Looking for rock solid, reliable m/board for new build

[neil f]

It's three-ish years since I built my PC and motherboards/processors have
moved on so far that anything I learned last time is now pretty useless.

So I'm looking for recommendations for a motherboard and main components as
a build basis for the following profile:

General office and hobbies uses -not games - large docs with photo inserts,
some Photoshop retouching etc, and recently been doing a lot of handling of
uncompressed avi files (ex-VirtualDub) from transferred Super8 movie films
which use about 5.5GB for a three minute film. These avi files are usually
viewed via Windows Media Player and start to slow about three-quarter way
through - presumably when the VM cache runs out. So I'd like a system that
can handle files like these smoothly and is otherwise v. quiet and reliable.
My current system was based on an Asus A7N8X-E Delux board and uses an
Athlon 1.8Gig processor with 1GB of ram.

For quiet, I use an Antec case and a PSU from QuietPC, no fanless
northbridge and a fanless graphics card too. I'd prefer to stick with a
fanless mobo and graphics card if they still exist. I'm running XP and can't
see any need to upgrade to Vista.

I think I would still need floppy support (for occasional vintage DOS-era
progs). I presume all boards are sata these days, but haven't enjoyed the
process with this board as I'm getting errors and stalled reboots from
faulty connections (sata cables seem to be very slack and prone to pulling
off). Also the sata drivers have to be loaded from floppy half way through
the XP install which is a pain as there are a lot of driver versions and
some just crash the process.

So to summarise. I'd like a well-tried, stone-reliable fanless mb with built
in sata drivers and BIOS that is well passed the debug stage and has
whatever is the current graphics card slot. I also have one or two general
PCI cards that I'd like to be able to use. I don't need blistering speed but
I'd like to be able to throughput video files smoothly, and firewire 800 for
film capture would be nice.

Cost is not really an issue but I don't want to pay for stuff I won't need.
I'd like a system and processor that was good for the next three years.

Thanks in advance if anyone has any thoughts or has built something similar
recently.

-Neil F.

 

[sandy58]

It's three-ish years since I built my PC and motherboards/processors have
moved on so far that anything I learned last time is now pretty useless.

So I'm looking for recommendations for a motherboard and main components as
a build basis for the following profile:

General office and hobbies uses -not games - large docs with photo inserts,
some Photoshop retouching etc, and recently been doing a lot of handling of
uncompressed avi files (ex-VirtualDub) from transferred Super8 movie films
which use about 5.5GB for a three minute film. These avi files are usually
viewed via Windows Media Player and start to slow about three-quarter way
through - presumably when the VM cache runs out. So I'd like a system that
can handle files like these smoothly and is otherwise v. quiet and reliable.
My current system was based on an Asus A7N8X-E Delux board and uses an
Athlon 1.8Gig processor with 1GB of ram.

For quiet, I use an Antec case and a PSU from QuietPC, no fanless
northbridge and a fanless graphics card too. I'd prefer to stick with a
fanless mobo and graphics card if they still exist. I'm running XP and can't
see any need to upgrade to Vista.

I think I would still need floppy support (for occasional vintage DOS-era
progs). I presume all boards are sata these days, but haven't enjoyed the
process with this board as I'm getting errors and stalled reboots from
faulty connections (sata cables seem to be very slack and prone to pulling
off). Also the sata drivers have to be loaded from floppy half way through
the XP install which is a pain as there are a lot of driver versions and
some just crash the process.

So to summarise. I'd like a well-tried, stone-reliable fanless mb with built
in sata drivers and BIOS that is well passed the debug stage and has
whatever is the current graphics card slot. I also have one or two general
PCI cards that I'd like to be able to use. I don't need blistering speed but
I'd like to be able to throughput video files smoothly, and firewire 800 for
film capture would be nice.

Cost is not really an issue but I don't want to pay for stuff I won't need.
I'd like a system and processor that was good for the next three years.

Thanks in advance if anyone has any thoughts or has built something similar
recently.

-Neil F.

Neil, why don't you just upgrade your present components retaining the
same make as far as possible? You have obviously been satisfied with
the products so far & must have some confidence in them?
Good luck.

 

[JAD]

It's three-ish years since I built my PC and motherboards/processors have
moved on so far that anything I learned last time is now pretty useless.

So I'm looking for recommendations for a motherboard and main components as
a build basis for the following profile:

General office and hobbies uses -not games - large docs with photo inserts,
some Photoshop retouching etc, and recently been doing a lot of handling of
uncompressed avi files (ex-VirtualDub) from transferred Super8 movie films
which use about 5.5GB for a three minute film. These avi files are usually
viewed via Windows Media Player and start to slow about three-quarter way
through - presumably when the VM cache runs out. So I'd like a system that
can handle files like these smoothly and is otherwise v. quiet and reliable.
My current system was based on an Asus A7N8X-E Delux board and uses an
Athlon 1.8Gig processor with 1GB of ram.

For quiet, I use an Antec case and a PSU from QuietPC, no fanless
northbridge and a fanless graphics card too. I'd prefer to stick with a
fanless mobo and graphics card if they still exist. I'm running XP and can't
see any need to upgrade to Vista.

when your system 'slows', are you checking temps? I don't know anybody that was satisfied
with the original 'fanless' cooling offerings. (and on an AMD!???)

 

[neil f]

|
| | > It's three-ish years since I built my PC and motherboards/processors
have
| > moved on so far that anything I learned last time is now pretty useless.
| >
| > So I'm looking for recommendations for a motherboard and main components
as
| > a build basis for the following profile:
| >
| > General office and hobbies uses -not games - large docs with photo
inserts,
| > some Photoshop retouching etc, and recently been doing a lot of handling
of
| > uncompressed avi files (ex-VirtualDub) from transferred Super8 movie
films
| > which use about 5.5GB for a three minute film. These avi files are
usually
| > viewed via Windows Media Player and start to slow about three-quarter
way
| > through - presumably when the VM cache runs out. So I'd like a system
that
| > can handle files like these smoothly and is otherwise v. quiet and
reliable.
| > My current system was based on an Asus A7N8X-E Delux board and uses an
| > Athlon 1.8Gig processor with 1GB of ram.
| >
| > For quiet, I use an Antec case and a PSU from QuietPC, no fanless
| > northbridge and a fanless graphics card too. I'd prefer to stick with a
| > fanless mobo and graphics card if they still exist. I'm running XP and
can't
| > see any need to upgrade to Vista.
|
| when your system 'slows', are you checking temps? I don't know anybody
that was satisfied
| with the original 'fanless' cooling offerings. (and on an AMD!???)
|

I should have said there's a fan on the processor, but just the standard
heatsink on the northbridge. I've always found the little fans on
northbridge chips and graphics cards make the most noise, especially after a
few months in operation. The case and PSU fans are of the extra-large
low-rpm type. Cooling doesn't seem to be a problem (especially in winter)
according to the temp monitor.

 

[neil f]

| > It's three-ish years since I built my PC and motherboards/processors
have
| > moved on so far that anything I learned last time is now pretty useless.
| >
| > So I'm looking for recommendations for a motherboard and main components
as
| > a build basis for the following profile:
| >
| > General office and hobbies uses -not games - large docs with photo
inserts,
| > some Photoshop retouching etc, and recently been doing a lot of handling
of
| > uncompressed avi files (ex-VirtualDub) from transferred Super8 movie
films
| > which use about 5.5GB for a three minute film. These avi files are
usually
| > viewed via Windows Media Player and start to slow about three-quarter
way
| > through - presumably when the VM cache runs out. So I'd like a system
that
| > can handle files like these smoothly and is otherwise v. quiet and
reliable.
| > My current system was based on an Asus A7N8X-E Delux board and uses an
| > Athlon 1.8Gig processor with 1GB of ram.
| >
| > For quiet, I use an Antec case and a PSU from QuietPC, no fanless
| > northbridge and a fanless graphics card too. I'd prefer to stick with a
| > fanless mobo and graphics card if they still exist. I'm running XP and
can't
| > see any need to upgrade to Vista.
| >
| > I think I would still need floppy support (for occasional vintage
DOS-era
| > progs). I presume all boards are sata these days, but haven't enjoyed
the
| > process with this board as I'm getting errors and stalled reboots from
| > faulty connections (sata cables seem to be very slack and prone to
pulling
| > off). Also the sata drivers have to be loaded from floppy half way
through
| > the XP install which is a pain as there are a lot of driver versions and
| > some just crash the process.
| >
| > So to summarise. I'd like a well-tried, stone-reliable fanless mb with
built
| > in sata drivers and BIOS that is well passed the debug stage and has
| > whatever is the current graphics card slot. I also have one or two
general
| > PCI cards that I'd like to be able to use. I don't need blistering speed
but
| > I'd like to be able to throughput video files smoothly, and firewire 800
for
| > film capture would be nice.
| >
| > Cost is not really an issue but I don't want to pay for stuff I won't
need.
| > I'd like a system and processor that was good for the next three years.
| >
| > Thanks in advance if anyone has any thoughts or has built something
similar
| > recently.
| >
| > -Neil F.
|
| Neil, why don't you just upgrade your present components retaining the
| same make as far as possible? You have obviously been satisfied with
| the products so far & must have some confidence in them?
| Good luck.

I'm sure there must be advantages to be had from quicker or dual processors,
much faster FSB speeds and more efficient chips etc. Plus the startup
problem is now a real pain, with sometimes half dozen starts and fiddles
with cables required before I can get to a full boot. It all just feels a
bit tired. I'll keep this system as a backup for while but I think I need
new setup rather than a rebuild.

 

[Frank Kohlbrok]

|
| | > It's three-ish years since I built my PC and motherboards/processors
have
| > moved on so far that anything I learned last time is now pretty useless.
| >
| > So I'm looking for recommendations for a motherboard and main components
as
| > a build basis for the following profile:
| >
| > General office and hobbies uses -not games - large docs with photo
inserts,
| > some Photoshop retouching etc, and recently been doing a lot of handling
of
| > uncompressed avi files (ex-VirtualDub) from transferred Super8 movie
films
| > which use about 5.5GB for a three minute film. These avi files are
usually
| > viewed via Windows Media Player and start to slow about three-quarter
way
| > through - presumably when the VM cache runs out. So I'd like a system
that
| > can handle files like these smoothly and is otherwise v. quiet and
reliable.
| > My current system was based on an Asus A7N8X-E Delux board and uses an
| > Athlon 1.8Gig processor with 1GB of ram.
| >
| > For quiet, I use an Antec case and a PSU from QuietPC, no fanless
| > northbridge and a fanless graphics card too. I'd prefer to stick with a
| > fanless mobo and graphics card if they still exist. I'm running XP and
can't
| > see any need to upgrade to Vista.
|
| when your system 'slows', are you checking temps? I don't know anybody
that was satisfied
| with the original 'fanless' cooling offerings. (and on an AMD!???)
|

I should have said there's a fan on the processor, but just the standard
heatsink on the northbridge. I've always found the little fans on
northbridge chips and graphics cards make the most noise, especially after a
few months in operation. The case and PSU fans are of the extra-large
low-rpm type. Cooling doesn't seem to be a problem (especially in winter)
according to the temp monitor.

Well,
i would take an Asus P5K Premium board, a DCP or QCP from Intel, 2 DDR2
HyperX from Kingston and a nice Asus EN8600GT SILENT/HTDP/512M (TV-Out,
2xDVI)... The mainboard and the graphic adapter have 3 years warranty i
think and the stuff is fast enough for the next 3-4 Years. And if you
need an upgrade, its easy made.

Yours Frank

 

[neil f]

| neil f schrieb:
| > | > |
| > | | > | > It's three-ish years since I built my PC and motherboards/processors
| > have
| > | > moved on so far that anything I learned last time is now pretty
useless.
| > | >
| > | > So I'm looking for recommendations for a motherboard and main
components
| > as
| > | > a build basis for the following profile:
| > | >
| > | > General office and hobbies uses -not games - large docs with photo
| > inserts,
| > | > some Photoshop retouching etc, and recently been doing a lot of
handling
| > of
| > | > uncompressed avi files (ex-VirtualDub) from transferred Super8 movie
| > films
| > | > which use about 5.5GB for a three minute film. These avi files are
| > usually
| > | > viewed via Windows Media Player and start to slow about
three-quarter
| > way
| > | > through - presumably when the VM cache runs out. So I'd like a
system
| > that
| > | > can handle files like these smoothly and is otherwise v. quiet and
| > reliable.
| > | > My current system was based on an Asus A7N8X-E Delux board and uses
an
| > | > Athlon 1.8Gig processor with 1GB of ram.
| > | >
| > | > For quiet, I use an Antec case and a PSU from QuietPC, no fanless
| > | > northbridge and a fanless graphics card too. I'd prefer to stick
with a
| > | > fanless mobo and graphics card if they still exist. I'm running XP
and
| > can't
| > | > see any need to upgrade to Vista.
| > |
| > | when your system 'slows', are you checking temps? I don't know anybody
| > that was satisfied
| > | with the original 'fanless' cooling offerings. (and on an AMD!???)
| > |
| >
| > I should have said there's a fan on the processor, but just the standard
| > heatsink on the northbridge. I've always found the little fans on
| > northbridge chips and graphics cards make the most noise, especially
after a
| > few months in operation. The case and PSU fans are of the extra-large
| > low-rpm type. Cooling doesn't seem to be a problem (especially in
winter)
| > according to the temp monitor.
| >
| >
| Well,
| i would take an Asus P5K Premium board, a DCP or QCP from Intel, 2 DDR2
| HyperX from Kingston and a nice Asus EN8600GT SILENT/HTDP/512M (TV-Out,
| 2xDVI)... The mainboard and the graphic adapter have 3 years warranty i
| think and the stuff is fast enough for the next 3-4 Years. And if you
| need an upgrade, its easy made.
|
| Yours Frank

Thanks for that, Frank, I'll look into your suggestion.
-Neil.

 

[Fitz]

If you plan on staying with AMD, then here's a system I built for a
couple people over Christmas:

ASUS M3A motherboard
AM2 BE-2350 (2 X 2.1GHz)
2GB Corsair TwinX 6400C4
BFG 8600GT 256MB PCI-e
Corsair HX520 Power Supply

The motherboard is fairly new, supporting not just dual core, but the
new AMD quad core processor so it's upgradeable. If you need firewire
for video, you'll have to add a PCI card. The video card is dual DVI out
with analog adapters and S-Video. It's not fanless, but runs relatively
cool (doesn't require power supply connection, so it's not real power
hungry). The power supply is a very good one, and this system won't tax
it at all.

You can certainly get faster processors, but this one is a 45W core
designed to draw less power and therefore run cooler. For video
processing and photo editing, you may want a graphics card with more
than 256MB of onboard memory. Both the people I built these machines for
do light Photoshop work (Elements) and haven't had any problems. The
8600 series is still a good choice for what you want - they make them
with 512MB also.

I'm an AMD loyalist, so I've never built a Intel system, but I think the
consensus is that the Intel Duo's are outperforming the AMD's
convincingly for your needs.

Good Luck,
Fitz

 

[neil f]

| If you plan on staying with AMD, then here's a system I built for a
| couple people over Christmas:
|
| ASUS M3A motherboard
| AM2 BE-2350 (2 X 2.1GHz)
| 2GB Corsair TwinX 6400C4
| BFG 8600GT 256MB PCI-e
| Corsair HX520 Power Supply
|
| The motherboard is fairly new, supporting not just dual core, but the
| new AMD quad core processor so it's upgradeable. If you need firewire
| for video, you'll have to add a PCI card. The video card is dual DVI out
| with analog adapters and S-Video. It's not fanless, but runs relatively
| cool (doesn't require power supply connection, so it's not real power
| hungry). The power supply is a very good one, and this system won't tax
| it at all.
|
| You can certainly get faster processors, but this one is a 45W core
| designed to draw less power and therefore run cooler. For video
| processing and photo editing, you may want a graphics card with more
| than 256MB of onboard memory. Both the people I built these machines for
| do light Photoshop work (Elements) and haven't had any problems. The
| 8600 series is still a good choice for what you want - they make them
| with 512MB also.
|
| I'm an AMD loyalist, so I've never built a Intel system, but I think the
| consensus is that the Intel Duo's are outperforming the AMD's
| convincingly for your needs.
|
| Good Luck,
| Fitz
|

Thanks Fitz. I haven't decided on Intel/AMD yet so that sounds like a good
alternative setup. I've always been AMD myself too, but as you say, Intel
look tempting at the moment.
-Neil.