System Specs (Need Suggestions)

R

Rao

New member
Hi all..

This may be out of scope of this forum's topic.. but I find this forum a really great place to chat, and most of you have really great suggestions.. so here goes:

I've pretty recently upgraded my machine, and it usually runs well, but sometimes I experience some quirkiness, and I want to be sure I'm doing all the right things to make it run really top notch. First.. the system specs:

-AMD Athlon T-Bird 900 (100x9)
-Abit KT7 (factory default BIOS, Via 4-in-1 Drivers)
-256 MB PC100 RAM (3 sticks.. all different store brand-names.. i.e. not Mushkin, Corsair, etc.)
-Maxtor DiamondMax 15GB, 7200rpm, ATA-66 HDD
-ATI Radeon 32 MB DDR (7020 drivers)
-Creative SB-Live! Value (most current drivers)
-Linksys LNE100TX EtherFast 10/100 LAN Card (factory drivers.. I know.. I need to update 'em)
-Antec 300W PSU
-Creative 32X mx CD-ROM
-generic Floppy
-Logitech Mouseman Wheel (optical) (most current drivers)
-Microsoft Natural Keyboard Pro (most current drivers)
-ViewSonic FP790 19" (most current drivers)
-Win98 SE (clean install as of Sunday)

So anyway.. I've installed the 4-in-1 driver set (don't remember the version.. I'm at work right now..), the 4.03 AGP update, the ATI 7020 drivers, and almost all current hardware drivers are up to date. Is there anything any of you can think of that I can do to improve performance? My performance isn't shabby as is (near 4800 3DMarks), but I can't help but feel that I'm missing something.

Flash my BIOS maybe? (eek.. never done that), go with some name-brand (Mushkin, Corsair) PC133 RAM? (wont my sys-bus still be at 100?), perhaps a faster HDD? (looking at a IBM DeskStar 30GB, 7200rpm, ATA-100), lube the whole thing up with Canola oil??

hehe.. seriously.. I've dumped a lot of cash into this thing lately, and I just want to make sure I'm doing everything right. I'm not a wiz at this stuff, so advice is really appreciated.

Thanks!

~Rao
 
Overclock the FSB yo! You might be able to get up somewhere around 112, that will speed everything up. Get new drivers for that lan card (I have it, its phat, cost only $16!). I think upgrading the memory is moot right now, theres not a HUGE performance gain, plus cooler memory is coming out soon. Have you tried the 3063 drivers or these new 7041's for the radeon?

Yeah, flashing your bios to the newest version couldnt hurt either. It used to be "if it ain't broke, dont fix it" when it came to flashing bios. But now, its almost a necessity...

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"You gotta get in where you fit in..."

· Asus K7M · Tbird 800=>963(107FSB*9x) · 128MB RAM · Win2k! · Radeon 32MB DDR · SB Live! Plat · IBM 7200RPM 20GB · Pioneer 10x DVD · Ricoh 4x4x20 ·
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Arial, Verdana">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by FarENheiT:
Overclock the FSB yo! You might be able to get up somewhere around 112, that will speed everything up.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

What about cooling? I've never overclocked anything before in dire fear of frying something. I have a run-o-the-mill mid size tower, with only 1 extra fan (in the front of the case, blowing rear-ward). Is OC'ing the FSB gonna produce a bunch of extra heat? If so, should I look at getting say, a Tornado case?

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Arial, Verdana">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by FarENheiT:
Get new drivers for that lan card (I have it, its phat, cost only $16!).<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yeah.. I hear ya. Will do it as soon as I get home.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Arial, Verdana">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by FarENheiT:
I think upgrading the memory is moot right now, theres not a HUGE performance gain, plus cooler memory is coming out soon.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I was thinking the same. Although buying a DDR system might have to wait for awhile.. I've blown over a thousand bucks in the last month alone.. hehe. =P

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Arial, Verdana">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by FarENheiT:
Have you tried the 3063 drivers or these new 7041's for the radeon? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

3063 drivers?

No, I haven't tried anything but the 7020 drivers, because most people looked like they were recommending them. Anyone have any tried-and-true experience with the 7041's?

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Arial, Verdana">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by FarENheiT:
Yeah, flashing your bios to the newest version couldnt hurt either. It used to be "if it ain't broke, dont fix it" when it came to flashing bios. But now, its almost a necessity...<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Okie doke.. I'll do it. Is the reference on ABit's site the way to go? Or is there somewhere else I should look for a thorough walkthrough (never done it before, and I dont wanna really mess my mobo up)

Thanks for the reply FarENheiT.. I'll be sure to take your words into consideration!

~Rao
 
if that is an original sblive value, scrap it and get the new 5.1 (doesn't matter which one) I did this and my 3dmarks went up 600 points. overall I got a total system boost in all games of nearly 10%.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Arial, Verdana">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by TheBeagle:
if that is an original sblive value, scrap it and get the new 5.1 (doesn't matter which one) I did this and my 3dmarks went up 600 points. overall I got a total system boost in all games of nearly 10%.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Really? Wow!

Yeah.. It's an original retail model. I have heard accounts of people experiencing kookiness with SBLive cards, so I don't doubt that a 1-2 year old Value card might not have it's own set of internal "difficulties".

Good suggestion TheBeagle! I guess maybe an X-Gamer or Platinum card maybe in the pipe.

=)
 
Scrap the Linksys Network card and get something else. Linksys cards have trouble more often than they should. Someone I know throws LAN parties and they contiunally have trouble with people using Linksys cards getting poor connections. Remember, just because you know X people with Linksys cards does not mean they are good, it just means they work most of the time (and they should). Netgear is a far better option overall.
 
Hmm.. I dunno. I've actually never had a problem with the card, or my LAN at home. We have a Linksys Router, and both my roommates and I share a DSL connect, each of us using the same Linksys cards, and we never have had any performance problems.

(Now.. our ISP seems to have it in for us.. but that's an altogether different story ;P)

I have heard good things about Netgear, but I've also heard a lot of good things about LinkSys.

I also might be a little biased.. when we put on QuakeCon this year, LinkSys was one of our sponsors.. so I kinda feel obligated.. hehe.

Thanks for the reply though.. I'll keep it in mind if our network ever starts to behave poorly.

~Rao
 
Do you have your BIOS settings fixed for maximum performance? Stock KT7 settings are conservative.

Tweak a setting, test, tweak, test.. Whatever you do, don't change more than one setting at once - and when you go to test - use HDTach, 3dmark, and several full applications (Q3, HL, Word, etc). Once you get everything set with good stability, print out your settings so you won't forget them.
 
Here's a suggestion that you're not going to like.

First thing's first. Your motherboard.

It seems to me that more people have problems with this KT7 motherboard and their Radeon than any other motherboard out there. (Disregarding those 12 year old boards that people insist should work fine with their 2 month old Radeon.) I recommend an ASUS motherboard as they're very reliable so far.

Secondly. Your Memory.
Did you really say "Store Brand" memory? Most issues of quirkiness can be traced back to non-mainstream memory. If you can, sell some memory on eBay, and spring for some good ol' Micron CAS2 memory. Your computer will appreciate it.


The above are just recommendations, and are subject to the same thing that everything else in life is, it's subject to being WRONG. But I think that the above suggestions, both from others and mine own, should help you somewhat in your quest to kill the "quirkiness" gnome that lives inside your beige case.



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My Spec's:
AMD Duron 600@800
ASUS A7V MotherBoard (w/ Dips) - Via(4-1) ver 425a
256MB PC133 SDRAM
Radeon 64MB DDR (No VIVO) - 7041
19" NEC MultiSync 95
Pioneer 16x DVD-ROM
Maxtor 15GB 7200RPM HD
SB Live! Value (Digital)
Cambridge SW FPS2000
Logitech Opti Mouse (I Love This Thing!)
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Arial, Verdana">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by TheBeagle:
if that is an original sblive value, scrap it and get the new 5.1 (doesn't matter which one) I did this and my 3dmarks went up 600 points. overall I got a total system boost in all games of nearly 10%.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Actually, go get a Montego Santa Cruz card. Sounds just as good as, if not better than, the SBLive 5.1. Of course the SC has 5.1 on it, as well as 5.1 emulation if you don't even have a digital receiver or speakers! One of the things that pushes it up and over is that the SC has no CPU usage where the SBLive still takes precious clock cycles from the system (hey, some of us want every freaking instruction cycle we can). For a more in depth comparison go here.
 
Thanks for all the advice everyone. I'll definitely be looking at all these options. Keep em coming if you want! I'm always open to advice.

=)

~Rao
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Arial, Verdana">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by shrike126:
Here's a suggestion that you're not going to like.

First thing's first. Your motherboard.

It seems to me that more people have problems with this KT7 motherboard and their Radeon than any other motherboard out there. (Disregarding those 12 year old boards that people insist should work fine with their 2 month old Radeon.) I recommend an ASUS motherboard as they're very reliable so far.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I've got to disagree on that, being an KT7-raid owner and having no major problems with my Radeon. Most problems I've seen with KT7's and Radeons where related to the Via chipset, so buying an Asus, that uses the same chipset, is IMHO a waste of money.

On the memory part however, having some good memory, with the same specs, no single- and doublesided mix, does do a lot for performance when combined with the proper bios-settings.
Via chipsets have been known to have a "poor" memory performance, and that's where there is the most to gain.
Take your time fiddling with the settings, and use a benchmark such as SiSoft's Sandra which lets you benchmark the memory specifically
 
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