Building new SFF PC (non-shuttle) - any advice/comments?

[blankoboy]

Hey all,

I'm putting together a new system with the following specs and looking for any input or comments:

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Case: Silverstone SST-SG01S - LINK
PowerSupply: Antec TruePower 2.0 480W
CPU: Athlon64 3500+ (Venice core)
CPU cooler: Zalman 7000 copper cooler
Memory: Corsair 2048MB kit
Motherboard: Asus A8N-VM CSM (Nforce 430/Geforce6150) mATX - LINK
Video: Either 7800GT (possibly Albatron) or 1800XL 256MB (Sapphire)
HDD OS: WD740GD (74GB, 10k rpm SATA150)
HDD data: 300GB SATA drives x 2
DVD-R: NEC ND-3540A Silver
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The one piece of hardware I am uncertain about is the videocard.
About 3 years ago when I last upgraded my system I went out and bought a
Geforce Ti4400 and the 2d image quality on the desktop was horrendous.
I switched to a Radeon 9700 Pro and the 2d desktop image quality was fantastic (by comparison).

I know that ATI has always had superior 2d image quality in the past but I want to know how Nvidia is now that they are in the 7th gen Geforce? This will be outputting to 20" CRT (analog). I realize that this may depend on the end manufacturer/vendor of a given card whether it be ATI or Nvidia.

Yes, I realize that these are meant as gaming cards but one must keep in mind that their PC will not be used soley in 3d and that one has to work as well .

Any 7800GT or GTX owners that can offer a non-fanboy and unbiased response (preferably someone who previously owned a Radeon)? Thanks!

[I-Kodiak-I]

Re: Building new SFF PC (non-shuttle) - any advice/comments?

looks great mate, id buy it if I had the money

[gunner.b0b]

Re: Building new SFF PC (non-shuttle) - any advice/comments?

Only thing wrong with SFF is the lack of space and airflow, if your gonna get a top gfx card and put it in an SFF machine i would invest in some super cooling for your CPU. The zalman your planning to get looks good enough for the job, but be mindful your going to get lots of heat inside that small case from both your cpu and your gfx card. Not to mention sometimes you need a SFF gfx card in some cases can cost you more just because its low profile. Check your card dimensions and check that it will actually physically fit in the case once everything else is in, some pci-e cards are huge!

[Blak_Phoenix]

Re: Building new SFF PC (non-shuttle) - any advice/comments?

Ive been reading up on the new 1xxx's from ATI, and compared to the 7xxx series from NVidia, they are very close. I would say that your better off going for the 7800 GT/X as they are cheaper that their ATI counterparts, and their out now.. lol.

[mrbucket]

Re: Building new SFF PC (non-shuttle) - any advice/comments?

Check your specs on size of components for the case. A Zalman and a 7800, 2 hard drive's? Alot of stuff for that little box. The zalman i think will give you issues. It's a monster. I've heard horror stories of people having to cut and shave and break stuff to fit it in the smaller enclosure's. Cooling will be your main issue. GL

[blankoboy]

Re: Building new SFF PC (non-shuttle) - any advice/comments?

Check your specs on size of components for the case. A Zalman and a 7800, 2 hard drive's? Alot of stuff for that little box. The zalman i think will give you issues. It's a monster. I've heard horror stories of people having to cut and shave and break stuff to fit it in the smaller enclosure's. Cooling will be your main issue. GL

Thanks MrBucket. I was also concerned about putting a Zalman CPU cooler in there but I saw in another forum that someone had a Zalman in the same case. He said it just fits perfectly. Will proceed with caution though!