Just bought a new one. Need opinions.

[BigBlue66]

Hey All,

Just purchased a new barebones system from CSO. I have to add the harddrive and monitor.

Anyhoo, what's the general opinion of the following components? Can the onboard video and sound be disabled easily? Sorry, thought I would ask, haven't looked up the manual yet. Also, can't remember, but is this the AMD processor that runs hot?

* AMD Duron 750MHz Processor

* K7-810LM 200MHz FSB Motherboard

* SiS 730 AGP Chipset

Any and all comments welcome. Have a great weekend everybody.

Edit: I know, I know, I should have researched it before I bought it, but the price was right and I needed a faster computer to handle some of the software I recently upgraded.

Cheers,

Big Blue 66


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Woe is me.

[This message has been edited by BigBlue66 (edited 06-08-2001).]

[spaceAlien]

> I have to add the harddrive and monitor.

MOBO probably supports ATA/100 so get ATA/100 HDD also. Go for 7200 rpm. I think 20GB is plenty, but others think 75GB isn't enough. Make sure you get the 80 wire IDE cable -- even though only 40 pins on IDE, ever other wire is grounded to reduce interference.

Monitors -- flat panels $$ are coming down fast, but still pretty expensive...

> Can the onboard video and sound be disabled easily?

I would bet 5 to 1 that you can disable in bios. Is there an AGP slot?

> Also, can't remember, but is this the AMD processor that runs hot?

You must have a cpu fan.

grins --


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MOVE 'ZIG' FOR GREAT JUSTICE

[BigBlue66]

Thanks Space,

Hehe, yep, I knew that about the CPU fan. No, really, I did! http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/biggrin.gif

As for the monitor, already have one. Also have a 30gig, ATA100, 7200rpm harddrive. And yes, I think the mobo has a AGP 4X slot or something like that.

Have you any experience with the motherboard or chipset? I think the mobo will take a faster processor, up to 1 gig I think. Will have to look up the specs on it.

Cheers,

Big Blue 66


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Woe is me.

[BigBlue66]

Howdy,

Alrighty then. I can only assume that since none of you (except for SpaceAlien) have responded, I have screwed up beyond all belief. But really, how bad is the PCChips motherboard? Hey Randy, what specifically is wrong with it? What do I have to watch out for?

I was impressed with the upgradeability of the board. It will take up to a 1.2Ghz Athalon and 1 gig of SDRAM.

As far as the onboard stuff, I can disable the sound and it said something about how the onboard video would work in unison with an add-on card. Huh? I heard somewhere that if you added a PCI card, it would automatically override the onboard component. Is that right? I am thinking of biting the bullet for a Geforce or Nvidia.

Would sure appreciate some opinions. Have any of you had experience with the 810LMR board and the SiS 730 AGP chipset? Thanks a heap.

Cheers,

Big Blue 66


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Woe is me.

[This message has been edited by BigBlue66 (edited 06-12-2001).]

[tjaymadison]

Although not exactly a ringing endorsement, Tom's (http://www6.tomshardware.com/mainboard/01q1/010109/) has this on the chipset.


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"I am not able to rightly apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question."
-- Charles Babbage, mathematician, computer pioneer, analytical engine designer (1791-1871)
-- (Question: 'Pray, Mr. Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, will the right answers come out?')

"Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand."
-- Homer Simpson

[BigBlue66]

Thanks TJAY. Yep, already read that review. Also read reviews on the Duron processor. Haven't found much on the motherboard, except the specs.

I fired her (I am in the club that thinks computers are female, along with cars, trucks, etc.) up last night and loaded the OS. So far, so good. Compared to what I had before, this machine is a screamer. And the beauty of it is, I can upgrade the important components to make it even faster. (This machine is replacing my home machine, the one that I ran into a bottleneck while trying to upgrade; chipset limitations)

Anyhoo, the only drawback I can foresee right now is the possibility of having to buy an external modem. (No ISA slots. Built-in AMR)

What I really want to know is, does anyone have this motherboard? If so, how's it performing for you?

Thanks.

Big Blue 66


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Woe is me.

[mjc]

After seeing a couple of dozen different places or so slam the PCChips boards I made a decision that it would be too much of a headache (heck for that matter why would any sane person really want any compputer) to own one...that said the quality seems to run the gamut from pure **** to pretty good, but the one thing that everyone seems to agree upon is the lack of tech suport from PCChips...things like driver updates can be an ordeal. So here is a link that may be of some use....PCChips Lottery (http://www.stud.fernuni-hagen.de/q3998142/pcchips/).

Another thing that I've come up with during my recent research on boards has been that they seem to run well if you aren't going to OC them, change hardware frequently, and have a grasp of what their limitations are and don't try to exceed them...in other words be a typical home user, not a tweaker. Also they seem to be improving somewhat with the newer boards.

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mjc
Links list:Computer Links (http://www.fortunecity.com/skyscraper/highrise/11/index.htm)

Celts are the men that heaven made mad, For all their battles are merry and their songs are all sad.

[tjaymadison]

BB66 -- Although not "PC", I personally agree. http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/wink.gif

Check out 'Battle of the Sexes - PC Style' in After Hours.


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"I am not able to rightly apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question."
-- Charles Babbage, mathematician, computer pioneer, analytical engine designer (1791-1871)
-- (Question: 'Pray, Mr. Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, will the right answers come out?')

"Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand."
-- Homer Simpson

[BigBlue66]

Hey thanks, MJC.

So far, I am pretty impressed with the board, even if it is a PCChips. The onboard sound and video appear to be perfectly adequate at this point. As I mentioned, will just have to wait and see about the modem quality.

Nope, don't plan to overclock. That makes me too nervous. If anything, I will throw a faster processor and more RAM in, but that's about it.

I use this machine as a backup for my office. I need to be able to run payroll from home if I have to. Additionally, my wife likes to play with desktop publishing software, so the increased speed will surely be a plus.

Yep, the board is practically brand new with a BIOS that is just three months or so old. Should do me fine for now.

Thanks again for your input, MJC.

Cheers,

Big Blue 66


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Woe is me.

[BigBlue66]

Update

So far, so good. The modem seems to be every bit as good as the hardware based modem I had in the other machine. (Of course, it could be a wash comparison because of the faster processor/software modem/more RAM vs. a slower processor/hardware modem/less RAM) Logged on last night and downloaded all the updates with no disconnects and at a respectable speed. MS even had an updated display driver for the onboard video.

I am quite happy with the machine so far and having a blast learning all about it. As MJC pointed out, if I don't try to tweak it beyond its limitations, I should have a decent machine for awhile.

The BIOS is AMI, dated 3/30/01. That should do for a long time.

Just thought I would keep you peoples posted on my progress with this machine, since it has a questionable quality motherboard and integrated everything. Here's hoping I am not posting in the future with major problems. http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/frown.gif

Cheers,

Big Blue 66


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Woe is me.

[Randy_tx]

Sorry BB.........I've been real busy lately! My experience is with the Amptron version of the board and it's a very OK board for the money. If you get to the point that you want a faster AMD processor, I would also consider a new mobo and just sell this system minus the HD......just clone it over to the new system when you get it. As long as you have decent cooling, the Duron is a great chip. With about 128 or so MB Ram it will handle about anything. You should have at least one or two PCI slots should the modem crap out and you could put a PCI Lucent modem in its place - the HFC modem disables in the BIOS if I remember correctly. Have fun!!

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Will XP save Me ?

[BigBlue66]

Thanks Randy. This board is the Amptron version, so I guess you're saying I should be OK with it.?

Yep, as far as I can tell, from my limited nosing around so far, everything integrated can be disabled. I do indeed have two PCI slots.

The machine came with 256mb SDRAM, although I'm not sure if it's 100 or 133. Will be downloading Sandra anyway, so I can find out then, rather than pulling the chip for physical inspection. The board will supposedly handle either speed, up to 1 gig total.

I will keep you all posted with my progress, pros and cons, disappointments, etc.. It should be a great learning experience for me. All this time, I have heard about the problems with integration, but up to now, have not been able to experience it personally. I surely do like to tinker. Ain't life grand? http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/biggrin.gif

Cheers,

Big Blue 66


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Woe is me.

[BigBlue66]

Update

Howdy Hey,

So far so good with this machine. I ordered 512mb of PC133 7.5ns CL2 from Crucial the other day, just for the heck of it. I will give the 256mb stick of PC100 that came with the machine to the kid. He's happy.

The only problem, or irritation, so far has been the onboard sound. Whenever I played a CD and tried to cruise the net at the same time, the sound was choppy. So, I swapped in the SB PCI512 from the old machine. I'm playing a CD as I type this with no ill effects on the music. Thank God for soundcards with onboard hardware accelerators. http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/biggrin.gif

I was able to disable the onboard sound in BIOS with no problems, but then every time I booted up, Windoze would find and install the drivers for all the onboard stuff. Oivay! So I went into Device Manager and for all the onboard listings, chose 'Disable in this Profile'. Live and learn. Rebooted and now none of the onboard sound stuff shows up in DM, just the SoundBlaster listings. http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/smile.gif

The onboard AMR modem is working fine and seems to be every bit as fast and stable as the old ISA 56k U.S. Robotics modem that I had put in the kid's machine. The video is set at 16mb shared right now, but can be bumped up to 64mb. I think I might do that after I get the new memory, just for grins and giggles.

Cheers,

Big Blue 66


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Woe is me.

[iisbob]

Hello Big Blue, just wanted to throw in my two cents worth and tell you that i'm runing a PCchips M807, and everything on it is rock stable. Easiest board i ever had to set up. It doesn't have intergrated video( thank god) so i just added a juicy geforce2 too it, i used my old soundblaster 16 pci to replace the onbard sound, and just enterd the BIOS to tweak a few settings. No sweat. Its, been running fine for months. The only descrepency i came across is that originally they had pushed this board as ATA100, when it's actually ATA66-but that's not a big deal.

As far as support goes, forget it! they (PCchips ) have the worst tech support i've ever seen ( even worse than Compaq! ) so that's a minus. http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/frown.gif

But, as i stated earlier, everything else runs silky smooth; can't ask for better than that! http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/biggrin.gif

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iisbob
"Soap and education are not as sudden as a massacre, but they are more deadly in the long run."

[BigBlue66]

Hey thanks, you is Bob. http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/biggrin.gif

I really like the idea that I can make full use of my ATA100's capabilities with this board.

Glad to hear your comments on the stability of the board. I am so far quite impressed with mine. I hope I don't have to have any tech support though. http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/frown.gif

Cheers,

Big Blue 66


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Woe is me.

[BigBlue66]

Update

Hey all, I'm baaaaacccckkkk. Well, after a couple weeks of using the onboard modem, I have decided that I could do better. Just purchased a USR Performance Pro. It will go in my last available PCI slot and is controller based, i.e., all processing will be done by the card itself, without using system resources. At least, that's what it says on the box.

I haven't installed it yet, but will let y'all know if there is an improvement. I could have gotten by with the onboard modem which works quite well for being integrated. However, I am always seeking out the best from my system, so thought an extra $100 wouldn't hurt too bad. Seems to be a quirk of mine, ya know? I mean, why should I do with what I got, if I could do with something better? http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/biggrin.gif

So with all that said, I can still say that this machine is rock solid stable and plenty fast for my needs. I have bumped the shared video memory up to 32mb and it seems to be plenty good enough. I can go all the way up to 64mb, but unless I plan to play some games, will leave it at 32. I still have an available AGP slot if I want to upgrade the video even further.

Bottom line: With the exception of my quirk mentioned above, I am extremely pleased with the machine.

Cheers,

Big Blue 66

Edit: P.S. And besides, it's all the company's money. hehehehe http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/biggrin.gif


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Woe is me.

[This message has been edited by BigBlue66 (edited 07-12-2001).]

[iisbob]

You know, i forgot to mention that this particular machine is my main work horse; i have another that i use to play games with( it'sa got DDR and a geforce3)-but the PCchips board system has held up quite well-i think you'll stay satisfied Blue.

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iisbob
"Soap and education are not as sudden as a massacre, but they are more deadly in the long run."

[BigBlue66]

Thanks uisbob. Glad to hear it.

BB 66

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Woe is me.

[BigBlue66]

Update on New Modem

Hey All,

Have used my new USR Performance Pro Faxmodem (PCI, controller based) for over a week now and can truthfully say, I'm impressed. Very happy indeed with its performance. I'm playing a CD and have ZoneAlarm running whilst I am online here, and pages load just as quickly as any hardware based modem I have ever used.

Yep, I'm as happy as a guy can be with a 56k dial-up connection. http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/biggrin.gif

Just thought I would post my experience with this modem for those of you who either have an integrated modem or no available ISA slots and would like to upgrade. You won't be disappointed.

I think this is the last of my posts on the topic of my new computer. Everything is running optimally and stable. What more can I ask?

Cheers,

Big Blue 66


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Woe is me.

[mjc]

Well I guess you have proved that there are some companies in the computer industry that are really concerned about not just improving their image but their products as well....


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mjc
Links list:Computer Links (http://www.fortunecity.com/skyscraper/highrise/11/index.htm)

Celts are the men that heaven made mad, For all their battles are merry and their songs are all sad.

Gun Control...hitting what you aim at!