For video editing (especially when it comes to crunching video data into
different formats), games, and stability, I'd recommend the Pentium 4 as the
way to go.  The Athlon 64s are a close second, but the chipset and
motherboard support is not as mature for this processor and I'm not sure
that they've completely worked all the kinks out, yet.  Either processor has
plenty of computing horsepower.

Until the new chipset (i915 and i925X) Pentium 4 motherboards come out, I'd
stick with the 800 MHz bus Northwood Pentium 4s.  The Pentium 4 2.8C costs
about $180 and seems to be the best bang for your buck point.  After that,
things start getting expensive in a hurry.  The $219 Pentium 3.0C is the
next step up  P4 3.2C is $276, P4 3.4C is $415, and the P4 3.2 Extreme
Edition is $899.

For a motherboard, I'd look for something with either the i865PE or the
i875P.  They are basically the same chipset, but the i875 features support
for ECC memory and it has slightly tighter memory controller timings (PAT),
which yield a couple of percent faster performance over the i865.  Something
from one of the big boys, like Asus, Gigabyte or Abit, that has the features
that you like should meet your needs.

PC3200 memory from a reputable name, like Crucial or Corsair, is what else
you'll want.  You'll need to buy a pair of matched DIMMs for dual channel
support.  Many brands now offer 2 DIMM kits for just this purpose.  Chances
are, if you buy from a large seller, you'll get a closely matched pair, even
if you buy two of the same item without buying a kit.  512MB total would be
a minimum for this system, and a full Gig would be a good investment.

The Radeon AIW cards offer a lot of versatility.  I think that you'd have to
move up to a dedicated video editing card, such as something from Matrox, if
you feel you need more.  The 9600XT AIW would probably provide enough 3D
rendering power for the gamer in you, but the 9700 Pro AIW would be the
faster game card.  The 9800 Pro AIW would be faster, still.  (I see NewEgg
has an OEM version of the 9700 Pro AIW for $230.  It looks like it lacks the
remote that comes with the retail version, but that's a pretty good price
for what you what you get.)

For sound cards, especially if you are into games, the Audigy 2 or Audigy 2
ZS seem to be the way to go.  They seem to be the de facto standard for game
sound, and they do provide high quality audio for music, as well.

I don't know if you are needing to shop for more or are upgrading your
current system; so, I'll leave aside drives, monitors, cases, etc. for now.

As you've gathered, I start my shopping at NewEgg and also make a fair
amount of use of Directron.  ZipZoomFly is a good outfit (I forget what
their former name was, now), and I've also made use of Mwave (but not so
much recently).  I think all of these places give a good balance of
selection, price, and reputable service.

John Sproule

----- Original Message -----
From: "Hugh Vandervoort" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, June 14, 2004 4:26 AM
Subject: [PCBUILD] Recommendations for new computer


> I'm looking for recommendations for motherboard, chip and vendors. I
suspect
> I want SATA, a fast Graphics card, and Decent Sound, as well as ethernet,
> front USB, firewire and reliability.
> I have only done this chore once, but I feel fairly confident I can handle
> it again.
> All my computers have been AMD, but I'm flexible. Reliability is very
> important.
> I do a lot of graphics work, am fond of games but not as much as I used to
> be, have a cable connection and spend several hours a day using the
machine.
> Video editing has intrigued me recently.

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