ATX Cases [Archive] - Kicken Hardware Computer Help Forum

jcampi

11-27-2006, 07:32 PM

I'm hoping to start shopping for hardware to build a PC after the Christmas holidays. I have started to research some ATX cases, but need some advice. What are some good case manufacturers? Are there any ATX cases that are similar to the ones HP or Sony uses? I like all of the USB ports and memory card readers some HP and Sony PC cases include. Is it best to get the case with the power supply included or to buy it separately? What is the minimum watt power supply should I go with?

dbarrow

11-27-2006, 08:21 PM

500w
Antec is always good but there are many similar

casey

11-27-2006, 09:47 PM

I guess if I had to just choose one case it would be an Antec. The 2650 is a nice case but a little on the small size for me. It has a lot of good features like installing
your CD-rom and CDRW drives without screws. It also has the Hard drive cage which holds your HD's and floppy drive and can be taken out of the case. It's only 16 1/2" high and about 8" wide 17" long.. The one I have came with a 350 watt antec power supply which is a little small but is no problem to change. Oh and it does have a door but I believe it can be removed.

The case I took a likeing to mostly on looks is the
Ultra Aluminus. There is a picture in the products folder a while back. It is light weight and I'm not sure but the front door looks like it may be plastic. The nice part is the front bezel is on a hinge and can be opened like a door.
It has a different way of installing Hard drives but I'm not sure I like the way they do it. The finish is a high gloss which makes it stand out. I paid $29.99 without a power supply after rebate. The last I checked it was $99.99. That case is a nice size 21" high 8" wide and
about 19" long.

Both these cases have doors as most of the cases that I have seen do. Ultra has a cheaper case of which I have purchased that usually end up being free but I must admit they are flimsy. I guess it's true that you only get what you pay for...

Dan18960

11-28-2006, 06:03 AM

John,

I use the foxconn case w/300w power supply. Yes you can change the power supply to a different one - but this unit is in all of my client locations and I have very good success with the power supply unit. It has front Audio, Mic, and USB ports. I have gotten 3.5 card reader hardware for camera memory cards that fit right under the floppy drive in the front that works great too.

Newegg:
Part Number: n82e16811153042
Description: TS-001-V-A300A Black/Silver Steel ATX Mid Tower Case w/300w PS.
Cost: $44.99

I have a spreadsheet made out that I use for a few of our selected home user clients that I build systems for.

jcampi

11-28-2006, 07:28 AM

Are there any cases that include features similar to that used on HP or Sony cases? I do like how Sony and HP include multiple USB outlets and memory card readers.

Dan18960

11-28-2006, 07:53 AM

John,

Did you read my post?

The Foxconn does have front USB ports AND front audio and mic jacks - you can get a module that includes the front memory card readers.

Part Number: N82E16820270002
Brand: SIIG JU-91NF12
Cost: $28.99

Description: All-in-one drive bay design provides easy access to 9-in-1 memory card reader/writer
Perfect for use with digital cameras, PDAs, MP3 players, handheld computers & more!

dbarrow

11-28-2006, 08:03 AM

You might look at Newegg and search Aspire cases.
They have the rock solid construction of an Antec case with more features and better price.

It's getting harder and harder to find a solid steel case that won't dent or bend and is not decked out with garish plastic and flashy lights.

If space considerations do not prohibit, I like full tower cases with plenty of room inside and extra drive mount slider racks. Much easier to work inside and plenty or room for expansion later.

Dan18960

11-28-2006, 08:15 AM

John,

You have a PM

jcampi

11-28-2006, 08:16 AM

Sorry, Dan. I'm at work so I have to just skim the narratives. Was installing the card reader difficult? Did you obtain the card reader at the same retailer you purchased the case from?

mylanta

11-28-2006, 08:47 AM

mylanta

11-28-2006, 08:48 AM

Personally if I am buying crap, which Foxconn is, I would much prefer Athenatech, which has many models with what you are looking at, decent psu'd included and great styles at a price.

casey

11-28-2006, 09:57 AM

I do like how Sony and HP include multiple USB outlets and memory card readers.

I believe most cases today come with the front USB ports and most have the front audio. I have bought cases where the front audio came seperate and fit into the CD drive slots.

photolady

11-28-2006, 10:30 AM

You might also take a look at Thermatake cases. Very nice cases they are.

But just cause no one else mentioned it, those extra USB ports don't come with the cases, except in the front, they come with the motherboard options. And as has already been said the card readers are added to the computer, they don't come with the case either.

A couple of Thermaltake case links:
Soprano: http://www.thermaltake.com/product/Chassis/midtower/soprano/vb1000sws.asp
And Tsunami:
http://www.thermaltake.com/product/Chassis/midtower/tsunami/swa/swa.asp

dbarrow

11-28-2006, 10:42 AM

Thermaltake cases are high priced.
I used one for daughter's machine and really don't like it.
They are aluminum. Bend and dent easily. They have razor sharp edges all over the place that will slice your skin right off. Drive bays and other snap in parts don't ... at least not easily. Any screw threads are easily stripped. The one piece clamp to hold the cards in place is not secure and cards work loose.
After that, I decided to stay away from aluminum cases.

kern

11-28-2006, 11:06 AM

I second Doug's suggestion- Antec- most of their cases are well constructed.
If your interested in a quiet pc, from my experiences with cases, the Antec P180 Mid Tower Case is one of the quietest pc cases available, Antec P150 is a close 2nd. best prices I've seen are $125~/$95~ at newegg.com or zipzoomfly.com

photolady

11-28-2006, 11:11 AM

kern

11-28-2006, 11:45 AM

Are all Thermaltake cases the same? I wouldn't think so just like all Antec cases aren't the same. My preferred case is Antec, I want a Sonata ll and they are also high priced.

I have some friends using Thermaltake cases and haven't heard any complaints from them on what isn't good about them. These are known computer builders, mind you, not newbies. :D

My experiences with Thermaltake cases are similar to Doug's, although I have not used their top of the line models.

As for Sonata, both I and II are a tad noiser than P180.

edit: Sonata airflow was not as good as p180 causing higher case temps. fans needed to run at higher rpm which makes more noise, and I noticed a bit of case "hum".

photolady

11-28-2006, 12:08 PM

I've used, not for my own purposes, three Antec Sonata ll cases. I found them to be nice and easy with installing parts, I liked the fact they were quiet and roomy. I like the fact the drive cages are sideways and toolless. I also like the fact they didn't have any sharp edges.
The P180 is newer since I used those Sonata ll's. I built those three computers for company people. One for the owner of this company, one for his accountant, and one for our wireless manager. And the only thing I didn't like about them, they weren't for me. LOL

Dan18960

11-28-2006, 02:04 PM

John,

So you are not buying blind - you can come to my place and actually touch, feel, and "kick" around one of my cases.

I use them for my personal use as well as my business clients and have never had an issue with any of them. After all - outside of KIDS, the people that go to work each day and have no investment in the computer systems tend not to care if they kick them under their desks.

They don't have sharp edges, they don't have dents or dings in them, and they have plenty of cooling ventilation slots for cycling air.

Rich,

You seemed to not have a problem with the cases when we were doing that inventory (and don't tell Sam because he has a FoxCONN case :eek: )

Dan18960

11-28-2006, 02:10 PM

Sorry, Dan. I'm at work so I have to just skim the narratives. Was installing the card reader difficult? Did you obtain the card reader at the same retailer you purchased the case from?

John,

It plugged right into the motherboard - the hardest part was making sure I had the glide screws at the right level on the 3.5 bracket :) .

Check out your PM

kern

11-28-2006, 02:13 PM

They don't have sharp edges, they don't have dents or dings in them, and they have plenty of cooling ventilation slots for cycling air.

sounds like crap to me...lol

mylanta

11-28-2006, 04:52 PM

Rich,

You seemed to not have a problem with the cases when we were doing that inventory (and don't tell Sam because he has a FoxCONN case :eek: )

Nothing wrong with that case though I did force a change in the psu (remember when you learned about 24 pin psu's)...I just don't have a good feeling about Foxconn. They make some real crap, especially motherboards...but that one had an Intel as I remember.

casey

11-28-2006, 05:24 PM

The way this is starting out I can't wait to see the final cost. When your looking at cases upwards of $100 the total is going to be a nice figure.

Maybe Jcampi should say what price range for the case and look at what's available from there..

jcampi

11-28-2006, 06:08 PM

I don't mind paying $100 or slightly more for a really nice case. If I end up getting a case for about $100 and want to build a pc with an Intel Core 2 what can I expect to pay? I'm planning on a decent PCIe video card (we don't do gaming). Sound can be onboard since we listen to tunes on the pc. I'd also want a DVD-R Drive and a DVD ROM drive. The hard drive will most likely be a 250GB SATA. I'm guessing I would want about 1GB of RAM. That should just about do it.

mylanta

11-28-2006, 06:22 PM

jcampi

11-28-2006, 06:30 PM

I really like the Enermax case you referenced!

casey

11-28-2006, 06:40 PM

mylanta

11-28-2006, 07:01 PM

I really like the Enermax case you referenced!
Nice thing about them is they are a real psu maker also so the psu is real good! That is screwless also as I imagine most are today.

photolady

11-28-2006, 07:08 PM

I did some more research and found that the only cases made by Thermaltake that are flimsy are those of the aluminum variety. If they are sturdy steel cases then they don't have the problems mentioned above. Those two that I linked to are in this latter category. Just my 2 cents. ;)

mylanta

11-28-2006, 07:13 PM

These are the lowest prices on PriceWatch:

$523.50 - core 2 duo e6700 2.67ghz
$ 312.00 - core 2 duo e6600 2.4ghz
$ 218.50 - core 2 duo e6400 2.13ghz
$ 182.00 - core 2 duo e6300 1.86ghz

Sata HD $65 +

Maybe someone could price the motherboard and memory?

I think the 6400 is right where you want to be...hey while we are at it here is my favorite mobo:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813121049
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813121035

casey

11-28-2006, 07:15 PM

If you want to look at some Antec cases Directron.com
has a bunch of Antec cases on sale right now. The only problem is the shipping usually is high. But you can look at the them as they have pictures and prices which would give you a good reference. Might as well take your time and look at all of them...

This is fun... helping other people spend their money...

dbarrow

11-29-2006, 09:21 AM

Hey... found the perfect case for you!

http://fun-inc.blogspot.com/2006/11/garbage-tank-case.html
Garbage Tank Case.Take a look.

*Actually, I kind of like that!

jcampi

12-16-2006, 04:33 PM

I'm getting ready to order a case. It will be an ATX form factor. Is is worth just limiting my shopping to a 'tooless' design as a first time builder? Also, should I get the case and power supply separately or is a case that comes with a 400w + power supply ok?
I also saw a pretty neat combination floppy/memory card reader drive at a site. The manufacturer doesn't make 'em anymore, but there are plenty available and they are only about $25. I'm not really even thinking about including a floppy drive, but if I get one with the memory card reader(s) it might be useful.

mylanta

12-16-2006, 07:08 PM

John,
Go with Dan and I and you are going with a floppy drive, I don't even want to hear it.
If you buy an Enermax or Antec case with a psu, then no worries. The Athenatechs I showed you are fine also...but I draw the line there and suggest a separate psu. bear in mind a crappy psu can blow and when it does, it most likely takes mobo with it...sometimes hdd and cpu as well.

photolady

12-16-2006, 07:16 PM

Ditto what Rich said about the case. And the one time you don't include a floppy drive, is the time you're going to find you need one. (learned the hard way on this). :mad:

jcampi

12-16-2006, 10:14 PM

mylanta

12-16-2006, 10:50 PM

dbarrow, I looked at the garbage can case. It does have a practical side to it being on wheels. I like the flip top. Nobody responded to my post about going with a TOOL-LESS case. Is going tool-less worth it or an advantage for a first time pc builder?

I don't know about "TOOLESS" but "screwless" I have been using for years
in my builds...the Athenatechs I showed you are all screwless.

dbarrow

12-17-2006, 09:21 AM

You may want to look carefully at the "screwless" parts.
Most hd bays these days are on sliders and have some type of snap-in rail/spring combo. These are pretty much standard anymore and work well.

The holder for plug-in (PCI or PCIe) cards is another matter.
The one piece "holder" clamp in daughter's Thermaltake case did not securely anchor the cards in the slots and a slight bump was all that was necessary to work them loose. Fortunately, they also included the standard screw hole for the tab.

One of the Aspire cases I have has a slide-in tray for the mobo. Mount the mobo on the tray and then slide and lock into place. Easier to mount the mobo on the tray but then a real PITA to get the tray in or out of the case as everything else has to come out to do it.

mylanta

12-17-2006, 10:11 AM

All stellar points Larry. I would bet the mobo tray which looks like a serious step forward is really a giant step backwards now that I think about it. I never can decide whether to mount the cpu, hsf, and ram before mounting the board, though lately I have been doing just that so I can test the board outside of the case firsat with psu and video added to save time (and frustration). Because of aging eyes, I also like to do all the power jumpers and lights from the case before inserting the board as well as the usb front plugs (also because hands are too big for smaller and smaller parts)....and that makes for a real juggling act getting the board in.
As for drives I have the rails as putting them the right way and then finding "ease" of sliding isn't so easy and the contraption designed to hold pci cards on cheaper cases is a nighmare as you are right there to. You just get the damn thing set up and then push the speaker jumper into port only to have whole card pull out of the pci slot and then have to take the whole thing apart again. I avoid those type setups like the plague...Dells used to have similar with a plastic clamp that goes over the top of all the cards (providing you don't break it trying to close it.

golfmore

12-19-2006, 11:39 PM

Well heck, you've almost got my new box going. Now all I need is a suggestion for a reasonable video card, and mem. I Don't game.

golfmore

12-20-2006, 04:13 AM

MyLanta, is that onboard video any good on that Intel MB? Also, what RAM works best with that MB? I did look on Intel's site. They list several. Thanks.

mylanta

12-20-2006, 08:34 AM

Best onboard video I have ever seen, but still I would never use it for my own system.
This is what I used:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820144199

golfmore

12-20-2006, 09:30 AM

Thanks. Now all I need to find is a good reasonable video card.

golfmore

12-20-2006, 12:25 PM

MyLanta, with either of those Intel MB's suggested, I assume no OC'ing, true? Does the E6400 perform well at stock speed? Again, I'm using a P4 3.4.....
What would be the most stable MB that allows some OC'ing? (I've only created 4 diff buy scenarios as of today.) Will go Intel CPU.

Stil trying to kinda guess what the gain would be doing the E6400 at stock, and comparing to the Northwood P4 3.4. Or am I wasting time for a small gain? (Flogged this thought to deaTH.)

mylanta

12-20-2006, 01:33 PM

Normally Intel boards do not allow it, but I couldn't tell you as I have never had any interest in overclocking myself. I am typing on that board and that cpu at the moment and it is plenty responsive for my needs.

dbarrow

12-20-2006, 02:14 PM

There are plenty of reviews out there on just about any of the mobos. CPUs, chipsets, and vid cards.
Just Google your prospective choices and read, read, read!
30 minutes to slap together...6 months of research on what to buy!

Dual core does show an advantage.
I would never go with onboard vid except for a work station machine not designed for anything other than office work. If you want to do any kind of video, TV or video out, recording, editing, dvd playing, gaming, etc. invest in a quality vid card that not only handles all the work on the card but can yield top end rendering. Quality of the card makes a difference.

golfmore

12-20-2006, 04:10 PM

My present card is an Radeon 8500 retail. That tells you how long it's been since I have been reading. There has to be a happy medium in video cards. I have seen a GForce6600 for $100+, and something else for $500. Is a 256meg card a reasonable place to be? Are there brands to stay away from? Since no two entities eval cards the same, or even report the same, it's hard for me to make any sense out of the reports.

dbarrow

12-20-2006, 05:06 PM

You only have two camps to choose from, ATI or NVIDIA
Each has advantages and dis-advantages.
Depending what you want out of it and what you want to do with it, you can park yourself in the
Bottom end... work station cards adequate for most "office" and word processing functions, fair to poor for video apps.
Middle range... handles most vid functions well at the expense of CPU usage as much of the work is offloaded to the CPU and system, rendering is good to great
High end... majority of processing is done on the card freeing ram and CPU power, rendering is spectacular and noticeable, effects are dramatic, accessories and other output options are all included.

golfmore

12-22-2006, 05:51 AM

I ended up ordering a Gigabyte MB, an E6400, 2 gig of Skill RAM 800, and a BFX 7600GT with a healthy rebate ending up at $79. Also a Seagate Sata w/perpendicular..... Hope to get this fairly soon, but with XMas, and the 14" of snow in my front yard, who knows.

jcampi

12-22-2006, 07:11 AM

Rich, I agree with you entirely. I'll need to get a decent video card. It's amazing how the prices drop from the top chip. I think I'll end up going for the Intel 6400. Good price and balance of speed. By the time I buy the 6600 might drop, then I'd consider it. I hope to buy the case and hard drive real soon. Maybe next week. I'm charting all of the hardware parts to track the price and total. I'm just guessing I will be able to build a nice pc for less than $1K.

mylanta

12-22-2006, 08:18 AM

I am building pretty decent Core2 Duos to sell at that price so that sounds about right John.

jcampi

12-23-2006, 09:48 AM

For what John does a $50 Athenatech case or $70 Antec case would do just fine. Without gaming but wanting good video puts you in my range john and therefore I would push Nvidia 7600 say 256 meg ram. I have all 6600's which were the ancestor of that card and I love them. Evga and Asus are good brands for those.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811129150
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811129155

If have used this one in about 12 builds and personally love it...screwless, nice psu and made decently.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811190065
Also nice from Enermax:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811124118

Rich, I love using the info. from your posts. I really like the Enermax case. It will go on my spreadsheet as the preferred case. I like a lot of the choices you make. I bet I could just about have you spec. the pc and it would be close to my preference. You seem to have a good grasp of performance and budget.

mylanta

12-23-2006, 01:28 PM

John,
My clients usually choose to build when their pc died too soon or costs too much too fix, and consequently I need to get the lowest possible price to entice them away from more Dell or Gateway heartaches and in most cases these same folk want the newest and the best too...so it's a marriage. Here is a client that has dvd burner, flopppy 250 Gb WD Sata drive and just had a 3.0 2 yr old gateway die on her and wants a gaming pc and also needs router and adapter for DSL. This is my choice and what I alsp personally own:
1 Athenatech A602BS.450 Black / Silver Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case ATX 2.01v 450W ( 20+4p, Dual +12V, 6P, 2xSATA Connectors, Dual Fan) Power Supply - Retail
Item #: N82E16811190065
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy $54.99
Item(s) shipped from NJ Tracking Number:
1 D-Link DI-624 IEEE 802.3/3u, IEEE 802.11b/g High-Speed Wireless Router - Retail
Item #: N82E16833127028
Return Policy: Limited 30-Day Return Policy $49.99
1 D-Link DWL-G120 USB 2.0 Faster Wireless Adapter - Retail
Item #: N82E16833127130
Return Policy: Limited 30-Day Return Policy $24.99
1 Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 Conroe 2.13GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6400 - Retail
Item #: N82E16819115004
Return Policy: Processors (CPUs) Return Policy $220.00
1 BIOSTAR TFORCE945P Socket T (LGA 775) Intel 945P ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
Item #: N82E16813138035
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy $82.99
1 Kingston ValueRAM 1GB (2 x 512MB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Dual Channel Kit System Memory Model KVR667D2N5K2/1G - Retail
Item #: N82E16820144199
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy $112.99
Please be aware that Newegg does not deliver packages on Saturdays or Sundays. Delivery attempts will be made on weekdays only.
Subtotal: $534.77
What's this? Tax: $0.00
Shipping: $22.12
Rush Order Fee: $2.99
Printer-friendly Version Total: $559.88
So only thing missing isfloppy drive, hdd and dvd burner...I cannot beat these prices wholesale at D&H

jcampi

12-23-2006, 01:36 PM

golfmore

12-23-2006, 05:09 PM

I am putting the upgrade on hold. It's a $$ thing. It's going to run a $1K..... I have to rethink this. Thanks for all the input.

dbarrow

12-23-2006, 06:21 PM

I It's a $$ thing. It's going to run a $1K.

That would be about the right ballpark...
You may shave a buck or two here and there with cheaper parts but for the level of machine you are looking at, you are in the reasonable range.
Decent CPU, mobo, ram, and vid are going to put you right about that threshold.
The other items are dressing on the cake.

Watch the Jan price cuts!
Intel is scheduled for a big drop and after the holidays, you will see a lot of mobos on sale. Vid cards as well!
Ram is ram and you are going to pay for it to get quality and speed.

mylanta

12-23-2006, 07:38 PM

Are you using onboard sound and video? I didn't see a video card in the spec. I plan to use the onboard sound, but need advice on a video card. I didn't see the hard drive and DVD drives on your spec build either. Did you just use parts from the owner's other pc?

Onboard sound has made great strides in recent years and I still will insist on using a soundcard. Onboard is just never the same. Problem is whose. I am really sick of Creative Audigy, and have had software and hardware problems galore with them. I just through an Audigy 2 away that I think was haunted and got tired of volume levels going up and down for no reason. I threw in an ancient Soundblaster Live that it least holds the volume level the same, though the sound isn't great. I have liked Turtle Beach in the past, but they seem to have gone away. M-Audio seems to be the only other card of substance and they have a great sound. I just bought a Hercules on ebay I hope to throw in here, and they too seem to have all but disappeared.

dbarrow

12-24-2006, 03:22 PM

http://www.kickenhardware.net/forum/showthread.php?t=5040

If you have not read The state of pc Audio... this just about sums it up most accurately.

Onboard 24bit sound chips have wiped out the third party sound card makers except Creative and M-Audio.
Quality is still ten times better than what we used to get out of a Turtle Beach PCI card, which was king in its' day.

The only advantage to an add-on card, as with Creative, is more processing done on the card rather than shifting to consumption of CPU power which really isn't an issue unless doing something like heavy vid/audio editing.
There are additional/optional connection and mixing capabilities with an Audigy 4 or higher with external input/output and mixing capability... if you need it.

EAX rendering is another topic.
Creative, over the years, has become the default standard in audio DACS and EAX rendering (where you get the surround sound and sound effects in most all games and DVD surround playback)
Some (many) onboard sound chips (Realtek, etc.) do not handle EAX all that well compared to a Creative card.
Nor does M-Audio which does not use Creative's EAX.
Turtle Beach went down the tubes and dropped out of the competition 2 years ago.

For the AVERAGE user, and without high end surround sound speaker systems, you WON'T notice any difference between onboard sound and the top of the line Creative Soundblaster card. Your total sound system has to be capable of supporting it and allowing you to experience the difference.

IF you do gaming, vid or audio editing and have the speaker system to support all there is...
You can get more out of it with a HIGH end Creative card and there will be a noticeable difference.
Note that quirks with Soundblaster drivers have always been there and probably never will go away! Like vid card drivers, they constantly tinker with them and there are updaupdates almost monthly.

IF you don't have the speakers... don't waste the money!

jcampi

12-24-2006, 09:01 PM

I plan to use the onboard sound for my pc build to keep my costs down. We listen to mp3 music often, but I would think the onboard sound would be adequate for this function. If I have any problems with the onboard sound I could always opt to add a sound card with ease later.
BTW, I don't want to pick a mobo based on its onboard sound. However, do certain mainboards have beter onboard sound than others? I'm leaning toward an Intel or Biostar mobo.

mylanta

12-24-2006, 09:49 PM

No real difference with those...Abit has always had the best onboard sound.
I love Biostar boards and have never had a bad one.

jcampi

12-26-2006, 03:25 PM

Ok, I started buying the hardware I need to build my first pc today. I brought back Bose speakers someone bought me for Christmas at Best Buy. What a mess returning them. They only allow you one return a year without the receipt! At Christmas this should be overlooked.
Any way, I bought a WD (Western Digital) SATA hard drive. WD Caviar SE16 (16MB) 7,200RPM, 250GB model. The cost was $79.99 (please don't tell me any where I could have got this cheaper because it was an even swap for the Bose speakers so it really didn't cost me anything).
The next components I plan to order are:
1. Enermax Pandora 185 Black ATX Mid Tower Case
2. Mitsumi Black 3.5" Internal USB 2.0 card reader w. floppy drive
3. ASUS DRW-1612BL 16X Dual Layer DVD±RW Drive w/LightScribe ($39.99) [How's this?)

I'll leave the video card, RAM, mobo and cpu for last.
Would it be safe for me to buy the video card and store it a little while? I plan to follow advice from this BBS and buy the mobo, cpu and RAM at the same time as they will need to 'fit' together.

Ok, I'll leave the video card, mobo, cpu and RAM for last. I've been visiting newegg.com and Zipzoomfly for parts/prices. Are there any other online retailers that are decent?

mylanta

12-26-2006, 04:11 PM

I wouldn't because DirectX 10 will be here before long and I'd wait for that.

dbarrow

12-26-2006, 06:22 PM

I'll bet the sales will be on in the next two weeks...
Now will be the time to grab the best you can at the best price.
Q1 releases may drive prices down on some items but only if you are pushing top end specs. I forget when the Intel price break will come but should be mid Jan.

jcampi

12-26-2006, 07:12 PM

dbarrow, the next items I expect to buy are the case, dvd drive and floppy/card reader. I won't get the mobo, cup and RAM until at least Feb. '07. If I go for a 2nd or 3rd tier Intel Core 2 I should be able to get a decent price. I'm pumped now after getting the hard drive today.

jcampi

01-06-2007, 07:24 PM

I just received the ATX case, DVD Drive, Win XP OS and Floppy Drive for the pc I am going to build. I'll have to wait for $ for the mobo, video card, RAM and cpu.
This gives me time to research the mobo I want to use for my Intel Core 2 cpu. I like Mylanta's advice on the Biostar boards, but how much attention should I give to the comments on newegg.com by those posting reviews? A Biostar board with the Intel 965 chipset seems nice, but gets some nasty reviews. The same goes for the older chip/board with a 945 chipset.
I don't know if I want to get into overclocking because the new Core 2 and RAM will be super fast without it. However, I'd like to have the option to overclock should it strike my fancy. I notice some nice Intel boards at newegg.com that are almost the same price as comparable Biostar and Gigabyte boards. Is it true that Intel boards don't allow overclocking or they aren't as easy to overclock? Wouldn't an Intel mobo be a better 'fit' for the Core 2 and better for a first time pc builder? I'm really open to comments and suggestion as sometimes I feel really dopey compared to many of you very experienced pc builders.

jcampi

01-06-2007, 07:33 PM

Adding to my previous post - I've noticed that almost all of the comments for every type of mobo at newegg.com state customer support and instructions with the product are lacking. I guess I'm not that concerned about Biostar now. This seems to be a common theme in the computing industry nowsdays. Almost no one is providing decent software/hardware support. After all, it costs $.

This Intel mobo does seem like a great buy.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813121035
The two negatives I see with the mobo are: 1. Overclocking not an option; 2. The RAM is very picky and must be 1.8volt DDR2 800.