Building my PC... again.

[SammyK]

Hey! I am in the process of building a big pimpin' desktop. Every computer I have built in the past has had some kind of compatibility issue with the different hardware pieces. Like, I have a nice AMD 800 MHz that will run for about five hours and then completely freeze like it just fell into a deep pool of liquid nitrogen.

So, I am going to try to avoid that sort of thing this time, so I thought I would ask the experts (you guys) to make sure my new PC is stable.

Here is what I want to do on it -- 3d animation, video editing, and big graphic programs.

I have an idea as to the specs I want:

2 160GB HD's
2 1GB PC3200 DDR RAM's
Pentium 4, 2.4GHz
RADEON 9600 Pro 256MB

I have already (a few minutes ago) purchased a Sony DRU510A 4x DVDRW and a really cool case (with lights and everything.)

So what do I need to know as far as compatibility? Any good web site resources out there? Here is the biggest compatibility issues I worry about:

RAM > Motherboard > CPU > Video Card

It seems if anything goes wrong, its because one of the four things above doesn't like each other... anyone know where I am coming from?

Thanks in advance! :D

[BipolarBill]

Memory/motherboard seems to be the bugaboo of choice these days. Buy whichever motherboard you like (Asus and MSI do Intel best), but use Crucial, Samsung or Corsair RAM.

I'm not a big fan of ATi drivers. "Nuff said.

[Optimus Prime]

Yeah, like big ol' bill said, there are a lot of prob's with memory + mobo's, check the mobo maker's site and find your mobo, it should list the problems it has with certain memory sticks etc.

[Cyan]

What about your power supply?

Other than that, it looks to be a good-ish system, but I'd go for a bigger/better CPU.

What's the budget?

(edit: also)If'n I was you, and I was getting "2 1GB PC3200 DDR RAM's" I'd get me a Dual-Channel memory mobo.

[SammyK]

Thanks for all the replies! My Power Supply is a Zalman Ultra Quiet 400w. Is that good?

Also, what is a "Dual-Channel memory mobo."??

And ATI has bad drivers? Would that RADEON card mess things up? I noticed that it used 8x AGP, so I am assuming, I will have to have 8x AGP on the "mobo" (as you guys call it ;) )

Thanks again.

[BipolarBill]

The power supply is fine.

Dual-channel RAM works by allowing two different banks of RAM to be used independently rather than serially or in parallel. It speeds things up 5-10%.

There are just more problems with ATi drivers than nVidia's. When I get a member with an ATi card and game crashes, I never know where to start. :(

[Izdaari]

ATI used to have bad drivers, but that was a long time ago. And VIA used to make really sucky AMD chipsets, which people commonly and mistakenly blamed AMD for.

I've forgiven ATI but not VIA. Bill has forgiven VIA but not ATI. Chalk it up to our different personal quirks.

Good luck on finding any 1gb PC3200 DIMMS, at least at a less than utterly outrageous price. But you can get P4 motherboards with reliable support for 4 512s, which might be your best option. And though I don't usually recommend ECC, with that much RAM it might be a good idea. That'd suggest an 875P chipset, the only one I can think of with that combination of features. That it's Dual Channel and very fast is a bonus.

[SammyK]

I forgot to mention that I also want to get this water cooling kit (http://www.frozencpu.com/cgi-bin/frozencpu/ex-wat-10.html). Is that going to take up a lot of power? Too much for a 400w power supply?

[BipolarBill]

I doubt it. What you are saving in system fans will take care of that.

[cwin]

Get a Radeon 9500 Pro or 9700 Pro or :rolleyes: :x :r the allmighty 9800 Pro :p :t

[SammyK]

Would is be a wise upgrade to go from a RADEON 9600 Pro 256MB to a RADEON 9800 Pro 128MB?

[SammyK]

Oh, and thanks for the advice on the RAM, Izdaari. That would save me over $100 (which can be applied to a cooler video card ;)).

[DMohler]

Tha ABIT Springdale board seems to be one heck of performer. Lots of good reviews out there to look at.

[lptech]

SammyK-

If you want to make sure that you've got ample power to drive everything inside the case, then I would suggest that you change to a higher rated PSU (Power Supply Unit)! From the case description, you've got one that has lights and everything inside, the question I have for you is, are you modding the case out? The fancy lights and things draw power away from the mobo and other peripherals! Please re-think your power budget! Here are some links to give you a better idea of what's up as far as the power question is concerned!

http://firingsquad.gamers.com/guides/power_supply/

http://www6.tomshardware.com/howto/20021021/index.html

http://www.pcpowercooling.com/maxpc/index_cases.htm

http://www.pcpowercooling.com/products/reviews/envynews/index.html

http://www.pcpowercooling.com/products/reviews/pcstats/index.htm

The sites listed above should give you a better insite on the power needs of the system that you are proposing to build! Just remember that when you skimp on what powers everything up inside the system, then you're headed for trouble like in your previous builds! Good luck.:)

LPTECH

[SammyK]

Thanks for all the help! You guys rock hardcore! ;)