Rebuilding old PC

[Gretzky]

I am rebuilding my dads old compaq, i took out the P3 cpu and the old nasty compaq mobo. I kept the following parts

TNT2 video card AGP
128SDRAM
Creative CDRW drive
DVD Drive

I did some searching around and i like neweggs.com prices and i got the following setup going for 134 dollars

AMD Duron 800MHz Socket A PGA Processor - OEM = 34.00
ECS K7S5A SiS® 735 SOCKET A MOTHERBOARD - RETAIL = 62.99
MAXTOP CSX-8870K 350W Beige/Silver CASE = 35.00
ENLIGHT CPU COOLER FAN 60x60x20 MODEL# NH001E01 - RETAIL = 8.00

Now im still debating on the motherboard. I think its kinda expansive for the use to my dad. He only will be going online to read news and listen to mp3s once in a while. The other motherboad that i liked is the

SHUTTLE AK32L KT266 266MHz FSB AMD Socket A ATX MOTHERBOARD

It costs 49.00 at newegg. You think i should go with that?

Please tell me your opinions

 

[Gretzky]

*bump

 

[AnAndAustin]

GF2MX ($40) or GF2TI ($55!) would seriously enhance gaming, but that doesn't seem a big priority for the PC anyway.

Duron 800mhz is fine, but you should find 900-1200 hardly costs any extra, although you don't yet need this speed it is a shame to skimp. Newegg shows Duron 950mhz is $36 and 1.2ghz is $45! If you change CPU check the HSF can cope with the speed, but it should be under $10 anyway.

SiS735 is way better than KT266 in pretty much every dept. KT266A and KT333 are better for o/c'ing and tweaking but the SiS735/745 are excellent for stability and are almost as fast as KT266A/333. KT266 and SiS735 can offer both DDR and SDR which may be useful for later expansion. NForce (DDR only) are also very nearly as fast as KT266A/333 but again are much more stable but lacking o/c'ing and tweaking abilities, nForce offer great onboard goodies like good sound, LAN and gfx. Newegg Asus A7N266-VM nF220 gives good sound, LAN and GF2MX gfx for $84.

 

[AnAndAustin]

KT266 with 256MB will seem MUCH faster than KT333 with 128MB! With the current price of RAM it is a bit silly to settle for 128MB regardless of what the PC is used for. Newegg 128MB PC133 $24, 256MB PC133 $44 and 256MB DDR-PC2100 $60.

The way I see it you should:

1. Extra 128MB PC133 (24) Duron950 (36) HSF (10) KT266 (49) Case (35) = $154
2. Extra 128MB PC133 (24) Duron950 (36) HSF (10) SiS735 (63) Case (35) = $168
3. Extra 128MB PC133 (24) Duron1.2ghz (45) HSF (10) KT266 (49) Case (35) = $163
4. Extra 128MB PC133 (24) Duron1.2ghz (45) HSF (10) SiS735 (63) Case (35) = $177
5. 256MB DDR-PC2100 (60) Duron950 (36) HSF (10) nF220 (84) Case (35) = $225 (But you are getting GF2MX with good sound and LAN)

 

[Gretzky]

guys just to say this is for my father, there will be no O/C'ing or playing games of any kind. This computer will simply be to read some news and listen to acouple mp3s. Thats why im trying to go as cheap as possible.

 

[TimeKeeper]

speed of p3? What OS you are running?

If he is only reading online newspsper, minor mp3, even a P2-233 will do the job efficicently.
Perhaps all you need is add another stick of RAM if running win2k or Winxp.
For your father, buy him a nice LCD monitor is more appropriate then speed up his processor. (after all, it take quite sometimes just to read a page right? Take care of his eyes...)

 

[meefmah]

1. Extra 128MB PC133 (24) Duron950 (36) HSF (10) KT266 (49) Case (35) = $154
2. Extra 128MB PC133 (24) Duron950 (36) HSF (10) SiS735 (63) Case (35) = $168
3. Extra 128MB PC133 (24) Duron1.2ghz (45) HSF (10) KT266 (49) Case (35) = $163
4. Extra 128MB PC133 (24) Duron1.2ghz (45) HSF (10) SiS735 (63) Case (35) = $177
5. 256MB DDR-PC2100 (60) Duron950 (36) HSF (10) nF220 (84) Case (35) = $225 (But you are getting GF2MX with good sound and LAN)

And DDR memory


Gretzky:If the Compaq isn't broken, it'd be nice to build the nForce rig and have the Compaq as a backup.

 

[Gretzky]

the thing is i dont like the compaq mobo and the cpu is slot. I tried looking for acouple slot mobos and they are going for 100+.

 

[AnAndAustin]

Well as you say your dad prob won't notice a diff anyway.

I think the Duron 950mhz is worth the extra $2 though, and the extra 128MB is only $24 too. IMHO you'd be better off with this and the KT266 than the SiS735 with only 128MB RAM. The first option is only $20 more than your initial components and would be much better regardless of what the PC is used for, even in Win98.

 

[TheWart]

I would check out the deal @ newegg where an athlon XP 1600+ is only $56.99

 

[Gretzky]

ya i know i saw that deal but i dont want to get that cpu cause i was steal it from my dad and then i would get a new mobo and then all hell would start here so im going with the duron