I need to build a PC for someone, and they're in a hurry, so I need to
make some quick decisions. Since I'm usually buying slow Intel stuff
for work, I'm more in tune with that scene. But since this will be a
home PC, I'd like to go A64 for the best performance.
I think socket 939 is the way to go, and I think the chipset to get is
the Nforce3 Ultra. (NewEgg does not list any Nforce3 250, socket 939
boards, so I think Nforce3 Ultra is the choice.)
The selection of Nforce3 Ultra, socket 939 boards is not very large.
I'm thinking of the EPOX EP-9NDA3J. This would go with an A64 3200+
and a Gforce 6600 video card.
I've done both VIA K8T800 and nForce3 s939 systems with MSI mbrds and they
are both fine - VIA seems to be solid here despite their past reputation.
You might even find that nForce3 and nForce4 mbrds are scarce and therefore
expensive - the MSI K8N Neo2 Platinum I bought in November is now selling
at an average $10. more than I paid and is hardly ever in stock at NewEgg.
You've already gotten the hints about nForce4 and PCI Express, the only
caveats there being that the mbrds are still relatively new and could have
V1.0 problems... and really want a 24-pin ATX12V 2.0 power connector which
is also scarce.
There's also the ATI radeon Xpress 200(p) based mbrds but I don't know much
about them and they are also in apparent short supply. Monarch had them
last I looked but their reputation is spotty.
Sound like a good plan? Any hints or suggestions regarding memory or
whatever?
If that's an Athlon 3200+ Winchester, i.e. 90nm, I'd say it's a good way to
go -- has 1000MHz Hypertransport -- but again supply may be a problem and
synching mbrd/CPU availability could be aggravating. The Newcastle 130nm
parts work OK, are cheaper but do run hotter.
For memory I'd recommend making sure you get single rank DIMMs due to
Athlon64 bus loading issues - you're more likely to be able to get 1T
command rate with single ranks, especially if upgrade is a possibility
later. For my 1GB I got two of the Crucial "8T" (i.e. 8-chip) parts listed
at NewEgg.
For a power supply, you want to be sure you get one which puts out a min of
20amp on the +12V - getting that with a 24-pin ATX connector might be hard
to find. You *can* plug a 20-pin connector into the 24-pin socket but I'm
not sure of the pros & cons here - maybe someone else can comment.
One thing I'd add based on my experience: assuming you'll likely get a case
with front panel USB, check the connector from the case carefully: the one
on my Antec Sonata had 9 wires connected, the extra 9th one thus connecting
to the USBOC pin on the mbrd. I dunno what the case does with that
connection but it caused problems with USB for me - even the rear
connectors had trouble with intermittent recognition of my Logitech
joystick. Disconnecting that extra 9th pin on the front panel connector
fixed things. I dunno if this problem is unique to the Antec case, MSI
mbrds or their Athlon64 mbrds.
