-I am going on a trip shortly and have been debating what to do. My old laptop cannot run PhotoShop CS, Macromedia Suite, and some of my other software. And my current desktop system is far too big to travel with. And neither do I want to lug the beast around OR risk damage to it.
-I am not too interested in a laptop. I always feel ripped off with them, especially with limited expandability.
-What I want is something small. I need not bother with a monitor because everywhere I go (businesses and where I will be staying have access).
So I have been looking at SFF.
Of course the most popular--and most reliable and feature rich--are the SFF's from Shuttle. I have not followed the market closely, but I would like some feedback on the below "idea" for a rig:
SFF: Shuttle SN25P. AMD64/FX 939, 2x DDR400 slots, 1x PCIe 16x, 4x SATA, 1x ATA100, Sound, Gbit LAN, 350W PSU ... $375
CPU: AMD Athlon64 3000+ Venice ... $146
MEMORY: 2GB (2 x 512MB) DDR400 3-4-4-8 ... $159
Alt (2GB is prob too much $) option:
MEMORY: 1GB (2x512) Corsair Value Select DDR400 CAS 2.5 ... $80
VIDEO: 6600GT PCIe This one is a Gibabyte ... $162
HDD, Floppy, DVD-RW => All stuff laying around.
1. The CAS on the 2GB is 3-4-4-8. Any feedback on that? pqi brand, never heard of it, but I am not planning to OC.
2. Opinions on Rosewill stuff? Like RAM, GPU, etc...
3. Is the 3200+ (200MHz) worth the extra $40? Reviews have been sketchy on OCing in SFFs, so I am assuming I WONT OC at all, so I am wondering about opinions on this. 11% on the CPU for $40 basically.
4. Is there a better SFF??? Heat, noise, features, performance, cost. Trying to get a good balance on this.
5. I can save $90 by getting the SN95G5V3. Biggest difference: AGP. PCIe is the future, if not present (who knows if the 7x00 or R5x0 series cards will ever come out in AGP... my guess is yes for midrange products), but this system is not intended to be a killer gaming rig--only casual gaming. Mainly a work/travel system. Any strong thoughts for/against this SFF model? Or against getting AGP under these circumstances? I can see this system being used by friends at LANs for BF2 or CS:S, or when I travel and have some down time. But gaming is not its #1 function (web development is).
Thanks for your time and feedback.
-I am not too interested in a laptop. I always feel ripped off with them, especially with limited expandability.
-What I want is something small. I need not bother with a monitor because everywhere I go (businesses and where I will be staying have access).
So I have been looking at SFF.
Of course the most popular--and most reliable and feature rich--are the SFF's from Shuttle. I have not followed the market closely, but I would like some feedback on the below "idea" for a rig:
SFF: Shuttle SN25P. AMD64/FX 939, 2x DDR400 slots, 1x PCIe 16x, 4x SATA, 1x ATA100, Sound, Gbit LAN, 350W PSU ... $375
CPU: AMD Athlon64 3000+ Venice ... $146
MEMORY: 2GB (2 x 512MB) DDR400 3-4-4-8 ... $159
Alt (2GB is prob too much $) option:
MEMORY: 1GB (2x512) Corsair Value Select DDR400 CAS 2.5 ... $80
VIDEO: 6600GT PCIe This one is a Gibabyte ... $162
HDD, Floppy, DVD-RW => All stuff laying around.
1. The CAS on the 2GB is 3-4-4-8. Any feedback on that? pqi brand, never heard of it, but I am not planning to OC.
2. Opinions on Rosewill stuff? Like RAM, GPU, etc...
3. Is the 3200+ (200MHz) worth the extra $40? Reviews have been sketchy on OCing in SFFs, so I am assuming I WONT OC at all, so I am wondering about opinions on this. 11% on the CPU for $40 basically.
4. Is there a better SFF??? Heat, noise, features, performance, cost. Trying to get a good balance on this.
5. I can save $90 by getting the SN95G5V3. Biggest difference: AGP. PCIe is the future, if not present (who knows if the 7x00 or R5x0 series cards will ever come out in AGP... my guess is yes for midrange products), but this system is not intended to be a killer gaming rig--only casual gaming. Mainly a work/travel system. Any strong thoughts for/against this SFF model? Or against getting AGP under these circumstances? I can see this system being used by friends at LANs for BF2 or CS:S, or when I travel and have some down time. But gaming is not its #1 function (web development is).
Thanks for your time and feedback.