Athlon MP

[Mike Fishcake]

Well, I didn't have much option when I was putting my kit together - rush job. If it's single CPU, your client might want to wait for the single-socket dual core ones to come out. Don't skimp on the board; nForce Professional ought to be the way to go - good memory bandwidth and two full PCI-Ex16 lanes see HERE. The ASUS K8N-DL looks a good bet, and Scan have that for £178.49 ex VAT. If he doesn't want to wait, he might actually consider a couple of single core Optis, but that's something you might discuss with him. 246's are under £200 ex VAT each at the mo, and I can tell you they give a lot of bang for buck (or quid). DON'T skimp on memory - you need good quality Registered, ECC for preference.

edit: Just realised - 19" rack - is this going to be a server? If so the PCI-E stuff won't be relevant.

Right. Back on this again. I'm probably going to go for that, but can someone give me advice on what sort of PSU I need for this?

[nichomach]

Honking. Purely for stability I'd opt for an Enermax or Antec. My 2x246s run off an Enermax 550W (via a 20-24 pin adapter...). I'm sure you know this already, but it's not just about the watts, it's about the quality and stability of the output, as well as the durability of the PSU; quick test - wander in here and say "I'm thinking of getting a QTech power supply for my new server...". I guarantee you'd hear the cries of "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" in Peru .

Actually, Dabs have some rather nice looking Antec rackmount cases that come with 350W or 550W supplies that might do you very nicely; their 3U 550W version comes in at £152 ex VAT and it looks a stonkingly good case. If you already have a case, then something like http://www.dabs.com/uk/channels/comp...quicklinx=3PMT.