03-17-2003, 07:00 AM
AtomicKitKat,Mar 17 2003, 01:16 AM Wrote:AMD 1800, ABIT MOBO running ATA133Well considering the asker is a PC-newbie, advising them to get AMD chip and a Via Motherboard is not very nice. ;)
GeForce 4 MX
Sound by Creative
*AMD chips are pretty ok, and cheaper than Intel.
*Via mobos are great for people who like to tune their computers, but they are absolutely horrible for those who don't wish any hassles. Because Via guarantees you'll be in maintenance quite frequently. (4in1 and incompatibilities...I used to have a Via mobo)
*Creative is no longer the most reliable sound card. AT least SB Live has many documented problems with various games. (I have live, it's headache)
*Finally, never ever buy a GF 4 MX. It's a hoax. It's based on GF2, not 4, technology.
My recommendations:
Intel P4 chip
Asus mobo (have had three, and no troubles with any of them...3 because they are in two computers, and one was on the computer I phased out last year). If you make sure you get the right board, you won't have to change it in couple years when you decide your processor is too slow.
For graphics. If you're aiming just for games, get a GF4 ti 4xxx card, preferably with 128mb. If you watch DVDs on your computer, get a Radeon 8500 128mb if you still can find it somewhere.
The Radeon 8500 was a great card, published just little over a year ago, that's already been pushed out of the markets, because it was a bit too expensive to be a budget card like the 9000 and 9000pro, and little too good to justify people getting a 9700. All in all, it's the best card I've seen for the bang/utility/buck equasion in a very long time.
The best video card in the market currently is Radeon 9700...if you wait a month or two, their price might drop dramatically, as the new GF/x cards saturate the market...and you really don't want the GF/x...it makes more noise than a lawnmover. :P (not to mention that it's not quite that great)