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Thinking of buying AN35N...

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Venesectrix

Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2003
This is my first try at building a computer, so I want to get it right. Is there anything wrong with this board? Does it overclock well? I've heard of some issues with Corsair RAM, but that's mostly with the XMS series. Would non-XMS Corsair RAM work with this, or should I buy from a different company? The system I'm thinking of building is:

Mobo- Shuttle Motherboard for AMD processors Model AN35N-Ultra Retail
RAM- CORSAIR MEMORY 512MB PC2700 VALUE SELECT. DDR RAM - OEM
Hard Drive- Seagate 40GB 7200rpm EIDE Hard Drive OEM Barracuda 7200.7 ST340014A
Processor- AMD ATHLON XP 2400 /266 FSB PROCESSOR CPU - RETAIL
Video Card- Aopen GeForce2 MX400 64MB DDR 8X AGP - Retail Box

Please let me know if there are any problems with this setup or motherboard, any help would be greatly appreciated ;)
 
Hey V, The AN35N is a nice little budget Gaming/OCing board. Its not the fastest, best equipted board out there but its pretty quick, stable and very forgiving which I would think make it a good board for your first build. Yes, it doesn't like low-latency RAM and sometimes won't run some sticks at CAS 2. I use 2 x 256mb Crucial PC2700 paired with a 1700+ T-Bred DUT3C @185FSB X 11.5 for XP3200+ type speeds. I also built a mATX LAN rig using the Shuttle MN31N and a retail Barton 2500+ which I can also highly recommend. The Seagates are a good drive, fast and quiet however I'd suggest you also consider the Western Digital 800JB drives. 80G, 7200rpm, 8mb cache, 3 year warranty, $75.00 delivered make them a pretty good option IMHO - I use 4 of them currently in different rigs. The video card is a waste of money as for a few $ more you can get a GF4mx card which will perform better or buy a Shuttle MN31N which has onboard GF4mx graphics as well as excellent audio, USB2, LAN, Firewire and SPDIF support. Good Luck!
Regards, Balrog
 
Sorry if this seems rushed, but My computer froze just as I typed up a long response ><. Anyway, I forgot to tell you that I'm going to dual boot Windows XP pro and Linux (Red Hat 9), so I tried to make sure all my parts were Linux-compatible.

On RAM: I looked up the Crucial 256MB PC2700 and it has the same latency as the corsair I'm thinking of- 2.5. Is it the latency or the fact that it's Corsair memory that's causing problems?

On the CPU: You got a 1.47GHz processor to run at 2.2GHz? Wow...what kind of cooling did you use? Did you have to conect any bridges or do T-Breds come unlocked?

On the Hard Drive: I read somewhere (forgot the site name) that a bunch of people had problems using Western Digital hard drives with this mobo. While I realize that 40GB seems small, I really don't need that much space (I've lived with this computer with a 10GB HDD for about 2 years now), since I don't listen to music and don't watch movies on my computer.

On the Video Card: I just wanted the cheapest card that had relatively good 3d (so I could play games like starcraft and diablo II), was supported by Linux, and had TV-Out (I think that's the thing where you can use a TV as a monitor, but I'm not sure. Can someone confirm/deny this?)

I'll look into the T-Bred 1700, as that would shave about $50 off the total price of this computer and I'm on a pretty tight budget. What I really need is a cheap processor that can be overclocked to about 2-2.5GHz. I've got a few questions regarding the cooling of my mobo/CPU/RAM- how much do I need? The case I'm leaning towards comes with 2x 92mm fans (one as a blowhole on top, the other blowing directly onto the CPU), plus the retail processor comes with a heatsink and fan (BTW, can someone tell me if AMD processors come with good heatsinks/fans or should I go out and buy a new one?), and I'm probably gonna buy a rear exhaust fan. Is this enough? Should I get a RAM heatspreader or some more case fans or something like that? Do they sell motherboard fans?

Oh, one more thing, does this board have good onboard LAN? My home has a LAN, with currently 2 computers (this one and my father's) conected to it, and I'm probably going to add this computer (the one I'm building) to our LAN. Will it work? Anyone have any compatibility issues with the onboard LAN?
 
You beat me to it V, I've been planning on messing with some Linux myself, keep me posted how it goes.

On RAM - IMHO its latency as much as Brand as long as its quality, Corsair Value RAM should be fine.

On CPU - This board will "un-lock" multipliers if you have a T-Bred or Barton, no mods necessary.:D Yup, my $41.00 1700+ is very nice, I'm using the Volcano 11+ HSF with the adjustable fan control, last I knew it was $29.00 at NewEgg. Currently running a quiet and reasonably cool 42C @1.750V, 3500rpm. When I game I crank up the fan to 5500rpms which I can't hear through my headphones.

On HDD - I don't know of any issues with this board, however there have been some issues with disk failure with the 800JB, I lost one myself, NewEgg got me a free replacement fast though. May as well get your Seagate, they are good drives and should serve you well.

On Video - $50.00 GF4mx440 -not SE- if you look around you can find them with newer BGA type RAM, faster cores (275mhz) and TV-out. Don't worry about 8X compatability, doesn't mean much. You should really look at the MN31N it only costs $81.00 delivered at NewEgg, onboard video, excellent sound, LAN, everything you need in one board.

TV-out isn't all that its cracked up to be unless you have HDTV as the naitive resolution is much lower than that of a monitor, text is very hard to read, its good for playing DVDs and thats about it, of course DVDs look better on a monitor as well.

On cooling - The bigger the fan, the slower it needs to turn to create the same air-flow (CFMs) thus 92 and 120mm will generally be quieter than 70 and 80mm. I use Vantec 120mm fans as front intakes on all my rigs, I use 80& 92mm everywhere else. Side ducting is quite helpful, I run an 80mm in the side window of my MN31N LAN rig blowing directly into the 60mm retail HSF on the Barton 2500+ which is excellent CPU and heat sink. In general AMD has greatly improved their HSF on their retail units and they don't charge much for them, the 3 year warranty is also nice.

Both Shuttle boards have good LAN performance, the audio of the MN31N is excellent as its the MCP-T where the sound on the AN35N is just the MCP which I found lacking in game support and replaced with a SBL for $33.00

I'm not up on the Linux compatability of any of the components but I believe both MoBos are okay. You might want to come visit us over at www.nforcershq.com forums where there is a lot more info and linux folk lurking around to help you, plus if you're interested in nForce thats what its all about. If you need a hand or have a question, I'm known as Szandor over there and every other forum for that matter :p

Good Luck V!

Regards, Balrog/Szandor
 
I have to disagree on the fan size/noise comparison. In theory, they would be quieter, but for whatever reason, there are no 92mm or 120mm fans that are as quiet or quieter than an 80mm Vantec Stealth, Panaflo, Papst or Zalman fan. Even their own 92mm and 120mm fans aren't as quiet as their 80mm fans. Who knows why, but testing has shown it to be. Besides, how many cases allow for 92mm or 120mm fans?
 
The case I'm probably gonna end up getting comes with 2 92mm fans :p. The good thing is one of them's a side intake one where it blows directly on the mobo/CPU ^^;;

Anyway, on the cooling aspect of it, I don't know if I should get the Volcano 11+ or a thermalright SK-7. I posted this in the cooling forum and everyone recommended the SK-7, but the problem is newegg doesn't have it in stock right now (and they won't restock until the end of the month -_-).

I noticed that the video card I'm planning on getting has a side which looks like it should be sticking out of the back of the case, with a bunch of cable inserts and ports and stuff. Will I have to saw parts of my case open so that I have a space for these ports to come out of in the back, or do cases come with open AGP/PCI holes so you can just stick a card in?
 
The SK-7 is probally a better performing heat sink if money is not an issue. I like the V-11 as I get an 80mm adjustable fan with controller for the price of the SK-7 itself. The AN35N has a open area that most boards use for a PCI slot adjacent to the AGP, this is for the newer "stacked" video cards like the Abit OTES line, so I don't believe you will have a problem. As you didn't say what brand and model your card was this is the best answer I can give you. Thats great that you got 2 X 92mm fans with your case, just remember when it comes to cooling that the purpose is to move as high a volume of air (CFMs) in and out of your case as quietly as possible. What some people fail to remember is that while an 80mm fan may very well be a little quieter than a 120mm fan, it will take more of them to supply the same air volume and thus they will cost more and create more noise.
Regards, Balrog
 
I like the V-11 as I get an 80mm adjustable fan with controller for the price of the SK-7 itself
I like the V-11 because it's got those cool fan adjuster knobs that go right into one of your drive slots :). BTW, the Volcano 11+ uses a Smart Case Fan II (or so I've heard) which I might buy from newegg at $8.99.

As you didn't say what brand and model your card was this is the best answer I can give you
*points at first post* :p

the purpose is to move as high a volume of air (CFMs)
Just wodering...what does CFM mean? How much air is one CFM?


Thanks for responding :D
 
Glad I could help, Good Luck!
Edit: CFM =Cubic Feet/Minute, its the volume of air contained in a 1ft x 1ft x1ft box The higher the CFM, the more air is moved and the greater the noise generated, all things being equal.

Regards, Balrog
 
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