Upgrading my computer

[Fisher999]

I didn't notice that anyone mentioned it but an EXCELLENT place to aquire knowledge when building a PC for the first time is write here in the GENERAL HARDWARE forum at this link !!!

Greg

 

[Fisher999]

Originally posted by: staabie66
I am looking around at some IDE like the post said which ones do I look for the IDE Ultra ATA100 or the IDE Ultra ATA133

thanks

As it has already been pointed out to you there are two general "types" of hard drives used in general desktop computing today. One of these is called PATA, the "P" stands for Parallel. Here's a quote from pcguide.com that may help you "...The most popular interface used in modern hard disks--by far--is the one most commonly known as IDE. This interface is also known by a truly staggering variety of other names such as ATA, ATA/ATAPI, EIDE, ATA-2, Fast ATA, ATA-3, Ultra ATA, Ultra DMA and many more as well. The invention of this interface catapulted hard disks into a new era of performance, reliability, and compatibility...."

The LATEST "craze" in hard drive technology is called SATA; the "S" stands for SERIAL.
It is quickly becoming the new standard for desktop computer permanent storage devices. As long as your motherboard's CHIPSET supports SATA there are a lot of good bargains out there right now on SATA drives. You mentioned earlier about wanting an 80GB hard drive. Well one EXCELLENT ONLINE vender which you will hear referred to often here at Anandtech.com is Newegg.com

Right now they have a SATA Hard drive manufactured by Western Digital;a long time manufacturer of reliable hard drives. The unit has an 8MB cache (that is good) and is available right now at newegg over here for $59.99 DELIVERED. A few years ago these kind of prices were unthinkable let alone unheard of.

Greg

 

[Fisher999]

BTW, I just did some reseach for you and if you are STILL thinking about purchasing the GIGABYTE GA-K8NF-9 Socket 939 motherboard you mentioned on a previous page I just wanted to let you know that, like MOST newer motherboards today, it has integreated support for SATA (SerialATA) hard drives like the one I mentioned in the other post. Just remember to get a SOCKET 939 AMD CPU and purchase a PCI-Express graphics card, and the right type, speed and amount of system RAM (memory).

The link to that motherboard over at NewEgg is right here.

Greg

 

[Fisher999]

Originally posted by: staabie66
Can anyone reccomend a tv tuner and a sound card please

thanks

I think that someone already pointed out to you that there is an EXCELLENT and RECENT article comparing TV Tuner Cards right here at Anandtech !

Remember to keep in mind what you intend to "use" your computer for and what OPERAING SYSTEM you intend to install. If you are going to be wanting to install a audio/video oriented version of Windows XP, for example the Windows Media Center 2005 edition, then you need to be careful about WHICH SPECIFIC TV Tuner card you purchase because NOT ALL of them will be compatible iwth that operating system.

I am ordering parts for a new system I will be building very soon and since I intend to install the MEDIA CENTER 2005 versions of WindowsXP I have decided, with help from the article above, to purchase ATI's E-HOME WONDER PCI Interface TV/FM Tuner Box here at NEWEGG and the Windows Media Center 2005 OPERATING SYSTEM ITSELF with the REMOTE CONTROL for the O/S over here from the Online vendor ZipZoomFly !!!

Keep asking questions and GOOD LUCK !!! 🙂

Greg

 

[staabie66]

Thanks for the help. So if I do buy a SATA Hard Drive, I will probably get the Hard Drive that you mentioned. So I just want to clarify that I do get a SATA do I need to install any special drivers or anything because that is what a post said earlier?

Thanks

 

[Brian23]

Originally posted by: staabie66
Thanks for the help. So if I do buy a SATA Hard Drive, I will probably get the Hard Drive that you mentioned. So I just want to clarify that I do get a SATA do I need to install any special drivers or anything because that is what a post said earlier?

Thanks

I got the Western Digital 80GB IDE drive at Best Buy for $30. This week they have a 160GB Western Digital drive for $69. It's still a good deal. Western Digital makes good drives. Some other good manufacturers are Maxtor and Seagate. I personally would not buy a Hitatchi or an IBM drive though. Both of those have been known to crash taking out all your data.

Here is a thread discussing the differences between IDE and SATA.

The people in that thread should be able to answere any questions you have about SATA, and if they can't you could always start a new thread in the general hardware section.

 

[Brian23]

SATA Frequently Asked Questions