Buyer's Guide - Entry Level, January 2005
by Jarred Walton on January 9, 2005 12:05 AM EST- Posted in
- Guides
Optical and Floppy Drives
With the price of DVD recorders having dropped to under $70 even for the top performing 16X models, we don't see much point in recommending anything less than a DVD recorder as our primary optical drive. Sure, you could save up to $40 by going with a CD-RW, but in the long run, we suggest that you bite the bullet and pick up a DVD+RW instead. 8X DVD+R models might shave off up to $10, if you really want to cut costs by small amounts. The difference in burning speed between 8X and 16X drives is still relatively small due to the lack of 16X media, but that is improving slowly. 
Click to enlarge.
Optical Drive Recommendation: NEC-3500A/3520A 16X DVD+RW
Price: $65 shipped
The winner of the 16X DVD burners in our last roundup, the NEC 3500A, is also one of the cheapest 16X drives on the market. A newer revision, the 3520A, has also shown up, although that appears to be mostly a BIOS update to the 3500A. We would probably spend the extra couple dollars for the latest revision, but depending on where you shop, you may or may not be able to find it easily. In terms of features, the NEC drives offer about as much as it is possible to cram into an optical drive. Dual-layer DVD+R is available at 4X speeds, DVD+R as well as DVD-R support 16X burn speeds - although especially in the case of the latter, finding media that supports that speed is nearly impossible right now - and the +RW can burn at 8X while the - RW can burn at 6X. The only option really missing is DVD-RAM support, and considering how few people actually use that, we don't feel that it's a major omission. Other decent drives exist, but none can really match the overall price and versatility of the NEC 16X models. Remember to match the drive to the color of your case, of course - an attractive black case won't look good with a beige drive and vice versa. You can also find replacement drive bezels on the Internet, so an aluminum bezel to match your case is also an option.
Floppy Drive Recommendation: 3.5" Floppy Drive
Price: $8 shipped
It's not really required, but for BIOS updates and SATA driver installs as well as the occasional quick and dirty transfer of files, the floppy still has some uses. Flash memory sticks are much more convenient for transferring data between computers, but on most computer systems, it is not possible to use a flash drive in place of a floppy drive for BIOS updates or during the Windows Setup program. You don't have to include a floppy drive, but for the small cost associated with it, we would prefer to keep it around "just in case". As with the optical drive, remember to match the floppy to the color of your case.
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edlight - Sunday, January 9, 2005 - link
Warning for Corsair Value Select: If you want to run dual channel get one of their dual channel kits containing a matched pair. I bought one stick and another a month later, and they are totally different and won't run dual channel at all on my Asus A7V880. In fact, one is single sided and one dual sided. The memory isn't made by Corsair at all.justly - Sunday, January 9, 2005 - link
I really don't have a problem if you prefer the Nforce 3-250 chipset BUT to call the "performance and reliability" of either VIA and SiS "questionable" for a budget system seems a bit (actually quite a bit) narrow minded.If this where a overclocking or performance guide I would have less of a complaint, but for a budget guide I think you should elaborate on why these chipsets are so "questionable". Has Anandtech pionted out these "performance and reliability" issues in any reviews of either VIA or SiS, because the ony complaint I can recall had to do with overclocking.
You even mention that a Nforce 3-250 board (Epox) has "memory compatibility issues" so Nforce 3-250 is not void of "performance and reliability" issues either.
A BUDGET GUIDE is about two things "reliability and cost", performance is a "distant concern" (does this sound familiar? it should its on the first page). So when it comes to the motherboard why is "performance" now a concern (especially when performance differances between A64 motherboards seem trivial compared to other components)?
If I sound upset because of this then you are correct. I offen hear review sites hope for more competition in the chipset market (things like wishing some board manufacturer would try to make a performance board with a SiS chipset) and then I read things like this. If you really want to see some competition then the least you could do is not cut them from the market that they are targeting with their product without explaining why.
ChineseDemocracyGNR - Sunday, January 9, 2005 - link
"Intel has socket 478 parts, and these are often cheaper than the more recent platforms, but longevity is something of a concern."I agree that longetivy is a concern, but the socket 478 platform is not necessarily cheaper. Intel released the Celeron D in LGA775, starting with the 2.53GHz model (the lower ones are to be discontinued in Februrary according to the Inquirer). The LGA775 is a "J" version, which adds NX support for less than $5 more compared to the socket 478 version.
Given this, I would switch the Intel budget system to the Celeron D 325J, a little more expensive than the 320. There are cheap LGA775 motherboards available, like the ECS 661FX-M7 ($53.50) and the ASRock 775V88 ($57).
Another thing I would like to comment on is the Radeon 9600Pro suggestion. Newegg is selling 400/446 Sapphire cards as 400/600 (without saying it's an Advantage card) so be careful. I would suggest these for budget systems:
SAPPHIRE ATI RADEON 9000PRO Video Card, 64MB DDR, 128-bit $46 shipped
ABIT ATI RADEON 9550 Video Card, 128MB DDR, 128-Bit, DVI/TV-Out, 8X AGP, Model "R9550-Guru " -RETAIL $80 shipped
This ABIT card comes with 3.6ns and overclocks to 500/600 (9600XT) more often than not.
bupkus - Sunday, January 9, 2005 - link
I just bought the Biostar 210V and according to their website http://www.biostar-usa.com/ideqdetails.asp?model=i... this model does support a 400 fsb. Don't expect to overclock an AXP as there is neither a voltage nor a multiplier setting in the bios. The fsb for your cpu is set using jumpers which I hope also changes the AGP/PCI ratio as I'm told are unlocked. BTW, newegg had this model for fifteen dollars less than it is now, so look for possible sale prices. Currently $154.Avalon - Sunday, January 9, 2005 - link
You can get the Samsung 997DF 19" monitor for $202 shipped at techonweb.com, I bought it there two weeks ago. If the price hasn't changed....then I'd think $202 > $215 in terms of savings.Glassmaster - Sunday, January 9, 2005 - link
Great guide Jarred!Though I would rather not have seen the RAIDMAX PSU in there, it probably won't be as big a deal for the entry level budget system. It was good to see Fortron Source being mentioned too, as a cheap but reliable PSU alternative.
You might also point people in the direction of the excellent power supply guide by computerpro3 of the hardforums. http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=792566
He lists the brands to stay away from, and those worth buying, along with links to newegg for his specific recommendations.
Glassmaster.
Spacecomber - Sunday, January 9, 2005 - link
I always enjoy reading these system guides; so, thanks for this latest one.A couple of minor comments.
I don't think that the 120mm fan on the Antec SLK1650 cases is temperature controlled. At least one of the fans in the power supply is; so, perhaps that is what you were thinking. Nevertheless, the 120mm fan is fairly quiet and becomes virtually silent, if you use 7 volts for it.
I have been a big fan of the Seagate drives, because of their 5 year warranties (started at the time when there seemed to be a trend toward 1 year warranties on hard drives). While my initial experience of these drives was how quiet they were, I have been hearing other complain of getting drives that were not that quiet. My most recent Seagate purchase was a 120GB PATA model, and I too noticed that it seemed to buzz relatively loudly when it was seeking. I don't think it is so much how loud the noise is, but it has a kind of annoying quality to it.
Apparently, Seagate is involved in a lawsuit that alleges that Seagate stole their accoustic management technology from someone else. As a result, they have disabled this feature in their current line of drives. (You can use something like Hitachi's Feature Tool to see that accoustic management doesn't show up as an option on these drives.)
So, while Seagate continues to offer a 5 year warranty, which nobody else does (except the WD Raptors), they no longer should be looked to when a quiet drive is one of your criteria, imo.
Space
Pollock - Sunday, January 9, 2005 - link
I think you should forgo the SATA Seagate and go with the IDE version, which I've seen as cheap as $59-$62, saving you $7-10 for a pointless upgrade.bigpow - Sunday, January 9, 2005 - link
Entry Level Budget & Entry Level Performance labels should make the conclusion less confusing.kmmatney - Sunday, January 9, 2005 - link
Great review. The graphics section was very good, as well as the SFF section. Nice work.Although you did mention it, I think the Athlon XP-M is the best budget cpu, with a Barton core and unlocked multiplier. It is more expensive than the Sempron, but you can team it up with a $42 Asrock motherboard and overclock it 3200+ speeds easy, even with cheapo RAM.