Well, it's finally up and running! After being stuck with a p-133 for the past 6 years, I have finally moved from the dark ages to the gigahertz club. I've posted lots of questions here, and read hundreds of articles and posts; there is no site better than Anandtech for gathering a broad range of information.
I'm offering a few lessons learned for anyone who is considering such a huge jump in technology.
First, read hundreds of posts to understand the technology, terminology, and what works with what. When I first started, I was convinced I was going with a specific set of requirements, because I didn't know what was out there. But after reading for a few weeks, I concluded that I could get a lot more than I bargained for, and my requirements changed. Understanding technology will prevent you from asking questions like "What is DDR?"
Second, don't ask for opinions, like what is the best motherboard or video card. Look through the posts to see what kind of luck people have had with components you are considering.
Third, use a service like pricewatch to find the best deals. It usually pays to get many reasonably-priced components from a single source as opposed to finding the absolute lowest price from many vendors, because you will save on shipping. Also, try to order from out of state so the vendor will not charge tax.
Fourth, be prepared and patient when putting the system together. It took me about 3 hours total to get my system up and running. This is from opening the first box to loading all the drivers. The touchiest part was installing the SK-6. I heard horror stories of people breaking off CPU socket ears, gouging the motherboard, cracking cores, etc. I took my time and followed the directions (although my heart was beating pretty quickly).
In conclusion, I want to thank everyone here for your help, whether we interacted directly or not. There is a lot of knowledge on Anandtech, and I appreciate it.
I'm offering a few lessons learned for anyone who is considering such a huge jump in technology.
First, read hundreds of posts to understand the technology, terminology, and what works with what. When I first started, I was convinced I was going with a specific set of requirements, because I didn't know what was out there. But after reading for a few weeks, I concluded that I could get a lot more than I bargained for, and my requirements changed. Understanding technology will prevent you from asking questions like "What is DDR?"
Second, don't ask for opinions, like what is the best motherboard or video card. Look through the posts to see what kind of luck people have had with components you are considering.
Third, use a service like pricewatch to find the best deals. It usually pays to get many reasonably-priced components from a single source as opposed to finding the absolute lowest price from many vendors, because you will save on shipping. Also, try to order from out of state so the vendor will not charge tax.
Fourth, be prepared and patient when putting the system together. It took me about 3 hours total to get my system up and running. This is from opening the first box to loading all the drivers. The touchiest part was installing the SK-6. I heard horror stories of people breaking off CPU socket ears, gouging the motherboard, cracking cores, etc. I took my time and followed the directions (although my heart was beating pretty quickly).
In conclusion, I want to thank everyone here for your help, whether we interacted directly or not. There is a lot of knowledge on Anandtech, and I appreciate it.
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