wade said:Hmmm, I almost always build my own box. I almost always (for the last few years) use ASUS motherboards (which it appears that you are using here - which one? I really like the A7N8X deluxe I'm running, but there may be something better out now). That 3000 XP is the new one with the 512mb cache (barton chipset)?
I usually build my own boxes too. The deal on this one was so cheap that it wouldn't have paid to buy everything separately and slap it together. The MB does have 512mb cache and I'm awaiting an email reply for the exact model #.
I'm not a big fan of the integrated graphics cards, except as a backup. I don't know about this one, but so far I've never seen one that was competitive with current sub-$200 cards. Right now, I think the ATI 9800 pro card is the best bang for the buck (or the SE version which can be soft-moded to near Pro performance using 3rd party Omega drivers - which I use anyway as they are excellent). However, unless you are going to use the box for 3D gaming, it won't matter.
I am currently using the Radeon 9200 and I'll just move that over to the new system.
I'd guess around $550-$600 w/o OS? Maybe a little less. It's hard to say w/o knowing exactly which m/b and the brand/model of ram and hard drive.
Kingston memory (3200 DDR), WD hard drive. No O/S, but I have XP Pro. The cost was $329 ($399 shipped).
The one thing that concerns me in this system spec is the powersupply. In todays world i would not consider anything less than 450 watts, and 550 watts is a better minimum.
Good luck Jimmy!
Wade.
I'm running 2 hard drives, a cd-rw, dvd-rw and a dvd-rom in addition to the MB now with a 350 PS. I agree it should be higher, and may upgrade if it comes to it, but I'll be running less on this new system. I'll have to use some utilities to monitor it and decide down the road.
Thanks!