looking to replace some old parts

truflip

Limp Gawd
Joined
Aug 4, 2005
Messages
281
My eVGA's blown caps finally crippled and now the board won't post. I looked into replacing the capacitors but sourcing the caps seems too much of a hassle... and i have been bit by the upgrade bug :)

if I replace the board, I need to replace at least the CPU, and RAM. I would try to re-use the video card, PSU, etc...

Filled out the following:

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
CS: Source and CS based mods, source beta. Photoshop CS3/CS5, Photoshop Lightroom, tonnes of web browsing

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$300-400 CAD without tax/shipping

3) Where do you live?
Ottawa, Canada

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
CPU, RAM, Motherboard I think

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
AMD64 X2 3800+, 7600GT PCI-e, 2x1GB DDR500 Gold GX XTC, 320GB Seagate 7200.10, Pioneer DVR-108, Fortron 450Watt 36AMP dual 12v

6) Will you be overclocking?
yes

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
already have a 23" but I play CS: Source in windowed mode at 1280x800

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
asap, my motherboard died

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
RAID, I want to be able to secure my data for just incase. no need for dual VGA's as I don't really game on the PC much.

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? 32bit or 64bit?
Yes, 32bit XP Pro, might move up to Windows 7 64bit (havent decided between home premium/pro) if there's a good deal around here in Canada.
 
The good news is you should be able to get decent money for those DDR500 sticks on the FS/T forum. :p

I agree with Danny, replace that FSP PSU if its over 3yrs old.

Out of curiosity, what was the model # for your eVGA board?
 
Thanks for the help! Looked into the X2 555 but it seems like the rate for unlocking is under 50% and to increase the odds, it must be the right combination of mobo, cpu and luck? is this true? read about it on tomshardware.com
RAM: http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820144073 , $100
CPU/Mobo: http://www.newegg.ca/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.382198 , $170
Quad core Athlon II X4 635, Gigabyte 785G mobo, and 4GB Geil black dragon DDR2 800 RAM, total $270 before tax/shipping.....


edit: bah, was sniped......however, remember that a Phenom II X2 550 is only a probable unlock....also, any Phenom is honestly overkill for what he wants to do...
yea always thought of phenoms are super high end stuff. thanks for your suggestion. havent got a chance to go through the parts you suggested but I will tonight.
How old is that Fortron PSU?
i think from 2004. it is quite old now.
The good news is you should be able to get decent money for those DDR500 sticks on the FS/T forum. :p

I agree with Danny, replace that FSP PSU if its over 3yrs old.

Out of curiosity, what was the model # for your eVGA board?
The board is the eVGA 133-K8-NF43. I hear it's quite common and actually Jetway was the other guy who used to use the same caps and kept blowing. FZ55 caps.

is Fortron still a good brand for PSU's? I like that mine has pretty much lasted a very long time. It's the only original component I have that's still alive and kicking from the very original build of my system.

Going to post the RAM on the FS/T thread but I honestly don't know where to begin for price as I havent been in the "game" for well over 3 years.

Thanks again! HardForum is still kick ass!
 
Thanks for the help! Looked into the X2 555 but it seems like the rate for unlocking is under 50% and to increase the odds, it must be the right combination of mobo, cpu and luck? is this true? read about it on tomshardware.com
The rate for unlocking IIRC is around 60% to 70%. But the right combination of mobo, CPU, and luck is kind of needed.
i think from 2004. it is quite old now.

is Fortron still a good brand for PSU's? I like that mine has pretty much lasted a very long time. It's the only original component I have that's still alive and kicking from the very original build of my system.
Fortron is not a good brand anymore for PSUs. That 6 year old PSU would not be suitable for a new system. A good cheap replacement would be the Corsair 400CX 400W PSU.
Going to post the RAM on the FS/T thread but I honestly don't know where to begin for price as I havent been in the "game" for well over 3 years.
Could probably get $40 to $50 for that set.
 
unlock is as posted above between the 60-70% rate, with the right mobo


the Phenom's arnt "super" high end, rather they are just more suited for gaming, the performance gain in all the programs/tasks you listed will not be enough to be worth the money, especially since an Athlon II X4 can be had at about the same price as a Phenom II X2 555.....
 
The rate for unlocking IIRC is around 60% to 70%. But the right combination of mobo, CPU, and luck is kind of needed.

Fortron is not a good brand anymore for PSUs. That 6 year old PSU would not be suitable for a new system. A good cheap replacement would be the Corsair 400CX 400W PSU.

Could probably get $40 to $50 for that set.
is there a specific range of "build code" I should get for the CPU? I remember back with the AMD64's there were certain ranges that would perform on the OC better than others and what not. How about for motherboard? are the recommended boards in this thread the ones to pick to increase my odds of unlocking to four cores?

I'll pick up the Corsair. always liked them. Thanks again!

unlock is as posted above between the 60-70% rate, with the right mobo


the Phenom's arnt "super" high end, rather they are just more suited for gaming, the performance gain in all the programs/tasks you listed will not be enough to be worth the money, especially since an Athlon II X4 can be had at about the same price as a Phenom II X2 555.....
Is it safe to compare something like the i3 cores to the X2 555 or the Athlon II X4? Read an article of what a great OC'er the i3 530 is.... I guess I am contemplating that 60-70% chance of unlocking to four cores vs the OC-ability of an i3 530.
 
is there a specific range of "build code" I should get for the CPU? I remember back with the AMD64's there were certain ranges that would perform on the OC better than others and what not. How about for motherboard? are the recommended boards in this thread the ones to pick to increase my odds of unlocking to four cores?
There's a thread that answers most of the questions right here on the forums:
http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1499697
Is it safe to compare something like the i3 cores to the X2 555 or the Athlon II X4? Read an article of what a great OC'er the i3 530 is.... I guess I am contemplating that 60-70% chance of unlocking to four cores vs the OC-ability of an i3 530.

Yeah it safe to compare.
 
I'm liking the i3 530 more for what I'll be doing on the computer. I think if I were to go for high end use, I'd pick up an AMD solution though.

One question, my 7600GT is PCI Express. Modern boards are using PCI Express 2.0. Are these the same slot, just different bandwidth etc? In short, can I still continue to use my card on a new motherboard?
 
I'm liking the i3 530 more for what I'll be doing on the computer. I think if I were to go for high end use, I'd pick up an AMD solution though.

One question, my 7600GT is PCI Express. Modern boards are using PCI Express 2.0. Are these the same slot, just different bandwidth etc? In short, can I still continue to use my card on a new motherboard?

Yes and yes.
 
sweet, thanks!

So my build looks like this:

$60 - Corsair 400W PSU
$130 - Intel i3 530 CPU
$120 - DDR3-1600 Ripjaws

I need a board. Have $90 to spend but willing to stretch it to get a proper board.
Yes, I could get an AMD set up for less but the only AMD i'd want is the PII555 BE (reason's noted why I won't get it).

Anyway, I was researching between P55 vs H55 vs H57 and it seems like H55/7 are the new things?

There's an ASUS Asus P7H55-M Pro locally for $100 so if this one is good, I could get it. Otherwise, I'll look into the Gigabyte boards such as the GA-H55M-USB3 (USB3, prbably something id like at some point. I'm a photographer so I transfer to external drives and USB drives quite a lot)

Won't be doing RAID so H57 I can ignore. Won't be doing SLI also so the P55 is out. Also I've read that P55's don't OC i3 cores very well and that the H55's do a much better job pushing the little guy to it's limits.

I'd like your feedback on this as the last item I have to decide on is a board and really don't feel like crying over that decision, lol
 
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well.. the first link seems overqualified. also i really want to buy local and that CPU/Mobo locally is $300

the second one is good for the price though.
 
well.. the first link seems overqualified. also i really want to buy local and that CPU/Mobo locally is $300

the second one is good for the price though.

if you can get an overqualified package for the same price its great value. Buying locally is important but when they are the only decent game in town usually the cost savings wins. Newegg has a 30 day exchange/return policy fyi.
 
i'll try and price match their combo package. i shop at this local place pretty often so maybe they'll help me out. id feel bad buying an oq'd package because i cant use the components to their max but i suppose I can find ways to use them to their full cap.

The only software I'll be using are Adobe stuff. Photoshop and Lightroom mainly. after that, its quite literally just Firefox, and CS: Source on the gaming side (hence why I'm keeping the 7600GT).

I like Newegg, but i don't like the hassle of shipping things back and forth (at my expense). I used to shop at NCIX and stopped cause of that.

I'm still strongly considering an AMD quad set up and will try to get that combo you showed locally for around that price. Thanks for your input hoss.
 
well good luck man. Check out your local Canada computers and see if they price match.
 
thanks! couldnt get the x4 combo to a good price and would rather get i3 over the x2 550 so i'm going to get the i3 and hopefully be able to OC it at a good frequency.

read qutie a lot about the AMD's but yea.. the i3 offering appeals to me more.
going to get an H55 board with it as I hear they OC better than P55 chips.

it's pretty much 70% new build so I'll post my findings after I get the parts. thanks again to everyone for your help
 
I was going to snap pics this weekend but I have a chance to pick up an i5-750 for $155 CAD. I might get that along with a higher end board like the Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD3 for $115.

I think this is a great deal. Only $40 more than the i3 530 + P7H55M Pro I got
 
I recommend the Core i5 750 and Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD3 combination over what you picked up for yourself.

The next question is: Can you return what you've already bought?
 
Yes, they'll take exchange. They'll take it back (refund) also but theres a restocking fee, so it'll be parts exchange. If anything, they might deduct 5% off the CPU since the heatsink will not have its thermal compound anymore.

Thanks for the support. I definitely would feel even more futureproofed for only an extra $40 :D

hossdaddy: I live in Ottawa and CanadaComputers is opening their third store here so its a grand opening special. $60 off the i5-750 and $30 off the board. I think even with a restocking fee on my current parts, it'll still be quite good of a deal.
 
canada computers are pretty reasonable when it comes to restocking fees. As long as you return it nicely ie: boxes not ripped, packed away nicely. Even then it was only 5%. Great sale!
 
nice score!
Thanks!
canada computers are pretty reasonable when it comes to restocking fees. As long as you return it nicely ie: boxes not ripped, packed away nicely. Even then it was only 5%. Great sale!
Yep. Hence why I really much like to shop there over online retailers. Will be putting the system together tonight and hopefully snap some long overdue pictures.

Something i overlooked, you guys think my 400w Corsair will still handle the new CPU/board just fine? No big OC's but I do plan to get this new puppy up to maybe 3.6ghz
 
should be fine, would probably handle up to a radeon 5770 or gts 250 with ease.
 
thank you again hossdaddy. i decided to pick up a 5770. It was $140 so it was kind of hard to pass up.

going to pick up a new SATA DVDRW drive (mine's IDE) so it'll pretty much be a whole new build minus my harddrive.
 
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