Questions about memory and a few other things for the AMD/Asus system I am building (long)

HI I am going to be putting together a system with the following:

AthlonXP 3200+ 400FSB 512K Barton
Asus A7N8X-DX v.2 nForce2

the main problem I need help with is memory, some things that come to
mind (err...umm no pun intended):

1) do I have to worry about the CAS latencey? I know latency is a
delay of sorts but what I dont know is what the different numbers mean
ie 3-4-4-8, 2-3-2-6-T1, etc.

2) What is a good brand? I am currently looking at these:
http://www.corsairmicro.com/xms/xms_modules.html

2a) on that site I see two that appear to be what i need, either the
TWINX512-3200C2 or the TWINX512-3200LL both have similar CAS Latency
except for one number 2-3-3-6-T1 vs. 2-3-2-6-T1 what is the difference
betwen the C2 and LL? And what is the difference in the 1 number off
on the CAS?

2b) their datasheet pdfs have the following

TWINX512-3200LL
Tested at ultra-low latency settings
(2-3-2-6), command rate of 1T

TWINX512-3200C2
Tested at ultra-low latency settings
2-3-3 latency settings, two modules installed
2.5-3-3 latency settings, four modules installed

I was hopeing to get 3 (1 & a half gig) do I have to just get a 1
matched pair (1 gig)? The MB only has 3 memory slots. If I can put 3
in do I have to somehow match the 3rd one or are they just using
matched meaning two c2 versions as opposed to one c2 and one LL. I am
currently assuming matched means that even though the have a rated
speed, CAS, etc there is some variance (tolerance) and the two matched
ones are very close.

2c) there are modules that are higher speed then the FSB of 400
specifically 467 and 500MHz can I use them? Will they be faster? Was I
wrong in assuming the 400MHz memory was matched to the FSB speed of
the cpu?

3) should I get heat sinks for the memory or are they only necessary
for overclocking

4) Can I use watercooling instead of just a heatsink/fan for an
AthlonXP 3200? I plan to do some sound recording and want the pc to
be as silent as can be. Or is thIs again something that is only
necessary for overclocking?

Basically I am trying to get the most powerful system I can since I
want to do music and video editing. That is why I want more then a
gig system memory so the editing is smooth and not choppy. I don't
mean ripping cd/dvd and burning I mean actually making and editing
songs (Acid, Cakewalk) and video (Adobe Premere/photoshop).


which brings us to some less important questions (Sarcasmbut feel
free to answer them/Sarcasm).


Video Captu
1) Has anyone had any experence with video capture cards that they can
share with me? I figure anything I shoot with a dv cam will come in
over firewire or usb but I also have some old video tapes I wanna
record and It would be cool to record shows off of cable digitally
instead of to a vcr but of course the main concern is editing my own
stuff so that performance cannot be sacraficed to use the computer as
a vcr. (not that I think a video capture card would impead the system
that much but I haven't used one so I just though I would mention it.)


Case/PS:
1) as for the case and power supply. Is there anything specific I
should look out for? I don't need any of them windows/neon bulb
dealies since the computer will be under the desk no one is going to
see it.

2) Do I need one that is like 400 Watt or what (again no pun hehe)?


Built in graphics vs a card:
1) will the built in graphics of the Asus A7N8X-DX v.2 nForce2 be
sufficient for high end games (artists need to play too)? I would
like to run the games at like 1024x768 if possible. Will I need
perhaps a GForce with alot of memory? How does the nForce compare
with a GForce (I have a GForce2 GTS in this system). btw I know they
are both by nvida I am wondering the difference in performance. I am
assuming the nForce is somewhat scalled down to be just a bit above
average.

2) If I do get a GForce (or other brand) can I use the built in one to
1 monitor and the card to another? My current MB does not allow this
and I am assuming it is one or the other in this case too.

3) I have seen that there is a cable to run from a gforce cards lcd
port (DVI to VGA cable) to a second monitor will that work for the on
board one as well? (I'm assuming no.)


As far as price I'm not too worried as long as it is for good parts
however I don't wanna just drop $$s for the sake of having the best of
the best.

As for putting it togter I have newer totally made a new system from
new parts but I have canabalized old systems and made new ones from
them, however we are talking back when 486 was top of the line. I
have done all upgrades (Harddrives, more memory, cdr, dvdr,
sound/video cards etc) on my current system i-P3 750Mhz myself. I
feel more then confident that I can pull it off. And on that note I
just wanna say upgrading was so much easier back with the C64 throw it
out and get a 128...ok I'm a bit old.

Thanks in advance
Jim
remove -worstispever for my email if
you need it for some reason.

Built in graphics vs a card:

Ok it seams the Asus A7N8X-DX v.2 nForce2 does not have built in video
even though their website seams to talk about video. So ignore that
whole topic since I was planning on getting a card anyway as was
probably obvious from my original post.

But instead lets add this question (it never ends).

Can I run a normal ata ide harddrive as a main dive with the OS etc
and still also at the same time have a Sata Raid for the video data
drive?

Jim

Jim wrote:

HI I am going to be putting together a system with the following:

AthlonXP 3200+ 400FSB 512K Barton

Why? These are still stupid expencive and a P4 3.0/800 is faster and
cheaper.. Combine it with an ASUS P4P800 and you'll be way better off.



Basically I am trying to get the most powerful system I can since I
want to do music and video editing. That is why I want more then a
gig system memory so the editing is smooth and not choppy. I don't
mean ripping cd/dvd and burning I mean actually making and editing
songs (Acid, Cakewalk) and video (Adobe Premere/photoshop).

If you're going to use premier for video editing DON'T use an AMD over a P4.
These apps use SSE2 code (which AMD doesn't) and this makes the P4 MUCH
faster in this app. I've tested both platforms and for video editing a P4
is almost twice as fast in use i.e. render times for effects etc not just
mpeg encoding benchmarks on the web.. Another thing you'll want is 2 hard
drives or at least a 7200RPM 8 meg cache drive. You don't need to set it up
as a raid but use one for the OS and the other for storage/capture.

If you don't believe me, go ask this question in the video newsgroups like
rec.video.______ . Maybe when the AMD64 comes out with SSE2 support (and
64 bit version of premier) this will change but for now a P4 is what you
want for editing video.




Video Captu
1) Has anyone had any experence with video capture cards that they can
share with me? I figure anything I shoot with a dv cam will come in
over firewire or usb but I also have some old video tapes I wanna
record

You don't move DV via USB, it's done with firewire. The USB link is for
stills or LOW quality video. Most cameras have a "pass through" which
converts analog to DV. Read the manual and you may not need anything to do
what you're talking about. On my camera you turn it on with no tape in it,
conect the analog to the input jack and turn on "DV out" in a menu. If you
haven't bought a camera yet make sure it will do this.



Built in graphics vs a card:
1) will the built in graphics of the Asus A7N8X-DX v.2 nForce2 be
sufficient for high end games (artists need to play too)?

No and will use main memory as well. ATI is the best card right now.


2) If I do get a GForce (or other brand) can I use the built in one to
1 monitor and the card to another?

Not ussually. Almost any good card now supports dual monitors (which you
will =NEED= for video editing) so that isn't an issue.



As far as price I'm not too worried as long as it is for good parts
however I don't wanna just drop $$s for the sake of having the best of
the best.



Then don't go with an AMD for this use. I might sound like a Intel zealot
but I got accused of being an AMD salesman yesterday for sugesting someone
NOT use a P4 but buy AMD's for their office computers. Even for a gaming
system AMD's work fine (but those XP3200 are still too expencive for their
performance) but for video editing they are the wrong choice.

--

Stacey

On Mon, 15 Sep 2003 02:28:31 -0400, Stacey wrote:

Jim wrote:

HI I am going to be putting together a system with the following:

AthlonXP 3200+ 400FSB 512K Barton

Why? These are still stupid expencive and a P4 3.0/800 is faster and
cheaper.. Combine it with an ASUS P4P800 and you'll be way better off.

SNIP

Then don't go with an AMD for this use. I might sound like a Intel zealot
but I got accused of being an AMD salesman yesterday for sugesting someone
NOT use a P4 but buy AMD's for their office computers. Even for a gaming
system AMD's work fine (but those XP3200 are still too expencive for their
performance) but for video editing they are the wrong choice.

--

Stacey

I'm called AMD "fanatic" by at least one person, I freely admit to
being biased, and I still agree with everything Stacey said. I have
just a couple more comments.
You might be interested in moving down to P4 2.8GHz@800 for even
cheaper cpu.

(I was a bit unsure about ASUS P4P800 as a stable board, but I should
think Stacey knows this much better than me.)

And 'financing' an expensive CPU with savings on the videocard, as you
were looking to do, is not generally a good idea, for a non-server
type of machine.


ancra