Please help build first computer :)

[Bleach]

So I'm new to building computers. My friends bought me EQII and I need to build a new PC to run it. I would like to build a PC that will last a while and be upgradeable. But I have a couple of questions for you experts.

I'm thinking about going with the ASUS A8N SLI Deluxe motherboard. ~$180.00
Along with that I was looking at the AMD 64 3500+ PCU ~$270.00
Now here is where I'm running into a snag of sorts. I don't know what to do about the GPU. I've been tossing around 3 different ideas and hope you guys can help me decide which is the best route to take.

#1: Buy 2 Cheaper GPUs and use SLI to link them. Example find 2 GeForce 6600s.

#2: Buy 1 GeForce 6800 right now and wait for more cash flow to buy the second one.

#3: Just buy a non SLI capable ATI X700 pro GPU and wait for the prices of 2 better GPUs to drop to SLI link them.

The problem is I don't have a ton of money right now, but want a base system that is upgradeable later. I'm talking about $1500 for a complete system. I.E. the whole deal monitor, motherboard, CPU, GPU, etc etc.

I guess it would help if I knew whether or not I'm going to be limited CPU wise to be able to SLI link 2 GPUs such as 2 GeForce 6800s?

Am I going to get a similar/greater/weaker performance SLI linking 2 GeForce 6600s compared to one GeForce 6800?



Thanks in advance for any advice/support.

Bleach

 

[imported_llama]

you will need 2 identical cards to run SLI, and you will also need to run at very high resolutions to get the best out of it

 

[beany323]

Probably get 1 gt6800 OC one.. you could get 1 6600 and sell it down the road when the 6800's drop in price and pick up 2 6800's

you dont really need sli.. i understand why you may want to, (i am in a similar mindset) but you can get a nice system without it.

 

[Pr0d1gy]

I had a very similar budget & situation as yours & made this choice...keep in mind I had nothing to start with so I needed a monitor, keyboard, mouse, drives, etc. I decided I could spend half of my money on the video card without having a good enough monitor to display the ultra high res it offered or I could build a strong backbone to build on with future upgrades. I decided to have a good backbone:

AMD 3500+ good middle of the road processor, will probably run games fine 3-5 years from now.

MSI Neo4 Diamond SLI mobo-sweet mobo offers good overclocking & everything you need including excellent onboard sound (check the AT motherboard section, SLI Roundup article, for a review).

Patriot XBL 1gb-TCCD chips allow for good overclocking & tight timings. I am not overclocking, but I am running my latency at 2-2-2-5 and it is insanely quick. I load Unreal Tournament 2004 in under 5 seconds because of this, the 3500+, and my Raptor.

Raptor 74gb-very fast drive, WORTH the money if you only need 74gb of space & play a lot of games.

PC Power & Cooling 410w Silencer-plenty of power, very stable rails & a cheap $80 new.

Benq 56x CD-ROM-all I do is play games & I can get a DVD burner later. Plus some newer games are really hating DVD burners.

Logitech Z-640 5.1 speaker system-excellent sound quality for a very low price...got mine for $65 shipped on Ebay.

Razer Diamonback-insanely accurate & fast, I wouldn't buy any other mouse after using this one unless you HAVE to have cordless.

Saitek Gamer's Keyboard-I highly recommend this to people who play mostly first person shooters because of it's extra keypad. Otherwise any keyboard is good.

Monitor-I bought a used 19" CRT that does 1600x1200 res. for $85.

Vid card-well, I decided to just get a 6600gt. It plays UT2k4 at 1600x1200 with high settings without missing a beat & I haven't even overclocked it. The 6600gt's have a good rep for overclocking well.

Hope this all helps.

 

[Silversierra]

This is related but somewhat off topic. Someone said that the nvida 6800 cards have issues with EQII, and that you should get ati if you want to play the game. Is this true? If it is, then the op would be better off looking at nforce 4ultra mobos, because no nvidia= no sli. In that case get a x800xt, x800xl, x800xl, x800xt pe ati.

 

[Pr0d1gy]

I really haven't read anything about that, but then I'm not playing that game. That said, if you do play MMORPG's mostly you should get 2gb of RAM. MMO's eat up resources like a mofo so 2gb is really optimal for them.

 

[andy nowotny]

single 6800u is ok, unless you play DoomIII or HL2

 

[Pr0d1gy]

Originally posted by: andy nowotny
single 6800u is ok, unless you play DoomIII or HL2

Meaning? A single 6800ultra will run anything very well and it's pointless to even buy one for $500 when you could get an X800XT Platinum for the same money that would blow it out of the water.