Challenge: The fastest machine put together for less than $1500

[CyberBard]

Ok guys, I have read enough to know that there a LOT of folks here who know there stuff. So, I would like some help. I will put my ego aside in the interest of making the best decision.

I would like suggestions on the fastest machine that can be put together for $1500 or less. It can be AMD or Intel based. It can use DDR or RDRAM. It must include a Radeon 9700 Pro card. It will be used primarily for gaming and DV editing. I would like a minimum of 120 GB of hard disk space. I would also like 1 Gig of ram, but if you can't fit it in or don't think it will provide that much of a boost in performance, feel free to go with 512 meg, but no less. I also want RAID 0. IF you cant include it, tell me why you think something else you included is more important.

Here are the rules:

1) All parts must be available within the next 60 days and and in such a quantity that a reasonable person could find it and purchase it within a week.
2) You need not include a monitor, keyboard, mouse, CDRW, speakers, etc. Just the components in the case itself (CPU, MB, RAM, Drives, etc.) I will need a case, preferably good quality with good cooling.
3) I am looking for speed, speed and more speed. That having been said, the assembled unit must be VERY stable.
4) You can include overclocked solutions, as long as you KNOW, they are rock solid stable (Much like the vaunted Celeron 300A to 450mhz, one of which I still use).

Thanks in advance for your time and help.

 

[Dreadogg]

well let me go research I should be back in say 1 year!

 

[Noid]

Most of your money is going to be spent on the Monitor, CPU and Memory.
Make your choices on your priorties.

 

[WTT0001]

Ok, here goes, all from Newegg:

ANTEC Performance PLUS Model PLUS1080AMG- with Antec TRUE 430W P4 PS - $128
Lite On 48x24x48 CDRW Model LTR-48246S Black OEM - $57.99
Lite-On 16x DVD Model LTD-166 Black OEM - $43.99
MITSUMI D359M3 BLACK FDD 1.44MB 3.5INCH - OEM - $11.00
WESTERN DIGITAL 80GB 7200RPM EIDE SE HD MODEL # WD800JB - OEM - 2 x $109.00 = $218.00
Samsung Original DDR333 PC-2700 512mb CAS2.5 - OEM - 2 x $123.99 = $247.98
Intel Pentium 4 / 2.53GHz Northwood 512K Socket 478 Processor 533MHz Processor Bus - $234.00
ATI RADEON 9700 PRO 128MB TV/DVI 8X AGP RETAIL - $339.00
*ASUS P4PE/R/L/SATA Motherboard for Intel P4 478 Retail w/ Intel Hyper-Threading Technology, SATA, Onboard LAN, Firewire IEEE1394, Serial ATA SoundMAX Digital Audio System - $152.00

Total : $1431.96 + Shipping ($20.00 to NY).

I really don't know on the MB, you may want a granite bay one instead.

Good Luck,

WTT

 

[naddicott]

Try the Sharky High End Gaming System Buyer's guide for starters. It uses a $2.5k budget, but that includes several items that aren't included in your list.

Another newegg variant with in-stock parts (no guarantees that it's the fastest permutation):
Kingwin KT-136 Aluminum tower - $160
Asus P4PE motherboard (SATA version w/o gigabit LAN) - $152
ATI Radeon 9700 Pro - $339
Antec 430W PSU - $78
Intel P4 2.4B (o/c to 2.7 rock solid) - $192
Corsair 512 XMS3200C2 - $183
2x WD SE 80GB drives - $218 ($109 each)
Serial ATA converter - $27 (to do RAID 0 you need one drive on the raid ATA port and one using an SATA port /w adapter)
Windows XP Pro OEM - $143
Total: $1,492 before tax & shipping

 

[CyberBard]

Thanks guys, I am looking at this stuff now, but keep em coming.....

BTW does anyone have a link to all encompassing comparison between several Intel and AMD boards with benchmarks, I would like to be able to see a definitive answer on what the hottest combo out there is right now.....

BTW thanks for the link naddicot..........

 

[optimistic]

Sharky Extreme : Monthly High-end Gaming System Buyer's Guide

 

[touchmyichi]

All newegg machine-

AXP T BRED B 2400+- 179
ALPHA PAL8045U- 48
Asus A7N8X- 158
Corsair XMS PC 2700 C2 2x256- 204 (102 each stick) (btw u don't need a gig of ram, if you really must then thats 178.00 for each stick of corsair xms 2700 C2)
ATI RADEON 9700 PRO 128MB TV/DVI 8X AGP RETAIL - 339
ANTEC Performance PLUS Model PLUS1080AMG- with Antec TRUE 430W P4 PS - 128
WESTERN DIGITAL EIDE HARD DRIVE 120GB 7200RPM- 140


Ok I don't feel like doing the addition here, but this system comes in at pretty cheap i believe, really y would u need a gig of ram? 512 should be plenty for all of your needs. This system would oc very well and has very good onboard sound. I stole a lot of the suggestions from WTT hehe.

 

[jasonpetras]

You guys are paying too much for case and motherboard... money well spent on the best equipment. If you do the math you will find that you really only need a 200W supply to power this machine=

CPU = Intel 3.06Ghz, 85W, $630
MB = Asus P4G8X, 50W, $225 (conservative estimate on power, Asus doesn't post)
MEM = Corsair CMX256A-3200 x 2, power included in MB, $266
Vid = any 9700 Pro, 30W, $275
HDD = IBM 180GXP 60GB, 20W, $85,

Grand totals = $1482, 185Watts

Now, of course, you will need to buy a PS and a case. But since we're going for power, rather than looks, we'll get an old POS case for $5 at the local flea market and the PS used by Shuttle for their SFFs! Need a Monitor? Use the 17 inch Cheap-o-tek model you bought for your parents 3 years ago from Fry's ... because a big expensive monitor don't speed up a computer a lick! Keyboard and mouse? Everyone on this site has gotta have ATLEAST 3 mice (one of which is an old AT type) and 2 old keyboards lying around collecting dust. Don't got one? I will send you the 3 that I've got!

How does that sound??

 

[jasonpetras]

okay.. I should have read the rules further... so we'll just call my list food for thought! =-)

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: jasonpetras
You guys are paying too much for case and motherboard... money well spent on the best equipment. If you do the math you will find that you really only need a 200W supply to power this machine=

CPU = Intel 3.06Ghz, 85W, $630
MB = Asus P4G8X, 50W, $225 (conservative estimate on power, Asus doesn't post)
MEM = Corsair CMX256A-3200 x 2, power included in MB, $266
Vid = any 9700 Pro, 30W, $275
HDD = IBM 180GXP 60GB, 20W, $85,

Grand totals = $1482, 185Watts

Now, of course, you will need to buy a PS and a case. But since we're going for power, rather than looks, we'll get an old POS case for $5 at the local flea market and the PS used by Shuttle for their SFFs! Need a Monitor? Use the 17 inch Cheap-o-tek model you bought for your parents 3 years ago from Fry's ... because a big expensive monitor don't speed up a computer a lick! Keyboard and mouse? Everyone on this site has gotta have ATLEAST 3 mice (one of which is an old AT type) and 2 old keyboards lying around collecting dust. Don't got one? I will send you the 3 that I've got!

How does that sound??

I think you are mistaken on the power requirements, my friend. Just for starters, each DDR module can pull as much as 15W all by itself under sustained load, and for DV editing, that's a given. The 9700 Pro draws enough power that it has to have its own auxiliary 4-pin connector. In real life, people building this type of system pick quality 350W+ PSU's.

edit: upon further thought, maybe that sounds unwelcoming, so I apologize if it comes across that way. Here is an article that goes into more depth as to why these seemingly-overpowered units are called for: FiringSquad article

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: CyberBard
Thanks guys, I am looking at this stuff now, but keep em coming.....

BTW does anyone have a link to all encompassing comparison between several Intel and AMD boards with benchmarks, I would like to be able to see a definitive answer on what the hottest combo out there is right now.....

BTW thanks for the link naddicot..........

Here's a few for you:


AnandTech tests the 3.06GHz HT-enabled P4 on i850E and i845PE, along with a fleet of AMDs on nForce2/DualDDR for comparison

AnandTech compares Granite Bay/DualDDR against i845PE/DDR

Hexus compares nForce2 at three different speeds to the P4 on i845PE

I'd focus on application benchmarks. SiSoft, for instance, gives spectacular bar graphs for a HT-enable P4, but it doesn't represent actual real-world application performance.

 

[jasonpetras]

mechBgon,

You've caught me on the missing part of my argument: making sure there is enough current for a given voltage rail (plus overhead). =-) I should have gone a bit more indepth about that. In the boards that I do, matching a power supply with a set of parts to be used on a board can be done a lot more closely than picking a PS for a PC. I can add up the currents for each of the rails, add 20 to 50%, then give Ericsson, Datel, whoever, a call and get what I need. Of course, with PCs it is a lot harder. The biggest reason is that anything can go into the PC case. The point I was trying to make above is for people to pay a bit more attention to the power they put into their cases. Spending $250 on a case and power supply may be overkill when you are trying to keep things simple and fast. =-) Its an idea that I believe needs to be payed a bit more attention to. If the component companies would post their power requirements (as they should!) it would become a bit more obvious of what you truely need in a low cost computer. The math is easy. Just ask those at Shuttle!

mech, not to be too argumentative, but I bet my power estimation (assuming correct current supply =-) ) is not too far off. I've got 50W for the MB and another 30W for the 9700 Pro. So you say my setup will eat up 30 W in ram alone. That gives me 20W for the chipset and other devices on the MB. I bet that springdale is 10 W at best, especially since its only passivly heatsunk. That gives 10W for the southbridge and the other devices. If the dc-dc converters are not too ineffecient, I would make a lunch bet on my numbers! =-)

 

[mechBgon]

Originally posted by: jasonpetras
mechBgon,

You've caught me on the missing part of my argument: making sure there is enough current for a given voltage rail (plus overhead). =-) I should have gone a bit more indepth about that. In the boards that I do, matching a power supply with a set of parts to be used on a board can be done a lot more closely than picking a PS for a PC. I can add up the currents for each of the rails, add 20 to 50%, then give Ericsson, Datel, whoever, a call and get what I need. Of course, with PCs it is a lot harder. The biggest reason is that anything can go into the PC case. The point I was trying to make above is for people to pay a bit more attention to the power they put into their cases. Spending $250 on a case and power supply may be overkill when you are trying to keep things simple and fast. =-) Its an idea that I believe needs to be payed a bit more attention to. If the component companies would post their power requirements (as they should!) it would become a bit more obvious of what you truely need in a low cost computer. The math is easy. Just ask those at Shuttle!

mech, not to be too argumentative, but I bet my power estimation (assuming correct current supply =-) ) is not too far off. I've got 50W for the MB and another 30W for the 9700 Pro. So you say my setup will eat up 30 W in ram alone. That gives me 20W for the chipset and other devices on the MB. I bet that springdale is 10 W at best, especially since its only passivly heatsunk. That gives 10W for the southbridge and the other devices. If the dc-dc converters are not too ineffecient, I would make a lunch bet on my numbers! =-)

One of the little gotchas is that the 3.3V and 5V rails on most PSUs compete for the same sub-power-supply. It can put out 80% on 3.3 and 20% on 5V, or 20% on 3.3 and 80% on 5V, or 50/50, but if push comes to shove and BOTH rails are under load, such as under full DV load with optical and hard drives, CPU, memory and video card at peak draw, you need a PSU whose common sub-supply for 3.3V + 5V can stand up to the attack on both fronts at once. And that takes you into the realm of today's quality 300W+ units, as you can see from the math in that article.

The Antec TruePower units have individual sub-supplies for the 3.3V and 5V lines, not the "combined" approach, making them very potent for their rating, while many of the "400W" generic units are laughable when it comes to actual power production. Antec TruePower 430: 272W on the 3.3V and 5V lines combined. Antec's economy SmartPower SL300: 220W on 3.3V + 5V combined. El Cheapo $30 "400W" unit: 180W on 3.3V + 5V combined. Owie! :Q

I know for a fact that yes, you can squeak by with less (Compaq D315 and Shuttle Cubes come to mind). You can tow a 12000-pound boat through the mountains with a stock base-model Chevy Suburban, too... for a while. But smart money's on setting it up with the towing package and the big engine, if you want it to last. I would be scandalized if anyone bought $1000+ worth of P4 3.06 and Radeon 9700 Pro and was too cheap to get a decent PSU for it Personally, I build for the long haul: whadya bet THESE will still be kicking over in 5 years?

 

[nucl3arboNg]

Here's what i'd do for $1500, all prices from newegg

AMD Athlon XP 2100+/266 FSB Thorougbred Processor $101
Epox 8rda+ nforce2 mobo $132
Gigabyte GV-R9700PRO RADEON 9700 PRO 128MB DDR 8X AGP RETAIL $326
Corsair XMS3500 ca2 2 x 256 2@$116ea $232
Western Digital special edition 80gb 8mb cache 2x$109 $218
Thermalright slk-800 $38
Thermaltake Smart Fan II w/cool mod $24
Thermaltake Xaser II A6000 A Plus $168
VANTEC VAN-420A (420W) Black Aluminum Power Supply $99
PROMISE FASTTRAK TX2000 for raid $82

Total $1420

That my friend is a kick ass system IMHO, that I would wish for myself . I think i'm the first one to follow all your rules and not include cdrw's, floppies, and other crap like that. Your raid system will be very fast and with the pci lock on the epox you will have no problems overclocking that beast. The 2100+ tbred B is getting speeds in excess of 2.3ghz on air and stock voltage. Now I didn't know if you wanted the system to look good but with that case the the smart fan it should look pretty good. Add a cold cathode and you've got a damn fine computer. Now I don't know why people were listing a $630 P4 when this $100 oc'd cpu will wipe the floor with it, but to each there own I guess. Let me know what you think.

 

[Aiden]

AMD system: Newegg prices

ANTEC Performance PLUS Model PLUS1080AMG- with Antec TRUE 430W P4 PS - $128
WESTERN DIGITAL 80GB 7200RPM EIDE SE HD MODEL # WD800JB - OEM - 2 x $109.00 = $218.00
ATI RADEON 9700 PRO 128MB TV/DVI 8X AGP RETAIL - $330
Epox 8RDA+ - 130$
AXP T BRED B 2400+- 179
Corsair 512 XMS3500C2 x2 - $420
SLK-800 W/fan +grease- $55
Promise Fastrak Raid- $82
MITSUMI D359M3 BLACK FDD 1.44MB 3.5INCH - OEM - $11.00
Panaflow L1A case fan x2 = 16$

Total = $1568 + shipping


Intel System: Newegg Prices

ANTEC Performance PLUS Model PLUS1080AMG- with Antec TRUE 430W P4 PS - $128
WESTERN DIGITAL 80GB 7200RPM EIDE SE HD MODEL # WD800JB - OEM - 2 x $109.00 = $218.00
ATI RADEON 9700 PRO 128MB TV/DVI 8X AGP RETAIL - $330
Asus P4PE motherboard (SATA version w/o gigabit LAN) - $152
Intel P4 2.4B (o/c to 2.7 rock solid) - $192
Corsair 512 XMS3500C2 x2 - $420
MITSUMI D359M3 BLACK FDD 1.44MB 3.5INCH - OEM - $11.00
Panaflow L1A case fan x2 = 16$
Serial ATA converter - $27

total cost= $1494 + shipping

This gives you everything you asked for ,including the 1 gb memory. Case is steel,but very good quality,added 2 fans for a total of 5. As you didnt mention if you wanted aluminum went with a steel case,aluminum will run you an extra 75-125$ depending on preferance. Either system will overclock well.

Offhand,you can easily save another 5-10% by buying from multiple stores,as well as looking for specials.

Example: AMD SYSTEM

can pick up 2x100GB WD SE hard drives for around 135$ retail-save 75$
Save 20$ on memory,and 20$ on motherboard by ordering from googlegear,and twco.
Save 13$ on case fans/hsf by ordering from svc.
Save $30 on OEM 9700 pro.

Can see similar savings on the Intel system.
possibly a bit more on either system 60 days from now.

 

[nucl3arboNg]

sounds a lot like the system I just built for him .

 

[nucl3arboNg]

I'll give ya a bump.

 

[CyberBard]

Thanks to everyone who replied......just to let ya know, I just ordered:

AMD 2400+ CPU $197.00
(2) WD 80GIG SE HDs $218.00
WINXP SP1 $143.00
MB NFORCE2 A7N8X DELUXE ASUS RTL 1 $144.99
(2) DDRAM 512MB64MX64PC-2700LL COR RT $354.00
(2) Galaxie SerialATA to IDE ATA Adapters $56.00
CASE CHENM|AX01YLDSPX2 U1 YEL 420W 1 $89.00
ATI Radeon 9500 PRO RETAIL $195.00

SO thanks for all your help and when I get her assembled, I will be back with some benchmarks!

 

[RM1]

CyberBard,

What made u switch to the ATI 9500 from the one you originally specified, the ATI 9700 Pro?

 

[wicktron]

Bleh, I have a 2400 for sale on the FS/FT forums.
You could have saved $30, ahh well.

 

[Ketchup]

I just want to congratulate you CyberBard on the purchase of those Serial to Parallel ATA adapters. You don't know how many threads I have read written by pissed off people who didn't know they needed them. Looks like a killler system. Out of curiousity, why did you go with the ATI 9500 instead of the 9700?