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#1
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Opinions on system
I'm about ready to purchase parts and assemble a system from scratch. I'm
pretty sure I'll be more than satisfied with performance, but I want to double-check if there are any known compatibility issues with what I'm getting (my last system I went with AMD and the VIA KT133 chipset and it took a while to get the stability I wanted). Case: Antec Sonata w/ 380W Mobo: Asus P4C800-E Deluxe CPU: P4 2.80C Hard Drive: 2 x WD Raptor WD360GD in RAID 0, 1 old IBM Deskstar 75GXP Memory: 2 x Crucial 512MB DDR PC3200 NonECC CL3 Video: Asus Radeon 9800 XT/TVD CDRW: Sony 52x32x52 OEM (purchasing Nero 6 as well) I'll be running Windows XP Pro and Office XP Pro. Again, any potential problems I should be aware of, also will 380W support all of that? Thanks all! -- gorf |
#2
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FIRST AND FOREMOST STAY AWAY FROM THE ANTEC SONATA. It has a horible
design the way the hd's fit in leaves no room for the cable to plug in. and that is about the cheapest burn you can get anymore. also thats quit the system for word processing. are the hd sata? gorf wrote: I'm about ready to purchase parts and assemble a system from scratch. I'm pretty sure I'll be more than satisfied with performance, but I want to double-check if there are any known compatibility issues with what I'm getting (my last system I went with AMD and the VIA KT133 chipset and it took a while to get the stability I wanted). Case: Antec Sonata w/ 380W Mobo: Asus P4C800-E Deluxe CPU: P4 2.80C Hard Drive: 2 x WD Raptor WD360GD in RAID 0, 1 old IBM Deskstar 75GXP Memory: 2 x Crucial 512MB DDR PC3200 NonECC CL3 Video: Asus Radeon 9800 XT/TVD CDRW: Sony 52x32x52 OEM (purchasing Nero 6 as well) I'll be running Windows XP Pro and Office XP Pro. Again, any potential problems I should be aware of, also will 380W support all of that? Thanks all! -- gorf |
#3
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"gorf" wrote in message news I'm about ready to purchase parts and assemble a system from scratch. I'm pretty sure I'll be more than satisfied with performance, but I want to double-check if there are any known compatibility issues with what I'm getting (my last system I went with AMD and the VIA KT133 chipset and it took a while to get the stability I wanted). If you want stability, you need to get a really good power supply, not just one that comes with a case. (although in some rare cases you'll do OK that way). For your system, I'd suggest a 400W or better power supply from Seasonic or Fortron. Everything else looks great. Find the right power supply, and you should have NO instability problems. -Dave |
#4
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Yikes! I was just settling in on the Sonata also. Thanks for the heads up.
Got a recommondation on a "functional" quiet case? My second choice was the Antec P160, but I was choking on the price. (Sitting here longing for the days when the case was no decision at all). "crucial" wrote in message ... : FIRST AND FOREMOST STAY AWAY FROM THE ANTEC SONATA. It has a horible : design the way the hd's fit in leaves no room for the cable to plug in. : and that is about the cheapest burn you can get anymore. also thats quit : the system for word processing. are the hd sata? : : gorf wrote: : I'm about ready to purchase parts and assemble a system from scratch. I'm : pretty sure I'll be more than satisfied with performance, but I want to : double-check if there are any known compatibility issues with what I'm : getting (my last system I went with AMD and the VIA KT133 chipset and it : took a while to get the stability I wanted). : : Case: Antec Sonata w/ 380W : Mobo: Asus P4C800-E Deluxe : CPU: P4 2.80C : Hard Drive: 2 x WD Raptor WD360GD in RAID 0, 1 old IBM Deskstar 75GXP : Memory: 2 x Crucial 512MB DDR PC3200 NonECC CL3 : Video: Asus Radeon 9800 XT/TVD : CDRW: Sony 52x32x52 OEM (purchasing Nero 6 as well) : : I'll be running Windows XP Pro and Office XP Pro. : : Again, any potential problems I should be aware of, also will 380W support : all of that? : Thanks all! : : -- : gorf : : : |
#5
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"BP" wrote in message ... Yikes! I was just settling in on the Sonata also. Thanks for the heads up. Got a recommondation on a "functional" quiet case? My second choice was the Antec P160, but I was choking on the price. (Sitting here longing for the days when the case was no decision at all). Casedge is a good brand. I haven't tried this one, but it's cheap (and throw away the 300W power supply that it comes with): 3GTA-209 3G Medium ATX, $33 from Axion Then add a Seasonic SS400FS-APFC power supply, about $84 from Axion This combo should be quite functional and quiet. -Dave |
#6
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I think you will find that the Antec "TruePower" power supplies are
"really good" as well as are the Seasonic and Fortron power supplies. "Dave C." wrote in message ... If you want stability, you need to get a really good power supply, not just one that comes with a case. (although in some rare cases you'll do OK that way). For your system, I'd suggest a 400W or better power supply from Seasonic or Fortron. Everything else looks great. Find the right power supply, and you should have NO instability problems. -Dave |
#7
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In article , BP says...
Yikes! I was just settling in on the Sonata also. Thanks for the heads up. Got a recommondation on a "functional" quiet case? My second choice was the Antec P160, but I was choking on the price. (Sitting here longing for the days when the case was no decision at all). I have built two Sonatas in the last 8 months and I love them both. There is plenty of space to plug the hard drives. On the first machine I used round cables (Anbtec Cobras because they are more flexible) and reversed the drives so they plugged from the rear. On the second I used flat ribbons with no problem plugging them from the front. I have also built a SuperLanboy that uses the same hard drive cage as the Sonata, except that both panels can be removed making it easier to reverse the drives. And FWIW......the P-160 uses the same hard drive cage and I plan to use that case for my next build. If you use a little common sense you can route the IDE cables so that they will get maximum air flow over the drives without too much hassle. The design of the hard drive cages on the Antec Sonata, P-160, SuperLanboy and the SLK-3700 cases is a fine design for both mounting and airflow. The larger 120 fans and the rubber mounting gramuts for the hard drives help make the cases silent and cool. Ed |
#8
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380 Watts is borderline for driving all your components.
-- DaveW "gorf" wrote in message news I'm about ready to purchase parts and assemble a system from scratch. I'm pretty sure I'll be more than satisfied with performance, but I want to double-check if there are any known compatibility issues with what I'm getting (my last system I went with AMD and the VIA KT133 chipset and it took a while to get the stability I wanted). Case: Antec Sonata w/ 380W Mobo: Asus P4C800-E Deluxe CPU: P4 2.80C Hard Drive: 2 x WD Raptor WD360GD in RAID 0, 1 old IBM Deskstar 75GXP Memory: 2 x Crucial 512MB DDR PC3200 NonECC CL3 Video: Asus Radeon 9800 XT/TVD CDRW: Sony 52x32x52 OEM (purchasing Nero 6 as well) I'll be running Windows XP Pro and Office XP Pro. Again, any potential problems I should be aware of, also will 380W support all of that? Thanks all! -- gorf |
#9
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"crucial" wrote in message ... FIRST AND FOREMOST STAY AWAY FROM THE ANTEC SONATA. It has a horible design the way the hd's fit in leaves no room for the cable to plug in. and that is about the cheapest burn you can get anymore. also thats quit the system for word processing. are the hd sata? Where were the hard drives located and how were they oriented? Were they IDE, SCSI, or SATA? The SATA drives that I'm looking at will have much smaller connectors than other drives, but the back ends stick out a little further than non-rounded IDE cables I believe (see http://www.seagate.com/newsinfo/technology/sata/). I read the reviews for the Sonata on Egghead.com and I saw one complaint about a tight space between the back of the drive and the side of the case, but overall there were very few negative comments (about 140+ reviews, 5 star rating). As for the CDRW, yes it is cheap. The Plextor is supposed to be good (and I personally like TDK's VeloCD burners), but they all come with crap software IMO (unless someone here vouches for Roxio or "Nero Express"). I'd rather buy a cheap OEM burner and own Nero 6 (Nero is damn good burning software). Word Processing? No... I'm going to use my new computer to check e-mail on Yahoo. And yes... WD Raptor's are SATA (10K RPM SATA). Thanks for the info... I'll pay extra attention to the drive space issue in the Sonata... I believe CompUSA sells it so I might go take a peak in the store. -- gorf |
#10
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"Ed_" wrote in message ... I have built two Sonatas in the last 8 months and I love them both. There is plenty of space to plug the hard drives. On the first machine I used round cables (Anbtec Cobras because they are more flexible) and reversed the drives so they plugged from the rear. On the second I used flat ribbons with no problem plugging them from the front. Thanks for the advice about reversing the drives. I'm expecting that I will love the Sonata except for the drive connector space issue and another issue with airflow regarding the "Antec" holes on the side (which I will need to cover with something to get airflow from the front to the back). My current case is the SuperMicro SC-760A, one of the largest cases available (over 2 feet tall). I can barely fit it under my desk (I had to remove the "feet" from the case). I also couldn't find a rounded floppy cable that extended long enough to reach the very top of the case where the floppy hides (the ribbon I use barely reaches that). Edges are sharp, my computer room sounds like a machine room, and overall construction is poor (especially for a $200 case). I never used up the drive space in the SC-760A, so about 80% of the free space is wasted. There is NO airflow in the case because it is so big. I also cannot transport this thing very easily. I'm tired of "big" and I want something that meets my needs, not something that exceeds them by a longshot. I'll check on the other suggested cases though. -- gorf |
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