[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

I put together a nice system this summer with an AMD Athlon XP 2000+, Gigabyte GA-7vaxp motherboard, 512 mbyte of Ram and other goodies, MoBo available at new egg for about 112$, will have AGP 8X and support the newest fastest memory, on board 5.1 sound, ethernet, RAID Firewire, USB 2.0.

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Gigabyte GA-7VAXP, VIA KT400 chipset 8X AGP ATX motherboard Retail
Specifications:
CPU Support: Socket A for AMD Athlon XP /Athlon/Duron processors
Chipset: VIA KT400/VIA 8235
Controllers: Promise PDC20276 ATA 133 RAID controller, Realtek 8100BL Ethernet 10/100Mb LAN controller, AC97 Realtek ALC650 6-channel sound Chip
Memory: 3x 184-pin DIMM slots
Memory Type: DDR400(PC3200) / DDR333 (PC2700) / DDR266 (PC2100) / DDR200 (PC1600), 3GB Max
IDE: 4 x UDMA ATA133/100/66 Bus Master IDE ports
Slots: 1x AGP(8X), 5x PCI
Ports: 1x FDD, PS/2 Keyboard/Mouse, 2x USB 2.0, 2x COM, 1x RJ45, Audio (1 x Line-in / 1 x Line-out / 1 x Mic) connector Model#: GA-7VAXP  user reviews-GA-7VAX   Special Free FedEx Saver Shipping

Add this for $91:

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Hot Item! AMD Athlon XP 2000+/266 FSB Processor CPU - 2000+/ 1.67GHz -Retail Box
BOX2000DMT3C. 3 Years Warranty. The AMD Athlon XP processor with QuantiSpeed architecture powers the next generation in computing platforms, delivering extra performance for cutting-edge applications and an extra-ordinary computing experience.world's highest overall performing PC processor.
Specifications:
CPU: 1.67 GHz
Type: 2000 XP
Cache: 256K
BUS: 266MHz
Socket A (PGA)
Retail (Box with Heatsink and Fan)Free FedEx Saver Shipping more info>

And for a really nice looking box go with this:

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Price is down to $173:

Cooler Master ATC-210-VX1 (VERDANT). All Aluminum and Acrylic Case. Dual USB ports at the front. Drive Bay: 5.25' Bays (Exposed) x 4, 3.5' Bays (Exposed) x 2, 3.5' Bays (Shadow) x 4. 2 fans. Slot Bracket: 7. M/B Type: Standard ATX MB. Dimension: 520 mm(L) x 196 mm(W) x 452 mm(H). No Power Supply. Model#: ATC-210-VX1(VERDANT)   (Click here for Power Supplies)  FedEx Saver Shipping $12.00

Has a removable motherboard tray, and you will need a good power supply!

Several choices on the acrylic, blue and frosted blue!

All othe above available from newegg!

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Here is a more complete spec on the Gigabyte board:

GA-7VAXP VIA KT400+8235 chipset
PROCESSOR
	Socket A for AMD Athlon™ XP / Athlon™ / Duron™ processor
CHIPSET
	Northbridge : VIA KT400
	Southbridge : VIA 8235
	VIA 8X V-Link architecture (533MB/s)
	VIA VT6306 IEEE1394 controller
	Super I/O : ITE IT8705F
	Smart I/O : Winbond Smart@IO
	Promise PDC20276 ATA 133 RAID controller
	Raeltek 8100BL Ethernet 10/100Mb LAN controller
	AC97 Realtek ALC650 6-channel sound Chip
	Dual BIOS
MEMORY
	Type : DDR400(PC3200) / DDR333 (PC2700) / DDR266 (PC2100) / DDR200 (PC1600) -184pin
	Max capacity : Up to 3GB by 3 DIMM slots
CONNECTOR
	1 x AGP universal slot (8X/4X/2X-AGP 2.0 compliant)
	5 x PCI slots (PCI 2.2 compliant)
	1 x FDD port
	4 x UDMA ATA133/100/66 Bus Master IDE ports
	3 x IEEE 1394 connectors
	2 x 2ports USB 2.0 connector (by front USB ports)
	1 x 2ports USB 2.0 connector (by cable with rear USB bracket)
	Memory Stick / Security Digital (MMC) / Smart Card Reader connectors
	2 x cooling fan pin header
REAR PANEL
	PS/2 Keyboard / Mouse
	2 x USB 2.0 ports
	2 x COM ports
	1 x RJ45 LAN port
	Audio (1 x Line-in / 1 x Line-out / 1 x Mic) connector
	1 x joystick
CPU SETTING
	CPU FSB adjustable via BIOS (1MHz-linear)
	CPU multiplier by DIP Switch
	CPU Vcore Voltage adjustable via BIOS
	AGP Voltage : N/A
	Memory Voltage : N/A
H/W MONITORING
	System health status auto-detect and report by BIOS
	H/W detect and report power-in voltage, CPU voltage, and Fan Speed Support auto detect temperature thermal shutdown function
POWER
	ATX power connector
	Power-off by Windows 95/ 98/ Me/ 2000/ NT/ XP shut down and Switch
BIOS
	2Mbit flash RAM
	AMI BIOS with enhanced ACPI feature for PC98/Win98/Win2000/WinMe/XP compliance, Green, PnP, DMI, INT13 (>8.4GB) and Anti-Virus functions
	IDE#1~#4, SCSI, LS120, ZIP and CD-ROM bootable
	AC recovery ON/OFF control
FORM FACTOR
	ATX, Dimension : ( 23.5 x 30.4 cm )
OTHER FEATURES
	GIGABYTE patented DualBIOS™
	Suspend-To-RAM (STR)
	Supports USB KB/MS Wake up from S3
	Poly fuse for keyboard over-current protection

[Terriergal]

oh be quiet. I can't afford to upgrade yet. ;-)

But what I have plays most of the good 3d combat sim games just fine. (Geforce 2MX 32MB)

When my frame rate gets too low I'll upgrade. heh.