Looking for a new computer.. been out of the game too long

K

Kassem

Limp Gawd
Joined
Mar 15, 2006
Messages
284
BUDGET: 500ish
I want to get to the point of diminishing returns
best equipment before the price JUMPS!


Here is my current computer, this should date me:

Shuttle SB61G2
P4 2.4c 800mhz fsb
1GB Corsair Value PC3200
Radeon 9800 Pro

I dont want the new computer to be miniATX. I'd like to have a nice power supply instead of this 200w POS, so I can run many many PATA and SATA drives (I already have so many PATA, so the new computer has got to be compatible).

Right now I have INTEL. I used to have AMD. I dont care either way.

I think I am probably going to buy my gear used, if I can get a significantly better deal.


Ty for help

Jeremy
 
Your best bet is to buy a faster processor for that same socket, a better power supply, and an X850 XT or maybe even a 7800 GT. Throw in a new cheap-ish case and your $500 is gone already.
 
I was kind of planning on selling this computer to a friend, then using that money and some of my own to upgrade to something completely new.

You dont think that I would see a large improvement with going 64bit, getting 2gb of value ram PC3200 or 4000, and then possibly keeping my 9800pro or going with a PCI-E card costing up to about 150ish (used)?

Thoughts?
 
I don't think he's referring to the whole upgrade being 150'ish... I think he's talking about just the video card. As far as going 64bit... thats completely up to you... you have to remember that most applications won't work with 64bit windows yet... As far as processors go though.. I'd def. get a dual core processor.
 
Shuttle SB61G2
P4 2.4c 800mhz fsb
1GB Corsair Value PC3200
Radeon 9800 Pro
Click to expand...
If you sell that system, you better get enough money to afford you a motherboard, harddrive, optical drive, maybe a floppy drive, if you have a soundcard, that too, and a case. If you cannot sell it for that, don't bother. Upgrading is probably the best route.

64bit right now is kind of a useless feature. Vista will be able to take advantage of it, but developer support is still almost nonexistant. I would reccommend just upgrading the processor to perhaps a 3.2 or 3.4 ghz, and then going with something like a 7800GT for the videocard. If you have money leftover, get the ram up to 2gb.
 
Starting from scratch, $500 isn't a whole lot of money for a gaming rig.

I just built a Sempron rig with a 6200 video card and 1gig of RAM for my girlfriend. It cost just over $500. I was playing Civilization 4 on it with no problems, but I certainly wouldn't try any of the more graphically intensive games.

What kind of games are you hoping to play? That would tell us a lot about what kind of computer you'll need.

Also, the much forgotten second half of PC gaming is the monitor. Do you have a decent monitor to play on already? If it's some 15" piece of shit, then what's the point. You know?
 
PoweredBySoy said:
I just built a Sempron rig with a 6200 video card
Click to expand...
.


I would like to point out that your 9800 is already better than this card, so do like everyone is saying and just upgrade some on what you have!
 
It wouldnt be a from scratch upgrade.

I would have:

CDRW
HDD's
Video Card (I can keep this one and upgrade to something diff later)

I guess what I would be buying is:

PSU
CPU
Motherboard
Case
RAM

For those pieces, I would have around 500$
 
But by buying an AGP motherboard now, you'll be severly limiting your upgrade options in the future. And that 9800 isn't going to last you much longer. I would opt for a pci-e motherboard and budget video card though, if only to plan ahead.

But then, upgrading hardware is always a slippery slope. Before you know it you're spending twice as much as you had originally planned.
 
Here's a decent build for ~$500:
Motherboard:
Asus A8N5X @ $75

Case:
Centurion 5 @ $50

Video Card:
eVGA 7600GT @ $170 or $150 after MIR

Power Supply:
FSP 400W @ $41

Memory:
G.Skill 1gig (2x512) kit @ $77

Processor:
A64 3200+ Venice @ $99

Total: $512

Trade out the motherboard for this one if you'd like to save another $10. The video card can be substituted for something else if you aren't looking to play the newest FPS games at the highest settings.

If I were you though, I'd sell your system ASAP and towards the end of next month, socket AM2 and 939 processor pricing will look like this. If you do choose to go the AMD route, I'd recommend trying to stay with an AM2 based system, because you'll be able to upgrade to a new processor in the future as well as not have to deal with increasing DDR1 prices.
 
You might get a better response in GenHard on this one, I'll put you there. ;)
 
ya know... you guys are going to laugh but I dont play anything but CS1.6, CSS, and WoW. I think i'm going to just upgrade the computer I have, for now.
 
454Casull said:
It's a good habit to include shipping costs. Money for shipping isn't free.
Click to expand...

lol, thanks, i appreciate the tip. I figure if the kid wants to buy used shipping cost is moot, that and this whole thing is an estimate either way.
 
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