A new PC, What would you change and Why?

[MyEyesHurt]

Hello to all, would love your opinion on building my new pc. Was recently robbed and lost EVERYTHING (Lord kill me now).. But am bouncing back and looking for a new system.. this is what Im thinking so far.I want a good sysytem for Gaming and surfing the net. Would also like to conect to my plasma and record the World Cup (Come on Aussie Come on) would like to keep it under Aus $3000 but this system is looking more like $3500. Any advice would be great. Thanyou.

Motherboard : Asus A8N-E or SLI (is it worth the extra$)
Processor : AMD X2 4200+
RAM : TwinMoss 1Gig x2
HardDrive : 250GB Serial ATAII 16M Buffer Seagate
DVD : Pioneer 110 Dual Layer
Video Card : Leadtek 7900GTX (what the hell,)
Monitor : 19" samsung 930BF or 19" Viewsonic VX 922
Key + Mouse : MS Wireless Laser Desktop 6000
HDTV TUNER : Leadtek Winfast DTV2000H Hydrid HDTV CARD.
Case : NO IDEA (please help) maybe FortuneTec6AR500W silent power 1x120mm rear exhaust Fan

[madad2005]

To start, that is some bad $hit getting robbed. I guess there will always be work dodgers in this world. Secondly, the Aussies don't stand a chance at the World Cup - I'd shout for Scotland but they're so bad they didn't even qualify, so my money is on Italy ;-). Finally, on to your system:

Mobo: Unless you plan to overclock and go SLi, then I'd reccommend getting a cheaper motherboard. Like:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ProductInfo.asp?WebProductID=293095

CPU: Good!

RAM: Good!

HDD: Good, though the Samsung drivers are quieter and Hitachi drives faster!

DVD: Good!

Video Card: Good, but not the fastest out there. If you need to cut back a bit, then the 7800GTX is a bit cheaper.

Monitor: Get the one with the fastest response time - I've got a syncmaster which I like, but from what I read the Viewsonic is better.

Case: That is personal choice. There are pics of the Thermaltake Tsunami Dream and Shark here:

http://www.pcguide.com/vb/showthread.php?p=282896#post282896

Top-end cases are usually made by Lian-Li, but Coolermaster and Thermaltake are also pretty good.

PSU: Since you have the cash, get the Seasonic 500W, which is stable and silent. You're looking for ATX v2.2 for a new pc.

[saphalline]

madad2005 - A Foxconn mobo? Are you serious?? :eek: Don't get me wrong, Foxconn is OK, but definitely not up to par with Asus! Besides, the one you picked out uses the vanilla NForce4 chipset. That's not the best one.

Here's some more mobo options: DFI LANParty UT nF4 Ultra-D (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813136152), Abit AN8 Ultra. Otherwise, the two Asus mobo's you picked out are good, too.

RAM - I like to stick to my "big three" manufacturers: Crucial/Micron, Corsair, and Kingston. Patriot is quickly becoming a favorite as well, but they are relatively new. Any of these manufacturers will have high quality DDR400 RAM for your new system at a decent price. Just remember, don't skimp on the RAM! Don't skimp on anything, for that matter. ;)

Hard drive - Good choice, but also consider madad2005's suggestions. And while you're at it, add another one! Hard drive space is cheap, and you'll need it if you want to record TV to your system and install games to play. Modern games routinely eat up over 2GB just to install, and video recording eats up anywhere from 1-2GB per hour. A single 250GB hard drive may be a lot more than you had on your old (stolen) system, but it's nothing these days.

Vid card - Again, madad2005, what are you smokin'?? The 7900 GTX isn't the fastest out there!? If you're talking about the Radeon X1900 XTX as a comparison, then perhaps, but the 7800 GTX? No contest! Not only do the 7900's have a more efficient design and consume less power, but they are also clocked much higher and have 3 times the number of shader units vs the 7800's! I would never recommend a 7800 GTX as a budget option for the 7900 GTX. That's what the 7900 GT is for! Or if you really need to save money, the 7600 GT is also a good choice for the $180-200 market.

Case & PSU - It's best to buy these separately, as madad2005 alluded to. You want a good solid case, or even a light aluminum one. Plenty of fan spots for good airflow. Stick to the good manufacturers and try to get one with a window (and a side fan in the window). Makes looking at your computer much more enjoyable! :D For the PSU, pick your own! The Seasonic that was mentioned is an excellent one and don't be put-off by the price. If you want reliable power for your system, you have to pay for it. The ATX 3.0+ spec (aka ATX 12V 2.0+) is the latest in PSU's. It is most often classified as two +12V rails, a 24-pin main power connector, the inclusion of SATA power connectors, and one or two 6-pin PCIe power connectors. The other details are trivial when merely shopping for a PSU, but these are some of the things to look for. Antec's TruePower II series is also a good one and Thermaltake makes some of these new PSU's, as well. With those system specs, look for a PSU in the 480W+ range.