Motherboard Advice and Upgrade Advice

[kermit]

I play CALL OF DUTY online like every day of the week and want a motherboard that's more current but not the latest. I want quality and a fair price.

I'm wanting to upgrade my motherboard and CPU and need your help. I'm running an AMD Athlon(tm) XP 1800+ Processor 1.49 GHZ and am wanting to probably go to AMD Athlon 2800+ with a new motherboard w/ 1x 256ram and 1x 512ram. I also have a low end 256 Assylum video Card.

I have AK7S5A motherboard (no clue what that is)

I'm wanting to have a fair motherboard processor combo and will probably pick up one on EBAY. I'm looking for something with room for a lot more memory + I have a SoundBlaster card that I'd like to use etc.

Also can I get some advice on fans, such as: what are they good for? how many do you really need? is a fan a fan is do you need a particular brand?

 

[tristan]

If you go with a newer ABit Gigabyte or Asus mobo you will be very pleased. Gigabyte and Asus seem to be a more "Out-of-box"/Common User stable board. If you think you are interested in overclocking then go with a Abit NF7-S v2. If you dont want to overclock and just want to plug it in and not worry about it go with the Asus A7N8X.

As for fans, do you mean processor fans or case fans?
Getting a good cpu fan is pretty crucial, ESPECIALLY if you want to overclock. Case fans are important also to keep the system temp down. When shopping for a fan there are 3 things to consider, CFM, RPM, and dBA. CFM is how much actual air is pushed, so this should be #1 priority. RPM is how fast the fan turns, and dBA is how loud it is. Ideally you want to find a find a fan with the HIGHEST CFM and with the lowest dBA (lower RPM typically means lower dBA).
For CPU Fans some great fans for a low price have been Thermaltake Volcano series (more specifically 11+). If money is no issue look into ThermalRIGHT.

 

[Praetor]

I have AK7S5A motherboard (no clue what that is)
You've got the nearly ubiquitous low-end ECS, AMD board: http://www.ecsusa.com/products/k7s5a.html

If you think you are interested in overclocking then go with a Abit NF7-S v2.

No need to get the S version unless you specifically need the SATA support

If you dont want to overclock and just want to plug it in and not worry about it go with the Asus A7N8X.

I sincerely hope you're not implying ASUS boards cant OC.

Also can I get some advice on fans, such as: what are they good for? how many do you really need? is a fan a fan is do you need a particular brand?

- At the least get two 80mm fans: one on intake and one for exhaust. If you're case has more mounts for more fans, make sure you load them up
- For CPU fans, make sure you get a nice solid one If you want power grab the Volcano12/Polo735 and if you're more interested in a quiet environement, grab the Silentboost K7, all made by Thermaltake

Tristan
Unless I'm missing something, RPMs for a fan arent a critical spec....

 

[tristan]

The NF7 is nothing compared to the NF7-S version. PLUS it doesnt come with Soundstorm, which is an amazing sound utilization. 10$ more, id go with the NF7-S. Go into ABits forums and try to say that NF7 is the same as NF7-S except sata....

No Asus mobos are great for oc'ing also, but ABIT are make FOR oc'ing. Abit boards need maintenance, for example the North Bridge heatsink and fan that come with the board WILL break its just a matter of time. Replacing it with a Zalman before you install it (5$).

Umm.. its common knownledge that for the most part the more RPM the more dBA. I was simply stating that finding a fan with the highest CFM and lowest RPM and dBA would be what to look for in a fan. Basically just worry about CFM and dBA.

 

[tristan]

- For CPU fans, make sure you get a nice solid one If you want power grab the Volcano12/Polo735 and if you're more interested in a quiet environement, grab the Silentboost K7, all made by Thermaltake

echo?

NF7-S - Mainstream High end
Supports Duron/Athlon/Athlon XP Socket A 333/266/200MHz FSB Processors; nForce2 SPP+MCP2-T chipset; 3 DIMM supporting Dual DDR 400; Serillel ATA RAID (2xATA133 Connectors; 2xSATA 150 Connectors); Firewire (IEEE1394); 10/100M LAN; 6 channel audio SoundStormä ; AGP 4x/8X and S/PDIF out; 5 PCI slots; 2 USB 2.0 Connectors + 2 Headers; 5-bit FID technology for overclocking; Abit CPU H.T.P. (CPU Hardware Thermal Protection); SoftMenu™ Technology.

NF7-M - Mainstream Integrated
Supports Duron/Athlon/Athlon XP Socket A 333/266/200MHz FSB Processors; nForce2 IGP+MCP2 chipset; Integrated GeForce4 MX; 3 DIMM supporting Dual DDR 400; Serillel ATA RAID; 10/100M LAN; 6 channel audio SoundStormä; AGP 4x/8X and S/PDIF out; 5 PCI slots; 2 USB 2.0 Connectors + 2 Headers; 5-bit FID technology for overclocking; Abit CPU H.T.P. (CPU Hardware Thermal Protection); SoftMenu™ Technology

NF7 - Mainstream Mid
Supports Duron/Athlon/Athlon XP Socket A 333/266/200MHz FSB Processors; nForce2 SPP+MCP2 chipset; 3 DIMM supporting Dual DDR 400; Serillel ATA RAID; 10/100M LAN; 6 channel audio SoundStormä; AGP 4x/8X and S/PDIF out; 5 PCI slots; 2 USB 2.0 Connectors + 2 Headers; 5-bit FID technology for overclocking; Abit CPU H.T.P. (CPU Hardware Thermal Protection); SoftMenu™ Technology

 

[kermit]

So a Asus A7N8X motherboard is in my best interest for gaming. How many DDR slots does this come with? Is there room to grow in my ram?

Also investing in a decent set of fans would be to my advantage. Thanks for the tip.

What kind of CPU should I look for since I may not be picking up a combo?

 

[tristan]

It has dual 400fsb mem channels. So you could get 2 512 ddrs or even 2 1gig sticks of ddr if you wanted. I recommend PC3200.
As for CPU its all about how much you are trying to spend. I found the 3000+ to be the most reasonable price for me. (I found it for 125$) Just make sure its Barton. If you have enough money for the 400 fsb rather than 333 than go for it.

www.newegg.com great prices and great shipping, I highly recommend

 

[kermit]

How easy is it to install a new motherboard? Will I need anything else w/ the motherboard besides a new CPU and some better fans?

Also direct me to a website where I can pick up a decent, and reasonbly priced tower (preferrably black).

 

[4W4K3]

How easy is it to install a new motherboard? Will I need anything else w/ the motherboard besides a new CPU and some better fans?

Also direct me to a website where I can pick up a decent, and reasonbly priced tower (preferrably black).

very easy to install most of the time unless u get a weirdo case. just a few screws and a IO shield plate and ur done. u might want PC3200 ram if your doing a full-out upgrade. OCZ, Corsair, Kingston are all great brands. my personal favorite is OCZ. and www.newegg.com , www.xoxide.com , www.outpost.com , all sell computercases for cheap most of the time...newegg.com is as well a fav for me. www.atxcases.com is REALY cheap sometimes...look at them too. lots fo options on cases now adays.

 

[Praetor]

echo?

WTF? I answered his question

The NF7 is nothing compared to the NF7-S version. PLUS it doesnt come with Soundstorm

NF7 - Mainstream Mid
Supports Duron/Athlon/Athlon XP Socket A 333/266/200MHz FSB Processors; nForce2 SPP+MCP2 chipset; 3 DIMM supporting Dual DDR 400; Serillel ATA RAID; 10/100M LAN; 6 channel audio SoundStormä; AGP 4x/8X and S/PDIF out; 5 PCI slots; 2 USB 2.0 Connectors + 2 Headers; 5-bit FID technology for overclocking; Abit CPU H.T.P. (CPU Hardware Thermal Protection); SoftMenu™ Technology

Does it have SoundStorm or not?

Go into ABits forums and try to say that NF7 is the same as NF7-S except sata....

My my someone's getting testy.....

How many DDR slots does this come with?

Three.

 

[Nephilim]

No Asus mobos are great for oc'ing

Wow! I must strongly disagree. Asus boards can be OC'd just as well as Abits and to state differently flies in the face of thousands of people who've OC'd the piss out of their systems using Asus boards.