Advice on case and cooling please...(and maybe some audio if you can)

[DerekHeimlich]

I've decided to put together a new system to replace the trusty P133 after all these years. All parts have been decided on except for the case. I wouldn't think this would be the hardest part of a system to figure out for me.

My brother recommends the PC Power & Cooling Midtower and any power supply from their as well. Everything I've read about them seems to be good, except it's awfully expensive for my budget and the you have to buy the powersupply seperate. This comes out to be somewhere around $150.

I was hoping one of you could point me to a case in the $80 - $100 dollar range that would suit my needs(I'll include a list of components at the end of the post). It doesn't really matter whether it's a full tower or mid. Not too sure if I need a 300W or not, maybe you guys can enlighten me on that subject as well.

Also, I don't know what kind of cooler I should get for the Duron. If someone could let me know about that it would help also. And should I bother getting an 80mm case fan? Or will the power supply and processor coolers be enough for air flow and take care of heat?

The following is a list of the parts I'm getting:
AMD Duron 700Mhz(Hopefully overclocked to who knows what...)
Abit KT7(NON-RAID)
Corsair PC133 128MB Cas 2
IBM Deskstar 15.0GB ATA/100 7200RPM
ATI Radeon 32MB DDR
SBLive! X-Gamer 5.1
3COM 56K Internal

P.S. - On the subject of speakers, I'm looking at the Cambridge Soundworks Desktop Theater FPS2500 Dolby Digital 5.1. I've read good and bad about them and can't decide. Their primary use will be for gaming and MP3 listening(I like the music loud AND clear, with emphasis on clear). I've
also been considering the Klipsch Promedia v.2-400, but didn't like reading about a slight hiss they give off. Massive amounts of power isn't THAT important, I have a shelf system for that. But a little punch would be nice. Just looking for more opinions if any of you have either of these...

Thanks for all the help any of you give,
Derek M. Heimlich

 

[lotust]

you look like your getting a hell of a system. as for cooling just get lots of fans, I love fans. Have a look on my site, maybe you will get some ideas.

 

[Mikewarrior2]

Whatever you do, do not buy a PcPowerCooling POwer Supply... You can get an oem version of their power supplies, usually for half the price they charge for them.

As far as a case, i would personally recommend an antec sx830/sx1030.


Mike

 

[Almighty1]

Mike,

How did you figure out who made the power supplies for PC Power & Cooling and which OEM models are the same?

 

[Mikewarrior2]

Here

The new TurboCool 400W is not a slim P.S. It is a standard atx 2.01, but is really a Zippy/Emac's Power Supply.

THe TurboCool 300W is really a rebadged 300W Sparkle/Fortron Source. The silencer 275 is a sparkle 300W with the fan replaced by a PCPowerCooling Silencer fan.

That Website, along with investigation by some of the more senior bbs members about a year ago discovered that PCPowerCooling P.S's were identical to other companie's power supplies. While there is nothing wrong with this, there is no reason to pay the huge premium that PcPowerCooling docks you.


Mike

 

[Almighty1]

Mike,

I wished someone discovered it earlier. I guess you pay a premium because of the longer warranties too and also, since they pretty much picked all the good quality stuff to rebadge?
A few days ago, I was trying to find the specs of my power supply and if you look at:

http://www.pcpowercooling.com/products/power_supplies/highperformance/index.htm

then it would show that the Turbo ATX 400 is a Slim model and not the one that I have. The one I have is no longer shown anywhere. The closest thing I can get is the 425 probably.

According to what PC Power & Cooling told me when I asked them about the PS:

The TC400ATX should be fine for any motherboard
that does not require the 720ma standard for ATX 2.xx. This standards
revision was published after the manufacture of this series. The TC400ATX
meets ATX standards prior to ATX 2.xx. To meet 2.xx or the pending 3.xx
standard a newer supply would have to be purchased. Even today this
standard continues to change and previous models, in general, can not be
upgraded..If the motherboard demands no more than 150ma on the +5VSB
then the TC400ATX will work fine. If the +5VSB is above this then it
will cause premature power supply failure...

So this does atleast show it's not the one you're referring to since this power supply is probably the original ATX 1.0 spec in 1998.

Their other mail basically says:

Sorry, we have no control over the ATX specifications and therefore can not
offer replacements of obsolete equipment when this occurs. However, there
still are many boards available that can be used. To determine if a particular
board can be used you can usually determine this by consulting the manual
or contacting the board manufacturer.