🚀 go-pugleaf

Hi Everybody,

I've decided after quite a long lapse to build/purchase a new system
and I need some help deciding what parts to get.  

Here are my constraints and requirements (okay, well everything's flexable..):

cost:  		< $3K, not including any software or the Expansion stuff below
CPU:		486DX-50 or 486DX2-66 (maybee consider 486DX-33
OS:		DOS/Windows, BSD386+Xfree86
BUS:		EISA (maybee want to go over 16MB RAM)
Video:  	Color 1024X768, 16" if I can afford it, VESA if possible
Memory:         >= 8MB
Hard Disk:	>= 120MB
Floppy:		3.5 + 5.25"
Network: 	Not now, but maybee ethernet later
Backup:		Cheap, capacity close to Hard Disk

Expansion Plans:    sound card, CD-ROM, Fax/modem (needs to have lots of free slots)
                    and I'd like to be able to use full height 5.25" devices in 
                    the drive bays if possible.

Here's what I'm thinking so far.  I haven't decided to build it myself or go
bundled.  I'm considering all options.  Please chime in if you think I've made
a wrong assumption.

Motherboard:  486 EISA with VESA bus.  EISA seems like the right bus since 
              ISA is to slow for the 32-bit chips and ISA addressing cuts out
              at 16MB.  Besides, you can use ISA Cards in an EISA bus (right?) 
              I haven't heard too much about Micro
              Channel these days so I'm avoiding it.   Also, memory should be SIM
              only, and fully expandable (maybee up to 32MB with 4MB SIMS) on the 
              motherboard so I
              don't have to mess with a weirdo expansion card to upgrade memory.
              VESA seems like the way to go right now, even though there are
              only a handful of video board suppliers.  The major increase in 
              bus bandwidth is just too good to pass up.  I'd prefer a board
              with a highly integrated chip set.  The way I figure, lower parts
              count = lower failure rate.   It sounds like the 
              Micronics board fits the bill.  How about these other brands:
              Mylex, AMI, COMPAQ.
              
              What AT Chip sets (Chips, POACH, etc..) do these boards use?

              What other boards are there from reputable manufacturers with
              a proven track record?  Reliability is definately on the top
              of my list.
            
Video Card:   Most of the VESA talk is about the Diamond card and it has some
              nasty problems that make high-res X window system installation
              impossible, for now, until someone figures out the clock stuff.
              What else is there?  Are Orchid, Video7, Genoa cards pretty 
              good?  How about ATI?

              What ISA and EISA video cards give you the most bang for the buck?

              What Chipsets are commonly used besides the Tseng ET4000?

              It looks like $200-$300 is the price range for a 1024X768, 16
              color card.  Do any of these cards do 256 colors in this mode?

              Is there a significant difference between the performance between
              similarly priced ISA, EISA, or VESA cards?  (I will be using
              ms-windows pretty heavily)

              Can any of the VESA systems be enhanced with bit-blt accelerator
              devices like the Weitek chip?

Monitor:     I have no Idea what's out there.  The sony trinitron tubes seem nice
             but there usually pretty spendy.  What monitor brands in the 14 to 16" 
             range have proven reliable?  What tubes do they use?  How much will
             I pay for a decent 16" or 14" multi-sync monitor?

Hard Drive:  I'm thinking SCSI is the way to go since I might want to daisy 
             chain a tape drive and I don't want to have to get a new controller.
             How much will I pay for a SCSI instead of an IDE?  Are MFM, RLL, and
             ESDI no longer widely supported by the industry?

             Can any typical controllers handle Fixed, 3.5 and 5.25 disks?
             Who makes good general purpose controllers these days?

             Are IDE and SCSI both currently supported by BSD386?

             Will it be cheaper to get the IDE and add a seperate 
             controller for the tape drive?

             Can I expect the same level of performance (access time/throughput) 
             from similarly priced SCSI and IDE drives?

             Who makes reliable  medium-high (100-300MB) density drives?

             Can any typical controllers handle Fixed, 3.5 and 5.25 disks?
             Who makes good general purpose controllers these days?


Tape Backup: What's the cheapest way to backup 100 Megs or more?  How 
             cheap is "cheap"? I don't care too much about speed, 
             as long as I can do it overnight.  Are there any cards
             that allow backup on a Generic VCR?  How much do these cost?


What Bundeled systems do you think would fit this bill?  What mail order
houses have you had good experience with?


Any comments on this extremely verbose posting will be greatly appreciated.
Please e-mail if possible and if I get more than a few responses, I'll
post'em.

Thanks ahead of time,


David Munoz
munoz@bcstec.boeing.com