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Balancing an old skool computer

M

malingjc

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Jul 6, 2003
Messages
1,602
Hey all,

Just would like some advice on what to get to make a half-decent computer out of what I have.

Right now I have a Athlon 1Ghz (S462) with a A7V-VM motherboard that came out of a crapped out HP desktop. The motherboard got half-fried from a lightning strike that rendered the USB ports dead, hence making it a pain to use, plus I don't want to use something that could lead to instability.

Anyway. Instead of getting some other crappy PC133 using Socket A microATX board. Should I get a nForce(1 or 2)ish board to replace it?

I would like to balance everything out for the processor speed. In my mind I am thinking about one of those mini-mini-mini antec Minuet cases, the A7N8X-VM (micro ATX version), using the GF4MX graphics onboard, being that a 1Ghz Athlon would probably bottleneck games if I used anything more, and probably 256 or 512 of RAM.

I also figure that it is just worth getting the PC3200 ram just because in most cases it is only a few dollars more than PC21/2700 ram.

I have a Maxtor 40gb hard drive to use in it. I was also thinking of getting another Tt Silent Boost fan for the processor to keep it cool and quiet although I'm skeptical if the HSF will fit...hmm..gonna suck if I get it and it doesn't fit.

What are your recommendations for the stats and add ons such as CD drives, of which I need silver ones, unless you know of some easy to paint ones.

Thanks in advance
 
Any popular mobo should be fine.

If you're really straped for cash, new egg has some 30-50 dollar motherboards, im ordering a couple so maybe ill post back to this thread if i remember and let you know how they are :D

User reviews sounded good. So get a cheap motherboard, and say a geforce fx 5200. or just a plain rad 8500 or radeon 9000.

Depends on your budget. If you have the dough id get slower ram and a better proc/video card.

Or better yet, get like a duron 1.8, a cheap board, and a video card. Shouldnt break the bank and should be hella better. Only place ive seen 1.8 duron is tiger direct at the moment, or you could get a 1,6 and o/c that somabitch. From what i hear they go 2ghz pretty easily.
 
Originally posted by Wixard

Or better yet, get like a duron 1.8, a cheap board, and a video card. Shouldnt break the bank and should be hella better. Only place ive seen 1.8 duron is tiger direct at the moment, or you could get a 1,6 and o/c that somabitch. From what i hear they go 2ghz pretty easily.
Click to expand...

I second that...
 
Isn't the antec minuet "flex atx" meaning it uses the half height brackets?

Might want to talk that into consideration if you do add a seperate video card.

Just my $0.02

What os would you use?
 
Originally posted by TekieB
Isn't the antec minuet "flex atx" meaning it uses the half height brackets?

Might want to talk that into consideration if you do add a seperate video card.

Just my $0.02

What os would you use?
Click to expand...

Yeah, I know. Yet, I have seen radeon 9600NPs in half height size, which would be almost overkill in a 1Ghz Athlon.

Most likely I'd be using XP Pro.
 
It looks good - you have a grasp of what parts you are using and seem to have researched well.
 
Here's another good question. If I use a A7N8X-VM/400 motherboard, and I use high speed ram like DDR333 or 400, could I use dual channel on the 1Ghz Athlon, maybe a 1:2 memory bus? :p

That would make things interesting. Would it run slightly faster if I did dual channel the RAM in it? I am probably going to use a pair of Geil Value PC3200 (which is OC'd PC2700 it turns out) for the ram anyway.

It would just be interesting to have the fastest memory bus possible for a Ath 1Ghz...heh.
 
Newegg had to put a screw into things...

A7N266-VM AA $53.99 (One Day Sale)
A7N8X-VM/400 $92.99

being that I'm using a Ath 1Ghz I guess there is no reason to get the better mobo, besides your graphics. Please give me your quick thoughts so I can decide whether to get this One Day Sale or not.
 
I gave in, heh.

I got:
A7N266-VM AA $53.99 (One Day Sale)
Antec Minuet case $54 + $11 ship
Geil 256mb Value PC3200 ram $46

I'll add that RAM to the other extra stick of that I have. I might get a Low Profile Radeon 9200 later to add to it or something.

Can someone recommend a silver faceplate DVD/CDRW combo drive that I can get somewhere for a half decent price?
 
Originally posted by malingjc
Here's another good question. If I use a A7N8X-VM/400 motherboard, and I use high speed ram like DDR333 or 400, could I use dual channel on the 1Ghz Athlon, maybe a 1:2 memory bus? :p

That would make things interesting. Would it run slightly faster if I did dual channel the RAM in it? I am probably going to use a pair of Geil Value PC3200 (which is OC'd PC2700 it turns out) for the ram anyway.

It would just be interesting to have the fastest memory bus possible for a Ath 1Ghz...heh.
Click to expand...

Async is baad. The hit in latency isnt' made up in bandwidth. And bandwidth isn't that important with AMDs as it is with P4s. So the only place dual channel will shine is when you are using onboard video. Elsewhere, expect (or don't even) a 1-2% performance increase.

//edit: You could always just get a LiteON and mod it so that the door uses the panel from the case.... check out cool cases for "stealth" drives...
 
Eh well I already got the Antec Minuet which doesn't have the stealth cover. I can find Sony DVD-ROMs in silver on newegg, but I need a DVD/CDRW or cheap silver DVDRW drive to put in it.

Links would be appreciated.
 
problem is silver is a very hard color to match. i would suggest buying a drive in black, or buying a beige one and paint it red or something you like that goes well with silver. to be real honest, painting your drives is SUPER EASY! you can't screw it up. just get some vinyl dye and it's all cake from there!
 
Yeah, I'm not sure, what a pain to do though. I was thinking about getting the silver/black Plextor 4x dvd burner but it was like $148 or something. A tad out of my range and costly for this project.

The project continues. I got one of these Antec HSFs from work (best buy) for $8. It has a copper core and the thing usually runs at 12v/4500rpm. The little bastard blows more air than I've ever seen for a HSF that size and is rated for up to the AthXP 3200+. Naturally, the thing is loud (34dBa) at 12v. Do you see it safe to run the Athlon 1Ghz (200Mhz) at stock speed with the thing at 7v? Even at 7volts, the thing still blows enough air to be felt about 4 inches away from the side of the thing.

If so, and this is laziness here because my dad is sleeping and I know he'd know the answer, but, what value of resistor could I put inline on the fan to lower it to around 7v. The fan is rated at about 12v at 200ma.

If you can explain how you got it that would be sweet too, I could have my proud "I learned something today!" feeling for the day...heh.
 
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