Need help double-checking new system

[GD695372]

I'd just like to know if anyone has anything to suggest as far as a possible incompatibility or maybe a part that should be subbed in with another one. I'm building this system for a friend, and stability is probably my biggest concern. Beyond that quality and obviously performance.

ATI Radeon 8500 64MB
EPoX EP-8KHA+ (VIA KT266A Mobo)
Athlon XP 1600+(1.4ghz part w/ Standard HSF)
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy Platinum Sound Card(Not the Ex)
Intel or Kingston 10/100 NIC
Mid-Tower Case w/ 300watt PSU(Athlon Approved)
256MB PC2100 CAS 2.5 DDR SDRAM
Windows 2000 Professional
Western Digital WD400 80GB 7200RPM
56K V.90 Modem(Hardmodem preferrable)
DVD-ROM Drive
CD Burner ~12/10/32
AOC 9Glrs/7Glr Monitor(19"/17", both 1600x1200@75) or Klr Series for FlatFace
Klipsch Promedia 2.1 or 4.1 Speakers(200/400watts)
60mm chassis fan for case

Any suggestions as far as changes would be appreciated. Also any mention of known compatibility/stability problems would be nice too.

 

[bozo1]

Make sure the powersupply you get is capable. Many 300-watters are not.

Why 2 sound cards?

 

[Sorgon2]

Pretty nice setup there. I would suggest a better HSF if you have some extra dough. The retail one is fine, but if you plan on ever doing any heavy O/Cing, you might need a better HSF. As for NICs, go with a linksys or 3Com card there as my suggestion. A good case to buy would be the Antec 830 or 1030. A very nice case with good cooling. You can buy one with a 350W PSU for around $100 or less. Pioneer DVDs are quite popular. Go Crucial for your RAM. Best place to buy IMHO. Good Luck!

 

[GD695372]

Sorry about the 2 sound card thing. I must have forgotten to remove the live when i added the audigy. I know that the PSU will be Athlon-Approved, soo that's not a problem. The reason why I haven't named some of the components specifically is because I buy everything through an OEM at very good prices, and in-stock things such as nics and dvd-roms are a little bit cheaper. I've always been happy with the quality of any in-stock parts that they've used. They've never sold me any such parts that were off-brand for instance, and they stand by everything. They also burn everything in and provide a no-bs 3-year warranty. I've seen specific deals that have been better, but I get lower prices from them on just aobut everything, w/o sacraficing quality. The memory will probably end up being either crucial or kingston, and I'm fine with either. The other big plus is that I won't get ripped off this way, and they can get just about anything under the sun. The case they use is a pretty good mid-tower. It's nothing too special, but this won't be an overclockers system anyway, soo the case isn't that important, beyond being a decent design and not having any sharp edges. The one thing I would like to change is the HSF, but I'm not sure what I should get. Any specific suggestions on an alternative HSF would be greatly appreciated(note: noise is a factor w/ the hsf, and extreme cooling is not required).

 

[Survey23]

I second the notion on the PSU...too many skimp on this very important issue...

Get the Lite-on dvd-rom lt-163....fastest reader of all 16x dvd-roms, plus one helluva dae ripper and cd-reader...and damn near silent!!!

Get at a 16x cd-rw...they are virtually 70-80 bucks now...look at the 16x aopen (or greater)...great buy while getting the justlink burnproof process...


Will the Radeon....Hmmmm....Personally I have been burned too many times by ati products and their empty promises and lack of driver upadtes and support...your choice...I would ante up and get a gf3 ti200...Nvidia drivers work out of the box and meet their promises plus give you bonus performance with there constant det. releases boosting the power of their gpu's...


Standard HSF inretail edition is just fine....unless you are going to oc alot or skimp on buying a decent case with decent case cooling the retail one is just fine or they wouldn't bundle it with a 3 year warranty...contrary to most of the sheep here with there expensive hsf's amd isn't going to bundle it with the 3 year warranty if they now it is insufficient and they will have to replace all these chips...

 

[GD695372]

It looks to me like ATI will pull through on this one. In addition, the mobo i want to use has issues when using the gf3 ti 500 that I know about, soo I don't want to chance the possibility that it's a conflict with the gf3's under high load. I believe that ATI will turn around this time, and even if they don't, performance isn't really as much of an issue as it used to be.

 

[ThatDumbGuy]

definitely recommend the lite-on burners from newegg.