Building a Computer for College, any suggestions?

[dyqith]

OKie, here's the system I think i'm gonna try to get. I'm bugetting around $2k (hopefully under since its gonna kill my bank reserves).

Tell me what you think of what I chose. This system gotta be rock stable cuz i'm gonna use it for programming/gaming/homework/web surfing etc...

Here goes...
SuperMicro 750A ATX Full Tower w 300W
Abit SE-6 i815E, Flip-Chip, DMA/100, w/ Sound & VGA
Pentium III 133/256k 733 Flip-Chip
crucial 256 MB RAM (2 piece or 1) ?
20.4GB 7200rpm Ultra DMA 66 Internal EIDE Hard Drive with a 2MB Buffer
PC-DVD Encore 8X Internal Kit with Dxr3 Technology
Sony 17" 1600 x 1200 .24 CPD-E210
2 piece speakers(only?)
IntelliMouse Explorer USB Optical
Natural Keyboard Elite USB oem
1.44MB 3.5" floppy drive
Linksys EtherFast 10/100 high performance LAN adapter for 32-bit PCI local bus computers
CreativeLabs SoundBlaster Live! Value

I dunno what kinda of video card to get...
Anywayz, tell me what you think...
Thanks in advance...
--Dyqith

 

[ManuTOmanU]

That is alright, but what I would get too, is a TV tuner or even a editing card...

If you need it for college, you could save some money, by getting one of those, instead of a TV...

I have the Marvel G400 and it is awesome...

Well that is just what I think, but I know that there are some cheap TV cards out for about $50.. Or so???

Well great, looks good to me...
If don't get any good speakers, which I recomend, you won't need the $50 sound card...

I am checking some prices out and let you know about the ram...

 

[ManuTOmanU]

Yes the ram is great, but another thing, you could chose is Mushkin or EMS...

Those are good memorie sticks too...

BTW, I wouldn't go for USB mouse and keyboard... I had quiet a few problems with those...

 

[tom3]

If you plan to overclock your CPU, you may have better luck going with a cpu whose default FSB is 100MHz. Not much room to push it upwards if it starts off at 133Mhx..

 

[Sephy]

SuperMicro 750A ATX Full Tower w 300W
Abit SE-6 i815E, Flip-Chip, DMA/100, w/ Sound & VGA
--Bah!! No way! Either pick up something like P3V4X, or a nice BX board...don't go i815 if you're using SDRAM. Do yourself a favor and pick up a GeForce DDR and do NOT use the onboard crap.

Pentium III 133/256k 733 Flip-Chip
--Just fine, though I'd try to get a 700E, with a CB0 stepping and try an overclock..

crucial 256 MB RAM (2 piece or 1) ?
--Whichever..doesn't matter, Crucial rocks

20.4GB 7200rpm Ultra DMA 66 Internal EIDE Hard Drive with a 2MB Buffer
--Which Brand? Try to pick up a Deskstar 75GXP by IBM or a Maxtor Diamond Plus 40

PC-DVD Encore 8X Internal Kit with Dxr3 Technology
--No! Get a good Pioneer DVD drive(10X or so), and use the rest for a nice software decoder, like WinDVD 2000, or PowerDVD 2.55, better image quality.

Sony 17" 1600 x 1200 .24 CPD-E210
--My preference would be a bigger monitort, like the 19" KDS Avitron. Uses the same FD trinitron tube, but bigger!

2 piece speakers(only?)
--Try the Altec Lansing ACS48s..good stuff

IntelliMouse Explorer USB Optical
--Love mine!

Natural Keyboard Elite USB oem
--Don't use USB keyboards, they bite.

CreativeLabs SoundBlaster Live! Value
--Can't argue...

 

[Sephy]

Oh yeah, the WinTV-Go is an awesome card, try to pick one up

 

[Becks]

Like others said, tv tuner is worthwhile. Also I say get a diff case. get this case... http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.html?i=1215 its smaller, quieter, and has better cooling. well I guess I should say you have to add more fans to the supermicro to get the same cooling as the fongkai. I have a 750A, don't really like it.

 

[IceStorm]

I have the SE6. Nice board. My PIII-650 cb0 w/ Alpha HSF is doing 975 right now with no problems (150FSB).

Only really big problem with the board is that it won't go over 133 FSB with my ECC 256MB DIMM (Micron chips, 3rd party PCB), or even work at 100 FSB with two PC133 ECC DIMMS from Crucial. I think the problem is either BIOS-related, or load-related. ECC uses two extra chips per DIMM, they're probably being powered even though they're not being used, so four extra chips is probably too much. Remember, i815 only supports TWO DIMMs when at 133FSB, and does NOT support ECC.

I've a 256MB DIMM, non ECC, CAS2, from Crucial coming in tomorrow (Wednesday). I'll be doing some testing once it is in.

I'd say a retail cb0 650 CPU and OC it to 866, w/ an Alpha HSF to be on the safe side. 866Mhz is nice (of course, 975 is better).

Don't plan on doing over 1152x864 on a 17" monitor, no matter how good the specs are.

HD's ok. For college, I'd say a larger HD...

You don't need the DVD decoder if you get a good enough vid card, unless you need video out and the vid card doesn't support it.

Don't use the onboard video. Get something else. You may want a GeForce MX, if one comes out in the next month with a TV-out cable and DVD MAX-like capability, a la the G400 series from Matrox.

For college, unless you're living alone or have an understanding roommate, stick with a good two or three piece speaker setup.

Just my $0.02

 

[Marty]

Go for a larger Hard Drive. With the fast connection you will have there, 20GB won't last you very long.

Also, check out the Sony G200. It has a msrp of $500, but can be picked up for 390-25=$365 with free shipping at http://www.onvia.com. That monitor will do 1600x1200 at 75Hz, or a more useable 1280x1024 at 85Hz.

Marty

 

[RSI]

<< Don't plan on doing over 1152x864 on a 17&quot; monitor, no matter how good the specs are >>

What? There are plenty of monitors that do 1600x1200 perfectly fine at good refresh rates, and almost every 17&quot; monitor does 1280x1024 with high refreshes and crisp images.

-RSI

 

[Mday]

if you are building for college, use a smaller case... i have trouble lugging around my 750a around my room as is

if you really do intend to use it for college, getting laptop is better, but gaming would suck like crap in hell.

what you have listed seems fine to me... but if you are using the onboard crap which sucks like hell in crap, i will never talk to you again... i'd be too busy laughing my head off.

you don't really need the KIT since you can do software decoding just fine, but if you want it... go for it.

folks, remember this system is going to get moved more often than i would recommend a system be moved.

still a part of me will tell you to go ATHLON or DURON.

 

[IceStorm]

I've never been one to squint at my monitor. 19&quot; monitors at 1280x1024 are ok. Whenver trying that on a 17&quot;, it hurts my eyes, no matter how good the monitor is (unless it's LCD, then it's doable if it's a good display).

If anything, try it first, before you decide to live with it at that resolution...

 

[Mday]

SuperMicro 750A ATX Full Tower w 300W
it's huge, try for a mid tower. you will regret such a heavy and huge case later... can this thing even fit in a dorm or where ever you are going to stay?

Abit SE-6 i815E, Flip-Chip, DMA/100, w/ Sound &amp; VGA
i want to tell you to go athlon or duron.

Pentium III 133/256k 733 Flip-Chip
go athlon or duron.

crucial 256 MB RAM (2 piece or 1) ?
pc133, and it's fine. if you want 256, get one stick. if you want 512 get 2 sticks. there is no real point for getting 2 128 MB modules.

20.4GB 7200rpm Ultra DMA 66 Internal EIDE Hard Drive with a 2MB Buffer
it's fine, though if you had a second HDD, you can have less problems should anything strange occur. i doubt you will require this much space, but whatever.

i recommend getting a CDRW. backup rocks. and if your college uses superdisk or ZIP, consider getting one if you intend to work at the computer lab often. if you intend to download a lot of *wink wink, nudge nudge* then you should really get a CDRW.

PC-DVD Encore 8X Internal Kit with Dxr3 Technology
as i stated, you don't really need hardware decoding. if you decide to do without the KIT, get a drive, the pioneers come highly recommended.

Sony 17&quot; 1600 x 1200 .24 CPD-E210
though you will NOT want to run that 17&quot; or even a 19&quot; at that resolution, a 19&quot; would be too big and a 15&quot; is too small. others can recommend a 17&quot; since i have not seen what is out now.

2 piece speakers(only?)
if you like your music and games, a 3 piece is a must.

IntelliMouse Explorer USB Optical
why not. i'd recommend having a cheap ps2 around too.

Natural Keyboard Elite USB oem
the damn arrow keys suck. but split key is nice... though a regular keyboard with a nice gel wrist pad is good too. if you are used to split, go split. if not, there is not much of a curve. the get wrist pad on a regular keyboard is very comfortable. note, it has been said that gaming is kinda strange on a split key due to the location of mapped keys used in games. does it have ps2 also? i have the natural pro.

1.44MB 3.5&quot; floppy drive
stupid obsolete piece of crap. it's a good thing we all still NEED one otherwise, BLAH.

Linksys EtherFast 10/100 high performance LAN adapter for 32-bit PCI local bus computers
cheap and it works.

CreativeLabs SoundBlaster Live! Value
OEM is cheapest. you can always go with the xgamer or mp3+ if you want the bundle... or the platinum if you want the features. it's up to you.

 

[Scifione]

Sephy has a good reply!

Full tower is great for cooling. I have a In-Win IW-Q500 full tower. Wight size may be an issue in the dorm or if you move a lot. Full towers are not the type of case you want to drag to LAN parties ether. You want to find a happy home for it and park it. I am buff enough to carry mine around, and I'm no giant.
Suggestions for mid tower In-Win A500, A700, A800, S500, S700, or S800. The # is just a slightly different stile, and all have removable motherboard tray (very useful for building and upgrading). A's are slightly wider while S's are slightly taller and deeper ( http://www.in-win.com for a look ). Fong Kai FK-603 is praised by Anand, and I don't see why not. AMD approved power supply is a plus if you ever consider Athlon an alternative or a upgrade in the future. 300watt power supply is good, but I am not going to bad mouth anyone if there happy with 250watt.

Sephy is dead on the money with motherboard, and remember VIA AGP GART is key! You should not have to go with the onboard video for 2k. BX is probably still the best P3 chip set if you get a new motherboard design. Abit SE-6 or VH6 depending on chip set preference and if you like the extra PCI or a ISA slot.

700 or 750Mhz is ok if you are not an over clocker.

256 is more that enough 2 x 128MB or 1 x 256MB ether way you are left with at least 1 free DIMM. Which ever you think might get the best trade or resale in the future. It would hard to go wrong ether way.

Maxtor Diamond Plus 40 or Deskstar 75GXP by IBM! What more do you have to say! 20GB will last for a while, but if you want lots and lots of space and a CD-RW. The download bug is very contagious (MP3s, AVIs, MPEGs, little files and updates..............).

Will you be watching DVD movies? Are games and software available in DVD-ROM in you area? If the answer to both of these is no, dump the DVD and use the money on a CD-RW or some other place in the system. If you watch DVD movies on the PC, get the best and quietest DVD-ROM you can get within reason.

You could pair that DVD with a Rage Fury Maxx for good DVD. The Rage Fury Maxx has fallen in price, has mature driver and was rated slightly ahead of the G-force SDR in performance in reviews but hounded for its price. The price problem is gone. I have own ATI product and know what to expect (the good and the bad). If you can get a G-force DDR, get the Leadtek r2 for over clock ability, or you could make us all envious with a G-force 2. Also there is a G-force 2 MX that is a bargain board that is reviewed on http://anandtech.com and is on the front cover. If you like 3Dfx, the Voodoo5 5500 AGP is good for 1024x768@32bit,but am not sure how well the drivers have progressed since release. One thing is for sure, there a plenty of choices better than the 815 chip sets' built in video, and don't spend 2k for it.

19&quot; KDS is good. (Leave the monitor treads out!!!!!!!!!!) If you are going with a 17&quot;, go with it because it is easier to move, lighter, or leaves more room on a small desk not because it is Sony. (Have not heard that argument before, but it sounds as good as any in the eternal monitor treads. LOL!)

SB Live! Value............any live card is good but pair it with a 4 point speaker set.

IntelliMouse Explorer USB Optical did not impress me, but if you are going to get a USB mouse get a good one Microsoft or Logitech.

Linksys 10/100 network card is great buy!

dyqith, you have done some research I see. Don't forget software as if I had to say that. If you can get acedimic versions, use them. They cheaper.

GOOD LUCK!!!

 

[TomY]

Abit SE6 - From what I hear, this board has pretty crappy performance. It doesn't even sound like the i815E that is at the root of the crappy performance, it seems like Abit messed this one up. If you are going to go for i815E, you might wanna get the Asus CUSL2.

Supermicro Case - You are also going to want a smaller case unless you are like 6'5&quot; and can lug that Supermicro around without a problem.

p3.733 - as someone had said earlier, 100mhz bus p3's are better for overclocking but if you don't wanna overclock, 133mhz bus is the way to go.

crucial ram - get the crucial 7E (CL 2) stuff, currently the same price I believe.

20gb hd - you are gonna want the IBM 75GXP. IBM Deskstars are widely known to be the most reliable HDs out there (which is good when you have college stuff on it) and the 75GXP happens to be one of the fastest ATA Hds out there now. Get the 15GB or 30GB 75GXP, there is a 20GB available but it seems to be a weirdo model that might not perform as well.

video - no gaming? go matrox millennium g400. Light gaming? go matrox millennium g400max, or if you have time, see how the g450 will perform. matrox stuff seems to be pretty cheap now too. heavy gaming? - I'm pretty sure this forum is full of recommendations here.

everything else depends on your personal preferences. good luck in college.

 

[Sukhoi]

Don't get the InWin A model of cases. They have the power supply mounted sideways and you can have a hard time trying to work in there.

I think Scifione got confused between the A500 and the S500. As far as I know the S500 is the wider case (I have one and it has about an inch on each side of the 5 1/4&quot; bays), and the A500 is the one with the sideways power supply, and may be a little deeper than the S500. My S500 is plenty deep, so I wouldn't suggest the A series at all. http://www.allstarshop.com has an S506 that seems to be a S500 with a newer, better looking front bezel. You might want to check it out.

 

[KarlHungus]

I would really consider a different monitor if I were you. The Viewsonic PF775 (17&quot is a much better monitor for around the same price. If you are considering a 19&quot; the Samsung 900NF and KDS AV-195TF are damn fine deals. Oh yeah, use Onvia and Pointclick for some major savings on the monitor.

 

[TomY]

I believe Pointclick no longer gives back 10% for Onvia. The 25 dollar off can still be had tho.

 

[sov05]

Here goes...

SuperMicro 750A ATX Full Tower w 300W
fine

Abit SE-6 i815E, Flip-Chip, DMA/100, w/ Sound &amp; VGA
NO WAY never get integrated crap, get a BX board, Asus CUBX is nice.

Pentium III 133/256k 733 Flip-Chip
nice but get a 733E not EB, for a 100 FSB.

crucial 256 MB RAM (2 piece or 1) ?
fine, get whatever is cheap, usually 2 pieces, no difference


20.4GB 7200rpm Ultra DMA 66 Internal EIDE Hard Drive with a 2MB Buffer

IBM 75GXP ATA-100 Drive

PC-DVD Encore 8X Internal Kit with Dxr3 Technology
fine

Sony 17&quot; 1600 x 1200 .24 CPD-E210
nice

2 piece speakers(only?)
get ACS33 at the min, ACS-48 is good. You'll want bass


IntelliMouse Explorer USB Optical
nice!

Natural Keyboard Elite USB oem
NO, get a PS2

1.44MB 3.5&quot; floppy drive
uh-huh

Linksys EtherFast 10/100 high performance LAN adapter for 32-bit PCI
whatever is cheapest and either SMC Linksys or Netgear. All great

CreativeLabs SoundBlaster Live! Value
fine

 

[Scifione]

Oh ya ZIP-100 or LS-120!!!!
You will find them very useful at college. I did.
Chose the one that your college uses in their computer labs. If you don't know ask? If you don't get a straight answer, go with the ZIP-100 because it is much more prevalent, or the 250 for its backwards compatibility.

Ditto on the PS2 Keyboard.

 

[ManuTOmanU]

What I would like to know, is if you, dygith, got any great information out of the forum... And what are you going to do???
Did anybody changed your mind???

One more thing about Athlon and duron... Why? I have an athlon, and it does not as well as I thought it would...

I got it @ a FSB of 112 at the most and with a Leufken GFD it won't even do over 106...

I set the multipler to 100mhz more, it works just at 1.9 volts...

I think I would try Intel the next time...

ManuTo

 

[dyqith]

I got a lot out of this forum...
Thanks for the help guys...

Umm... I might rethink about the case and the motherboard + cpu.

Thanks guys,
--dyqith