Need motherboard help

[Onoborisan]

I am trying to build a computer from scratch and I need to know which motherboard would be best for me. First of all can someone explain the differences among Slot 1, Slot 2, Socket A, Slot A, Socket 370, Socket 7, 8, 423, etc. What does all this mean?

I was recommended to buy only ASUS products as they are supposed to be the best and most reliable. I would like to build my computer such that it doesn't get outdated very quickly. I was thinking of getting one that would support at least a Pentium 3 running around 1 MHz. I am not sure if I should venture into the Pentium 4 level, as these have not really been tested(?). Also cost is a factor and I do not want to spend more than $250 +/- $50 each on the CPU and motherboard. Also, I wanted a motherboard that will support at least 750 MB to 1000 MB of RAM. The ASUS Motherboards I was considering are: P3V4X, CUV4X-M, CUV4X-E, P4T.
Do you think these are good choices. Can you wizzards out there suggest similar/better ones in my price range?

The other components I want to add in my computer are: 1. PlexWriter? 12/10/32S drive (SCSI); 2. UltraPlex 40X Wide40X Wide SCSI CD-ROM drive; 3. Adaptec SCSI2940UW SCSI card.

I want to use my computer for CD burning, some home video editing, usual home business purposes, and some gaming. Also, in relation to a CD burner is there any advantage to getting a SCSI versus an IDE version? I am told that the burnproof technology of Plextor may eliminate the need for a SCSI interface. Is this true?

Any help you people can offer this novice would be most appreciated.

Thank you.

 

[Ching]

HAHAHAHA, you crack me up are you serious? Do you really want to have a Pentium III with 1 MHZ and 1000 MB of RAM LOL. If you want to save money, don't buy Intel. Get a Socket A motherboard. Asus is fine, but not guaranteed to support future CPU from AMD. You do not need 1000MB of RAM, 256MB will be fine. I use an IDE CDR without burnproof technology, and so far no coaster yet. bottom line, stay away from SCSI, cost too much, IDE is fine. This is the funniest post that I have seen for a long time.

 

[birddog]

If you are going to go with a PIII, then you want either a slot 1 (s.e.c.c.)or socket 370 (f.c.p.g.a.). Slot A & socket A are for AMD chips; Socket 7 is for real old CPU's; and socket 423 is for the P4.

I agree that you should stay away from the P4 at the moment. The P4's are going to be changing cores & socket styles in a few months. Also, I would wait till VIA comes out with a P4 DDR chipset.

I have worked with a P3V4X before. It is a good board (great overclocker), based on the VIA apollo pro 133a chipset (694x northbridge). It is a slot 1 board with 4 memory slots. The CUV4X is the socked version of the P3V4X.

You can run socket 370 intel CPU's in a slot 1 motherboard by using a 'slotkit' (MSI makes a real good one for @$15). Of course, you can also run a slot 1 CPU in it also. (there is no way of running a slot 1 CPU in a S370 board). I think the P4V4X is a good choice. It is stable, overclocks well (if you are interested in that), gives good CPU selection options (you can use either a slot 1 or s370 -- I recommend a s370 on a MSI slotkit for flexibility). If you are not into overclocking, you may want to look into a Tyan s1854 Trinity 400 board also -- real stable.

If this is your first computer build, I'd stay away from SCSI. IDE is much easier to work with. After you get your feet wet, then try SCSI (I have build several dozen systems & I still hate working with SCSI. SCSI is nice once its hooked up, but a pain in the *ss to get set up at times).

 

[Onoborisan]

Thank you very much, Birddog. I appreciate you advice and patience with me.
Sorry for my ignorance, but what is (s.e.c.c.) and (f.c.p.g.a.)?
True, this is my first attempt building a computer. A friend of mine is helping me with this project. This friend is a SCSI maniac and advised me that that is the only way to go for having one's computer perform fast and well. As far as the CD-RW, again I was told that the SCSI machines were the most reliable. Is this a thing of the past, or does it still hold true?
Thanks again,

 

[akiraxtc]

SECC stands for Single Edge Contact Cartridge... remember those Pentium II CPUS that use to stand on the board on its two sides? That's SECC
FCPGA stands for Flip Chip Pin Grid Array and it's used for newer intel processors, it's much like the AMD socket CPUs... it sticks to the motherboard on its 4 edges. and the core is visible on the top of the chip.
Anyway, i would have to say again that SCSI is not necessary... i've heard that it is fast (especially the UW 160), but with the burn proof technology it's not necessary anymore... dont' believe it?
I've tried runing my plextor 12/10/32 (Burnproof) for burning CDs, while copying 250 megs mpeg file to the same harddrive used to burn the file, and listen to MP3 at the same time. Also have tried to run UT while burning with no problem... haven't had a single coaster for at least the last 200 CDs that i burn. Provided that your system didn't have a hard lock when you're burning of course

 

[akiraxtc]

Oh yeah... btw if you're getting a P3 1 ghz, i've used the P3V4X board before and it was plagued with some errors like "unable to read from Drive a" or something like that when i was installing Windows. The problem came and go sporadically. I've seen some posts about that matter. And there was no floppy on drive a and i was installing windows from drive c... weird
Anyway i've had good experiences with Asus CUSL2 and Intel P3 CPUs with the ease of setup even when most of my PCI slots were populated (Soundcard, NIC, TV Tuner, ATA 10 controller). I wouldn't have problems recommending it to you.. and its price is dropping too
For AMD so far i've tried A7V, it has some problems with the UDMA 100 Controller (Not sure if they have fixed this or not) but so far i'm pretty much satisfied with Asus A7V133.

 

[Jiggz]

You said you want something that'll last you for awhile and at the least cost. Well, the best bang for the buck right now is the AMD CPU 800-900 MHZ T-Bird. And the latest and the greatest chipset for this is the KT133A. So either go with an Abit, Asus, Epox or MSI. Plextor 12/10/32a IDE will cost you around $175-$225. But you can get a Iomega 12/10/32 for about $100.00 less and it's the same Plextor machine on a different brand. SCSI? Except probably servers and some enthusiasts only use SCSI on their HD. Nothing else! Not the CD-Rom, not the CD-R/W nor the Zip drive. All these are all now on ATAPI and they perform just as good if not better. 1 GHZ of RAM? SDR SDRAM are on the road to antiquity! DDR is the rising star. So you might want to think again. I say go between 128-256 and no more! This is all you need.