02-10-2004, 05:25 AM
As always, there are two camps when it comes to computers: Intel, and AMD. Which processor you choose will influence what type of mobo (and to a lesser degree, which company) you will need to get. Currently, the AMD FX-51 is essentially the fastest proc on the market, and there're some kind of overheating issues with the Extreme Edition P4 procs, but I don't know a lot of information on that.
Top-of-the-line video cards are the Radeon Pro 9800 XT and GeForce 5950 FX, made by ATI and nVidia, respectively. As far as I know, they're essentially the same thing - they'll both be able to run WoW, HL2, and Doom3 at their best.
As for RAM, I'd get at least 512MB minimum, and 1024MB is always nice if you have the extra cash. Stick with Corsair or Mushkin, and only them - other brands are crap. If you go Corsair, take a good look at the XMS series - it's VERY fast, though a tad expensive.
Hard drives are a mixed bag - I'm fine with a standard 7400rpm 40 or 80GB drive, though some want the extra capacity afforded by the massive 120GB, 160GB, and even 200GB variations. You can also set up two hard drives in a RAID 0 or RAID 1 condition, though you'd have to ask others on the particulars of that.
I myself am thinking about crafting a system of my own, using an Athlon64 3200+ as the basis, and I've wondered about how one goes about installing CD-based Windows XP on a fresh computer.
Top-of-the-line video cards are the Radeon Pro 9800 XT and GeForce 5950 FX, made by ATI and nVidia, respectively. As far as I know, they're essentially the same thing - they'll both be able to run WoW, HL2, and Doom3 at their best.
As for RAM, I'd get at least 512MB minimum, and 1024MB is always nice if you have the extra cash. Stick with Corsair or Mushkin, and only them - other brands are crap. If you go Corsair, take a good look at the XMS series - it's VERY fast, though a tad expensive.
Hard drives are a mixed bag - I'm fine with a standard 7400rpm 40 or 80GB drive, though some want the extra capacity afforded by the massive 120GB, 160GB, and even 200GB variations. You can also set up two hard drives in a RAID 0 or RAID 1 condition, though you'd have to ask others on the particulars of that.
I myself am thinking about crafting a system of my own, using an Athlon64 3200+ as the basis, and I've wondered about how one goes about installing CD-based Windows XP on a fresh computer.
ArrayPaladins were not meant to sit in the back of the raid staring at health bars all day, spamming heals and listening to eight different classes whine about buffs.[/quote]
The original Heavy Metal Cowâ¢. USDA inspected, FDA approved.
The original Heavy Metal Cowâ¢. USDA inspected, FDA approved.