J..
This is just to give you an idea ...
not telling you to build one on your own, but being an electrician, you could do it MUCH easier than most folks ....
I had planned on building this one during spring break with my grandkids, but their plans and mine went in three dif directions ...
so
perhaps early April they will come up for a weekend visit and we'll construct this one ....
or something "close" ....
with them, price is NO object, but I'm an elcheapo .....ggg
here is my shopping list ....
1- case with at least 3 open bays and at least 250watts ps
2- mother board with NO built in audio OR video
3- mb with front side bus running at least 100mz
4- mb which has ROOM for at least 512megRAM
5- mb which has at least 1AGP, 4PCI, 2USB slots
6- pc133 memory
7- hard drive 20GB 7200rpm
8- 56k modem
9- sound card ... not the cheapest
10- video card ... at least 8mg
11- cpu of at least 600mz
12- CDRom
13- speakers of at least 450watt externally powered
14- 17in CRT of at least .26 at 75mz refresh
15- scroll mouse
16- "adequate" keyboard, floppy drive, surge protector, etc.
now here is what I'm spending ... *(or close)
1- Ensign case for 35bucks ...
2- *(make and model will depend upon CPU type/speed) for 110 bucks ...
6- 256k mem for 75bucks ...
7- Western Digital for 100bucks ...
8- any elcheapo for 15bucks ...
9- Creative Sound Blaster *(bot as unit with CDRom) so this price is free ...
10- ATI Rage AGP 35bucks ...
11- unknown right now but price IS 115bucks ...
12- Creative SoundBlaste kit for 60bucks ...
13- speakers with Creative kit price is free ...
14- AOC 7GLR for 150bucks ...
15- logitek scroll 6bucks ...
16 20bucks ...
misc and stuff I'll REALLY need at the time ....gggggg 25bucks
I'll find a motherboard/CPU combo on sale, either online or at Fry's in Dallas and I won't spend MORE than the 225buck total I've listed... and probably will spend less ...
now I'll attempt some comments/answers on your various posts ...
Steve is correct bout the DVDs NOT reading ALL CDs ... but MOST of the time there is not a problem ...
I'm looking into *(commented on this is one of my previous posts) converting all my building stuff into using DVD players inlieu of CD ROMs ....
for MOST practical purposes ... not withstanding all that NICE stuff Steve wrote ... hahahaha .... I can tell a vast dif between 5400 and 7200, but not much dif in 10-12-15-20 GB WesternDigitals .... the best "current sweet spot" is 20GB .... but this too will move ....ggggg
I have an advantage over some folks in telling the dif in speed of CPUs ... as I overclock nearly everything I use ...
so I'm testing and using them at lots of various speeds in the same circumstances .... and I can't tell a lot of dif in the jumps of 50-66 mz ... as in from
800 to 866
or
750 to 800
but there is considerable dif in, say 150-200 gaps ....
so, I just look for the "sweet spot" at the time I buy ... right now it seem, to me at any rate to be 866 on Intel ...
but in the COMBO boards/cpu units it is 750 .... and there, I'll let price drive my purchase ....
as to software ...
I didn't like ME ... used it maybe three or four hours ... but, seemed too primitive BUT not knocking it ....
98SE is what I'm using now and it is ok ...
2000 is going to be left out for me cause I'll wait for that next one .... XP or whatever that MS named it ...
as they're doing away with NT, 98, and 2000 .....
2000 has caused LOTS of hardware incomptibality for nearly all the folks I know who have gone there that tinker with, overclock, soup up, modify, etc ....
for "off the shelf" buyers, who are waaaaaaay in the majority, it seem to be top notch ....
so I'm NOT doing anything except stating my opinion there ....
without having used the product ...
Nemer |
