Building A New System

[authenticate]

I would be grateful if I could get some advice on my choice of parts for a system that I intend to build this week:

1. AMD Athlon 750MHz (or higher) OR Intel PIII 733MHz (or higher)
2. ASUS K7A-RM m/b OR IWILL DS133R-N m/b (i820 chipset)
3. 128Mb PC133 SDRAM
4. ASUS v7700/D 32Mb DDR display card OR any that have the GeForce2 GTS chip
5. Creative SB Live! value2
6. 15inch flat panel LCD monitor
7. hard disk and CD-ROM I already have

My main use is surfing but I need to do some DV editing occassionally and will get the card later. The rest of my time is for gaming.
I want my system to last (who doesn't) so I thought I would get a m/b that supports dual cpus. I could then add the second at a later date. I originally thought about getting a Dell but have been put off with their commitment to RDRAM.
I have made some efforts to research into all this but I don't have that much time to spare and my current computer has just been sold.
Any help would be gratefully received.

 

[NoreagaCNN]

Pretty good setup, I would recommend 256Megs of Ram though, it's pretty cheap so you might as well get it,I would go with the ASUS A7V, everything else seems pretty good.

 

[authenticate]

ARyll,

Thanks but the i815 chipset doesn't support SMP which is something I (think) I need. Can you suggest a good m/b that does?

 

[dcdomain]

Why an LCD? For games, they are horrid. I suggest sticking with a regular monitor, or better yet, get a flat screen monitor, it'd still be cheaper than your proposed LCD. LCD's are generally not as bright and have lower refresh rates. Do you really need to save that much room on your desk?

I don't think 128mb is enough. Especially if you are considering DV editing. With memory prices so low, go for at least 256mb.\

I don't know much about dual proc systems, so I can't offer much advice on that topic.

 

[Stallion]

I'm going to have to agree with aRyll, get a 700E. I got mine from compuwiz1 (mine runs at 933mhz) and I know there are other guys who sell them here as well.

Mushkin Ram is also under $100 for 128 so get two while they're cheap.

I have seen some one in the FS/FT selling 21inch monitors(think they were Mitsubishi) for about $325 of something close. I would go that route.

 

[authenticate]

Is the 700E running a 133MHz FSB?
I will probably take your collective advice on installing 256Mb.
The LCD is a consideration because I really do not have that much space. We live in flats with small bedrooms here. I didn't realise that refresh rates would be a problem. I thought that as long they could give at least 60Hz then they would be less tiring on the eyes. Besides I spend no more than 3 hours an evening on my computer anyway (this doesn't include the one at the office).

 

[dcdomain]

In that case... go for it! First person with the right excuse to get an LCD screen.

 

[LXi]

<<1. AMD Athlon 750MHz (or higher) OR Intel PIII 733MHz (or higher)>>

If you go P3, get 700E, if you go Athlon, get Tbird 900, same price.


<<2. ASUS K7A-RM m/b OR IWILL DS133R-N m/b (i820 chipset)>>

There are much better alternatives than i820, you can get i815E with SDRAM which has proven by Intel themselves faster than RDRAM solutions. Or get a nice KT133 board to go with the Tbird.


<<5. Creative SB Live! value2>>

Whats value2?

 

[authenticate]

aRhyll,
At the risk of sounding ignorant I have never overclocked and it would be great if you could give a little more detail with regards to the benefits of o/c'ing a 700E running 100MHz FSB to a 733 already running on 133MHz FSB. Please be kind.

 

[authenticate]

AXi,
Thanks for the advice on the cpu.
Regarding the m/b it was all I could find with the limited research I had made. Problem with the i815 is that it doesn't support SMP.
I think &quot;value2&quot; refers to an OEM pack.

 

[LXi]

If you want SMP, then I recommend the MicroStar 694D Pro based on VIA 133A.

 

[Shooters]

I'll have to agree with everyone else and say if you're going to go Intel then get the PIII 700. If you know that you're NEVER going to overclock then go for the 733, but I promise you that sooner or later you going to want to do it. When I built my computer 5 months ago, the sales guy told me, &quot;This isn't a good overclocking motherboard, but it's a good board.&quot; I told him that I had no intention of overclocking, and now I wish I had gone with a better overclocking board and better RAM.

 

[authenticate]

aRyll,
I think I get it now. Is it right to say that the multiplier values are constant for the cpu regardless of anything else?

Shooters,
I am tending to the o/c route but just how safe this is I am not sure. This is why I want a board that supports SMP so that I can add a second cpu later.

 

[spamboy]

Overclocking is safe. That's why we do it. Unless you really screw something up by like giving it five times it's max voltage, you will know you are pushing too far because it locks up or crashes. Just back down and things will be fine. Running a 700 at 933 is not an outragous overclock. Many 700's go even higher. Go for it, and don't look back.

 

[LXi]

<<I think I get it now. Is it right to say that the multiplier values are constant for the cpu regardless of anything else?>>

Its not a matter of whether the multiplier is constant or not, its because Intel locked the multipliers of all their CPUs, they claim its to protect CPU remarks, but their true intention is to eliminate overclock. Keep in mind that almost all 100Mhz P3s(AKA P3-Es) under 700MHz are highly overclockable to 133MHz. So if say if you get a 700E(default 7x100=700), and overclock it to 133MHz(7x133=933), you basically got yourself a P3-933 with the price of a 700E. The reason why 133Mhz P3s(AKA P3-EBs) are not good overclockers is that they're already clocked at 133Mhz, therefore they have much less headroom than the P3s running 100MHz. I hope this isnt confusing to you.