Building a new computer... what you guys think of this? :)

[dZeus]

Current setup:
Celeron 366 PPGA @366MHz :-(
Abit BX6 r. 2
128MB PC133 SDRAM DIMM
3c905C-TX NIC 10/100Mbps
SBLive! Player 1024
Adaptec 2940UW
IBM DDRS34560D
Plextor UltraPlex 32Tsi (32x)
Plextor PlexWriter r412c (4x)
Matrox G400 DH 32MB
Dell P990 (19" Sony Trinitron)

here comes what I think is the best value for my money (same parts as above, but the following parts in stead of their corresponding parts):

Coppermine 600E or 650E Slot-1 (almost all will do 133MHz FSB easily)
128MB PC133 SDRAM DIMM (256MB total)
Teac R58S 8xCDWriter
a TV card that has proper win2k drivers, that has stereo sound and teletext

[This message has been edited by dZeus (edited 08 June 2000).]

[impact]

Speakers: Just plug it into a home-cinema set. It does make a difference.

[2K]

1 or 2 years, be realistic, you'll probably end up updating a component or two in 6 months or less.

Dream system:

i820 mobo
256 MB of Rambus (PC 800)
1GHz Coppermine
36 or 72 GB Atlas 10k II HD
CD-writter and DVD-rom (possibly a fast CD-rom too)
G400 MAX (G450 ?)
two 21" Sony monitors
SQ2500
(and other goodies)

Realistic system:

Abit BE6 II
650-750 slot 1, 100 fsb Coppermine
256 PC133 SDRAM
27 or 34 GB IBM (ATA66, 7200 rpm) HD
SQ2500
G400 MAX
Two 19" or one 19" and one 17" monitor (Sony tube)
CD-writter and DVD-rom
USB keyboard
USB mouse
Win2K or ME



[This message has been edited by 2K (edited 08 June 2000).]

[HedsSpaz]

Dream systems are such fun!
Ok, the system that I ould build involves components that should be available by the end of the summer. I don't know if thats "in the near future" enough for you or not, but here goes anyway.

CPU: Dual AMD Thunderbird (exact speed depends on cost/perf ratio, probably tween 800 and 900 mhz)
Mobo: something based on the upcoming AMD 760 or ALI chipsets, avoiding VIA based
RAM: 256mb PC266 DDR SDRAM
HD: 2 20gb IBM ATA 100 7200 RPM IDE HD's (available now)
or
Adaptec 29160N SCSI controller
2 18gb Seagate Cheetah X15 hd's (available late summer)
Video Card: Heh heh Duh!
Sound: SBLive Platinum
CD: Kenwood UCR-421 (IDE) http://www.storagereview.com/article...CDRomRU_1.html
or
Plextor 40TSi (SCSI) http://www.storagereview.com/article...DRomRU2_1.html

DVD: Um, what you said, the Pioneer Drive
CD-RW: Plextor Plexwriter 8/4/32 (IDE) http://www.plextor.com/english/products/8_4_32.html
or
Plextor Plexwriter 12/4/32 (SCSI) http://www.plextor.com/english/products/12_4_32.html
Mouse: Microsoft Intellimouse Optical (the explorer is too big)
Monitor: 19" Viewsonic or Sony or Princeton or MAG or something
Keyboard: I agree, whatever feels good.

I think thats about it. A note on the MX400. The reason that the MX300 was such a good card is because it was based on the Aureal Vortex chip. The MX400 is not, it's based on the Ensonique something-or-other chip. If you plan on getting something from the MX family see if you can't find an MX300 somewhere, otherwise get an SBLive.

Ian

[Wombat]

Mmm, dream computing.

Floppy: I have a Sony, and it's fast and quiet.

Monitor: Also a Sony. 420GS. I got it a few months ago for $530 including shipping. It looks great. I'd stay away from the Viewsonic PF790. I spent a LOT of time researching my purchase, and the PF series has a lot of problems with blurry corners. I had a bunch of guys over to watch a movie last night and they all complimented to picture quality.

DVD: Pioneer slot drive.

Case: A-Pro 802. Great case, easy to work with. I got a nice, quiet, robust 300W supply in there too.

Speakers: I bought a set of Creative's DTT2500 last week. $199 at buy.com, and they sound quite good. Built-in Dolby 5.1 decoding, and a good deal for 5 speakers and a subwoofer with digital input.

Mouse: Logitech MouseMan (No wheel for me, thanks!).

-Wombat


------------------
MSI-6167 w/ Athlon 500@750 (thx Greebe!), 128MB Crucial PC133, G400MAX,SBLive!-MP3,Pioneer 10x DVD, Phillips CD-R, a hard drive or two, and a Sony 420GS. Running RH6.1, and Win98 (when I have to).

[McRhea]

Sorry I've been so quiet guys... I've been doing a lot of researching and stuff.

I'm pressed for time right now, so I'm not going to post what I've found yet.

Just wanted everyone to keep posting their dream set-up.

Have a great weekend!

(Ps. I'm not adventurous to try an Athalon yet... So just P3 based systems please.)

[ph0rk]

Well, I don't have a dream system yet, too busy waiting for Dual ThunderBirds, but here is what I'm running now:

Dual Celeron 400's @ 552 (92 MHz FSB)
on an Abit BP6
with 192 mb of RAM (128 PC133 & 64 PC100)
Matrox G400 DH O/C to 150/200 (1/1 AGP divider...doesn't mind running at 92 MHz AGP at all)
SBLive! Value
D-Link DFE-530TX NIC
ASUS SC200 SCSI Controller
Sigma Hollywood+ DVD decoder
Maxtor 7200 RPM 10 gb HD
Maxtor 5400 RPM 30 gb HD
Pioneer 10x/40x Tray load DVD ROM
Sony 8x4x32x SCSI CD/RW
ViewSonic PF815 22" Flat monitor
No Speakers! - Sony MDR-CD370 headphones
running off an old Sansui AU-217 amp
Enlight mid-tower
Fans
More Fans

Oh, and I don't even think of using the crap onboard HighPoint ATA/66 controller. Nastiest piece of hardware I've ever had to contend with. Keep that in mind if you get a BX-based Abit board. I think most of them have that POS on them now.

As always, system specs are subject to change without notice. heh.

Cheers,

Cory

[McRhea]

Hello!

I'm still here...

Anyway, what about an Athalon? What are the pro's and con's of going with an Athalon system?

[The PIT]

At the end of the Day McRhea how confident are you at tech issues. If you want an easy life go for a Bx solution or perhaps an 815 6 months down the line. If you feel confident and reconise you may need to play in bios and loads various patches you can go for via. My own personnal pef either Bx if you need it now or Intel 815 or AMD 760.

[agallag]

As long as we're dreaming, how about a DVD-R. Not a DVD-RAM, but a real recordable (single layer) DVD writer that will play in a stand alone player. "Pioneer DVR-S201 DVD-Recordable SCSI External 4MB Cache", only $7,595 canadian dollars at http://www.smart-machine.com

What a steal!

--
Andrew

[agallag]

Oh yeah, for speakers, I gotta go with the single wire over to the home theater receiver. If you don't have room for that, the Cambridge Soundworks desktop theater dealies are nice.

--
Andrew