need motherboard info

hi there everyone.

im going to be attempting to build my own pc very soon. (1st time).

i have got basic knowledge but would like i guide on what to look for wen deciding on which mohter board to get.

has anyone got any links or info they wud like to share.

have not decided on wat cpu yet, amd looks best for gaming, which is essentially wat i want to build it for and encoding films

I wud like to know basics if poss on the connections (for thinking of future upgrading) and i dont really understand FSB and.... well actually all the info you could give me to further my knowledge.


thanks


lee

Understanding comes with doing. Most of what people on here say may sound kinda funny to you but they all mean something and after the first few times you will start to pick it up. The stuff i am about to say may seem confusing but i will try to keep it simpler.

Now:

Amd processor is a good choice for gaming because right now they mop the floor with any intels even close to the same price range. If you go with and then you have to determine your socket type, either 754 or 939. This just means how many pins are on the bottom of the cpu. 939 is newer and offers more speed and options but is more expensive than 754.

Motherboard depends on preference really other than features. Just make sure that you get the right cpu for the right motherboard. As in a socket 754 motherboard for socket 754 cpu, etc.

I believe u plan on getting a video card because you say u are planning on gaming. Onboard video just doesn't cut it. Now the video card that you get depends on your motherboard and your budget. I would suggest getting a motherboard that supports pci-e because pci-e covers from very low to very high prices. Some boards have agp wich is older, has less of a better selection, and is normally pricier. The only real reason to go with agp is if you have a pretty good older agp card that you would like to use.

Now with memory (ram) if you go amd then you will have to get ddr and if you go intel then older intels use ddr and newer ones use ddr2. Will have to check what the board supports. If you go amd then i would get some corsair value select maybe 2x512 running at pc 3200. If you go intel then i have no clue because i don't have any intels.

Case just depends on you but the cases are different sizes and if you get a very small one then you will have to pick a different motherboard (micro atx) and a different power supply (micro atx)

Hard drives just depends on how much size you want and that is said in gb's (gigabytes). The bigger the number the more stuff you can fit in it. I wouldn't go any less than 80gb, maybe go for 160gb or up. The hard drives also have different interfaces, these are ide, sata, and sata2. While only sata and sata2 are backwards compatible, most boards today have all three if not just sata and ide so it shouldn't be a problem.

For optical drives (cd-drive dvd drive) just get one that you like and is fast. Most are about the same speed at least the ones newegg sells.

hope this helps i hope i didn't forget anything and ask if u need me to clear something up. Also would help alot and maybe we could make some suggestions if you put up your price range.