New quiet PC

[Xainin]

My PC is over 4 years old, time for a new one. It's a Windows XP
system, Asus A8V Deluxe AMD Athlon 64 3200+ at 2GHz, 1GB RAM,
some quiet components.

For the new system I want it super-quiet, reliable, and highly
Linux-compatible.

I've poked around on the SPCR (Silent PC Review) site and forums,
but prefer real newsgroups - are there any that focus on quiet
PCs, or is this the best one?

I'm don't mind buying a quiet PC (EndPCNoise and Puget Computer
Systems sell them) instead of building, but comparing the total
price of their "choose your system components" system builder
with the same or similar parts on NewEgg seems to indicate that
they charge $500 or $600 to put it together - or maybe to
warranty it - is that a typical premium for assembly, or am I
missing something?

I noticed that their systems show only Intel processors - my
previous systems have been AMD but I'm agnostic - seems like
maybe Intel (like Core 2 Duo or Quad) is currently the best
choice for quiet systems per the speed to power ratios shown at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_CPU_power_dissipation
(I won't be overclocking and prefer not to underclock).

 

[Xainin]

Try Pricewatch.com

This reply is useless, answering none of my questions or points.

 

[Xainin]

Why, did it quit working or have you just got the itch?

Works fine - just have the itch, and want a separate box to run Linux
natively instead of in a VM or dual-boot, keeping my existing PC for
Windows.

Don't know.

Looking at
http://www.endpcnoise.com/cgi-bin/e/std/sku=spcr_quiet_core2.html

It appears they value a years parts and labor warrenty at approxamatly $125.00.
For me installing the OS and making sure all the drivers are installed properly is
worth around a hundred bucks.

A hundred bucks to the tech to build and burn in leaves around $125.00 to $225.00
for gross profit to the business. Doesn't sound out of line to me,IMO.

A few hundred bucks would seem fine to me as well, which is why I was
surprised when the total difference was so much more.

Perhaps their profit margin is better with Intel based pcs. Perhaps they like Intel
more for other reasons. <shrug>

Are you implying that maybe there isn't as much difference between AMD and
Intel as the above indicates?

You didn't say how much you wanted to spend or what your intended purpose for the
pc was.

s

I don't want the low end, nor the pricey bleeding edge. Something mid
range, perhaps like an Intel Core 2 Duo E8400.

General use; occasional modest audio/video encoding; modest gaming (my
current FX5200 fanless video card is fine).