Thoughts on new system?

[gcstader]

I'm about to put together a new system; I'll be ordering the parts from newegg this week. Any advice?

ABIT nForce2 Chipset Motherboard for AMD Socket A CPU, Model "NF7-S" -RETAIL:

$92.00
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ASPIRE Turbo Case X-Dreamer Black Mid-Tower Case with 350W Power Supply, Model "ATXB3KLW/350W":

$48.00
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AMD Athlon XP 2500+ "Barton", 333 FSB, 512K Cache Processor - Retail:

$80.00
-------------
Geil Value Series 184 Pin 512MB DDR PC-3200:

$83.00
-------------
Maxtor 160GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, MODEL 6Y160M0, OEM Drive Only

$128.00
--------------
Thermaltake Volcano 6Cu+ CPU Cooler for Socket A/ 370

$6.49 + $4.00 shipping = $10.49
--------------
UNINCOM ROUND, 18-Inch, True ATA133/100/66/33, ( BLACK ) IDE Cable. 3-Head. 18 Inches -RETAIL

$3.35


Total: $444.84

~Greg

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[Geeky1]

The Volcano 6CU isn't going to cut it on that 2500; the retal HSF is better, in fact.

That case and power supply concern me. I'll have to look again, but I don't think that case has very good cooling, and I probably wouldn't trust that power supply.

Also, you might want to go with 2 256MB sticks instead of 1 512MB, to take advantage of the nForce's dual channel DDR. Also, what are you doing about a video card and optical drives?

[Black Hawk]

Go with 2x 256mb sticks of ram and get some Corsair (XMS if budget can handle it) instead of Geil. As for the heatsink, go Thermaltake. Which model specifically, I dunno. Whatever fits your budget.

[gcstader]

For a video card, I've got an older Gigabyte Radeon 7000 (64 mb memory). I don't plan on doing any kind of gaming. It was $30 bucks and I had it running on a linux box; I'm just gonna throw it in there.

As for the optical drive, I picked up one of those Lite-On 52x32x52x (black) CD-RW drives a few weeks ago. It was around $50.00.

I've got a few more questions:

I've seen that there may be some problems running linux with the NF7-S (specifically the ethernet jack). Anyone what distros will work with it?

I have 512 mb of PC133 memory in an older computer. Will these sticks work on the NF7 or are they too old? If the will work, are they so slow that it's not worth putting them on with the 512mb PC3200 DDR stick?

Would two sticks of this OCZ 256 mb PC3200 memory be a good deal?
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=20-146-834&catalog=147&depa=0

I also have a p4 2.6 on a IC7-MAX3 motherboard. The cpu temperature is constantly at 140 degrees F. When the top fan is running it drops to around 130 F. Anyone know if this heatsink is worth buying:

Thermaltake "Volcano 7+" (With Fan Speed H.M.L RPM Setting Cable) Universal Cooler for Intel P4 478 and AMD AthlonXP

http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproduct.asp?description=35-106-014

Thanks,
Greg

[Black Hawk]

I have 512 mb of PC133 memory in an older computer. Will these sticks work on the NF7 or are they too old?PC133 = SDR. SDR is not compatible with the NF2 chipset cause it uses DDR. It won't even fit the socket.

I also have a p4 2.6 on a IC7-MAX3 motherboard. The cpu temperature is constantly at 140 degrees F. When the top fan is running it drops to around 130 F. Anyone know if this heatsink is worth buying:

Thermaltake "Volcano 7+" (With Fan Speed H.M.L RPM Setting Cable) Universal Cooler for Intel P4 478 and AMD AthlonXP
Link (http://www.thermalright.com/a_page/main_product_slk948u.htm). 'nuff said :vimp:

[Geeky1]

No, that heatsink isn't worth it.

You should get an Antec case with an Antec power supply in it. I'd get a SLK-3700AMB or 3700BQE. DO NOT get a SLK-2600 or 1600.

Consider getting a mobile athlon xp 2500- they run a lot cooler.

As for heatsinks, for the AMD system, I'd get this (assuming you get a 2500 or mobile 2500):
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductdesc.asp?description=35-114-013&depa=0

Note that the fan specs on there are wrong. It's nowhere near that noisy.

I'd get 2 120mm fans for the SLK-3700 case, and make sure the RAM you get has a cas latency of 2.5 or better.

As for a P4 heatsink, if you don't want to spend a ton, I'd get this:
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductdesc.asp?description=35-112-003&depa=0

with this fan (the heatsink doesn't come with one, so you'll need one):
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductdesc.asp?description=11-999-010&depa=0

[gcstader]

The only problem I have with the SLK9840 heatsink is that it may not fit on the IC7-MAX3 board. That OTES fan system is right beside the CPU. Anyone know if it will fit?

~Greg

[Black Hawk]

Well Thermalright's site doesn't say anything about incompatibilities. Link (http://www.thermalright.com/a_page/main_support_faq_motherboard_slk948_k8.htm).