Cheap system
I am putting a machine together for my sister.
I have a couple of candidates for the motherboard, but it seems that it is a no brainer.
The Abit NF7 is in the lead, but please enlighten me if you have any comments. (I do like Abit though
)
The motherboad should be able to OC the processor to 2 GHz.
I plan to sell her my Athlon XP and then I'll buy an Athlon XP-M. (more on that in another thread)
System:
Abit NF7
Athlon XP TBred 1800+ @ 2.0 GHz
Corsair Value 256 MB
Memory is very expensive these days, therefore only 256 MB.
I would have liked 512 MB but the budget didn't allow that.
But maybe I'll talk her into buying 512 MB if it is a big advantage.
She'll be using: WinXP, Frontpage, Office, Photoshop and a couple of other programmes.
I have a couple of candidates for the motherboard, but it seems that it is a no brainer.
The Abit NF7 is in the lead, but please enlighten me if you have any comments. (I do like Abit though
)The motherboad should be able to OC the processor to 2 GHz.
I plan to sell her my Athlon XP and then I'll buy an Athlon XP-M. (more on that in another thread)
System:
Abit NF7
Athlon XP TBred 1800+ @ 2.0 GHz
Corsair Value 256 MB
Memory is very expensive these days, therefore only 256 MB.
I would have liked 512 MB but the budget didn't allow that.
But maybe I'll talk her into buying 512 MB if it is a big advantage.
She'll be using: WinXP, Frontpage, Office, Photoshop and a couple of other programmes.
0
Comments
That makes things a lot easier.
I think she'll need a new GFX as well.
She doesn't play any games, at least none requirering fast graphics.
Would a Asus 9200SE be suited?
It is one of the cheapest AGP GFX I can find.
Guess there isn't much demand for it?
Besides what about NF7-M revisions?
I would like it to be able to reach 200 MHz FSB.
Besides the price difference between NF7 and the NF7-M is a bit more than half the price of the 9200SE.
The difference is apprx. $36
9200SE price apprx. $62
But again what about NF7-M revisions?
EDIT: Corrected my calculations
Looks good.
Check the Anandtech guides for some other low budget tips.
It should suit her needs, but what about the price, is it okay?
I am browsing for parts in the UK, it is somewhat cheaper.
EDIT: Forget the R7000, I found a Powercolor R9200SE 128 MB.
Price £34.08
That is a better deal, if you ask me.
BTW: She is upgrading from a Celeron 400 / 64 MB ram to a 2.0 GHz Tbred /512 MB ram.
I believe it is going to be apprx. ten times faster.
Is that way off target?
It doesn't need 200 MHz FSB, 166 MHz would be fine.
But the Corsair Value PC3200 are the cheapest.
I'm still browsing at OC.UK
All modules are 256 MB
PC2700 Corsair Value £42.89, PC3200 Corsair Value £35.19
PC2700 TwinMOS £39.95, PC3200 TwinMOS £43.48
PC2700 Adata £39.36, PC3200 Adata £41.13
As you can see, the prices doesn't differ much.
I'm running it in my Barton box, CPU/Memory set at divider 5/4 so that it stays at its factory setting of 200. The same Geil RAM in my Intel box at divider 5/4 caused problems with Folding; but not in the AMD box.
If you do use cheap RAM, I would consider a paying a little extra and getting the next higher speed rating than what the motherboard needs; that way you have plenty of headroom, as cheap/generic RAM is usually maxed out at the default settings. But then, maybe purchase of quality RAM at lower speed ratings would be just as economical. RAM is so hard to compare pricewise, as the market changes monthly.
Geil is cheaper than Corsair Value in Denmark though.
Geil Golden Value is more expensive compare to Corsair Value at OC.UK
But Corsair Value is decent quality, isn't it?
I plan on using PC3200 and setting FSB to 200 MHz, timings unknown.
That shouldn't be a problem for those modules I presume?
I do not think that I will OC past 2 GHz, the processor hits the ceiling at 2.25/2.3 @ 1.92V. I do not dare give it more voltage, I am only using air.
It handles 2.0 GHz without any problems at all.
As I recall the R9200 is the same chip as the old 8500. How much is the non SE version? In general hte SE's have reduced memory bandwidth and are slow. If hte non-SE is only a few bucks more it would be well worth it.
Would she need 128 MB ram on the GFX or will she manage with only 64 MB?
Then by all means, go for the NF7, which is the better board, IMO. I was just saying that the Biostar was cheaper here in the US and was a viable alternative if it was cheaper there in your neck of the woods if it was cheaper too.
In Denmark nothing can match the NF7's price/performance ratio.
What ever you do stay with ATI. The low cost NV cards are real bad.
One: I own one myself, and I am quite happy. (Grumble crappy Infineon
Two: ATI is know for good image qualty they are the second best compared to Matrox. nVidia sucks at image quality. (The 6800 should be an improvement IQ wise)
Three: Value for money, you get a much better card when compared to an equally priced nVidia card.
I will look around and see if I can find an non-SE.
But it seems quite hard, especially if you want to keep the cost down.
imo, it's really not needed here. I'd go with that motherboard, for sure. Have you considered Crucial RAM? No frills, good quality, reliable memory. And Twinmos is good, although I've had one stick I had to RMA.
The 9200SE should be OK if she doesn't intend to do any gaming. As mentioned previously, stay away from the low end Nvidia cards, they really aren't too good compared to ATI cheapo cards. 9200SE is about £37.00 atm, I believe, a fine card within it's limits, although obviously the 9200 non-SE is preferable.
Do you need any more links to UK suppliers? I could supply a few for you to try if you like.
Prices are pretty much neck and neck for memory atm for Twinmos, Crucial and Corsair Value, so yes, I'd certainly go for Corsair Value, a decision based on my experience with Corsair memory so far, it's good, imo.
It's value for money right down your pocket.
The processor does 2 GHz as if it was born to do it.
1.7(1.65 IRL) doesn't produce much more heat compared to the standard 1.6 (1.55 IRL)
The processor has been running at stock for ten minutes most, in the time I've had it.
Regarding Corsair vs. Crucial.
Corsair PC3200 £35.19
Crucial PC3200 apprx. £43
Difference: 7.81 in favor of Corsair Value
It cost me $50 at a computer show. I'm very happy with it.
But what kind of ATI card would be a good step up from it, if I ever wanted to upgrade?
Some people here have mentioned that video card RAM isn't the same as motherboard RAM. Is video card RAM less crucial? I wanted a 128 MB card over the 64 MB for obvious reasons. Improved picture quality.
Is there a processor on the 9200 SE card? If so, what type and speed? Memory bandwidth on the 9200 SE?