I have run various types of hardware, and unless you are going to go with a P3 CPU, I would suggest going with new memory also. I have run both Intel and AMD based systems, and personally, I recommend AMD. AMD chips are a better value, hands down. My last few system configurations were:
1. AMD T-Bird 1.2GHz@200Mhz fsb (100Mhz fsb)
w/Abit KT7 SDRAM Mobo
w/Iwill KA266 DDR Mobo
2. AMD T-Bird 1.2GHz@266Mhz fsb (133Mhz fsb)
w/Iwill KA266 DDR Mobo
w/Gigabyte GA-7DX DDR Mobo
w/Iwill XP333 DDR Mobo
3. Intel P4 1.8GHz@400Mhz fsb
w/Epox 4BDA DDR Mobo
4. AMD AthlonXP 1800 (1.53GHz@266Mhs fsb)
w/Iwill XP333 DDR Mobo
My 1.2G/266fsb T-Bird was every bit as fast, IMO, as my 1.8G P4 running DDR.
The P4 really doesn\'t benifit from any memory besides RDRAM. Anything less than RDRAM with a P4 is a waste of money. IMO
I would recommend an AthlonXP, and I personally am partial to Iwill boards. Though I am considering a Soyo Dragon KT400 Ultra.
DFI also makes rocksolid motherboards at an low price.
You can get 256Mb PC2100 DDR from
http://www.crucial.com for around $36, and most of the time they have free shipping.
As far as ATI/AMD problems, if you have any, they can generally be fixed with updating your ATI driver.
Current setup:
AthlonXP 1800 (1.53Ghz)
Iwill XP333
256Mb Crucial(Micron) PC2100 DDR
Hercules Geforce3 TI500
Creative SoundBlaster Live!
Acer 10x4x32 CD-RW
8x DVD
WindowsXP Pro