So I have a "vintage" gaming rig if you've followed my post, and I've got a few questions about it, the specs of the PC in question are:
First and foremost, I only have $25 or so in the whole computer. I don't intend to spend a lot on it either.
Windows 98 SE Plus!
MSI Socket 478 SiS chipset mATX motherboard
Celeron D 3.06GHz
1GB DDR400
AGP 8X nVidia GeForce FX 5500 256MB GPU
Sound Blaster Live! Value PCI sound card
2x 80GB IDE HDD's (Western digital and a seagate I think, I've forgotten) For windows 98
1x 160GB (Or 320GB, I've also forgotten) IDE HDD for Windows XP
With that out of the way, I'll cut to the chase, first question:
First, does anyone know of any "quiet" Socket 478 CPU coolers? Even with the fan controlled to spin down and set to let the system run a bit on the warm side, it's still loud! It sounds like a face hugger is stuck in a vacuum when my CPU fan spools up under load. If nothing else, I guess I'll have go go with a Noctua "I've spilled brown on my fan" 60mm CPU fan, they seem quiet enough. But $15 for a fan? Bah, this really offends me.
Second, does anyone know any alternatives to mechanical hard drives I can use on the IDE bus? I know CompactFlash is one option, but a bit pricey. SD would probably be laughably slow and ultimately not survive long term use. Sooo, I guess if anyone knows anything other than CF I can use, lemme know... Unless you have a magic trick to make SATA work on Windows 98 'cause the SiS chipset on my board does not like Windows 98 at all!
If you tell me "Emulation is a better solution", I'll completely ignore you. Emulation bores me, real hardware amuses me, even if it's a bit too new it's still great playing games from my childhood on a CRT. I however, do not miss trackball mice... Not at all...
Otherwise, if you have suggestions to make the CPU cooler quieter, or storage options let me know!
