built a prescott system, need help

[jamestime88]

i am putting together a system for somebody. here are the specs:
pentium 4 3.0E
abit-max3
xtasy 9200se
2x512mb crucial pc3200
WD sata 160gb
zalman 7000alcu
dvd+/-rw 8x lite-on
16x dvd lite-on
antec sonata / 380w truepower
sony 1.44mb drive
windows XP pro sp1
logitech MX duo
dell 2001fp

its a pretty good system overall. ended up costing around $2400 total. i already have the lcd, and the other stuff should be here by the weekend.

i was just wondering if i made any serious mistakes, because i hate to screw stuff up like that. is there anything special i should do while building the computer (ie. putting ramsinks on the mosfets)? will the crucial ram run tighter timings, its spd is 3-4-4-8?

i dont really have a reason for picking a prescott over a northwood, i just felt like it. i picked the video card because the guy doesnt game. the closest thing to a 3d game he will be playing is solitaire when the cards flip across the screen when you win. he has bad eyesight too so he will be running his display at 800x600.

 

[Dem]

If he's running the display at 800x600, won't that look bad on the LCD?

Unless I suppose the native resolution is 1600x1200, in which case I would assume (key word being assume) that things would 'double up' alright.

Erik

 

[jagec]

why doesn't he just run at the native resolution of the LCD monitor, and crank up the text/icon size? That would look a lot better, and still be very legible for him.

 

[BillLeeLee]

Yes, I agree that he should run at native and blow up the text size and icon sizes. Interpolation is not fun, especially when you have to reduce the number of pixels by a factor of 4 (800 x 600 is 480,000 pixels; 1600x1200 is 1,920,000 pixels, which is 4).

Overall, not a bad system, I guess.

 

[burningrave101]

Well what exactly is he going to use this system for anyways? There are other areas where you will want a good video card besides just gaming. Like 3D application work. Dont tell me he is going to sit and browse the net and look at pRon with a 3Ghz Prescott.

 

[jamestime88]

the display is 1600x1200 so it will run 800x600 natively. except that 1 pixel will actually take up 4 pixels if you understand what im saying. he cant run 1600x1200 with enlarged text/icons because for internet explorer and stuff like that wont it still be normal size? the lcd is a 20.1", i could see the 800x600 from the other room.

the computer is just for web browsing and light non-3d application use. i know its a bit of an overkill, but thats what he wanted.

please keep posting your thoughts/comments/ideas. i wanna get this system as good as i can.

 

[jamestime88]

delete this

 

[burningrave101]

Originally posted by jamestime88
the computer is just for web browsing and light application use. i know its a bit of an overkill, but thats what he wanted.

Yea, but why Prescott? Prescott is just going to run hotter then a Northwood counterpart and the only area it will be faster is like encodeing. Rest of the areas it will run slightly slower then a Northwood. If he's dead set on a 3Ghz processor at least get a Northwood. Northwood will be more stable and run cooler.

He's an idiot though if he thinks he needs anything close to a 3Ghz P4 for what he's doing though lol.

 

[jamestime88]

Originally posted by burningrave101
Yea, but why Prescott? Prescott is just going to run hotter then a Northwood counterpart and the only area it will be faster is like encodeing. Rest of the areas it will run slightly slower then a Northwood. If he's dead set on a 3Ghz processor at least get a Northwood. Northwood will be more stable and run cooler.

He's an idiot though if he thinks he needs anything close to a 3Ghz P4 for what he's doing though lol.

i know that he doesnt need the processor. i know the prescott is going to be a bit slower than a northwood; but as you even stated that he doesnt need a processor that fast anyways.

my main concern is just how the processor is going to run on the motherboard. i know that with a lower voltage but higher wattage it = alot more stress on mosfets (or something like that). so should i put ramsinks on them or is the OTES system going to keep them cool enough? and will the crucial ram run at tighter timings than the SPD.