"newbie needs advice.." final analysis + needs approval

[matthew]

Well since the encounter with the 21" i now have to cut back costs on the rest of the system.. downgrade:( The RDRAM power plan has gone bye bye:( but i figure this system will give me pretty close performance i just built on the original list suggested to me by mird-OC :D ... i have done a lot of posting and reading and have learnt heaps over the past few weeks, however i am still very new to this and would like your approval:p

(- system to be used for web design & multimedia /no OC/no games -)

> Pentium 4 Socket 478 2.0AGHz Northwood & Fan CPU
> GIGABYTE 8SRX DDR SIS 645 478Pin
> Samsung 512MB PC2700 (possibly 1024)
> Seagate Barracuda 80Gb ATA100 7200rpm
> Matrox Millennium G450 16Mb DDR Dual Head AGP
> Southerly Server, ( ENERMAX FS-710B ) 4 2700RPM fans
> Enermax EG365P-VE ATX Power Supply 350w
> 56K Modem? (something cheap and standard)
> MS Optical IntelliMouse USB & PS/2 (OEM)
> IBM BLACK SELECT TOUCH KEYBOARD - Quiet 104 key PS2
> black dell 21" trinitron flat display


:p Apart from the keyboard and monitor it will be all from stylespc :D :D

you think these parts will play nicely together?

[Antallica]

Well apart from the P4/mobo I'd say that will be damn good for what your gonna be doing on it. How much is this gonna set you back?

[matthew]

hmmmm... guess-timation > well the price of the screen is an issue at current possibly $1600 or under.. it's possible i may not get it....but i really want to!!!! :D the rest i'm lookin at around $2000 or under... all i can say for sure is that it will probably cost more than i think when it's all sorted.... . .do you remember i was first lookin at a mac!> :p i am so glad i learnt a little bit about hardware....:)

next issue for the newbie--> construction! :eek: :eek:

[swiftynz]

Originally posted by matthew
next issue for the newbie--> construction! :eek: :eek:
construction's the easy bit ;) :D

imho 19 inch is big enough unless you plan on using your screen from a distance. it gets to a point where you're moving your whole head to look at a different part of the screen... :p although it would be wicked for 3d games since you're always looking at the centre. hell what do i know, i haven't even SEEN a 21 inch screen! :confused:

[KingJackal]

Originally posted by swiftynz
hell what do i know, i haven't even SEEN a 21 inch screen! :confused:

You into the crypt ( basement computer labs in the Math, Stats and Comp Sci building ). The 'LARGE PRINT' screens are 21"s.... ;)

Sounds like a pretty good system. Won't be the best for games ( duh! ), but that will absolutely CRANK for web dev. :cool: You are one incredibly lucky guy - I wouldn't mind a system like that myself ( even WITH the non-gamers card :D ).

....'cept you only mention the software. What's gonna power the beast?

[SecretSquirrel]

Does anyone stock the Western Digital 80Gb 8Mb cache HDD?

http://www.storagereview.com/articles/200205/20020529WD800JB_1.html

"...For typical office use, the WD800JB is 30+% faster than drives such as the Barracuda ATA IV or DiamondMax D740X..."

It kicks ass. $335 + GST ($377) last week, or the week before from Dove, so might be less this week, they are dropping weekly!

I wants me one, but I have to wait, apparently. Anyway, that drive would make your planned system that little bit better, seeing as they got close to RAID speeds out of it...hmm...imagine two of these RAID style, yo?

Mad. MAD.

[mird-OC]

sounds good man... you can always go the RD-RAM route at a later date if the DDR stability pisses you off too much :)

have you given any more thought to the idea of dual 19" screens? you'll get quite a bit more screen real-estate than a 21" can provide, and your chosen vid card is actually designed for dual screens :)

[Humantuckshop]

Originally posted by mird-OC
sounds good man... you can always go the RD-RAM route at a later date if the DDR stability pisses you off too much :)




Don't you mean DDR instability? :p


But yeah, it looks like a pretty good system there Matthew, although there is only one thing I would change, and that would be the mobo, I would go for an Epox 4SDA+ instead of the Gigabyte but that's just me.


*Sits back and waits for overreaction from Wibber* :p ;)

[matthew]

i'm giving it some thought at the moment....tryin to way up both options... i will definitely get more screen real-estate but at a slightly lower quality. i can get more value with dualies considering i am looking at two viewsonic e95's for the same price as this 21" however this 21" considering it's quality is cheaper than the lowest priced & much lower qaulity 21" i have found so it is also a good deal...hmmmmmm?

does it use more system resources to run two screens ?..

it's really good that when working in a graphics/ mulitmedia app i could have all my toolbars, options and **** on one 19" and my document on the other..... i like that alot ;)
however i also don't really think i would really ever be crowded on a 21" either...

the two 19 inchers are not flat ..... i had a look at these viewsonics at PCU the other day.. they are huge... two of them on my table??? o.k so that can always be dealt with i guess...

2 / viewsonic e95 19" or
1 / dell trinitron fd 21" :confused:

if you are thinking of another 19" then let me know however i really am looking for the best quality display i can get... thats one of the reasons for going for this 21" it has higher refresh rates and .24 thingie migigie also FD...

the viewsonic isn't black:( :( won't match my system ..:p :cool:

is it stable? will the display judder or **** up every now and again....

hmmmmmm.... well i'm getting all the other parts before getting the screen so i will have a few days to think about it some more i guess... :) please list any advantages, disadvantages you think each have?



:confused: confused again.....hehe....

[Solid Snake]

Okay ... heres my opinion.

Dualies:
Pros: less cramped, as in you don't have lots of small windows open on your screen. I admit I am a notepad web designer, and everything is done on a notepad. However, I can't stand it when I have to keep switching between windows. Gets me annoyed. Plus I have to run Adobe Photoshop in the back ground. Even more annoying that I have to keep switching between programs.

Cons: Less quality in both monitors than a single quality monitor. More space required on the desk.

That's all I can think of at the moment.

[Gh0s7 L3mUr]

Have you thought about sticking with the Dell 21" but also getting a cheap secondhand 15" or 17" for you dually.
As your just wanting somewhere to stick your palettes the quality doesn't have to be fantasitic.
I take it you have a system at the moment? If so, are you planning on selling it in order to lessen the costs of your new one. Coz you could just keep your older screen as your second one.
Also have you thought about replacing the Enermax with a Leadman? They are cheaper and yet still very good. Quite a few here have them. Check this (http://forums.overclockers.co.nz/showthread.php?s=&threadid=146 ) link.

Just a Thought :)

[_N_]

21" monitors are worth it,

I used a Philips 21", yes you do move your head around heaps, which is a good thing,
playing strategy games is really good,

I only have experience with 21" monitors on CAD computers, for example, they use a 21" for the drawing, and then a secondary 17" for text commands,

Also, you would get better overall system performance by having a CPU which runs at 133MHz FSB not 100. But that's probably out of your price range.

[matthew]

Have you thought about sticking with the Dell 21" but also getting a cheap secondhand 15" or 17" for you dually. As your just wanting somewhere to stick your palettes the quality doesn't have to be fantasitic.

thats a good idea...:D :D

you would get better overall system performance by having a CPU which runs at 133MHz FSB not 100. But that's probably out of your price range.


cheapest i found:

Pentium 4 2.26GHz Socket 478 533Mhz 512k Retail Box Northwood $754.88 Starlyte Computers

i'd also have to choose a different mobo too ? $$

and even if i did go for one fo these is it possible that i would need to go RDRAM again (more $$) to actually see a real advantage ? faster p4's - ddr333> bottleneck :confused:

[Binky Stunt Cat]

Originally posted by SecretSquirrel
Does anyone stock the Western Digital 80Gb 8Mb cache HDD?

http://www.storagereview.com/articles/200205/20020529WD800JB_1.html

"...For typical office use, the WD800JB is 30+% faster than drives such as the Barracuda ATA IV or DiamondMax D740X..."

It kicks ass. $335 + GST ($377) last week, or the week before from Dove, so might be less this week, they are dropping weekly!

I wants me one, but I have to wait, apparently. Anyway, that drive would make your planned system that little bit better, seeing as they got close to RAID speeds out of it...hmm...imagine two of these RAID style, yo?

Mad. MAD.
yah i think i'll get one of thosea s well, specially with the Fluid Dynamic Bearings....

[farns]

Hey Matthew if u wanna save a hundred or two i have 256 mb rambus for sale .
Its over $300 new and selling at trademe, noones bid yet and reserve is only 100 bucks...

[SecretSquirrel]

Why a P4 by the way?

Probably answered that above, but I cant remember now...

Anyway, does it have to be an IBM black keyboard? I found a REALLY cheap one, BTC brand, its a miniboard so its all quite compact.

Yahoo Shop of Death (http://shop.store.yahoo.com/mamicro/blaccorp2sco1.html)

[matthew]

Why a P4 by the way?

it's probably a safer option for me.. it should suit what i want to do well... in *GENERAL* the p4 is a more stable, quiet cooler running & therefore hopefully longer lasting chip "out of the box" while the amd system can be just as stable if not more so i guess it requires more tinkering and more --> knowledge to get it that way.. that's a fair statement? ...sh+t i don't know i've spent too long comparing... i just choose the p4..... besides the price diff for what i'm looking at is not much at all.... but yes in terms of value and "bang for buck" the amd leaves the p4 fair, fair behind....
i think it's worth mentioning that i don't plan to upgrade my pc every few months... i just want to get the best system i can so it will last me for quite a while... i wish i could but currently i can't afford to keep up with every new part that comes out......

i'm buying an ibm keyborad from Septic_12 now :)

[farns]

I got 2 X 128mb rambus $300-350 new , yours for only $150 if u want. Someone sent it to me instead of sdram and I think its brand new.
I dont think you'll find any 2nd-hand rambus anywhere else easily and this is new I think, save you $150-200 ...

[matthew]

hehehehehe.......

if i was going to go down the rdram route i would go for the asus P4T-E mobo (which costs more than double the amount of the mobo i'm looking at now) it has 4 RIMM slots. i want at least 512 but possibly 1024.

:RDRAM sticks must be installed in equal pairs:

you are offering two 128mb sticks of RDRAM. so i have two choices left
1> get another 2*128 - thats all my slots used up with a total of 512 (possiblity i guess)
2> get 2*512 which is again no cheaper and alot more $$

you bought it for $60 :eek: what sort of RDRAM is it ? generic? fake?

[farns]

Nah they are both samsung and look new. The guy thought he was sending me sdram which is why it was $60. He doesnt speak english too good either. I cant attest to if it works but i see no reason why not and I will give you $100 back if it doesnt as witnessed here by the forum so help me god :D
I week money back if it doesnt run to its stock specs.
Let me know asap, im about to sell it elsewhere, you wont find cheaper.

[matthew]

no thanks, i'm cool :cool:

getting all my sh+t from styles:D

[matthew]

hmmmmm... forgot one pretty important thing > the O.S

( o.s forum would be a better place but it sort of relates to the hardware i'm using mentioned earlier in this thread. ) :)

i'm not sure on which one to go for :

winXP - winXP PRO - win2000 PRO

i have only used and am currently using win98 :p (mac O.S 9 & X at college) i figure i should just get the newest one > winXP? even if win2k is just as good..

i have come to the conclusion that both are just as fast in general yeah? ( once all the eye candy crap is taken off xp that is)
i will tweak it of course.. regarding what i will actually use thispc for i don't use 90% of the **** that is on these operating systems so the one that is most customziable would be best.. allow me to get the most speed and clear all the rubbish out that is stealing my resources.... :D

any point in me getting xp PRO over XP home?

[mird-OC]

well forget XP home... it's nasty, just nasty. your choice lies basically between 2K Pro and XP Pro.

i'd recommend 2K Pro, because i lurve it. XP Pro is available for much the same price and (i think) it gives you a license to run 2K if you want anyway (if XP isn't quite your cup of tea).

here's the balls of it: 2K and XP are essentially the same thing. the only real difference is the interface (XP introduces a few more features but nothing worth raving about), so if you like "pretty things" and don't mind the extra memory they occupy, then XP is your thing. if you just want something functional that will do the job and do it well, go for 2K.

[matthew]

:)

[varkk]

I would recommend XP Pro, as while it is 2k with extra (and often unneeded) bits, it is more recent and presumably more advanced(if only slightly). Also it is where MS wants to take windows, so they will be working on it for a bit longer than 2k(updates enhancements etc).

[matthew]

****.... i guess i'll probably need a floppy drive too..... most of the installation/dirver stuff that comes with mobo/HD etc will come on floppy i suppose....

[Sydog]

Well if the last year is anything to go by I haven't had to use my floppy drive for any installing of drivers at all.

[varkk]

The only thing I have used my floppy for in the last 12 months or so was applying a bios flash to my mobo. although I think that the newer ones can read the flash data off hard drives or even CDs now. Also most drivers come on CD now(CDs are cheaper than floppies), although most people here use later ones downloaded off the net.

[Geek4Life]

A floppy will still come in handy for when you go to install DOS :p

Could also be very handy if dual booting with linux.

[matthew]

well in that case .... might see if i can get by without a floppy..

should i partition this HDD? (seagate 80G) i don't know much about this i just noticed that most people do this when they have a big drive. :p . i don't mind having just one big one really but does it sort of slow performance? i thought maybe if i was to do it i could go for > 4 / 20G

?

[mird-OC]

it's good to just have two partitions... a 6GB - 10GB boot partition with your OS and apps on, and the rest in one big partition to store your data. too many partitions can be a headache as you can often end up shifting stuff around a lot.

[matthew]

hmm sounds good... i for some reason thought it had to be in equal amounts :o
i was thinking it might be slower if i had just about all my files on one big partition as opposed to having four lot's of 20gig or something ? isn't this the main reason to do it :confused: to me having lot's of partitions like this seems like it would be more of a pain in the arse than anything else and i'd rather not do it but does it speed things up at all? performance wise?

[varkk]

I don't really see how it would be faster as it is still the same device. Big partitons are not very efficient with disk space, however that depends on the file system used

[mird-OC]

big partitions can end up getting severely fragmented but i haven't had a problem so far. the main advantage of having an OS partition and a data partition is when i comes to reinstalling (which i tend to do every 6 - 9 months with 2K)...