What is best for my needs?

[Kaadg]

I wasn?t? sure where to ask this question, so if this isn?t the place please point me the right direction.

I was going to purchase a steal-of-a-deal from HP, but for various reasons I decided to have a computer built for me from either Cyberpower or ABS (and if you know of a better company please let me know).

The problem is trying to find the right motherboard, memory, video card combo that gives me the most for my money; but I don?t want to buy what I don?t need. There are so many variables out there its mind boggling.

I already figured to get 512 MB of memory and an AMD 2500 or 2800 Barton processor

I am not a gamer, but my son does play games occasionally.
I do occasional video editing so I need a 1394 port
I play around with photos.

A lot of things run through my mind when considering what to get; like perhaps integrated video (like the HP I was thinking about getting) would be fine, and a separate video card would be overkill. And I hear a lot of people talking about overclocking the 2500. Is there a certain ?best? Motherboard used for that, is it even worth thinking about (do you really gain any noticeable speed)?

Any help would be appreciated.

Kaad_g

 

[JustAnAverageGuy]

Many people like both the Abit NF7-S and the Asus A7N8X Deluxe for overclocking.

The A7N8X has firewire (mini and regular) as a bracket.

The NF7-S has optical built right in.

As for a vid card. A GF4 Ti 4200 would be plenty for light gaming.

If it's only solitaire or some older games, integrated would be fine.

 

[SpeedFreak03]

I'm not sure about what mobos and other parts that ABS and etc carry, but here is what I recommend:

Mobo - Abit NF7-S. Provides overclocking power, comes with the stable and fast nForce2 chipset, and it has great onboard sound with the SoundStorm enabled AC97 chip. I'm 99.9% sure it has a 1394 (firewire) port on it, but double check.

CPU (processor) - AMD AthlonXP Barton 2500+. Has the best performance/price for any chip on the market. Most people (with an aftermarket heatsink/fan of course) hit 3200 speeds with ease.

Memory (RAM) - Kingston HyperX 512MB PC3200. Great for overclocking (with AMD, PC3200 is more than enough), stable, and fast! All you really need is 512MB now, but you can always add more later if needed.

Video Card - Integrated graphics SUCK. Your son will probably beg you for a faster one. Now if you don't game its fine, but you need a better one if you do game. I would recommend the GeForce4 Ti4200.
That should do it!

-Josh

 

[waitingforprescott]

From abs I really like the awesome 3300, I think it offers a good set a parts with a great price. If you want to have a more customizable system you might want to check out monarch computers.

 

[AgaBoogaBoo]

Does the average home user need to OC?

 

[arcenite]

Originally posted by: AgaBooga
Does the average home user need to OC?

The average home user does not visit Anandtech.

Bill