My ultimate system! please help/critic!!

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
G

gagaliya

Member
Aug 6, 2003
34
0
0
Hello after much research, I have ordered all the parts for my system. The goal of this system (in order of importance is):

1) Stability: ( I could care less about a few extra performance gains from overclocking/tweaking etc).
2) Noise: (seems unimportant, until you sat next to an AMD vacuum for a year..)
3) Performance.

My system setup is:

Antec Sonata case with 370W truepower powersupply (the 1 fan version)
Intel P4 3 GHz at 800 FSB
Zalman something7000 quiet fan
Intel D875PBZ motherboard (I ordered gigabyte 8kxnp + corsair xms LL memories, but had to cancel the order after all the horror stories I heard about them)
Kingston HyperX KHX3200K2 1GB PC3200 DDR memory Kit
MSI geforcefx 5900 128 MB DDR
Audigy2 Plat sound
Maxtor 160 GB 8MB 7200 RPM HDD ( http://www.maxtor.com/en/products/ata/desktop/diamondmax_plus_9/index.htm )
/with ultra ATA/133 PCI card (http://www.maxtor.com/en/products/accessories/ultra_ata/ultra_ata_133_pci_adapter_card/index.htm)
Toshiba DVD

Please give feedback ( good or bad ).

I also have a few technical questions if anyone know it for SURE:

1)I noticed on the intel d875pbz mobo it only goes up to ata100 support, does this mean I have to use that maxtor ata133 pci card to run the hdd at ata133 mode:/ this really sucks, reminds me of the old vesa controller days. Is there an updated bios or anythign that can let me plug it to the onboard IDEs instead that runs at ata133?

2)Whcih slots should the 2 stick of 512mb ddr memory go to achieve optimal performance in dual ddr mode?

3)Does any of the other 875 chipset mobo has onboard ata133 ide?

4) Do i have to use the ata133 pci card?

5) Do i ?

Thank you.

gaga
 
C

Corporate Thug

Lifer
Apr 17, 2003
37,622
0
76
Originally posted by: gagaliya
Hello after much research, I have ordered all the parts for my system. The goal of this system (in order of importance is):

1) Stability: ( I could care less about a few extra performance gains from overclocking/tweaking etc).
2) Noise: (seems unimportant, until you sat next to an AMD vacuum for a year..)
3) Performance.

My system setup is:

Antec Sonata case with 370W truepower powersupply (the 1 fan version)
Intel P4 3 GHz at 800 FSB
Zalman something7000 quiet fan
Intel D875PBZ motherboard (I ordered gigabyte 8kxnp + corsair xms LL memories, but had to cancel the order after all the horror stories I heard about them)
Kingston HyperX KHX3200K2 1GB PC3200 DDR memory Kit
MSI geforcefx 5900 128 MB DDR
Audigy2 Plat sound
Maxtor 160 GB 8MB 7200 RPM HDD ( http://www.maxtor.com/en/products/ata/desktop/diamondmax_plus_9/index.htm )
/with ultra ATA/133 PCI card (http://www.maxtor.com/en/products/accessories/ultra_ata/ultra_ata_133_pci_adapter_card/index.htm)
Toshiba DVD

Please give feedback ( good or bad ).

I also have a few technical questions if anyone know it for SURE:

1)I noticed on the intel d875pbz mobo it only goes up to ata100 support, does this mean I have to use that maxtor ata133 pci card to run the hdd at ata133 mode:/ this really sucks, reminds me of the old vesa controller days. Is there an updated bios or anythign that can let me plug it to the onboard IDEs instead that runs at ata133?

2)Whcih slots should the 2 stick of 512mb ddr memory go to achieve optimal performance in dual ddr mode?

3)Does any of the other 875 chipset mobo has onboard ata133 ide?

4) Do i have to use the ata133 pci card?

5) Do i ?

Thank you.

gaga
Click to expand...



all looks well, but the sonata comes with a 380W PSU i believe

Intel boards are great for stabilty but forget about overclocking. if you are gonna OC get an ABIT/ASUS 865/875 board and pc3500

i'd get a 9800 pro, similar price and better performance than a 5900 non ultra

audigy 2 platinum is a waste of money unless you are really gonna use the 5.25 panel

you dont have to use the ata card, all 875 boards have onboard ata 133

you will know where to put the ram, the dual channel slots are isolated and some are color coated
 
Z

zainali

Golden Member
Jun 18, 2003
1,687
0
76
get an antec 1080 amg. and a 9800 pro. if ur gonna go nvidia then spend the xtra dollars to get the ultra version. save money on the sound card .
 
G

gagaliya

Member
Aug 6, 2003
34
0
0
you dont have to use the ata card, all 875 boards have onboard ata 133
Click to expand...

are you sure? because on the intel mobo website (http://www.intel.com/design/motherbd/bz/index.htm?iid=ipp_browse+motherbd_d875pbz&), it said clearly "Two Parallel ATA IDE interfaces with UDMA 33, ATA-66/100 support" and not ata 133. Is there a bios update that gets it to ata133 or something?

all looks well, but the sonata comes with a 380W PSU i believe
Click to expand...

ops yeah you are right, i meant 380w not 370w

i'd get a 9800 pro, similar price and better performance than a 5900 non ultra
Click to expand...

get an antec 1080 amg. and a 9800 pro. if ur gonna go nvidia then spend the xtra dollars to get the ultra version.
Click to expand...

i based this decision mostly on tomshardware's article ( http://www.tomshardware.com/graphic/20030714/vga_card_guide-12.html ). It seems geforce fx 5900(non ultra) has a pretty significant performance gain over the 256mb version of 9800 pro. I picked msi, because it's the quietest card (dont think they have an ultra version yet)

audigy 2 platinum is a waste of money unless you are really gonna use the 5.25 panel
Click to expand...

Yeah, i know it's a stupid decision but i really really liked the front panel volume control thingy:p Had one for audigy1 on the old pc and loved it. Got some 6.1 speakers too so it's ok i guess.



 
A

AMDme

Member
May 26, 2003
112
0
0
"i based this decision mostly on tomshardware's article ( http://www.tomshardware.com/graphic/20030714/vga_card_guide-12.html ). It seems geforce fx 5900(non ultra) has a pretty significant performance gain over the 256mb version of 9800 pro. I picked msi, because it's the quietest card (dont think they have an ultra version yet)"


ask anyone here, OR ANYWHERE, except HARDOCP, and they will tell you toms harware has a HORRIBLE bias on intel procs +nvidia cards. In all current games, my 9800 Pro 128MB TROUNCES my 5900 ultra. It is a horrible card, a $500 mistake, many games are not even playable with all features on @ 1024x768. The 9800 Pro 128MB is better than any geforce out there. If you get the 5900 ultra, be prepared to RMA it.
 
A

AMDme

Member
May 26, 2003
112
0
0
"i based this decision mostly on tomshardware's article ( http://www.tomshardware.com/graphic/20030714/vga_card_guide-12.html ). It seems geforce fx 5900(non ultra) has a pretty significant performance gain over the 256mb version of 9800 pro. I picked msi, because it's the quietest card (dont think they have an ultra version yet)"


ask anyone here, OR ANYWHERE, except HARDOCP, and they will tell you toms harware has a HORRIBLE bias on intel procs +nvidia cards. In all current games, my 9800 Pro 128MB TROUNCES my 5900 ultra. It is a horrible card, a $500 mistake, many games are not even playable with all features on @ 1024x768. The 9800 Pro 128MB is better than any geforce out there. If you get the 5900 ultra, or 5900 regular, be prepared to RMA it.
 
A

AMDme

Member
May 26, 2003
112
0
0
"i based this decision mostly on tomshardware's article ( http://www.tomshardware.com/graphic/20030714/vga_card_guide-12.html ). It seems geforce fx 5900(non ultra) has a pretty significant performance gain over the 256mb version of 9800 pro. I picked msi, because it's the quietest card (dont think they have an ultra version yet)"


ask anyone here, OR ANYWHERE, except HARDOCP, and they will tell you toms harware has a HORRIBLE bias on intel procs +nvidia cards. In all current games, my 9800 Pro 128MB TROUNCES my 5900 ultra. It is a horrible card, a $500 mistake, many games are not even playable with all features on @ 1024x768. The 9800 Pro 128MB is better than any geforce out there. If you get the 5900 ultra, or 5900 regular, be prepared to RMA it.
 
W

wacki

Senior member
Oct 30, 2001
881
0
76
I would change your powersupply to Zalman or Sparkle and get 400-450 what.

Read the power supply roundup.


Also Audigy2 is good for gaming but if you want audiophile sound go M-Audio or Terratec
 
A

AMDme

Member
May 26, 2003
112
0
0
I second the desicion to get The MAUDIO Revolution 7.1. with your system frame rates shouldnt suffer.
 
A

AMDme

Member
May 26, 2003
112
0
0
Not to mention the 5900/5900 ultra will be the loudest component in your system.
 
W

wacki

Senior member
Oct 30, 2001
881
0
76
M-Audio is a better sound card, and your video games will suffer a 1-2 fps hit. Which if your getting 300 fps is no big deal. The sound quality improvement is worth it. Terratec is also a good brand for audiophile cards.

Ever thought of VIVO, I have it, its not that expensive, now I can't live without it.

If you truly want an Ultimate system, get a Maze3 waterblock at dangerden.com Watercooling, very effective, and super silent.

What fans you do have should be Verax .... the quietest fans in production. They look cool too!

For an insane system, install a ramdisk, they are only $500 nowadays, and ram is so cheap, hell some websites give it away for free.
 
G

gagaliya

Member
Aug 6, 2003
34
0
0
Not to mention the 5900/5900 ultra will be the loudest component in your system.
Click to expand...

if you check out this article (yes yes i know everybody hates tom: http://www.tomshardware.com/graphic/20030714/vga_card_guide-73.html ). The msi geforce fx 5900 only has a noise level of 37 db, which is almost inaudible to human ears.

I have a few more questions:
1)On the hdd manual it said ata100 only support up to 137(?) gb hdd without xp service pack1. And i have an old xp pro cd(no sp1), the intel d875pbz mobo is ata100, and my hdd is 160gb. Does that mean I will have problems?

cheers,

gaga
p.s. i got burned way too many times to try out anymore cool/specialized hardware, besides i dont care about sound THAT much:)
 
B

Barnaby W. Füi

Elite Member
Aug 14, 2001
12,343
0
0
If you really want an ultimate system, I would go scsi with a fujitsu MAS 15k rpm drive or two. They would absolutely destroy that maxtor.

edit: or seagate cheetah 15k.3's if you want a bit less noise.
 
I

Ionizer86

Diamond Member
Jun 20, 2001
5,292
0
76
Intel boards run lax timings: they're a bit slower than the others, but of course, intel wants to have a stable product.

If you want an uber leet rig, then yea, I guess P4 3.0c is the way to go, but you can save hundreds by picking a 2.4c or 2.6c. (or have an even uberer rig with a P4 3.2 (if they're out)).

BTW the Seagate IV is quieter than the Seagate Barracuda V lines, but the biggest single platter IV is the 40GB one. Their 7200.7 offers really high performance, but it's not as quiet as the Barracuda IV/V.
 
O

oldfart

Lifer
Dec 2, 1999
10,207
0
0
ATA133 is nothing more than marketing. Only Maxtor has it. ATA100 is just as fast as ATA133 since the drive can only do ~ 50 MB/s STR anyway.

The commecnts from others about 9800P Vs 5900 are vaild. The 9800P is the better card.

Intel mobo is fine as long as you have no overclocking plans.
 
modestninja

modestninja

Senior member
Jul 17, 2003
753
0
76
From everything I've read and a couple tests I've done with a friend the 9800pro outperforms the 5900 by alot and performs about even with the 5900 ultra. Also, the 9800pro handles AA and AF better than the FX line (which actually seems to cheat on the image quality in UT2K3 when enabling them.

If you want to overclock, I'd grab a case other than the Sonata (maybe the 1080AMG -- it has a 430W PS) which offers better coolong options. From what I've read, the Sonata's not good for anything more than a moderate OC. Also, ditch the Intel board and grab the Abit one (IS-7 good from what I hear.) and get faster Ram than PC3200.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom