At 01:11 09/02/00, Michael Scott wrote:
>I want to make sure that everything I buy is compatible with
>everything else. I'm thinking about the following stats:
>
>PIII 600MHz Processor
>128MB SDRAM 100MHz
>20 GB HDD
>48X CD-Rom
>Annihilator 2 Video Card
>Creative Labs AWE64 Sound Card
>1.44MB Floppy Drive
>56K V.90 modem

Hi Michael

First, I'd suggest you get PC133 SDRAM because it costs very
little more than PC100. There will likely come a time when
the faster speed will come in handy. Any present day quality
PII/PIII motherboard that uses PC100 SDRAM will work fine
with PC133 SDRAM.

If you decide to get a PIII 600MHz, be aware that there are
many different versions of the PIII-600 processor. You may
want to get (for example) the 600E. (The "E" means that it
has 256 KB of full speed on-die cache.) The 600E runs cooler
than the older 600 that had 512 KB of *half speed* off-die
cache memory. The newer PIII runs as fast (or faster) as
the original PIII (or PII for that matter) with most
software.

There is also the 600EB (note the "B") that requires a
motherboard that runs at 133 MHz instead of 100 MHz. (Most
100 MHz motherboards will unofficially run at 133 MHz but
at the cost of "overclocking" the AGP video card...which
may or may not work.)

Here's why this is important.

The 600E runs at 6 X 100 MHz. where 100 MHz. is the "Front
Side Bus" speed of the motherboard.) The 600EB runs at
4.5 X 133. Intel has locked the multiplier (the 6 or 4.5)
in the processor and it cannot be changed. So if you have
a 100 MHz FSB motherboard and try to run a 600EB on it,
it will run at 4.5 X 100 = 450 instead of the 600 that it
is capable of running at. You would lose 25% of what you
paid for.

Here's another thing to worry about.

Some older motherboards will not work with the new PIII
processors (the ones that have the full speed cache).
The new processors run at 1.5 or 1.6 volts whereas the older
processors run at 2.0 volts. Be sure that your motherboard
will work with Coppermine processors. (That's Intel's name
for their newer PIII processors.)

There are "slot one" (SECC2) and "socket 370" (FC-PGA) versions
of the PIII. If you get a "slot one" motherboard, you can buy
an adaptor to convert a FC-PGA PIII to fit the slot one.
Or you can buy a socket 370 motherboard. (If you need one of
these "slotket" adaptors, it is not wise to try and save $5
or $10 by choosing a cheap one.)

You can get these processors with or without the heat sink and
cooling fan. (You absolutely need these.) I'd advise getting
an Intel "boxed" processor that has a three year warranty and
comes with heat sink and fan. But they do cost more.

Absolutely positively get a name brand motherboard. (Asus
for example makes top quality motherboards.) Oddly enough,
Intel motherboards are not the best. (I'm talking about the
full motherboard, not the Intel "chip sets" that are found on
many great motherboards.) Finally, trying to save $50 (for
example) by getting a no-name generic motherboard is asking
for big trouble.

By the way, I agree with Carroll Grigsby. Do not go out of your
way trying to use your Compaq case. It may look nice but it is
not a good idea to compromise your choice of motherboard, disk
drives, or power supply to match this case. The case should
be the last thing you consider, not the first thing. Don't make
the mistake of growing too attached to it.

Regards,
Bill

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