[Acid Reign]

I'm building a machine on a pretty strict budget, ($425 + 14% tax), and i'm at a dillema.

she wants a decent machine that will play "ok games" (CS1.5/6, maybe WoW, etc.) Not something that will run Doom 3 at full settings, but something that runs nicely.

i've "built" a machine that is like $20 over, and i'm not sure where to take the money from.

the RAM:

512MB PC3200 DDR (400) RAM $51.99
184 Pin, 400MHz

vs.

256MB PC3200 DDR (400) RAM $29
184 Pin, 400MHz

-OR-

80GB w/ 8MB Buffer $76
Maxtor/Western Digital/Samsung, 7200PRM, ATA100/133, 8MB Buffer

vs.

40GB w/ 2MB Buffer $58
Maxtor/Western Digital/Samsung, 7200PRM, ATA100/133, 2MB Buffer


I am pretty much settled on the RAM (the hdd space is not a problem, shes not going to be doing too much downloading) but the 2mb buffer on the harddrive makes me worried. I know my 8mb (200gb ata133) runs like a dream, and i've never ran into someone who has run anything with a 2mb buffer.

If i do go with the ram, things will run smoother, but load times might be total ass. But if i go with the 8mb, the swap file wont suck as much as it would with the 2mb...

just in-case you're curious:

SLACO 200 $29
Two 3.5" bay, Four 5.5" bay, 350W power supply, Front panel with USB port (cheapest thing with a power supply)

Asus A7V8X-X $59.9
VIA KT400, AGP 8x, ATA133, 6 Channel Audio, 3 DDR, USB 2.0, 5 PCI, Dual channel DDR (solid motherboard, owned one for a good while, and its on "special")

Radeon 9550 256MB (128bit) $75
256MB, TV Out, DVI, AGP8x (sapphire OEM or some trash, friends own them and they work good for WoW-level games)

512MB PC3200 DDR (400) RAM $51.99
184 Pin, 400MHz (always trust a real man to make sure it has RAM)

80GB w/ 8MB Buffer $76
Maxtor/Western Digital/Samsung, 7200PRM, ATA100/133, 8MB Buffer (whatever.)

Sony 52x32x52 CD-R/W (Beige) $29.90
w/ CD burning software (ooh, nero!)

Althon XP 2600+ Retail Box (w/ Fan) $114
Socket A, 333MHz Bus (I DO see that i could go back and take the "equivalent" sempron processor and get like $30 there, but I HATE economy 'celeron/sempron (i have no L2 cache)' cpus, because they perform like ass)

[Nova Dragoon]

Keep the ram!

games need lots of ram

[Acid Reign]

problem solved.

"daddy" "accidentally" deposited a few too many dollars now the $22 isn't an issue.

still a general interest question though. Has anyone used a 2mb buffer on a new pc?

[snoj]

IIRC my Maxtor 40 GB has a 2MB buffer and it's the one the OS's are installed on.

The only difference I can tell between my two machines is that this one's graphics lag a bit.