New build computer....Mobo/CPU Suggestions

[NeoMadHatter]

Didn't get any bites at gen hardware forum so,

Looking for mobo suggestions. here are the specs:

Processor: AMD Athlon XP 2000+ or 2100+
Motherboard: Asus A7N266-C or Gigabyte GA-7VRXP
RAM: 384MB DDR-PC2100 RAM - have
Video Card: ATI All In Wonder Radeon - have
Sound Card: Creative Audigy X-Gamer - have
NIC: Linksys LNET100X - have
Mouse: Microsoft Intellimouse - have
Keyboard: HP Internet Keyboard - have
Case: Antec SX635 - have
HD: WD 100GB 7200HD - have
HD: Maxtor 40GB 7200HD - have
Monitor: Samsung 570V LCD - have
CDRW: TDK 24x10x40 burner - have
DVD: Generic 10x DVD drive - have

Please adivise since this is for my brother. Doesn't matter if it's Intel or AMD, just need a good processor and motherboard for the stuff we have.

 

[NeoMadHatter]

help

 

[Bobcat0070]

Hey,
i would wait a couple weeks and see how much prices are for the new Thoroughbred core chips. if anything, the prices for the palominos will go down a bit, but if money is not an issue, and u need the extra 70MHz from XP 2000+ to 2100+, then by all means, get the 2100+. As for the motherboard, i personally would suggest Asus over Gigabyte, but these days, w/ competition being so great, they are all up to par. However, i wouldnt suggest getting the Asus A7N266-C u were asking about. Since he has a good sound card, the DD 5.1 feature wont be used, and the memory performance will still be less than that of the KT333 chipsets even if u fill 2 DIMM slots to get to 128 Bit on the nForce 415-D chipset.
I would highly recommend the MSI KT3 Ultra, i just built a very nice, stable, powerful rig on that board, and i had no problems. If you want USB 2.0 or have future plans on setting up a simple RAID array, then get the MSI KT3 Ultra ARU. This board will give u the possiblity to run PC2700 DDR, as well as the DD 5.1 speaker setup if u ever choose to do so.
Hope that helped,
Bobcat0070