Newbie needs help with a new PC setup validation

[liamtoh1]

I have read various webistes and from whatever knowledge that I have been able to gather, I have come up with a following configuration for a non-gaming system. Some of main uses for this system are -

* to transfer lots of home videos from analog camcorder / VHS tapes, video editing and burning it to DVDs /
* photo editing using Photoshop

1) Processor - AMD Athlon 64 3500+ Processor (Venice) Socket 939. Will use stock HSF.
2) Mobo - MSI K8N NEO2 PLATINUM Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce3 Ultra ATX
3) PS - Thermaltake W0023 560W Pfc ATX12V
4) Case - Antec Solution SLK3000-B Black Steel ATX
5) OCZ Value Series 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM Dual Channel Kit
6) Video Card - ATI ALL-IN-WONDER Radeon 9800Pro
7) DVD Burner - NEC ND-3540A
8) DVD-ROM - Samsung Model TS-H352A/BEBP
9) HDD - WD250GB ATA100 (unopened)
WD80GB ATA100 (opened)
10) Lacie 19in CRT Refurbished from lacie.com

* Will add more HDDs based on future deals (want to eventually have RAID 0+1)
* I have plain/old Hi-8mm Camcorder i.e. its not digital and no FireWire aka 1394, hence the need for AIW 9800Pro with VIVO capability.
* No plans for OC'ing yet
* WinXP Pro (have license)
* OfficeXP Pro (have license)
* PSE 3.0 (have license)

Can someone please provide any input for this setup? Any mismatches between components? Any other suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[enwar3]

on the parts:

1) if u wanna save some money, you could get the venice 3000+ and oc it - all the venices hit about the same top speeds.
2) i would go with an NF4 board if i were you, look into the epox, asus, or dfi if you're serious about ocing.
3) i would rethink this one, do u really need 560W? perhaps maybe a smaller antec..
4) good
5) good6) no personal experience with all-in-wonders, but sounds good to me..
7) good
8) why dont u just get two dvd burners, its not much of a difference
9) if "unopened" means bought, its fine. if not, a sata150 might serve you better.
10) good

hehe everybody has no plans for OCing, but it always happens, trust me.. =)

EDIT: im not done building my comp yet so take my advice with a lotta salt

 

[mwmorph]

3. ps is overkill
8. not needed, but is nice.
6. some will say it's underpowered, but it's perfect for your needs.

 

[mwmorph]

Originally posted by: enwar3
on the parts:

1) if u wanna save some money, you could get the venice 3000+ and oc it - all the venices hit about the same top speeds.
2) i would go with an NF4 board if i were you, look into the epox, asus, or dfi if you're serious about ocing.
3) i would rethink this one, do u really need 560W? perhaps maybe a smaller antec..
4) good
5) good6) no personal experience with all-in-wonders, but sounds good to me..
7) good
8) why dont u just get two dvd burners, its not much of a difference
9) if "unopened" means bought, its fine. if not, a sata150 might serve you better.
10) good

hehe everybody has no plans for OCing, but it always happens, trust me.. =)

EDIT: im not done building my comp yet so take my advice with a lotta salt

8. do not, i repeat do not get 2 burners. worthless since burning 2 dvds at a time is not worth the effort over 1 single ide channel.(the neo2 has 2 ide channels and im gussing youre putting the 2 opticals on 1 channel for best HDD performance[if yuo put 1 optical on each channel and 1 hdd on each channel, performance will drop considerably for the HDDs])
9. sata gives no performance increase, just samller wires which are similarly worthless.

 

[liamtoh1]

I selected 560W PS, since I would eventually like to have 4 250GB or higher HDDs with RAID 0+1. Am I incorrect?

NF4 boards are PCIe and ATI AIW for PCIe are kinda expensive. I need to capture analog video into the PC. Any suggestion for AIW 9800 Pro equivalent in PCIe for less than $200?

As suggested, I might go with 3000+ venice and save some $$

Keep the suggestions coming.

Thanks

 

[Aquila76]

1) Good choice if not going to Overclock.
2) May want to look at nForce 4 Ultra boards instead as nForce 3 isn't being updated anymore by nVidia.
3) I agree with MWMorph, that is overkill on the PSU. Look for a ~400W Antec or Enermax.
4) Solid choice
5) Assuming this the ~$200 pair, good choice.
6) Possibly the best all-in-one ever made; a good PCIe equivalent is the 600XT AIW if you go nF4.
7) Solid choice
8) You may want to not even bother with a DVD-ROM. Any good DVD burning software can rip the DVD to disk first.
9) RAID is a little easier with SATA, but still doable with IDE. 250GB is a good starting point.
10) Not overly familiar with LaCie displays, but CRT's don't vary nearly as much as LCD's.

 

[Aquila76]

Originally posted by: liamtoh1
I selected 560W PS, since I would eventually like to have 4 250GB or higher HDDs with RAID 0+1. Am I incorrect?

NF4 boards are PCIe and ATI AIW for PCIe are kinda expensive. I need to capture analog video into the PC. Any suggestion for AIW 9800 Pro equivalent in PCIe for less than $200?

As suggested, I might go with 3000+ venice and save some $$

Keep the suggestions coming.

Thanks

560 is definitely overkill. According to the power calculator, you'll be using at most 370W with everything running full steam/speed, so a ~400W supply should be plenty.

 

[mwmorph]

Originally posted by: liamtoh1
I selected 560W PS, since I would eventually like to have 4 250GB or higher HDDs with RAID 0+1. Am I incorrect?

NF4 boards are PCIe and ATI AIW for PCIe are kinda expensive. I need to capture analog video into the PC. Any suggestion for AIW 9800 Pro equivalent in PCIe for less than $200?

As suggested, I might go with 3000+ venice and save some $$

Keep the suggestions coming.

Thanks

you know a single hdd si around .5 amps on the +12v rail so 2 amps fro your 4 hdds is all you need.

ide raid is fine.

if yuo do a lot fo video work,or photoshop, stay with a faster processor if yuo can afford it. ocing is not guranteed and voids the warranty which is a bad thing.

btw, ocs have seemed to habve dropped recently sine amd is possibly binning more ocable processors to the more expensive processors(ex, a 30000+ is not virtually guranteed 2.6 like so often before)

 

[Topweasel]

Originally posted by: liamtoh1
I have read various webistes and from whatever knowledge that I have been able to gather, I have come up with a following configuration for a non-gaming system. Some of main uses for this system are -

* to transfer lots of home videos from analog camcorder / VHS tapes, video editing and burning it to DVDs /
* photo editing using Photoshop

1) Processor - AMD Athlon 64 3500+ Processor (Venice) Socket 939. Will use stock HSF.
2) Mobo - MSI K8N NEO2 PLATINUM Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce3 Ultra ATX
3) PS - Thermaltake W0023 560W Pfc ATX12V
4) Case - Antec Solution SLK3000-B Black Steel ATX
5) OCZ Value Series 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM Dual Channel Kit
6) Video Card - ATI ALL-IN-WONDER Radeon 9800Pro
7) DVD Burner - NEC ND-3540A
8) DVD-ROM - Samsung Model TS-H352A/BEBP
9) HDD - WD250GB ATA100 (unopened)
WD80GB ATA100 (opened)
10) Lacie 19in CRT Refurbished from lacie.com

* Will add more HDDs based on future deals (want to eventually have RAID 0+1)
* I have plain/old Hi-8mm Camcorder i.e. its not digital and no FireWire aka 1394, hence the need for AIW 9800Pro with VIVO capability.
* No plans for OC'ing yet
* WinXP Pro (have license)
* OfficeXP Pro (have license)
* PSE 3.0 (have license)

Can someone please provide any input for this setup? Any mismatches between components? Any other suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Stay up to date get NF4, and a PCIe Vid card. Get a WinTV or Dazzle product for capturing. You absolutely should aviodd tying yourself down on any Video purchase by having to buy a slower performaing more expensive AIW everytime you want to upgrade.

 

[liamtoh1]

Is this a good alternative PS? (ASPIRE ATX-AS520W BLACK ATX 520W Power Supply)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817148008#DetailSpecs

It is nearly half the cost of the original suggested PS, but does not have active PFC.

As per the suggestions I am also thinking about NF4 series board and I am looking at MSI K8N Neo4 Platinum nForce4 Ultra Athlon 64 Skt939. At ZZF, it says the this board needs ATX 2.0 compliant PS, but did not find this requirement in the MB's manual. The Aspire PS is not ATX 2.0 compliant.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

 

[imported_Kensai]

Ew on the Aspire..

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817171001

or

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817103455

 

[Aquila76]

Originally posted by: liamtoh1
Is this a good alternative PS? (ASPIRE ATX-AS520W BLACK ATX 520W Power Supply)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817148008#DetailSpecs

It is nearly half the cost of the original suggested PS, but does not have active PFC.

As per the suggestions I am also thinking about NF4 series board and I am looking at MSI K8N Neo4 Platinum nForce4 Ultra Athlon 64 Skt939. At ZZF, it says the this board needs ATX 2.0 compliant PS, but did not find this requirement in the MB's manual. The Aspire PS is not ATX 2.0 compliant.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

The nF4 use a 24 Pin motherboard power connector, the Aspire and Kensai's have a 20 Pin. There are some other differences between ATX1.x and ATX2.0, but that's the biggest.
Honestly, 520W is overkill for your intents withthat kind of setup. I would recommend an ATX 2.0 ~450 Watt PSU from either Antec, Enermax, or Seasonic for your needs. These ones at ZZF (I'm assuming the bulk of your purchases are going to be from here?) would be great (I've arranged them in order of preference):

1. Enermax 495W - I'm running this in my rig.
2. Antec 430W
3. Antec 480W

EDIT: Links coded wrong; clarity. Also, you can get either of these from NewEgg or anywhere else, too. They're pretty popular.

 

[imported_Phil]

Originally posted by: liamtoh1
Is this a good alternative PS? (ASPIRE ATX-AS520W BLACK ATX 520W Power Supply)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817148008#DetailSpecs

It is nearly half the cost of the original suggested PS, but does not have active PFC.

As per the suggestions I am also thinking about NF4 series board and I am looking at MSI K8N Neo4 Platinum nForce4 Ultra Athlon 64 Skt939. At ZZF, it says the this board needs ATX 2.0 compliant PS, but did not find this requirement in the MB's manual. The Aspire PS is not ATX 2.0 compliant.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

What do you think they've done to make it half the price with the "same" (hah) wattage rating? That's right, skimped on components.
You definitely get what you pay for with PSUs; get a decent, reliable, brand-name supply and you won't regret it.
You may regret it when your "520W" supply goes bang and leaves you stranded

 

[liamtoh1]

Ok.. after some more helpful comments from this wonderful forum - I've changed some items now let me list all the components again

1) Processor - AMD Athlon 64 3000+ Processor (Venice) Socket 939. Will use stock HSF. Do I really need another HSF? $144.54
2) Mobo - MSI K8N Neo4 Platinum nForce4 Ultra Athlon 64 Skt939. $104.99
3a) PS - Enermax EG495P-VE-SFMA (24P) Noisetaker 485W $80.49
3b) PS - Coolermaster RS-450-ACLY 450W $60.99
4) Case - Antec Solution SLK3000-B Black Steel ATX $43.69
5) OCZ Value Series 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM Dual Channel Kit $204.06
6) Video Card - ATI All-In-Wonder Radeon X600Pro $166.35
7) DVD Burner - NEC ND-3540A $43.55
8) HDD - WD 250GB ATA100 (unopened, already have from a nice deal)
HDD - WD 160GB ATA100 (unopened, already have from a nice deal)
WD 80GB ATA100 (opened)
9) Lacie 19in CRT Refurbished from lacie.com $250

I will also be buying a monitor calibration tool (Monaco Optix XR $230)

Total cost approx $1270


Not sure about which PS to go for, both have good reviews. The Enermax does not have an active PFC (ZZF description is wrong about this, see mfg. site) whereas Coolermaster does have an active PFC.

Any more suggestions?

 

[rbV5]

Any more suggestions?

You might look for a S-VHS player if you don't have one to capture from, it will allow you to use s-video input and its definately worth it if you have alot of tapes you want to transfer.

Maybe even look at a Wacom tablet like the Graphire or even Intuos, I sure like my Graphire for graphics work, and it was prety inexpensive for how much I've used it.

 

[Aquila76]

Originally posted by: liamtoh1
Ok.. after some more helpful comments from this wonderful forum - I've changed some items now let me list all the components again

1) Processor - AMD Athlon 64 3000+ Processor (Venice) Socket 939. Will use stock HSF. Do I really need another HSF? $144.54
2) Mobo - MSI K8N Neo4 Platinum nForce4 Ultra Athlon 64 Skt939. $104.99
3a) PS - Enermax EG495P-VE-SFMA (24P) Noisetaker 485W $80.49
3b) PS - Coolermaster RS-450-ACLY 450W $60.99
4) Case - Antec Solution SLK3000-B Black Steel ATX $43.69
5) OCZ Value Series 2GB (2 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM Dual Channel Kit $204.06
6) Video Card - ATI All-In-Wonder Radeon X600Pro $166.35
7) DVD Burner - NEC ND-3540A $43.55
8) HDD - WD 250GB ATA100 (unopened, already have from a nice deal)
HDD - WD 160GB ATA100 (unopened, already have from a nice deal)
WD 80GB ATA100 (opened)
9) Lacie 19in CRT Refurbished from lacie.com $250

I will also be buying a monitor calibration tool (Monaco Optix XR $230)

Total cost approx $1270


Not sure about which PS to go for, both have good reviews. The Enermax does not have an active PFC (ZZF description is wrong about this, see mfg. site) whereas Coolermaster does have an active PFC.

Any more suggestions?

You know who gets my PSU vote ...
Honestly, I'm not sure how big a deal PFC is. I know it has to do with the efficiency of the PSU (Power in v. Power out), but the Enermax has a very high efficiency rating to begin with. If you really want PFC and the Enermax, there's also a EG495AX-VE model that is basically the same PSU with PFC.