

($30 off Mail-in Rebate) Corsair XMS2 Xtreme Memory w/ Heat Spreader[+$40]

(Req.DDR2 MainBoard)4GB (2x2GB) PC6400 DDR2/800 Dual Channel Memory(Corsair Value Select or Major Brand)[+$0]More Brand...

(Req.DDR2 MainBoard) 2GB (2x1GB) PC8500 DDR2/1066 Dual Channel Memory(Corsair Dominator)[-$34]

Should i just buy the 2 gig sticks, or 4 1gig sticks?

Thanks for reading =)
Please help me out!

 

[lavaheadache]

I'm guessing that you are unaware of the 8800GT that will wipe the floor with a GTS 320 and cost the same or less. unless you are buying used that is. Otherwise the build looks nice. I would suggest looking a t a q600 and sli'ed 8800GT's for the preice range you want to spend. I imagine you could build a rig for under a grand since you don't need a monitor. Tell us what resolution you plan on gaming at

 

[crimsonjack]

The NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT 512MB cost $40 less than what i have choosen on CyberPowerPC.com

is this a better choice?

 

[lavaheadache]

much better choice..... The GTS 320 still costs more because It has a higher msrp but it is an inferior product by far

 

[crimsonjack]

1600x1200

What is q600 and sli'ed?
Sorry, not really in the know with certian terms.

 

[alcoholbob]

He probably means a Quad Core 6000 series CPU, and SLI just means dual video card setup.

And yeah, the 8800GT is faster, and has more memory than the 320MB 8800GTS. The GTS's price is artificially high because it's a discontinued product which means as stock drops, the price will just settle.

 

[Syntax Error]

Get the 8800GT over the GTS. It's simply a better card that just came out with a price that can't be beat.

Also, I'd use the money you save by buying superior 8800GTs and get an Intel C2D system; I think it might be possible.

 

[crimsonjack]

Is there a 8800 GT superior to the 8800 GT 512M?

Cause as of right now I'm very convinced to stick with two of these.
Also, can you please recommend a mobo for these two? I'm in the dark when you guys talk about SLI.

(Socket AM2)Asus M2A-VM AMD 690G Chipset DDR2/800 SATA RAID PCI-Express MBoard w/Radeon X1250 Graphic,GbLAN,IEEE1394,USB2.0,&7.1Audio()[-$8]

RAID PCI-Express MBoard w/GbLAN,IEEE1394,USB2.0,&7.1Audio()[+$0]

(Socket AM2)Asus Crosshair nForce 590 SLI MCP Chipset DDR2/800 MBoard w/ Dual 16x PCI-Express()[+$174]

(Socket AM2)Asus M2N32-SLI Deluxe nForce 590 SLI MCP Chipset DDR2/800 MBoard w/ Dual 16x PCI-Express()[+$102]

(Socket AM2)Asus M2N-SLI Deluxe nForce 570 SLI MCP Chipset DDR2/800 MBoard w/ Dual PCI-Express()[+$60]

(Socket AM2)MSI K9N SLI Platinum nForce 570 SLI MCP Chipset DDR2/800 SATA-II RAID MBoard w/ Dual 16x PCI-Express()[+$47]

CrossFire Ready

(Socket AM2)Asus M2A-MVP AMD 480X Crossfire Chipset DDR800 Dual PCIE SATA RAID MB w/GbLAN,USB2.0,IEEE1394,&5.1Audio()[+$6]

(Socket AM2)Asus M2R32-MVP AMD 580X Crossfire Chipset DDR800 Dual PCIE SATA RAID MB w/GbLAN,USB2.0,2xIEEE1394,&7.1Audio()[+$42]

(Socket AM2)MSI K9A Platinum AMD 580X Crossfire Chipset DDR800 Dual PCIE SATA RAID MB w/GbLAN,USB2.0,2xIEEE1394,&7.1Audio()[+$48]

The price is + to what i have already selected.
Would upgrading to a crossfire mobo be worth it?

 

[crimsonjack]

also, for $5 extra i can upgrade to a 8800GT EVGA edition:

http://evga.com/articles/378.asp

yes, no?

 

[Cookie Monster]

Just a quick food for thought

cookie's quick suggestions based on newegg -->

CPU:
Core 2 Quad Q6600 2.4Ghz
= $279.99

Memory:
Crucial Ballistix Tracer 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit
= $129.99
(Out of stock at newegg though)

Motherboard:
ASUS P5E LGA775 X38 Motherboard
= $234.99

Graphics Card:
EVGA 8800GT 512mb
= $289.99
+ Aftermarket cooler e.g thermalright HR-03/Zalman vf1000/vf900 etc

Hard Drive:
Western Digital Caviar SE16 500GB Hard Drive
= $109.99

PSU:
Corsair HX620W PSU
= $159.99

Case:
Cooler Master 690 case
= $64.99

Total so far = $1269.84 (you could probably shave more dollars here by buying the same parts from different retailers for cheaper price)

You have $330.16 dollars for after market cooling, or another 2gb or ram, cd/dvd drive, or even replace the 8800GT with an MSI 8800 Ultra OC for $589. (Theres quite abit of flexibility here because the CPU/Ram/Mobo combo is very good plus the 620W PSU from corsair is very very good. The graphics card can be changed depending on your needs)

EVen better at nov19th when HD3870 hit, you might want to cross fire it.

 

[biostud]

same as cookie monster said, AMD's processors are simply not up to par with intels offerings ATM.