first time homemade computer

[Sleep21]

Specs:

ASUS A7A266
1.33 Athlon
256MB ECC Corsair
60 GB Maxtor
ASUS V8200 deluxe 64MB Geforce3
Sound Blaster Platinum 5.1
DVD
TDK Velo CD-RW
WinTV Tuner
D-Link NIC
300W Enermax Power Supply

What Problems Should I expect?

How Many Fans Should I Use?

[zskillz]

is the cpu a duron or a thunderbird (this may be a moot point since I don't think duron even goes that high... I'm not sure, sorry)

anyway, I don't know anything about that mobo either, but if you plan on oc'ing the processor at all, you better make sure that the mobo makes it easy to do.

also make sure u ave enough pci slots for all that stuff, and also make sure that you have enough 5.25 bays in the case since the platinum requires one.

good luck
-Z

[LiLRiceBoi]

yeah that would have to be a tbird

[VERT]

That is the spec of a t-bird. If the operating system you install is windows 2000, expect some problems that can be easily fixed, goto http://www.ntcompatable for more details, if you will be running Windows ME, epect problems, but this should not be with your hardware, rather the OS, however you should not expect any problems windows 98, however you will at some stage get the regular "blue screen of deaths". I dont know enough to comment on any non MS OS's.
If you do experience problems, just post them here at Sysopt.

[Sleep21]

Are homeade machines generally more or less stable than bought PCs? MY cousins have some really **** ones, but they were all from old and new parts, I'm buying all new parts.

[hallam2003]

in general, I'd have to say that yes they are more unstable. but that is just because some people don't update drivers and run incompatable hardeware, and over clock like crazy. you can build a system that will beat out any factory PC in stability, but you have to do it right. running winNT or 2K will help a lot here, mine only shuts down if I instal something and am forced to, or the power goes out, like it did today, my furture ups will fix that little problem, maybe. have fun with it, and keep that puppy cool


Hallam

E-mail me at evanhallam1@hotmaill.com - don't worry, i don't have a life

[hallam2003]

ok, BTW, on fans, you need a pretty big one on the CPU, one better than the retail one if your going to get that one. i use the retail one, for now, because that's what i had to buy, but it's **** for overclocking. as for case fans, AMD recommend that you use AT LEAST 2 80MM case fans, one in the front, and one in the back. placed in opposite directions so one will intake and one will exhaust. and i don't think you should be using ECC RAM, check your motherboard specs, ECC will slow you down juat a little, and unless your running a mission critical server, you don't need it, infact your motherboard might not even support it.

Hallam

[Ben_F]

stability, with win 98se, i think that might be hard. a have a copmuter i built from all new parts, the only problem i have had is with win98. i've owned this one for a year and since have reformatted twice and installed win98 se 3 times. even after a clean install i would get those **** blue screens. and just recently i'd crash at least once a day, or just have to reboot. i installed win2k about 1 week ago, and not one crash since, flawless! the only problem was getting my scanner working, which i did eventually get to work, for some reason the new software designed for win2k didnt work. strange. i used the old drivers for win NT. i think stability just depends on overclocking(which i dont do) and researching what parts fit best with each other.

[Sleep21]

Hey Ben, I will be running WinME for the time being, so far WinXP looks promising (arguable), better than win9x anyway. Where can I look for what components go well together. The last thing I want is a problem with the ASUS Geforce3 of the Sound Blaster Platinum (they are the reason I'm even making the machine). If the Mobo supports ECC why shouldn't I buy it if the price is right? Won't it make the machine a lot more stable?

[Imperion1]

Are you building this system for gaming, audio, or graphic editing and converting?

ECC memory is used mainly in servers for stability. It will run your memory speed a little slower, but not too noticeable. Unless you use Sandra to benchmark your ram.
It would be good for audio and video editing.

As for gaming, Non-ECC is better for better performance.

Here is a link to explain the uses of ECC and Non-ECC (Non-parity).
http://support.crucial.com/scripts/crucial.exe/solution?11=000724-0004&130=000964451872&14=&2715=&15=&2716=&57=faq&58=&2900=&25=-1

[Sleep21]

i had some questions about slave/master configuration for the IDE cables. Is there a site that show compatibility with other parts?