Economic Game PC

I want to get a new PC for the following purposes:
-Gaming (Civilization 4, The Movie)
-Photoshop
-Programming (Visual Studio etc.)
-BT
I used the "$500 gaming machine" article http://www.tomshardware.com/howto/20051014/ as a reference.
My plan is to have 2 HDs, one will be partitioned into 2 40GB partition holding 2 O/S (one O/S for programming/photoshop abd one for gaming). The other HD will be used for BT/file storage/file sharing only. I don't want to get a 100+ GB HD because I don't want to BT and work on the same HD (I just killed a 2yr old HD with excessive BT). Anyway, below is my spec:

CPU:
AMD Athlon 64 3000+ Processor S939 Venice 1.8GHZ 512K L2 Cache 90NM Retail Box

Motherboard:
ASRock 939DUAL-SATA2 ATX S939 ULI M1695 DDR AGP PCI-E16 3PCI SATA RAID Sound LAN Motherboard

Video Cards:
eVGA E-GEFORCE 6600GT 128M DDR3 AGP8X VGA DVI HD OUT VIDEO CARD

Memory:
Corsair Value Select PC3200 1GB 2X512MB DDR400 184PIN DIMM Dual Channel Memory Kit

HD:
Samsung Spinpoint P Series 80GB SATA2 7200RPM 8MB 8.9MS FDB RoHS NCQ Hard Drive 3 Year MFR Warranty
x 2

DVD Writer:
Samsung DVD+-RW 16X4X16 5X DVD+R Dual Layer DVD Burner 2MB IDE Beige Burner W/ SW OEM

Case:
XION XION-BK Black ATX MID TOWER CASE 4X5.25 2X3.5 4X3.5INT 120MM REAR FAN 450W W/ LED FAN & WINDOW

Here are my questions:

1) My friend told me not to use the ASRock MB b/c it's not a "named brand". Is there any other economic replacement available out there?

2) Should I use Samsung PC3200 512MB DDR400 RAM instead of Corsair if I am not going to overclock?

3) Should I get the EVGA E-GEFORCE 6600 256MB Video Card or the E-GEFORCE 6600GT 128M Video Card? Which one actually has better performance?

Thanks!

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#1- as far as I've heard ASRock is a division of ASUS (Name brand)
#2- If your not OC'ing get the ram with the best stock timings.
#3- If you want to game then get an Xbox 360 or wait for the PS3 they will be cheaper than a PC gaming rig.

Reply to Teh_Catman

1. Chaintech VNF4 Ultra. I've heard good things about the Asrock939Dual, good features and stability. Your friend is correct that it is not a tier one mfr, but they are a well known tier 2 mfr.

2. Some people swear by RAM with tighter timings...personally I don't. I would get the value and just tighten the timings in the BIOS. If you're not going to OC the rest of the system, then the Corsair should take the tighter timings.

3. 6600GT - Not doubt. RAM on video cards is nowhere near as important as the core and the GT is the better core. Newegg had a special for one at $99 for the past few days - great deal!

Reply to Rugger

1) Ya and chaintech is a tier 1 maker LOL.
2) I got ram at 3-3-3-8 and its crap so timings do help
3) 6600gt would also be what I'd pick, that is if I couldn't afford a console (not that I'd ever touch an MS console to many lockups and BSOD's)

Reply to Teh_Catman

yes, timings do matter....but not as much as other things
1GB kit of value RAM $75 1 GB kit of Cas 2 RAM $130

If you took that $70 and applied it to your GPU or CPU you would get more perforamce....so while it matters, it isn't a cost effective way to spend your money

Reply to pickxx

1. I wasn't talking to you and you weren't providing any meaningful input so I did. I never said Chaintech was a tier 1, but the VNF4 Ultra is a quality product and a great option if he doesn't want to go with the Asrock.
2. Did you not read what I said - tighten the timings on the Corsair Valueselect. Timings do make a difference, but they aren't worth the premium that you pay. I completely agree with Pick on his assessment.

If you believe that the only viable gaming platform is a console, then why did you even respond in the first place?

Reply to Rugger

I responed becuase I need 100 posts for my avatar to show.

The VNF4 is a good product but so is the asrock.

I laugh at consoles but for the bang for the buck a PC will never compare to them.

As to "you weren't providing any meaningful input" I'll let that one slide for now.

EDIT: added the V to NF4.

Reply to Teh_Catman

Quote :

1. Chaintech VNF4 Ultra. I've heard good things about the Asrock939Dual, good features and stability. Your friend is correct that it is not a tier one mfr, but they are a well known tier 2 mfr.

2. Some people swear by RAM with tighter timings...personally I don't. I would get the value and just tighten the timings in the BIOS. If you're not going to OC the rest of the system, then the Corsair should take the tighter timings.

3. 6600GT - Not doubt. RAM on video cards is nowhere near as important as the core and the GT is the better core. Newegg had a special for one at $99 for the past few days - great deal!

Thanks for your advise.
As I mentioned before, I need the computer not only for gaming purposes. My current computer is an outdated P3 1GHz so I really need to upgrade it ASAP. Some games, like Civ 4, EQ, WoW, do not have a console version and you are missing ALOT of fun if you don't have a chance to play it.
and here's a picture for Teh Catman
http://tinypic.com/i2plk4.jpg

Reply to lotr2005

You are an idiot....you make baby jesus cry.

Why ignore what the person asked and then go on adivising them to get a console.....then telling them consoles are crap?

You are an idiot. Shut the hell up if you arn't going to say something atleast halfway smart....if you want to say get a console...thats fine, but dont bitch and moan about it and then couneract your own point you f*cking moron.

Reply to pickxx

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