Building new PC

[PotshotPolka]

Well I've decided to build myself a new pc from the ground up.
I'm setting the ceiling for expenditures at $1500-1750.
Probably Quad core with a GeForce 8200+ videocard.
The only things right now that I'm curious about is power supply, graphics card, motherboard, and the case/fans.
I'll be researching on my own but if you have any good sites with deals (besides newegg) I'd be glad to hear it.

[Dr. Intelligencia]

I built mine for 1200$, without peripherals and monitors. I'm just talking about the tower here.

CPU- YES GET A QUAD CORE they are awesome. I can compile a map 4 times faster than my roommates. Intel makes better quads than AMD.

RAM- grab 2 gigs of DDR2 for great performance, 4 gigs for awesome. I have 4 gigs and I've never slowed down in performance.

Power supply- I recommend a modular one, like the "XION Supernova XON-600F14R-201", which I'm using. You're going to want 600W or higher if you're getting a geforce 8 series.

Mobo- once you've picked all the other parts, fill in the slots on newegg's Advanced Search. Pick a newer model, the type isn't all that important. It just has to fit your case and all your other parts.

Case- pick your favorite color.

I'd also recommend a 8800 gts, because they've got great performance and handle anything Source throws at you, and most other engines as well.

[PotshotPolka]

This motherboard caugt my attention, just the fact that it's massive. It's a off market but it does use nvidia chipsets.
Tyan Thunder N4250QE (S4985) Workstation Board
Can buy it on newegg for 650.

[Dr. Intelligencia]

>>Tyan Thunder N4250QE (S4985) Workstation Board

Holy fuck, are trying you building a computer capable of cognitive thought?

[PotshotPolka]

For teh lulz.
But $650 is tempting, does it have any bottlenecks for video/graphics performance, I know it's rank 16th as the fastest system for supercomputers, but that doesn't matter to much for me, I'm simply on a mission to build a pc that will be up to standards a decade from now.

[Dr. Intelligencia]

For video, the limiting factor is the PCIe x16 interface, which is the fastest available interface type for video cards. Any board with PCIex16 will have this problem, but it's not much of a problem.

No computer built today will be inside standards 10 years from now. I can't see anything you could make today being standards compliant in 4 years. This board is totally out of the question. They don't even make cases that hold it.

[PotshotPolka]

Say what you will. That motherboard shall be mine.
I'll be the backup system for the dedicated server in case it ever crashes.

[Dark Torcher]

provided, that is, if you have enough bandwidth

I can't help you with a config unless you can give a reason for the pc and what you're thinking about

if you just want to play CSS faster, you most likely just need a faster processor and maybe an NIVIDA 8800 or the ATi's version
but if you buy that motherboard, you better not wimp out on the other parts, as you're only as good as your weakest link, so buying a motherboard like that and putting in DDR2 800 won't be that good

and as mentioned before, you cannot future-proof a computer since the only possible way is to have a self-upgrading pc, which is currently impossible
10 years is too long for anything out now to still be in play, the 8800 came out little over a year ago, and they're mid-range now, in two or three years they will be value cards

anyways, to help you, I need more info //

[PotshotPolka]

I was joking about the Tyan, it's a workshop/server motherboard, ffs it can hold up to 38GB of RAM.
It's strictly gaming pc, I was thinking of the 8800 GTS videocard, but I haven't decided if I want a higher level one yet.

[TofuShop]

I was joking about the Tyan, it's a workshop/server motherboard, ffs it can hold up to 38GB of RAM.
It's strictly gaming pc, I was thinking of the 8800 GTS videocard, but I haven't decided if I want a higher level one yet.

I own the superclocked version of the 8800 GTS with a quad core and 4 gigs. I have been able to run anything and every so far at high graphics but I suspect an upgrade will be needed sooner or later. As of now it certainly does the trick and dishes out some great performance. The superclocked version or if you were to overclock it yourself, runs just as well as the GTX but even cooler so i would stick to saving that extra nickel.

Get a good case because these cards are pretty large and if you were going to go dual you may have some problems if not. Thermaltake Armor is quite nice although heavy, but they have plenty of space with great ventillation. I also recommend a heatsink and fan in one. Newegg has a great selection for just about anything and with prices hard to beat. 800w for a powersupply. I don't go for the liquid coolant even though it looks badass; can be a pain to install and a bitch to clean up. When it comes to liquid and expensive machinery just stay clear. Maybe a little thermaltake past such as artic silver on the heatsink will add a little more comfort and protection.

For the motherboard i have questions myself but I forget the name of mine and i can't seem to find a duplicate on newegg anymore. I saw a fairly descent one that held a good 16g worth of memory and copatiable with both AM2 and 775 so that seemed like a good investment for future upgrades as well.

I say Windows P. for an operating system since I have never been a big fan of Vista. I can see the potential but still don't think everything has been out long enough to consider it a real replacement.

I dropped a good 2.5k on my build only a year-year half ago to get what you are aiming for now(roughly $1200-$1500), so don't miss out on those great deals. Worth it for sure.