System building recommendations/changes?

[spatzi]

I'm getting a new system in the next week, and ready to spend about 2 grand (CAD). Here is the idea I have, based on NCIX in Vancouver, Canada., who have a good service rep.

The CAD prices are included. If you see any parts that could be improved, while keeping the price similar, please let me know. I am only going here by the store's recommendation on a 'gaming system for HL2' around the $2000 price point. I don't know if this mb is the best match for the 3500+. (They tell me it's the most stable)

The point of this system is mainly to play new games, as in HL2, and enough game power to keep me going for the next 2 years without major upgrades. OS will be XP, and I already have a monitor. I know that the 3500+ is not the fastest, but at the $400 price point, it's the best deal right now for cost/power ratio. I think the part that could be purchased cheaper seperately here is the 6800gt. This system will be assembled by NCIX, but I don't have a problem putting in the video card, and sound card myself, if I buy it somewhere else cheaper. But I do not want to build from scratch. I'm definitely set on using the 3500athlon, the Antec case, and the 6800gt. Please recommend improvements for the other parts of the system, if any. Is the NEC dvd drive okay? What about the ram, the mb, hardrive? Does anyone know of any stores in the Vancouver,B.C, area that can beat these prices on a custom built system? I'm not interested in ordering a custom built system over the internet from somewhere cross country. Too risky for me. I would like local.  Thanks for your help.

- Antec Sonata quiet chassis ATX 380w truepower    = $142.66
- AMD Athlon 64 3500+S939 processor Newcastle 2.2ghz 512kb cache retail box =  $405.38
- ASUS A8V deluxe athlon64  k8t800pro dualddr AGP 5PCI SATA  = $181.26
- Corsair value select dual channel 1024mb kit PC3200 OEM = $232.56
- Seagate Barracuda 7200 200GB sata hard drive 8mb 7200rpm 8.5ms oem = $167.90
- BFG GEFORCE 6800 GT agp8x 256 ddr3 VGA DVI s-video out retail with doom 3 = $618.11  (I don't need a retail box and I already have doom3, so this seems to be the component I can get cheaper.)
- Creative soundblaster audigy 2 ZS pci retail box = $117.45
- NEC ND-3500A DVD+RW 16x4x16 Dual layer+R 4x INT IDE OEM = $102.48

TOTAL COST TO BUILD= APPROX $1965 CAD BEFORE TAX.

[gameoverman]

It looks to me like you're on the right track. I know someone who has a Sonata, it's so nice I kinda wish I had got one.

[Jancelot]

Are you sure you won't need a bigger PS?  Especially with the GeForce?

[spatzi]

I don't know. This is the recommended system by NCIX. If it needed more power, you'd think they would push a more expensive power supply on me. But I've now changed my mind and I'm buying the Sapphire radeon x800xt, since I can get it for $10 more, and the gt's sold out before I could place the order. Seems to be impossible to find the gt in Vancouver right now. I also suspect the radeon will run quieter and use less power than than the GT, which is good because I want to keep the box as quiet as possible.