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RaGzMaN

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Oct 11, 2002
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Hi all.

Im looking to build a new kick ass computer with all the latest tricks....

I am a gamer but also use my computer for GFX design, Web and more....

Im looking for a motherboard that will do the job for me....

Its gonna be an AMD CPU....The fastest one avaliable to me (Live in UK, what will it be?)
Graphics - ATI 9700 pro (so i want 8x) (unless you lot reccomend anthing different)
Quality fast ram......and so on.....

Any know of any motherboards that are kickass at the moment....
Parralel and serial ports I guess I need for my Printer and scanner but no biggie, can always run it through the network..

Price not an issue..

Thanks for your help and time...

Thanks

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by RaGzMaN on 10/11/02 07:20 AM.</EM></FONT></P>
 
Wait for AMDs 2400+ or 2600+ if ya must have AMD. They should be available soon. But I would go for an Intel Pentium4 2.53GHz at this point. And if ya want to overclock later, the Pentium4 2.53GHz will be able to hit 2.8GHz easy. ATI 9700 Pro is a good choice.

<i>It's your world kid!!!</i>
 
The Gigabyte GA-8IHXP is the top board right now, using PC1066 RDRAM. The GA-8SG667 is the top performing DDR board right now, but doesn't have the best set of features. The GA-8PE667 Ultra is the top DDR333 board, with the best set of features and near top performance for a DDR board.

<font color=blue>You're posting in a forum with class. It may be third class, but it's still class!</font color=blue>
 
Crashman...he said for sure hes getting and AMD CPU...therefore your choice of boards are wrong.....

ASUS A7V8X is what I would choose for you RaGzMaN.......

<A HREF="http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?id=13597" target="_new">-MeTaL RoCkEr</A>
 
Well, I don't always take the time to read every detail of a post...my bad.

Anyway, MSI 745 Ultra is a nice board, but I'd go for the nForce 2 if he can wait a couple weeks.

<font color=blue>You're posting in a forum with class. It may be third class, but it's still class!</font color=blue>
 
He wants top notch Performance....he never said NOW or LATER.....NOW id go with KT-333-CE based board.....assuming u liek workign with headaches etc.....otherwise the MSI 745 or ASUS A7S333 are good choices......but i would also recomend an nForce 2 based board when they r released... =)

<A HREF="http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?id=13597" target="_new">-MeTaL RoCkEr</A>
 
The Radeon has been experiencing serious problems with 8x boards. If your Radeon 9700 pro has bios version 1.01, you can not run it stabily on a 8x board. To correct this problem, you can send it to ati and they can send you a replacment. Think twice about getting the Radeon 9700 pro, the hardware is great, but ATI leaves a lot to be desired in terms of software development.
 
Well, 3% slower than the fastest with 30% fewer risk of severe headaches...I wouldn't say the 3% difference would exclude it from being a top performance board.

<font color=blue>You're posting in a forum with class. It may be third class, but it's still class!</font color=blue>
 
Thank you all for your help....

I am looking to build this system sometime in November, so indeed I can wait for anything....

Is ddr400 worth getting or not....
I was serious speeds....good 3dMark2001 results, great gaming....and reliablity...
What is this Nforce 2 that im hearing about...i Like the sound of it...

Also reflecting back ont he 9700 pro.......am I right in thinking that its the best out there?

If not...should I wait for Nvidias 8x GFX card? or anything else instead of the 9700?

I am aware that threre are a few problems with it...but .....one person I know is running it on an intel board and is getting real bad results and one is running a AMD board and loving it....

hmm what to do...and when to wait for.....

If i wait all the time, ill neva buy...but is there anything REALLY worth hanging on for?

Thanks again people...
 
"...should I wait for Nvidias 8x GFX card? or anything else instead of the 9700?"

Not unless it's a GeForce5 (available in december). Don't be fooled by GeForce4 8xAGP graphics cards. If the GeForce4 is Popeye, 8xAGP is not spinach. Even with 8xAGP GeForce4 cards come no where near ATI 9700 Pro speeds. If ya don't want to spend $300+ for a ATI 9700 Pro, I would get a leadtek GeForce4 Ti 4200 4xAGP ($132 at newEgg.com) and overclock it (not difficult) to GeForce4 Ti 4600 speeds. The GeForce4 Ti 4600 represents nVidias current top contender.

<i>It's your world kid!!!</i>
 
1.) DDR400 won't do much for an Athlon. In fact, if the DDR333 can run at Cas2 but the DDR400 only runs at Cas2.5, the DDR333 will offer better performance. In all likelyhood DDR400 Cas2.5 underclocked to DDR333 speed would run at reduced Cas Latency of 2.0, so it's a wash. Unless you want to overclock your processor bus, because DDR400 would offer higher bus speeds.

nForce2 is nVidia's new chipset to replace the nForce. It has a lot of performance and improved features over the original. Like the original, it will be available with or without onboard graphics. But the onboard graphics will be GeForce4MX comparable instead of GeForce2MX. I wouldn't bother with them, except that if the price between the onboard/not onboard versions are similar, the onboard graphics could be used as "backup" in case of a dead card, or "primary" if you later decided to sell the system but keep your graphics card.

The 9700 is the best that's out there. It has room to get better, as ATI is moving from .15 micron to .13 micron which will allow higher clockrates.

nVidia's "AGP8x" cards are a marketing gimick, they offer no performance advantage overall as compared to their AGP4x cards, with the exception that some come with faster memory. Even then, the faster cards perform as well at AGP4x as AGP8x. And none compares to the 9700.

As for your friends, the one with the Intel board is probably running a bad configuration, such as using the old Williamette processor instead of the Northwood, using SDRAM instead of RDRAM (or even DDR SDRAM), using a crappy video card, etc. Intel has the performance lead right now with the P4 2.8GHz comparing to the non-existant AMP XP2800+. And overclocking gets even better, with the P4 2.4 clocking to 3GHz and the more expensive XP2400+ only reaching speeds of the non-existant 2800+ with the same effort.

Anyway, a lot of people pick AMD for emotional reasons, so I can't argue against that. The do make a good processor. And it looks like the already released nForce2 will be the chipset to beat. We're not waiting for a release, we're waiting for better distribution and better sound drivers (nForce audio has the power to put anything Creative to shame).

<font color=blue>You're posting in a forum with class. It may be third class, but it's still class!</font color=blue>
 
Stick with DDR333. The KT400 chipset is as fast or faster than the KT333, but only with DDR333(PC2700). Athlons can't use the full bandwidth DDR400 gives.

Asus A7V8X has a KT400 chipset. $120 at NewEgg.com

The Radeon 9700PRO is easily the fastest graphics card available. If you buy one now, chances are you'll get one with an updated bios, so don't worry about the 8X issue.
I wouldn't bother waiting for the new GFX card, unless you're waiting for the Radeon 9700PRO to go down in price. Nvidia's new card will be pretty expensive for a while.

The Nforce 2 is only supperior to the KT333 if you use two or more memory sticks. So if you wait for it, make sure you get at least two memory sticks. They are even in real world situations with one stick of memory.
No real comparisons have been made between the Nforce2 and KT400, but I'd wager the situation is the same as with the KT333.

If you wait for the best product to come out all the time, you'll find by the time it comes out, there's alway's a better one on the way.

Pain is the realization of your own weakness.
 
Thanks again f you support....

Bahumut ....fellin that comment "If you wait for the best product to come out all the time, you'll find by the time it comes out, there's alway's a better one on the way.
".

I have until November to decide and buy....so what i can get then or early december...I will get...

Any ideas when I can get the Nforce 2 in the UK?.....And is that a clear winner for me....

WIth reference to "The Nforce 2 is only supperior to the KT333 if you use two or more memory sticks"------"at least two memory sticks. They are even in real world situations with one stick of memory"....

Does this mean that I will get 2 X 256 ddr 333 or what eva instead if 1...or 2 X 512 instead of 1 and so on...

Why is this?

Thanks again for your kind support and advice....

Im quite sure that the 9700 is the card for me.....
thanks to crashman and halkebul for your useful info on the Nvidia GFX cards...
 
Hehe, You and Me are at the exact same point Ragzman =) I am currently going build by powerhouse comp in late november early december also (if it gets past nov 14 or so I prolly wont be doing it until January!! because we are leaving on a cruise for on the 20th and with all the parts coming in at that time...yeah) =). I am still stuck on what to do motherboard wise for my 2400+. However, after taking into consideration with what Crashman says, depending on the prices/clock speeds of Intel when I build, might have to get one of those. But that sucks cuz then I have to reconfigure for HS/F combo again (took me 4-5 hours to decide) and all my RAM..its just a mess =)

Anyways, just wondering whats your e-mail/ AIM or ICQ if you have one, I'll tell you about all the mobo research I have been doing =)
 
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