Need Suggestions on P4 2Ghz + Mobos

[PSULion]

I'm compiling components for an new P4 2+ Ghz system. Primarily for gaming but some home office work and video editing as well. I want great value and a solid upgrade platform. I have been looking at reviews on the VIA P4X333 Chipset because that's the one which supports the ATA Ultra DMA 133 HDD (I just got a maxtor drive). I also hace seen SIS 648 chipsets which seems to suport this as well. I have a Radeon 8500 LE which is OK for now so I don't need integrated graphics or sound (I understand many mobos are packing these anyway). It would also be good to get a board with firewire support (I have a DV camcorder) but it shouldn't be much to add this later. I just saw an ad for a Epox 4G4A+ (2.4 Ghz CPU) which has the Intel i845g for $269 at Fry's. Any thoughts on this board as a compromise? It has RAID and it may support the 133 DMA drive via the Raid interface.

Any suggestions? I am upgrading from a P3 1 Ghz with 512 RAM, Win 98 SE. I am also interested in case suggestions if appropriate. Thanks for all the help!

 

[Wolfsraider]

i am using the 4g4a+

it is a breeze to set up it supports 333 ram
i am running 1 stick though as others have trouble with 2 sticks .
the bios is easy and straight forward
i haven't used the 133 udma as my drive now is 100 and i will be moving to scsi

i'd give the board a 10 and i'd definately get another

it would be a good mate to a 2.4b and yes it supports 133 under raid and 100 off the regular controllers

i have 4 pci slots open now since i use the lan so there is plenty of room to add later

cases are personal preference though in my book antec plus would get my vote for their heavy duty psu though

the sis is supposed to be a good board too but i have no experience with it

hth
mike

 

[Coherence]

Since Hammer has been delayed, I'm going to build my new system around the P4. The board I'm looking at getting is the Asus P4S8X. It supports SATA, AGP 8x (ATI 9700 Pro supports 8x), ATA 133, USB 2.0, Firewire, DDR333... lots of other goodies. It's the only P4 board I've been able to find that supports AGP 8x and SATA.

Now if only those damn SATA drives would come out, I'll be all set!

 

[Greenwald]

I also have the 4g4a+ board running a P4 2.53. I pretty much want to do what you're talking about, other than I dont play video games. I optimized my system for daily apps and video editing. Everything's been stable for me so far, but I haven't gotten around to do any video editing with it yet, maybe this weekend. I've heard about the 2 sticks of ram thing, but I'm running two 512mb stick of PC 2700 Samsung ram -- no problems. Bear in mind when choosing a mb, that many video editing applications are designed to work with the Intel chipset, so you're likely to run into fewer problems. Be sure to check your video editing program's support line and chat groups to find out what works better and what to avoid. The 4g4a+ doesn't have firewire unfortunately, but a firewire card is only $30. Another good board to consider is the Asus pb533xx (or something like that). That was the only other one I was looking at. For even better rock-solid performance, an intel board will do ya. But then overclocking is out of the question. MBs will have either onboard video or audio or both, but ya don't have to use them. Find one that meets your needs first, and consider costs second. Good luck,

My pc's specs:

P4 2.53gz
Epox 4g4a+
Win XP
Leadtek Gforce4 4200 w/128mb ram
1024mb ram PC2700 (512x2) Samsung
Pinnacle Systems Firewire
HD's: Maxtor 30G, WD 120G SE, WD 80G (all 7k rpm)
Win Modem (will be upgraded soon)
Phillips Seismic Edge SC
TDK CDRW

Greenwald