Building new PC, advise needed please.

[JSW]

Hi

I am looking into building a new PC around a AMD ATHLON XP2600.
I have a few questions that I hope some of you can help me with:-

1. Motherboard, which one? I have looked at a few but don't know which to
choose. Recommendations please.
2. What size PSU for the processor/system I will be building.
3. Graphics card, I will be using my new pc for editting DV Camcorder tapes
and maybe writing the footage to DVD. Never going to use any games on this
PC. Recommendations please, I've seen graphics cards that are very
expensive, I don't want to spend to much, just enough to do the job.
4. Will it be best to have more than one fan on the case?

Cheers for any help you can give it will be much appreciated, its a mine
fireld out there you need to be Bill Gates to understand it all.

Thanks
JOHN

 

[Larc]

| I am looking into building a new PC around a AMD ATHLON XP2600.
| I have a few questions that I hope some of you can help me with:-
|
| 1. Motherboard, which one? I have looked at a few but don't know which to
| choose. Recommendations please.
| 2. What size PSU for the processor/system I will be building.
| 3. Graphics card, I will be using my new pc for editting DV Camcorder tapes
| and maybe writing the footage to DVD. Never going to use any games on this
| PC. Recommendations please, I've seen graphics cards that are very
| expensive, I don't want to spend to much, just enough to do the job.
| 4. Will it be best to have more than one fan on the case?

Sorry I can't offer any advice on AMD-type boards since I'm not familiar with
them. But I can recommend either the Matrox G450 or G550 video card. They're
not very good for games requiring 3D, but have the best 2D display I've ever
seen in an affordable card. The G450 would be the best buy if you use a CRT
monitor. The G550 is similar but has one digital output for an LCD flat panel
(a converter to a standard output is included). Both have connections for two
monitors and 32MB of DDR RAM. Currently, the G450 is $84 and the G550 is $95 at
Newegg, shipping free. They are both OEM versions, though, and don't include
the cable to convert the second video output for TV.

It's usually a good idea to have cases well ventilated. A fan in front bringing
air in and another in back taking it out is a minimum for fast systems, IMHO.

Larc



§§§ - Please raise temperature of mail to reply by e-mail - §§§

 

[Gareth Church]

Hi

I am looking into building a new PC around a AMD ATHLON XP2600.
I have a few questions that I hope some of you can help me with:-

1. Motherboard, which one? I have looked at a few but don't know which to
choose. Recommendations please.

That's really a personal thing. Whatever you do make sure you don't buy
something with onboard video. Onboard sound might be a good option. It is
fine for most users, and saves a PCI slot. Asus is a good brand, I have also
found abit, gigabyte, MSI to be good. It's hard for us to tell you exactly
what to get (although I'm sure some people who are more up-to-date than me
will make some good recommendations). I say find some motherboards that have
the features you want and list them here, and we can tell you which ones to
avoid.

2. What size PSU for the processor/system I will be building.

Most people seem to suggest 300/350 watt minimum as a blanket response.
That's utter bullshit. With PSUs, it's very much a case of quantity over
quality (take a look at the size of PSUs in name-brand computers, they are
often 220/250 watts). If you are going to be buying a dirt-cheap case I
would suggest buying another PSU separately. If you are getting a decent
case chances are the PSU will be ok, but there are no gaurantees.

3. Graphics card, I will be using my new pc for editting DV Camcorder tapes
and maybe writing the footage to DVD. Never going to use any games on this
PC. Recommendations please, I've seen graphics cards that are very
expensive, I don't want to spend to much, just enough to do the job.

Matrox make great 2D cards, but sound like overkill for you. Video editing
doesn't hit the video card much at all (it hits the CPU, RAM, HDD). Any
current card will be fine. You may want to think about the features a bit
though. Cards like the Matrox G450/550 have additional features like
dual-monitor supports, and lots of options for the second monitor (choice of
extending or cloning the Desktop, zooming etc). I built a video machine two
years ago and got the G450 just in case. Within about 2 weeks a client asked
for a presentation they had made to be copied to VHS. It was done in a
program similar to PowerPoint, only this program didn't go completely
fullscreen in playback (the Start bar still showed). No worries, I had the
VCR connected as the second 'monitor' and cloning the first monitor. It
wasn't an exact clone though, I used the zoom feature to crop out the Start
bar. Played the presentation and hit record on the VCR. Easy. This would
have been much harder with another video card (I probably would have used a
utility to capture video from the screen, and that would have taken a lot
longer and introduced compression artefacts). Wow, sorry for the long story.
The point is think ahead.

4. Will it be best to have more than one fan on the case?

Best? Yep. Neccessary? Probably not. A lot of cases just have one fan at the
back. Assumming that this machine is going to be doing a fairly important
job I would be inclined to include a second fan - one at the back blowing
out, one at the bottom front sucking in.

Gareth

 

[Adrian]

Here are some suggestions:

1. Motherboard, which one? I have looked at a few but don't know which to
choose. Recommendations please.

For the platform you've chosen, this board would be good:
http://usa.asus.com/products/mb/socketa/a7n8x-d/overview.htm

Asus A7N8X Deluxe. Why deluxe? Well it includes the firewire port that you
could need for video editing, if you want to forego that, then just go for
the regular one, the Asus A7N8X Non-deluxe.

2. What size PSU for the processor/system I will be building.

I'd say a good one, the Antec 430watt:
http://www.antec-inc.com/pro_details_powerSupply.php?ProdID=20430

I personally don't use PSUs under 400watts. I want to make sure the system
has enough power for any additional devices.

3. Graphics card, I will be using my new pc for editting DV Camcorder tapes
and maybe writing the footage to DVD. Never going to use any games on this
PC. Recommendations please, I've seen graphics cards that are very
expensive, I don't want to spend to much, just enough to do the job.

The Matrox G550:
http://www.matrox.com/mga/products/g550_dualdvi/home.cfm

This graphics card would do the job. It has the sharpest 2D image around.
This card is used in corporate environments, due to the fact it's cheap,
sharp 2D display and can handle multiple monitors.

4. Will it be best to have more than one fan on the case?

That depends on how much you load the system. If it's a simple system with
not many components, then sure, put a chunky fan on the back to suck out the
heat. If there are more components, then put one in the front, to help push
the air through the case.

 

[John]

I cannot tell you what to get but I can tell you what not to get and that is
a Gigabyte GA-7VA load of crap

 

[Wayne]

I just built my first PC and am very happy with the results. I havn't
done any high end graphics work except for backing up DVD's and editing in
Photoshop, but the system is fast as lightning compared to my old PII 450.

I used an EPOX EP-8RGA+ NForce2 motherboard with an AMD Athelon XP 2400+, an
Antec Truepower 420 power supply, and a Lian-Li aluminum case.

I know most people recommend against onboard graphics and sound but the
advantage for a newbie like myself was that this system works with no cards!
The onboard graphics and sound would appear to be quite good for 2D work and
all but the latest games. See http://www.hexus.co.uk/review.php?review=530
and http://www.hexus.co.uk/review.php?review=530 for their evaluations of
the graphics. There is an 8X AGP slot so you can always add a high end
graphics card. You can give the onboard graphics 128 MB of system RAM and
with dual memory access active (you need memory in both banks) this does not
slow down system memory access.

The big jump in performance came when I set the FBS = memory speed (166 in
my case). I have 2 200 MB Maxtor hard drives (were $150 each at CompUSA with
rebate) which are quite fast and leave plenty of room to work with graphics.
They come with free controller cards, so you can add more drives if you
want.

The Lian-Li case is a joy to work in and comes with 5 case fans and no power
supply so you can pick your own PSU. My processor is overclocked about 10%
with stock voltages and is running a little warm (53 C with 100% load, 46 C
at rest) so I have a Vantec Aeroflow on order.

Wayne

 

[JK]

That's really a personal thing. Whatever you do make sure you don't buy
something with onboard video.

The onboard video on nForce2 boards is pretty good for those who
are not gamers. It is about on par with a GeForce4 MX card, and
certainly good enough for those who want to surf the web and
run business applications.

Onboard sound might be a good option.

It is hard to find motherboards that don't have onboard sound.

It is
fine for most users, and saves a PCI slot. Asus is a good brand, I have also
found abit, gigabyte, MSI to be good. It's hard for us to tell you exactly
what to get (although I'm sure some people who are more up-to-date than me
will make some good recommendations). I say find some motherboards that have
the features you want and list them here, and we can tell you which ones to
avoid.


Most people seem to suggest 300/350 watt minimum as a blanket response.

A high quality power supply of at least 300 watts is what is neede.
Check the AMD website for brands AMD recommends. I recommend
an Antec case with an Antec power supply. If you plan to have a high
performance video card or more than one hard drive, I suggest that you
get a high quality 350 watt or 400 watt power supply.

 

[trappeduser]

Hi

I am looking into building a new PC around a AMD ATHLON XP2600.
I have a few questions that I hope some of you can help me with:-

1. Motherboard, which one? I have looked at a few but don't know which to
choose. Recommendations please.
2. What size PSU for the processor/system I will be building.
3. Graphics card, I will be using my new pc for editting DV Camcorder tapes
and maybe writing the footage to DVD. Never going to use any games on this
PC. Recommendations please, I've seen graphics cards that are very
expensive, I don't want to spend to much, just enough to do the job.
4. Will it be best to have more than one fan on the case?

My suggestions

1) GIGIBYTE make wonderful boards, work well with AMD CPU'S, check
website for the correct board to suit your CPU.

2) pass

3) ATI have a big range, very good for DV and DVD work.

4) Get a big case with room for as many fans as possible, splash out extra
money for this, it will save your cpu from frying.

Matt