So I have an awesome mac pro that I'm trying to sell so I can replace it with a computer that's more suited to my uses and use the excess money to buy 914 parts:
http://slo.craigslist.org/sys/1268908068.html

Anyone have suggestions for a computer to replace it?
I mostly do media stuff, the occasional video game, and Solid modeling stuff for school.
I'm thinking something i7 based with 6 gigs of ram.
I'd probably run linux 90% of the time and boot XP for solidworks.

Also, if anyone's interested in the computer I'd probably be willing to sell it for a bit less to someone from here.

That is a sweet machine. had I not got a MacBook pro, I would be looking at that seriously...
I am running VM Fusion with XP pro for Autocad and (LAME Frontpage) with half that ram and it kix it good!

Yeah, Solidworks doesn't like emulation on the macbook pro. It actually runs faster on my MBP than on the school's computers.

I love the mac pro, but I only bought it 'cause I got a decent deal on it, and I have three or four 914 projects that need money to see completion. Need a few hundred for fiberglass materials to make a couple nice hoods (actually there's quite a bit of composites stuff I want to do. Might be able to make some molds for engine tin really cheaply). Need a couple hundred to make myself a new wiring harness. Gotta make some brackets for my HIDs etc.

The other option which is 914 heavier is to use my existing linux box and MBP and something like a drobo (http://www.drobo.com/) to give them both lots of storage.

Damn I thought I was cool with my dual processor g5. You've got eight!?


Seems like theres always a guy showing up with more cylinders than me...

Why not build your own machine?

go homegrown from individual parts. Newegg, frye's, etc... ?

I've built computers for years, only ones I won't built myself are laptops... everything from small desktops for schools, to large servers, to full blown top-line gaming machines... the only people I tell to just buy one are the people who only need a cheap computer to check email and surf the web with... they can get a cheap HP/Dell...

for everyone else, you get a lot more bang for your buck building a computer yourself.

If you are going to run Linux, build your own.

That way you can use components that work well with Linux, and not have to worry about chasing down drivers for parts that are so new that there is no *nix support yet.

Zach

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=D2...D-_-IDEAPADMain

# Integrated video

-just say NO

that computer would be fine for grandma wanting to email the grandkids and look up recipes from the food network, but
512 MB DDR RAM
+ 40 GB hard drive
+ Integrated video +
______________________
C-R-A-P

for anyone doing anything more...
the PSU isn't even enough to support adding a video card and a bigger HD. 230W

Food network. Yes' I believe that Cliff needs to keep up with all the latest of Rachel Ray.

I think he meant to build one himself. Anyone have suggestions on motherboards, etc?

advice I can give, mostly from not following it in the past...

1) I don't overclock... it's a bad idea.

2) asus motherboards have always been extremely reliable to me... but I've gotten away with gigabyte, Abit and even ECS(see #1)...

3)stay with the big 2 chipsets on video, ATI and nvidia

4) Ram used to be the most volatile thing in a PC, you could look at RAM wrong and it failed... now, it's much better. that said, kingston makes a very solid RAM, patriot is also solid (see #1) but don't spend a bunch on a slightly faster ram, you'll be happier with MORE ram, than ram that is 1 latency faster

5)get enough power, any system now needs at lest about 450-500w starting... get a PSU with a seperate +12V rail for video... my main PC has 5 HDs, and a rocking video card on 550 watts, with a dual core AMD64 and 4GB of RAM. I never shut it off. aside from power failure in the house from storms, it hasn't been turned off in 8 months.... buy a GOOD PSU (Antec has been the best for me, but Enermax used to be very good.. I haven't used one in 3 years tho, because this PSU(ANTEC) was what replaced it. with all of my HDs, I should probably run 650w + but so far so good.

6) this was the hardest lesson for me to learn... I'd build a nice machine and put it in a cheap case... it would work, sure... but it was loud, sometimes got hot because some cases aren't vented enough, so I'd have to keep them open, making them even louder. also, I'd have to deal with 100 little screws, sharp metal and shit that was just frustrating. get a good case with thumb screws or screwless construction. shop around, you can find good Antec cases cheap sometimes, under $30

toms hardware guide has always been pretty good on hardware reviews...

A coupla more things that you don't want to scrimp on- a good power supply and a good case (cooling).

For me. power supplys seem to be the component that fails the most and when they do, they can (worst case) blow out the motherboard, the emicroporocessor, the RAM, and the hard drives....

Last time I bought an Antec Sonata Case with a really good power supply. After my 4th year, the power supply blew..... The supply had a short detecting ground out circuit which tripped and and blocked a voltage spike from zapping the system. I replaced the Antec supply with another one because it had the short protection. The Sonata cases are really quiet, you can adjust the cooling, and even have a built in air filter to block dust from shorting out components on the motherboard.

I've run Asus and Abit motherboards with mixed results. Right now I'm runnning a Biostar and it's flawless no matter what I throw at it.

Stay away from overclocking. It's kinda like adding Nitrous to a 914. It's fun for awhile but the heat will kill the components....