MB, CPU, RAM Upgrade?

[Rustynuts]

Want to do a cheap upgrade for my Mom's PC, something around $300. What's the best bang for the above stuff? AMD or Intel, probably stick with 512M ram. May also have to do a video upgrade. What's the best low-mid card out there for cheap?

 

[Carnival Forces]

A) I hate your post.
B) You did not ask courteously.
C) You have not stated the following:
1. What will the computer be used for?
2. What is its current specifications?
3. Is it a prebuilt (Dell, Gateway)?
4. What is your definition of "low-mid card"?
5. By "probably stic with 512M ram," do you mean you:
i. Already have 512MB of RAM?
ii. Have already decided to get 512MB of RAM?

 

[pbXassassinX1524]

Newbie Cheeze vs. [H]ard|Gawd... round one... ding ding!

 

[Mojo3k70]

ok.. before this thread becomes locked.. Ill just get a few things rolling, here are (In my opinion) some very decent items you asked for to upgrade an AMD system:

Motherboard: ASUS A7N8X This board has all the features one would need for great performance, decent overclocking and relief on your wallet.
CPU: Athlon XP 2500+ This seems to be one of the most popular chips around this forum. Locked or unlocked, this is a champ for overclocking and overall performance.

These two items together are well under 200$ leaving you with enough cash to spend on some very decent memory. I left the memory out due to you stating that you already have 512mb (or so I think).

 

[SJetski71]

Grab an Nforce2 mobo with integrated GF4mx video
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-138-234&catalog=22&depa=1

2 x 256 Crucial PC2700=$80, use 2 dimms to activate dual channel (necessary for onboard vid)
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=20-145-497&catalog=147&depa=1

A Barton XP2500 retail with HSF for $80
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-379&catalog=343&depa=1

$80 + $80 + $68 = $228, well under budget for more goodies

 

[Rustynuts]

Thanks all for the replies (except CF!), but to answer your own DISCOURTEOUS post,
1 - I don't really think it matter what the PC is used for, I want the most bang for the buck, but it will be used mainly for gaming (nephew) and surfing.
2 - Doesn't matter what the current specs are, that's why I'm upgrading everything, probably a sub-gig celeron.
3 - Homebuilt, but so old I don't remember what's in there.
4 - Something less than $100 I guess. A 9600XT is probably too much for the budget right now.
5 - New ram, probably ddr400 since it's not that much more than 2700.

 

[theNoid]

If the computer is used for gaming it is a must that you have an atleast decent card. 2004 will be a great year for gaming, with lots of upgrades and if you're not up to speed with the video, then this computer will be obsolete. Look online for either a 9600xt or a 9500pro. You could get one about $149 or so now.. thats a steal. gl

 

[Rustynuts]

I'm still running an old GF3 ti200 on my machine with no probs. I don't jack up the resolution over 1024x768 usually and it still chugs through all the recent games fine like Call of Duty, C&C Generals, etc. This is on an AMD 1800 too.

Just a note to the flamers, I've been on the board a long time (at least 4-5 years) which my current moniker doesn't show. I've probably run through about 3-4 user IDs over the years as I lose logins, change email, forum flushes, etc. So blow me on the newbie cheese comments!

 

[rusty]

what was so discourteous about the post?

 

[bobsaget]

Look at the motherboard/cpu/memory combo in my sig...

It was only $225 at newegg.com. As for the video card, get a G4 5200Ultra. My friend has a dell with this in it. It plays Halo with everything turned up. For $100, that's not bad.

http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=14-143-013&depa=1

 

[retardedchicken]

for that price, get a Geforce4 Ti4200, you will like it much more than you would the FX series