System specs

[FractalWalk]

After much reading of this forum, I have decided to try and build my own system for my cab. However, I have never done this before and while I am confident that I can do it, I know very little about choosing the correct parts. I want to make sure that all the parts I buy are compatible. From TCWO, this is what I have put together so far:


Case & P/S - Enlight 7250 300w USB
Processor - AthlonXP 1800+ Retail Box
Motherboard - Gigabyte GA-7VAX S/L KT 400, Sound/LAN/AGP8X/DDR400
Memory - 256MB PC2700 333MHz
Hard Drive - IBM Deskstar 60GB U100 7200 2MB
CD Drive - Lite-On 16X DVD Retail
Floppy Drive - Mitsumi Beige 1.44 FDD
Sound Card - Creative Labs SB PCI128


The system will be running Windows 98 and I won't be doing any overclocking. Does this look OK? I'm not asking whether it is a good system for mame/pc games but rather if it will work. In other words, if I hook all of this up will it cause a small explosion or will all the fur fall off of my cat or will my TV always air Friends when I turn it on . . . wait, that happens now.

Regarding the Enlight case, a footnote at the TCWO site states "Note: Front USB not compatible with Gigabyte mainboards." However, when I look at the Gigabyte site for that motherboard, it says, "2 x 2ports USB 2.0 connector (by front USB ports)". Does that mean that TCWO is wrong or do I need a different case? If so, any suggestions? From what I saw, all the mid tower cases at TCWO are front-USB.  The case comes with one fan, but has room for a second. Do I need to have the second fan with the AMD 1800+?

Also, I am assuming that all cables that I need come with the various parts. Is this true or do I need to order them seperately?

[cdbrown]

That looks alright to me although you might want to get a graphics card.  You don't necessarily need the sound blaster card as it has onboard sound although onboard components can have a slight performance hit (I'm not worrying about it with my Epox 8RDA+).

Do you actually need to use the 2 USB ports on the front of the case as the motherboard already has 2 at the back located next the sound outputs and inputs.

The case and powersupply I have never heard of before.  You always want to make sure you have a good reliable power supply otherwise you end up with an unstable system.  I would recommed something from Antec (that's what I got) or Enermax.  They seem to be popular.  I'm not to sure about the rating of 300W it's always better to go a little more just incase you add a burner or another hard drive.

Cheers
-cdbrown

[SirPoonga]

Do you actually need to use the 2 USB ports on the front of the case as the motherboard already has 2 at the back located next the sound outputs and inputs.

Now, for Fractel, Looks good, How are you getting these parts?  Is ia  CPU/Mobo combo so oyu know they work together?  You looked at the Mobo specs to make sure that memory works with it?
YES!!! especially it is very nice to have, especially in a cabinet!

as cdbrown said, you don;t need a video car or sound since you have onboard, unless oyu plan on running othe rPC software on your cabinet.  But you can get that at anytime in the future:)

[eightbit]

Enlight cases are good, 300w power supply is plenty.

Why run win98? I would suggest winXP or at least win2k.

Is the video onboard on that motherboard? I would recomend upgrading to a real video card if it is but thats up to you.

[SirPoonga]

Enlight cases are good, 300w power supply is plenty.

Why run win98? I would suggest winXP or at least win2k.

Is the video onboard on that motherboard? I would recomend upgrading to a real video card if it is but thats up to you.

Why, onboard video is good enough for mame.

[2slk]

 No, the GA-7VAX does not have onboard video so a vid card will have to be added. Nothing much was mentioned about the cab itself (monitor, etc.) so it's hard to make a recommendation. Gigabyte are great boards but in your case, make sure it's not earlier than revision 1.1. Before this version, there was no failsafe mechanism for CPU fan failure.
 
 Your 333Mhz memory will be ok but you could use 266 without any performance hit. The motherboard supports 333Mhz memory but the XP 1800+ has a front side bus of only 266Mhz. In other words, your memory and motherboard bus are limited by the performance of the CPU. 333Mhz would be an OK idea just the same in case you upgrade the CPU sometime in the future and the price difference is negligible.

 The MoBo has built in audio and it is quite decent. In fact, it's probably better than the SB PCI 128. For playing classic MAME stuff and even for listening to music, it will do very well unless you are very, very picky. Save yourself a few bucks and see how you like it first.

 Lite-On 16X DVD Retail - Do you plan on watching DVD's on your cab?

 Enlight cases. I may start a war here but I don't like them a lot. This is only a personal opinion but one based on a lot of experience. I've had trouble with the power supplies more times than I care to remember. If I were you (but I'm not), I would spend a few extra bucks and get an ANTEC power supply.

 And why bother with a case at all? Get a good PS and mount everything directly inside the cab. It will give you better access and better airflow - something to consider when running an AMD processor. Those suckers run hot. To me, it makes little sense to run a box inside a box especially if you are talking about a full-sized cab. Make sure the cab itself has good airflow and you're set.  

 OS - If this is a dedicated MAME cab and you plan to use a front end, 98SE is probably your best bet. Why? Because you probably already have a copy or at least know someone who does. No extra $$$ to plop down on XP. Go to the examples page and check out MAGMA (It's in the Desktop Controller section) for more on this. It's pretty comprehensive.

 In summary, yes your system will work. If it's your first time building a PC, take your time and read all of your documentation carefully and you should be OK. I believe that Tom's hardware Guide (http://www.tomshardware.com) has a step-by-step builder's guide that you can review. Good luck.  

 

 

[cdbrown]

And why bother with a case at all? Get a good PS and mount everything directly inside the cab. It will give you better access and better airflow - something to consider when running an AMD processor. Those suckers run hot. To me, it makes little sense to run a box inside a box especially if you are talking about a full-sized cab. Make sure the cab itself has good airflow and you're set.

The "should I leave it in a case or out" debate has happened before.  I was originally going to leave it out and just ensure there was adequte air flow through the cab.  But as I have read various topics on some hardware sites I have found a lot of people recommend keep it in the case to achieve better air flow accross the motherboard and components.  I have found that my old PC was cooler with the side panel off (idle around 43 deg C - old duron 800) while the new PC is better with the side panel on (idle around 34 deg C XP1800+ oc XP2000)  Having a fan or two at the front of the case blows cool air across the boards and gets sucked out through the fans at the back.  Some cases have a fan on the side to blow directly onto the board and graphics card.  This decision is entirely up to you, as you could save a few bucks on the case and get a reliable psu.  I've probably been spending too much time on the overclockers forum that I worry about heat.  Another thing to think about is the ease of having everything in a case instead of mounting everything to the bottom or wall of the cab.  I'll stop ranting now.

OS - If this is a dedicated MAME cab and you plan to use a front end, 98SE is probably your best bet. Why? Because you probably already have a copy or at least know someone who does. No extra $$$ to plop down on XP.

 

I have found for my system that XP runs faster then 98SE  - I have mine as a dual boot so I can play dual trackball games when needed.

Cheers
-cdbrown

[eightbit]

OS - If this is a dedicated MAME cab and you plan to use a front end, 98SE is probably your best bet. Why? Because you probably already have a copy or at least know someone who does. No extra $$$ to plop down on XP. Go to the examples page and check out MAGMA (It's in the Desktop Controller section) for more on this. It's pretty comprehensive.

XP can use more ram efficiently, its more stable, its more compatable with newer devices. It recovers from errors better, its a current supported OS. The pro version has really cool remote capabilities built in.

[FractalWalk]

You guys rock! Thanks for all the input, you have helped me out a lot. 2slk, thanks for the tips on audio card, memory and mobo version, I will follow your advice.

I haven't completely made up my mind on the video card yet but I am 95% sure I will be using an arcade monitor and Ultimarc's ArcadeVGA card. There is also a chance that I will go with the WG D9200, but my understanding is that to fully utilize that I will have to use AdvanceMame, which I would rather stay away from. However, if I do go with the 9200 are there any suggestions for video cards?

Regarding USB ports, I don't need front USB as long as they are in the back, which I assumed they were until I read that note that said, "not compatible". I guess that just worried me.

For the OS, I'm going Win98 for two reasons: it's what I have and I want to leave analogMame as an option. Also after having read everything that I could on this forum, there doesn't seem to be a consensus as to what the "best" OS is for MAME. Therefore, I thought I'd keep the cash in my pocket. I'm pretty sure I can get 98SE at no expense.

I went with a DVD player because it is likely that this system will be taken out of the cabinet in the future. At that point, I will want to have DVD capability.

I'm going to use a case for the same reason above as well as it seems like less mounting work in the cab. If I do this, would you guys suggest a second fan inside the case? I know nothing about the Enlight case, I just saw it recommended on a DIY site, however I have heard ANTEC recommended about 3 times now.

[Odonadon]

However, if I do go with the 9200 are there any suggestions for video cards?

I hear the ArcadeVGA (or whatever it's called) at Ultimarc (http://www.ultimarc.com) is supposed to be the sweet shiznit.

Odonadon

[killr0y]

For those of you that don't use PC cases in your cabs:

What do you use to anchor the expansion cards (i.e. video card, etc) to?  

[toilet]

"Note: Front USB not compatible with Gigabyte mainboards." However, when I look at the Gigabyte site for that motherboard, it says, "2 x 2ports USB 2.0 connector (by front USB ports)".

This is actually the ugly side of 3rd party USB port connecting. I totally dealed with this when building my system. Basically there are 5 wires for the USB ports: some power, ground, data, etc. Usually for the dual connectors the 'header' on the motherboard is in the arrangement of 10 pins in 2 rows of 5.

Now, here's where it gets cool. There is no standard on how any of these pins should be laid out. Some MB manufacturers place them running in parallel [VCC1, VCC2, GND1, GND2], some place them sequentially [VCC1, GND1, VCC2, GND2], and some just make up their own. So now Enlight has to make the plugs on the front USB panel in some formation and just hope for the best. To be fair, most cases provide a couple different connectors and at the least give you documentation on the wire-layout.

If you want to use the USB header on the MB for extra USB ports you can buy rear panel (slot) type connectors for like $8. The only thing you have to do is check the MB manual for the pin layout on the USB header, then match it up with the pin layout on the packages of USB panels at the store.

[rampy]

However, if I do go with the 9200 are there any suggestions for video cards?

I hear the ArcadeVGA (or whatever it's called) at Ultimarc (http://www.ultimarc.com) is supposed to be the sweet shiznit.

Odonadon

Isn't the 9200 a VGA arcade monitor? if so it is redundant (and silly) to use andy's card for that...   Use whatever card you want.  (there's a gillion threads in the monitor/video forum with cries for the "best video card for mame" check those out)  I can't see how you could go wrong with a decent "modern" video card with the 9200...

*shrug*

ymmv,

rampy

[toilet]

What do you use to anchor the expansion cards (i.e. video card, etc) to?  

Some of the motherboard trays that are yanked from cases have both the horizontal base and the vertical slot-wall for screwing in the expansion cards. The Inwin cases I used do at least.

[2slk]

Fractal,

 Regarding fans, it really depends. First you have to make sure you have enough airflow going on inside the cab itself first. No matter how many PC case fans you have, it's not going to make a difference if you are just circulating hot air. Having said this, I'll tell you what my situation is regarding case and fans.

 My main PC is built inside an Antec performance plus 1080AMG file server with an Antec TRUEPower 430W power supply. I have case 4 fans, two intakes and 2 exhausts. This may seem like overkill but I'm running an AMD XP 2700+ slightly overclocked, a mirrored hard drive array, several other goodies and I do an extreme amount of tinkering inside the box. On days when the ambient temperature is relatively low, my case and CPU fans run at low RPMs but they really whizz away when it's hot in my place. I don't have central air conditioning but it would certainly make a difference in summer if I did.  

 At first, my present system was ok with 3 case fans but then summer came. I added another fan and swapped all the internal cables for round versions and it made a considerable difference. I suspect that you will need additional cooling but start with the one and see how it goes. Make sure you are running a monitoring software (I think the Gigabyte board comes bundled with a pretty decent one) and go from there. Aside from your own assessment, it's difficult to say more on what you may need as far as fans go.  

 The MoBo does have 2 USB ports on the back. As for Enlight front USB support, I couldn't say. The front ports on my Antec case work fine. I couldn't imagine what the compatibility issue might be with Enlight. Generally speaking though, I would say that many people underestimate the importance of having a good case. I know guys who buy a new case every time they do a major PC upgrade. My case has already seen three major upgrades and I'm sure it's going to see many more. Don't skimp on the case and the PS. If you do, you'll pay more for it in the long run.  

 What cdbrown and eightbit say about WinXP is true. Simply put, it's a newer generation OS and it's better at doing what an OS should do. Still, I wouldn't plop down the extra bucks just to use it on a dedicated MAME PC. I just don't see the cost/benefit factor the same as others may plus, you can always upgrade later if you are unhappy with its features.

 What cdbrown says about the case/no case debate is also true. Like anything else though, it's just a matter of doing the right thing the right way vs. doing the right thing the wrong way. Proper planning and design will lead to a positive experience either way. Have fun!!!

[Homebrew]

I dont think it was mentioned, but one good reason for having the system inside a case is EMI shielding.  Though it would probably would be fine without it, i personally like to be on the safe side.  If that 1800+ is a thoroughbred and not a palamino, then heat won't be as much of a concern.  Just slap a decent heatsink on there and you should be fine.  I'm running a 1200mhz thunderbird cpu in my cabinet and its inside a case.  Thunderbird's run significantly hotter and i haven't had any problems.  As mentioned before, just make sure there is decent ventilation in the cab.  I personally have  about a 15" gap between the cabinet back and the angled top back.  Basically, this is right at the rear of my TV.  This gives both the cabinet and the TV good ventilation.  Though some people prefer to have cabinet back totally enclosed.  In those cases, i'd recommend a couple fans to circulate air in the cabinet.  But again, these suggestions have been mentioned.  Antec's are good cases as mentioned, but something that wasn't mentioned is that antec's most popular cases are actually manufactured by someone else.  Chenming is the manufacturer of antec's more popular series which i believe are now marketed as the performance series.  Anyone reading this as of 1Pm eastern time might wanna check out www.coolerguys.com as they're having a 3 hour sale on the chenming cases.  While they don't come with Power supplies, the prices are very good.  

[Tiger-Heli]

"Note: Front USB not compatible with Gigabyte mainboards." However, when I look at the Gigabyte site for that motherboard, it says, "2 x 2ports USB 2.0 connector (by front USB ports)".

This is actually the ugly side of 3rd party USB port connecting. I totally dealed with this when building my system. Basically there are 5 wires for the USB ports: some power, ground, data, etc. Usually for the dual connectors the 'header' on the motherboard is in the arrangement of 10 pins in 2 rows of 5.

Now, here's where it gets cool. There is no standard on how any of these pins should be laid out. Some MB manufacturers place them running in parallel [VCC1, VCC2, GND1, GND2], some place them sequentially [VCC1, GND1, VCC2, GND2], and some just make up their own. So now Enlight has to make the plugs on the front USB panel in some formation and just hope for the best. To be fair, most cases provide a couple different connectors and at the least give you documentation on the wire-layout.

If you want to use the USB header on the MB for extra USB ports you can buy rear panel (slot) type connectors for like $8. The only thing you have to do is check the MB manual for the pin layout on the USB header, then match it up with the pin layout on the packages of USB panels at the store.

Agree, probably why they say it's not compatible, if it matters to you (or anyone else) you can figure out the pin-out of the motherboard (from the documentation), the pin-out of the USB ports (from the web) and you can use a straight pin to lift the plastic flange on the case's USB connector and move the individual wires to the positions they belong in and make it compatible with the Gigabyte board.