I was thinking of purchasing a new computer, mainly be for gaming and programming. I'm a student (that's why I need it for programming) and so I need to keep the price down. My spec list is a bit out of date, so I'd like you to comment:

• Pentium 4 3.0 GHz (800 MHz FSB)
• Gigabyte GA-8IPE 1000 PRO2
• 512M DDR PC3200 RAM
• 80G WD HDD 2M Cache
• Sparkle FX5900XT 128M with SVHS out
• 16x DVD Rom
• 52x32x52 CD Burner
• Samsung 17" CRT
• XP Home
• 802.11g WiFi Card

Last time I looked it was under $1750. Is this a good price?

Could you recommend any components that I should upgrade (or downgrade) on this system, without increasing the price too far? Also, will this system be able to handle DirectX 9 game play?

Thanks All,

R Louden, Bullsbrook, WA

Your question is an interesting one even if that list is a bit out of date, as it serves to illustrate a couple of points:

• That’s still a perfectly fine system as it stands. I’d prefer to see a hard drive with 8M cache instead of the one listed, but other than that it’s fine for the purposes you’ve mentioned. The FX5900XT is a mid-range card that will handle DirectX9 games quite adequately at present, and you could upgrade later to have a better display card in what would still be a perfectly good system
• In the weeks since you built your list prices have held quite steady for the components you’ve listed, and it would still cost an equivalent amount to purchase the items yourself and assemble that system!

The cheapest package price I could find from a single vendor for those components was around $1,700. I had to substitute another brand of FX5900XT display card, and I budgeted $100 for a system case and power supply unit. I also included a Gigabyte WiFi card in the list, as you never indicated the brand or model in the original list.

For purchasing components separately, substituting the cheapest brand available for your FX5900Xt and your WiFi card, and estimating $149 for Windows XP home OEM and $100 again for a case, the cheapest assemblage of prices I could come up with using RazorPrices was $1,406.21. However, that quote includes items from a lot of different vendors, and would need to be increased to cover the various shipping charges that would be incurred.

So you see, even after weeks or months have gone by, that price you were quoted is still a good one. If you still haven’t made your purchase, and can’t find an even more powerful assembled system for the price, then I’d suggest the following changes:

• Replace the display card with an Xpertvision FX5900XT, to get a lower price, or with a Leadtek FX5900XT, to get the best chance of a good overclock.
• Assess if you really need that WiFi card. If you don’t, then omit it.
• Purchase an 8M cache hard drive, as suggested earlier.
• Consider a DVD burner instead of the two optical drives mentioned. The burner will perform all the other functions required
• Include a good quality case and power supply unit in your purchase order.
• Change up to a 19" monitor
• Order all components from the one vendor. Shop around to find one which will offer low list prices for the components, and don’t be afraid to ask for a discount on the total package.
• Assemble it yourself.

From a single vendor, I was able to put all that together, using a high quality Antec 1080AMG system case and a 19" CRT monitor, for under $1900. If you already have a copy of windows XP of your own, that would bring the total cost back to the $1750 that you originally mentioned. And that’s without negotiating any discount!

But I’ve another suggestion to put to you. Why not ditch the Intel Pentium path and go for an AMD Athlon64 system instead? Take that Pentium processor and socket 478 motherboard our of the component list and include:

• Athlon64 3000+
• Gigabyte GA-K8NS Pro

In their place, and for the about same price you could be equipped with the makings of a ‘Beast’ with the added benefits of both SATA and IDE RAID, much better onboard 8 channel Audio, better security as a result of included hardware technology which interacts with Windows XP Service Pack 2, and readiness for any upcoming 64-bit Windows version. That’s the path I’d choose to take!

Good luck with it,

Terry O'Shanassy