Case:
I first considered going with this:
But I reconsidered.
Now I'm considering:
ANTEC Silver Aluminum Performance 1 Series ATX Mid-Tower Case with Swiveling Front Control Panel features LED Display, Model "P160" - Retail
CoolerMaster Cavalier 3 Black/Blue ATX Mid Case With side window, Model "CAV-T03-WK" -RETAIL (I like the screwless feature).
ANTEC ALUMINUM SERIES SUPER LAN BOY MINI TOWER CASE with Clear Side Acrylic Window and FREE Case Carrying Strap - Retail (I like that it's light and cheap, although it's having only 3 5.25 slots is a pain. I might not be able to include my old tape drive or my 5.25 floppy drive (you think I'm kidding, don't you?))
MAXTOP Signature Series Type II Mid Tower PC, Model "CSX-147K2FGRAY" -RETAIL
Power Supply:
CleverPower 400W ATX12V Power Supply
There's also a 500W version I'm considering. Will a larger PS use more power if the system components are the same, or only if more power is actually needed?
The thing that troubles me is that one review states the following:
http://www.extremeoverclocking.com/revi ... 500_4.htmlThe 12V rail is a problem though, even at idle it is not at the specified 12V. The 12V rail continually bounces +/-0.01V and the change between idle and load is .06V or about 0.5%. I'd hate to think that my system would be too much for the 12V rail considering the case fans don't even use the 12V rail, so this may be something the manufacturer needs to check on to ensure it isn't a regular problem. Losing half a volt off spec may mean a drop in the performance of 12V devices and even a drop in stability of your system.
Is this something worth worrying about?
Motherboard:
ASUS P5GD2 Premium motherboard
I looked through a lot of motherboards, and this one seems to be the one that fits me the best. Lots of IDE ability for a couple of hard drives and cd/dvd drives. SATA. 4 DDR2 banks.
CPU:
Intel LGA775 Pentium 4 550 3.4 GHz, 800MHz FSB, 1MB L2 Cache, Hyper Threading Technology - Retail
I might consider a 3.2 or 3.0 Ghz cpu, though.
Should I get Thermal Compound or a seperate heat sink or use the one included? I'm not planning on overclocking.
Memory:
KINGSTON KVR533D2N4/1G 1024MB 533MHZ CL4 DDR2 DIMM X 2
One thing that worries me is that Kingston isn't on the motherboards "DDR2 Qualified Vendor's List". Is that an issue?
Video Card:
ATI ALL-IN-WONDER X600 PRO 256MB
This is, almost undoubtably, the card for me.
I just hope it still plays new games in 3-4 years time.
