Greetings,
The time has come to replace my old P2-350MHz system...
Wow! the world has changed so much since then and the choices are
overwhelming.
I don't need the latest and greatest, but I would like to get a
reasonably good deal for my money. I am basically thinking about two
main options:
(1) Build my own AMD based system (A7N8X, XP 2500+, 400MHz FSB)
(2) Buy a pre-built system (e.g. DLL Dimension 4600 P4 2.4MHz with
533MHz FSB)
I know some folks may blame me for comparing apples to oranges
Please bare with me as I am still overwhelmed/confused by the huge
number of options.
My question: are the two options I listed above comparable. Is one
MUCH faster (i.e. more than 10%) than the other?
Many thanks in advance!
I don't consider the options overwhelming, as time has been the great
leveler of competitive ideas. The power consumption of the AMD versus
Intel competitors is about equal, performance is in the same ballpark
(if you need the best, go with a high end overclocked Intel system),
and many motherboards have a selection of built-in I/O solutions.
(This stalemate is why the industry wants to change _everything_
inside the machines for the next generation.)
When you say "reasonably good deal for my money", that would be
an Athlon based system. You can overclock a 2500+ to 3200+ performance
levels without too much trouble, and with several A7N8X-xx Nforce2
models to choose from, you can trade off features and price.
If you've assembled a computer before, I don't see Dell offering
you much for the money. Some of the things Dell does are proprietary
or affect your ability to expand or change components, so I don't
recommend a Dell to someone who knows what they are doing. If you
are computer phobic, then a Dell might make a good purchase, as
an "appliance" like your washer or dryer. But, if you care at all
about what is inside, then assembling a computer from parts is a
natural fit. Since you already own a computer, you can look inside
it, to see how things are done, as a reference. A second computer
is essential to getting the new system up, when you need to search
for manuals, updated BIOS or drivers, for the new machine.
If you want performance numbers, visit tomshardware or anandtech
and look at some of the benchmarks they have done.
FSB and/or memory bandwidth are important for Photoshop or video
editing, but for many other applications, won't be a killer issue.
When code is executing from cache, or the data needed is already
in the cache, the FSB and memory busses are silent (for you
purists, I'm speaking metaphorically...).
If you are thinking of reusing the case from the old computer,
that might work, but you'll need a higher capacity power supply.
Both new Intel or AMD systems have higher +12V power consumption
and this is one area where older supplies are weak. Older systems
drew more power from +5V or +3.3V. You should get a supply
capable of at least 12V @ 15A output (you need to read spec sheets
to verify this, as power supplies from 330W to 500W may be needed
to meet this requirement). Generally, there is enough capacity
on the +3.3V and +5V rails, that they aren't an issue with a
simple desktop hardware configuration. How did I arrive at
that number ? Take processor thermal power number (say 72W from
a spec sheet), divide by 12V to get amps (6 amps), scale by 1.25
to compensate for the 80% efficiency of the Vcore regulator on
the motherboard (7.5 amps), add 1 amp for cooling fans, 3 amps
for disk drives (while they spin up), and say 3 amps for a decent
video card with separate video card power supply cable. Since the
video card doesn't draw full power unless playing a 3D game, some
of the video card current is available to spin up the drives
during POST. So, that is a reasonable bare minimum. I use the
15A number as a result, to weed out the "lesser" power supplies.
Another way of getting an estimate on power consumption, is to
visit the Intel website, where Intel sells motherboards. Say you
were planning on buying a P4C800 system, that uses an 875 Northbridge.
Pick an equivalent Intel desktop motherboard, then download the
manual. There is a "power requirements" section in the Intel manual,
that gives minimum and maximum requirements. You could use this
as a starting point to figuring out what size power supply is
required.
In terms of esthetics, your old beige case may make it easier to
color match whatever peripherals you buy to fit in the case. I
have a dark grey case, and nothing in the drive bays matches the
case color (and I'm too lazy to find replacement face plates).
As for motherboard choices, right now I'd select a P4C800 or
a P4P800 series motherboard, if using an Intel P4 as the processor.
On the AMD side, the A7N8X motherboards that use the Nvidia
Nforce2 chipset are good performance wise. There are other
chipset manufacturers, and I'll leave it to your discretion as
to whether saving $20 now, is worth a couple of extra days of
troubleshooting and tweaking. Also, don't discount motherboard
manufacturers other than Asus, as some of them have improved
since the last time you bought a computer. Try downloading a
manual from the Asus website, and compare it to a competitors
user manual download, to decide whether the competition is
right for you.
For reviews, you could start at anandtech or tomshardware, just
to get pictures of what comes with the board. For real info on
what to expect, visit the forums on abxzone.com, amdforums.com,
or nforcershq.com, as there are a mound of posts about various
motherboards over there. Searching in groups.google.com using
the motherboard model number will also turn up interesting
tidbits.
Have fun,
Paul
