Need advice on building a system.

[miko2d]

 Guys, I am preparing to build my own PC and need some advice.
 My goal is a reasonable priced system that could run today's apps (flight sims) and be upgradable for at least a year to 18 months, then relegated to the secondary machine status. I would not mind spending money on the top of the line system, but there is no software right now to make use of it and with i815 and PC266 DDR and other stuff around the corner I would rather save the money for later.

 Here is what I plan so far:
 Case: MidTower, 300W power.
 MB: VIA - 133 FSB, 133 memory support. Probably Gigabyte GA-6VX-4X or GA-6VX7-4X.
 Processor: Intel P3/600 - less then $300. In 6-8 months can be upgraded to P3/1G at the same price.
 Video: TNT2 or similar, no more then $120, to be upgraded to top of the line T&L in the fall.
 DVD.
 HD - about 20G.
 Sound: probably Sound Blaster Live.

 What do you think about that configuration?
 Could you suggest good components, like convenient case, good DVD, etc?
 Places to buy that stuff?
 Warnings based on the bad experience are also greatly appreciated.
 Thanks, miko--.

[humble]

So far so good, any chipset that will handle the the intel "coppermine" config is a good bet. I've got an intel 820 but the VIA chipset will perform equally well. DVD is not an issue with regard to online/offline gaming at this point so it's not an issue..just make sure your speed for reading is high enough or you will sit thru loading stuff a lot longer.

Make sure you get 133 memory in a single 128 meg stick..perferably "name" brand lifetime warr. I prefer a case with "thumb screw" type connect and dual fans, 250W is ok but 300W is better long term.

RPM speed is important in HD, the newer IBM drives are screamers that offer great bang/buck. A TNT vidio card is a safe bet for now, the 2nd generation GPU's will be out soon.

The SBL is good sound card but I think the vortex 2 cards offer more bang for the buck at this point.

As for upgrading your CPU, let your performance dictate changes in your system. A GPU will add significant gain over a P3+ CPU in the system your building.

[Sorrow[S=A]]

Don't plan on upgrading easily from a P600 to 1 gig mike...  Intel is having nightmares with Rambus and Bios issues, by the time that 1 gig comes out you will almost certainly have another CPU form factor and new Bios that can handle Rambus properly. For right now your probably better off looking at an Athlon system, they can go right up to 800 mhz and are easily upgradable. By this fall Intel will have things corrected and will be the better choice again I think.

[bloom25]

On the soundcard, I just purchased a vortex 2 based card for $50.  I'm VERY happy with it.  With the newest drivers, it supports every type of 3d sound format available, AND accelerates Directsound.  (As a result my framerate increased by about 3 fps on average, compared to a SB16.)  In addition CPU utilzation is less than the SB Live, according to the information I have read.

Probably the best $50 upgrade I've ever done...

IMO I think the most important part of a computer is the quality of the motherboard.  It always ends up being the limiting factor on how far a system can be upgraded.  (I learned this the hard way.  A year and a half ago I built a new computer, but only had a small amount of money to spend.  In the end I ended up making a decision that I really regret.  After I had ironed out what my system would be, I ended up having $65 dollars left to spend, and the choice of either upgrading to a 440BX-2 MB versus 440LX, or I could go from a 233 PII to a 266 PII.  Like a fool, I chose the faster processor.  When it came time to upgrade, I was limited to 66MHz Fsb processors on the LX board.  If I would have picked the 440Bx-2 I could have gone up to a PIII 600.  Not to mention, you can't overclock a celeron on a 440LX board.  Learn from my mistake...   )

bloom25
THUNDERBIRDS


[This message has been edited by bloom25 (edited 03-10-2000).]