I'm going to build myself a new PC, I think that PCI-Express is probably a good idea in the long run, as is AMD64.

I'm not heavily into games (or anything else too intensive), so having the most powerful kit isn't too important.

I haven't been keeping up to date in the last couple of years, so what do you think of the parts I'm thinking of? (I'm almost clueless about the best type of budget PCI-X graphics card )


  • CPU: AMD Athlon 64 3000 S939 (retail)
  • Board: Gigabyte GA-K8NF-9 NForce4, ATX, DDDR400, PCI-E, Gbit Lan, USB 2.0, AC'97 Audio, 4 x SATA, Raid
  • RAM: 2 x 256 Mb Corsair Value Select, DDR, PC3200, non ECC
  • Graphics: 128Mb Gigabyte PCI-E GeForce 6600 Tv/DVI (directX 9.0c)
  • Hard disk: 160Gb Seagate Barracuda (7200rpm, 8Mb) - SATA - NCQ
  • DVD Writer: Sony 16x DVD±RW Black Dual Layer DVD Writer
  • DVD Reader: Sony Black 16x DVD-ROM + 48x CD-ROM IDE
  • Case: (basic!) Scan 3XS '2013' Black Silver ATX Midi Tower 400W Passive PFC PSU
  • Monitor: 17" Iiyama PLE435S-S Silver, 15pin D-sub, DVI-D, Speakers, 10msec, 350:1, 350 nits, 1280 x 1024

All can be found at Scan (I think it's ok, people used to recommend it a lot!). The total cost is about £600 (+90 for XP pro), which is much cheaper than an off-the-shelf equivalent from even good places.


Is there anything I'm missing, or anything I could be doing better without spending a fortune?