greenfreak
New Member
My head hurts. Yours probably will too if you read this whole thing. 
I brought home a case/mobo/ps/processor the other day and had a small problem with it.
I'm having trouble figuring the best course of action here. Here's what I have:
--Main machine:
KT7A mobo
1.2ghz Tbird
512mb PC133 SDRAM
30GB Maxtor drive
Creative CD burner
NVIDIA GeForce 2 MX AGP
--Secondary 'Genome only' machine:
Gateway (stop laughing)
233mhz
Crummy no name AGP card
128mb PC100 SDRAM
--Spare machine:
FIC AZ11 KT133 mobo (used to have an Athlon 950 in it)
Supports up to 1.1ghz AMD
3 PC100/133 SDRAM slots up to 1.5ghz (no RAM in it)
1 AGP (no video card in it)
4 USB (2 onboard-2 on external card)
1 PS (don't know what voltage is)
Generic CD ROM/Floppy
Now my first idea was to get the Spare machine working and possibly buy some ram, a video card, and a 1ghz AMD to complete it and replace the Secondary 'genome only' machine with it for as little cost as possible. I had some problems with it (detailed in the 'What's that smell' thread) and I was looking for a semi-reputable place to get an older AMD processor. I wanted to get as close as I could to the max which is the 1.1ghz. I usually buy from Tiger and don't know any other good vendors and Tiger's processors start at 1.4ghz unless you get the mobo/cpu bundle.
Then my bf brought up a point. Why not take the KT7A mobo/1.2 Tbird out of my main machine, put it in the Spare machine, and then just get myself a new mobo/processor? I only built this machine a year ago so I didn't think I was going to upgrade so soon. Now I have to start looking at mobo's, specs, prices, and spend the extra bucks on the DDR Ram because it seems no one has a decent board without it.
If I do get a new mobo, I'd like to go with a good name like Asus or Abit but my needs are not that outlandish. I don't game, I don't overclock (no matter how much you bother me about it!!
), two USB ports are fine, I would like one ISA port but I think these days I'm asking too much, I will probably only use three PCI... I don't need a super duper board. I *do* need to know where I can get a nice board for good money though. Tiger only sells Shuttle/Chainbridge/Via and the like and I don't know if they're any good.
To summarize... Would you:
-Keep looking for an Athlon 1.1ghz or lower CPU for the spare machine? If so, what's your suggestion on somewhere other than Tiger to get it? I won't buy from Ebay or individuals, I'm just not that trusting.
-Put the mobo/processor from my Main machine into the Spare and upgrade the Main? If so, suggestions on a good mobo/processor or a decent vendor who isn't going to rip me off?
If you're still reading this, thank you!
I brought home a case/mobo/ps/processor the other day and had a small problem with it.
I'm having trouble figuring the best course of action here. Here's what I have:
--Main machine:
KT7A mobo
1.2ghz Tbird
512mb PC133 SDRAM
30GB Maxtor drive
Creative CD burner
NVIDIA GeForce 2 MX AGP
--Secondary 'Genome only' machine:
Gateway (stop laughing)
233mhz
Crummy no name AGP card
128mb PC100 SDRAM
--Spare machine:
FIC AZ11 KT133 mobo (used to have an Athlon 950 in it)
Supports up to 1.1ghz AMD
3 PC100/133 SDRAM slots up to 1.5ghz (no RAM in it)
1 AGP (no video card in it)
4 USB (2 onboard-2 on external card)
1 PS (don't know what voltage is)
Generic CD ROM/Floppy
Now my first idea was to get the Spare machine working and possibly buy some ram, a video card, and a 1ghz AMD to complete it and replace the Secondary 'genome only' machine with it for as little cost as possible. I had some problems with it (detailed in the 'What's that smell' thread) and I was looking for a semi-reputable place to get an older AMD processor. I wanted to get as close as I could to the max which is the 1.1ghz. I usually buy from Tiger and don't know any other good vendors and Tiger's processors start at 1.4ghz unless you get the mobo/cpu bundle.
Then my bf brought up a point. Why not take the KT7A mobo/1.2 Tbird out of my main machine, put it in the Spare machine, and then just get myself a new mobo/processor? I only built this machine a year ago so I didn't think I was going to upgrade so soon. Now I have to start looking at mobo's, specs, prices, and spend the extra bucks on the DDR Ram because it seems no one has a decent board without it.
If I do get a new mobo, I'd like to go with a good name like Asus or Abit but my needs are not that outlandish. I don't game, I don't overclock (no matter how much you bother me about it!!
), two USB ports are fine, I would like one ISA port but I think these days I'm asking too much, I will probably only use three PCI... I don't need a super duper board. I *do* need to know where I can get a nice board for good money though. Tiger only sells Shuttle/Chainbridge/Via and the like and I don't know if they're any good.To summarize... Would you:
-Keep looking for an Athlon 1.1ghz or lower CPU for the spare machine? If so, what's your suggestion on somewhere other than Tiger to get it? I won't buy from Ebay or individuals, I'm just not that trusting.
-Put the mobo/processor from my Main machine into the Spare and upgrade the Main? If so, suggestions on a good mobo/processor or a decent vendor who isn't going to rip me off?
If you're still reading this, thank you!
