New PC Configuration

Following is a PC configuration I plan to assemble. Would appreciate any comments/observations/advice. The PC will be used for video editing in addition to the normal PC chores. I plan to setup as a dual boot with Windows 98SE on the C-drive (FAT 32) and Windows XP (NTFS) on the D-drive. I plan to have another drive with a 300GB capacity (NTFS) for ALL data files used
by both OS's.

·Tyan S2665UANF E7505 Audio/GB-LAN/IEEE/US with Adaptec SCSI
·Intel Xeon 3.2 GHz !MB 533 FSB Dual CPU
·Corsair 1.0GB DDR Registered
·Thermaltake Dream Tower Series – Tsunami VA3000BNA
·Cooler Master Aerogate II ALD-V02 Thermal Control Monitor
·Enermax 550W Power Supply For Intel Xeon & AMD MP Model EG651PVE24P
·Teac 1.44MB 3½” Floppy
·Sony SDT-11000/PB DDS-4 Internal Drive, PCBacker Solution Kit with Wide Ultra SCSI
·Seagate Cheetah Ultra160 SCSI, 68 Pin, 15,000rpm, 5.6mms, 73.4GB Internal Drive
·Seagate Cheetah ST336752LW 36.7GB 15,000RPM Ultra3 SCSI 68 Pin) Internal Drive
·Hitachi Ultrastar 10K300 (IBM) 300GB Ultra320 SCSI 68 pin 10,000 RPM Internal Drive (HUS103030FL3600)
·HP DVD Writer dvd420i
·Plextor PlexWriter 40x12x40x CD-RW Ultra SCSI Drive (optional)
·Creative Labs Audigy Platinum Pro (external device)
·ATI Radeon All-in-Wonder Pro 9800 XT 256 DDR 8x/4x AGP TV Out
·Pinnacle Version 5 Video Editing/Video Capture
·U.S. Robotics 5633A 56K External Voice Faxmodem w/ USB interface, V.92 & V.90 ITU Standard
·LogiTech Cordless Comfort Duo with Mouse
·HP OfficeJet G85xi (already own)
·Netopia Cayman ADSL Modem/Router 3341-ENT (already own)
·Viewsonic P95F 19-inch Flat Screen, 1920x1440 Resolution, 25mm (already own)

While the hard drives are SCSI, getting some of the other peripherals in SCSI is very difficult. I assume that, given the state of EIDE technology, mixing the two is not a problem. True?

Can the 98SE read data files stored on the NTFS drive?

I plan to share a printer and modem via a Belkin USB switch. I have not done this before. Is is possible for another computer to access the dial-up modem via a modem connected to the USB switch if that computer is also connected to the switch? Are there any special configurations necessary on the computer accessing the modem?

Thanks in advance ...

 

just wondering...why w98? anyways if you have the money to buy a 9800xt 256mb might as well the new generation x800pro/xt which is a few bucks more...also those hard drives for video editing seem rather small; what about large 10-14,000rpm SATA drives? (cept for that large one)Also the SB audigy2 zs pro is a much better product then that external sb audigy...

 

I do not think that there is a native workaround that would allow you to read an NTFS drive through windows 98, however just doing some minor research I stumbled across an application that provides cross-platform file system support. the one I found is here http://www.sysinternals.com/ntw2k/freeware/ntfswin98.shtml

I am sure there are others, and someone on here probably will have a suggestion for you.

as far as the hardware goes, most of it looks nice. One thing I would consider changing is the All-In-Wonder card. instead, I would buy a regular 9800XT (or an X800 XT if you have the money) and a seperate PCI TV-Tuner, such as the LeadTek Winfast TV 2000XP which I have myself and love. Althought it would use an extra PCI slot, it would give you the freedom swap out your video card without losing TV capabilities, or if you ever wanted to change it to another system, you would have the ability.

one more thing to look at, unless you have a specific reason for wanting the external portion of the SB Audigy Platinum Pro External, take a look at the M-Audio Revolution 7.1. Its a great card and significantly cheaper than the Creative for very similar performance. As an added bonus you wont have to deal with creative drivers

 

EDIT: @Omegamerc and jldodge, I believe SCSI is still faster than SATA, and for both of them in most cases, 10,000 RPM is faster than 15,000 (I believe). He really shouldnt need big windows drives if he has a large one for backup. that way he can easily reformat if windows ever corrupts.

 

Looks like I should drop the Windows 98 and sole boot on Windows XP. I have some old Windows 98 programs which was my primary motivation but friends say that many of them will likley work on the Windows XP system (unlike Windows 2000).

I had planned to use the ATI as my video card and the Pinnacle for video capture and editing. Did I misread their functionality/purpose? I have a large number of home VHS, 8mm, and digital tape that I want to move onto DVD. Will this configuration help me to accomplish that? What else do I need?

Thanks again ... y'all have been great ...

 

Only thing to add to the other replies, you may find it easier to put a small network to run the two computers (If it is just the two machines, it may be as simple as a single cable), that way, you can share the internet connection and the printer without the hassle of a switch box. Also, both machines will be able to use the internet at the same time.

 

Gotcha on the network. That is exactly what I will do. I know Win98 can access data on a NTFS drive via a network (I'm doing it now).

Thanks for all the help and advice ...

 

Urm, isnt that an Extigy?

The only reason I see not to use SCSI would be for an easy and cheap RAID setup... which is a good idea to use if you are doing video capture (striping means you get twice the write speed, so less dropped frames. Same goes for audio editing)

 

Interesting thought ...

I believe I would need two identical drives for a RAID setup. How would you configure given my setup? Should I RAID the OS drive or 2 additional drives (e.g. D and E)? With tape backup and no real need for RAID on the system in general, the use would probably be concentrated on the video editing function and given the time, "faster write and less dropped frames" would be worth it to me.