Trying to come up with a solid build...

[Scrap]

I'm trying to build a new PC and have been running in circles trying to come up with a solid box for AH at a decent price.  So far I have decided on these components:

Video:
Radeon X800GTO 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16

Sound:
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy2 ZS

RAM:
CORSAIR 1GB (2 x 512MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered Dual Channel

MB:
GIGABYTE GA-K8N Pro-SLI Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 SLI ATX AMD Motherboard
(QUESTION:  Does the fact that it is advertised for an Nvidia SLI compatability mean that an ATI knockoff would not function well on the board???)
-All I really need is a couple of PCIx16 slots and an extra PCI slot for the SBlaster card.

CPU:
Open to suggestions... leaning toward AMD (hence the 939 MB) but have not owned one yet so I have no idea what I'm really looking for.




Any pointers are much appreciated.

[Casper1]

Scrap -

In response to:  (QUESTION: Does the fact that it is advertised for an Nvidia SLI compatability mean that an ATI knockoff would not function well on the board???)

The answer is no, you will not have issues with an ATI on the Nvidia based MB.  There are some MB chipsets that work better with certain manufacturer's hardware, but there should be no compatibility issues or noticeable performace drops using an ATI-ish product on a MB with nVidia chipsets.  I always recommend going to places like http://www.tomshardware.com to read up on products and post questions on their forums.  

Currently, I am running an ATI Gfx card on an Asus MB with the NVidia nForce4 (or maybe its 2) chipset.  No problems whatsoever.  

CPU recommendations:

I highly recommend AMD CPUs.   Best bang for the buck, works great with gaming and overclocking, and nicely priced compared to Intel chips.

I haven't yet built a 64-bit system, but have heard great things about the AMD Athlon64.  Again - check out tomshardware.com for information and a good community of PC building gurus.

If you decide against a 64-bit system and stick with the cheaper hardware:

If you know what you are doing, you can get a nice AMD Mobile processor (built specially for notebooks), slap it into your Desktop and Overclock it very nicely (with appropriate Heatsink/Fan combo).  It is designed to run cooler and use less power than traditional CPUs from AMD's Barton line, so it is easier to overclock.

I am running an AMD Barton Core 2500+ Mobile (defaults to about 1.8GHz I think) at 2.4 GHz with no problems.  I also have 5 case fans and a 92mm Zalman Al/Cu Heatsink/Fan.  

As for Gfx cards, you SHOULD CHECK THIS OUT!!!

http://shop.ati.com/searchresults.asp?dept_id=39

This is a straight-up, ATI built Radeon® X800 Pro PCI Express® 256MB.  it is a refurb, but STILL COMES WITH A FULL 3 YEAR WARRANTY.  

ONLY 150 bucks!!!!  I bought almost this exact card (AGP though) about 6 months ago for $180 from ATI, and it rocks.  Like new, with same like new warranty.  Highly recommend you bargain this sucker!

This card is MORE than enough for AH2 and will run any game on the market very well.  AH2 needs more RAM and CPU than anything for great Gfx quality.