Building wife a computer

[woogie]

My wife works at home and uses a number of business apps at the same time. While she is working (word, lotus, quicken, etc.) she is often online connected to a website where she enters credit card information. And while this is going on she is doing what she loves, tweaking photos with Adobe and Printshop, printing various projects and occasionally scanning. She uses a CD-RW but does not use MP3. She currently has a v..e..r..y quiet Dell PIII 435, 256 RAM, that is not really fast enough.

I mention all of this so you will get an idea of what kind of computer user she is. She is not a gamer, a modder nor an overclocker.

I prefer Athlon chips myself, but I know the computer tends to be noisier. What suggestions would you have as to cases (I'm sure she's prefer smaller rather than larger, but I think a mini-case is too hard to work in) and number of bays, cpu, mainboard, amount and type of RAM, power supply, perhaps sound deadening material, necessary fans, video and audio?

[Rick]

From the description I’d suggest starting with one of Matrox G450 or G550 cards.
Dual display capability (She will Love it with 2 monitors )

Look at the Antec 860 case.

If she is Using Adobe Photo 6 I would suggest using the money saved on the video card and investing in a Dual Processor based system. Win 2K/XP (PRO) and Adobe directly support dual cpu’s

Mother Board and CPU combo’s using the AMD MP chips are dropping in price.
I use the Asus A7M266-D and 2 1800+MP chips with 1024 ram .
(M/B $230)(1900+MP CPU’s @230 each)(512 meg ram $169)

Spend the Extra for a larger Power supply . 400 Watt minimum is just that Minimum.
I use 425 watt as a base P/S for dual systems

For the extra $280 up front cost she will have a system that will Outlast your next two or three systems
(280 = 50 extra for the MB and 230 for 2nd CPU)

[woogie]

Rick, thanks for the help.
Sorry, but the dual monitors, oS, etc. just won't fly. I know my customers. I've read many of your comments and they've always been good and to the point. Perhaps you might have some ideas on the following items that I've thought about. I think, after all is said and done, I'm looking to build a conventional AMD based system, but one that is relatively QUIET.

Enermax PSU: how would one know how high/low to adjust fan speed? I assume you check case and cpu temps. Wife will never, ever bother after I adjust it the first time. Would I be better off with self-adjusting model? How about the old "no adjusting" model? Are all Enermax' created equal, that is, are all models "whisper quiet" or only certain ones.

Case: For my own edifiaction (spelling) why use a quality case? Is it any quieter than a plain vanilla case? Maybe better steel deadens sound more? Maybe that's a stupid statement on my part. Is it simply easier to work in? She'll never open the case, only I will to upgrade.

Heatsink: Is it the fan that makes the noise? Why are oversized ones like Alpha PAL8045 or OCZ Goliath? talked about Are they quieter or just more efficient?

Video: I'm not sure about onboard video. I was thinking of a decent economy Nvidia or Radeon. The Nvidia Quadro sounds good for photos.

Mobo: How does one know which mainboard to choose? Something fairly easy to use with a good manual and no bios tweaks sounds good to me. Also, something that will take maybe DDR2100 RAM. What would you recommend for use with only 1 Hdd, Athlon XP 1800+ (or therabouts)? Maybe onboard sound if it's good. Otherwise a Soundblaster Live 5.1 must be aroung $35.

RAM: 512DDR sounds about right (?) Why is Crucial better?

[Whyzman]

Memory is Memory?

You might find THIS (http://www.crucial.com/library/quality_page2.asp) interesting reading. http://www.PCGuide.com/ubb/wink.gif

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May all your dealings in life be win/win!


Whyzman
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Reserved for Punishing Humor...A Pessimist's blood is always B-negative!

[woogie]

Sorry, duplicate post.




[This message has been edited by woogie (edited 05-20-2002).]

[Rick]

Your Post started out “MY Wife” I assumed you would be building a system for her.
She works with Business Applications and Photo edit software.
The fastest and Best image quality video card For business apps is The Matrox G400 or above card
She doesn’t play games so why invest in even a Cheap game card.

Cheap case ? From My past experience Most of the Cheap cases are made from lite pressed metal and will act like a snare drum.. Amplifying the sound inside the case as well as creating their own noise by vibrating ..

For your Enermax PSU you’ll need to find the balance point in case / cpu temps .
Allowing the fan to speed up before the case temps reach a point where the cpu temps start to rise to high.
I don’t waste time with PSU fan speed regulators. I leave the PSU fan to cool itself and use exhaust fan(‘s) to cool the case. That 400 or 425 watt PSU needs to stay cool also.
Replacing a $49 to $79 PSU ..because the thing got hot. No thanks.

Heatsink and Fan is only there to carry heat away from the Chip.
Efficiency is paramount .. Most of the Over sized units are designed for over clockers.
Find a heatsink that will dissipate the most heat with a slower (quieter) fan and your in business

M/B if your going to start out with an 1800 then get something that will allow you to upgrade in the future.. Tweaks on the M/B are not necessary. But come in handy at upgrade time.
What you may regard as a tweak today is a feature for future upgrades.

Why Crucial Memory?
In a word. “Reliability “ I have never had a system fail because the ram was not compatible.
Matching the memory to the system board. Install and let it run.

[This message has been edited by Rick (edited 05-21-2002).]

[woogie]

I can certainly see what you meant about a quality case. I bought the Antec 635 - others were just too large. I'm amazed at how well constructed it is and it's certainly much quieter than cheaper cases I've used. I'm sold!

Also, bought Crucial RAM and a Matrox 550. I'll let you know how they work out. Many thanks.

[Nooyawkah]

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[This message has been edited by Nooyawkah (edited 05-24-2002).]

[woogie]

"Also, bought Crucial RAM and a Matrox 550. I'll let you know how they work out. Many thanks."

System up and running. Excellent components! Maxtor 80GB hdd and ABIT mobo also working well.

[Rick]

Glad to hear you got it up and running.
How does the wife like it?

[woogie]

It's a surprise for her on our anniversary next week. I'll let you know.