Your thoughts on this computer's configuration please (1 Viewer)

[Chris Wittry]

I'm putting a new computer together and don't want to spend a ton of money, but I want to be able to play most games that are out now or will be released for the next year or so (minor upgrading allowed). Please let me know if this hardware will do it for me and also if you see any possible conflicts.
New Parts:
1.4 GHZ Athlon Proc
ASUS A7V266 Motherboard
Kingston 512MB DDR PC2100 RAM
Western Digital 40GB ATA/100 7200RPM HD
Plextor 16x10x40 CD/RW
Inno3d GeForce2 ULTRA 64MB Video Card
Parts from my old computer:
Creative 4x DVD drive
Hollywood + MPEG Decoder Card
Sound Blaster Live X/Gamer Sound Card
Misc Network Card
Zip 100 Drive
Windows 2000 Professional
Thanks for your thoughts!

 

[Eric Samonte]

Everything in that list would rock! Kinda neat to be on Geforce too for games. But...(there always is one right?) if u intend to use this box as an HTPC in the future, a Radeon vidcard is more suitable for that purpose. And it won't be a compromise for gaming either.
U might not need the Hollowood decoder as software DVD players are better off now since processor speeds have increased a whole lot.
------------------
Eric Samonte
Dito sa Pilipinas..may Hom Tiyeter rin kami!

 

[Camp]

Looks pretty good. I'd recommend using Crucial RAM over Kingston. It's usually cheaper and has a good reputation for overclocked systems.
The Asus A7V266 is a decent board but you can do better than Via's KT266 chipset. If you like Asus I'd recommend going for the A7M266 (with the faster AMD 760 chipset). Abit's KG7 lite is probably most comperable to the A7M and a bit less expensive. Asus may have their KT266-A based board out soon too (not to mention their nForce based A7N) but the waiting game can get old.

 

[Rob Gillespie]

The KT266-A was released last week, so expect a reissue of the Asus board with that chipset. There also may be a version of the A7V-266 with onboard RAID controller available in the near future. The 'A' version has the highest benchmark scores of all the Athlon chipsets thus far (according to the couple of sites I've seen), so it will be worth waiting.

 

[JesseS]

System looks great. Very similar to mine. Crucial RAM was a good suggestion. Also, Kingmax is the new darling ram of the industry for overclocking. Micron chips on Crucial boards used to be...either one should work well. newegg.com has pretty good prices on both. Good luck with the system.
-Jesse

 

[Rob Gillespie]

Remember you'll also need adequate cooling for the Athlon, which means a kick-ass fan and heatsink. I think AMD recommend one air intake and one blowout fan as standard (not including the power supply fan). Many cases do not provide blowout fan holes. You'll also need an AMD-approved power supply and don't think about anything less than 300w for that system.
[Edited last by Rob Gillespie on October 03, 2001 at 03:30 AM]

 

[Abdul Jalib]

Definitely dump the Hollywood+ card.
Avoid VIA motherboards, especially for a HTPC. The new SIS 735 based ECS K7S5A is just $65 and is vastly superior to all the older AMD motherboards.
That soundcard is icky, and the digital output is out of spec and tends to fry Denon receivers. Go with either a cheap card that does a good job of DD passthrough (e.g., Zoltrix Nightingale Pro) or an expensive card that does everything great (e.g., M-Audio Audiophile 2496 or their new card when it comes out.)
If video quality for DVD is most important to you, get a Radeon LE or 32 MB DDR or 64 MB DDR or AIW or wait for a 8500. The 8500 might solve the gaming problem relative to the Geforce 2 cards. You can order a 8500 right this instant at Dell for 20% off, making it about $200, though Dell has none in stock. You can get a Radeon 32 MB DDR for $75 at Link Removed to subscribe to Philips_HDTV discussion group

 

[AaronNWilson]

According to anandtech the mobo to get is the IWILL KK266. On overclocking that means this board can hit 162 fsb. I think your chances of hitting into the high 1.7ghz is very good if you get the IWILL board.
Some people have pushed these chips into 2ghz regions but with the use of peltiers and watercoolers which is a lot of bother.
I would say with that speed of cpu a radeon card would be the totally wrong choice. It is not even remotely possible for the radeon to keep up with that cpu.
If you eventually decide to go the HTPC route it probably wont be for another 2 years judging by the extreme speed of your system and 32 meg ddr radeons can be got for 60 bucks US right now, so the price isnt really an issue.
Whenever you get your system setup download the new RETURN TO CASTLE WOLFENSTEIN demo to test that baby out.
On this game on my system with a 800mhz p3 448 megs ram and a tnt2 ultra I only get like 20 fps. This game should be a good test of your system because it has super high texture res and high polygon counts.
HAVE FUN
Aaron

 

[Carlo_M]

but I want to be able to play most games that are out now or will be released for the next year or so (minor upgrading allowed).

If that's your main concern...don't be concerned any more. Your rig will be righteous for the next year, very viable for the next 2-3 years.